Latest / onefjef / Turning 52 in Mexico City, Tongue Tacos & the Camote Man

Transcript

Turning 52 in Mexico City, Tongue Tacos & the Camote Man · onefjef

• 0:01
  This is episode 27 of onefjef.
• 0:05
  27 shows up in surprising places.
• 0:07
  It mirrors the moon's roughly 27-day sidereal cycle.
• 0:12
  It's tied to the 27 club, the cluster of iconic musicians and artists like Hendrix, Joplin, Morrison, Cobain and Winehouse who died at that age.
• 0:21
  And in numerology, it reduces to nine, the number associated with endings, perspective and the shift that happens when something important has run its course.
• 0:30
  Hola mis amigos.
• 0:32
  How are you?
• 0:34
  I hope you're thriving.
• 0:37
  It's December 3rd.
• 0:39
  I'm sitting on Patricia's rooftop patio in the beautiful Condesa neighborhood of Mexico City.
• 0:49
  Tomorrow I turn 52 years old.
• 0:54
  And I'm not quite sure what to do with that information.
• 0:58
  aside from just to accept it.
• 1:03
  52 has been a good year for me though, in spite of my unemployment, or perhaps because of my unemployment.
• 1:13
  guy's really vacuuming.
• 1:15
  Hope they're sucking it all up, whatever it is.
• 1:19
  Sucking up all the physical debris and the mental debris.
• 1:24
  I could use a mental vacuum.
• 1:26
  What is that?
• 1:26
  Is there a place you can go to get like a mental vacuum to suck out all the mental debris that kind of accumulated over the last year?
• 1:35
  There's not a lot, but there's some.
• 1:38
  And as my birthday approaches, I feel like it starts to like.
• 1:41
  Um
• 1:43
  coagulate.
• 1:45
  Anyway, I don't have an episode planned for this week.
• 1:49
  There's many reasons for this, of which I really care to go into at this point, but I am gonna just wing it, I guess.
• 1:58
  guess, no.
• 1:58
  Well, here's what I'll do.
• 2:00
  I'll turn it around.
• 2:01
  I do have an episode planned for this week, and that episode is going to be fantastic.
• 2:08
  It may not be long, and it may be somewhat random.
• 2:11
  but it's going to blow your socks off.
• 2:14
  And that's a phrase you don't hear used very often, blow your socks off.
• 2:19
  Is that actually a phrase or is it blow your shoes off?
• 2:30
  I'm at LAX, as you can hear by the background noise.
• 2:34
  And I'm sure you'll hear an announcement at some point.
• 2:38
  I've been here for about three and a half hours now and my flight leaves in about an hour and a half, I think, maybe two hours.
• 2:45
  oh
• 2:48
  Marky Mark Newman, you better get out there.
• 2:50
  Ah, what an exciting podcast this is turning out to be.
• 2:55
  But it's on location, people always like that.
• 2:57
  Oh, there's one of those golf carts behind me, right behind me.
• 3:03
  When I lived in London in my 20s, I was leaving London for my final time and I'd bought the plane ticket at some like student travel agency in central London.
• 3:14
  And then I...
• 3:15
  got the papers from them, which I assume was the ticket.
• 3:19
  And I took the train all the way out to Heathrow, which it's like a 45 minute, 50 minute train ride from central London to Heathrow.
• 3:26
  And I get to the airport with all of my luggage, which was a lot, because I'd been there for like seven or eight months.
• 3:31
  And I get to the counter and they tell me I don't have a ticket, it's just like a receipt or something.
• 3:36
  So I'm like, frig, dag nabbit.
• 3:40
  So I hightailed it back to central London, got the ticket as quickly as possible, got in a taxi, hightailed it back to the airport.
• 3:48
  And then when I got to the airport, I was like barely, barely, barely on time.
• 3:51
  And they put me in one of those golf carts with the swirling, you know, the light on top.
• 3:57
  And it just like jetted me through the airport to the gate.
• 4:00
  Like they were holding the gate door for me.
• 4:03
  And everybody was glaring at me as I got on the plane.
• 4:06
  But I made it home.
• 4:08
  And it was very exciting.
• 4:09
  uh
• 4:10
  And I felt very important, at least until I went and sat in my coach seat in the back.
• 4:18
  There's so many noises in an airport.
• 4:20
  I left from Terminal 1 in San Francisco, which is the Harvey Milk Terminal.
• 4:24
  Maybe it's Terminal 3.
• 4:25
  I don't know.
• 4:26
  But that is one of the nicest airport terminals I've ever experienced in my life.
• 4:30
  It's called a quiet terminal, so there's not a lot of announcements.
• 4:33
  So unless you're actually at the gate that the announcement is supposed to be directed at, you don't hear it.
• 4:37
  There's many other things that are nice, too.
• 4:39
  There's like a yoga r-
• 4:44
  uh They also have ambient water, you know, they have like the water things to fill your water bottles.
• 4:54
  Usually it's just like the one, it's just like cold water near the fountain.
• 4:58
  But at this terminal in San Francisco, they have uh hot water, I guess if you want tea or something, which is nice.
• 5:05
  And they have cold water, and then they have what's called ambient water, which confused me quite a bit at first.
• 5:13
  the terminology that is.
• 5:15
  Well, it's just room temperature water.
• 5:17
  But it's a fancy word for room temperature.
• 5:19
  And I guess you don't want to use the word tepid, because that has a negative sound to it.
• 5:25
  Ambient has a much more mellow San Francisco vibe to it.
• 5:29
  What else?
• 5:31
  Nothing else.
• 5:32
  I think I'm going to head to my gate and then find a place to sit and stare off into space.
• 5:56
  Hello, I'm in Mexico City.
• 5:58
  I'm on the roof of uh Patricia's apartment building.
• 6:05
  There's like a three-story spiral staircase to get up here and uh you know we're also at like seven, eight thousand feet here so I'm out of breath because I just kind of ran up
• 6:20
  the stairs.
• 6:21
  Give me a second.
• 6:22
  ah Hello.
• 6:26
  for Mexico City, Condesa to be specific.
• 6:33
  It's an incredibly charming neighborhood.
• 6:35
  Like there's just trees and tree line paths and streets and beautiful little bars and restaurants, people sitting outside eating and it's just really amazing.
• 6:45
  I really like it here.
• 6:47
  So yesterday, Sunday, Patricia suggested we go to this flea market ah that she liked.
• 6:55
  It's not a, it's like a market, but it's a flea market market.
• 6:58
  If there's any other way to put it, I forget what it's called.
• 7:01
  Let me look it up.
• 7:03
  Tianguis de Comanfort in Mexico City is the sprawling Sunday market attached to La Lagunilla, a maze of antiques, vintage clothes, vinyl, oddball treasures, and street food
• 7:13
  that hits you the second you turn the corner.
• 7:16
  Vendors shouting, music blasting, everyone bargaining.
• 7:19
  And tucked among the stalls, you'll find the real treat.
• 7:22
  Giant beers served in plastic cups with salty spicy chili powder coating the rim.
• 7:27
  The perfect thing to sip while you wander through the beautiful mess.
• 7:31
  Every Sunday here in Mexico City they have, I forget the name of it, it's called like Muevete en Bisi, which essentially means that they open a handful of streets or they close
• 7:44
  them to car traffic and open them just to bike traffic.
• 7:50
  And I was a little leery because I had just gotten here and I was concerned about the elevation and all that, but I was also like, fuck it.
• 7:55
  If I can't breathe, I'll just stop biking.
• 7:58
  But it was super fun.
• 7:59
  We biked down like the main boulevard, which went right by the area that I was staying in the left.
• 8:03
  And I was here and all these monuments and fountains and stuff.
• 8:07
  It was super fun.
• 8:09
  And I went to the flea market market, which was cool.
• 8:11
  It's like a flea market market.
• 8:13
  Guy has a ton of mirrors.
• 8:15
  Guy has a ton of dolls.
• 8:16
  Guy has a ton of his art stuff, his photos, whatever.
• 8:20
  person selling their homemade soap, you know, you get the idea.
• 8:23
  But at this one, there's a lot of these places that serve these beers with, they put different things on the rim of the beer.
• 8:30
  So it's like, I don't know, salt or sugar or like someone of them with sunflower seeds didn't do that one.
• 8:37
  I wish I knew the name of that.
• 8:38
  I've really failed in coming up with some information.
• 8:41
  It's called a Michelada, Jef.
• 8:43
  I don't know what we got on ours.
• 8:44
  There was two red substances on mine.
• 8:47
  Quite a bit of it.
• 8:48
  We got big ones and Patricia ordered them, so this is on her.
• 8:51
  They pour a whole 40-ounce-er in these giant cups, these plastic cups.
• 8:55
  Then it was super fun, the flea market.
• 8:57
  We just kind of wandered around laughing and trying on sunglasses and hats and Patricia bought some homemade soap, of course, and some homemade salsa, pepper kind of thing.
• 9:11
  It was a really fun day.
• 9:12
  It's a thing I never would have even known about had I not been here with Patricia, which is...
• 9:16
  One of the things I like so much about her is that she's just like, really wants to show me all the cool things in the city and does.
• 9:23
  I've seen so many cool things.
• 9:25
  When I was here before we went to this restaurant, it's right off of this square that's like the Mariachi Square.
• 9:30
  And this entire square is full of just Mariachi bands.
• 9:35
  You can literally just pay some money and hire them and take them home with you.
• 9:38
  You can take them home for a weekend if you want.
• 9:40
  I would not want to take a Mariachi band home with me for a weekend, you know?
• 9:45
  But some people would.
• 9:46
  And some people do.
• 9:48
  So there's a restaurant, course, off of this square where there's like five, six, seven, eight mariachi bands playing at the same time.
• 9:56
  And yeah, it's, it's as chaotic as it sounds.
• 9:58
  So one band's playing one song, one little band's playing another song.
• 10:02
  There's another band playing one over there.
• 10:04
  I'll be honest.
• 10:04
  I loved it, but I can understand how it may trigger some people.
• 10:10
  I'll post some videos of that on the Patreon page, which is at patreon.com/onefjef.
• 10:17
  And I think I'm releasing this on my birthday.
• 10:19
  So what better birthday gift to give to your favorite podcast host than a new subscription or perhaps you just up your current subscription just a little bit as a little birthday
• 10:32
  present to me.
• 10:33
  And I'll put all sorts of pictures of Mexico in there for you.
• 10:37
  I like the horns in the mariachi bands.
• 10:39
  A lot of people don't care for mariachi music.
• 10:41
  I have my limit, but...
• 10:46
  In smaller doses, I really do enjoy it.
• 10:48
  And again, I really think it's the horns.
• 10:50
  Something about the horns gets me.
• 10:52
  It's like the band-bay root.
• 10:54
  It's the horns, you know?
• 10:57
  It's a powerful sound.
• 10:58
  It gives me chills.
• 11:01
  And while we're there, this guy, it's another Mexican thing, this guy walks around with this bird cage with like a little parakeet or something in there.
• 11:08
  And like you give him a little money and the parakeet opens the little cage door and the parakeet pulls out a little like fortune.
• 11:17
  out of this box.
• 11:17
  This bird has no idea what it's doing.
• 11:19
  But the parakeet pulls the little fortune out and then he gives it to you and you give the fortune and then you read the fortune and that's...
• 11:25
  And I forget what my fortune was.
• 11:27
  I have a picture of it.
• 11:27
  I'll put that in the Patreon too.
• 11:29
  It's weird.
• 11:30
  The parakeet seemed perfectly happy to be doing this.
• 11:32
  It seemed to think, I have a purpose in this life.
• 11:35
  And that purpose, as confusing as it may be to me, seems to make these human people happy.
• 11:53
  There's a lot of unique sounds here in Mexico City that I love to record.
• 11:56
  And I did just take a long walk around Condesa with the intention of recording some of them, but I start to feel so awkward and stand outish.
• 12:07
  You know, you're carrying a giant microphone and a recorder around and you're a gringo too.
• 12:13
  And there's a lot of like somewhat anti-gringo sentiment going around Mexico City these days because there's a lot of gringos moving here.
• 12:23
  On my walk I saw some graffiti that said, no gringos.
• 12:28
  And I stand out as a gringo.
• 12:32
  As Patricia has told me, a couple nights ago, she said, you are very white and pink.
• 12:41
  We were sitting in this cafe, the two of us, and then like a big group of like, clearly Americans came in and sat at the table next to us.
• 12:49
  Patricia looked at me and she's like, don't you think I don't know what she said.
• 12:52
  I like something about Americans being loud.
• 12:53
  And it's totally true.
• 12:55
  Americans are loud.
• 12:57
  And it was kind of, uh I mean, I'll say it embarrassing and annoying to be sitting there this loud group of Americans.
• 13:04
  I'm not saying I'm not annoying, but when you see groups of Americans in foreign countries outside of their home thing, it makes them look worse.
• 13:14
  You see the stereotypes.
• 13:19
  Right there, they're right in your face.
• 13:21
  I worked in a bed and breakfast in London many years ago.
• 13:25
  I worked behind the front desk and the people who were the worst and the hardest to deal with were the French and the Americans.
• 13:31
  The French were generally, yes, rude.
• 13:35
  Absolutely rude.
• 13:37
  Not because you're expecting them to be rude, because I didn't sometimes even know they were French until they started speaking.
• 13:42
  But yes, rude.
• 13:44
  And the Americans?
• 13:46
  Entitled.
• 13:47
  Why is there no bathroom in my room?
• 13:49
  Well sir, if you'd like a bathroom you can go down and stay at the Holiday Inn down the street.
• 13:53
  It'll cost you three times as much.
• 13:55
  But you're welcome to go down there and stay there.
• 13:58
  It wasn't that they were mean though.
• 13:59
  The Americans were always nice.
• 14:01
  They just felt like there should be a bathroom.
• 14:04
  Why are the rooms so small?
• 14:06
  You know, whereas the French were just like, aww, everything is stupid.
• 14:12
  You know, très stupide.
• 14:15
  Whatever.
• 14:19
  Oh, he's vacuuming again.
• 14:21
  That's my cue to wrap it up.
• 14:23
  All right again soon
• 14:38
  That was the sound of the Kamote man or the sweet potato man.
• 14:44
  This guy wanders around at night with a pressure steamer, like a wheeled pressure steamer cart.
• 14:50
  When he opens this valve to release the pressure, it makes that crazy whistling sound.
• 14:55
  You can hear it for like a long way away.
• 14:57
  So it works out in order to get your sweet potatoes.
• 15:01
  And he just saw sweet potatoes like steamed sweet potatoes out of that He bananas too, apparently.
• 15:09
  And maybe a few other things, but mostly sweet potatoes.
• 15:14
  The first time I was here in Mexico City and I heard that, I was with Patricia and I was like, what in God's name is that noise?
• 15:24
  because it's not a pleasant sound.
• 15:27
  Because it's not a pleasant sound.
• 15:29
  It's a shrill, high-pitched whistle.
• 15:34
  And Patricia told me it was the Kamote man.
• 15:37
  And I was even more confused, frankly.
• 15:44
  But during this visit, I decided I'm going to get one of these sweet potatoes to see what all this fuss is about.
• 15:52
  And uh last night we were in Parque Mexico here in Condesa and I heard the sound, the cry of the sweet potato, if you will.
• 16:04
  And I followed that cry until I found him.
• 16:10
  The sweet potato was good, not great.
• 16:13
  Patricia tells me that the bananas themselves are better.
• 16:17
  Maybe I'll try that next time.
• 16:20
  Maybe I'll try that next time.
• 16:21
  uh
• 16:39
  do you have?
• 16:41
  she's drinking, wow.
• 16:44
  Alright.
• 16:47
  I hope you're done with your work.
• 16:51
  Alright, slam that before we start the interview then we can...
• 16:55
  Hola Patricia, ¿cómo está?
• 16:56
  Bien.
• 16:58
  ¿Estás?
• 16:59
  I am fine.
• 16:59
  And you?
• 17:00
  Eh...
• 17:01
  es eh...
• 17:02
  ¿Más o menos?
• 17:03
  Es ¿Más o menos?
• 17:07
  No, it's my birthday.
• 17:08
  It's my cumplea...
• 17:09
  It's...
• 17:09
  It's my cumpleaños.
• 17:11
  Muy bien.
• 17:11
  Muy bien, porque es mi cumpleaños.
• 17:15
  ¿Sí?
• 17:16
  Sí.
• 17:17
  Sí.
• 17:17
  How's my Spanish?
• 17:18
  Is it good?
• 17:19
  More or less.
• 17:21
  But you can improve.
• 17:23
  It's better than it was the last time though.
• 17:26
  Let's see if you can pair with that.
• 17:27
  Yes.
• 17:28
  Oh, all right.
• 17:29
  I mean, it was bad last time, it's...
• 17:33
  progress.
• 17:33
  How do you think you're a good maestra?
• 17:37
  No, I am not a good teacher for...
• 17:39
  At least this You are sometimes, but other times.
• 17:45
  Your English is getting much better though.
• 17:47
  Thank you.
• 17:50
  Let's talk about the tongue tacos.
• 17:56
  Yesterday, uh Patricia said she wanted to take me to have these tacos.
• 18:01
  It's like a taco stand that just focused, I guess, on the head of the animal.
• 18:06
  Beef.
• 18:07
  Beef head, the cow head.
• 18:08
  ah So yeah, it had all the different parts from the head.
• 18:12
  I'm not sure if there was a nose or whatever.
• 18:14
  Well, nose, I'm not sure.
• 18:16
  Yeah, I don't think anybody wants the nose.
• 18:18
  But yeah, the brain.
• 18:20
  Yeah, we didn't have any brain eyes.
• 18:21
  Yeah, no here.
• 18:24
  Yeah, what's your favorite part of the cow head?
• 18:27
  our favorite part for you?
• 18:28
  Cheeks.
• 18:29
  am more I am not like an I'm like a very normal person in head tacos not big on the head.
• 18:36
  Yes, I am but not the normal parts.
• 18:39
  Not the very see I don't like the brain or I yeah, I don't don't want to do that.
• 18:44
  Did they chop up the eye or is it just like looking right at you in the taco in the tortilla because it's not
• 18:49
  The eye is pretty like just the nerve.
• 18:52
  Oh, OK.
• 18:52
  So you don't have like a taco with like eyes staring at you?
• 18:55
  No.
• 18:55
  No.
• 18:55
  Yeah, that'd be terrifying.
• 18:56
  cannot eat that part.
• 18:58
  Right.
• 18:58
  But the tongue that you gave me was literally just a tortilla with just a tongue just sitting right there.
• 19:05
  No questions about what that was.
• 19:06
  Yeah, I believe that they cook it.
• 19:08
  But it was really just, it was shocking because.
• 19:10
  It's because in Mixucity they do it that way.
• 19:12
  But in other parts they chop it.
• 19:14
  That would be helpful if they chopped it, yeah.
• 19:16
  Yeah, so you don't realize if you are like eating like, tacos.
• 19:21
  Yeah, that would have been helpful for me.
• 19:23
  I think in the other one that was mixed, you have a little bit of everything, but you didn't realize which part you was eating.
• 19:30
  Yeah.
• 19:31
  As an American, as a United States citizen, we like to make our meat look as different from the animal it came from as possible.
• 19:40
  What is the difference between a US citizen?
• 19:43
  I just want to say American because that feels offensive because you know this is all America right so what am I supposed to say?
• 19:50
  I don't know but yeah I don't want to say as an American because you're an American too right technically yeah so there's no winning in that one but anyway yeah I took a bite of
• 20:00
  the tongue and yeah not my favorite thing I think it was not the best tongue tacos no you can try again and even if we find Machitos
• 20:12
  What's mochitos?
• 20:14
  The balls of the cow.
• 20:16
  I don't want to know.
• 20:17
  Absolutely not.
• 20:18
  I'm not eating testicles.
• 20:20
  Have you eaten those?
• 20:21
  No.
• 20:22
  But what do you prefer?
• 20:24
  To eat that or to eat...
• 20:29
  cricket?
• 20:30
  I'd absolutely eat cricket over testicles.
• 20:33
  Or do you prefer to eat like frog or a I would eat a frog over testicles.
• 20:39
  A snake?
• 20:39
  would take a lot.
• 20:40
  Snake, would eat that over testicles.
• 20:43
  Yeah, probably that as well over testicles.
• 20:46
  testicles?
• 20:46
  Yeah, I don't want to eat Is that rat disgusting?
• 20:49
  Okay, I mean you would eat testicles?
• 20:51
  know, yes, for sure, with all the options that I said before, yes.
• 20:55
  You'd go with the testicles?
• 20:56
  Yes.
• 20:56
  All right, well I'd like to know how they are.
• 20:59
  But also you don't know what you are eating.
• 21:01
  you know they're testicles.
• 21:02
  No, but if you are trying those and it's like you don't see they, it's like you don't see the eye.
• 21:07
  Right, if it was chopped up.
• 21:09
  You don't realize what you are eating.
• 21:10
  Yeah, I don't want to see a taco like a tortilla with just two little, two big, big But is better to eat any part of the cow than a rat?
• 21:19
  I don't know.
• 21:19
  I really, it would be tough.
• 21:21
  don't know.
• 21:21
  But do prefer the, like the chicken legs that we saw?
• 21:27
  Like the chicken feet?
• 21:29
  I don't know, maybe.
• 21:30
  With the nails.
• 21:31
  Well, I don't think you eat the nails.
• 21:33
  Yes.
• 21:33
  And sometimes they do it with...
• 21:35
  salsa picante.
• 21:37
  I would hope so.
• 21:38
  with lemon and salt.
• 21:42
  Yeah, you got to add Like the mango, but with chicken feet.
• 21:45
  Yeah.
• 21:46
  I think it would that do prefer?
• 21:48
  What?
• 21:49
  Chicken Mango, of course.
• 21:51
  or machitos.
• 21:54
  The balls?
• 21:54
  Uh-huh.
• 21:55
  Yeah, chicken feet.
• 21:56
  Yeah.
• 21:57
  I mean you'd really have to spice the balls up a lot and make them look as little if they didn't look like testicles at all you never have tried it so you don't know but is the
• 22:06
  texture the texture is different it's the knowledge of what I'm eating that's the problem but if we're talking about a penis that would be a whole different game so that you are
• 22:17
  eating chicken you are imagining the chicken what do you mean imagine so yeah it's like
• 22:22
  Sometimes it's more about the texture than the taste rather than yes what specifically is okay?
• 22:27
  How about you would you eat a duck vagina?
• 22:30
  No see because I don't love Okay, how about a cow vagina?
• 22:38
  Some places do they eat duck vaginas in China they saw duck vaginas in China They absolutely do show me I mean I can't do it right now, but next time I come I'll bring some
• 22:48
  duck vaginas I think they might take them in customs, but
• 22:51
  Okay.
• 22:52
  Yeah.
• 22:53
  This is what I'm saying.
• 22:53
  It's not about, it's about, you know, genitalia.
• 22:56
  And also that will be a very difficult texture.
• 22:59
  I just don't want to eat genitalia of any animal.
• 23:02
  I think that's just as a policy.
• 23:04
  And feet?
• 23:05
  Feet different.
• 23:06
  It's not genitals.
• 23:07
  mean, I'm not going to eat fingernails of an animal now, but I don't think that that's, I don't think it's fingernails.
• 23:13
  Yes, it is.
• 23:13
  I can show you a picture.
• 23:15
  In the real Mexico, they eat that like a snack.
• 23:19
  I would eat squirrel.
• 23:20
  That actually...
• 23:21
  I squirrels actually quite tasty.
• 23:23
  I know, squirrel.
• 23:24
  Oh, well, poor every animal.
• 23:26
  Oh.
• 23:28
  What the hell was that?
• 23:30
  Somebody's here?
• 23:31
  We're outside right now.
• 23:32
  We're on the rooftop, just in case anybody's wondering about the noise.
• 23:36
  All right, well, we got through the tongue tacos.
• 23:37
  That was good.
• 23:38
  um What else?
• 23:39
  You have a series of questions?
• 23:42
  I have some talking points.
• 23:43
  Yeah.
• 23:45
  Speaking of food, Dua Lipa.
• 23:48
  opened a taco restaurant in your neighborhood over the weekend.
• 23:52
  We did not get the tacos.
• 23:54
  The line there was always kind of down the street.
• 23:57
  I think it was...
• 23:58
  was interested?
• 23:58
  Today was not you?
• 24:00
  No, I think it's closing today though, isn't it?
• 24:02
  No, no.
• 24:03
  Where all the bodyguards are.
• 24:04
  Are interested?
• 24:05
  We can go.
• 24:07
  no.
• 24:08
  I'd rather go to the place where we're actually going to go for my birthday that actually has good tacos as And also the Wally Peguent.
• 24:13
  That's why you are more interested.
• 24:15
  Not at all.
• 24:15
  I wanted to go before Dua Lipa went.
• 24:17
  we're going to this.
• 24:18
  But now that it comes even more popular, why not?
• 24:20
  So now we have to wait in line for an hour and half.
• 24:23
  So this taco place that I loved the last time I was here called uh Tacos del Valle that I've been to twice.
• 24:28
  It was incredible.
• 24:29
  And now since I've been there, got Michelin listed and then Dua Lipa went there like two days ago.
• 24:36
  So now we're going to go there for my birthday and it's going to be a line down this Michelin listed in Mexico, I have serious questions about that.
• 24:43
  okay.
• 24:43
  I do you want to?
• 24:44
  No, it's not a guarantee.
• 24:46
  think don't think so.
• 24:47
  I think it's part of that is a really good PR.
• 24:51
  Oh, sure.
• 24:51
  There's some of that.
• 24:52
  But I think that honestly, I think every time because more a PR thing.
• 24:56
  Yes, are good places, but also I'd like a very PR places.
• 25:01
  Yeah, I do wonder what kind of money gets passed around in terms of getting that Michelin listing or stars, you know.
• 25:06
  Because now also many of the new places that haven't been for more than three years are Michelin stars and others that has been recognized for years being good or not.
• 25:17
  And the most of them are like a gentrified tacos.
• 25:21
  So yes, I could gentrify tacos.
• 25:24
  She means gringo tacos.
• 25:25
  That's what she means.
• 25:26
  can say the gentrified tacos is not only about to gringo there.
• 25:29
  Oh, right.
• 25:30
  Every kind of.
• 25:31
  Yeah, foreigner taco.
• 25:33
  Yeah.
• 25:33
  Well, can decide tonight.
• 25:36
  that are mainly here in Mexico City.
• 25:38
  Right, right, Because we are neighbors.
• 25:40
  It's normal.
• 25:41
  Well, you can decide tonight when you when you try the tacos at Tacos Del Valle whether they are gentrified tacos or actually good tacos.
• 25:48
  No, can be good.
• 25:49
  That doesn't mean that are not gentrified.
• 25:52
  You're going to love them.
• 25:52
  They're delicious.
• 25:53
  They're incredible.
• 25:55
  They're so good.
• 25:56
  Well, I will say what you said the other day about Mexican food is
• 26:00
  that they do use the entire animal, which is a thing that I don't think we generally do in the United States.
• 26:04
  I know that they probably use a lot of the parts to make like dog food and stuff that we don't eat.
• 26:10
  Like I imagine the tongue goes into dog food.
• 26:13
  We need to export, to import tongues.
• 26:19
  you do have to get those tongues imported?
• 26:21
  Because there are not enough tongues.
• 26:22
  Right, have to put a tariff on those.
• 26:25
  so you can fight Trump's tongue tariffs.
• 26:28
  Import tongues and import corn to make tortillas is a very interesting fact.
• 26:33
  I think we get a lot of corn from you guys, I think we buy corn to make tortillas.
• 26:39
  uh There is like a trade that depends on the kind of corn.
• 26:43
  But the corn, for every time that they negotiate the trade agreement, the corn makes a lot
• 26:52
  Topic point.
• 26:53
  Huh?
• 26:54
  Yeah.
• 26:55
  Yeah.
• 26:55
  So what do you think is the characteristic of Mexican culture?
• 27:00
  Like I've said many times I feel like Mexican people are It's one of the friendliest places ever been and it's not just because you read that on the internet It's because like
• 27:09
  I just don't get bad vibes from people here Although I did see that sign that said gringos no gringos and that made me feel a little bit a little bit bad Because I'm very pink and
• 27:19
  white as you said yesterday
• 27:22
  But it's true.
• 27:24
  It's an interesting description that I'm more...
• 27:26
  You said I'm more...
• 27:27
  You are more pink and white than I am.
• 27:29
  That's what you said.
• 27:32
  That's true.
• 27:32
  Yeah.
• 27:33
  Patricia is not...
• 27:34
  more I am more tan.
• 27:35
  You are.
• 27:36
  Patricia is tan.
• 27:36
  She spent like three months in Tulum.
• 27:39
  So she's very tan.
• 27:41
  She's very happy about being tan.
• 27:45
  And I am pink and white.
• 27:48
  And 52.
• 27:51
  What is your impression of American culture?
• 27:54
  Very competitive.
• 27:56
  Yeah, that's true.
• 27:58
  Consumist.
• 27:59
  Consumist, yeah.
• 28:01
  Buy too much stuff.
• 28:03
  Mexico's not really consumerist, I guess.
• 28:05
  Not as much.
• 28:06
  Yeah.
• 28:08
  How are you liking having me here?
• 28:09
  Has it been a pain in your ass?
• 28:11
  No.
• 28:14
  That's all she's going to say.
• 28:16
  She's just going to look at me and smile and say, no.
• 28:19
  uh
• 28:27
  But you are enjoying, Si.
• 28:30
  Si.
• 28:32
  Muy emocionado about the pastel.
• 28:36
  el pastel.
• 28:37
  Si.
• 28:39
  How about that for some Spanish, Anything else to say, Patricia, before...
• 28:47
  I actually finished this podcast and release it on my birthday.
• 28:52
  No.
• 28:53
  Happy birthday.
• 28:54
  Thank you.
• 28:55
  Do want to say it in What has been your best memory of birthday since you was a kid until now?
• 29:01
  When I was in my early 50s, I decided I'm just going to go to Mexico.
• 29:05
  I met this woman earlier that year in Mexico when I was in Mexico City and we were still in touch and I wanted to see her again.
• 29:13
  So I thought, well, I'll just go there for my birthday.
• 29:16
  And that was super fun.
• 29:18
  Especially at night when she put on this fireworks display for me.
• 29:21
  And then there was like an elephant parade.
• 29:24
  then we ate cow dicks for dessert.
• 29:28
  Cow dicks?
• 29:29
  Cow penises.
• 29:31
  A dick is what you say for penis, With a lot of salsa on them.
• 29:34
  You gotta put a lot of salsa on those cow And the elephants were coming from?
• 29:39
  Just a parade.
• 29:40
  That's for you to figure out where those are coming from.
• 29:42
  You have to get that Asia.
• 29:44
  Africa?
• 29:46
  You need to go to Asia then.
• 30:02
  I'm just thinking that I have to edit this too.
• 30:07
  Yeah, this is plenty of...
• 30:08
  Oh, and the drill's starting, so it's a good time to stop.
• 30:11
  Patricia, thank you for coming on the podcast once again, now that we have a power drill in the background.
• 30:17
  Thank you, happy birthday.
• 30:19
  Thank you.
• 30:19
  You can say it in Spanish too.
• 30:21
  Feliz cumpleaños.
• 30:23
  Gracias muy...
• 30:24
  muchas gracias.
• 30:26
  Muchas gracias.
• 30:27
  Don't forget to subscribe to the Patreon's page.
• 30:30
  One more.
• 30:31
  It's Patreon or Pages?
• 30:34
  I forget.
• 30:35
  Patreon.
• 30:36
  Patreon, yep.
• 30:38
  Subscribe to the Patreon page.
• 30:40
  Five dollars.
• 30:41
  How many pesos is that?
• 30:42
  It's so easy.
• 30:43
  Only five dollars per month.
• 30:45
  You can spend it in a coffee.
• 30:47
  Alright, there we go.
• 30:49
  Bye.
• 30:49
  Bueno.
• 30:53
  And that's it for this week.
• 30:56
  In spite of the randomness and relative lack of content, I think this episode turned out rather well, don't you?
• 31:02
  Before you answer, remember, it's my birthday.
• 31:06
  If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with someone else who you think might also enjoy it.
• 31:10
  Someone who likes mariachi music, maybe?
• 31:13
  Or tongue tacos?
• 31:15
  Or sweet potatoes?
• 31:17
  In my Spotify recap, it's said that 1FJep was shared more than 96 % of other podcasts.
• 31:24
  which is amazing.
• 31:25
  So thank you to those of you who contributed to that statistic.
• 31:29
  Please keep doing it.
• 31:30
  And if you haven't already, please subscribe to the show on Apple podcasts or whatever platform you listen on.
• 31:37
  But ideally Apple podcasts, because that's the platform that most of you listen on and their algorithm likes subscribers, especially new ones.
• 31:46
  As I said earlier, if you're looking for a birthday gift for me,
• 31:50
  Please consider subscribing to the Patreon page at patreon.com/onefjef
• 31:55
  And if you do subscribe, please do it through the Patreon website, not through the iPhone app, because Apple takes a 30 % cut from donations made through the app.
• 32:07
  And I think we all know that Apple has plenty of money.
• 32:13
  Patreon.com/onefjef.
• 32:15
  Thank you.
• 32:19
  If you have any questions or comments or concerns or photos to share, can email the podcast at onefjefpod@gmail.com.
• 32:29
  Nudes are allowed, but not encouraged.
• 32:32
  If you are on the Instagram app, please follow the podcast on the Instagram app @onefjefpod.
• 32:40
  I'll be doing some more weird stuff with that account soon.
• 32:43
  So you'll want to be there for that.
• 32:47
  @onefjefpod.
• 32:48
  Instagram.
• 32:51
  Finally, you guys are the best.
• 32:55
  For real.
• 32:58
  I've been making this podcast for about seven months now.
• 33:02
  And it's a great birthday gift to know that I've managed to build such an attractive and intelligent audience.
• 33:09
  So thank you for listening.
• 33:12
  Thank you for being here.
• 33:15
  And thank you for sticking around to see what happens next.
• 33:20
  I'm as curious as you are.
• 33:23
  Very good, Jeffrey.