In the past couple of days, we've made time for some exploring, here's one story.
A guidebook in the house listed the five "Best Swimming Pools" in town. We knew from the kids that the one closest to us was dirty and too cold so we opted to try the one that said "Heated" from the list. It wasn't far away but it was another world. A world of strip malls, satellite dishes, the Mexican Wal-Mart Mega, and auto repair shops that littered the wide, dusty, hot road but at last we arrived at the swimming pool at La Siesta Hotel. The surrounding area was already depressing and we imagined this our oasis, however, the hotel was more of an RV park and the heated pool was so murky that you couldn't see beneath 1.5 feet of the deep green algae pond. Slightly fazed, we started walking back in the hopes of haling a taxi to another part of town. But as we crossed the already surreal street we saw an even more surreal and out of place object; a circus tent right in the middle of this suburban desert. It looked abandoned but we approached and asked the two people standing outside about hours. They said the circus had started just 10 minutes prior and we should come on in. The sur-reality of the moment was too perfect to pass up and we went in.
This circus is what you dream you will encounter when you go on a random exploration. A cross between Santa Sangre and The Simpsons. The huge tent housed only 50-60 people all sitting close to the single ring. It was the perfect production value; glitter falling sprinkled by the trapeze artist - no flawless overdone high production event where you cannot see what is being performed. More like our favorite indy circuses in Brooklyn or Amsterdam BUT with incredibly talented performers who probably are not Burners. There were pink poodles dancing salsa, Capoeira dancing pole climbers, contortionists, acrobats and more. Then at intermission all of the performers came out to the crowd to sell candy apples, key chains, light sticks and other circus fare. At the end, they all lined up to shake our hands. Wonderful. On a side note, jason was asked to be in a short film of a local producer but we wont be here long enough. He was asked to play someone who had been in the Iraq war.
A successful adventure.
We did end up finding the best pool nearby from a tourist we met in the park. Heated AND clean and almost decadently picturesque. Hotel Aldea.
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