notes and reflections

The town of Patrzcuaro lies about 46km from Morelia, along the southern shore of the lake of the same name.  There are three significant islands in the lake and all of them have buildings of one sort or another on them but the largest and most heavily populated is Janitzio.  This is a steeply humped island with a dominating hollow statue of Jose Moreali, one arm raised in Soviet-style imitation at its crest. Narrow street crowded with white-walled, red-tiled roofed homes ascend to the island´s crest, densely packed together and, from the water, giving the island an appearance much like the small, picturesque, bayside fishing villages of Italy or Portugal.

The island is a popular destination for families and tourists, and tour boats, 50´slender motor launches, which leave the docks of Patzcuaro every few minutes for the 25-to-30 minute trip.  Taking advantage of the lake´s reputation for fish, venders sell small nets to children prior to boarding so they can skim the lake surface during the trip in hopes of landing a finny souvenir.  That fish are present is attested to by the scores of white herons standing motionless and hopefully along the shores as the boat passes.

As the launches near the island they slow to a stop as native fishermen in narrow, shallow wooden boats swarm past trolling the water with their picturesque butterfly nets.

Despìte its isolated location, as you discover after disembarking at Janitzio, the island survives comfortably by fishing and the constant stream of tourist-laden launches.  Restauants set back from the quay offer, in addition to staples of beef and chicken, island specialties such as Pescado Blanco (white fish) and Caldo de Pescado (fish broth).  The concrete quay itself supports dozens of stalls selling everything from iced mango cups  to corn on the cob, tacos, souvenir cups and plates, inexpensive silver jewelry, breadsticks shaped like cacti, religious icons and paintings, T-shirts, wallets, key holders, sandals, wooden toys and a multitude of other crafts.

In truth, except for a few items with the Janitzio name on them, nearly everything here can be purchased on the docks of Patzcuaro or at street fairs thoughout the city.  But that´s beside the point of course.  The point is you browse the displays and probably buy something for the same reason you buy the toy lion tamer´s whip and the wand with the twirling, chirping bird at the end and the peanuts and the cotton candy at the circus.  You buy something because you´re here and the trinkets are part of the experience to help you remember a pleasant boat trip and a visit to a store in the middle of a lake.