At about Midnight, after the betting and fighting was done, it was time to set the stage for Alejandro Fernandez. The set up was pretty cool – the 10 piece mariachi band and the other instrument peeps (sax, electric guitar, keyboard, drums, et all) were set up around the outside of the ring, pointed in. Alejandro, decked out in Mariachi attire (he even donned the sombrero for a song or two) played the inside of the ring, and made his way around the ring to get exposure to all sides. And it was a pretty unobstructed view – people got really upset when you stood up and blocked the view so they would start yelling obscenities and throwing things at you, so no one really got in the way.
The crowd went nutz and his performance was awesome, and definitely well worth the $800 peso ticket! It was a unique concert experience for me because we were so close – and because it seemed like every single person in the entire place knew every single word to every single song. The energy was just AMAZING! I found myself more than once thinking “Wow! I can’t believe I am here, in Mexico, getting to experience this! What a great amazing thing to be able to do!”. Women brought down flowers and he would take them and give them a kiss (with his body guards close by, of course)….They all thought “maybe, he’ll pick me and then we’ll live happily ever after”. Veronica included. Every woman in that place was pampering every two seconds. As if they had a chance.
He played until about 1:30AM, then his encore lasted until 2:30. We called Keith as we were walking out, and he came and picked us up and brought us home. I was in bed by 3AM. And, I actually made it to work on time – and I even showered. Well, I had to because I smelled like a freakin ash tray. I swear, everyone in this damn country smokes. I think Vero and her sister when through a pack between the two of them, and we were only there for 5 hours.
A word about the fans – it was an interesting mix. There were fancy pants people dressed to a T, women who were wearing way too much makeup and way too many sequins, and lots of people in jeans and cowboy hats. There was a guy selling chicharrones and papas who could have passed for my cousin Junior’s twin. I had to do a double take!
Then there was this other fan that reminded me of someone I knew – and this is just funny – She looked exactly like my friend Eunice’s mom – DEAD ON. Even down to the glasses she was wearing. Yes, Theresa Lee is Chinese, but sometimes Mexican’s can have chinky eyes! Anyway, she was obviously drunk, which was funny, and she was also wearing a big white cowboy hat and a fringed jacket – which is pretty funny to think of Mrs. Lee wearing that kind of thing because she has a chic classic style, just like Eunice – definitely more Prada than Wrangler. Anyway, this woman somehow thought it was OK to take her camcorder out in the middle of the performance, and ended up wrestling with a security person, who won and took the camera away. Sucks for her. The funny part was that every time I looked at the crazy things this woman was doing, I couldn’t help but think of her as Mrs. Lee. Funny image, eh Euni?
Now a word about Alejandro Fernandez. His appeal is difficult to describe. Yes, he sings love songs and ballads, but he also does a lot of traditional Mexican Mariachi music, as well as new songs that are traditionally inspired – so the woman love him and the men think he’s pretty damn cool too. I think he has to be in his late 30’s, early 40’s, and really, he’s handsome but he’s not the ridiculously drop dead gorgeous at first glance. But when he sings he has a TON of passion and a sultry voice – and that is way sexy. Mostly he would just stand there or walk around and sing, but occasionally he would move his body just so or turn his head slightly and the crowd would just go crazy.
The only comparison I can think of is George Strait. He’s been in the industry for a while, and has a bazillion hit songs. Men think he’s the coolest and women want to bear his children. Really, he’s about as sexy as they come. Yeah, he’s a handsome man – but put a guitar in his hands and watch him sing and YOWZA. He has the little head move and this smile that he does when he’s playing his guitar and he is just oozing with sex appeal. Well, that and the tight jeans and cowboy hat don’t hurt either!
So anyway, that was my night. Now I am sitting drinking red bull to try to wake myself up, I can’t wait for lunch so I can go home and take a nap, and totally totally glad that I got to experience that!
Saturday I decided it would be a good idea to travel with Keith and his rugby team to Celaya, a city in Eastern Guanajuato. I really didn’t want to go – I knew it would be a long day, and I really just felt like sleeping and doing nothing. Turned out to be a good idea. It was a fun day, and beautiful outside (at least in the shade – in the sun it was over 90) even though they lost. Keith got rattled on one tackle, and it made my heart drop when I saw him not getting up. Turns out he just got the wind knocked out of him – but I always think the worst and my mind goes directly to head injuries. I’m also pretty sure he broke his nose. Again. Which reminds me, I need to remind him to make sure he still has emergency travel insurance when we’re home for Easter.
