Prince to Paganini Memphis Symphony announces 2017-18 season
Find food, sights and history at attractive prices
Getting there: You can fly into Merida, but cheapest fares from the U.S. are to Cancun. Zika: Mexico is in the zone for Zika-carrying mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are more prevalent at inland Maya sites than beaches. Consider buying mosquito-repelling plastic bracelets to take with you.
When Robert Moody was hired last year to be the new principal conductor of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, he insisted that classical music would represent the foundation but not the entirety of the organization’s musical mission.
“We want to play the greatest music at the highest level, and to be the most relevant 21st-century orchestra we can be,” he told The Commercial Appeal. “Whether it’s jazz or blues or pop, great music is great music.”
Set to be announced this week, the symphony’s 2017-2018 concert season puts this philosophy into effect, while also promoting “The Promise of America.” That’s the title of the season’s first program, and also the message of a
CANCUN, Mexico - The police didn’t ask for bribes. The roads were safe and fast. The food was particular, yet delicious.
A road trip across southeast Mexico offered the perfect antidote to winter: sun, beaches, yummy food, great drinks and amazing sights, from a colonial old town to ancient Mayan structures. Best of all, the longest stretch of driving was just five hours from Playa del Carmen on the Caribbean to Campeche on Mexico’s Gulf Coast. The roughly 1,000-mile loop also
traversed three remarkably series filled with works by American musicians from all walks of life.
Of course, classical masterpieces by Tchaikovsky, Bach, Berlioz and others remains the backbone of the schedule. But such events as a pops-concert tribute to Prince and a concert showcasing the songs of the “King of the Delta Blues,” Robert Johnson, may help the different states. Quintana Roo, home to resort-laden Cancun and Playa del Carmen, has more of an American feel than most places in Mexico. Campeche’s laid-back and colorful atmosphere is a nice contrast to Yucatan’s earthy cuisine and cultural significance.
Car rental rates are low (though locally obtained insurance, which is essential, will up the cost). Major highways in the region are split into freeways and toll roads, cuotas. The tolls are relatively inexpensive, and the cuotas are often empty. At times you can travel almost alone for miles. With $250 round-trip flights from the U.S. and the Mexican peso worth half what it was five years ago against the dollar,
there’s no better time to visit. The trip started at Petit Lafitte, a small locally owned resort situated just far enough outside of Playa del Carmen to avoid its boozy vibe. The resort has drawn a faithful clientele of Americans for decades. Returning guests greet staff with hugs, and everyone is on a first-name basis. After a week of lazy beach days and ceviche feasts, the road beckoned. First stop, Campeche’s capital city, also called Campeche, which has a smalltown feel and a colorful grid of streets. The old town, which dates to the mid-17th century, is surrounded by a hexagonal wall with seven intact bulwarks, each unique in design and significance. Right outside the Puerta del
Mar bulwark is a long, beautiful seaside walkway where joggers, strollers and tourists congregate.
An hour from Campeche lies the pristine Mayan site of Edzna, which dates to the seventh century B.C. Perfectly manicured lawns separate the Mayan structures, the most impressive of which is the 120foot Edificio de los Cincos Pisos (which means building of five floors). Kids will love running around spotting iguanas.
Driving from Campeche to Yucatan’s capital, Merida, consider a stop at the beautiful Hacienda Santa Rosa, a luxury Starwood property where rooms start at $300 or so a night. The restaurant serves delicious Yucatan fare at reasonable prices in a serene atmosphere. The spa was once a small church.
Merida, flamingos and Uxmal
Merida is everything Campeche isn’t. It’s big, busy, noisy and dusty. But this cultural hub has many interesting sights to lure tourists and, increasingly, American and Canadian retirees. The town’s cathedral is an austere and intimidating structure whose once-ornate decorations were stripped away by secular Mexicans during the revolution. Churches dot the town’s historic center. Caleche (horsedrawn carriage) rides through the old town are an entertaining way to spend an hour. Open bus tours visit Merida’s modern neighborhoods, which have some stunning mansions, especially along Paseo de Montejo. The local Starbucks looks like something from a belle epoque flick.
Merida is also a good jumping-off point for the trip’s most stunning sites: the biosphere reserve at Celestun, and Uxmal, a Mayan mecca.
Celestun will draw shrieks of wonderment from even the most bored teenager with its year-round colony of thousands of pink flamingos. Small motorboats take you 100 yards or so from the colorful flocks, which look like a haze of pink from far away. You won’t need binoculars to watch them gracefully fly, then land on water.
The sprawling Uxmal complex boasts many unique structures, including the Governor’s Palace, the Nuns’ Quadrangle (take note of the intact colorful decorations on its walls) and the amazing Pyramid of the Magician, with curved outlines unique among Mayan pyramids. Uxmal provides a solid impression of what Mayan life was like without the crowds of the more touristy Chichen Itza.
Food
If beaches, colonial cities and Mayan sites aren’t enticing enough, the region’s cuisine will do the trick. Mexican ceviche (different from Peruvian — no potatoes or corn, just seafood) and fresh fish cooked in garlic and chili sauce are amazing. The region’s ubiquitous main dish, cochinita pibil, is pork marinated in citrus and spices, then wrapped in banana leaves and slowroasted for a unique, delicate yet earthy flavor. Relleno negro is another specialty of turkey stuffed with chopped
The Commercial Appeal Sunday, February 12, 2017 pork, cooked in a rich Campeche, and Portico dark sauce. In Merida, del Peregrino in Merida, evening food carts sell with distinctive mole hot crepes filled with dishes. Nutella or cheese for Mexican chocolate is about a dollar. For breakfast, all the rage in hipster feast on huevos joints across America. motulenos (fried eggs Merida and Campeche topped with beans, peas, offer a chance to try the ham, cheese and chili on real thing (Chocolateria a tortilla). de la Mora in Campeche
Best meals: La Pigua, is amazing). Opt for less an upscale fish restaurant milk and less sugar to outside the walls of truly savor the chocolate.