Job Discussion Forums

[Phil_K]

Did anyone go downtown DF at the weekend? I didn't manage to make it. How was it without the ambulantes? (especially Eje Central).

Now would be a good time to refurbish (like the rest of downtown) the section between Metro Bellas Artes and Plaza Garibaldi, and Garibaldi back to downtown, to make the Plaza G. an integral part of the centre, as it should be.

[Guy Courchesne]

That would be quite the sight to see...no vendors.

Formula 1 was on yesterday...kept me inside, since it's hard to move around Reforma area.

[Phil_K]

I'm just wondering what AMLO thinks of his PRD colleague, as AMLO was the one who encouraged them in the first place!

[geaaronson]

Politics is politics and both know what the game is all about, Phil K. I am sure by now that AMLO has realized that he had created excesses.

[M@tt]

"quite a sight" would be anything east of garibaldi looking halfway decent. they'll have to evacuate all the vecindades if they really fix the area up.

[Prof.Gringo]

It's a "battle" that's been going on for many years. Since the Spanish came here. The poor, marginalized part of society, which is the majority here in Mexico is trying to make a living and also buy goods at the same time. It's kinda sad to think of all the people that labor in the informal economy. No job security, pensions, savings plans or any way to get credit, even the IMSS is excluded (unless you want to pay for it on your own). Like with this event. Lic. Marcelo, El jefe de DF decides to clear out the Centro Historico. Just like that you have to find a new place to set up shop, new customers (or the old ones have to find you), etc. Capital en Movimiento!

Meanwhile in places like Polanco, Santa Fe, etc. The middle and especially upper classes can snub their noses at the poor and underprivileged. Look at the contrasts in the Santa Fe area. Extreme poverty and extreme wealth, side-by-side.

It's easy for people to complain about the streets being blocked, while waiting to drive by in an armored Mercedes, maybe a bodyguard or two for good measure.

I doubt this is going to last. Its just a temp. band-aid. What does this accomplish in the long run? Why didn't they push to "legalize" the street vendors? Have them pay taxes, and have a license to sell? Just a thought.

[MO39]

[quote="Prof.Gringo"].

[Guy Courchesne]

[MELEE]

Personally, I think ambulantes are charming. What what you see today around the centro historico of DF and many places all over Mexico are not AMBULantes--they are semipermanent stalls--nothing ambulatory about them. Strolling venders are charming and local culture. I love that when I bought a ladder I just had to wait for the ladder guy to walk by my house, no need to figure out how to get it from home from the store. I've bought some great crafts while sipping a beer in the Oaxaca zocalo. And love that roaming tamale sales men come by my house on Sunday mornings, and those little pocket packs of tissues really should be available any place any time. But stalls, that are sometimes bolted or staked into the pavement, have "stolen" electricity, and sell any sort of pirated, stolen, or illegally imported goods is a social problem, but one that will only be solved by strengthening the economy--not by simply relocating them.

[Guy Courchesne]

Well put...

Oh, I love the ladder guy. Of all things to see being sold by cart. In one of the first places I lived in DF I would see him roll by...12 foot ladders in the basket. I kept thinking...one day. One day I'll need a ladder and there he'll be.



Who would want to stop this? This is an old tradition that should be preserved.

The alternative? I never want to find out how to say 'would you like fries with that?' in Zapoteco.

[Prof.Gringo]

I remember when I really came to Mexico for the first time. The new sights and sounds, the people that come by selling all manner of goods. How else am I supposed to get a giant metal bottle of gas home without a car? In a taxi? Please!

I do shop at the modern, gringo-ized stores like Wal-Mart, Gigante and Commercial Mexicana. But I also like having options. I miss the downtown street sellers. I think that Marcelo made a mistake. I ask again, what is the point? El Centro Historico is difficult to navigate at best, so why all the fuss? And why right now?

[Guy Courchesne]

My ex-wife is a graphics designer...hand made stuff mostly. We used to make Saturday forays into the back streets of the Zocalo to pick up various items she needed. Every street has a specialty in the Zocalo, so you know where to go based on what you need.

It is fabulous to see all the different things on offer in the bustling streets.

I haven't gone down there much lately, but every time I do I find something new. While not an ambulante, I did find a great Lebanese place tucked away in an alley. Great hummus and tabouleh.

[Samantha]

This is too bad, really. Our beach vendors are required to be licensed, and supposedly to wear some sort of beach vendor uniform (??) of a certain color. This seems to be the answer and things go along smoothly. These vendors work extremely hard....way harder than English teachers.

[Prof.Gringo]

[Prof.Gringo]