The Early Years

The Early Years
Running out of pesos meant a trip to the “bean bank.” There was no regular bank in San Miguel in those days. It was on Mesones just after Colegio Street on the right hand side going up. The Hoyos Brothers Legumbre store. You could buy all kinds of lugumes in newspaper cones (everything was sold in hand rolled newspaper cones in those days, there were NO plastic bags back then) there, or cash a check, change dollars to pesos, even open an account and deposit money into it.
The store was nothing fancy, just bins containing beans, corn, lentils, etc. and bulging, burlap bags stacked around the walls. There always seemed to be a giant high-sided truck outside with sweat soaked men carrying heavy sacks on their backs into the rear of the store.
Ceasar, got the money out of the huge old safe that always stood open behind the counter, and counted it out. I preferred small bills and coins because no one in San Miguel could change the larger bills ($50 pesos). For a twenty dollar travelers check I got a fistful of money. Made you feel like Christmas.
(It worked very well until one of the brothers absconded with depositors money one night.)
Flush with money again I wandered into the Cucaracha Bar, alongside the jardin. The front room was full of gringos as it was already 1:00 P.M. The jukebox was jumping playing Glenn Miller tunes. I went on through into the back room to the stand-up saloon counter, and ordered a “Cuba Libre,” from Nico, and sat down along the wall. The only light in the back room was a small Bacardi shaded table lamp on the bar. The gringos were muted a little, and you could carry on a conversation with, “monkey,” “Venus,” or “feo” depending on which one was around. They were the local gringo hustlers. They could get you anything you needed. I mined them for information every chance I had.

San Miguel de Allende, Bajada de Salida a Queretaro

Freddy was there, I never heard him called anything else, in an argument with Chucho, the owner. Seems Freddy received one free drink a day, everyday, out of Chucho’s kindness, and having spent the previous week in jail was demanding his 7 free drinks!