Hola mi Amigos! Saludos desde Neuva York! This week's episode has a distinct Mexican flavor, as we here at Adventures in the Big Apple celebrate the richness of Mexican culture, and the victory of the Mexican army over the impeding French forces in the Battle of Puebla. For those of us not familiar with Mexican history, it's Cinco de Mayo!The big party, at least for Christine and I, was the celebration of this great festival with our Young Adults group after Mass on Sunday. So, it was really on May 3rd. So, Treo de Mayo. Or Tres de Mayo, I'm not quite sure. Regardless, it was a celebration of the Mexican culture! A large group of young adults in their 20's and 30's (sorry other-aged people, but this was a somewhat "exclusive" event) gathered in a room totally decked out in Mexican gear. Banners, ribbons, sombreros, Mexican music, and streamers filled the room with character. Drinks of choice even included Margaritas, Dos Equis and Corona! Hurra por la cerveza! The best part was obvi the food. My favorite dish was this little rolled up flour tortilla shell filled with delicious cheeses and chicken and meat. It was kind of like a rolled up quesadilla. And it was also kind of like a mini party that exploded in your mouth! (I know that was kind of lame, but what are you going to do?) We ate, danced (some), drank, and enjoyed each others' company. My boy John B even gave a proper explanation of what the significance of Cinco de Mayo is, and a shout out to Our Lady of Guadalupe, a central religious symbol in Mexican culture.
The Main Event
After overwhelming amounts of food was eaten, the main event started. I was drafted (by force, I'll have you), into entering in a hot pepper-eating contest. First off, let me just say that these peppers were hand picked by someone very familiar with Latin American culture, were humongous, and were slightly intimidating. And I don't know the names of the peppers, but just trust me on the hot-ness factor of them.
The first pepper up was slightly longer than my hand. I attacked it with hopes of finishing quickly enough to not feel the pain. It was decently spicy (a 4 or 5 on hotness scale), but nothing I couldn't handle. The problem was it was pretty bland and just didn't taste good. All 3 of us competing finished quite easily, save the fact that John's eyes started watering and sweat started dripping from his forehead almost immediately. The second pepper was a let-down (3 on the scale). We all were disappointed, and got a little too cocky.
The third pepper was about a 9.763 on the hotness scale. I figured it was going to burn and churn, so I tried to force it down as fast as possible. But, it was too big to just swallow, so I was forced to chew it. NEVER CHEW! I finished first (no big deal, I won), and for about 24 seconds, I was fine, even mentioning, "it wasn't that bad, guys." Says the unsuspecting fool, about to be pounced upon by the spicy gods. At roughly the same time, John and I looked at each other, wide eyed, and made a mad dash for chips, tortillas, and anything liquid. When one's mouth feels like it's literally on fire, one's brain doesn't work properly enough to realize water only makes the pain worse. Luckily there was milk on hand, and the two of us guzzled ourselves a glass. Celine (the other participant) seemed relatively unfazed, at least not to our level.
And you may also be asking yourself, "Eric, where was your lovely fiance throughout your suffering?" Well, she was doing what all good people do, laughing and taking pictures of my sweat drenched and pain stricken face. Love you! The pain wore off, but my tastes buds were bland for another day. All in good celebration of Mexico!
Best Mexican Dish
Tacos. Hands down (or up). Although those rolly things with cheese and chicken were pretty darn good. Let's be honest here. We can all agree that all Mexican food is delicious. I personally eat tortilla chips on a daily basis, and could live off of fajitas, tacos, burritos, and quesadillas for a majority of my adult life. I applaud the Mexican culture for making its heritage so delicious.
Best Mexican Beverage
After an epic battle that originally featured Corona pitted against the Margarita, the old timer comes out of nowhere to pull the upset W. I'm speaking of none other than Dos Equis.
Best Mexican Restaurant in NYC
Seriously? He's for real, isn't he? Why, it's Blockheads of course! Who doesn't love the larger-than-life burritos, the unlimited chips and salsa, and the world famous $3 Margaritas?! No one. No one doesn't love it.
Thanks for stopping by again, everyone! I can't believe in only 2 weeks our wedding will be here! We can't wait to see all of you again, and until next time....
