No doubt about it, literary festivals are one of the pleasures of being an author. Meeting readers, hanging out with other writers – it’s a small reward for the months of confinement and a chance to take a holiday at the same time. These days there are festivals the world over. FIL (Feria Internacional del Libro) in Guadalajara, Mexico, is one of the biggest.
The Instituto Cultural Cabañas in Guadalajara was once an orphanage and has the grandest architecture of any I’ve ever seen, decorated with works by Mexico’s mural master Orozco. It was empty when we visited, save for the eerie echo of children’s laughter, which turned out to be an art class for local youngsters.
We found todo Guadalajara a few hundred yards away in the Mercado Libertad, which sells everything from rodeo saddles to live turtles. There’s a lot to love about Guadalajara: the tamarind margaritas, handmade wooden toys, tacos at Tacos Providencia. The only thing I didn’t love was mariachi, the city’s signature tune and an inescapable part of every meal.
My resolution this year was to qualify as a scuba diver. So we took a plane to La Paz in Baja California by the Sea of Cortez. Literary festivals are all talk, so it was great to be underwater and in total silence and my abiding image was being circled by a shoal of several thousand barracuda. Where else can you get close to the wild world except underwater?
On the other side of Baja California is Todos Santos, where we stayed at Hotelito. Owned by former Vogue model and interior designer Jenny Armit, it’s all hot colours and cool, relaxing spaces with a fabulous saltwater swimming pool.
On our arrival everyone was talking about the surf – a ‘perfect storm’ had brought surfers there from all over the world. So we were up early the next day to see the world’s best on the waves. Later, I had fun with a boogie board borrowed from the hotel.
Hotelito has an adjoining equestrian school. Last time I was on a horse was on safari in Kenya a year ago, but I just couldn’t resist a gallop along the empty beach on our last day. With a raging appetite, we dropped by Il Giardino, which is run by an Italian family. The pizzas are the size of manta rays.
Returning to Guadalajara for our flight, we spent a day shopping in Tlaquepaque, which is full of shops specialising in handmade home decorations. I chose a few special things because a wise woman once told me to buy experiences, not possessions. I’ve followed that counsel ever since – and never have her words lived more vividly than in the cities, seas and wild spaces of Mexico.
Aminatta Forna’s latest novel is The Memory of Love (£17.99, Bloomsbury). BUY IT HERE: The Memory of Love
WAY TO GO
BA flies to Mexico City. Visit ba.com.
