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“Not Another T-Shirt!”

August 16, 2015 by riplipboy

Next time you’re in a rush to find some gifts to take home…fresh vanilla…salsas…raw cinnamon…real tortillas…tequila!

NOT ANOTHER T-SHIRT!

Originally Published the Week of Aug. 18, 2015 in Western Outdoor News

You’re just about headed home after a great fishing trip. It’s been good. Fishing is done. You’re kicking back and chilling now. Dang, you’re not ready to go home yet. Oh well.

You’ve been knocking back copious amounts of beer and nachos with the guys. And suddenly it hits you like ice water.

You remember you have a family!

And suddenly you struggle to wrap your brain around the thought, “Oh man, I better bring home some presents!”

And you curse yourself a bit because you feel like that time you forgot it was your anniversary until the day of your anniversary. So, you gotta scramble.

Red alert! Defcon 5!

You’re gonna get killed if you bring home another t-shirt for mom and the kids. And faux-turquoise jewelry from the guy on the beach isn’t gonna cut it either. Zero points.

Here’s some of my personal suggestions that are unique and relatively inexpensive.

SALSA

This is always a winner. Walk into any Mexican grocery store. Head to the spices aisle and you’ll find rows of salsas. Find some that you’ve never seen before back home. They come in all colors, sizes and degree of heat.

And they’re cheap. About 2 bucks a bottle. Some even less.

I would often buy a bunch at Christmas time. Take them back to the U.S. Tie a ribbon around tree or four bottles and ta-DA! Instant present!

TEQUILA

Forget the over-priced stuff you find at the airport. Find a place that has a good selection of tequilas or, better yet, an actual tequilaria (tequila store). Best prices are found at places AWAY from the tourist areas. Find a good bargain or look for a label you don’t see back home. Like wine, it doesn’t have to be expensive to be good.

VANILLA and CINNAMON

If you’ve got someone who loves the kitchen or loves to cook or mix things (even drinks!), Mexico has some of the world’s best vanilla and cinnamon.

Vanilla comes in dark bottles. It’s not the imitation stuff back home. This is the real juice and a little goes a long way.

Same with cinnamon. Fresh sticks of aromatic cinnamon…nothing like it.

Put some of these things in coffee…baking…mix with sauces…infuse your own vodka, tequila or rum. Use on ice cream. It’s not expensive and shows you actually put some thought into your shopping (right?).

MEXICAN CANDY

When I had a lot of younger nieces and nephews and neighborhood kids, it was too hard to find t-shirts or remember sizes. So, I would go to the Mexican market and find the bins of Mexican candies or candies that could NOT be bought in the U.S. Get a couple handfuls. It’s cheap and a lot cheaper than t-shirts!

I’d bring home zip lock bags of each kid and I was instantly their favorite uncle or neighbor. Their parents weren’t always happy with me, but hey…that’s what uncles are for. Uncles teach kids to pull fingers and make fart noises under their arms too!

CHEESE and HOMEMADE TORTILLAS

If you’re bringing home frozen fish in your ice chest, consider saving some room to stash some homemade Mexican ranch cheese or even better…real Mexican tortillas.

You KNOW you’ve been loving the tacos and nachos you’ve been eating. Everything tastes better in the incredible tortillas from Mexico. And they taste nothing like the tortillas back home which taste like cardboard!

That’s because they are made with…lard! Yup…the good stuff. And the better ones are made by hand in a tortillaria most likely by someone’s mom who’s been making them for decades. You don’t even need to butter them. They taste good right out’ve the package or off the stove!

Ask around, and there’s little hole-in-the-wall neighborhood tortilla shops everywhere. Any taxi driver can take you. Or, go to the larger markets which all have their own tortilla makers or have them delivered to their deli sections daily and are kept warm.

Flour tortillas travel better than corn. If you can, freeze them before travelling in a zip lock. If not, keep them cold stashed between your frozen fish until you get home.

Tortillas are CHEAP! You can get a kilo for about 2 bucks. I send some to friends in Montana where real Mexican tortillas are a rarity. They hoard the tortillas in their freezer and dole them out one-by-one only on special occasions!

Same with cheeses. Mexico has an incredible variety of cow and goat cheeses that are gaining in popularity around the world.

Find a market that has a deli. Ask for some queso fresco (white cheese almost like a moist bluecheese or buffalo mozzarella in consistency). Or ranch cheese or manchengo cheese. If you’re in a good store, you can find cheese that has bits of mushroom or chilis or cilantro mixed into it.

And again, like many of the other things on this list, not every expensive and all a big hit when you bring some home!

If all else fails, you can always buy a t-shirt at the airport. If you’re coming to Baja in the next few months, a lot of these make for great Christmas gifts.

That’s my story!

Jonathan

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Jonathan Roldan has been writing the Baja Column in Western Outdoor News since 2004. Along with his wife and fishing buddy, Jilly, they own and run the Tailhunter International Fishing Fleet in La Paz, Baja, Mexico www.tailhunter-international.com. They also run their Tailhunter Restaurant Bar on the famous La Paz malecon waterfront. If you’d like to contact him directly, his e-mail is riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com or drop by the restaurant to say hi!

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Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

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Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

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“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

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That's My Story

Tailhunter International, La Paz, Baja Sur