About

Note from Linda

I was a teacher for thirty years in both elementary and middle school. Long summer vacations allowed my family to travel extensively. Our trips to Mexico began in 1968 and spanned nearly fifty years. Even though we visited many other incredible places in the world, it kept calling us back. We would often spend three months a year in Mexico when the Seattle rains closed in, choosing to drive so we could poke into the corners that most tourists don’t get to see. The layers of culture that make up modern Mexico have always fascinated me. The traces of ancient civilization coexist with the technology of the modern world. I seek out the obscure and hidden aspects of the culture—wherever I go.

This sense of adventure was seeded by growing up in a military family. With a father as a Navy doctor stationed in post-war Japan, we moved around a lot and explored many places. These early years nurtured a love of travel and appreciation of other cultures.

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This book is drawn from the writing, sketches, and collages I made over these five decades. The chapters are stand-alone essays, some of which I had polished in writing groups over the years. Most of the images placed with the stories were chosen for their related content, but were not originally intended as illustrations for these stories.

The book has two parts. The first and main section, “Churros y Chocolate, and Other Journeys South,” contains twenty-one essays sprinkled with images from my many sketchbooks. The link for this section in the menu bar is called “Book Chapters.” The second part, “Sketch Book,” contains six sections of additional art—drawings, collages, and handwritten stories.

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My thanks go to my husband, Gary, as my lifelong travel partner and intrepid explorer. I’m ever grateful that he shared my love for travel, and his fluency in Spanish was indispensable. To my daughter, Heidi, for adding another rich dimension: for example, finding local kids to play with which expanded our experience as a family. I’ve been gratified that she became a traveler like me, participating later in humanitarian and other world travel.

I also want to express my appreciation for my writing coaches over the years, and most recently, to Diane Berger who edited these essays, helped me choose the art for this book, and created its website.

— Linda Oman

2020

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