Just another Saturday at el Centro de Laredo

    I'm often asked by people why I never seem to have any posts on anything north of Saunders. All my posts center around happenings in and around west, south and central Laredo. It seems to be that places around Mcpherson area are all the same cookie-cutter monotony, indistinguishable from any other city and lacking character and charm. I'm sure I will catch flack for this opinion, but you are free to disagree.

Nonetheless, to me, Laredo starts south of Saunders. In my opinion, this is the true Laredo. While you might not agree, that is the case to me.

Having said that, I was stumbling around el centro de Laredo a Saturday in late October and I noticed a few things I had not seen before. It seems a new pizzeria, a panaderia, a place offering FREE WIFI all popped up while I was absent. Rest assured that DeLaredo will be spending plenty of his money at these local establishments. See pictures below:

A pizzaria downtown? Genius

Shaved ice that offers free wifi? Check!

Finally, a panaderia downtown! Panos is everywhere!

El Bodegon Laredo, TX Thrift Store

    There are hundreds of stores from where to buy in our city and plenty of thrift stores that allow me to purchase some lovely collectibles. Lately, I have become enamored with items manufactured from 1977 to 1993. In Laredo, there are only so many second hand stores from where to buy. One such store is a hidden gem called El Bodegon. They sell housewared, toys, media, electronics and other cool items. I have found. While they are not the only thrift store in town, they are best. In a city inundated with ropa usada, El Bodegon offers a nice variety. It's local stores like this that keep me away from the mall and ugly corporate chains like Goodwill. 

Laredo, TX Video Stores (VHS Rentals)

Not too long ago, before Netflixing and chill became common place, you had to run down to the ol' video store to get your movie night fix. For a few bucks a night, you could take several movies for the night and binge to your hearts content.

Locally, we had several mom and pop places that thrived with the weekend rentals. Now, in 2018, none of those remain. Video stores have mostly become extinct! Only Redbox remains as a place to rent physical media, at least in Laredo. However, not too long ago, video stores where abundant and you could select from a variety of genres and even languages, from Steven Segal and Chuck Norris to Mario Almada and Sergio Goyri vistas.

I even remember the first place I peered behind the red curtain at one of these establishments that offered adult videos for viewing pleasure. It was a magical time for videophiles. Now, VHS and DVD are slowly being phased out. Still on Saturday nights such as this, I feel the nostalgic hark to the good days, of walking the aisles of the video store, with friends and family, as we argued over which movie to take home. Those days seem like a lifetime ago, a lifetime of memories on film.

Las Pulgas en Laredo, TX

If I have one hobby that I never pass up on the weekend, its going a pulgear (flea marketing). We do have several in Laredo: Guadalupe Heights Pulga, Pulga 359, Pulga en Park Street and Pulga La Blanca. However, at a recent trip to Pulga 359 I was surprised to see so many vacant spots. It was on a fair weathered Saturday morning and so many stalls were closed.

I had heard talk that the old pulga on 359 was being shut down, some might say relocated and it seems like that is truly happening. UISD is opening up a middle school just blocks away from this eye sore. Many vendors have already fled to the new pulga down the road, with its broad open spaces and clean facilities, it is light years ahead of the old one but without the vintage old merchandise found at the old 359 pulga.

Which makes me think, why are our local Laredo pulgas in odd locations.? One is near the city landfill and other adjacent to a headquarters for teen hoodlums. I guess this makes shopping fun and keeps us on our toes.

2018 in full effect!

If you noticed, I upgrade from 2.0 to 3.0. Why you might ask? Is there better writing? Did the posts become more intriguing and the journalism stepped up a notch? Are the updates finally arriving on a semi-regular basis? I do hope its a small portion of all three and it should reflect in the upcoming weeks.

It is a new year and 2017 was brutal for me with the loss of Mami Chulas and Halloway Bakery hitting especially hard. However, new places are here to replace these cherished institutions.

One place I have quickly learned to love is the Laredo Outlets. I'm not a fan of Mall del Norte, but the outdoor atmosphere and easy parking make the outlets a fun shopping experience for me (not a paid endorsement). I have found myself going back there for several purchases recently and the decent prices make it my worthwhile.

Unfortunately, many of the stores surrounding the outlets are vacant, probably due to risings rent costs. I love going downtown and to stores besides the outlets and slowly I see many locals also giving downtown another look that has long been forgotten.