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Wendy's Curios is a wonderful place to explore. Located on a corner in the Old Port right across from the liquor store, it's very visible. Even from outside it's apparent that Wendy's is filled to overflowing with interesting items. It used to be just a single large room. Then it was two rooms. Then it took over the space behind the first rooms. After that there was nowhere to go but up, so it went up. There's a second floor which consists mostly of an open deck and a third floor which is another, smaller deck.
Every inch of this remarkable store is crowded with fascinating items. Sergio Mata, the owner, told us it's the largest curio store in Puerto Peñasco. We asked him how many items he had, and he estimated 12,000.
Curio store may be a misleading description. This establishment sells works of art in many different media.
The sidewalk outside the store holds carved benches, wrought iron plant stands, huge pottery jugs, and shelves of smaller items. Walking inside, we made our way through exhibits of leather goods, chess sets, ceramic tile, strings of glazed chilis and fruits, carved wooden boxes, fish mobiles, clay light fixtures, starfish, and knick-knacks of various kinds. Pushing through to the back room we found racks of dresses and shirts, belts, purses, rain slickers, T-shirts, and rugs, interspersed with guitars and ukuleles. I bought a lovely dress here last summer, made of gauze fabric in a bright turquoise color, swinging long and loose from a yoke embroidered in the same color thread. I also bought my nephew a chess set for Christmas and various key chains, small vases, and pottery items for other family members. My favorite leather purse came from here. I need a big one (to carry my reporter's notebook, among other things), and I need one with a shoulder strap and an outside pocket for my keys. It's usually hard for me to find one that's exactly right, but I found it here--and for a very reasonable price too.
I've always thought that if I were wealthy I'd collect chess sets. There's something about them that fascinates me, although I'm only an indifferent player. So I enjoy looking at Sergio's stock. The most common design is a board of gray and white onyx with matching pieces, although I've seen them in black, orange, brown, and pink. They come in sizes all the way from minuscule to massive.
Sergio has been in Puerto Peñasco 15 years. Before that he lived in Mexicali and Hermosillo. He is married; his wife's name is Ramona, and they have three children. The shop is named for their daughter Wendy. Sergio's staff consists of David Lopez, Raul Hernandez, Nena Mata, and Raul Menendez, all very personable and helpful.
Sergio was good enough to let us have an equipale table and chairs for our model home. The table top is very unusual, made of slender sticks of wood--perhaps ocotillo--set side by side. The sticks in each quarter of the table are at a 90· angle to those in the adjoining quarters, so the effect is quite striking. Sergio also let us have some vases and pottery, which make the house look delightfully Mexican. He even found a small tile with a black cat (gato negro) on it, which we have in the window.
Most of the furniture and larger items are in the room behind the main shop. David took us out to explore it. Here we found a massive semicircular bed headboard in wood and wrought iron that we're going to buy for our model home. It has a powerful feel to it, yet is simple and elegant in design. Sergio has other beautiful pieces of furniture. I noticed a hutch with carved and painted calla lilies as trim; I've seen tables and chairs with this same motif; it must be a popular Mexican design.
I was quite taken by one of the large jugs, or perhaps they were plant pots, which featured a green lizard climbing around and through a hole in the surface. There were bathroom sinks made of talavera tile--or at least with talavera designs--they may have been made of some other material. One could design a really elegant bathroom using a sink like this with decorative tiles to match.
We climbed to the upper deck by way of a spiral wrought iron staircase. Here we had a good view of the harbor with all the boats at anchor. We could also smell the tantalizing odors from the Old Port Deli across the street and the Friendly Dolphin on the opposite corner. As we looked down into the courtyard of a vacant building behind Wendy's we saw a collection of cows' skulls lined up along one of the walls, left behind by some former tenant. no doubt. Around us we saw a profusion of other items--a vase in the shape of a pig, a beautiful jug with a sun face on it, some wrought iron end tables set with colored tiles, masks in clay and wood, a replica of "The Last Supper" in copper and brass, and a number of exquisite Seri Indian carvings of fish, seals, dolphins, and turtles. John and I have a beautiful Seri seal that we received for a wedding present, and we really love the style that these artists use.
I could have stayed all day looking around at the wonderful things here, but it was getting late, and the staff were ready to close up the shop. We decided to forego a climb to the third story, although the view would no doubt have been even more spectacular. We returned to the ground, feeling we had experienced a whole museum tour compressed into half an hour.