Hairy tale

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Once upon a time, men in the Colonia Condesa cut their hair every week. As soon as they could sense the hairs on the back of their necks touching their shirt collars, they felt raggedy and went straight to the barber shop. David and Miguel, who cut hair on Avenida Vicente Suárez, in between the cantina El Centenario and the restaurant El Japonéz, remember that they would sometimes go to work on December 31st and have so many customers that they wouldn't arrive home until the new year. Permanent staffers included a manicurist and a man to shine shoes.

These days the guys in the neighborhood are a lot shaggier -- the shop closed early on New Year's Eve --but there is still enough work for the two barbers, who have toiled in the the same spot for fifty-seven years.

They love them, yeah, yeah, yeah

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There is a radio station in Mexico City that plays the Beatles two hours a day. Their music -- along with that of the Doors, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Barry White and Ray Conniff -- is endlessly recycled here, as evidenced not only on radio stations, but in jukeboxes, and all over the sidewalks where pirated CDs are sold. (To be fair, so is the music of many Mexican idols, such as Pedro Infante, Trio Los Panchos and Agustín Lara.)

But there is a special fascination with the Beatles that I cannot quite explain. Here, a display at a flea market that takes place each Saturday and Sunday at the Jardín Dr. Ignacio Chávez, on Avenida Cuauhtemoc between Calles Dr. Liceaga and Dr. Navarro. Act fast -- these items may have already been snapped up by a diehard fan.

If they're gone, there will be plenty of other stuff, just in time for Three Kings Day, on the 6th of January, the day that Mexicans traditionally exchange presents.

Happy new year, everyone.

Toy taxis

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The cab driver had a series of miniature toys on his dashboard. I asked if he had stolen them from his children. "No," he said, "I collect them. I've been doing this for about five years. I have about a thousand of them." He switches the display in his cab periodically. For example, for the Christmas season, he replaced Simpsons figurines with the Three Kings.

Mexico stopped producing the old-fashioned Volkswagen Beetle in 2003 -- the last country to do so. For years, the Beetle was the standard city taxi cab, with the front passenger seat removed for easy access in and out of the vehicle. Every few years they would change color, and the cabbie had models of each evolution. Today, the typical taxi is a four-door sedan, and only a few of the Beetles are left on the streets.

Suds

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My friend Cynthia has a family business, fashioning soaps with spring water, natural oils, herbs, flowers and fragrances. They come in all sorts of colors and aromas: almond milk; honey, wheat and yogurt; mixed berries; chocolate; kiwi; melon and cucumber. I've been using them for years. They look good enough to eat, but I wouldn't recommend that you do. They make great Christmas gifts.

She usually sells them on the streets of the Colonia Condesa in the morning and in Coyoacán in the afternoon. If you cannot find her, send her an email at cynthiayapur@suenosdeagua.com.