Thursday, February 11, 2016
El Hotel de los Secretos #13, 2/10/16 Wednesday: For Always…Well, Maybe Just for a While
The servants’ quarters are busy that evening, as they also get the unwelcomed visit of Melibea, hopping mad and looking for Violeta. She causes a scandal as she tromps through the halls, yelling for the chauffer who stole her daughter. Angela wants to know what this whore (suripanta) is doing here. Lupe can’t believe what he’s hearing about his son. Mel barges into Jacinto’s room, disregards Dr. Vicario’s warnings that the danger hasn’t passed and that Violeta may die if she isn’t cared for, and drags Violeta out of there. Lupe keeps Jacinto from running after them.
Labels: hotel
"He finds the resident Cheech and Chong sitting on a wall, smoking herb"
Matilde sure took air out of Isabel's balloon with the truth but I wonder why she didn't seek out Julio instead of running off to solve the mystery herself. I jumped with the knock on Isabel's head
Worrisome. Love or fear, Teresa's tip of the day for Diego
The bawdy house scene was awesome
I'm liking Matilde and her ability to prod Isabel into action, whatever it might be, instead of sitting around crying. Not sure why Isabel felt the first thing she had to do was try to solve the mystery about Cris and Pascual, instead of breaking things off with Diego and putting her foot down with Teresa. But dealing with a potential murderer might actually be easier than dealing with those two.
Wow! A dead female. I cannot wait to find out who she is or isn't. I trust we will know soon with Ayala in charge. Lol.
So who was following Isabel? Or who did she disturb at the carpintry workshop?
I wonder if they will be able to identify the woman. From the reaction of Dago and the morgue guy, it seems the body is in really bad shape-- beaten and bloated.
Sad to see that Belen's promotion has created a monster. Before this she was a hard worker, even if not a very nice person. (I think in the first episode she said she'd been there for seven years.) Now a very tiny bit of power has gone to her head.
I don't know what the Doctor's story is, but his people skills are way better than Diego's.
So Mel carted off her bleeding daughter in spite of warnings? Wow. What's with all the terrible mothers in this TN? Angela's the only mother who isn't horrible.
Julie- I don't know what Dr. Vic's end game is, but he's a charmer, and has great bedside manner. And so far he seems to be a good influence on the Alarcon daughters. Boosting Sofia's confidence, and reminding Isabel of her calling to be a doctor. I like him! Plus, anyone who can subtly dis Diego is high on my list.
"He finds the resident Cheech and Chong sitting on a wall, smoking herb"... great!
I guess Alfredo needed to have his Wheaties to find his huevos. I certainly wouldn't want to see him become the Victorian Norman Bates, although Elise looks like she could turn him into just that. Forgot to mention it yesterday but could Victoria have been more obvious than she was when she did that about face to report back to Mrs Bates? Somebody has to catch on to this.
The brothel scene was excellent; always love seeing the can-can.
More later.
Very entertaining, at least the French left the can-can, loved it & Ayala is a hoot.
I thought Belen would turn out good once she got a kind, guapo man, wrong again.
Who could possibly living in Pasqual's house & what is the connection to Diego?
They stopped repeating the episodes on afternoon TV, damn. Loved watching again after the recap, I'm not at my most alert at 10PM
This whole nonsense about no inheritance until there's a male heir was probably commonplace in those days but if Elise has full administrative control over Alfredo's inheritance a baby boy might not be enough to put control of it in his hands. I think she will find other excuses to maintain control of it until she can drive him and Sobfia apart.
What therefore would happen to Alfredo's inheritance if there is no male heir and Elise dies? Does Alfredo have any siblings to whom it would go or would it go to a paternal uncle? And what if he doesn't have any of those? How difficult would it be for him to challenge this in court?
Even after binge-watching true crime TV, I'm still trying to understand how a woman can push a teen daughter into the lowest form of prostitution and how an uncle can pimp out both of them. That she was dragged out of a sickbed back to that horrible place will have consequences for which they will ultimately blame Jacinto.
Julio didn't deserve the humiliation of having to serve champagne to Isabel and Diego any more than Isabel doesn't deserve to have to submit to that pervert. I hope for her sake that she can break the engagement.
As for Julio's escape in the flashback, I can't wait to hear that story although I don't see how it connects with Christina's disappearance or murder since nothing in her letters to Julio seems to refer to anything political.
1) Mother Teresa put out an all points bulletin in telegrams seeking a pliable doctor.
2) A mystery man paid the telegraph operator for the contents of those telegrams,
3) The doctor MT wanted suddenly was disponible to her.
That suggests that the mystery man was Lazaro who found out that MT wanted a dr & thus presented himself.
But to me all that is far-fetched, contrived plot.
Do I misunderstand the telegrams? Why would Lazaro be monitoring telegrams? Perhaps it will all come out with the wash, but perhaps someone has some good theory on all this or can correct me???
Enoch- The genre of period murder mysteries are filled with contrived plot. Like, why would anyone decide to commit murder when they know the world famous Hercule Poirot is staying in their same hotel? Best just to enjoy the ride. Your guess is as good as mine as to why Dr. Vic would want to be in the Gran Hotel and become the house doctor. He seems to have had an immediately dislike, and possible recognition, of Diego. And that's very interesting.
But he paid the telegraph boy extra when he heard that Mother Teresa was with Diego. I'm guessing that the telegrams tipped him off to a way to get inside the hotel and keep a closer watch on Diego himself.
Of course, it would be an incredibly lucky coincidence if the mystery man just happened to be a real doctor, or (if mystery man is not Lazaro himself) was able to recruit and brief a real doctor within minutes. So there's a good chance that Laz isn't a real doctor, but has enough education and experience to be able to fake it up to a certain point.
R U referring to Psycho? I can see Elise's taxidermal stuffed body in a rocking chair in the Hotel attic! LOL. Creak, creak.
They cud have had Cristina killed like Janet Leigh.
I wud hate to see that gorgeous tin lizzy in the quick sand.
I am at a loss to figure out what was in Isa's bell to cause her to check out the Pascual barrio all alone -- & to enter a dilapidated shed by herself like that.
Was that an isolated village that Columbo went to, accessible only by wading through a mud path in the campo? Why no horse? Or was that just an isolated grave yard. Why didn't Columbo take his pard with him? It wud have been good comedy. And where is that bordello? Beside the grave yard? If so, how are they doing business in such a poor location?
I liked that tree which seemed to be a landmark.
Felipe will face consequences when the general finds out that Mercedes entered that dive with him.
BOOM! Cannon fire. The soldiers storm in!
Firmly convinced that doctor is up to something. It's one thing to win people over, but his dig to Diego was of someone who seems more to want to stir up some trouble or get to some secrets...all the while being charming.
I was very proud of Alfredo last night, and that look on Elisa's face...wow. Someone told her No! How horrible. I believe it isn't so much Sofia, it's any woman who would dare surpass her as the number one woman in her son's life. Him standing up to her i think was a shocker. Of course, it won't stop her, but it was good to see.
Hate all things with Meli and her daughter. Putting a daughter into the trade wasn't unheard of, in fact it happened a lot since it was a way to make money and keep a roof over your head. Seldom could a girl born to a prostitute find a life outside the bordello walls. But her treatment and cruelty of her I can't stand. When she kicked her the other day I felt sick.
Not supposed to say this, and I preface with I love Erick Elias in almost all he does, but boy, Isa and Andres looked good together last night.
So do we think it really is Cristina they found....or is another young woman? Do we have a serial killer or a series of young women being used for some type of illegal trade who suddenly become expendable? If it's Cristina...lord, EE is going to have a hell of a scene reacting to that.
Everything with Ayala was fun, but raises a lot of questions again. Why would the guards have suddenly started firing on those prisoners--politics in play, but watching that scene with Julio running, a good shooter should have been able to take him down. He wasn't running that fast...so was he purposefully spared? Ok - my mind is going all conspiracy theory again.
LOVE Mathilde and hope she sticks around. This is no woman to mess with.
Daisynjay
I hope for Sofia's sake that Doc Vic is a real doctor, however he managed to show up and for whatever other reason he's there. Otherwise she may well die from festering issues after Doctor Santamaria's butchery. Sofia needs competent treatment. Isabel might be able to help, but with Teresa keeping her away from treating Sofia, and Sofia afraid to let her in on the secret, she'd have to be sneaky and persuasive.
I am also curious as to how exactly Doctor Vic came to be at the hotel. It seems way too quick for him to have been happening through town right as De Ego and Terroresa showed up to send a telegram asking for a doctor. I think he must have had another reason for being there; either he was the one following Ego and trying to get information, or he had another reason not yet revealed. I need to pay a visit to the coin-operated chisme dispenser at the telegraph shop and ask some questions!
Cheech and Chong had me giggling too, along with Ayala. I'm sure C&C were just smoking cigarettes, but they sure looked like they were under the influence of something.
I really, really hope the dead woman isn't Cris, for Julio's sake. I'm still holding out hope that she's alive-- and maybe even the mystery head bonker in the carpentry workshop.
Daisy inquires: "Everything with Ayala was fun, but raises a lot of questions again. Why would the guards have suddenly started firing on those prisoners--politics in play, but watching that scene with Julio running, a good shooter should have been able to take him down."
How about this explanation? The prisoners were likely to escape & if the prisoners escaped the guards would be liable for punishment. They did the false burial of Julio so it would avoid a report that he escaped. As to being a good shooter, in those days one had to load every bullet with powder (using a rod) down the musket barrel for every shot. They have to dig a bullet out of a pouch, pour power out of a powder horn. Moreover, to shoot accurately, they would have to lean the gun on a support or at least be prone on the ground. I wud think that in such a speed reload situation using unreliable powder, the shooting would be haphazard & their muskets primarily useful for shooting a mass formation, instead of sharp-shooting.
This TN does let us have some fun with speculations and mystery solving, that's for sure.
Daisynjay
THE WINCHESTER RIFLE EMERGES
In 1873, the Winchester Rifle emerged, distinguishing itself as an immensely-popular firearm. In 1887, the first repeating shotguns were released by the company and, in 1903, Winchester again made history when it created the first automatic rifle.
In any case, I think this group of soldiers was just mean and lazy. Mean, because they basically forced peasants to build a road alongside prisoners, and treated them all the same, then shot at them all when they protested the bad treatment. Lazy, because they couldn't be bothered to make sure they caught all the prisoners, and preferred to have false graves/death certificates made than do their job and find the escaped prisoners.
As we have described other nasty characters....Diego is pond scum....hmmm maybe the pond scum in the grotto at the Grand Hotel?
UA--You asked if Alfredo has any siblings to whom the inheritance would go or would it go to a paternal uncle? I'd bet my house he has no other siblings. Mama would not have made him into her personal mama's baby boy for nothing. As for an uncle, I do believe Alfredo mentioned an uncle, one Congora, who hates him.
I think the dead girl will be another prostitute. Ayala came to town because there were other prostitutes murdered, and this last one was enough for Ayala and law enforcement to finally investigate this as a possible serial killer. And these murders are probably unrelated to Cristina, but it is very handy to have a top investigator in town while Julio is also investigating where his sister is, and now investigating who Julio really is.
I said yesterday how odd the doctor's presence is, a prominent physician willing to fake a pregnancy. If it weren't so cliche, I might suggest that Romulo isn't dead, and he sent the doctor to help his family out and do a little investigating on his own while he's there.
It's wonderful that Filipe found his soul mate. Two people who have serious impulse control issues finding each other. Maybe they will negate each other's bad traits and become a stellar couple.
If Tio Congora is on his mother's side (and I'm getting the feeling he is), then he would have nothing to do with Alfredo's inheritance. Only males on his father's side of the family would be a threat/competition.
+Julio goes outside to hit rocks with sticks
+Jacinto continues to be the bratty teen that he is...paired with Belen continues to be the mean beyotch she is
+The references to Cheech and Chong sitting on a wall--how did you come up with this? What made you think of them? Other than the weed factor.
+...he [Alfredo] must have eaten his Wheaties this morning...remember in Amores Verdaderos we wondered what all our guys were having for breakfast? Arriaga ate Wheaties and look what it got him...Senora Victoria *and* a baby boy. Alfredo should be so lucky.
I laughed at your Poirot line, Vivi! I'm going to murder that guy right now! Oh, Hercule Ayala is here? Never mind. It can wait.
That bonk on the head of Isabel made me jump. Normally I can see these things coming. So is that Cristina, or maybe the monk from the intro?
Kelly
But seriously, if you're about to implement your murder plot, and Poirot or Miss Marple show up, you should know you're going to get caught if you follow through with your plan. Doesn't matter how clever you think you are. They always get their man (or woman). And can any of our detectives ever go on vacation without someone getting killed in the hotel or cruise ship they're in? But I digress...
Anyway, what else all those crime stories have in common, especially the Columbo ones, is that the murderers tend to be crazy-arrogant, to the point where they actually get more bold as Columbo closes in. We've got a crazy-arrogant suspect already: Diego. I don't think Ayala has Columbo's mild-mannered, ultra-humble personality, so maybe this won't go exactly the way I'd like it to; but I'll enjoy watching Diego sweat, with Dr. Lazaro taking little shots at him while Ayala watches like a hawk. (It's hard to tell if Diego is on Ayala's list or not, but I'm sure Ayala had his reasons for asking whether Diego had tried to defuse the Pascual situation before shooting him dead.)
More than you care to know. Looks like the 1873 had plenty of time to get around Mexico
Winchester Model 1873 rifle
Winchester Model 1873 Short Rifle 1495.jpg
"The Gun that Won the West"
Type Rifle
Place of origin United States
Service history
In service 1866–1900s (U.S)
Used by United States
Canada
Mexico
Ottoman Empire
Wars American Indian Wars,
Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78,
North-West Rebellion,
French intervention in Mexico Spanish–American War,
Mexican Revolution
Production history
Designed 1873
Manufacturer Winchester Repeating Arms Company
Produced 1873–1919
Number built ≈720,000
Variants Full-stocked "Musket", Carbine, Sporting model
Which makes me REALLY curious what Diego's afraid Lazaro knows about. Diego seems pretty secure about his recent crimes, whatever those may be. What he's nervous about seems more likely something from his past. Is it something about his parents, or where he came from? Was he a child star on the vaudeville circuit? Was he poor? A notorious killer? An encyclopedia salesman?
Whatever... as much as I enjoy all the questions, I do hope that we get an answer or two in the near future. I don't expect all or most of the mysteries to be solved so early on, but a couple of small early wins would be nice.
Does Diego suspect something about the Doc, or just not trust him for his snide commetns about Diego? Doc is juuuuuust pleasant enough to not justify Diego getting too angry. If he were a former vaudevillian star, he might be a better actor at keeping it together. Maybe he's- gasp!- French. Maybe he should go for Victoria?
Kelly
Some time back I was working on the 40th floor of a midtown building and there was a French trade commission office on the 38th floor, so we rode the same elevator. These people never spoke any language other than French on that elevator.
One spring or summer day I went in to work wearing a dress I had just taken out of the cleaners' plastic. I had failed to notice that there was a tag stapled to the hem. I was on the elevator with a colleague who noticed the tag. When I saw it I was a little vexed. There were three people from that French office who were talking in French to each other. One of the women noticed the tag and pointed. They began laughing. I went from vexed to livid in a nanosecond and looked at them squarely. Then I said -- in perfect Parisian French -- Les amèricains stupides sont très amusants, n'est-ce pas?
They not only shut up, but when the elevator got to their floor they couldn't get off fast enough. I laughed all morning.
For the rest of the time their office was in the building they always shut up when they saw me on the elevator.
Also, when I was in grad school, one of my classmates had a job interview one day and noticed after the fact that the dry cleaners had left a little tag right at the end of the cuff of her shirt, in plain view of the interviewer. She was also quite vexed. Why do cleaners leave tags where you might not see them?!
I occasionally have to go to construction sites for work, and more than once I have overheard workers talking about me in Spanish. I'm sure they assume I can't understand them. I haven't yet had the perfect opportunity to respond; mostly I just enjoy eavesdropping, but one of these days...
Urban- That's a great story.
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