It's not only teens locking lips on the street; middle-aged couples also are given to public displays, sometimes with surprising urgency. Making out in the park avoids the prying eyes of siblings, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles who form the typical extended Mexican family. And there is an overall expressiveness that sets Mexicans apart from the northern neighbors.
"We're more romantic. We show our feelings," said Dulce Nancy Gonzalez, a 25-year-old doctor who on a recent day accompanied her boyfriend to the steps of the Alley of the Kiss for a lucky smooch. Tradition holds that kissing on the third step brings 15 years of good luck.
"It's not hard for us to show our feelings," Gonzalez said after she and her boyfriend of three weeks shared several kisses of the sort you'd never plant on grandma. "For us, it's harder to hide them."
In that spirit, Guanajuato's leaders are adopting an "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" approach. Having shelved the controversial ordinance for more review, Romero has gone all the way, declaring his city the "Capital of the Kiss."
Officials are hanging banners and printing postcards that celebrate various flavors of kissing (all G-rated and mostly showing family situations). Merchants are reportedly working on the recipe for a margarita-type drink that would be called the beso, Spanish for "kiss."
Guanajuato's residents have come to view the noisy affair as a cautionary tale about the futility of trying to lasso romance. Or the silliness of politicians. Or both.
On a recent day, Jorge Garcia and Vanessa Atzmuller, teens in matching white hoodies, stretched across the table of a sidewalk cafe near City Hall. They met halfway, touching lips softly, the way Ana and Carlos might have.
This time, they all lived happily ever after.
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ken.ellingwood@latimes.com
