Jorge Mester

* Music director of the Pasadena Symphony, which plays Saturday at 8 p.m. at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. Mester is also the music director of the Orquesta Filarmonica de la Ciudad de Mexico in Mexico City.

International excursion: If I didn’t have a rehearsal or concert on Friday night, I would go down to Alhambra and check out some of those little restaurants--Chinese, Vietnamese, even Muslim Chinese food. You basically feel like you’re in Hong Kong. Without even knowing the place, I like to just walk in and be the only non-Asian there.

Auto exploration: I like to drive around and explore. Once I tried to get from La Canada to Alhambra without taking any freeways. Walking on some of these streets, too, you get the most fabulous smells and see things you can’t from the car. I like to choose tiny streets and see where they will lead me.

Cuisine challenge: One of my favorite things to do is go to markets that are owned by and serve different ethnic groups. You see things there that you never imagined. Often I get some advice on how to cook them--and sometimes I succeed. Sometimes I don’t.

Books and movies: I love to go to big bookstores and spend two or three hours. It’s frustrating to realize that I’ll never get to all the books I want to read. After a trip to Vroman’s, I might go to a movie. Thank God Laemmle has opened those theaters by Vroman’s in Pasadena. You finally don’t have to go to Santa Monica every time you want to see a movie. They’ve also just reopened the Silent Movie Theatre. I used to go there when I was at Black-Foxe military academy, and I can’t wait to go back.

No music, thanks: I must admit that I stay away from concerts in general. One reason is that while I was music director of the Aspen Music Festival, I attended almost every concert for nine weeks, every night, every year for 21 years. I’ve done that. Now there are other things I want to do.