On the Road with Gary

Ajijic Carnival

2008-02-13T15:03:00.017-06:00

More Ajijic Photos

2008-02-13T14:46:00.004-06:00

Lakeside Photos

2008-01-19T15:19:00.000-06:00

Here are some photos that were taken in Ajijic and San Antonio at the Cafe Adelita and Johnny's. You can see photos in a larger size by double clicking on them.

Ajijic Photos

2008-01-16T12:27:00.000-06:00

Some Mexican Photos

2008-01-04T11:15:00.000-06:00

Here are some photos taken with my new Casio digital camera that my son Marc gave me on Christmas. Some are taken at Marc & Denise's house in Armeria, Norma's house in Armeria, Colima, Cuyatlan, Paradiso, Ajijic and bars and restaurants. The subjects are friends and family. I have decided not to add captions to each photo because some of these people may not like to be found.

Life is good. Viva Mexico!

What’s happening

2007-12-16T16:41:00.000-06:00

This is a Huichol Indian beaded mask that I bought to cover up a fuse box in my Ajijic home.

It’s been some time since I posted anything to this blog. Since I’ve heard from some of my readers that are wondering what’s going on, I feel I should fill you in on some of what’s happening.

The main reason that I haven’t been updating the blog is because I have rented a house in Ajijic and I now feel more part of the community. And as a member of this community, I don’t wish to contribute to the gossip. Sure there are some things I could write about that are not gossip but I am not sure that I even want to act like an anthropologist and analyze Mexico, Mexicans and the ex-pat community. I started this blog when I was getting ready to start traveling in my Lazy Daze motor home. The idea was to chronicle some of my adventures while traveling. Well, I am no longer living in the motor home and I am living in essentially a small town. So the initial reason for the blog no longer exists. Unlike some blog authors, I have no plans of turning my writings into money by adding advertising or writing a book. I have no aspirations of even being a writer. Another reason for not updating the blog is that I don’t feel very comfortable talking about my private life with strangers. I may shut down this blog and start another about my life here lakeside on Lake Chapala and future explorations to other areas in Mexico and beyond. I am not sure whether or not I would make the blog public or private for my friends and family.

If you have read this blog from the beginning you know that I have been trying to sell my house in Truckee in the Sierras near Lake Tahoe. It’s beautiful up there but I am not a skier so the winters there are a hardship for me. I didn’t tire that much when running a snow blower or shoveling snow; the main problem was that I couldn’t afford to pay for firewood and natural gas to keep warm in the winter. Before I left for Mexico, I signed a lease/option contract for the sale of the house. That contract has caused me a lot of stress which has resulted in me not being able to fully enjoy life here in Mexico. The contract is still pending and the renter/buyers still occupy my house. Until the house is sold, I feel like I am limbo. I feel I must be here to deal with the huge problem that the sale of the house has become.

On a positive note, I am really starting to feel comfortable with Mexico and the people. My Spanish is still limited but I am now confident that I could go anywhere I want in Mexico and survive. Each day I learn a few more words of Spanish and little bit more about how to form sentences. I like Mexico, the culture, music and people. The only things I miss about the US are friends, family and some foods. I am glad to be away from the politics, so-called leaders and PC thugs. I feel much freer in Mexico than in the US. The myth about the US being the land of the free is so much bullshit.

Also, I really like my new house. It is centrally located in Ajijic, the current center of the ex-pat community living lakeside by Lake Chapala. I don’t think that any other gringos live on my block, just Mexicans. There is a good restaurant two doors away that has a happy hour with 2 for 1 drinks and good margaritas. Across the street from the restaurant is a good tienda (convenience store) with some groceries, beer and snacks. From my home, I can walk all over town. There is the Guadalajara Farmacia with an ATM machine a block and a half away. A good bar, El Barco, is two blocks away. The best Chinese restaurant, Min Wah is only a block away. The main plaza, the center of the community is about 6 blocks away. Eventually, I plan to sell my motor home and get some kind or car, maybe an old VW bug, Thing or a small SUV to travel further away.

Since I was not going out much in the last two years of living in Truckee, I don’t think that I made any new friends. In the little over a year that I have been in Mexico I probably have made about 100 new friends that I know on a first name basis. Probably about 30 percent of those friends are Mexicans and the rest are mainly ex-pats from the US and Canada. Most are people that I have met at the plaza and in bars and restaurants. Now that I am enjoying my new house and tending the garden, I think that I will not be hanging out so much. I plan to get into serious studying of Spanish and maybe get back into some former creative pursuits like photography, art and painting. I may continue to update this blog with photographs without much comment.

This is a photo of the central plaza taken from the deck of the new Exotica bar.

The San Juan Cosala flood

2007-09-13T09:24:00.000-06:00

Yesterday morning I awoke and noticed that there was no traffic on the carretera (highway) which runs by my San Juan Cosala camp on the lake side. There was an auto bus, a taxi and several cars stopped and a river of water and mud running down the carretera east towards the balneario (hot spring bath facility). It had been raining all night but it was not when I got up. I went down to the front of the property and took some pictures of the flooded carretera.

Soon several back hoes and large dump trucks arrived and began to clean up the mud. About a half a block west of my camp is an arroyo that goes under a small bridge on the carretera. The passage under the bridge must have been blocked and the water diverted on to the carretera. A police pick up arrived and two big trucks of Mexican soldiers. I decided to walk up to the arroyo bridge to see what was happening and take some more pictures. One of the workers told me that a car had been swept into the arroyo.

The police and soldiers did not stop me as I waded through the mud and water that was a foot and a half deep in some places. At the arroyo bridge a large machine was scooping mud, rocks, trees and debris out of the arroyo to clear it and allow the water to take its usual course under the bridge and down into Lake Chapala. A huge mound of rocks and debris about 30 feet high blocked the carretera on the east side of the arroyo bridge and a couple smaller piles of debris blocked the west side. There were also parts of the car that had been blocking the arroyo but the parts were now about 3 feet in size. The largest part was a tire and an aluminum wheel so the destroyed car must have been a new car.

I took some pictures of the work and stayed and watched for awhile. On the mountain you could see water running down the gulches and arroyos. Behind my camp you can see a waterfall with a drop of about 75 feet. Then I returned to my camp thinking I would write about the flood for this blog. After I got cleaned up, I tried to transfer the pictures from my camera to my Vaio laptop. Much to my dismay, all the pictures were lost as the smart media in the camera had some how lost its formatting. I re-formatted the media and took some test pictures and the camera seemed well again and functioning correctly.

For a couple weeks I had been looking forward to a party in the afternoon at 5 PM. It was a birthday party for several different friends that share September birthdays. By 3 PM work was still going on for the flood clean up and the carretera was still closed to traffic. I decided to walk down to the balneario and hitch a ride or call a taxi at the hotel. I got a ride right away by hitching and went to the El Barco bar near the Pemex station in Ajijic for a cold Corona before going to the party near there at 5 PM.

The party was held in a beautiful Mexican house with a large garden. Several friends were already there when I arrived. The food for the party was catered by Vicki’s Hideaway and was very good. You didn’t even need to go get drinks as some of Vicki’s help came around with platters of finger food and took drink orders. Later on live music was provided by the local band, Noe and the Classics who played mainly old rock and roll songs by Santana, Elvis, Beatles and the Eagles. The party guests had a good time dancing to the music.

I took several more pictures at the party. I left about 9 PM to go to the Ajijic plaza to get a taxi back to San Juan Cosala. I asked an auto bus driver if he was going to San Juan but the road was still not open for buses. I took a taxi and got off near the balneario and walked on the muddy carretera back to my camp.

When I got back to the rig, I tried once again to transfer my pictures but again the formatting and all the party pictures were lost. Maybe the media card is bad and needs to be replaced.

This morning it looks like the carretera has one lane open over the arroyo bridge. It is still very muddy but traffic is going by slowly. I haven’t seen the TV news but I have heard that one house in the exclusive Raquet Club lost its foundation and slid into another house. I have been told that several people in San Juan Cosala died and some are still missing.

Mexico, Pros and Cons on life south of the border

2007-08-05T19:51:00.000-06:00

This subject has been covered many times by others. I will attempt to give my thoughts on the subject. What is a pro for one person could easily be a con for someone else so you must decide for yourself if you are considering moving to Mexico what your priorities are and what you expect and hope life to be south of the border. This post will mostly be about life lakeside near Lake Chapala.

The north shore of Lake Chapala is home to one of the largest concentrations of ex-pats from the United States and Canada. Some have estimated some 20,000 gringos live here. Other names for this area are “Gringlandia” and “God’s waiting room”. Gringlandia of course refers to all the gringos that live here. God’s waiting room means that most of the ex-pats are retirees over the age of sixty and are waiting for Saint Peter to call their name.

The north shore of Lake Chapala has four main towns and a couple small communities. Chapala is the largest town. It was the first place that gringos started to come to here lakeside about 50 or 60 years ago. It is the nearest to Guadalajara. The main town for the gringos now is Ajijic. It is the artistic and cultural center and has many restaurants and businesses that cater to gringos. Some of the gringos that live here don’t even bother to try to learn Spanish because they don’t need to. San Juan Cosala has a few gringos that live there but I know of only one business, a coffee shop, that seems to cater to gringos. Jocotepec, the most western of the lakeside towns is also very Mexican with a few resident gringos. Jocotepec has the lowest prices on the north shore for fruits, vegetables and most groceries. There are plans for a Walmart in Jocotepec. This may make the area more attractive to some gringos so it might be a good investment to buy land near there now.

The main reason that most gringos move here is because of the climate and the lower cost of living that Mexico offers. The climate is excellent with not even a jacket needed the whole year long. Now it is summer, the rainy season. The rainy season is actually a little cooler than the winter season due to the cooling rains. It rains mostly at night sometimes with thunder and lightning that provides a spectacular light show. Some prefer the rainy season because it cleans the air, everything turns green and the dust becomes mud.

To live here happily, you must enjoy Mexicans and adjust to their culture. Please don’t come here and try to change things. If you can not adjust then please stay home. First, the Mexican government does not want you interfering in its affairs. You can be deported for being politically active here. That said, it is my opinion that Mexico has much more freedom than the USA. The police here are not out looking for people to bust and harass. They are much more laid back and seem to want to help the citizens. There are some bad cops but it seems that the best thing to do is be friendly and get to know your local police.

You can smoke in most places. You can ride your horse downtown. You can drive your 4 wheeler without a license plate in the towns. You can have livestock on your land. Of course you may not like it if your neighbor raises fighting roosters or goats or pigs. Your neighbors may play loud music late at night or early in the morning. The religious holidays are punctuated with fireworks explosions and sometimes bands marching through the colonias.

In the smaller towns, the streets may be cobblestone and narrow. You may loose your side rear view mirrors if you forget to move them in. The sidewalks are also narrow and hazardous with pot holes and obstructions. My advice is to try to walk only during the day and sober. The curbs may be high so you cannot exit the car on the curb side. The ideal car in these towns is sturdy, small with good road clearance. The topes (speed bumps) can tear your car apart if you hit one at 40 miles an hour.

For the most part the Mexicans here lakeside are friendly and tolerant of the gringos. They know that the gringo money helps to provide jobs and opportunity for their town. A smile with a friendly attitude and an attempt at Spanish is appreciated.

This area gets quite a few tourists on the weekends from Guadalajara who come to enjoy the mineral baths in San Juan Cosala and eat some little fish (Charales) from the lake. Most gringos don’t eat fish from the lake because it is contaminated. They also don’t go swimming in the lake for the same reason. This area is a great spot to live and to visit other parts of Mexico. Many go to the Pacific coast for a month or so during the winter. There are not a lot of activities here for gingos to enjoy. Chula Vista has a nice golf course but it is only nine holes. Chapala and Guadalajara have bigger golf courses. There are some different clubs you can join if you care to. The Lake Chapala Society helps gringos and has events and opportunities for service. It has beautiful grounds and gardens, a lending library of books, video tapes and DVDs. It offers a service to have your mail mailed in the United States.

There is not much night life lakeside. Most Mexicans can't afford to go out and the older gringos stay home. Guadalajara has a lot to do at night if you care to make the about 35 mile trip. Many gringos go to Guadalajara about once a week to go shopping. You can find about anything you need there. Many go to Costco or Walmart. Many find driving in Guadalajara intimidating but during the day you can take a bus for about $3.50.

Medical and dental care is usually very good and cheaper than in the USA. You can buy things like antibiotics over the counter in pharmacies. A minor infection in the States might cost you around $100 USD to get treated with a doctor’s visit where here you just go buy some antibiotics for $4 USD. I got a broken tooth rebuilt, a cavity filled and a cleaning for under $100 USD. Plus you can join the Mexican health care system, IMSS, for around $300 a year.

Some of the drawbacks to life here is the Mexican custom of “manana, manana” which means that when someone says they will do something it most likely will not be done then. It may take two or three days, a week or a month to get done. It is hard to get some items that you are used to getting easily. Many of your favorite foods can be found lakeside but they may cost more than they do in the States since they are imported. It would be more difficult to buy and sell things on eBay. Your favorite sport teams may not be on TV. Parts or some items must be ordered from the USA and then you will need to deal with Mexican Customs. Scorpions and spiders can be a problem and the roaches are big.

Real estate lakeside can be purchased by foreigners without getting a bank trust. But the prices here are much higher than in some smaller town that does not cater to gringos. Life in those small towns may be cheaper but then you must love Mexican food, speak Spanish and live like a Mexican. Here if you have the money you can buy a mansion with walls all around and think you are living in Beverly Hills. Many people living here in retirement can afford a maid and a gardener. Behind the walls there are many beautiful homes here. Construction is mainly brick and concrete because wood is scarce and expensive. If you are interested in real estate prices, use Google to search for sites. Of course if you live here, you can sometimes hear of incredible deals. I just missed out on a three bedroom house in Ajijic for rent for $1,500 pesos a month, less than $150 USD.

Well, I think this is enough on this subject for right now. Use an internet search engine to find more information if you are interested.

No Internet

2007-08-05T19:49:00.000-06:00

A little over a month ago I started having problems with my Hughes Net satellite internet system. I contacted Hughes technical support and they told me that the equipment is still under warranty.

I was having a TX10 problem with the Hughes equipment. At first when I turned on the system from a cold boot, I could connect to the internet for one or two minutes and then the TX10 message would appear and the DW7000 would no longer connect with the NOC. Reboots via software did not help. The system had been working fine in the same location for about 3 months.

Later when the DW7000 modem was turned on from a cold boot the Transmit codes were TX3 “Transmitter locking to receive carrier”, TX8 “Transmitter Ready”, and then TX10 “Can’t communicate with the Network Operations Center”. The receiver code was RX5 “Receiver Operational”. The software download status reported “Received first heartbeat message”. TCP acceleration status was “Not Operational”.

I am assigned to 990 on SatMex5.

I tried forcing ranging and it would attempt to range (TX9) for about 10 minutes and then give a TX13 error code.

I had an extra cable for the dish and used it to test if there might have been a problem with the original cable. The problem continued so the problem was not the cable. I tried to go through the procedure of re-aiming the dish with the OPI meter but since there was a transmit problem, the procedure did not complete.

The horn on the end of the LNB got a crack in it some time ago and the equipment continued to function okay until the rainy season started. So I thought that the transmitter had gotten damp and was no longer functioning correctly.

I am not happy with Hughes Net technical support. The technicians offered no tips or resolution to my problem. Their only response was to say I needed a visit from a technician at my installation. When they finally understood that I was in Mexico, they said they could do nothing.

On the Datastormer’s forum, I was able to get some tips from others of what to check to resolve my transmission problem. After trying all the suggestions, I decided that the transmission unit must be bad. A fellow, Dexter, suggested I contact Jaba Networks in Cuernavaca, Mexico. I called Jaba Networks and they said had the right parts for me. Samuel with Jaba Networks, who speaks English, helped me and told me he had a used transmitter that he could sell me. Since it would be simpler for me (not having to deal with Mexican Customs), I bought the transmitter with LNB and wave guide for $250 USD. The parts arrived in about four days and I am now back online with the Hughes equipment for the first time in over a month. Jaba Networks has a web page (in Spanish) in case you are interested:

http://www.jabanetworks.us/HughesNet.html

Since I first tried to get help from Hughes Net while my equipment was under warranty and the problem was a faulty transmitter, I expected a credit on my account of $250 USD and credit for the one month’s service that I could not use Hughes Net. I did not ask for a credit of about $100 USD that I spent on Verizon roaming charges talking with Hughes Net Support.

Hughes Net says that they will credit me for a one month service fee but will not credit me for the parts I bought.

Customs & Deaf?

2007-06-01T16:39:00.000-06:00

Next to my camp site on the east edge of San Juan Cosala is an outdoor restaurant called "El Globo". The place evidently has a deal with Coca Cola because to has a couple of large tents with no sides and tables and chairs with the Coca Cola brand on them. It has one building with a roll up door that contains coolers with Coca Cola and Corona beer and some racks of potato chips, etc. The kitchen is outside next to the building protected by some tarps. In a near by area is where the tortillas are made and cooked. A woman about 40 makes the tortillas and cooks them on a stove there. I see her walking to work early in the morning. She is crippled by what I assume is some kind of genetic problem that left her with knees that fail so that she needs a cane to walk. Her stove started out as a wheel barrow. It is now supported by a large stone and has stone and bricks that support a large circle of steel that serves as the cooking surface for the tortillas she makes. The wheel barrow stove is protected from rains by a plastic tarp and is fired by wood that is stacked behind it.

I stop in El Globo a couple times a week because the price is right, it's convenient and the food is pretty good. El Globo seems to do a pretty good business with its food and selling grande Corona beers (940 ml or about a quart) for 16 pesos with a returned empty bottle. It has a pretty good view of Lake Chapala across the careterra.

I usually get the Milanesa de Res for 40 pesos which is a breaded cutlet of beef with beans, salad and tortillas. Today I went there and decided to try the Camorrones con Ajo which is shrimp cooked with garlic and salad and Mexican rice for 75 pesos along with a grande Corona. It was very good.

Seated at the table next to me were a couple of fellows with several grande Coronas on the table in front of them. They were carrying on a spirited conversation in a sign language, not the usual sign language but more like speaking with their hands. At first I thought they were deaf mutes but later on friends of theirs arrived and they spoke in Spanish. So now I am confused. What was all that sign language all about?

If you followed this blog you know that I damaged my Vaio notebook computer when it fell on the floor at my son's house in Armeria last January. The hard drive 0 failed. I reconfigured the computer from Raid 0 to Raid 1 so I could use it with the remaining good drive. I didn't send it in for repairs right away because I needed to be in touch with the people that want to buy my house in Truckee. The house sale is still not finished and the end of my warranty is in June so I thought that I should get it repaired.

I looked for a place to get it repaired in Mexico but Sony said I needed to send it to San Diego, California to get it repaired. I went to Mail Boxes, Etc. in San Antonio Tylacapan to send it to San Diego. It cost 1,500 pesos to pack and send the computer to San Diego. The good news is the computer was sent and delivered to Sony in San Diego in less than 24 hours and Sony repaired it and sent it back via Federal Express in two days.

The bad news is that Mexican Customs (Adwana) put a hold on it at the Guadalajara airport. I went to my friend Judith's house for two days to await delivery there. After tracking the package, I figured out I had to go talk to Mexican Customs.

I hired my landlord and friend, Jose to drive me to and from the Guadalajara airport and talk to customs. The first day they said that I needed to pay a fine of $30 USD for failing to fill out a form stating I was sending a used computer to the US for repair. Even though I had the money and my passport and FM3 with me, they would not release the computer to me and told me I had to return the next day to pick it up.

The next day Jose and I returned. The fine had increased to $412 pesos but we got the computer. So it only cost me about $2,612 pesos plus a couple meals to get my computer repaired. Actually, I feel fortunate because I have heard stories of Mexican Customs charging the full purchase price in duties. So if you are ever in Mexico and need to send something across the border to get it repaired, make sure you fill out one of those forms.

What’s happening

2007-04-09T18:46:00.000-06:00

Upstairs is the future location of Bad Bob's
Bad Bob in the Old Aztec
60's in Paradise

It has been about a month since my last post and I returned to the north shore of Lake Chapala. For some reason, I have not been too interested in keeping this blog up to date. Maybe it’s because not much of interest has been happening or more likely it’s because I have become a lazy old fart retiree who is enjoying the laid back slow life style of Mexico.

Every day since I have returned the weather at “Lakeside” has been perfect, cool at night for a good sleep and warm for wearing shorts and a light shirt during the day. We did have a little rain one evening but since I was already home for the night, it didn’t bother me.

Here is what a typical day has been lately. I wake up around 8 AM, get dressed and turn on the satellite modem and check my email. Then I usually catch a bus about a block away into Ajijic for 7 pesos. Sometimes my neighbor, Ron offers me a ride to town and one day a taxicab driver offered me a ride for 20 pesos.

There are three possible types of buses I can catch, the “Directo” which bypasses Chapala and goes to Guadalajara, the “Secunda” which goes to Chapala and the “Local” which leaves the carretera and takes side streets and ends up in Chapala.

I usually get off at the “El Torito” stop in front of Salvador’s restaurant. There I have several cups of coffee, maybe breakfast and talk with friends at an outside table. After an hour or two, I usually walk to the plaza in El Centro. There I sit on a bench and people watch. Usually friends stop by and we talk. Some days after noon we buy Modelo beer in cans from a tienda on the square for 10 pesos and sit on the benches, read, talk, watch the people, smoke cigarettes and drink beer. Sometimes you can strike up a conversation with someone new. When I get hungry, I usually get something to eat at nearby restaurants.

There is a new to me bar on the square called “El Viejo Azteca” that I sometimes go in especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays when they have “2 for 1” beer days when beers cost 9 pesos. The police have shut down the Azteca though because they failed to repair a broken window before the Easter processions and fiesta.

One new to me restaurant that I enjoy is “60s in Paradise” about a half block from the square. This place serves one of the best burgers I have ever had. They also make excellent fries and milkshakes. I usually only go when I am real hungry because they serve a big burger. One problem eating here is the price is pretty high, around 85 pesos for a burger, fries and a milkshake but when you’re in the mood for a good burger, you can’t beat this place.

I have prepared a meal for myself on only two occasions since I have returned. I have eaten only about eight Mexican meals, half of those have been tacos from street vendors. So I have mainly been eating gringo style restaurant food. There are a lot of restaurants in and around Ajijic; someone estimated there are over 400. I recently made friends with a fellow from Seattle, “Bob” who is planning on opening a BBQ place on the square which will probably be called “Beto Malo’s BBQ & Bar”. Bob has experience running several restaurants and I hope he can make a success of his new venture but he will have a lot of competition and will open during the slow season sometime in May.

The night life in Ajijic is not usually exciting. Sometimes after a fiesta, the Mexicans party at “The Music Box” until early hours in the morning but usually the restaurants close at around 10 PM and the bars close shortly afterwards. The last bus running is about 10 PM and the taxis quit about then too. So most nights that I’m in town I catch a bus to my San Juan Cosala camp at about 9:15. Sometimes I stay out a little later if a friend has offered to drive me home. Several days I have felt like a siesta and returned to my rig before dark.

I cannot pick up any TV channels here because the stations are over the mountains in Guadalajara. I sometimes listen to music streamed over the internet and watch the light show in Windows Media Player. I usually listen to KFOG from San Francisco (old Rock and Roll) or archived shows from KFAT out of Gilroy (rare and unusual stuff, Rock, Country, Blues, Blue Grass, etc.). Sometimes I listen to a Guadalajara station or watch a DVD movie.

I have decided that I am not going bust my butt learning Spanish. I will continue to pick up what I can and I carry a Spanish/English pocket dictionary with me but I do not intend to take classes. I know enough now to find my way around, order food, find the bathroom or bank, say I’m sorry and thank you. The Mexicans are very good at reading sign language and figuring out what stupid gringos are trying to say.

Right now my life is in a kind of holding pattern with no definite plans. I am waiting to find out if my house at Lake Tahoe is sold or not. It sounds good that it will be sold but until I have the money in the bank I will wait to see if I have to return to California to once again to prepare the house for sale. If the sale can be handled remotely from Mexico, I will do that. Then I will look for a place to rent here or maybe buy. After that then I may put the motor home up for sale. I will probably have to return to the US to deliver the motor home.

So at this point, I am pretty sure that I will be living the life of an Ex-Pat in Mexico. For my next post to this blog I think I will list the pros and cons of living “Lakeside” in Mexico.

Lakeside Again

2007-03-13T16:48:00.000-06:00

On Monday, March 5th, I turned over a set of keys to the Casa de Schroeder to Sergio. He and his wife will live there, take care of the pool and plants and do some work on finishing some construction. Norma helped clean up the house in preparation of the change. The next morning, I washed the rig, stored the satellite dish, took a final swim in the pool, took a shower and then was off to drive to Lake Chapala.

One thing that I was not expecting was Norma planned to go with me. It wasn’t until about 5 minutes before we left that I figured out that she was coming too. We got on the road about 10 AM. Everything went well until a little ways north of Ciudad de Guzman, the rig started loosing power every time I stepped on the gas. My top speed was reduced to about 40 MPH and I couldn’t pass a slower truck I was behind. Finally I found a place to pull over and see if I could figure out what the problem was. A Mexican highway patrol officer stopped and asked if I had a “problema”. Si was my answer. At that point I thought maybe I had a clogged fuel filter. The Policia suggested that I turn the rig around and go find a mechanic in Guzman.

I started the truck and turned around toward Guzman and to my surprise everything seemed back to normal with full power again. We continued south until we found a “Returno” and then turned north again. I doubt if the problem was the fuel filter. It must be some intermittent electrical problem where not all cylinders were firing. If any readers with a mechanical bent have an idea what the problem was, I would like to hear it.

We arrived lakeside at San Juan Cosala about 2 PM and I turned down the main street that runs by the town square. Well, it being a Tuesday, it was a market day with tiangis at the square and cars and trucks were parked on both sides of the narrow street. Somehow I managed to squeeze the rig through and parked in front of Jose’s house. Jose owns the lot where I had previously parked. Jose and his wife Ilena were home and I paid Jose a 1,000 pesos for another months rent to park the rig on his lot.

Jose and Ilena both speak English and Spanish so Norma felt comfortable. They offered us pecans and we sat and talked for awhile. I mentioned that I may be looking for a house to buy and Jose told me he knew of a place so Norma, Jose and I took a walk to see it. It turns out that the house is only one lot away from my friends, Brian and Ursula’s house. The place was walled with solid metal doors so we couldn’t see much of the house except for part of the second story over the fence. Norma and I hadn’t eaten a regular meal yet that day so I wanted to try out the only restaurant in San Juan Cosala. Jose offered to show us the way. This was the second time I wanted to try the restaurant but again it was not open. We returned to Jose’s house and Jose and Ilena offered to feed us. We had Chili Rellanos, rice and beans and it hit the spot.

Jose told me he wanted to remove the van that was parked on his lot so I could pull my rig farther into the lot on a higher area. Jose is planning on putting a “T” into the large PVC pipe that leads to the septic tank so I will be able to use that. Jose also needed to build a ramp so I could get the rig up to the higher location. The work was done about sundown and we got parked.

Wednesday and Thursday, I showed Norma around Ajijic and Chapala. Norma had not been to Lake Chapala before. I think she liked what she saw but was probably amazed by all the old gringos in Ajijic. I made myself reacquainted with most of the friends I had made previously. We had the gringo breakfast food at Salvador’s on both days. Salvador’s also serves Mexican food so Norma got something she liked.

On Friday at around 2 PM, Norma left to take the bus to Jocotepec and on to El Molino. Jose had told her that she could connect to the bus to Colima from there. I have since talked to Norma on the phone and she arrived home safely.

I like the new parking spot. I have a good view of the lake and hills south of the lake from the rig’s wrap around rear windows. Norma and I used some bricks on Jose’s lot to make a path leading to the rig’s door. There is a photo following showing the new location.

Saturday I have made a reservation for the St. Patrick’s Day meal of real corned beef (rare in Mexico) and cabbage at Tom’s Bar. The Canadian singer Glen Charles will be playing and singing Irish songs. Tom has a new bartender, a cute young woman (about 22) who has been down here a year visiting her grandmother. She is a rarity where most gringos are over 60.

We may have some rain today. I am hearing thunder and the skies are threatening. Yesterday, I saw lightning south of the lake but it didn’t rain here.

This evening I plan to go back into town to go to the Old Pasado where Ron and Sally are playing tonight. Brian and his friends usually go every Tuesday night as they love to dance. Kas and Maria will be there and I want to see them before they leave for Florida at the end of the week.

Here are some shots of stores in Ajijic.

Changes

2007-03-02T20:30:00.000-06:00

Today I went to Manzanillo to pick up my FM3. I picked up Norma and her sister, Rosa a little after 8 AM at Norma’s house in the Valle de Sol colonia. My idea in leaving this early was to get to the immigration offices around 9 AM when they open, thinking I would get a good place in line and not have to wait very long. Well, others seemed to have had this idea and the wait was about an hour and a half. I provided the January bank statement immigration had requested and shortly thereafter got the FM3. The FM3 booklet almost looks like a passport.

I have had a problem with my son, Marc and as a result will be leaving his house, Casa de Schroeder in Armeria. I am a little sad about this turn of events because I will miss out watching the plants grow that Norma and I planted and I enjoyed using the swimming pool. However, I probably would have suffered during the hot summer even with the swimming pool to cool off in. The major problem would have been trying to sleep nights when it is 95 degrees and humid for weeks at a time.

Of course, air conditioning could be installed but then you have to pay to use it. A major reason I was moved to sell my house in Truckee near Lake Tahoe is that I couldn’t afford to keep it warm during the winter. And of the two situations, I would rather pay to keep warm than pay to stay cool. This turn of events has me again in search of the perfect climate, not too cold in the winter or too hot in the summer.

Another thing that I realize after this time in Armeria is that I would not be happy living as the only gringo in a Mexican community. Not that I miss the company of gringos that much but because in areas where they live, there are more services which cater to them. Mainly I miss a variety of foods that are not available here. As I have said before, I’m bored with eating just Mexican food every day.

I am now planning on returning to the Lake Chapala area. The climate is almost perfect and you have access to different kinds of foods. I checked with a friend and I think that the spot I parked my RV in before is available. If so, I will park there for awhile and wait for the sale of my house to be completed. I will check around for a nice place to rent or buy.

My relationship with Norma will now be strained with me living at Lake Chapala and Norma living in Armeria. We have talked about this (with the help of an interpreter) and I think that if I can come up with a nice place to live that she may want to join me.

Carnaval in Cuyutlan

2007-02-25T10:24:00.000-06:00

Yesterday around 5 PM, Norma and her new helper, BD showed up at Casa de Schroeder and we took off in Norma's truck for Cuyutlan, the nearby beach town for the Mardi Gras parade. The town was alive with many visitors, many from Armeria. We found a place to park near the Hotel Fenix and went there for some margaritas before the parade started. When Olivia and Geoff's daughter, Paola, showed up in a beautiful gown we found out that she was the Reina (queen) of Cuyutlan.

When the parade started, we moved a couple of chairs from the hotel to the intersection in front of the Hotel Fenix and had great seats to view the parade.

I didn't get a picture of it but one of the highlights was a slightly over weight woman wearing a short skit made from coconut bark on the back of a flat bed truck. She was dancing around and would bend over and moon the crowd with her ample butt. Luckily, she was wearing a white thong. A Mexican fellow near me with a digital camera got the perfect picture of the woman's butt and showed it off to all the nearby spectators, much to their delight.

The parade ended at a stage on the beach about a block away so when the end of the parade had passed our location, we moved over to the stage area. The Mexicans have certainly figured out sound re-enforcement and had an excellent system set up that moved your innards when the sub woofers kicked in.

The entertainment was a couple of good bands. One played Santana songs and the other was in the current popular Mexican style of music. I almost had the feeling that I was on the beach at Cancun during spring break.

Everyone moved closer to the ocean when the fireworks started. The show was short but included many star burst motar shells that lit up the sky. There were also a couple of boats anchored just past the shore break that set off fireworks.

The Mexicans sure know how to party and I had an excellent time. I might just be staying here full time after all.

The queen of Cuyutlan and her parents, Olivia and Geoff, owners of the Hotel Fenix.

Norma and BD

Lazy Daze in Armeria

2007-02-25T10:12:00.000-06:00

Here are a couple photos of my rig parked in front of Casa de Schroeder in Armeria, Colima, Mexico. These were taken about a week ago but I forgot they were in the camera and didn't load them on the Vaio until today. Notice in the top picture that the rig is parked under a coconut palm tree. This could pose a danger as coconuts could fall on the rig's solar panels. Before Tonio returned to Guadalajara, he climbed the tree and trimmed it and removed the coconuts with his machete.

The Old Surfer

2007-02-23T23:03:00.000-06:00

Tonight Norma and I went to Tecoman, a nearby town of about 100,000, about four times the size of Armeria. Norma had a couple of people she wanted to see and I wanted to check out the Consupo. The Consupo is a government run store that supposedly has low prices on some items and I wanted to know where it was located and to check some of their prices. After Norma had visited the people she wanted to see, we stopped at the Fenix Super Mercado. This is not the Consupo store but Norma said it was better than Consupo. Norma bought some items and afterwards I was in the mood for a margarita and some food. I asked Norma if she knew of a good restaurant in Tecoman. The first place we went to was closed for some reason so we went to a hotel that had a dining room. I can’t remember the name of the place.

We ordered margaritas and food. Norma ordered a T Bone and I had Milanesa de Cerdo, a breaded pork cutlet sort of like Wiener schnitzel. I liked my meal but Norma’s T bone was just too thin to her liking.

A couple walked in and sat at the table next to us. The man was a Whetto (white guy) a little younger than me with a Mexican girl friend. He had on a shirt that on the back said “You will sweat. You will get dirty. But you will never forget it. Troncones, Mexico”. I tried to interpret what the shirt said to Norma. The fellow got up and went to El Bano and when he returned, I started to say something like: “Senor…” and the guy responded in English so I asked him if he could tell Norma what his shirt said in Spanish. Which he did. I asked if he was living nearby. He then informed me that he was a surfer from Texas who was returning to the states. I then asked if he was familiar with any of the nearby surfing beaches and he wasn’t except for one near Tecoman.

I guess that being the only gringo in Armeria is getting to me as I wanted an opportunity to speak to someone who spoke English. I made the mistake of saying that I didn’t know there were surfers in Texas. He responded that didn’t I know about all of the coastline that Texas has. Being from California, we don’t consider the mediocre break in the Gulf of Mexico as “surf” and I said something about it. Well this seemed to piss the Texan off and he told me he came in there to have dinner with his girl friend and he wasn’t interested in talking to someone who obviously didn’t know anything about surfing.

So we finished our meal and drinks and left without saying goodbye to the Texan and his girlfriend.

Keeping it clean

2007-02-16T11:08:00.000-06:00

The typical Mexican likes to keep himself and his casa clean. Even if his place has dirt floors, it gets swept and cleaned. This also applies to the street in front of the casa. At sunrise the women start cleaning the sidewalk and street adjoining their place. I have never seen a man sweeping (except for me). The task seems to usually be done by the oldest woman in the house. This task not only gets the street clean but allows one to interact with the neighbors with a “Buenos Dias”, who walk by on their way to work or the corner tienda. The dead leaves and basura are swept into piles and at some time during the day usually burned.

Does the person call the fire department to see if a permit is needed to burn or is this a safe day to burn? I don’t think so. Do the neighbors call the fire department to say that there is a fire? No. The only thing that might be said is if your fire is close to your neighbor’s thatched palapa roof or wood fence is to watch the fire. Does the fire department come by? No. In Mexico, there is personal responsibility for your actions. If you burn down your neighbor’s house, expect to build him a new one.

In the mornings and/or sometimes evenings, the cobblestone streets are watered to keep the dust at a minimum. I’ve seen men involved in this activity. Some days when the water pressure is too low, this doesn’t happen. The water is sprayed carefully so as to not get passersby wet.

You often hear gringos bitching about the basura in Mexico and there is a problem in public areas but the Mexicans usually clean up areas under their personal control and sometimes laugh about the basura problem as they toss an empty plastic Coke bottle. But if it is on their property it is usually picked up later.

Last night, I had an unpleasant experience. In the bedroom, I had a pair of shorts draped over the back of a chair. I moved the shorts and saw on the wall what at first I thought was a large moth. On closer inspection it turned out to be a scorpion all flattened out and scrunched together to make itself as small as possible. My camera was nearby, so I smashed the scorpion with it.

This is disturbing for two reasons. First, I was not aware that scorpions could climb vertical walls and second, my bedroom had been violated. I thought the scorpions would stay outside and hide under rocks or bricks but now they are in the house in an area where I usually walk around in my bare feet sometimes without the lights on at night. And now, I will have to inspect clothes before I put them on to make sure no scorpion is hiding there.

All in all, my current thinking is I may be leaving Mexico. A good old friend of mine who lives near San Francisco is very ill and I want to visit him. The 40th anniversary of “The Summer of Love” is happening this fall in San Francisco. Learning Spanish is harder than I imagined. I’m getting a bit bored here. I’m missing some foods I like. I need to get my Vaio repaired. I may need to be in California to finalize the sale of my house.

I still may look for a place in Mexico but maybe closer to the border, like TJ, Rosarito Beach or Ensenada. After all my main reason in checking out Mexico as a possible place to live was economics. It’s hard to find any place decent to live in the US on a fixed income of social security.

FM3 visa

2007-02-11T13:06:00.000-06:00

There hasn’t been much exciting to write about here in Armeria. Now that construction on the new house has been suspended things have settled into a slow, more relaxed pace.

Last week, I went to Manzanillo to apply for a FM3 visa. There is a group in Manzanillo called Manzamigos that helps foreigners in Mexico. I emailed them if they knew of someone that could assist me with the visa application process, thinking that they might suggest an English speaking lawyer who had experience with immigration. The president of Manzamigos, Nigel, responded with an offer to help and listed what he thought the current requirements were for the visa.

I got copy of my electrical bill (to show place of residence) and my passport (all pages). I had my California credit union email me 3 months of bank statements in PDF files. I burned the files to a CD because I have no printer with me. I went to a local Internet café and had them print the statements for me. The statements are to show I have enough monthly income to meet the current Mexican requirements. The minimum amount varies according whether or not you’re married, if you own Mexican real estate or the office you apply at. Nigel told me that at the Manzanillo office the minimum is $1,000 for a single person.

The only thing else I needed was 2” black & white photographs from the front and right side. Nigel told me there was a place at Jardin and Mexico Ave. that could do the photographs. I made an appointment to meet Nigel there and then he would show me the location of the immigration offices. Norma and I drove to Manzanillo and parked near one of the ships docked near El Centro for 6 pesos. When we walked to Jardin and Mexico Ave. we saw a Kodak store and went in to get the photos. A young woman clerk told us that they did not take photos and directed us to a photographer’s studio. We started to walk to the studio when I saw Nigel (yellow shirt, 6’ tall). It turns out that there are two Kodak stores at the same intersection and we had gone into the wrong one. So I was able to get the photographs (4 front and 4 right side) for 60 pesos.

Nigel told me that of North American foreigners in Manzanillo, 80 percent are from Canada. Nigel himself was born in Great Britain and had lived in Canada for 30 years before moving to Manzanillo 10 years ago. We followed Nigel in his car to the area where the immigration offices are located in the harbor master’s building. He told us where the offices were located and left us to try and find parking in the busy area.

We lucked out and found a place to park near the immigration offices. We went in and I got a number to wait in line. About an hour and a half later, I was given two forms to fill out. One was entirely in Spanish and the other was in Spanish with English hints. I was a little confused by the forms and frustrated by a ball point pen that didn’t work most of the time. A nice young woman from Ecuador who spoke English offered to help me fill out the forms. I was surprised to learn that the forms asked for two Mexican citizens as references. I was able to supply that information and then I was directed to go pay the fees for the application at a bank. The fees were 1,172 pesos and 444 pesos for a total of 1,616 pesos (about $147.16 USD).

The bank was about 6 or 7 blocks away and after paying I returned to the immigration offices where I gave them 3 photos from the front and 2 from the right side. Nigel had told me that I only needed 2 each but who knows if the requirements changed or they just saw I had extras and wanted an additional photo from the front. They told me to return on March 2nd to pickup the FM3 and to bring my January bank statement at that time.

Afterwards, Norma and I had lunch at a palapa restaurant on the beach near the immigration offices. We had beers and Norma had a sea food cocktail and I had shrimp with garlic, rice and salad. The view of downtown Manzanillo was great across the bay from the restaurant. Too bad I forgot to bring the camera.

Lately, I haven’t been doing much except cleaning the swimming pool and watering the plants. Watering the plants has been a problem though as there has been very little water pressure for about 5 days. The swimming pool is making me kind of popular here in Armeria as people want to enjoy the pool. The last two days, 8 friends of Norma’s have come by to use the pool. Yesterday, we had a barbecue of beef, beans and tortillas that turned out great on the poolside barbecue.

The weather here today is absolutely perfect as I sit typing this near a window looking out to the pool area. I was using the computer in the rig parked out in front of the house but it is nicer with more ventilation setting it up here in the house. I was having a problem with a very low signal to the wireless router which is still located in the rig and has to go through cement, bricks and rebar, but I fiddled around with the orientation of the router and did some tweaking of the Linksys-G and now the Internet connection is pretty reliable.

I rigged up a TV antenna from a FM radio wire and now have good reception of a local channel on the Vaio. I have spent a little time watching the Mexican novellas hoping it will help improve my Spanish. Norma is picking up some English and sometimes it gets too confusing when you’re trying to learn Spanish. Sometimes I tell her “no mas Englis” when she uses the English “you” because it sounds almost like Spanish “yo” and it makes it harder to learn Spanish.

You might be interested to hear that one of my favorite foods here is the Mexican breakfast of frijoles on a tortilla. I am in no danger of giving up meat however. I like carne asada and carnitas too much. But as I said before, I’m starting to get bored with just Mexican food. In this town the diet is even more limited, like you can’t find good enchiladas or goat stew. I’m lucky I’m not living in a part of Mexico where insects are a popular food.

Before coming to Mexico, I thought it would be easy to cook some of my favorites but when you can’t find the right ingredients it’s impossible, like to make a good steak you need aged beef cut thick. But they don’t age the meat here. I am eating a more healthful diet here, more fruits and vegetables and I’m getting more exercise walking and swimming so I think I have lost some weight.

Bank Frustration

2007-01-23T14:30:00.000-06:00

It is my understanding that when applying for the FM3 for the first time that you can do so with your bank accounts in your home country. For subsequent renewals of the FM3, you need to have a Mexican bank account that shows deposits monthly that cover the minimum required for the FM3. In the state of Colima, I think the amount to be deposited monthly for a single person not living in Mexican property owned by them is currently, $1,250 USD.

Since this is the first time I am applying, I really don't need a Mexican bank account but I thought it might be a good idea to get one now and develop a relationship with a local bank. Also, I have been having to go to the bank almost everyday because I can only withdraw $3,000 pesos a day. I need to get enough to make the payroll for the work crew and out of pocket expenses. Another bank account could help reduce the number of trips to El Centro. In Armeria there is only one bank, HSBC.

A couple of weeks ago, Norma and I went to the bank (where no one speaks English) and I tried to open a checking account and get an ATM card for it. The lady made copies of my passport, California driver's license and my FMT. We left thinking that everything was set up for the account. I just needed to wait until I got my first electricity utility bill and bring it to the bank to prove my address in Armeria.

After the electricity bill was delivered to Casa de Schroeder, Norma and I took it to the bank. The required initial deposit was $1,000 pesos which I had. I also wanted to deposit a check drawn on my California credit union account for $1,500 USD. Well, this confused Norma and the bank lady. They thought I wanted to cash the check. Although I said "No combio, solo deposito" I did not get the account. Norma then proceeded to take me to a lady where she thought I could cash the check. Finally I got through to her, I didn't want to cash a check.

I went back to the bank without Norma and tried again to open the account. This time I spoke with an hombre. I didn't say anything about depositing a check and I thought he was going to go ahead and open the account. I was wrong. This time I think he thought that I wanted Norma to be able to use the account so he wanted me to return with Norma.

At this point, I am disappointed in my ability to speak Spanish and I am thinking about putting the idea of an FM3 application on hold. I finally got an email response from the Colima attorney stating that he would get in touch with me the next day and email a document for Denise to sign stating that I was living in her house in Armeria. That was three days ago.

Maybe, I am being frustrated with the so-called "Manana, Manana" trait of Mexicans and need to relax and go with the flow (which is "muy despacio").

Update on the fiesta for Divino Nino Jesus

2007-01-22T10:26:00.000-06:00

Last night we went again to the fiesta for Divino Nino Jesus. I walked this time to the Valle del Sol colonia from Casa de Schroeder and arrived about 7 PM. This late, I missed the procession and the outdoor church service was going on. The Aztec Danza group was there again and danced after the service.

This night their performance was followed by another dance group whose name I believe was Conquesta de Mexico. The dancers were dressed as Aztec warriors with bows and arrows that make a clicking sound when pulled and released and conquistadors armed with swords and with one named Cortez on the back of his shirt. They danced around in a mock battle for some time.

After this the fireworks bull made its appearance running and exploding fireworks for about 20 passes through the crowd followed closely by teenage boys not wanting to miss the action. The crowd loved this and I don't think anyone got hurt but the adults did scurry away when the bull got close. The previous night the fireworks was mainly exploding rockets but tonight there were also the beautiful star burst rockets with the remnants sometimes falling amongst the crowd.

The main stage entertainment was a nice looking but slightly overweight woman singer about 28 with blond hair dressed in what looked like a prom gown. She had a nice voice and sang along to a recorded sound track. She started out on the stage but soon enlisted the help of a man who lifted her down to the cobblestone street. She wandered through the crowd and interacted with crowd while singing her songs. Norma noticed this and warned me to watch my Ps and Qs in case the singer should come over where we were sitting.

And come over she did to sing directly to me. This happened not only once but twice she singled me out of the crowd. I guess I should have been flattered but I was mainly embarrassed.

Later on when she was into her encore, she came over and shook hands, first with Norma and then with me. I asked Norma if the singer was from Armeria and she told me that she thought the singer was from the big city of Colima.

The rest of the entertainment we saw before leaving was 3 girls about 13 dressed in short skirts who danced somewhat provacatively to several songs one being Shania Twain's "I am a woman".

By the way, on both of these nights of the fiesta, I saw absolutely no police and no trouble.

On Mexico

2007-01-21T11:49:00.000-06:00

I have now been in Mexico for over three months. Shortly after I arrived in this blog I made some observations about Mexico, most of which was stuff that I had heard from others about Mexico, the people and culture. I want to update that with personal observations. I am sure some may differ with what I have to say. I may still not be accurate and I am sure that some areas of Mexico are different from other areas.

I now think that the general feeling that one gets up north that Mexicans are thieves is grossly exaggerated. Since I have been down here the only thieving I have seen is some Pemex employees will short change you. This problem can be easily avoided if you watch the pump, know what you owe and count your change. I have seen other situations where people have forgotten a bag or something in a restaurant and have returned days later to find all their possessions intact and nothing missing.

One thing I find admirable in Mexican society is the whole family has fun together. They can go to a fiesta and the kids are free to run around, the teenagers do their thing and the adults do theirs. Teenagers do not seem to be embarrassed by their parents. You do not hear some of the stuff you hear in the States like: "Johnny, get away from that. Come here!", etc.

A fiesta continued last night. One thing I found unusual was that this fiesta seemed to be confined only to the Valle del Sol colonia here in Armeria. The other colonias did not seem to participate. You could still hear the fireworks explosions here in the El Pelillo colonia where Casa de Schroeder is located but you didn't see the processions.

Norma's house is located in the heart of the Valle del Sol colonia. We were at her house at around 5:30 PM when a procession went by the front of her house on the way to the main gathering area about a half a block away where the street was blocked by a stage, several trampolines for kids, tables and chairs, outdoor restaurant and some booths.

The procession was headed by a dance group. In front was a banner of a man and it said San Juan Diego so my initial thought was the fiesta had something to do with this person but later I came to think that San Juan Diego probably had something to do with the dance troupe. The dancers were about 30 women attired in golden yellow dresses with gold breast plates and adornments. They wore golden headdresses with feather plumes invoking Aztec dancers of the past. I later noticed the banner stated "Aztec Danza".

The dancers had a drummer and the dancers had rattles. The procession was proceeded by young men with rockets who would fire a rocket about every quarter block. The rockets zoom high in the air and explode with a terrific blast.

I regretted that I didn't have my camera with me. After the dancers came a pickup truck adorned with balloons and flowers. In the back of the pickup stood a young boy and at his feet were two even younger girls dressed as angels with wings sitting on the floor of the pickup. After the pickup were a procession of neighbors in the colonia chanting and praying.

At the center of the action where the stage was set up there was also an outdoor church set up where the square would be if this colonia had a park. A sign on the stage said that the fiesta was to honor the Divine child Jesus. What Aztec dancers have to do with Jesus is beyond me but that is part of the mystery of Mexico.

The priest did a short service with hymns accompanied by an organist playing a Yamaha keyboard. After the service, the Aztec dancers danced again and then recorded music started to be played, some of it risque, like Rap about big butts and Mota. Did these people understand the lyrics?

Norma and I got seats at a table in front of the stage and got some Modelo beers. I may just be paranoid or weird but I think everybody in town (at least in this colonia) knows about the "old Gringo" because I hardly get a second glance anymore and people wave and say Buenas Noches. I am now Norma's novio.

The stage entertainment was several different dance groups of youngsters (about 8 to 12 years old). Some were dressed in costumes from other areas like the state of Veracruz. While the adults drank and ate food some of the young boys had fun harassing the dogs with thrown fireworks that would pop when they hit the cobblestone streets. A young fellow flirted with Sara by squirting her with some white foam from an aerosol can. So Sara got a can herself and chased the boy with it. They both ended up with foam all over themselves.

We got some enchiladas and pozole and watched the dancers until I started to fade and wanted to go to sleep. I had arrived at Norma's in her truck which was now blocked by other cars and trucks parked in the street so I slept at her house. Around 3 AM the band started up again and marched around the neighborhood with the fireworks explosions.

Could this have happened in the US? Not a chance. First you would need a permit applied for months in advance with probably a bond for insurance and security guards. You would not have been allowed to have fireworks. Most of the neighbors would have bitched about the noise, someone blocking their driveway, someone trespassing or pissing on their plants. Excuse me but most of the people in the US are uptight assholes.

Armeria house decoration

2007-01-20T11:28:00.000-06:00

Here are some images of some of the decoration currently in the house. Most are located on the first floor with one tile being on the outside front of the house. All are tiles except for a framed article on one of Sergio's champion fighting cocks and a painting with the Colima volcano painted by Freddie, the caterer and restaurant owner.

Night of the Iguana

2007-01-20T09:00:00.000-06:00

Tonio is a brother of Norma's. He currently lives in a small pueblo near Chapala with his wife, Lourdes and 5 kids. I first met Tonio a couple of years ago when he and 3 other uncles of Denise were in California working for Marc on construction jobs. He speaks little English but more than the rest of the work crew here in Armeria. After Marc and Denise arrived here in Armeria, Tonio came to work on the new house. Tonio is a good, talented worker and I like him.

Just before the Schroeder Fiesta, Marc paid for Lourdes and the kids to come to Armeria on the bus. They stayed in the new house, sharing the house with Marc, Denise, Catalina and Keone. After Marc, Denise, Catalina and Keone returned to California, Tonio and family started using the two beds in the house.

After a week, Lourdes and the kids returned to their home. I started using Marc and Denise's bed so Tonio and I became roommates in the new house. If you know anything about Mexicans, you know that for them to be away from their family is a major hardship for them.

A couple of days ago just before 5 PM, Sergio captured a green iguana that wandered into the driveway. Tonio wanted to keep it as a pet for his kids so he put it in a sack in the kitchen.

Norma and I went to the Hotel Fenix for drinks and some food. While at the Fenix I met Jordan’s dad and we had a talk about Mexico, Keone, etc. When we returned to the house, Tonio was gone so Norma and I had some time alone in the house. I went to sleep and sometime in the middle of the night, Chay, one of the other men on the work crew, and Tonio showed up at the front gate too drunk to figure out how to get in so I got up and let Tonio in.

I couldn't get back to sleep because Tonio was staggering around, banging into stuff and talking. I got up again and he had the iguana and was kissing it. After awhile he dropped the iguana and it escaped.

Finally shortly before dawn, he fell asleep. He managed to get up for work somehow.

While I'm on the subject of wildlife, I tell you about some other in the area. One night at dusk, in the living room, a bat zoomed in one window and out another. One day after a new load of sand was delivered, we killed about six scorpions. On neighbor's rooftops, we have seen large dark iguanas. I have mentioned before that there are now three geckos living in the house.

I think that almost every house has chickens so it is not easy to sleep in late with the roosters crowing. Last night there was another fiesta going on so the night was punctuated by fireworks explosions which got the dogs barking and the roosters crowing.

Tonio told me that Lourdes was sick maybe with appendicitis so he caught the bus and has returned home to his family.

Schroeder Fiesta

2007-01-19T12:33:00.000-06:00

The day before Marc, Denise, Catalina and Keone returned to California, Marc had a fiesta at the new house. The event was catered by the Campestre Caminero Restauant located on the autopista between Armeria and Tecoman. One of the owners, Freddie, served as chef and provided excellent food, beer and tequila. Here are some shots taken during the event.

Shots

2007-01-18T16:06:00.000-06:00

Attaching the spurs
At the cock fights

Homemade band saw in the carpenter's shop

Norma and her sister, Sara's mom

Four generations: Norma's mother, Norma, Denise & Catalina

Another pinata

Keone and friends enjoy the pool

Hotel Fenix meal

Norma, Glenda and Lupita

Marc & Geoff at the Hotel Fenix

Norma in a church in Tecoman

Adolf with a mohawk

Marc enjoys the pool

House Work

2007-01-18T12:17:00.000-06:00

Since I last mentioned work on the house quite a bit has been done to make the place more livable. The downstairs bathroom is almost finished. Just a little more tile trim needs to be done and the fixtures are in place and working. There is only cold water but in this area, there is rarely a need for hot water. Most the downstairs light switches and plugs are installed. Ventilator fans with variable speed controls are in and working.

The main kitchen sink counter has been tiled and the sink installed. Denise wanted some religious icon tiles installed for decorations and this has been done. This is somewhat extravagant because these tiles cost as much as a maestro makes in two days.

As I write this a new balcony has been added, the rooftop platform for the water tank is complete, the water tank is hooked up and working, a dividing brick wall for plants has been finished and some of the concrete around the pool is done.

The house now has three resident geckos so it is really starting to feel like a Mexican home.

Rear view with pool and smoke
Beto carves channel for conduit

Rear view of the house

Entrance to the house

Chalino works on rooftop platform for the water tank

Beto works on plumbing

Raul and Sergio, both fighting cock breeders, talking about their birds and upcoming fights

Ernesto works on the new outdoors barbecue

Sergio cutting a tile

Lupita and Chay make a door into a window

Work on the new balcony

Update

2007-01-18T10:43:00.000-06:00

As I have mentioned previously, I was having major computer problems. The laptop is screwed up from the fall on the floor and it was getting worse everyday. I could not do online banking. I could not run many programs. Then I could not read emails.

My backup computer is broken. It needs a new motherboard. It looks like I cannot get exactly the same motherboard here in Mexico. If I cannot get exactly the same motherboard, I will loose all the data on that machine.

All of my records for several years have been stored electronically. These two machines cost me almost $7,000.

I tried to get data off of the laptop onto DVDs. I had problems doing that. After I did get most of the data off of the laptop, I rebuilt the laptop.

Before the fall, the Vaio had two drives striped in RAID 0 for performance. After several tries, I could not rebuild the laptop in that configuration. I tried to rebuild it with the two drives in a non-RAID configuration but it was the C: drive which is damaged. So I was able to rebuild the machine in a RAID 1 configuration. This is where the data and programs are mirrored on both drives. This means that the Vaio is not as fast as it was with RAID 0 and has half as much hard drive space. I cannot run chkdsk any longer because drive 0 has failed and the machine is running off of drive 2, the backup drive. But at least it is working for the time being and I am back online using it to post to the blog.

I mentioned previously on this blog that Mexico has laws against bad mouthing or insulting someone in public. I now have some personal experience in that area.

A few days ago, I almost went to jail. After work, I wanted to go to the bank ATM, check with the people that have my desktop computer and go to the Hotel Fenix to talk with Jeff for advice on how to get computer parts. With Norma I drove the van to el Centro and parked the van near the bank. I parallel parked the van and slightly tapped the Ford Explorer in back while parking. A woman who owns the Ford and has a clothing shop across the street came over and started claiming damage to the Ford front bumper. The bumper had a slight scrape that I don’t think I caused so I looked at it and told the lady “Lo sciento” and went to the ATM. When I returned there were about 3 police, Norma and the lady talking. I stood there trying to understand what was happening. About 5 more police showed up. Finally, I said “Cuantos” to the lady and she ignored me. Then, I waved a 500 peso bill at her. She ignored that. Then I said that “La senora est loco” and “No danos”, no damage. Then she announced she wanted $2,800 pesos. And I called her a thief, “Ladrona”. Then the police took my driver’s license and were ready to take me to jail for probably insulting the lady. Norma did some fast talking but I ended up giving the lady $2,500, the cops kept my license and I got a ticket.

Norma and I went to see the town treasurer. Norma asked for a reduction in the fine. When we went to the police station to pay the fine, it was reduced 50% to 119 pesos thanks to Norma. I got my driver's license back and don't plan to take it with me anymore except for a xerox copy.

I thought I started the process to get the FM3. Marc and I had a consultation (for 300 pesos) with an English speaking attorney in Colima who told us he could help us in the process. He told us his email address and said he checks it every day but he has not responded to the 3 emails I have sent him. We found out that the office for immigration for the state of Colima is not in Colima but in Manzanillo so I may just look for a new attorney in that town.

I appreciate the opportunity to work together with my son, Marc, on his Armeria house project. I think this is good for both of us. But I do not get to kick back and enjoy life in a hammock in Mexico. My job entails being a work crew supervisor, photographer, swimming pool cleaner, bookkeeper, flunky, watchman, payroll, et cetera. The compensation for these jobs is?

I am having second thoughts about being able to live full time in Mexico. Up north, most of my friends are college educated. Some are what you might call intellectuals. I am not being snobby, that is just the way things are. Here in Mexico as you know, it is a different culture with a different language. As long as I am learning something new about the culture and language, things and people are interesting. After sometime living here and getting more familiar with the people and culture, I think I will need more substantial friends. Everyone in Armeria seems low or middle class. I think after awhile, I would become very bored here.

Getting things can be a problem here; like computer parts, software, etc. I don’t know if I could buy something on eBay and get delivery in Mexico.

Some days in Armeria in January were about as hot as I could stand. What is going to happen in July and August?

I am starting to miss the variety of food you can get in the States, like Thai, Chinese, Italian, German, etc. I’m starting to get bored with Mexican food. Maybe after I get a regular kitchen and the time, I can cook some of these foods except for Thai and Chinese, my favorites.

I have a few photos I will post with my next post.

I'm working on it

2007-01-08T18:33:00.000-06:00

Just a short post to let you know that I'm still alive. I will prepare a new post as soon as I can. The last three weeks have been hectic, visiting with family and a seemingly never ending party of beer, tequila, food, Mexican music and sometimes drama. I need a vacation from my son's vacation.

Part of the problem is major computer problems. I had to move my rig to make room for piles of sand, dirt and gravel for the house construction so I didn't have an internet connection. Then I dropped my Vaio on the concrete floor. It works in a flakey manner but I'm getting RAID errors, some programs don't run and I can not run chkdsk. My back up computer, my old desk top is having problems too, probably from the topes and rough roads I have been traveling on. The video card may have gone bad (a new top of the line ATI) because I get no image but the small monitor works with the lap top. So I have thousands of dollars in computer equipment now that is not working as it should be.

The theme of this blog originally was to be about my travels as a full timer in an RV. I am still living in the rig but it is now parked in front of my son's new house in Armeria. My son, Marc, Denise, Catalina and Keone returned to California on a Sunday flight from Manzanillo. I am once again the only gringo in Armeria. So I'm thinking of putting this blog on hold for a while and starting a new blog about a Stranger in Mexico.

Armeria

2006-12-25T17:55:00.000-06:00

Shortly after my last post, I drove my rig from San Juan Cosala to Armeria. I took the toll road and had to pay 131 pesos twice in tolls. I got into Armeria in the early afternoon of the 13th. We picked up Marc’s van from the guys who had been doing some work on it. Around 9 AM the next morning we drove to Manzanillo and spent some time on the beach before heading on to the airport to pick up Marc, Denise, Catalina and Keone (Denise’s son from her prior marriage). When they arrived they were also accompanied by a friend of Marc’s, Todd, a 26 year old welding contractor.

Norma at the beach in Manzanillo

Manzanillo
Marc, Catalina and Denise at the Hotel Fenix

Catalina and Denise

Catalina, Marc, Denise and Norma

Since they arrived, I have been hanging out with them. We went to a birthday party of a friend of Norma’s at a pizza restaurant in Tecoman. Catalina got to try and break the piñata. Marc and Todd went shopping and returned with sombreros. I had been thinking of getting one myself so I returned to the place they bought theirs and got one myself. We have been doing lots of things, like going to the beach, visiting some caves near Ixtalhuacan and touring the Tortugaria to see the sea turtles where I finally got to see a crocodile.

Birthday party in Tecoman

Gary & Denise dance

Norma and Denise
Lupita combs Denise's hair

Cave entrance

Catalina with a goat

Into the cave

Gary and Grand daughter, Catalina

Lupita and Glenda

For two days we stayed in Colima at the Hotel Maria Isabel while visiting with Denise’s Grandfather and Grandmother. The Grandmother has several birds and four baby parakeets. She is a great cook and fixed a meal of enchiladas. Afterwards we played horse shoes in the park across from the Grand Parents home in Colima. We went to see her Uncle Jaime’s trained horse perform at the stables in Colima. The horse could not only do the dancing but could do a trick I had never seen before. The horse with a rider astride could kneel down and then lie on its side. After resting for a couple minutes, the horse could then stand back up with the rider still in the saddle. We went to Uncle Jaime’s Rancho about 20 minutes from Colima. He has 40 hectares of land with about 10 horses and 10 cattle.

Catalina at the Maria Isabel hotel

Denise's Grandma

Baby birds
Denise's paternal Grand Parents and Denise

Jaime on his dancing horse

Marc and Jaime on the second floor of the rancho
Carved door at Jaime's Rancho

Jaime feeds a colt

Catalina’s aunt and Denise’s sister, Glenda is spending the Christmas holiday with her mother, Norma. Glenda, 22 lives in Colima where she is attending college. So Catalina is the star of the family with doting parents, Grandmother, Grandfather, aunts, uncles and Great Grand Parents.

Another day we drove closer to the volcano to go to a Suchitlan restaurant that was very nice and had some exotic foods like rabbit and quail on the menu. After the meal we drove higher on the volcano to visit another 40 hectares of Jaime’s property in the pines. On the way the Vulcan de Colima had a small eruption of smoke which was kind of exciting. Jaime has about 15 cattle on this piece of land. Before I saw it, I heard that Jaime wants to sell this land and I thought I might be interested in buying it. It is a nice piece of land with a spring at a higher elevation to escape the heat but the land is too remote, the road is in poor condition and the volcano is active.

The feast in Suchitlan

Spider

Taqueria in the trees
Volcano spewing smoke

Jaime's mountain land
Some of Jaime's mountain herd

Grandma climbs a hill

Todd, Marc and Denise

One day we got up at 5 AM and drove to Manzanillo for a fishing trip. Keone caught a large mackerel and Todd caught a 9 foot sailfish which we released.

Last Saturday, Todd caught the plane in Manzanillo to Los Angeles.

Manzanillo fishing trip

Keone's fish

One day we visited another relative, Raul’s farm where he has a horse, goats and he raises fighting cocks.

One of Raul's fighting cocks

Denise dancing at the new house

Altar in the new house

Lupita, Catalina and Ramona in the new house

We had a family Christmas Eve party at Norma’s house. We had a lot of good food with Glenda cooking paella made with scallops, shrimp and crab.

Lupita, Glenda, Denise, Catalina and Norma on Christmas Eve

When Marc and Denise first saw the new house they were happy. Marc is a demanding building contractor. It didn’t take him long to find problems with the new house. He told the crew to stop working and removed Norma from being involved with the building of the new house. They went ahead and moved into the new house the Mexican way (half finished). The swimming pool is finished and has been a welcome source of relief on the warm days here. Electricity has been turned on with a few temporary lights and two outlets. There are no windows or doors installed but with high walls and wrought iron gates the place is pretty secure. A couple faucets are functioning but no fixtures like the showers, sinks or toilets are installed. You need good aiming to hit the sewage pipe in the bathroom near the swimming pool and then flush with a bucket of water.

I moved my rig from being parked in front of Norma’s house to in front of Casa de Schroeder. I now have electricity for the rig and the satellite dish is set up on the second floor deck with the cables snaked through the wrought iron. It seems that I will be staying here for awhile house sitting and supervising the workers after Marc and Denise return to Solana Beach, California in a couple weeks. The work on the house re-starts tomorrow.

To blog or not to blog ?

2006-12-13T09:24:00.000-06:00

I may stop blogging soon. I cannot relate to you readers out there some of the important things in my life because it is too personal for me and some of my friends. The blog would be more interesting if I could reveal some of these details but it would not be right. I will see how I feel about it in the future. Right now I plan to move my rig from Lake Chapala to Armeria and visit with family. It may be a while before my next post. Hasta Luego.

Mexican Magic

2006-12-13T09:16:00.000-06:00

I don’t know what it is but I feel more alive in Mexico. All the food tastes so much better. I think the States food has too much preservatives and the food is picked before it is ripe. But it also may be magic because some of the food I brought frozen from the States tastes better here. The freedom here and the people are also intoxicating. I feel so much more alive here. It is looking more and more like I will be dumping the United States for the life of an ex-pat in Mexico. The only thing I miss from the States are my friends and family. I don’t miss George Bush and his war or all the red neck hicks who voted for him. I don’t miss the PC freaks and all the laws impinging on personal freedoms.

The Coast Trip

2006-12-12T16:41:00.000-06:00

On Monday morning a little after 9 AM we left for the Pacific Coast beach town of Cuyutlan. I rode with Elena and Al in Elena’s car while Ursula, Brian, Kas and Maria followed us in Ursula’s van. We were surprised by a slow truck in front of us near Colima and narrowly missed having an accident. When we arrived in Colima we decided to go to El Centro. It was very beautiful with a large Basilica and hotels with sidewalk cafes. We parked and walked around for awhile. I got a photo of some women and little girls dressed in the traditional Colima costume of maroon and white in front of the Basilica.

Vulcan de Colima

Colima Basilica

Colima sidewalk tables

Maria and Kas

The gang except for Elena and me

Elena and Al

Brian and Kas

El hombre guapo

The Basilica

We continued on to the beach at Cuyutlan which was mostly deserted of visitors. I got my bag and went to the Hotel Fenix. The rest of the group were supposed to be staying at the San Rafael hotel but they decided they didn’t like the black volcanic sand beaches, the lack of other visitors and no fishing boats so they continued on further north to Melaque for their vacation.

It turns out that the phone number that I had for Norma was not a good number. Oliva, the owner of the Hotel Fenix along with her husband Geoff, tried to call Norma but could not connect with her. So I got a big Margarita and a large shrimp and octopus cocktail and went to talk with Geoff. Geoff is an American ex-pat, having lived in Mexico about 13 years and is now a Mexican National. He is into computers and music so we talked a lot about those subjects and Mexico and life in Mexico. After several Margaritas the bar shut down. One of the fellows that worked there needed a ride home to Armeria and Oliva was going to drive him home. She offered to stop by Norma’s house and ask her to call the Hotel Fenix. She wasn’t home so Olivia left a note. Norma called later and we made arrangements for her to pick me up the following morning.

The Fenix has an aquarium with some big turtles and a pet Cotimundi. A healthy 23 year old blonde woman from Britain showed up to stay at the Fenix. We started a conversation and soon Geoff, Rachel and I were talking and drinking Pacificos. Rachel had recently completed 4 months of charity work in Mexico and was now on vacation checking out other areas of Mexico traveling alone, a gutsy and brave young woman. I must say now after two months here that I have yet to run into any banditos or robbers. Mexico seems very safe to me.

Hotel Fenix

Geoff

Olivia

Margarita and seafood cocktail

Rachel

I stayed over night in one of the Hotel Fenix rooms and got up before 10 AM and went downstairs and had some coffee and sweet rolls (pan). Norma arrived shortly afterwards with her 15 year old daughter, Lupita. Lupita is about 6’1” with a quick and beautiful smile. Norma knows one or two words of English and Lupita knows how to count in English so I was forced to communicate with my limited Spanish and sign language.

Norma drove us back to Armeria (about 12 KM from Cuyutlan) in her red pickup truck with a manual transmission. You have to love a woman who can drive a stick shift truck. Norma had prepared the second story of her home for me to stay with her. Over the next six days I stayed with Norma, Lupita and Lupita’s 16 year old cousin, Solita. Norma fixed several nice meals and did my laundry. Armeria’s Feria (Fair) was in full swing and every evening we went to El Centro, browsed the booths, ate food, listened to music, got drinks, tried our luck at games of chance and watched the promenade around the town square. Every night there was a different type of music; Punk Rock, Heavy Metal, Flutes, Pianos, traditional Mexican with 10 guitarists with a basist, Trios, et cetera. One night we went to Lupita’s school, a branch of the Universidad de Colima to see a Christmas play performed on the grass. Lupita sold tostadas.

We would usually have a breakfast made by Norma and then run errands around town. Two days we went to the beach. One day we went to Parisio and looked for the crocodiles that live in the lagoons but didn’t see any. I had a good swim in the ocean and we had some great food prepared on the beach at the open air restauante, El Guero. Norma and I each had Huachinango (Red Snapper) and Lupita had Camaron Diabla (shrimp). I think it was the best fish I have ever had. The other beach day we went to Cuyutlan to swim, drink Coronas, buy beads from the beach vendors, watch the fishermen catching fish in the surf with nets, watch the Chivas win the soccer championship on the TV in the bar at the Hotel Fenix and had a good meal.

Armeria is located west of the city of Colima and about 6 KM from the nearest beach, Parisio. There are about 25,000 persons who live in Colima and according to some; I was the only gringo there. I was introduced to many of Norma’s friends and only three spoke any English at all. I encountered no bad vibrations and thoroughly enjoyed myself. I started to grow fond of Norma and we had a good time together.

Norma working on her Colima dress

Lupita

Norma and friends

Armeria Feria stage

Crocodiles ?

Solita, Norma and Lupita

Church Procession

Norma in the Armeria town square
Universidad de Colima play

Solita and Norma

Lupita helping teach neighborhood kids

Norma at Cuyutlan beach

Norma is supervising the construction of my son Marc and her daughter Denise’s house. The house is being built about 7 blocks from Norma’s house. It is almost complete but it won’t be finished on the scheduled date of completion of December 15th. My son Marc, Denise, and their little girl and Norma’s and mine grand daughter, Catalina are scheduled to fly in to the Manzanillo air port on December 14th and Norma and I plan to drive to pick them up.

On Monday morning, Lupita and Norma dropped me off at the bus station. The Directo Regular Servico fare was 156 pesos to Guadalajara. I left at 11 AM and it took me until about 6 PM to arrive at my San Juan Cosala camp. In Guadalajara I had to take a taxi ride from the new bus station to the old bus station to catch a local bus to Lake Chapala. I paid 120 pesos for the taxi ride and have been told I paid too much. The fare should have been about 80 pesos but since this was the first time in the city I didn’t know my way around. The fare on the local bus to San Juan Cosala was 27 pesos.

Cell phone photos at the bus station

Still Kicking it

2006-12-03T08:14:00.001-06:00

In Tom's Bar

El Camaleón Bar

Ajijic waterfront street
Lake Chapala

My idea in my last post to slow down on socializing didn’t last long. I’ve been out getting around again. The weather here has been wonderful. The other day I checked on the Sierra Sun web site to see what was going on in the area where my Lake Tahoe house in Truckee is located. The temperature at 7:30 AM was 7 degrees F. What a difference. I am still running around down here at Lake Chapala in short sleeved shirts, sandals and shorts.

The fiestas continue. The new Mexican president was inaugurated last week. The fiestas for the Virgin of Guadalupe started on December 1 and go to the 12th. The rockets continue going off with a bang on and off during the day and night and you hear bands playing in the neighborhoods. I am starting to think that part of the reason that some of the Mexicans are poor is because they are enjoying the fiestas and not working and what little money they do have is spent on fireworks.

Last night Brian, Ursula, Kas, Maria, Al and I went to the Pampa Tango Restuarante to eat. It is an Argentina style place located on Colon near the Old Pasda and the Beer Saloon. We all had excellent beef in one style or another. I had Arrechara (flank steak) and the rest had Filet Mignon. I’m unsure whether the beef was imported from Argentina or was from Mexico but it sure was good. Afterwards we went to La Tosca for drinks and dancing.

On Monday morning Brian, Ursula, Kas, Maria, Al and Elena (Al’s Mexican girl friend from Guadalajara) leave to go to the Pacific coast town of Cuyutlan for a week at a resort there. I don’t know what the name of the place they are going to be staying at but it is run by friends of Elena. I plan to catch a ride with them to the Hotel Fenix to meet my son, Marc’s esposa, Denise’s mother, Norma who lives in Armeria. I don’t think Norma speaks any English and my Spanish is very limited so it will be interesting to see how things work out. I don’t know how long I will be in Armeria but I will probably return by bus via Guadalajara unless I can catch a ride with my friends back to my San Juan Cosala camp.

While researching the Hotel Fenix with Google I ran across a page “Cuyutlan Through My Eyes” written by Don Adams. He sometimes hangs out at the Fenix so I sent him an email, hoping that I would be able to meet him there and buy him a drink. He wrote back that he is currently in Texas for medical treatment. On Don’s website I learned that he has written a book called Head for Mexico - The Renegade Guide . I like his writing style and the web site indicated that the book was for sale at three places in Ajijic. The first place I checked didn’t have the book but I located and bought the book at the La Nueva Posada Hotel.

Later on while starting to read the book at a coffee shop, one of the other customers came up to me and told me that his picture is in the book. His name is Tim Harlin and he is a member of Los Picaros pictured on page 15 of Don’s book. I haven’t had time to read much of the book yet but I will be taking it with me on my trip to the coast. It seems to have a lot of good information for those thinking of coming to Mexico.

This will probably be my last post until I return from the coast. I will take my camera and get some pictures to upload but I don’t think I will take the Vaio with me. I will take notes on paper and write it up when I return.

Too much fun ?

2006-11-30T16:54:00.000-06:00

All the socializing that I have been doing lately is getting to me. I need to slow down a bit. The fiestas continue. I’ve had some fun times and some good meals but I am feeling the need to just hang out in my rig for awhile.

I’m getting a reputation for knowing something about computers and software so some of my new friends are calling on me to help them with problems. Luckily, the problems have been minor and have been easy fixes.

Last Sunday, I partied too much at some of the local bars and the fiesta. I spent too much money on drinks and mariachis. I missed the last bus and even the taxis and ended up hitchhiking back to my camp.

Tuesday night at the Old Posada, I was introduced to some persons from Guadalajara who are what you might describe as upper class Mexicans of European Spanish ancestry and not mestizos. They were fun and enjoyable company. One seemed a little snobbish in that he seemed to have little interest in speaking or learning any English. Of course, it is I who is in a foreign country and who should be speaking better Spanish.

I ran across this on the Web: “For example, after traveling in Mexico and Guatemala, I found that the more European one's blood is (which is evident of one's family background and/or skin complexion), the more wealth one possesses. People with less Spanish or European blood in them, this being mezitos or indigenous people, tend to be atrociously poor. Many of them work as servants for the much richer Castilians or Spaniards. Furthermore, they are often treated with extreme disrespect, solely due to the shade of their skin or family background.”

I heard that tonight is the last night of the fiestas for awhile. Tonight is supposed to be the night with the best fireworks and bands. But I’m going to miss it. Too much fun.

Mary, the jewelry vendor (on the right) at Salvador's

Fiesta booths in Ajijic

Gary in the Beer Saloon

Dave and John in Tom's Bar

Mariachis in The Music Box

Thanksgiving

2006-11-25T15:21:00.000-06:00

The Fiestas have continued all this week. I’ve heard that some nights have been a lot of fun with fireworks, bands and dancing but I haven’t been there most nights. The temperature has been cool in the evenings and I am usually too tired from socializing during the day time to continue at night.

On Thanksgiving I was invited to dinner at Judith and Abe’s house. About 20~25 people attended. It was a traditional Thanksgiving feast with all the trimmings. It was as good as any I have ever been to in the States. I think that I was the lone American at the feast. There were about 8 Mexicans and the rest were Canadians and all seemed to enjoy the traditional United States holiday of Thanksgiving. The only difference was that instead of conversation about United States politics, there was talk about Canadian politics and the possible creation of Quebec as a separate country within Canada.

Concert poster

Ron at The Music Box

Fiesta

2006-11-21T16:41:00.000-06:00

Saturday night we went to Melanie’s Restaurant for dinner and dancing. I had Veal Milanese which was good. Another good thing about Mexico is you can still find veal on the menu. In the US everybody is so damn PC you can hardly find veal anymore. You also don’t need to wear a helmet on a motorcycle. Viva La Mexico!

Sunday was Turkey Day at Brian and Ursula’s home in San Juan Cosala and a good meal was had by all who attended. The bird had good flavor but was a little tough. I guess we should have gotten it drunk.

Monday was a Fiesta day. I’m not quite sure which one it was. Monday I think is the Fiesta for the patron saint of Ajijic and the rest of the week is Fiesta for the Mexican Revolution. I hear there will be events for about 10 days. I had a couple of Margaritas in El Caja Musical (The Music Box) a bar located right on the town square. The bar is mainly a Mexican bar and I ran into some of the Mexicans I’ve met in town.

Ajijic town square iron work

Dog wears a skirt

Dancing horses as the band plays for Fiesta

Ron and daughter Karen at Tom's Bar

El Boracho dances for the cowboys

The Thing's new speakers protected by custom iron

Glenn playing with Noe and The Classics

Maria and Kas dance to Noe and The Classics

Yolanda and Claire

Melanie's Bar and Restaurant in the Hotel Danza del Sol

Our table at Melanie's

Hotel Danza del Sol pool

Garden & Bikers

2006-11-18T09:09:00.000-06:00

Judith's Garden

Bikers

Thursday night, I walked to Brian & Ursala's house in San Juan Cosala. The mission was to help dispatch the turkey. I found a better and shorter way to Brian's house. In the early evening, there were several doors open to houses and tiendas (stores) and the Mexicans were being social hanging out on the street and door ways. I've learned that an acceptible greeting is "Adios" if you are just passing by on your way to some where.

Earlier in the day, we had heard from Rafael, a Peruvian cook who works at Tom's Bar, that you should get the turkey drunk before killing it. Supposedly, this makes the turkey more relaxed, resulting in a bird that is more tender. So Brian, Kas and I were debating about this, whether it was true or another Old Wive's Tale. Al, who is staying in one of Brian's casitas, contributed some vodka and we mixed it with some water and tried to get the turkey to drink it. Ursula and Maria stayed inside, not wanting to witness the deadly deed. The turkey spilled the vodka water so we just went ahead and cut it's head off. We soaked the bird in a bucket with some hot water and then hung it from a ladder and pulled all the feathers off. Kas did the butchering and cleaning.

We thought the turkey meal was to be the next day but Ursula has scheduled it for Sunday now. So Turkey Day will be late for the Canadians and early for the Americans but we will enjoy it and give thanks for the meal and to the turkey.

On my walk back to my camp at about 10 PM, I passed by Jose's house and he saw me walking by and invited me in to meet his wife and youngest son. We talked for awhile and since I had some money with me and my month of parking on Jose's lot is almost up, I went ahead and paid him 1,000 pesos ($91.64 USD or $3.05 a day) to park for another month on his lot.

On Friday, I met Brian at Salvador's and I had the same breakfast that I had my first day in Ajijic, two bacon, two sausage, scrambled eggs with salsa, a waffle and coffee for 35 pesos ($3.21 USD). Brian had a new hat on with a big turkey feather in the brim. He also had a bag of turkey feathers in the Thing that he was giving away to kids or trying to sell to gringos for 10 pesos.

We drove to get the speaker cabinet installed in the Thing and while waiting went to the Sunrise restaurant for more coffee and food. I had orange juice as I had already had enough coffee at Salvador's. Brian drinks about 20 cups of coffee a day.

There is still a problem with the sound system in the Thing. It needs a new cable for the antenna and I think that it needs a new fuse or better wiring to the radio. The radio often reboots itself. The new speakers sound good and should be secure in the new cabinet.

On the way back to Ajijic, we stopped at Judith's house to order some pies. She has a very nice house and gardens. She kindly gave me three large avocados and several oranges from the trees in her back garden.

The Bird

2006-11-16T16:35:00.000-06:00

Last Monday Brian and I returned to the market in Chapala. Brian wanted to return a car radio that he had bought the previous week and I was looking for huaraches (sandals). Brian found the car stereo vendor and was careful to talk with him in the back so that he would not embarrass the vendor in front of potential customers. The vendor spoke little English and Brian speaks only a little Spanish even though he has been staying lakeside off and on for nine years. Brian was persistent and successful in getting 600 pesos from the vendor for a radio Brian had paid 850 pesos for the previous week. We both considered the transaction a success because we didn’t think that he would be able to get any of his money back.

I checked three vendors that had sandals but I didn’t see anything I liked. Some looked like leather but were actually molded plastic probably from China. I understand that Mexican product sellers are having a problem with cheaper Asian products now being sold in Mexico.

On Wednesday, I looked for sandals at the smaller Ajijic market and found some I liked. They are a Mexican product, “Pirma”, made from leather with a molded plastic or rubber sole (not tire tread), don’t have a piece that goes between the toes and are fully adjustable with Velcro. They cost 250 pesos ($23.05 USD) which I thought was a little high but I haven’t learned yet how to bargain prices with the Mexican vendors. In speaking with some others, I found out that 250 pesos is the going rate for good sandals so I am satisfied with the deal.

Today Brian and I drove to Riberas to see the fellow that is constructing a custom cabinet for the speakers in the Thing. On the way back, we stopped at a furniture store where Brian knew that they were raising some turkeys in the back yard. He bought a live bird for 400 pesos which seemed really high to me but the bird will probably taste a lot better since it has been raised free range and not in a turkey factory like the birds in the US.

We tied the bird’s legs and put it in the back seat of the Thing on a piece of cardboard which didn’t help much to protect the seats from turkey crap. We were styling now Mexico style cruising with our live stock. The bird in the back seat was quite a hit with all who saw it. We went back to Salvador’s and Brian showed off his new pet (soon to be dinner) until some of the local stray dogs that beg at Salvador’s went after the bird.

Then we bought some beer for Kas and the workers who are re-modeling Kas’s house in Chula Vista. I have mentioned before that the houses in Chula Vista are mainly mansions in the Mexican version of Beverly Hills, next to the nearest golf course. Kas’s house is too big for me but it will certainly be beautiful with mature gardens. If Kas prices it right and I can sell my home in Tahoe, I might just buy it as an investment and live high on the hog for a short while. If I bought that house, I am sure that several of my friends would want to come for a visit.

For those of you who are thinking you might like to move to this area, I want to tell you something to consider. Almost all of the Canadians and Americans who live here are 60 years and older. If you are a single male looking to hook up with a woman, and are looking for some one younger than 60, your only choice will be a Mexican senorita. The young women here almost always wear tight blue jeans and a tight top.

Chapala cow

Chapala Market

Chapala pet birds and turtles for sale

Turkey seller

Brian's new pet at Salvador's

Kas and part of his garden

Pigs

2006-11-12T11:13:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, I spent most of the morning on the internet checking out real estate links of Mexican properties mostly here in the Lake Chapala area. I also ran across some links to articles written by Americans living in Mexico and caught up on some Yahoo groups that I follow. By the time I started to think about food and a cup of coffee it was almost noon. I caught the bus into Ajijic and went to Salvador's like I usually do. I got an outside table and coffee. Salvador's was not as busy as it usually is and Brian was not in his office.

Then I remembered that it was Veteran's Day and the American Legion in Chapala was having a pig roast. Roast pig is a favorite food of mine so I decided against eating at Salvador's, finished my coffee and caught the bus to Chapala. I had been told where the American Legion Post #7 was located and found it after a short walk. As I entered the grounds, a fellow named Hank introduced himself and showed me around and introduced me to some of the other members. I bought a ticket (100 pesos) for the meal, got a Corona and sat at one of the tables.

The pig is almost ready for the meal.

Some of the people I spoke with preferred to live in Chapala (instead of other lakeside towns) and rent instead of buying. This idea appeals to me too. However, it would be difficult to find a place where I could park my rig off street.

My mind is still open about living in Mexico and whether it would be right for me or not. The fact remains that gringos are not from this culture; they are strangers in a strange land. Many may be well intentioned and think they can help the Mexicans live a better life like teaching them to not throw their trash on the ground but it also seems to come with a subtle sense of superiority that we know better than they do and we can help "the little brown ones". In the days before the white man came, the trash was organic and soon was recycled by nature.

Some gringo ex-pats try for total immersion in the Mexican culture by living in small towns with no other gringos around and speak only Spanish. But I don't think that even after living that way for 30 years and becoming fluent in Spanish they will still be able to avoid the "blue eyes tax" and be totally accepted. They are still strangers in a strange land.

The pig roast meal was good with beans and Cole slaw but I would have preferred to have had some of the crispy parts and pork skin on my plate. When the entertainment started with karaoke, I decided to take my leave and catch the bus back to my San Juan Cosala camp.

The buses are customized by the drivers with religious icons and their favorite music playing on CD. It is not unusual for their children to ride and help their father make change. On this ride the kids helped also by cleaning up the bus. They picked up discarded plastic drink bottles and papers and threw the basura (trash) out the window. I didn't yell at them or interfere. It may not be right to litter but I am a guest in their country and their father knows best how to teach them to be a good Mexican citizen.

Lakeside

2006-11-10T16:46:00.000-06:00

Yesterday my repaired wheel and new tire for the rig were finally ready so I drove the rig for the first time in about three weeks to pick it up. The manager of the tire shop in Jocotepec is a young woman named Rosa who spoke English fairly well. I asked her if she learned English in the States and she told me that her father who had spent time in the US had taught her as a young child. She also told me that she had spent 4 years getting a college degree at a University in Guadalajara. She commuted every school day from Jocotepec to Guadalajara and back. You have to admire her determination to get an education and her father's care and love to help her.

The bill was 1,235 pesos (about $113.93 USD); 985 pesos for the tire, 200 pesos to repair the wheel and 50 pesos to mount it.

Al and I accompanied Brian on a trip to Chapala in his quest to get his radio working right. On the way back we started to look for a new restaurant that we had heard about in San Antonio called the "Sunrise". After getting faulty directions about six times and driving back and forth several times, we finally found it. The restaurant was nice and clean and the food and service was good and inexpensive. The first margarita or drink with a meal was 15 pesos. The November special is $1 for breakfast.

I am finding out that this area may have some aspects to it that may not suit everyone. The weather is so nice that every day seems about the same. This can lead to a sense of boredom for some people. There is a lot to do here and activities you can get involved in but I have heard that many local gringos that live here frequently use this as a home base to explore other area of Mexico. Many spend a couple weeks a year at the beach. Melaque near Manzanillo seems to be a favorite get away. Also several go to Guadalajara (40 minutes away) for cultural activities and to party.

At the Ajijic town square today, I spoke with a Canadian couple from Ontario that had rented a house for six months. They are leaving after only three months stating that the area was too "rustic" to suit them.

This morning I awoke to find a new neighbor at the San Juan Cosala camp. A burro was teathered outside the fence to eat the weeds out there. This is a frequent scene alongside the Mexican caminos and carreteras. Yesterday a horse was hit and killed by a car on the road to Ajijic. I also heard that a Mexican girl (18) waiting for a bus to school was hit by a truck and suffered major injury.

Ajijic town square

My new neighbor at my San Juan Cosala camp.

Mural at Vicki's Hideaway

Off the Road

2006-11-08T21:48:00.000-06:00

As you may have noticed, I haven’t updated this blog for a few days. I think this is because not much has been happening that I think would be of interest to my readers. I am not traveling. I am staying in one place. I have been getting out and being social for the most part which is different from my time spent for the last few years in California where I stayed home most of the time and fiddled with my computers. I will try to take the camera with me and look for things to photograph and upload to the blog.

Last Monday, Brian and I went to the Chapala market. It is about 4 or 5 times larger than the Ajijic market with lower prices and more variety. I bought a Franklin English/Spanish translator but have yet to really learn how to use it. I thought that it would speak Spanish phrases but the model I got doesn’t have an audio output so I am not sure how useful it will be or if I will really use it much. Brian bought some speakers to replace those stolen from his Thing. I saw avocados for sale for 15 pesos for 2 kilos. This works out to about 32 cents a pound. The market in Jocotepec is supposed to have the best prices lakeside but I haven’t been to that one yet.

I have been going to some new restaurants and meeting some more new people. The snowbirds are starting to arrive.

This area seems to be getting smaller in the sense that since I know people now I am starting to hear some gossip much as you hear in small towns. This might be of use if I were planning on writing a book of fiction some time but right now I don’t feel comfortable in relating some of the stories I have heard.

The wheel I took in for repair that was supposed to be ready last Saturday with a new tire is still not ready. “Manana”

I recently checked a blog and web site called Mexico with Heart. I had read part of it previously but just now realized that the author, Rosana Hart, lives now in the same small town, San Juan Cosala, where I am staying. Her blog and website have a lot of good information and if you are interested in Mexico, I suggest you check it out at: http://www.mexico-with-heart.com/blog/ .

I have been listening to a FM station from Guadalajara. I think it may be associated with one of the universities there because their selection of music is eclectic to say the least, modern Mexican music, jazz, classical, electronic, modern European and music from the United States that I never heard while in the states.

I probably will be taking a bus trip soon to visit family on the Pacific coast near Manzanillo. It is cheaper to take the bus when you figure gasoline at 10 MPG and toll road fees. It will be more relaxing too. I will be documenting this side trip. Right now my plan is to stay lakeside at Lake Chapala probably until the end of the year. At that time I will either get back on the road or stay lakeside for a while longer.

Lake Chapala

2006-11-03T17:32:00.000-06:00

Taken from Ruben's Bar and Grill across the carretera from my San Juan Cosala camp. The lake itself is hard to see through the fence.

Chapala Town Square 2

2006-11-03T17:29:00.000-06:00

San Juan Cosala Camp - Ron's Trailer & Truck

2006-11-02T21:49:00.000-06:00

San Juan Cosala Mission Cuurch

2006-11-02T21:48:00.000-06:00

San Juan Cosala Rides

2006-11-02T21:44:00.000-06:00

Halloween

2006-11-02T10:17:00.000-06:00

The evening of Halloween I walked down Colon and stopped in the Beer Saloon for a Margarita and then went to the old Posada for dinner. I had flank steak, frijoles, guacamole and tortillas, what we called Carne Asada when I used to get it in La Jolla. The steak, guacamole and beans were good but the tortillas were not fresh.

Brian, Ursala, Kas and Maria arrived and we got a big table together. They are all quite good dancers and had a good time dancing to the Ron and Sally group. Other guests soon filled up the old Posada, some in costume. I danced a few times and enjoyed myself.

The next morning Ron was driving into Ajijic so I caught a ride with him. We went to Chapala and I dropped off my damaged wheel for repair. It is supposed to be ready with a new tire on Saturday. I had breakfast at Salvador’s. Actually it was lunch since I had fish and chips and coffee. Maria and Kas showed up and I found out that they have bought two condos in a new development called Rancho San Jorge which is located on the lake west of San Juan Cosala and east of Jocotepec. A new small two bedroom condo is going for about $47,000 and they won’t be finished until around April. It will have 24 hour guard service and four swimming pools. I think the monthly condo fee will be around $50. The way this area is growing, a condo here may be a good investment and a nice place to live. It is close to the carretera and the buses. Brian has offered to take me to Rancho San Jorge to check it out.

Wednesday is market day in Ajijic. The street beside Salvador’s is closed for a couple of blocks with booths selling all sorts of items. I bought a surge protector strip to replace the one that was fried the first night I camped at the San Juan Cosala camp for 55 pesos. There is a computer store in Ajijic that had a surge protector with battery backup for 600 pesos but I don’t need battery backup or the added weight. There was a booth selling boot leg copies of software that I will check out in the future but he was too busy that day.

In the evening, I walked the 4 or 5 blocks from my camp into the pueblo of San Juan Cosala. Brian had told me that he thought there would be a parade that was part of the Day of the Dead events. I went to the square and sat for a while watching the kids playing in the square. I brought my camera and wanted to take a picture of the old cathedral but I had forgotten to take the memory chip out of the Vaio and put it back in the camera so I was unable to take any pictures.

While sitting in the square, Jose walked up and we talked for awhile. He said that that night was the cemetery vigil for the departed children and tomorrow night would be the vigil for the adults that had died but he had not heard anything about a parade. San Juan Cosala is very much a Mexican town that does not cater to gringos. There are a few gringos living in town like Brian and Ursala but hardly anyone speaks English and when I asked Jose about a restaurant, he only mentioned one. I am sure that there are small places that the Mexicans eat in but I haven’t explored the town yet. Shortly after dark, I walked back to my camp.

This morning Ron plans to drive into Ajijic to buy a wireless card for his Toshiba lap top so he can use my wireless network and internet connection. So I will catch a ride with him and then hang out at Salvador’s for a while. Every time I go there, I meet new people and get more information about lakeside living.

Ajijic Market

2006-11-01T15:30:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Market 1

2006-11-01T15:29:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Market 2

2006-11-01T15:28:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Market - Brian & Maria

2006-11-01T15:26:00.000-06:00

Datastorm Location

2006-10-31T16:02:00.000-06:00

Click here for a map of my location.

Ajijic cathedral

2006-10-31T14:02:00.000-06:00

Firing rockets

2006-10-31T14:01:00.000-06:00

Ajijic street

2006-10-31T14:00:00.000-06:00

LCS Garden

2006-10-31T13:59:00.000-06:00

LCS Koi pond

2006-10-31T13:55:00.000-06:00

Chapala

2006-10-31T13:31:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, I went to Salvador’s for coffee and breakfast. I saw Brian and he had some errands to run and asked me if I wanted to come along. We went to Chapala to some shops. We stopped and had some more coffee and met some friends of Brian’s that live in Chapala. We went to the town square and looked around. Brian purchased some candies for Halloween. Chapala seems like a nice town. This was the first time I had been there.

Brian planned to go help his friend Kas on the re-modeling of Kas’s house in Chula Vista so he dropped me off in downtown Ajijic. I walked around for awhile and decided to check out a couple of bars. One I had noticed on Colon previously. It is called the Beer Saloon but it also has mixed drinks. I sat down next to a fellow smoking a cigar and found out his name is Bob and he has owned the place for about a year. His Mexican wife, Rosario was doing the bartending. I really liked the ambiance in this small bar. There was a Mexican fellow in the bar who was selling fake Rolex watches for about 150 pesos.

Another gringo had told me of a bar called “Tom’s Bar” on Ocampo. I had noticed the place from the bus when I was on the local bus that runs down Ocampo. Tom’s Bar is owned by an American who is also married to a Mexican. In the past, Tom had lived for a few years at Lake Tahoe and worked for ski resorts. His place is larger and he also sells meals there. He has several satellite TV feeds of US and Canadian programming for the TVs in the bar but he was playing old rock and roll music which was nice for a change to the Mexican music that I have been listening to on my radio in my rig.

I caught a ride with a fellow named Darryl who rents a place in the Racquet Club which is near my camp site in San Juan Cosala. On the way we stopped at another place called Vicki’s Hideaway on the lake. It was still happy hour and we got two beers for 20 pesos.

Last night was punctuated by the sounds of rockets exploding, a prelude to the Day of the Dead celebration. It continues today. I took a photo of three young men firing the rockets this morning in the plaza in front of the Ajijic cathedral. I took a walk to lakeside to visit a painter I had met at Salvador’s but he wasn’t home and I left a note with his maid. Nearby is the Lake Chapala Society so I stopped in there. The grounds are very nice with a large garden and you can get coffee and brownies, etc. It seems it is also a meeting place as several Norte Americanos (middle aged and older) were lounging around at tables on the plaza. Everyone seems very friendly here lakeside. I heard of another potential parking place for the rig right in the center of Ajijic.

This evening I plan to go back to meet Brian and friends at the Old Posada to see the Ron and Sally musical group. Since it is Halloween people may be in costume.

Tom's Daughter takes a nap

2006-10-30T20:47:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Beer Saloon - Rosario

2006-10-30T20:46:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Beer Saloon - Bob

2006-10-30T20:45:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Beer Saloon 1

2006-10-30T20:40:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Beer Saloon

2006-10-30T20:39:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Pots

2006-10-30T20:38:00.000-06:00

Ajijic Day of the Dead

2006-10-30T20:37:00.000-06:00

Chapala Refrigerator Magnets

2006-10-30T20:35:00.000-06:00

Chapala Kids

2006-10-30T20:34:00.000-06:00

Chapala Building

2006-10-30T20:33:00.000-06:00

Chapala Fruits and Vegtables

2006-10-30T20:32:00.000-06:00

Chapala Pinatas

2006-10-30T20:31:00.000-06:00

Gary in Chapala

2006-10-30T20:30:00.000-06:00

Chapala Town Square 1

2006-10-30T20:29:00.000-06:00

Chapala Town Square

2006-10-30T20:28:00.000-06:00

Brian's Office in Chapala

2006-10-30T20:26:00.000-06:00

Chapala Street

2006-10-30T20:21:00.000-06:00

More Impressions and Mexican Dance

2006-10-29T09:59:00.000-06:00

I forgot to mention in yesterday’s post information about Lake Chapala. It is shallow. It is not like most lakes I have seen in the US. I hear that at its deepest, it is only 15 feet deep. There are floating aquatic plants on the surface that in some places choke the shore line so that the lake does not seem suitable for swimming or fishing. There are some persons who offer tours in air boats. There are a couple of islands that can be visited that are of historical interest. There are some hot spring resorts near my San Juan Cosala camp. On the weekends the area has an influx of Mexicans from Guadalajara enjoying some time away from the city.

It is Mexico’s largest lake and the area has been inhabited by Indians long before the Spanish arrived. I hear that there have been sacrifices of pots in the lake by the Indians seeking to appease the gods and get some rain. In San Juan Cosala, there is an old Spanish mission church that I have been told is the oldest such church in Mexico.

All is not completely peaceful and rosy with some of the Mexicans. I have been told that there are feuds between some of the local families.

Day before yesterday, Ron, Jose and I did some work here on the lot where I am located. There is a van that is not running that we pushed further into the lot and out of the way. We cleared more weeds which could become a fire hazard when they dry out. And we did some shoveling of earth to clear the area around my rig, to make the area more level and shore up the ramp that leads up to the warehouse structure and Ron’s trailer. In the process, we saw a Black Widow spider which I killed. So the area also has some natural hazards.

Yesterday while having lunch and coffee at one of Salvador’s outside tables, a local gringa offered me a free ticket (sold for 80 pesos) to a dance performance that was happening that night and she would not be able to attend. So I got a ride to my camp by a new friend, cleaned up and returned to Ajijic for the performance at the Auditorio de la Riberia which is located just a block away from Salvador’s. The dance troupe was the Ballet Folclorico Contiemporaneo de San Juan Cosala Jalisco and they were performing “Dia de Muertos en Michoacan”. The crowd attending was about 50/50 gringos and Mexicans. But since most of the gringos live here full time, they might now be considered locals. The costumes and dances were colorful and enjoyable. Not all the dances had Day of the Dead themes with skeleton masks and costumes but served to evoke pre-Hispanic and local history. It was fun and I am fortunate to have enjoyed an evening of some local culture. And it only cost me 14 pesos for two bus rides.

My friend Bobbie in Ohio has asked some questions about buying property in Mexico and since some of my other readers may be interested, here is part of what I told her:

Information is available on the internet about buying property in Mexico. Use Google. Basically you can buy land just like in the US except mortgages are rare and you would need up front cash. Certain areas, 50 kilometers from the border and 20 kilometers from the ocean can only be acquired by foreigners by using a “fidecomiso”. This is an instrument whereby a bank actually holds the title and you get a lease for 50 years. The lease can be bought and sold or willed to your family just like regular real estate. The lease can be re-newed for another 50 years as long as Mexico remains stable and the laws do not change. The banks charge a fee to administer the trust and there is a fee to set up the fidecomiso but as I said the information is on the internet. Or you could contact a Mexican real estate agent and they can tell you how to buy property in Mexico.

There are several currency converters on the internet which will calculate the current exchange rate. Google has one and there are several others. Today, $100 is worth 1,074.38 pesos or 100 pesos is worth $9.31. So I usually just think that a 100 peso bill is less than 10 dollars.

There is the Lake Chapala Society in Ajijic that is set up to help gringos in the area. There is a fee to join. The Mexican mail system does not work very well. Delivery may take a month. So LCS can have your mail mailed in the US whenever one of their members returns to the States. They have a large lending library of books, video tapes and DVDs. They offer some classes and advice. I think they are also involved in local charities. I think most of the local gringos belong to LCS.

Impressions so far

2006-10-28T16:03:00.000-06:00

It is really too early to make a valid impression of Mexico, the people here and the Lake Chapala area but since I know that some of my readers are considering a visit or possibly moving here, I will write what I think so far and update my impressions later. Most what I will write now will not be from my own personal experience but from what others have told me or I have read somewhere.

Mexicans seem to enjoy their country very much and although they for the most part are poor by US standards they manage to make the best life they can for themselves. They are religious and family oriented. They enjoy food and fiestas. They can work very hard for very little. I understand that in this area the prevailing wage is about 10 pesos an hour, less than a dollar an hour. I have also been advised to not pay for something up front or the job may never get finished. If you buy an item in a store make sure you want it and it is in good condition because it is unlikely you could return it or get your money back. Once they have your money, it is theirs.

All over Mexico, if the owners of houses can afford it, they have a walled compound and iron bars on the windows. I have been told that the Mexicans are opportunists that will take any item left unattended. They feel that if you left it unattended, you wanted them to have it. Supposedly a watch dog is the best deterrent against theft and it is good to know your neighbors who can watch your place while you are not there. I heard stories that even walls will not deter thieves if they know that you have valuable items in your house. They will just take a sledge hammer and knock a hole in the wall or they will slip a small child through a window with iron bars and the child will then unlock the door. So showing off your valuable items to impress the Joneses is not a good idea in Mexico. There are even reports of home invasion robberies in the middle of the day but I think that this is only a problem for the rich.

Except for the bigger cities, there doesn’t seem to be much of a night life. People tend to stay home in the evenings. Most Mexicans cannot afford to go out for a beer or to eat in restaurants so they stay home with their family.

Much has been said of Mexican drivers. For the most part, I think they are good drivers but will often take chances like passing on blind curves. Many of the roads are single lane each way which they change to three lane roads. Many of the roads are in poor condition and your vehicle will take a beating. In most villages there are the topes (speed bumps) where you will need to stop and proceed at 1 MPH. Some of the curbs are high and can damage your vehicle if you get close. Telephone or utility poles may be in the street and the streets cobblestone and very narrow. In many cases, one way streets are not clearly marked. Highways may have no place to pull off so if you have a flat or car trouble you may become an obstacle in the middle of the road. Road construction or repair may be marked by another obstacle, stones in the road. If you can afford it, it is best to take the toll roads in most cases.

Real estate in the Lake Chapala area is high for Mexico due to the Norte Americanos who wish to live here and will pay almost any price. Some of the ex-pats from the US blame the Canadians for the increase. You can find cheap places (the cheapest place I have seen listed was about $40,000 USD) but there is usually a problem like poor location, no parking or needs extensive work (fixer-uppers). If you can afford to pay $300,000, you can see many very nice places some with up to 5 bedrooms, nice gardens and may even have separate casitas for guests or a swimming pool. A similar house in a good area of California could cost up to $1,000,000.

If you buy a lot with the intention of building, make sure you investigate fully and can get utilities. You may have to buy an electrical transformer and run electrical lines for blocks. I have also heard that in some areas, transformers may be stolen. Wood for building a house is hard to get. Most house construction is bricks, pumice blocks or cement. The water supply may be intermittent and undrinkable. You may need to buy water tanks for storage and install a water filtration system.

Rents have also increased but for $500- $600 a month you can usually find a house. The rent paid may include the services of a gardener. I would think the wise thing to do for someone looking to locate here would be to rent for 6 months or a year and look for a bargain. For instance, I have been introduced to a woman who has a nice place here and is going back to the United States to be near her children because her husband died here and his memory makes her too sad to continue to live here. One house I have been in was purchased one year ago for $42,000. But it is fairly remote from the center of gringo action and is small and needed some re-model work but it is now very nice with a beautiful mature garden in the back yard. The current owner spent quite a lot of time looking for a place and lucked out getting her place. If it is not important to have wonderful weather and English speaking people around, then you will find much better real estate prices in other areas of Mexico.

There is more freedom in Mexico than in the United States except in some areas. For instance there seems to be no zoning or building permits. You can build what ever you want on your land but it also means your next door neighbor can use your wall as a wall in his house or move goats or a pig sty next to your property. You can smoke in most places except for buses but I have heard that Mexicans do not approve of smoking while walking down a street. I have been told that there are “No bad mouthing” laws where you can be sued if you embarrass someone in public. I think you can be jailed for adultery and pedophilia is dealt with severely and pedophiles may not even make it to the jail house.

Fruits and vegetables in Mexico are better and cheaper than in the States. Some imported comfort foods like peanut butter may cost as much as $5 a jar. Other items, like cars, televisions, computers and electronic gear are more expensive. Good medical and dental care is cheaper in Mexico.

As with any situation, there are pluses and minuses. For me, life in Mexico is looking pretty good.

Oktoberfest

2006-10-27T09:43:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, I returned to Salvador’s and Brian told me that a very good musical group was scheduled to play that evening at “The Hideaway”. In conversations with others at the outdoor tables, I was told that Brian probably meant a place called “Que’ Linda”. Later in the afternoon I returned by bus to my San Juan Cosala camp and decided I will go catch the musical performance. The group was called Ron and (somebody else but I can’t remember the exact name).

I changed clothes from the shorts I had been wearing during the day and took the bus back into Ajijic and went to the Que’ Linda restaurant. It is a very nice place on the north side of the carretera. It has a nice view of Lake Chapala and beautiful flowered gardens and a patio for outdoor seating. I arrived around 6 PM and met the new owner, Linda, who was a lawyer from Fredericksburg, Texas. I found out that I was either in the wrong place or on the wrong day. The Ron musical group is scheduled to play tomorrow, on Friday. That evening, the restaurant was sold out for a Oktoberfest buffet. Linda said she could probably squeeze me in if I was interested. That sounded good to me so I got a table and a Corona.

The event was not supposed to start until 7 PM so the staff was busy getting things ready. They were setting up tables like a German beer hall on the patio and German music was playing on the sound system. The guests started to arrive just before 7 PM. I didn’t interact too much with them, preferring to drink my beer and watch the scene. I got a plate and got in line when they started serving. They served sauerkraut, rot kohl, bratwurst, German potato salad, frankfurters, spaetzle, sauerbraten and schnitzel in a paprika sauce. For desert, they served apple strudel. The food was excellent. Even better than food I had when I was in Germany and Austria.

A Mexican trio, accordion, guitar and bass entertained the group and it confirmed the idea that a lot of Mexican traditional music sounds like German traditional music. For a mistake, I lucked out with a very enjoyable evening. My bill was 155 pesos, 100 pesos for the meal and 55 pesos for three Coronas.

I left early to catch the bus back to the camp site. I had been told the buses run until 10 PM. Most of the restaurants in this area seem to close about the same time or earlier. I don’t think there is a lot of crime in the area but it seems most of the locals don’t stay out late in the evenings.

Gasoline in Pemex stations is 6.68 pesos per litre or a little over $2.35 per gallon.

Lake Chapala

2006-10-25T21:00:00.000-06:00

I got a late start leaving the San Miguel camp due to working on this blog. Around 2 PM I started driving west again and I found myself west of Ocotlan at dusk and looking for a place to park for the night. I read somewhere that some of the Pemex stations that have large parking areas allow parking at night. So I saw one with a large parking area that had a few semi trucks parked in the back and I pulled the rig to the end of the lot and parked for the night. When I awoke the next morning there were large semis parked in front of me and in back of me. I was able to get the rig out without trouble but in the future if I park in a Pemex lot I will park with the nose of the rig pointed out.

I arrived at Lake Chapala around 9 AM and took a road to Ajijic which bypasses Chapala which is the largest town on the lake. The Lake Chapala area has one of Mexico’s largest populations of foreigners, mainly US citizens and Canadians. The lake is about 5,000 feet in elevation and the area is reputed to have the best climate in the world except for somewhere in Africa. I’ll tell you a bit that I have learned but if you are interested in the area use Google and search on Ajijic or Lake Chapala to find out more about the area.

I drove west through Ajijic and then turned back east and stopped at a nice looking restaurant named Salvador which had some outside tables. I sat at one and had breakfast, a waffle, 2 bacon, 2 sausages, scrambled eggs and coffee for about 35 pesos. While eating I noticed a couple of middle aged gringos having coffee at another outside table. After I finished eating, I walked over, introduced myself and ask if I could ask some questions about the area. One of the fellows, named Brian is a retired school principal from Ontario, Canada. He has turned out to be a fountain of information and has helped me a lot. Brian lives 8 months out of the year in San Juan Cosala, a village about 6 miles west of Ajijic. He seems to know all the gringos in the area and has introduced me to his many friends who have walked by his “Office”, an outside table at Salvador. I have met several Americans and Canadians and three people from Poland.

Tonight will be my third night in this area. Brian introduced me to a woman from New Jersey who has a home in Jocotepec which is further west on the northwest corner of Lake Chapala. She kindly allowed me park the rig in front of her house on the first night in the area. Being of Italian heritage, she even fixed me a nice meal of Raviolis and in the evening we talked and I learned more about her and the area.

Near her house is a large recreational place called Roca Azul which is on the lake and has houses for rent, tennis courts, two swimming pools, a soccer field, barbeques, and a recreational hall with pool tables, camping area and RV parking with full hookups. I wanted to check it out so the next morning I drove there. It was too upscale for my liking and the price was $360 a month.

I drove back to Ajijic and ran into Brian once again at Salvador. I guess he goes there every day. I found out about another RV park to the east towards the town of Chapala called La Garza. Brian took me for a ride in his Thing. After having lunch at a fried chicken place, Brian showed me some of the fancier homes in the area called Chula Vista. The homes had grand views of the lake and they looked like places you might see in Beverly Hills. Then we went to San Juan Cosala where his home is located. He introduced me to a Mexican friend, “Jose” who owns several pieces of property in the area. Brian thought that I might be able to make a deal with Jose to park the rig on one of his vacant lots. We drove over to the lot to check it out. It is right off of the main road which goes around the north side of the lake. At one time, Jose started to build a warehouse on the lot but never finished the structure. One of his friends, a long haired gringo from Colorado about my age, has his trailer parked in the warehouse structure which has no roof. The lot is mostly over grown with weeds but it looked like I could find a level spot to park and the lot is fenced and has a locked gate. Jose said he would clear some of the weeds later in the afternoon and to come back later.

Brian took me to see his house right in the village of San Juan Cosala. He bought it 6 years ago and he and his wife are still working on finishing the remodel. When finished, he will have a very beautiful house that would probably sell for around a million dollars if it were in California. Brian then dropped me off back in Ajijic were I had parked the rig in front of Salvador.

I drove to see the other RV Park, “La Garza”. It was nice but the electricity was not working and they wanted 150 pesos a night. So I drove back to Jose’s lot east of San Juan Cosala. Due to a brief rainstorm in the afternoon, Jose had not yet cleared the weeds. While trying to park the rig in the level spot that looked best, I couldn’t see a large rock for the weeds and knocked off my new grey water tank valve. It doesn’t look damaged and I will be able to clean it up and glue it to the tank again. Shortly afterwards, Jose showed up with a machete and cleared the area around my truck. Earlier in the day we talked about me paying 50 pesos a night to park the rig on his lot. I like this area. The weather is great. The locals are friendly and willing to help me learn about the area and Mexican culture. So I decided to offer Jose 1,000 pesos to park on his lot for a month which works out to about a little over $3.30 a night. He accepted the deal so my plans have changed. I will stay in this area for about a month (maybe more) and check it out.

Brian had told me that his wife and friends were going to go to a restaurant called the old “Pasada” down by the lake on the main street in Ajijic, Colon, and to meet them there if I could make it. So I cleaned up, changed my clothes, walked across the street and caught the bus to Ajijic for 7 pesos. The buses run from Chapala to Jocotepec about every 15 minutes. I walked down Colon to the restaurant/night club. Brian and friends were not yet there when I arrived so I got a table and a Margarita. The entertainment on a Tuesday night was a fellow who sang along to a recorded sound track. He did a lot of Elvis Priestly songs but was quite a good singer. Brian, his wife and friends showed up later and we had a good time. I ordered Sea Bass covered with garlic and rice and mixed vegetables. It was very good. The Pasada started to close down around 10 PM and Brian and friends dropped me off back at my San Juan Cosala camp site.

One of the things I forgot to do before entering Mexico was to fill up my water tank. Now I was almost out of water. My new neighbor, Ron, it turns out has his trailer fully hooked up. He has a connection to a septic tank, electricity and a water connection and water filtration system. He kindly allowed me to fill up the rig’s water tank with filtered water and has allowed me to hook up the rig to electricity. So I now have a level parking spot with a locked gate, water and electricity for around $100 a month. I may just stay here longer than a month.

This morning, I set up the dish and am now back on line to update the blog. I got a ride with Ron who needed to go to Chapala to a pharmacy. We stopped at Salvador and had breakfast there. I tried Horseback steak on the menu. It was two eggs sunny side up on a small steak with frijoles and toast and it was quite tasty. I spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon, chatting with and meeting locals. Then I took the bus back to the camp were I am writing this post.

San Juan Cosala Camp

2006-10-25T16:30:00.000-06:00

View from Salvador's

2006-10-25T16:29:00.000-06:00

Brian's Wall

2006-10-25T16:28:00.000-06:00

Brian's Front Door

2006-10-25T16:26:00.000-06:00

Brian and his Thing

2006-10-25T16:25:00.001-06:00

Brian's Office

2006-10-25T16:25:00.000-06:00

Salvador Outside Table

2006-10-25T16:24:00.000-06:00

The Plan

2006-10-22T10:55:00.000-06:00

Several readers have asked me via comments, "What's your plan in Mexico?". I have answered this question in a comment but I guess I should state it in the main blog. My original plan was to check out different areas in Mexico with the idea that when my house in Lake Tahoe sells, I may want to move to Mexico since it is less expensive to live down here and I could probably live off of the small social security payment that I get each month.

I like the parts of Mexico I have seen and enjoy the people but unless I find the perfect place, I will probably just be a "snowbird" and visit during the winters.

So right now I am on my way west. I will go to Lake Chapala and visit a small town just north of Puerto Vallarta on Punta de Mita where I almost bought a place about a year ago. Then I will slowly make my way north up the west coast of Mexico and check out the towns along the way.

West

2006-10-22T10:06:00.000-06:00

I left Las 2 Palmas but not before Juan kindly invited me for breakfast. It was a simple meal, fresh tortillas, two dipped in a red sauce and two in green sauce topped with cheese, shredded cabbage and a couple of slices of tomatoes.

When I got to Costa Esmeralda, I was not very impressed. It is an area for tourists and I have had enough of beaches for a while so I turned west at Casitas. In the town of San Rafael, I found a hardware store and bought a brass hinge. Going out of town I saw some workers in front of a refrigerator repair store and I stopped and showed them I wanted to use the hinge to repair my refrigerator door. They figured out what I needed and installed it for me. It was a simple job of drilling three holes but I don’t have a drill with me so I needed help. After the hinge was attached and the job was done, I asked “How much” and they didn’t want any money but I tipped the fellow that did the work 20 pesos.

When I got to Perote I was supposed to turn east again for Xalapa and Xico that I had wanted to check out but I already had an idea of what the area was like from the drive through the mountains to Perote and decided to go west instead. The area is cooler due to the elevation but too wet and humid to suit me. Plus the situation with John Calypso had kind of ruined the idea of a trip there.

So I continued west and south until I turned on 136 and was soon in a more desert area. Before dark I found a spot to park for the night near the highway on what was probably the old road before being replaced by the newer 4 lane road. There some people were doing something. I never did find out what it was they were doing. There were some piles of dried weeds on the side of the old road. One fellow seemed to pour water and I could see dust rising. He may have been making adobe bricks or mixing cement but I never found out for sure and they just ignored the rig. I had a good night’s sleep there because of the cooler temperature.

Early the next morning I started driving toward Mexico DF. Not because I really wanted to go there but there didn’t seem to be any good roads to drive around it. Before I got there I had a major bummer. I was driving on a four lane highway in the right lane through an intersection when a bus started crowding me on the left side. I was forced to the right and the right rear wheel clipped a curb. The result was a new tire blown and dings in the wheel. Since this rig has duals in the rear, I could continue on.

At a highway toll plaza, I finally got a paper map of Mexico that I purchased from a vendor going from car to car. I haven't used the map yet. Even though the MS Streets and Trips is not very accurate in Mexico, it shows my location and has gotten me this far.

I got to Mexico DF around noon. What a city! I read that it is the world’s largest city with 25 million people. I expected very bad smog but it was no worse than the smog in LA. I was surprised that MS Streets & Trips was pretty accurate in the city. I had to drive straight through the center of the city to get to the road to San Miguel de Allende which I wanted to visit. I was about two thirds of the way through when I missed a turn and ended up on side streets. It wasn’t long before some police wanted to pull me over. With the police behind me I side swiped a car. No damage to the rig but there was a little blue paint on the car. The police couldn’t speak English so I never did find out what they pulled me over for but they sure pounced on the fact that I had an “accident” in front of them. They checked my papers and told me I had to go to the station where it would probably cost me a few hours and 1,000 pesos. Of course, if I wanted to avoid that I could give them 500 pesos (about $50) which I promptly did and got out of town before I got bitten again.

On the road north to San Miguel, I went to a tire store where the diagnosis was that the tire was shot and the wheel could be pounded back in shape but they had no tire of the correct size to sell me. So I had them remove the flat tire and install the spare tire. So now I have six good tires but no spare.

I got to San Miguel de Allende about 6 PM. It is a beautiful city, my kind of place. I can see why so many Norte Americanos want to live and visit there. The cobblestone streets are very narrow. I don’t know how I got the rig through there without another accident but maybe I’m learning something about driving in Mexico. I did see several gringos on the streets and heard some English being spoken. I’m sorry I didn’t get any photos there. I was too busy driving and there was no place I could find to park.

I am now parked near a lake about 5 miles south of San Miguel off road 49 on the way to Celaya. It’s now too dark to set up the dish to post this and I’m not yet sure if this will be a safe place too park for the night. If I am okay parking here, in the morning I will set up the dish and decide if I want to go back into San Miguel to walk around and take photos.

It is morning now and it rained a bit last night but my sleeping was not disturbed. I had a bit of trouble setting up the dish. The OPI meter was acting up but I am now on line. I think I will probably pass on returning to San Miguel this morning. It looks like there will be more rain today. When I return, I think that I will fly to Mexico DF and then take a bus and rent a room to explore it.

San Miguel Camp

2006-10-22T09:39:00.000-06:00

Where I parked last night.

Big Bike

2006-10-22T09:36:00.000-06:00

San Miguel Roadside Attraction

2006-10-22T09:34:00.000-06:00

This must be a sculptor's studio.