Jan 10 update - South Lake Trip

We've been having some cool weather here. We had to buy a space heater to keep warm in the evenings in our little casita. I think the cool weather has turned us into "home bodies" and since Jordan and Sara left we've haven't been doing much more than eating and watching very bad t.v. We only have 4 English speaking stations....and re-runs of Miami CSI are starting to become boring. Greg can't stand Horatio at the best of times. Greg has been doing some web work and I have taken up knitting again and have been doing some writing. We've both started Spanish Lessons with Lina, an American gal, about our age, who was raised here in Ajijic by parents who moved here in the early 60's. All that being said, we haven't done much adventuring lately.

More Puppy Pictures

Yesterday, the sun poked out again in the morning and Greg was inspired to drive around the lake. We set out at around 10 p.m. When we got to the cut off on the highway for Mazitmitla we decided to check it out. Our rental agent, Gonzalo had told us it was a really interesting and very different little town. The road took us up a mountain and I mean ear-popping up and up. Once again, the change in vegetation was very interesting. The higher we went the more pine woods appeared. We drove past Mazatmitla to the little town of San Jose de Gracia. It was quaint and of course had a big chuch and a lovely square with the pervasive shops surrounding the square. These were a bit more high end stalls than those we have become accustomed to in our area. We also notice more indigenous people and the town seemed cleaner and there were less stray dogs roaming around. I had packed a little lunch for us and we sat on little benches in the square facing the church and watched as proud parents exited the church with their newly Christened babies, dressed in miniature bride gowns. Children flocked around the entrance of the church and called out for candy to get thrown which happened over and over again. Greg asked permission to photograph one of the more elaborately dressed babies and we chatted with the proud Papa who is Mexican but lives and works in Missouri so spoke perfect English. We used the banos publicos in the Town hall. The mayor's office seemed modest at most.

Greg bought his third Mexican hat in a store on the square. I think he finally got the one he likes.....and says he know looks like a happy Mexican instead of a mean cowboy.

South Shore Trip Pictures

We left San Jose de Gracia and headed back down the road to Mazitmitla. We chuckled to find a combination Gravenhurst, Lake Placid, Swiss Alpine town here in the interior of Mexico. Because they have pine woods, they use the lumber to trim and decorate their white adobe houses giving them a very Swiss Chalet kind of look. The high fences and gates of Ajijic and Chapala were not as prevalent. A beautiful church and square and the requisite shops were the scene of much activity, laughter, and general life with a buzz. We talked about how different life is here compared to at home where everyone has their own electronic device to plug into and interactivity seems to occur only as a planned event. That's part of what we love about living here. There is exuberant, racous life on the street and especially in the town squares and around the churches.

I bought some fresh ground coffee to bring back home and a pair of dangling earrings that I've been wanting to buy since arriving in Mexico.

We drove down the mountain and stopped in one last village before heading back home. San Pedro was a dusty little place with a vacant square, no vendors and an empty church yard. We aren't sure if it was the time of day....maybe everyone was having their siesta, or a small population that contributed to this phenomenon. We photographed the interior of the church and the list of donations made by townspeople to the church. This was all written by hand on paper ripped from a notebook and displayed for everyone to see in a glass case set into the wall of the church. Interesting.

I didn't feel like cooking last night so Greg bought himself 3 pieces of chicken and a big tub of cole slaw for 35 pesos.....about 3 dollars. I did however notice him spending an unprecedented amount of time in the washroom last night.

And so, dear friends and followers, that is the latest chapter of La Vida en el ranchero.