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").
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Monday, January 22, 2007
Update on the fiesta for Divino Nino Jesus
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.
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.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
On Mexico
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.
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.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Armeria house decoration
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
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.
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.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Schroeder Fiesta
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.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Shots
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 poolHouse Work
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
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