What’s happening

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

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

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

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

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Lazy Daze in Armeria

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

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

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.