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Closeups from the Beach
A little collection of some of my favorite closeups from the beach:
A bowl of newly hatched turtles awaiting release at dusk, the time of greatest safety
A welcoming display of bougainvillea on the porch
Nothing says the beach like coconut trees!
I love burros so I thought it was perfect that our casita should have this tiled decoration.
A peek at the huge palapa at Roberto’s Bistro
Head for Mexico: The Renegade Guide–expect the unexpected!
Head for Mexico: The Renegade Guide
by Don Adams
I picked this book up in the second hand book room at the Lake Chapala Society Library for a few pesos. This is an informative book written with a sense of humor. Don Adams doesn’t take himself too seriously, and he doesn’t want you to take yourself too seriously either. He has organized the book well so that you can enjoy it in its entirety or you can pick and choose sections as needed. I already live in Mexico, so my perspective was one of comparing my experiences with his. Although he has spent a lot of time in the Lake Chapala area (home of MANY expats from the U.S. and Canada), he also has lived in many other parts of Mexico. Just like other countries, there is no ONE Mexico, but Adams accurately offers up a taste of cultural differences South of the Border with respect for the kind and generous people here. Unlike his Internet references which are about 14 years old, the people of Mexico have not changed much since he wrote the book. I found it to be an accurate portrayal of life in Mexico where one should always expect the unexpected.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Travel, Nonfiction (Adult)
Notes: Some government information and Internet references are dated, but it still stands as a good resource for someone thinking about moving to Mexico.
Publication: August 11, 2003–Trafford Publishing
Memorable Lines:
Here’s typical (and accurate) advice from Don Adams to give you a flavor of the book: “And a lot of folks caution against driving at night. Actually, nobody in their right mind would even want to consider this. Usually it’s just me and the truckers flying through the dark, although you’ll usually find a pretty active level of traffic on the autopistas connecting the major cities.”
Warm up in Zihuatanejo, Guerrero
Welcome to Zihuatanejo in the state of Guerrero–a tourist town with a traditional, colonial feel alongside a port, beaches and beautiful views. The average high temperature is 89.8° F (32.1° C) and it varies only a degree or two from that all year.
Corazón de Durazno–Heart of the Peach
We live in an area called Corazón de Durazno because the houses are built where there used to be a peach orchard. It is January with highs around 68 degrees F and lows averaging around 40 degrees–although last night we did have a light frost. The trees are in full bloom and have various stages of fruit simultaneously. Some fruits remain from last year and the poor trees are generally confused, but beautiful.
Let’s Change those Stereotypes!
The media in the U.S. often describes Mexicans with stereotypical terms–gangs, drugs, lazy. Let me shine a little light on the people who have shared their country with me for three years. I don’t know anyone in Mexico who fits into this stereotype, and why do we think we should throw people into a descriptive “basket” anyway? Are there people in Mexico who are unpleasant or criminal? Certainly, as there are the world over.
So, what kind of people have I encountered in Pátzcuaro, Mexico? Kind, generous, and family oriented. If you need a stereotype, try that one. In our town, people are so patient when we try to communicate in our broken Spanish. We had a lady take us across town to find a repair shop when she was clearly headed in a different direction. She even stopped several times to ask directions for us. A young man spent the day climbing up and down a ladder to clean the exterior windows of our two story house and then would not charge us anything. He only took some money when we insisted it was for “Navidad.”
A beautiful plant called Alcatraz
The flowers were given to me by our hairdresser. She has a clean, but worn, little one room, one chair beauty shop with no apparent source of water. Parking is one slot on the side of a busy, curvy hill. Hours are indeterminate. But she is pleasant and does a great job of cutting our hair. When I asked her for the name of the plant explaining that I had one in my yard at home but would like to buy more, she insisted I take the vase of flowers home–“un regalo” (a gift).
We look different, talk different, and dress differently, but we experience kindness and generosity. This is my stereotype for Mexicanos.
I am very excited to announce an expansion of the scope of this blog. It began as a way to express my concerns about education. Next I added book reviews, certainly a feature connected to education. Now I am excited to add posts about Mexico. This will not be a travel guide or a tutorial about how to move to Mexico. Each post will contain a picture or two taken in Mexico with a few notes. Although I expect to post “A Touch of Mexico” about once a week, I do not run my life or my blog on a schedule–one of the best parts of retirement! I hope you will join me in experiencing “un poco de México.”