IT’S A NEW YEAR!

Here we are in 2019 & I actually live in AJIJIC, MEXICO! I continue to be amazed on a daily basis & wonder when the vacation will be over. Did I miss my flight??? As they often say here, it’s another day in Paradise!

2 days before the New Year our dear friends Onja & Bill arrived from Durham, NC. Our first guests in our new home. We’d worked diligently to prepare for them, with the side benefit being fairly quickly living in a house that was, for the most part, in order. But we learned a lot in the process. Having the house in order was only part of being prepared.

Soon after they showed up we hitched a bus ride or 2 to the village to show them the flavor of life here. Like me they found the rides interesting & a great way to connect to the local people. The title of my blog became quickly apparent as they observed firsthand the “color in the streets”.

We learned quickly that December through early January are intense holiday times for the Mexicans & many stores & restaurants were closed for days on end. But we had managed to make reservations at a nearby restaurant for New Year’s Eve & were delighted with the results. There were no buses running by the time we left & we weren’t keen on the idea of walking up the dark hill to our Casa Morada anyway, so we “broke down” & called a nighttime taxi for the first time since our arrival. Bingo! Gracias, Juan Carlos.

We took many trips to the village, looking for shops & restaurants to treat our guests to. Often we ended up back home or eating somewhere we weren’t that excited about. But the Tuesday market-on Monday because of the holiday-proved to be a delight & we came home with bags & bags of luscious fruits, veggies & treats. We did make it to Machi Ma & Gosha’s, Taco Frida’s & Casa de Cacao, all favorites.

Tuesday-New Year’s Day. Celebrations abound. We headed to Ocampo (street/calle) & eventually hooked up with the annual “playful” parade to “treat hangovers with a dose of good humor”. Mexicans love a parade & the streets were pretty crowded!

The Wednesday market was a completely different experience for Bill & Onja & one that also delighted. Stalls full of veggies, fruits, clothes, jewelry, pottery, etc. are mixed with stalls of plastic ware (plastico) & junk (another man’s treasure). Fresh cheese (queso fresco) beside fresh sopes (thick tortillas with high edges for filling) gave way to fish stalls & pirated (?) CD’s. We filled our bags again, though with not as much weight due to the required bus ride home.

Thursday-off to Chapala! Another bus ride to this delightful town. Delightful due to the gorgeous Malecon, & , for me at least, the center market. We enjoyed watching the migrated pelicans being fed, crowding together with seemingly no space in between, chasing each other en masse & honking (?) for more. Onja & I drank fresh carrot juice while Bill downed a chili rellano that was more of a meal than he’d bargained for. The bus ride home was serenaded by 2 young men with their guitars for the first lap, then a middle-aged couple-she had NO teeth & sang like an angel.

Friday-last day with our guests for this trip. Ben ended up with a bad cold, confirmed by the local clinic, so Bill & Onja headed out for breakfast on their own, picking up some things they wanted & we needed-including (Thank you!) the plastic to cover the open bathroom ceiling vent that makes our downstairs so cold. After that Onja & I grabbed a ride with my neighbor Vidette who invited us to celebrate her birthday with a few other women at the local hot springs-Termal Cosala. We spent the next 3 hours dipping in different pools-my favorite was the “bubbly” pool-& enjoying sunshine & conversation. It felt good to be included in this group of well- traveled, well-read, intelligent & interesting women. Maybe it was my birthday, too!

We learned a lot about having company so early after moving to a foreign country. We didn’t do so well with the directions (according to the frustrated taxi driver from the airport) & we had no idea so many things would be closed. We’re grateful that they didn’t complain when the water tank (tinaco) ran dry & hope they were warm enough with the limited blanket supply (we need a linen store here!). We were all thwarted by the barrage of noise for hours on end, including across the street from us where the Mexican family chopped wood, cooked for days, set up a long table in the street by their (illegal) bonfire, & blasted their music while all the relatives gathered round. Holidays are not about gifts here (except for today-3 Kings Day) but about relaxing with a gathering of family & friends. We’re glad our friends chose to be with us. We hope they’ll come again!

WE WISH ALL OF YOU A HAPPY NEW YEAR! MAY THERE BE CLARITY, COMPASSION & CHANGE LEADING US TO THE LIGHT OF PEACE & UNDERSTANDING! WE ARE ALL ONE IN THAT LIGHT.