Mexico Dreamin'- Eric

Attention: Blog followers
It was only a dream.
Like in the old "Dallas" TV series.

I have memories of leaving Burien with Marge and Otto in January 2017. Our little Hyundai was

overloaded as we headed for Mexico.

A very vivid dream

I remember living for four months, high on a hill, in a classy condo overlooking Puerto Vallarta's hotel zone. There were nightly fireworks displays, strolls on tropical beaches and bay-side feasts of shrimp fajitas and frozen strawberry margaritas.
I recall moving into a colorful Mexican house in the central highlands village of Ajijic. We went to bars with live music where we danced with wild abandon--like we hadn't done in decades. We ate with the Brunch Bunch at delightful restaurants on Sunday mornings. I joined Democrats Abroad, Film Aficionados and classes at the Lake Chapala Society.
I even remember a short stay in a tiny casita with a nearby sparkling pool and quiet tree-lined streets.

Colorful memories

But all those memories must have been just a very vivid dream.
Because here we are: Marge is working at the same Washington State Department of Transportation office in Tumwater. I'm still tending the home fires at our same condo in Burien.The same cars are in the same parking spots and their owners are, presumably, in the same jobs. Otto and I are taking the same Seahurst beach and Lincoln Park walks with the neighbor's same dog.
It must have been only a dream.
I've gotta admit I've noticed some unfamiliar folks and pets hanging around the complex. And some previously planned construction projects seem to be have been magically completed.
But facts are facts. I can't dispute them. We are where we are.
It must have all been a dream--a thrillingly adventurous and memorable dream, but still a dream.

The End of our Wonderful Adventure in Mexico

Eric Enjoying Himself in Ajijic

Yesterday, Eric’s and my (and our dog Otto’s), adventure living in Ajijic came to an end. We loaded our five suitcases and a few plastic tubs and our pillows and Otto, into our little Hyundai hatchback, along with our windshield glass breaking tool (in case of being submerged), and our box of flares and reflective triangular orange flashers (in case of some road emergency); and we drove to Puerto Vallarta, an 11 hour trip due to brake problems as we came down the steep and curvy road
from Compostela to sea level.

We arrived at last, at 8:30. Very, very happy to be here (and to be alive!)! We will spend 8 more nights in Puerto Vallarta, enjoying the ocean and the malecon (right outside our wonderful room!), and the city, and all the places we know and love.

Eric and Otto on Colon, 
Ajijic's Main Street

On May 18, after 14 months living in Mexico; we’ll pack up the car again and head north, 1000 miles through the beautiful Mexican countryside to the border at Nogales. We’ll arrive there on the afternoon of the third day of driving (if all goes well). From the border we’ll drive across Arizona to California and all the way up California to Oregon and all the way through Oregon to Washington, and half way through Washington to our condo in Burien, near Seattle – another 1600 miles. Fortunately, we love driving trips!

We are happy that we’ll see our friends and family in Washington again, who we’ve missed; and happy that Amazon will deliver to our door, and that we’ll get to experience the beauty of Puget Sound again and hear the sound of the seagulls and see them dipping and circling; and that we’ll get to see the magnificence of the Cascade Mountains to the east and the sharp peaks of the Olympics to the west against the skyline, and the Oregon Coast and the rhododendrons, if any are still in bloom.

The High Hills Behind Lake Chapala

But we are also feeling a sense of loss. We made a life for ourselves in Ajijic; of walks on the malecon and shopping at little vegetable markets and enjoying the perpetual sunshine and cheap meals out and making pictures and volunteering and walking Otto all around the town - letting him off his leash by the lake, where he loved to run, scaring the great egrets and snowy egrets and blue herons and black winged night herons and coots and the other birds whose names I don’t know or have forgotten -- they would fly up, one by one, from the shallows where they swam or bobbed or stood, as he ran past them.

Pelicans on Lake Chapala

And we will miss Lake Chapala, a beautiful backdrop to everything, with its little lapping waves and marshy shore, in places -and so large – the largest lake in Mexico; and we’ll miss the brightly painted stone and brick and stucco houses – teal, lavender, mango and turquoise, and the bright orange and purple and yellow flowers, blooming all year, even now, at the end of the dry season. 

Lake Chapala and the Malecon at Sunset

We will, especially, miss the friends we’ve made, with whom we’ve shared a lot of fun times, interesting stories, good food and laughter - who we hope to see again. We will be back in Ajijic, certainly, though we are not sure when.

We have learned so much, living in Mexico - discovered that we are resilient and capable and able to overcome obstacles; and how different life is in a different country, with a different language and a different culture. Also, we’ve discovered the magnificent art and music of Mexico and the history of Mexico - centuries of brutal oppression, and of struggling to overcome oppression; and the beauty of Mexico – a huge country

Marge in Puerto Vallarta This Morning;
a Beautiful Day

Eric in Puerto Vallarta This Morning -
Enjoying the Sunshine

with so much awe inspiring scenery – a country that was just a blank to us, previously; and we have discovered the pleasure of speaking Spanish (and the difficulty of mastering it), and experienced some irritants (topes, mosquitos, cojetes). We’ve been through some hard times and many good times; and, though we yearn to see the Pacific Northwest again, and are looking forward to being there, I know that we will miss Mexico, and the life we have here, once we are gone.

What a wonderful adventure it's been! We are happy to be going back - and very happy we came!

¡Feliz año nuevo!/Happy New Year! from Ajijic!

My latest picture:
Birds on a Branch Over Water

 As I write these words, on the morning of New Year's Day, 2018, here in Ajijic, the cohetes (firecrackers) are still going off! New Year's is a big event in Mexico, and this year it's a big event in my life too! Eleven months ago, on Feb. 1, 2017, Eric and I crossed the border into Mexico on the way to our new life - first in Puerto Vallarta, and now, since June, in Ajijic! One more month until our one year anniversary as residents of Mexico!!

So many amazing things happened in 2017! The fact that we planned this move and actually carried it out is the most amazing of all! Even Janice, my wonderful sister, didn't believe we would! All those phone conversations when I enthusiastically described to her the latest interesting things I had discovered about moving to Mexico - how to acquire temporary residency, what kind of car to buy to bring with us, which shots Otto needed, how to avoid scorpion bites, how many varieties of poisonous snakes lived in Mexico and how to avoid being bitten by them (any of you who know me well know that I would research this), and all the rest --- and she only told me recently that she never thought we would actually move here! Very happy she didn't mention it at the time :)!

Probably the second-most amazing thing that happened in 2017 was that I retired, at 62 (almost 63)!! That was the culmination of a dream, actually, many years of wishing, hoping, fantasizing and dreaming! And the thing is, not having to go to work or prepare for work or schedule my life around work, and being able to do so many things that I love is HUGE - much more wonderful than I even imagined! I feel a sudden thrill of joy even thinking about the wonderfulness of retirement! In Spanish the word for retired is jubilado! Yes, Jubilado! :)!

We have also acquired wonderful friends here! Such a pleasure to share our lives with so many wonderful people who are fun and interesting and who, mostly, live only a few minutes from here! We often miss our friends faraway (come visit!) and are very happy to be building new friendships and a sense of community that adds so much pleasure and satisfaction to our lives.

We have learned SO MUCH as we live this adventure - have had our minds expanded by living in another culture with people whose ways of living, and beliefs, and accepted truths and whole world-view is different; and have discovered strengths and resilience and capabilities in ourselves that we would never have known we even possessed if we hadn't lived here; and experienced a lot of happiness and some pain and and overall have really, really loved being here.

Our Christmas tree
and the bamboo trees decorated with Christmas lights

We have also experienced homesickness and worry, and illness - I have been to the emergency room twice (influenza - many months ago), as well as (every now and then) uncertainty about our future here, and concern about health issues. And, besides that, we have been lost many times and once were trapped in a parking lot, and have spent way more money than I planned to spend in all those Excel spreadsheets I created before we moved here estimating how much we'd save every month and how much would go to dining out and rent and travel and all the rest. Laughable to look at them now!

And what about 2018? We are planning to move again - this time to a quieter neighborhood (MUCH quieter) as where we live now is only one house away from an events space that occupies the whole center of the block, and from which enormously loud music emanates, reverberating all around our house, on weekends and holidays and many other times - all evening and, often, all night long; and, in addition to that - music is played next door every afternoon at top volume; and also the trucks rattling by over the cobblestones and the vehicles going by slowly with loudspeakers blaring - advertising gas and ice cream; and the motorcycles, and, of course, the fireworks going off - as loud as a war - they are going off right now!

We are also moving to save money. Our current rent is too high to allow us to accomplish our financial goals, which are extremely simple - spend less than we bring in. We are looking now and may have found a wonderful place to move, where we would spend far less than we're spending to live here and would still live comfortably (and the condo complex where it's located has two pools!) :)!

We hope to take trips in 2018, but no plans have been made yet. Many guests are scheduled to visit, including two dear friends arriving in 3 days! Also, Eric is doing more volunteering. I am enjoying making pictures more than I have in years, (maybe ever!) and will be in a four person show in March, as well as participating in an open studio event (my pictures will be shown in a lovely garden) in February. I have just started photographing dogs and creating digital pictures from the photos. Enjoying that every much!! And we have brunch with friends every week and dinners out and so many fun, interesting, meaningful and entertaining activities and events; and besides all that, the sunshine every day really is, I have to say, very nice!!!!

An Update on our Life in Ajijic At Last!

Horse in the Water

How could I have not posted for so long? After all my plans for the blog to be a diary of my life in Mexico - where I would share insights about daily life in Ajijic and paint descriptive word pictures to convey the feel of the place, with anecdotes about interesting events and experiences with a few epiphanies thrown in! All my  pleasant fantasies about spending hours writing, while drinking coffee in the morning on the balcony, with the sun just coming up and the peaceful streets down below (except maybe for a horse or two clopping by on the cobblestones). And, after all that - I haven't written a word - in 3 months! Have thought about it, but I am so busy living - no time to write!

The thing is, I am having so much fun! Loving retirement! Loving Ajijic! The best time of my life-a kind of personal renaissance, a second spring, a completely new chapter, and, trite as it sounds, I am actually, redefining myself! Hyperbole? Yes, of course, a little (after all hyperbole is my best strength!) but mostly true!

I never expected to enjoy my life here so much! Just hoped it would be an affordable place to park ourselves for however long, with no commitment (other than the year and a half left until I can receive Medicare and my pensions).

Three Coots

Birds on Posts

Maybe I've been hypnotized by the sunshine every day and the lake almost outside our door, with the malecon, stretching for half a mile next to the water, and the music in the park, and all the birds, and the palm trees towering over the tile roofs of the town, and the huge hills against the horizon, a background to every scene, and the pink of the sunrise and bluest blue of the sky at midday, and the orange-red sunsets slowly turning to purple. So much beauty. It does something to a person's soul (or to some very fundamental part, anyway).

Bird of Many Colors

Or maybe it's the many, many restaurants with great food that costs only a fraction of the price paid in the US - where we sit outside or under a roof with no walls, in the shade or in the sunshine.

Besides all that, my passion for making art has recently been reignited! I had lost my enthusiasm for digital money collages a year or so ago; have been searching for a creative path ever since, that would provide the same sense of joy and satisfaction. Am so thrilled to be experiencing that pleasure again! Am photographing the beauty all around me and turning what I see into digital art landscapes! I have posted some of them here (and posted some of these on Facebook not long ago). They are also on my website: www.margeryellsworth.com.

Besides that, we have made friends - almost painlessly! People come to our house, and we spend time  at people's houses, and we eat out with them and chat about everything - health, the latest terrible thing done by Trump and his minions, life, the wonderfulness of retirement (that's me talking!), art, trips we plan to take together, etc. We went to brunch with friends this Sunday (and every Sunday), made Thanksgiving dinner with stuffing and a lot of side dishes for 16 people, including friends - and niece Rachel who flew down to help us celebrate!

Also, we are sponsoring a student here! We are paying his tuition at the nearby technical college, and paying some of his living costs - spending slightly less than $500 per year. We are thrilled to be doing this! So little money to make such a huge difference in a person's life! We are planning to begin sponsoring another student in the near future.

Egret Looking Across the Lake

Have joined the photography club, with Eric, and the Ajijic Society of the Arts, and am doing Zumba on the malecon next to the lake with a group 3 mornings a week; and participated in a birdwatching expedition with the local birders group recently, and on a hike up the side of a steep, high hill with the local hiking group. Also, will be in a 4 person art show at a local gallery in March and looks as though I'll be in more shows too, in the spring.

Another big change -- Every day I walk. No need to drive to restaurants or to most other places; we live close to almost everything. And, of course, every day is sunny and warm, which makes walking a lot more fun than under the flat white sky, like a cataract, with the wind and the darkness at 4:00 in the afternoon and the blowing leaves and the drizzle of Western Washington. We have a car, though only one now, but it stays home a lot more than we do!

And, besides all that, we are spending a lot less money and having a lot more fun! Our incomes have shrunk hugely now that I am no longer working - but we are living very comfortably - going out MUCH more often than when I brought in a paycheck and going to events and on tours around the area and on trips to Costco in Guadalajara. We are going on a trip to Puerto Vallarta, also, before Christmas.

Wet Dog With a Stick in its Mouth

Another reason for my (and Eric's too!) increased happiness is that we've figured out ways to take care of many of the details of living which are harder in a new country with a different language, culture, expectations and ways of doing things. We now have an English speaking propane gas delivery service, a regular water delivery (for the bottles of water used for drinking); we know where to go to pay our bills; and we know who to talk to when we have questions about service; we know of a butcher selling US style cuts of meat (sometimes we make arrachera but sometimes we just want pot roast!), a dog training school for Otto (they pick Otto up every morning and bring him back at 4:30 or so every weekday); a TV streaming service for shows in English, an audiologist (who is also an MD!) who is fluent in English and very competent and nice; a place to have my pictures printed; a fairly painless way to have US products delivered in Ajijic; a computer repair shop run by an expat; a very nice store selling second-hand clothes (nice but not as wonderful as Value Village!); an organic market; a good, local vegetable market; and, probably most important, even though no hablo espanol muy bien, I am able to communicate well enough to resolve most issues that we encounter.

Boating on Lake Chapala

Don't misunderstand. Life isn't perfect. Otto still barks way too much (even after 3 weeks at Ajijic Dog School!), I am recovering from bronchitis (a milder case than in the past but I thought I wouldn't get it at all when we moved here), firecrackers go off at all hours and loud music can be heard late into the night; I don't speak Spanish as well as I would like, and still struggle to understand and be understood; I have gained back most of the weight I lost before we moved to Mexico (very hard to maintain a healthy diet with all the wonderful, inexpensive restaurants and markets and roadside stands everywhere); and there is much poverty and dogs with their ribs showing (we give money to people who ask and donate money to help where we can).

But, the thing is, even with the frustrations and difficulties that we experience and observe, Mexico is becoming home. Maybe not forever, but for now. What was exotic and strange when we arrived has now become normal; the background to our lives. we have become comfortable here.

Path at Night

Now that I have blogged again, who knows? Maybe I really will post regularly - updates on how we're doing, daily activities, interesting news and upcoming events and plans! Lots is happening! Looking forward to reporting on it more frequently!

Thanks for reading!
Marge

Life in Ajijic-with lots of pictures of flowers - Marge

Here we are, living in Ajijic, an ancient village filled with expats, on a high plateau next to a vast shallow lake ringed by huge emerald hills (emerald! Not hyperbole!) in the central highlands of Mexico.

There is so much color here--pea green gates and midnight blue-and-pumpkin orange walls next to a wall the color of a purple crayon, and dutch blue door frames, and pink and white stripes painted down a wall, and decorative tiles that are lavender and yellow and chocolate brown and a cream colored cupola against the azure sky; and the flowers--so vivid they are almost ultraviolet, and magentas and an orange so perfect against the green leaves surrounding it that one feels a little stab of joy, just for a second; and the brightest sunshine yellows--spilling down the walls and flourishing in gardens and in pots hanging from cast iron hooks off balcony railings.

The village is small, the streets are narrow, all one-lane, paved with rocks and rough, bread-loaf cobblestones, lined with cars parked close against the curb-mirrors turned in, with sidewalks that suddenly slope or descend--trees growing out of them, in places-their leafy branches trimmed into cylinders or squares or cloud shapes; and the tiny tiendas hardly larger than a garage, with vegetables on crates and on cloths spilling out onto the sidewalks; and chicken roasting on a grill, under a canopy, surrounded by customers on folding chairs--occupying two parking spaces; and men rolling wheelbarrows full of tiny fish over the cobblestones, calling out to the women sweeping their steps; and ice sellers dragging wheeled coolers, and trucks carrying propane gas to fill up the tanks on the roofs of all the houses - with speakers mounted on the hood playing a jingle that I hear now even in my sleep, and trucks full of huge bottles of water for drinking--squeezing down the narrow streets; and dogs trotting purposefully by or lying in the sun in doorways or growling down at us furiously from rooftops, teeth bared, ribs showing.

We live in a mostly Mexican neighborhood. All day we hear music in Spanish; into the evening; sometimes through the night. And fireworks, a few all at once in the early morning and then silence; and the bells of the church down the street. Often we see processions-people walking behind a crucifix, or sometimes behind men carrying a statue of a saint, or behind a hearse. Today, musicians came first, followed by riders on horseback, some wearing sombreros, some with a child on the saddle in front, many drinking from a can of beer as they clopped along, reins held in one hand. It was a long procession, many horses filling the street, and behind the horses a line of white cars.

This is the rainy season; with thunder every night-so loud and long that one worries, just a little, that this time it really is the apocalypse; and fireworks in the darkest part of the night as I lie awake (conjugating Spanish verbs in my head)--that sound like gunshots; and-this is the tropics-so we have encountered many new insects and reptiles and arachnids and diseases: the lizard without a tail that lived under the stove when we first arrived, that fled the house, one day--practically bouncing down the stairs in its haste to go, down the stairs and down the sidewalk and away; and the giant black spider in the shower that Eric crushed with his shoe (yes, at my request), and the big black snake coiled in the grass by the lake that Eric saw while walking the dog; and the cucarachas at night, in the kitchen and in the hall; and the gecko that shared our house for awhile; and the many, many mosquitos now that the rains have come--bringing dengue with its fevers and headaches and aching bones; and flies--in the beer and on any food left out on the counter, and banging against the screen.

We have a house cleaner who comes every Wednesday-who speaks no English; we clean too, in the morning before she comes; and we have a gardener, who tends the plants bordering the little strip of lawn where we park the car and the bamboo trees growing in the house by the fountain and the cactus on the mirador and the red flowers in back, outside our bedroom.

I am learning Spanish and learning to be retired. Neither are as easy as I had expected. Without a job to go to, I find that I have turned my goal of Spanish fluency into a job. Don't know how many hours I have spent on Spanish every week-between the many classes, the private teacher, the conversation coach and the homework I assign myself. Have just noticed this about myself and am trying to learn to relax. Am working hard at it.

We have learned a lot since we arrived here: How to get new tires, where to get the car repaired, who to call for gas delivery, where to get a cell phone fixed, where to buy organic vegetables, how to get television stations in English, how to get health care (free for seniors!), how to get Mexican cell phone service, how to get water delivered, who to tip because they receive no wages (grocery store baggers!), how to get products shipped to Mexico, how to pay bills, where to find a great, cheap exercise class (zumba, on the malecon), where to get hearing aids, where to go for half-price dinner on Tuesdays.

We have learned a lot and we have a lot to learn because building a life in a new place takes time- especially when the place is in a different country with a different language and different culture and different money and even different measuring systems-kilograms, kilometers, centigrade. Some days I feel that we are living the dream; just like all those happy people on House Hunters International and in International Living Magazine; enjoying the low cost of living, the interesting food, the many welcoming people, the new friends, the beautiful country, and great health care; getting to spend more time doing fun things with Eric, having more time for art; and all the wonderful opportunities for learning and helping and appreciating life that Mexico offers.


Sometimes, though, when my Spanish runs out and I still haven't explained my problem, or when I see the dog with long, matted fur that I still haven't rescued (waiting for a chance), or when I find myself yearning for the taste of some food  I love but haven't found in Mexico, or feel a sudden stab of longing for a family member or friend left behind, I realize that, though I wouldn't trade my life now for the life I left (I would still be working--a 60 mile commute each way!), there is, and probably always will be, some bitter with the sweet.







**** I took the pictures of flowers on this page on various walks around Ajijic recently. ****

Welcoming guests to Puerto Vallarta - Eric

Janice relaxes very briefly on the beach

With guests set to fill up the empty bedrooms in our Ajijic home soon, it's instructive to look back on our attempts at hosting in Puerto Vallarta.
When you live in an international tourist destination like Puerto Vallarta, people visit you.
We hosted our four guests all within a four-week window. It's interesting to note the varying vacation styles.
First up was Marge's beloved sister Janice from New York City. She's a speech language pathology teacher in an inner-city high school: Works all the time, Extra duties at school in the evenings. Draws up daily individual lesson plans for each student into the early morning hours. Etc.
Ah, Puerto Vallarta would be the ideal decompression spot for her: Watching the sunset from our deck with a pitcher of margaritas. Lounging on the beach. Luxuriating in a relaxing massage on a grassy spot jutting out into the bay. In short, a total rejuvenation week.
So we picked her up at the airport about 5 p.m. after a long flight from New York, which included a layover  in Chicago.
"Show me the city," she demanded. We drove her on a circular path through Puerto Vallarta.
"Are there interesting places outside the city?" she asked. "Where are we going now?"
Marge replied, "We're going to our place. We thought you'd want to get settled in after your flight. We'll put a roast in the oven."
Janice retorted, "I didn't come to Puerto Vallarta to eat beef roast."
It  became instantly clear she was going to vacation as hard as she worked.

So began the Janice Grand Puerto Vallarta Tour.
That night we ate dinner at a restaurant on the beach and walked the malecon, Puerto Vallarta's famous boardwalk.
On Tuesday, we toured the Riviera Nayarit area north of the city, including the beach towns of San Pancho and Sayulita.
On Wednesday, Janice and Marge shopped in El Centro and then we went up river to El Rio for BBQ ribs and classic rock from the Zippers.
On Thursday, we took a boat tour of the estuary, ate at an authentic Mexican restaurant and watched the sunset on the malecon.
On Friday, Janice and Marge went on a taco tour, then we drove to points south and ended up eating at another beachfront restaurant before walking on the Los Muertos Pier.
On her final day, Janice finally sat on the beach briefly while Marge did a photo shoot of her in a new swimsuit. (Sports Illustrated has expressed interest.) We ate dinner at a restaurant that, surprisingly, was not on the beach.

Eric, Todd and Marge at Senor Frog

A week later, my son Todd came to visit. He didn't have a specific itinerary. He figured we lived here and knew where to go.
But he had already toured the hot spots of Mexico and the Caribbean with his cousin Thomas so he wasn't easily dazzled: Especially not with parent stuff like walking the boardwalk, listening to an oldies band or seeing where 1960's movie stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton lived 50 years ago.
Senor Frog was the solution. Senior Frog is a Spring Break magnet for the younger set. To give you an indication of its focus, there are about a dozen Senor Frog souvenir shops but only one restaurant/bar in Puerto Vallarta.
Wanting to be a good host but grumbling that this was like visiting San Francisco and eating at Applebee's, I agreed to go to the Senor Frog restaurant.
We ordered huge strawberry and banana margaritas, the young servers flirted with Marge and, somehow, we spent way more money than we had planned. In all fairness, I have to admit the food and drinks were surprisingly good and the portions were large.
Todd said he enjoyed his visit and it was really good to see him.
He left on Friday. Margie and Jean arrived on Saturday.
I surprised myself by how well-behaved I was with the urban and urbane couple, Marge's long-time friends from New York: No pointing out the restaurant where El Chapo's son and associates were kidnapped. No stage whispering that we were taking them up river to be disappeared on orders of the cartel.
But, Marge!: Going on and on about cocodrilos (crocodiles) and boa constrictors and scorpions, oh my!
They were really good sports as we took them on dusty, bumpy back roads, showed them giant cocodrilos, let our dog spray sand on them while digging under the restaurant table and made them use a primitive restroom where they had to scoop out a bucket of water to fill the toilet.
Margie and Jean didn't get to  eat on regular non-sand floors except when they escaped from us to enjoy their all-inclusive hotel meals or ate with other friends at a classy restaurant.
Despite all the indignities, they claimed they had fun with us. They even  checked out real estate listings and said they would consider moving to Puerto Vallarta.

Jean, Margie and Eric at the marina

Welcome to Ajijic - Eric

Now for something completely different.
Our first four months in Mexico were spent in Puerto Vallarta, an international tourist destination city on a saltwater bay. Since June, we've been in Ajijic, an expat-heavy village on a lake in the central highlands.
You might say Puerto Vallarta is for vacationing while Ajijic is for living.

Ajijic malecon in the evening

My introduction to Ajijic was a little rough.
Ajijic is 5,000 feet above sea level--2,000 feet higher than Snoqulamie Pass. I had to adjust to the altitude. One way to describe it is that I felt like I had been rode hard and put away wet. In other words, my get-up-and-go got up and went.
Not helping was a series of accidents, including backing into a parked truck with our car, getting stung by a bee and jamming my fingers in a sliding door.
Oh, and I took a header off a steep driveway ramp onto a cobblestone road. Head vs. rock and the rock won. I looked pretty bad at the time but the scars have healed.
No concussion. And I didn't have a concussion, either.

Head vs. rock and the rock won

At least, it wasn't the usual expat ankle sprain caused by a misstep on cobblestones.
But now that we are somewhat acclimated, the challenge is to make a good life here. As time goes by we will gain more friends and activities. We  do pal around with Robin, a Trump refugee from North Carolina, and her poodle dog Agatha, a champion licker.
Marge has been focussed on learning Spanish with several classes a week and numerous tutors. She is scaling back somewhat, but I still think she is aiming to become an interpreter at the U.N. She is also having great fun taking photos for blog posts and art projects.
I walk Otto on the picturesque malecon (lakeside boardwalk) every morning. My other big activity is "Film Aficionados." This guy shows great foreign and U.S. movies for free on Thursday afternoons at the Lake Chapala Society, a great resource center and sanctuary for expats. Living in this village in the middle of Mexico I don't know where he gets these movies, such as an Iranian film that was banned in that country and only shown in the West at two film festivals.
I guess that's the idea--come to Ajijic and find your own niche. Another guy produces a 20-page email list each week of live performances in the area. With so many retired gringos, there is an amazing array of good restaurants and bars--many with live music throughout the week. My favorite duo includes the winner of the Mexico "Rebecca Dare Look-A-Like Contest." They play Peace and Love music from the '60s and '70s. (Rebecca is a friend from Burien.)

Aquarius Duo every Thursday night at LaBodega

I'm happy to report our house is lizardless now. When we first moved in, there was a lizard living under the stove and another in the living room fountain.
The stove dweller was surprisingly large. When we entered the kitchen we would sternly tell it, "Now you get back under there" and it would scurry back to its temporary home. It eventually relocated to under the couch and then fled outside.
Technically, the fountain lizard was a gecko, like in the insurance commercials. Marge took it outside but it reappeared. Upon a second ejection, it left permanently.
With just the two of us plus Otto, it's kind of embarrassing how big our house is. Besides the master bedroom on the first floor, there are three more on the second floor and an outdoor balcony.
Up another flight of stairs is a rooftop terrace (mirador) with a sweeping view of the lake and surrounding hills. We occasionally have wine on the balcony before dinner. We used to have our coffee on the mirador in the morning. But it's kind of hot on the roof, even early. Also you need to drink two cups of coffee to get enough energy to walk up all those steps. After you've already had your coffee, why bother?
With all those extra bedrooms and an Ajijic housing crunch, we might be tempted to sublet the second floor for more than our rent. But we couldn't get away with that because our cleaning lady is also the property manager. We'll fill the bedrooms temporarily when company comes in August
In life, there are always trade-offs. Our house is close enough to walk to the lake, village and Lake Chapala Society.
But there are more mosquitos near the lake and more noise in the neighborhood.
It can not be overstated how much mosquitos love Marge and Otto hates sudden noises. Marge has devised several strategies to combat the bites, including various poisons and duct taping her pants to her shoes. Not all all attractive to the pests, I have callously suggested she wear a burqa.

'Get back under the stove!'

Puerto Vallarta: Triumphs and Topes - Eric

You've never lived until you've seen a Puerto Vallarta sunset

We've been in Ajijic in the central highlands of Mexico for almost a month now but I want to record a final farewell to Puerto Vallarta.
When we first arrived in Puerto Vallarta in February, I suggested we call this blog "Triumphs and Topes."
Topes are speed bumps in Mexico--some are small, others are humongous. Some are well marked while others sneak up on you.
Triumphs and Topes is an apt metaphor for living in Puerto Vallarta.
Trying to make an expat life in Puerto Vallarta, or anywhere in Mexico, brings speed bumps you have to figure out how to navigate.
Our first big tope was when we discovered that the condo we had rented, sight unseen, for four months was not within practical walking distance to the ocean or other major attractions. That was the top feature we wanted. We felt isolated on top of the hill.
Eventually, we found the road out front stretched for a long ways, allowing us some walking exercise and good views. But it was not the same.
The only way to the beaches or other scenic spots was to drive down tope-strewn rough roads. Otto needed his daily exercise so I would pick my way slowly down to Shrimp Beach or other beaches 10 minutes below us. They weren't Otto's favorites but they were OK.

Picture-perfect San Pancho beach

In our final month, I discovered the public access points to Gold Beach in the hotel zone and the beach in front of the marina hotels. Since it was no longer high season they were not crowded. I could let Otto run free. He enjoyed that immensely.
In addition, the sand was much better. The drive took 20-25 minutes but the main road was a smooth arterial.
So, for me, the original speed bump of not being able to walk to the beaches turned into the triumph of realizing, "Hey, with a 10-25 minute drive I can be on a tropical beach!"
And the isolation of the mountaintop meant we had a sweeping view of north Banderas Bay and the almost nightly fireworks shows.
Of course, the biggest tope was not being able to speak the native language. Marge was great. She signed up for three levels of intensive Spanish lessons--three hours a day, three days a week with massive homework. As for me, I dropped her off at class or left her behind to study while the dog and I had fun.
The tope hardest to overcome was not the heat but the humidity. I know! I know! Everybody says the trick is to go out early and siesta inside from 11-6. But nobody contemplating retirement says, "What I really look forward to is getting up earlier."
Our original plan was to stay in Puerto Vallarta for four months and that's what we did. We beat it out of town before the really bad humidity began.

For this reluctant draftee to Mexico, Puerto Vallarta wore down my resistance with so many great experiences. Among them, the beaches, Rio (River) Cuale and surrounding neighborhoods, the malecon (boardwalk), restaurants on and off the sand, strawberry margaritas, the marina, music in the bars, towns to the north like Bucerias and San Francisco/San Pancho (" I Left My Heart in San Francisco"), the mountains, the jungle and the sunset. You've never lived until you've seen a Puerto Vallarta sunset

Giant strawberry margarita

There's something about living in a place that other people travel distances to visit. I got a little bit of that feeling living at Alki Beach and above Seahurst Park. But people never booked airlines or cruise ships to Alki or Seahurst.
Now we are in Ajijic, whose own triumphs and topes will be the subjects of further posts.

A Puerto Vallarta beach during Easter Week

Here We Are in Ajijic! - Marge

Our House in Ajijic

Here we are in Ajijic! Have been here 2 1/2 weeks! After a few initial issues, now resolved, am very much enjoying being here! We live a few blocks from the central plaza, on a cobblestone street, 1½ blocks from the lake and the malecon (wide concrete path by the water)! Love to walk out of the house and be able to go places on foot!! Every place is nearby. Even the places in other towns are nearby! And the roads are narrow and charming with lots of color everywhere! Really love that!

Our Street

Our house has 4 bedrooms—only 3 bedrooms were mentioned in the rental listing! There's a fountain wall with a concrete angel and a scalloped shell and a blue-tiled pool, and green bamboos on either side of the fountain in front of an orange wall by the stairway, with cast iron railings, that circles up to the second floor and then up to the mirador. Above it all is a huge glass skylight large enough for a train station (maybe exaggerating slightly).

View From the Second Floor Balcony

I love the mirador, with its tiled floor and cast-iron table and chairs and huge rainbow striped umbrella shading us as we sip our coffee in the morning. The lake is visible above the red tile rooftops, between palm trees, to the west, and to the east, rising up behind the town are high hills, dark, somewhere between brown and gray. They will be emerald green, I've been told, when the rains come.

The Fountain

There is also a cupola at the top of the house, a balcony on the second floor, a tiny gated yard for our car in front and a large jetted tub in the master bath-with a crack in it, sadly. Someone cleans the house every week and there is also a gardener.

A moment ago, as I sat here in the living room writing, with sunlight streaming down from the skylight, I heard a horse clopping by on the cobblestones! Just looked out the open door and saw it passing. Almost every day horses go by. At night, too, as I lie in bed, I often hear the sound of a horse's hooves, loud, now that all the music and dogs and trucks with loudspeakers calling out Agua, Agua as they drive down the street are finally quiet.

The Skylight,
the 3D Mural of the Sun

We also often see horses by the lake. Saw three of them, including a foal, grazing by the beach a few days ago. Behind the horses, just offshore, long-legged white birds waded or stood still with one leg raised, and birds that might be herons stooped in the shallows, staring into the water fixedly, heads cocked, beaks pointed, like a weapon. Little black scoters bobbed nearby, their bodies rising and falling with the movement of the water. It was another National Geographic moment (one of many we have experienced here in Ajijic)! 

View of the Lake From the Mirador
With a Storm Cloud Overhead

I ordered an inflatable kayak online (on Amazon Mexico!) last week for not much more than $100 (US)! Has 922 positive reviews. If we like it I’ll order a second one! It's a 2-person kayak but the reviews say more comfortable for one. Plus, sounds much more fun to paddle along in two kayaks side by side than sitting in front of or behind someone.

Horses by the Lake

So much to do here! Eric and I are registered for Spanish classes, and I am attending Spanish conversation groups. Eric has joined the film group (saw Inherit the Wind a couple of days ago). I am joining the arts group next week. We are both joining Democrats Abroad and have bought tickets to their picnic. Went to the Lake Chapala Society fiesta yesterday afternoon where we ate, talked with new friends and danced to rock and roll music! Thirty years without dancing once and in the last 4 1/2 months, since we arrived in Mexico, I have danced so many wonderful times!  

Eric Looking Happy-He Really is Happy!

And it's not just dancing! I also, love being here because the world is so much brighter! The deep blue sky, orange, lavendar, and fuschia walls, gates and doorframes all different colors; and the reddish roof tiles, and the gardens! The trees with their blossoms that never seem to fall: amber pink, and deepest purple; and bouganvillas with their cascade of lipstick red flowers and cacti with a single salmon or white or butter yellow blossom. A feast of colors!

And so much life! Birds, butterflies, geckos on the walls of houses. Also a lizard, living in our house-under the stove. It's much larger than a gecko. Actually, it's a larger reptile than I am comfortable with, as a roommate. Every now and then I forget to make a loud noise before entering the kitchen and then I find the lizard staring up at me from the floor, a little too close to my bare feet. Besides that, many insects and spiders and the most enormous cucarachas I have ever seen hurrying down the hall toward our bedroom! I step on them all without mercy. Hope there isn’t such a thing as karma or I am doomed! No scorpions so far! And many dogs – 3 of which I plan to invite into my car for a trip to the vet and then to a rescue organization in the near future. 

Now that we are here, settled down for awhile, I find myself thinking about art again, at last! Can hardly wait to get started making pictures! So much to do! So much time to do it! Love being retired! Love living in Mexico!

The Lake, the Beach, the Mirador and the Hills, with
Someone Wading.

Looking toward the Main Street of Ajijic.
Not a Very Large Town!

Lake Chapala at Dusk, Showing the Very Edge of the Boat Launch
We'll Use For Our Kayaks