Mexican National Chili Cookoff!

Today was day 2 of the Chili cook off across town at Tobolandia. Yesterday was the Salsa competition (the food not the dance) and today was amateur chili competition day. The parade was fun and the morning was perfect for browsing the handicrafts at the stalls, watching the show on the big outdoor stage and sampling all kinds of great food.

Pictures here!

It was a perfect day, sunny and warm and I found a great free parking spot! The pay parking was less than $1 US but hey, free is great too!

I had some ribs for lunch and chatted with a couple who snowbird here from Toronto. They live in Los Sabinos, which is the only development I have seen here that makes me want to forget my "no gated communities ever!" rule. The units are spectacular and perfect for me and El Tigre. But we love our little Casa Granada.

The merchandise for sale was fabulous! The hand made knives really impressed me and I am sure Dexter would have approved. The wood handles were a nice flair and the blades were hand milled steel. I also loved the booth from Oaxaxa with the peacocks.

I saw a few great pieces of art that I would have loved to take home with me and the prices were good on both. Trying to show a tiny bit of restraint. If I go back tomorrow I am doomed though!

I did get a great leather purse that doubles as a backpack, perfect size and lots of zippered compartments for stuff.  I also got four cotton Mexican style tops that were too great a bargain to pass up.

After watching the dancing horses and browsing some more I left for Sorianas to stock up on huge bottles of water and a few basics like Flan! Sorianas flan is way better than Mega's :)

Driving back home along the full length of the Carratarra (highway through the towns) it was bumper to bumper and lots of stops so I got to see all the shops along the way. Found the garden center Tyler told me about near the 7-Eleven and the furniture mart, the Patio Furniture place and the Bazaar with some furniture. I badly need a computer desk as this set up is not conducive to writing a lot. I have the monitor and keyboard perched on a tv stand for now.

Home and a load of laundry, then relax by the pool. El Tigre is napping on the warm terrace bricks napping and watching the hummingbird swoop in and out of the flowers.

Yesterday I went to the mud baths AKA Spa Balneario  with Kristina, her wonderful children and some new and old friends here. But that adventure is for another posting.

Happy Saturday night sports fans!

Christine AKA Grizzy

Long Overdue Update

What a whirlwind it has been for the past few months. For those of you checking in here faithfully I thank you for your patience. I hope to begin updating here regularly and chronicling my adventures in paradise.

So a quick update - there will be more details about the trip and settling in over the next few weeks.

We left BC on a rainy dreary cold Saturday at the end of January loaded to the roof and toting a Thule roof rack crammed with things. The last week of packing and sorting is a bit of a blur and that morning I must have been as foggy as the weather. I left the cooler with snacks and water in the fridge, left a few key items behind in my haste to get on the road. I thought I would feel more sadness or nostalgia driving out of the driveway that last time but really I didn't.

Crossing the Canada/USA border a few minutes later was a huge pain in the butt. I figured they would want to have a second look and they did. At least the Homeland Security officer was polite which is a change. Usually they are snarly jerks. I usually use more colourful language.  Eventually I convinced him that we are not settling down as illegals in his country and were allowed to continue. I guess having a years worth of Mx car insurance, a deposit on a rental in Ajijic, the GPS programmed to "Home" in Ajijic, MX, maps of Jalisco province, info on moving to Mx etc convinced him.

I was concerned about my beloved cat Eppie, AKA the Tiger, or El Tigre Del Norte and how he would adapt to a long trip. I expected yowling, hissing, etc but he was very subdued and not a peep out of him the entire week.

The first stop was a pet friendly motel in Oregon. He headed for under the bed and remained there most of the evening and overnight. He did come up on the bed for food and cuddles. Next morning I lost an hour of driving time trying to get him out from under the king sized bed and into his crate.

The second night he was fine. Also, the bed was on a built in platform so he couldn't hide under it :)  By the third night he was on to the routine and hopped up on the bed, waited for his dinner and cuddles and watched with interest as I unpacked our supplies and readied the next days maps, clothes etc.

We crossed into Mexico at Nogales at the Mariposa truck crossing. It was easy and almost boring except for me making a wrong turn because of construction and driving behind the building back over the border so I had to drive through the first entry point again. Luckily no one seemed to notice....

It is an automated system. Red light you stop and get spoken to. Green light you keep going. I got two green lights in a row thankfully.

The next customs stop is around 25 Km's later and you stop, go in, get your tourist visa, passport control etc and get your vehicle import papers and sticker. A half hour and we were on our way. I had the documents and photocopies ready which speeded things up a bit.

Last checkpoint was another red/green light stop. We got red. The customs agents were all under 25 and didn't really want to sort through all the stuff in the truck. They looked at El Tigre in his cage, said Oh look, el Gato, and waved me on. No cert of health or vaccines or any questions. Nada.

Driving the first few hours I guess I was overly cautious as I was passed on the Cuota (toll highway) by not one but two B-trains. These are trucks with dual trailers. Once it may have been going uphill.

More on the road trip soon! I am "home" now and loving it here. My house is great, the weather is perfect, even the glitches and delays you experience with moving or a new home are funny rather than aggravating. Well all except crazy Casita Lady. I need tequila to tell that tale. And I will share it.

Today my pool guy Gustavo pronounced the swimming pool officially ready for use! The weather is perfect for it and I am excited to take my first plunge. Oh, it is not heated. And despite the days that hover near 80 F the nights at an elevation of 5,000 feet surrounded by 3 mountain ranges are cool. Locals think this is winter! *snort* So the water is a bit frigid. But I will love it as summer gets here.

I adore this part of Mexico with a passion and a respect that grows each minute I am here. The food is amazing! Fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood from the Pacific Coast a few hours away, smiling people, wonderful views and always great people watching. Flowers everywhere and a rainbow of colours on the buildings that you can not begin to describe.

Tomorrow there is a Chili cook off sponsored by Corona in the afternoon, a drumming circle by the lakefront Malecon at dusk, my favorite band The Tallboys is playing at the Beergarden in Chapala, a few villages to the east and I will hear music from my terrace high above the village until late in the evening.

So to those missing my updates I am alive and well and having a wonderful time exploring my new home.  More about everything soon!

Grizzy