Roaming Through Retirement



May 2019


May--Summer time in Ajijic

April and May are the two warmest months with temperatures in the mid-80s to low 90s, with low humidity (thank goodness), but a high UV index.  It is dry, windy and dusty, which makes it less desirable than the remaining months of the year.  Above we were horseback riding while vacationing in the mountain village of Mazamitla (8,200 feet), which provided a nice little get away.  

May 2019
May 2019
Dry temperatures brought something we had not seen before in Ajijic, forest fires!  It lasted about three weeks, thanks to firefighters, including this helicopter bucket. This picture was taken from our mirador, which was much more frightening than it actually was.  The damage was contained to the trees and vegetation. 
May 2019
May 2019
Terry is the Director of the Lake Chapala Society where Glorine spends lots of time dreaming up cool events like Career Days and Connection Among Friends.  In May, this event was expanded to an all-day event that included an Entrepreneurship Fair, where young start-up companies showed off their wares. The event attracted 30 vendors. 
May 2019
May 2019
Wayne and Maureen set up a booth to display the awesome work of Have Hammers, a carpentry school for youngsters in the area.  Connections Among Friends includes a social mixer where Mexican and foreigners can meet and greet with live music in the background. 
May 2019
May 2019
The Lake Chapala Society completed a long-range plan, which includes 42 goals in five categories--campus development, program development, fund advancement, community outreach and organizational improvements.   In addition to chairing the planning task force, Larry facilitated the annual LCS Board of Directors' retreat to set organizational priorities for the upcoming year, including building expansion and a newly formed capital campaign team. 
May 2019
May 2019
This is  Mazamitla, about 15,000 people live here and is 1-1/2 hours south of Ajijic.  Its primary industry is tourism, which they have done a great job.  The city center is surrounded with stores, restaurants, and hotels.  All the buildings are white with terracotta colors around the bottom and roof tiles. 
May 2019
May 2019
We arrived on Mothers' Day weekend.  The main plaza was set up for these ballerina dancers to perform for their moms and passersby like us.   This one bedroom, one bath cabin (Cabana) was home for an extended weekend.  It had a kitchen, small dinner area and best of all, it had a hot tub. 
May 2019
May 2019
Hiking and horseback riding were the two main activities, both took us to this waterfall, high in the mountains outside of Mazamitla.  There must be over a thousand cabanas dotting the landscape of Mazamitla.  We took a fancy to this one in particular that had an art deco tree as the chimney. 
May 2019
May 2019
On the drive home, we took a detour to see this building atop a mountain. The car overheated on the way up and once we got there, we were the only visitors.  This abandoned building had awesome views in all directions.  It was a bit hazy, which meant we could not see Ajijic from the top. 
May 2019
May 2019
These area farmers still deliver cream the way our grandparents did when they homesteaded the plains of North Dakota back in the early 1900s. This particular Open Circle was a delight with the San Juan Cosola Children's Choir performing.  Some of the older kids entertained us with Mariachi Music. 
May 2019
May 2019
"Difficult Journey" is an LCS event where locals learning English pretend to travel to New York and deal with customs, banks, pharmacies, etc. all in English.  It was a fun event for all.  Chad (Larry's nephew) Chrissie and Zander spent a week in Mexico as a graduation gift to Zander who just completed an aircraft mechanic school.  This plaza is in San Antonio Tlayacapan, just south of our home. 
May 2019
May 2019
They spent three days with us, including a day at the spa where they were treated to a dip in chocolate bath, oatmeal bath, flower bath and a mud bath.   They also enjoyed some fine dining at Viva Mexico, where they serve the best and largest Margarita's in the area. 
May 2019
May 2019
We took them on a short hike to the Chapel that overlooks Ajijic to prep them for much longer hikes as they journey on their own in the mountains near Colima.  We took this selfy with views of the lake and mountains.  The trees are dormant, but by mid-June, they should be in full bloom. 
May 2019
May 2019
We toured the lakefront of Lake Chapala with its awesome Malecon. From here, they rented a car to tour the Colima Volcano and the sights of Guadalajara.  Friends Ron and Jean introduced us to The Crooners, two brothers who sing songs that predate Elvis, like Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin and the likes. 
May 2019
May 2019
Larry was also introduced to a new way to drink Michelada, with a "beer drip" into a concoction of lime juice, tomato juice, assorted sauces and chili peppers.  We met Dan and Patty the day they arrived in Ajijic in early 2017.  We later learned their daughter lives less than one block from our daughter in Prior Lake, MN. 
May 2019
May 2019
At Open Circle, we learned that Haciendas are not a style of home but rather large tracts of land like  plantations.  In the days of the Conquistadors, one was the size of West Virginia and their homes were called Casa Grande.  On the other extreme from a Casa Grande is our "little house,"  which suits us and our house guest quite well.  We recently had this floor lamp made for us in Tonala, an artsy suburb of Guadalajara.  It turned out better than expected. 




May's web page includes May 1 through May 31.