Desde 1938 (Ask Me Anything)

San Pancho is a small Mexican town just 20 minutes north of Bucerias and today was music festival day.  A group of us decided to take the bus there and back.  We left at 3 p.m. and returned at 9 p.m.
The bus driver had a sign above his head saying, " Desde 1938.

Here is our experience ...

The 3 Amigos

The bus ride -  http://youtu.be/lI0n6Hm0dCE

The Best of the Music Festival

Gaspesie Dancers

Fresh Grapes

Canadian Gringos

Linda in San Pancho

Too Many Marguerites

Milla's Crew

Real Arts in San Pancho

Typical Tourist

West Galt Gang

Milla and LInda

Gratefuls for today ...

•  the giant outdoor pool at the Flamingo Sports Club ...  http://youtu.be/_6CyNKRI0f8
•  meeting Warren from Kelowna
•  the one hour message on the beach with Cami

•  the mango smoothie prepared in our own blender on the rooftop
•  Milla arrives safely
•  the bus system is so efficient and cheap
•  the PV airport is so simple
•  the mysterious suitcase at the airport didn't have a bomb in it
•  Linda arrives safely
•  meeting Pancho from FOX rental cars on the bus
•  red wine, cabbage rolls, breaded chicken breasts, date squares with mango coconut ice cream
•  our new Mac laptop  and our own modem
•  our private tree house apartment with a cool breeze and the sound of the waves
•  fan palms
•  iguanas everywhere

Susie

We stayed in our tree house today.  Well for most of the day.

Ed and Jane, our new friends from Iowa, came over this morning for yoga.  Robert is now famous in Mexico for being the only yoga guru who teaches yoga without teaching yoga.  The entire yoga session today happened on the couch in our living room, and the topic was "tapping".

Sue and Robert spent the afternoon working on their ceramic table creation.  Hopefully, you can tell what the picture is about.

Around 4 p.m., Robert and Sue went for a very long walk on the beach in search for more blue tiles and some brighter yellow ones to enhance the sun.  (Can you see the sun in the picture?)  Sue was wearing shorts with no pockets but carrying a plastic bag for her tiles.  Robert had the keys to their apartment in his pocket along with many weird rocks and shells.  They returned to their roof top around 6 p.m. only to discover that Robert had lost the keys somewhere on the beach.  It was a very long beach too.  So off they went to find the keys.  Now Susan, being very sensible, asked everyone she passed about her lost keys.  Robert, on the other hand, tore down the beach looking at everything trying to spot the elusive keys.  It wasn't long when Sue came upon an elderly Mexican women named Carmella, and her daughter Lucinda, plus the 2 grandchildren, Alonzo and Susie.  They had the keys.  Susie was 13, and while chasing Alonzo, found the keys in the sand, next to the water.

Everyone was happy.  Sue and Robert had their keys and Lucinda is going to give Robert a massage on the beach tomorrow and make $20.  Carmella, Alonzo, and especially Susie, were rewarded well!

Nahui Beach

On the way to the Flamingos Beach club to swim lengths in their olympic pool ...

http://youtu.be/3vP36WaJl_Y

Arriving at Destiladeras/Nahui Beach at 4 p.m. today ...

check video here ... http://youtu.be/96qZqjmj6nU

This is a great beach to whale watch (Betty spotted one breeching).

It is a great beach to boogy board and play in the waves. Rob and Sue got lots of sand up their asses.

You can walk on the white flat sand and find "linga" stones back near the cliffs.  You can swim in crystal clear waters but watch for the undertow when it's windy.

Mexicans rent chairs and umbrellas and even have food and drinks at good prices.  We plan to take our own picnic next time.

We took the bus there and back for about a dollar.  Don't leave it too late or you might have trouble getting a ride back into town.

and check video here too ...  http://youtu.be/m7jxfHDQWmU

Guess who's coming to dinner?

Parota Treetop Restaurante

Dinner Menu

(served @6 p.m.)

Red Wine   Santa Ana  Cabernet Sauvignon

White Wine   Conchay Toro  Sauvignon Blanc

(purchased at the corner store at Bucerias Centro)

Caesar Salad

(see dressing recipe below)

Peas and carrots

(purchased fresh at the Sunday Mexican market)

Crispy baked potato slices with fresh basil

(prepared by Elizabeth)

 Cabbage rolls stuffed with turkey

(holubtsi made by Robert)

Baked breaded chicken breast served with your choice of honey dijon sauce, or onions and mushrooms sautéed in butter with fresh cream

(prepared by Sue)

Dessert

Warmed date crumble served with home made coconut mango ice cream

(prepared by Robert)

or

Carrot cake

(from the La Cruz market by Todd and Lolita) 

Foxy Dressing

In your blender ...

Mix

5 cloves of garlic

2 large eggs

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

juice from 1/2 fresh lemon

1 T. of dijon mustard

4 or 5 shakes of worechestershire sauce

a couple of sprinkles of hot sauce

6 T. red wine vinegar

drizzle in 2 cups of the best most expensive first cold pressed olive oil

Use fresh crisp cold romaine and gluten free croutons

Extra ...

homemade croutons,

more parmesan on top

anchovies

fresh chicken pieces

bacon bits

hardboiled eggs

Poetry in Motion

Egret

Great white

Walking stalking stabbing

Prince of the wetlands

Hunter

Snowy egret hunts

Adornment for women's hats

Stalks prey in water

Flamingo Sports Club welcomes 

Three amigos

 Soaking up the rays

Two old snowbirds floating by

Poetry in Motion's Mexico's Academy Award winning movie ... http://youtu.be/6Og4YInhC7U

blog done by  ... B-Mac/Sox/Fob Box

Good Sense is the Master of Human Life

Mexican Market Day

Visiting with the Hickey's

Thai Food

Ana Ruth's Hotel

http://youtu.be/qoLt-ipUzVY

Blue Tiles

Every day we walk the Bucerias beach. (Bucerias means "diver").  This Banderas Bay beach is 100 km long.

     The water is warm and the waves have a personality all of their own.  The waves change the landscape of the beach every day.  Many tourists (Sue) scour the beach for coloured glass and coloured ceramic tiles (Sue).  Coloured tiles are popular in the construction industry in Mexico, so much of the garbage from these tiles ends up in the ocean and eventually washes ashore.  Sue and Robert are collecting the tiles so that they can cover an old wooden table in their tree house apartment.  Today was "blue tile morning".  They are making a picture of the ocean with a pelican and frigate bird and need blue tiles for the water.  Blue is hard to find.  Eagle eye Sue found quite a few blue tiles today.  The waves were cooperating.

Rob, in the meantime, tried to balance rocks in the sand.

Check Sue here ... http://youtu.be/T8UxIcJhkxY

Ed and Jane, from Iowa, dropped into the tree house for an afternoon visit.  While they shared stories, a Yellow Throated Warbler stopped by ...

and so did this Brown Crested Fly Catcher. Check him out here ... http://youtu.be/XN_onxAFZOY

Note:  There was a moment today when Rob and Sue were dancing on the palapa with Liz (a substitute teacher) and Paul (an 82 year old roofer) from Gaspesie Quebec.  They spend their evenings here at the Drunken Duck, dancing up a storm.

Happy Hour

Sunrise at 7 a.m.

Sue and Betty went off to feed the coatimundi their breakfast.

Robert stayed in the treehouse and did his Mexican Yoga with Kathy, Steve, Jane, and Marylyn.  Ed had the stomach flu.  One of the local pigeons took a great interest in the class.

The afternoon was a hot one at about 28 degrees C. so we didn't move much and stayed in the shade.

Wes and Linda, from Saskatchewan, are staying in our Mexican hotel for a couple of months like Cyril and Ellen, Larry and Sherry, and us.    Every evening at 5 p.m., Happy Hour takes place on the palapa of our hotel.  Today was Cyril Rowe's 70th birthday and Wes treated him with his story of his experiences in Kyrgyzstan Russia back in the 90's.  His Canadian mining company got a contract to work in the Russian Himalayas mining for gold.  One of his fondest memories was Lake Issyk Kul.  It is an endorheic lake in the northern Tian Shan mountains in eastern Kyrgyzstan. It is second largest mountain lake in the world behind Lake Titicaca in South America. Even though it is high in the mountains and surrounded by mountains, it never freezes.  It is a popular resort location today. 

 Sue and Rob are thinking of spending next winter on Lake Issyk Kul.

The Hickey's and the Gokiert's went to La Cruz this evening to a rock and roll show.  Jack loves to dance.

The Birds

On our way to Flamingos, we met a flock of cacique birds - http://youtu.be/ghv8hLnscUc

Flamingos Sport Club is just down the road from Bucerias in a gated community behind the Mega grocery store.  Sue and Rob walked to Flamingos at 7:30 a.m. along the ocean which took about 45 min.  They joined the Sport Club for one month so they could swim laps in their giant outdoor pool.

The property is well cared for and pretty much void of people.  I guess all the Mexicans that live in this community have to work long and hard to pay for the Club.  Rob and Sue enjoyed the pool and plan to use it at least 3 times a week.  Betty might even join.  Even the birds love this place ...

Sue and Rob swam 50 laps this morning before 9:30 a.m.  Check it out here - 

http://youtu.be/3-XWjrQAQL8

Bonobo

The Bonobo, formerly the pygmy chimpanzee, is an endangered great ape found in the Congo basin of Central Africa.

Susan met Ed the fisherman, from Iowa, one morning on the beach.  Ed, and his wife Jane, like to walk early in the morning, so today, Sue and Robert walked with Ed and Jane, south of Bucerias to check out the coatimundi.  Sue was excited to discover that Jane volunteers for an organization in Des Moines Iowa, called "Apes Cognitive and Conservation Initiative".  (http://www.catchdesmoines.com/listings/Ape-Cognition-Conservation-Initiative/8396/)

One of Sue's goals in life is to visit the great apes in east Africa.  Hopefully that will happen in the near future, but in the meantime, Sue and Robert hope to visit the Bonobos in Iowa.

The rest of the day was enjoyable, but not quite as exciting as Jane's story about her work with the Bonobos.

1.  We made Wayne's recipe for Key Lime Pie and fed some to Francisco.

2.  Ed fed the coatimundi.

3. Robert almost purchased some property just outside Bucerias for $70,000.  

Check it out here ...  http://youtu.be/xadOL9V-wio

4.  We captured another beautiful sunset highlighting "The Diver's Statue".

Bucerías, the Wind Capital of the Riviera Nayarit, presented its new icon on Father’s Day at the Plaza del Viento, right on the beach.  This stainless steel with bronze finishes statue is called “Diver’s Statue.” This monument was created to honor local divers and it’s set to become an icon for the community.

 Sculptor Octavio González Gutiérrez, a native of Jalisco, created this artwork in collaboration with local sculptor Luis Armando Solorio.  It’s seven meters tall and cost approximately $200 thousand Mexican pesos. 

Vallarta

Kathy, Bill, Marylynne, Steve, Betty, Sue, and Robert went on an outing today to Puerto Vallarta.  This city of 300,000 people, is about 30 minutes down the coastal highway from Bucerias.  The group made a quick stop at Costco and then on to Puerto Vallarta.  The local gringos just refer to it as Vallarta.
 All visitors stroll along the Malecon (boardwalk), enjoying the sunshine and the magic of the ocean.  There is art everywhere.  About 5 years ago, a major overall was done to this boardwalk. It's the heart and soul of the town with lots to see and a real Mexican experience.  Watch here ...  http://youtu.be/zSWcMU191Xo

After we walked the boardwalk and checked out the sand and bronze sculptures, we went for lunch at The Cheeky Monkey.  We ate delicious foods and solved all the problems of the world.

Frida Kahlo de Rivera (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈfɾiða ˈkalo]; born Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo y Calderón; July 6, 1907 – July 13, 1954) was a Mexican painter who is best known for her self-portraits.

The sculpture of a seahorse in Puerto Vallarta's malecon, created by Rafel Zamarripa and called Caballeo del Mar, has become a symbol of the city.

This was hanging over the heads of our group while eating in The Cheeky Monkey.

The Cheeky Monkey has marguerites for only a dollar.

The Stone Artist definitely knows the value of "balance".  Watch movie here ...  http://youtu.be/oUidgzb9cLI

Jack be nimble

It is amazing just how quickly kids learn new skills.  When we were students in the 50's, all grade 5 students were required to take swimming lessons at the local Y.M.C.A.  Would, that this was still the case for all school kids!  Swimming is definitely a life skill that all kids need to learn.  Four and a half year old Jack is becoming a little fish in the pool here in Bucerias!  Last year, he graduated from mandatory life jacket, to no jacket / doggie paddling to keep himself afloat.  He was able to cross the width of the pool.  This year, his ever increasing confidence is evident, as he jumps and dives and flips into the pool, and easily moves both under the water, and at the surface.  His stamina is increasing as the days go by.  Jack tires of the water, only after hours of swimming and he attempts any new challenge we give him.