Back in the Saddle

Well, it took us a couple of weeks to get over the trip to Morocco.  But now we're back into life in the Village.  This one is going to be a rambling little episode about what a couple of typical weeks here are like.  No huge drama but much diversion.

The Civic Good

The last several weeks have featured a couple of events that highlight what we like about charitable giving here.  In the U.S. we contributed to a lot of things that were worthwhile like the United Way, Heifer International etc. etc. but we never saw the direct results of our efforts.  That was fine.  But here you see it and hear it vividly.

Marie Clair's Going Away Concert

Marie Clair is eighteen years old, beautiful and the daughter of French/Mexican parents. She has been singing in Ajijic with vocal groups, a jazz band and solo for several years.  Her voice is amazing. Last week she left to study voice in Montreal.  She has received a scholarship from Viva Musica which is a local group that not only brings musical talent to Ajijic but provides scholarships to budding musicians of all types.  As a send off, a final concert was arranged, and probably one hundred or so people who have watched her develop and mature attended.  By the end, when she thanked the audience for their support, Marie Claire and most everyone else were in tears.  Hopefully Michael can embed a video of part of her performance. Gratifying.

Marie Claire --- photo courtesy of Allan MacGregor.

Marie Claire singing...

and singing some more. (All photos courtesy of Allan MacGregor).

Here is the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TF5IsRos5GU&feature=youtu.be

The LCS Children's Art Program

Neil James was an amazing woman.  She was an adventurer who roamed the world solo during the 1930s and 40s and ended up living in Ajijic.  In the mid-50s she started an art program for the children of the Village.  She brought in a teacher and an integral part of the program was that the children had to do their homework if they wanted to participate.  When she died, she willed her house and gardens to The Lake Chapala Society and the Children's Art Program has been supported by LCS and the local Art Society ever since.  This past weekend a retrospective show was held in the Cultural Center to display the work of the children over the past sixty years.  On stage were about a dozen artists spanning an age range of about 25 - 60 who have become successful, in some cases internationally, and who participated in the program.  Ajijic is now known as a center of art not only in Jalisco state but throughout Mexico.  These  working artists volunteer in the program with the children, along with Gringo volunteers, to help raise another generation of local artists.  It was fascinating to see the recent works of the Vega brothers, Javier Zaragoza, Efren Gonzalez and other well known artists and compare them to the hanging art work that they did when they were children. This program not only changed the lives of the artists but forged a new identity for the entire village.

History of the Children's Art Program.

Some of the children's art work...

and some more. Even with the glare, the quality of the art shows clearly.
(Very early Zaragoza a la Modigliani-- upper right)

                                 

The art work was arranged by decade going from the beginning of the program..
(an early Jesus Vega work).

                                       

and continuing on....
(one done by the young Efren Gonzalez)

                                                       

demonstrating the amazing talent ...

of all of these very young artists.

OK - Enough Civic Good

Getting a little preachy.  Let's move on.

Driving to Super Lake

Super Lake is the small grocery store that caters to the hankerings of Gringos.  It stocks things like pickles, pate, camembert, Newman's salad dressing -- well, you get the idea.  I never thought I'd pay $8.00 for a jar of pickles but you know, when you want a pickle REALLY bad... Well.  So, I'm driving to Super Lake the other day and there is a big traffic accident outside of Walmart.  This is a favorite place for accidents.  As usual there is a cement mixer involved.  And three cars.  And a motorcycle.   There are also two police cars, a wrecker and a Telmex truck (I don't know why). Nothing out of the ordinary.  Upon my return though, I notice that an enterprising pushcart dealer has descended on the scene and is plying his wares to all those involved and they are all leaning against the concrete truck amicably sharing a mid-day snack.  I respect people who have priorities.

Siam Takes A Swim

Just skip this if you hate people who talk about their pets.  So, as you may remember, Siam celebrated her 20th birthday this summer much to everyone's surprise.  She is healthy but walks like a drunk due to being-- like over 100 in cat years.  Usually this is not a big problem.  However,we were having a dinner party and she decided to descend to the back yard for a stroll.  I opined to Michael that I thought that risky in the dark but he pooh-poohed the notion.  A loud plop was soon heard and we ran down the stairs to find her serenely paddling across the pool.  Well, perhaps not serenely.  She was terrified of the pool for two entire weeks but is now back to balancing on the edge of the pool on a daily basis.  It could be kitty Alzheimers.  We think one of those floaties will just fit around her waist.

Zombie Jamboree

Everybody headed down to the Plaza for the Zombie Thriller Fund Raiser for Cruz Roja.  Each year, large numbers of village geriatrics learn the intricate choreography of dancing to Thriller by Michael Jackson and perform it in full zombie garb at the Plaza.  This event is held worldwide and happens at precisely 4 PM.  To my knowledge, it is the only thing that has ever occurred on time in the history of the Village.  It was fun.  From there it was off to a birthday party for two of our pals which we are slowly recovering from.

Since we arrived late, we are including pictures of zombies from year's past...

demonstrating the variety of bizarre and...

creepy costumes represented for the reenactment....

of the Thriller dance.

Off To The Races

George and Alex called the other day to ask what we knew about horse races that were taking place in the middle of their neighborhood.  We knew nothing but felt we should investigate.  Some Mondays (it is hard to tell if there is a schedule) people gather at the long, walled, dirt corridor that runs through the center of La Floresta.  Children and dogs frolic amidst horses, people making bets and vendors selling an astounding amount of beer and junk food.  We grabbed our drinks and joined them, perching ourselves on the stone wall.  It is the quintessential Mexican gathering.  Everyone just sort of mills around with no sense of urgency or, in many cases, purpose.  But everyone is happy. Slowly, things begin to take form.  Two very peppy horses are seen with a young boy strapped on each.  And I do mean strapped.  No saddles.   Just leather thongs that somehow hold the boys on.  We hope.  People assess the horses and riders and more money is wagered.  Then you wait.  And wait some more.  Then people slowly move down the corridor and form a mob, sort of, which spans the raceway.  We Gringos consider this somewhat dangerous and stay put.  Darkness is falling and still no race.  Eventually, a roar goes up and the race is on.  The people still don't move out of the way.  At the last moment, they scatter and the two horses fly by us in almost pitch darkness.  Dogs yelp and leap on the wall.  Mothers FINALLY pick the children up out of the way.  Boom.  It's done.  Money changes hands.  More beers are ordered. Another interesting night.

One of the jockey's on his horse. Notice how the legs are held against the horse & the lack of a saddle.

Everyone, including the children, turn out to watch the race.
(and play in the middle of the track)

Liquid libation is a necessity, even when on horseback.

Some seek a more advantageous viewpoint to watch the race.

This jockey forgoes the hard hat in favor of the backwards baseball cap.

Gearing Up For Day of the Dead and a Slew of Festivals

So, it's time for the peace to end.  I mean, just look at this blog.  No parades.  No fiestas. Well, we are about to go into Mexican celebration overdrive. This week the Virgin of Zapopan returned to Chapala to receive her accolades for doing a swell job with rainy season and restoring the Lake to a reasonable level.  This weekend is not ONLY Day of the Dead but also marks the triumphant return of our Virgin of The Rosary.  This is our local Virgin, who like most Virgins in Mexico, gets restless and needs to visit other locales.  Well, she is ready to come home. And directly on the heels of that, the two day festival of the Day of the Dead takes place.  Then we are almost at the point of celebrating the Fiesta of St. Andres -- the patron saint of Ajijc.  Beyond that, we are all celebrating the advent of professional baseball and will be heading up to partake of our first Charros baseball game. And then there is the Charro festival (this is different from baseball -- it's all horse oriented) which spans the first two weeks of November.  And, for you house tour junkies, the first house tour of the season takes place this month.  I am telling you, this is going to be a chock-a-block November. So, stay tuned.  More to come.  Just to bait the hook, here are some photos of the Catrina's that were just installed on the Malecon in Chapala and the Plaza in Ajijic.  These are created by school children or civic groups.  Very creepy and very cool.  More on them next time.

A Chapala Catrina with a magnificent sunset as a backdrop.

The Catrinas show an amazing amount of creativity...

as each one is a different theme (this being Cantinflas).

There was a bride ....

and one in a boat.

and even a Frida Kahlo Catrina.

The close ups reveal some of the amazing detail...

that goes into the creation ...

of each and...

every one of the Catrinas.

Each Catrina has a different...

and interesting toutfit...

created by the imagination,...

and ingenuity...

and inspiration...

of the creators.

While photographing the Catrinas...

we were fortunate to catch....

some magnificent cloud formations....

and the reflection of the sun on the water....

as the sun set over the lake.

Until then.  Have fun and let us know what you are up to.  Our first two "winter" guests, Kent and Kari are due in to celebrate Day of the Dead with us.  We hope we can see a lot of you down here when the winter winds howl up North.  Take care.

We leave you with two final photos reflecting the wonderful, eclectic nature of our village.