Yipee....school's over!!

Wow, it's been a tough slog to get through 4 weeks of escuela espanol...and, ta-da, today we got our diplomas. It definitely is a smart idea to learn some Spanish in order to converse with the people with whom we come in contact each day. Meg is very bold. She never hestitates to talk to the shopkeepers in Spanish...I can usually provide the words that she stumbles on (I've had more vocabulario). We make a great team!

I have been dreaming in Spanish ever since I started school...mostly going over the verbos o frases that we learned in the lessons. Basically, I haven't had a restful night for cuatro semanas...it's going to be so good to get back to the beach!!

Yesterday Meg and I decided that we couldn't pass up the opportunity to head out to Tonala, a suburb of Guadalajara, to partake in the Thursday street market. The town was grided with small tents/stalls (tienguas) selling everything imaginable. These stalls stretched for kilometers, down the main streets, sides streets, and any available space. It was wild!! I quite like the fact that Meg is turning into a shopper... We started with what we thought would be a walk-through but soon realized that we could never see everything. Not only are there thousands of stall, there are thousands of established shops, to boot.

As we wandered though the narrow paths between the stalls, we were bombarded with all types of sights, sounds, smells and tastes...many that are totally out of our realm of experience...especially the smells and tastes. We try foods from the stalls - things that look palatable...we haven't been brave enough to try the things that look and smell a little offensive to us. We like the little pancakes filled with something soft(?) and some of the tacos.

We got away from the tienguas and wandered up some of the streets, looking in the small shops for anything that caught our eyes. We came upon a street which was lined with people. Before long we heard a band approaching - which heralded the start of the Indepencia Day parade...police, firefighters, geriatric cheerleaders and kids representing all sorts of schools and activities. It was very colourful...I am glad we could watch the procession as it passed.

We finally saw some items that would work at our casa and, before long, were loaded down with many packages. We found that the Mexican people were very helpful as we stumbled with our Spanish, a lot of them were just as curious about how to say the words in English. It was a totally uplifting experience for both of us. In my opinion, Tonala, rather than Tlaquepaque, is the place to find great deals and a huge selection of artisan work.

On the other hand, if you need new stuff - shoes, jeans, T-shirts, electronics, DVDs, software, and a million other things - you can't beat el Mercado Liberdad in GDL.

BTW...

Nov 10 - Meg and I were watching the by-lines on CNN tonight and noticed that "Madagascar - Escape 2 Africa" and "High School Muscial 3" were just released this past weekend. We saw DVDs of both these movies for sale at Mercado Liberdad last weekend. Generally these DVDs are priced around $5-10. We have been picking up various software programs and DVDs to use when we get back the Cuyutlan....most software programs are 80 pesos (~$8 Cdn). You take the chance whether these work or not but I have returned to the vendors ( once I figured out where they are in the Mercado) and exchanged the copy for a good one. For computer aficionados like Meg and I, el mercado is one huge 'candy store'.

Shopping... (0:

Shopping in Guadalajara is an amazing experience. It seems that shops that sell certain types of merchandise are grouped in areas around the downtown area making it easy to find what one wants. I have never seen so many shoe stores - Lorri J would call this We have found the electronics district, the cellular district, debutante's ball gown district (for Quinceañera), hardware, sporting goods, book stores, yada, yada, yada. Although it is great fun to discover new streets and more shops, Meg and I really love the Mercado Liberdad at the eastern end of the Centro zone. We couldn't believe the size and scope of it when we were here in March...it seems even grander this time. I would guess that it is the size of a couple of football fields with 3 -4 levels and inner and outer courtyards. Shops are different sizes, the veggie stand can be 15-20 feet long, some shoe shops would be 4x8, some software shops are just a computer and a desk. It's a wild place with hundreds of stalls. After trying to relocate a stall where we bought some DVDs, I stood overlooking the floor from a second level and realized that the ramps do not always lead to the next level but alternate. No wonder I couldn't figure out how to navigate the aisles. I am getting a better feel for my bearings the more times I go there...only twice, so far, this trip, but we still have 2 more weeks.

Yesterday we spent 6 or so hours in the market...visiting and buying things in the watch section, the jean section, sneaker section ( unbelievable!!)...jewellry, hardware, leather, electronics, t-shirts, software, DVDs, vegetables, and wandered through the Christmas trinket section (totally out of context). It is total sensory overload. Then there is the food floor!! I am sure you can buy any type of cooked or raw meat or fish. The food stalls are very busy serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. We stopped by a little seafood stall where I had the best cerviche this side of La Bodega and Meg chowed down on a white fish filet, swimming in garlic....perfecto! ...with drinks <$10.

Meg and I are finding that as long as we try to habla espanol with the people working in the stalls, they are extremely friendly and helpful. F'instance, Meg found some long shorts at Alfredo's 6x8 foot booth ...not having any changing room, she squeezed between the stacks of jeans and dropped her shorts. Alfredo was our amigo...he loves Canada and walked up and down the aisle shouting "Viva el Canada". A little while later, while I was looking at some sneakers, we noticed one shopkeeper in a Heimlich manoeuvre with another...turns out he was getting a chiropractic adjustment. Meg perked right up and hand-signalled that she wanted one, too. She got a fabulous Swedish massage plus a neck & back adjustment which she 'sorely' needed after the drive from Canada. What a happy camper...!!

The Christmas tree and trinket stalls in the outdoor plaza were just outright odd. Even odder was a store downtown with fake snow sprinkled all over the products in the window displays. I believe that Christmas in Mexico used to be a religious festival celebrated in the few days around December 25th...no lights, no show, no Santas. Now it seems to have taken on the overly commercialized spending spree that the rest of North Amercia sadly follows. Argh!

This morning we decided to take the bus to Tlaquepaque, a suburb of Guad that has quite a few shops featuring lots of local artisans. One of our first discoveries was the gallery of Rodo Padillo http://www.rodopadilla.com.mx/espanol.html What a treat!!..his ceramics, paintings, and bronzes are so delightful, colourful and ingenious. Everywhere you looked in the gallery there were little fat ceramic people on bicycles...on the railing of the stairs, as the lighting features, in little nooks...It was an eye-popping experience for me. You can't help to see why his whimsical figures appealed to me. Other shops had other unique objectes d'arte...my mind was spinning with so many ideas...

After a few hours of strolling and imagining, we took the bus back to Guad. Unfortunately we didn't know where to get off and ended up back in Tlaquepague. The unintended bus trip cost us a dollar and gave us a really good overview of the area between downtown Guad and Tonala. We saw lots of interesting sights and noted spots that we may return to. All in all a good afternoon.

IMAC School

It's Friday afternoon...we just walked home from school and I am busy with this blog...another exciting new adventure, high tech and cerebral as it is. I sure hope we will be able to get our internet connection up and running at the beach. I tried last weekend but, as far as I can tell (instrucciones en espanol) the modem doesn't work on Vista - que surprise - what does work on Vista?

It's been quite a change for Meg and me to be back in school. As I said earlier, the gray cells are definitely being stimulated - so much so, we are really finding it hard to settle at night after completing our tarea (homework). IMAC school has been around for 28 years, teaching ingles y espanol. The staff is very accommodating. Our teacher (maestra) is Lisandra. She is perfect for us - really animated, has a great sense of humour, is totally dedicated and patient but determined to teach us espanol. She generally speaks en espanol all of the time - which can be a little frustrating - and will use English only when absolutely necessary.

There were 7 of us in our class last week - Viviana from Holland, Ron from Great Britain and Holland, Alexis from Great Britain, Patrick from Cincinnati, John from Seattle and Meg and me. It didn't take long to all of us to bond as we tackled the language. Our instruction lasts for 4 hours, starting at 9sm, with a 15 minute break at 11am. The desks are small - they would be good in a primary school. Last week we covered a ton of verbs - regular and irregular, greetings, numbers, conversation... There wasn't a moment in class to daydream. I don't find it hard to pay attention...it definitely is a challenge to try to understand what Lisandra is saying. I am pretty good at figuring out what is required but, sometimes, when put on the spot, I have no idea what is happening. Lisandra is very patient... On Wednesday we had a field try to a couple of historic buildings in the Centro area....ones with murals by Orozco.

Week 2 brought two new estudientes from the US to replace John and Alexis who travelled on to other destinations - Brenda is from Sedro Wooley and Daniel is from San Antonio. Week 2 brought us more irregular verbs, telling time, reflexives verbs, foods, informal and formal conversation...There is always an hour or so of homework each night. Being the keener that I am, I do extra exercicos and read through the dictionaries that we are accumulating....never can have too many!!

Our Wednesday field trip this week was to the Soriana Supermercado and to the people's mercado in the core of the Centro area...not to be confused with the huge Mercado Liberdad at the east end of the Centro Zone. Our assignment was to ask questions to people at Soriana, to identify and list meats, dairy products, fruits, vegetables and salsas, to be used in vocabulary exercises. The Centro mercado brought new sights, sounds, smells, and tastes...some a little unusual and not quite so pleasant. It's amazing, to us, what animals parts end up on the dinner plate...I've hear of tripe and have never seen so much of it...but cow lips??? Meg didn't do well in the meat section.

The Friday exam is a little traumatizing...last week we didn't know it was coming so it wasn't too bad but, this week, we both worried too much about it. I suppose if we wanted credits for the course, it would be even more traumatic. BTW, we both passed the exam last week (0:

Thanks to Jacquie, a TOEFL student at the hotel, we found out about a vegetarian restaurant just a block from the school. We tried it yesterday...Meg was in veggie heaven...no cow lips in sight!!

After school tonight, we dropped into the salsa lesson. Meg and I were the only students for the first 10 minutes and kept up to the instructor. She showed us some basic steps then quickly started into some dance routines.In no time the steps became more complicated and the music started to speed up. Meg left to study verbs in the computer lab while I stuck out the class as 5 more students joined in. I sure didn't take long for me to realize a couple of things - the clothes I wore (shorts and a cotton shirt) were way too hot, I was the largest person in the room, I seemed to be the only one sweating and I was starting to miss a few steps. After an hour (that felt like three) the class was over. I asked a classmate if the instructor taught people how to dance together. Apparently not - it is basically a salsa aerobics class. I came away with a few intersting moves which I need to write down before I forget. I'm not sure where I can use them but I would like to continue in some kind of dance lessons...not a lot of clogging in these parts.

Change of plans...

Last Friday, after Meg and I recovered from writing our first exam in class...definitely a shock to the ol' gray cells...we reconsidered our living arrangements. Although it was nice to share parts of the day and some conversation with Lydia y Fernando, it was a 15 minute walk to begin the long, bumpy, often very scary bus ride to and from school, plus we had to be home for dinner and missed out on extracurricular activities at school...eg. movies, group conversations, and salsa lessons. We also felt that we were not experiencing all the great food, shopping, lights and colour of downtown Guadlajara. So we checked out a few hotels and hostels that the school suggested and decided on VilaSantos. http://www.vilasanta.com/home.htm It's a really cute, brightly painted hotelito 10 minutes walk from school. We have a private room with a bathroom, TV and wireless internet for ~$200/week. There are a few other students here, from all over the world, who share info on great eating, shopping and sightseeing spots.

Since we were moving into the downtown area, a maze of narrow, always busy streets, Meg and I thought it would be best to drive Celeste home, rather than having to find parking somewhere for 3 weeks. Friday night we drove to Home Depot to pick up some more supplies for the casa - 2 overhead fans, buglight bulbs, plumbing fixtures, 4 bar stools and a toilet - since we wouldn't have Celeste on our return trip. Getting back to the house was a challenge to my navigational skills. Traffic on Friday nights in Guadlajara is a circus...basically total gridlock on the major thoroughfares...which we happened to take (Lopez Mateo). We got onto and off of a few laterals, which were just as gridlocked but missed our cross street. Luckily we have a great map, a flashlight, an excellent sense of direction and arrived home unscathed.

The next morning we were up at 6am to have breakfast, load Celeste, say 'farewell' to Lydia y Fernando and head south back to la playa... a pleasant 2 1/2 hour drive, with little traffic, at that time in the morning. We stopped in Tecoman to pick up some food and ran into Aline and Franz, beach neighbours, who were just as surprised to see us as we were to see them. While we were away in Guad we had the house painted...but the colours are underwhelming. The periwinkle blue looked better on the card at the store than on the casa. I like the green better but these are not the right combination. Any suggestions? Back at la casa, Meg hooked up our new washing machine and piled in many loads while I tried to clean up the dead fronds and leaves on the palm trees and bouganvillea. We had time to visit and dine with Aline y Franz then head back to the house to pack for school and have a little tequila nightcap while we sat under the stars.

Sunday morning Franz picked us up at 10am to drive us to the bus stop in Armeria. Franz, being totally fluent en espanol, found out the details of our pending bus adventure...a 5 hour milk run through Tecoman, Colima, Ciudad de Guzman and into Guadalajara. It was stinking hot in Armeria - mid-30s Celsius - as we boarded the bus...slightly cooler but not by much as we arrived in the big bus depot, not in Guad, but in Tonala, a suburb...then a 20 minute taxi ride to our hotel, to recuperate from our long, hot bus ride and to prepare for our 2nd week at school

Off to school and the Day of the Dead

Since our casita was boarded up to protect it from the summer rains, we spent the first couple of nights with our friends, Carol and Ken, formerly from White Rock – now full time Cuyutlan-ders. They were extremely gracious to open up their home, as a refuge for us, and to feed us while we worked on opening up our casa.

We had the fiercest thunder and lightning storm the second night..it lasted over 3 hours with lightning strikes directly overhead...I have never, ever heard anything so loud nor seen anything so bright...loved it!! It is very humid and hot...over 90F...and unfortunately buggy...lots of bites on my ankles.

It turned out to be a lot of work trying to get our casita shipshape but there were alot things to be unpacked and cleaned. The house faired quite well although there had been some water from the rains upstairs and some black mould and red algae which happens in humid climates. I only killed 2 little scorpions the first day and haven’t seen any since.

We had 3 really busy days in Cuyutlan - unloading Celeste, removing the heavy wooden security shutters from our windows, sweeping, washing, cleaning the pool and the casa, shopping for a washing machine and paint for the casa, palm tree maintenance...leaving even a little time to attend a baby shower for our caretaker's sister.


On Sunday we packed our bags and drove north 3 hours to Guadalajara to meet our host family, Lydia y Fernando Moller Mendivil, for our 4 week stay while we attend IMAC Spanish immersion school. Fortunately for us their daughter and English-speaking grandkids were visiting and translated for us as we sat in their living room trying to get acquainted. It was a little awkward trying to speak in our night school Spanish, but we thought we should at least try. I'm not sure if everyone understood everything that was said but we made it through. We wondered why they kept asking if we were hungry - we weren't - but as more time passed we realized that Guad was in a different time zone than the coast and they were waiting on us to begin the afternoon meal. At 4 pm Lydia y Fernando served a light meal to the daughter, her kids and Meg & I...I don't know when Lydia and Fernando ate. Tired of trying to carry a conversation, Meg and I retired to our room, organized our stuff for school and rested. Around 8, the time we thought was dinnertime, no-one stirred in the house....hmmm?



The next morning we were up at 6am to have brekky. Poor Meg doesn't do well with food so early in the morning...but we were really hungry as the last food we had at 4pm. Corn Flakes, huevos, tortillas and frijoles (beans) filled our tummies. Fernando walked with us to the bus stop (about 15 minutes), then accompanied us on the bus to school (35 minutes) to show us our stop . Fortunately we didn't have to change buses.



The IMAC School is right in the Centro district of Guad. on Donato Guerro. Meg and I both were tested by an instructor to see which level we would be assigned. Our maestra, Lisandra, no habla much Ingles en clase and habla espanol rapido. There are 7 estudientes in nos clase...2 from the US, 2 from Holland, una de Angleterre and Meg and mi. Fernando was waiting for us after shcool to make sure we would find our way home. He and Lydia no habla Ingles but we can communicate quite well.


On Wednesday we celebrated the Day of the Dead although I think it's really on Sunday November 2. We constructed a 3-tiered altar then each class added things to it - colourful tissue paper cutouts of skeltons, jack-o-lanterns, skulls...our class added little skulls (calaveras)made out of sugar and some candles. The candles were placed to form a cross on the floor to illuminate the way for the spirit to find it's way to the altar. Our altar was dedicated to Orozco, the famous Mexican painter. Other students added offerings - bread, beer, tequila, paints and other things that Orozco would like. There is a special bread for the Dia del Muerte...it's round and has 6 finger bones made out of dough on the top. We saw it in many flavours at the stores. Two more crosses, one made of charcoal and one of salt, were sprinkled into place on the floor and some corn fibre incense was burned on a little burner. I couldn't understand all that was being said throughout the ceremony. I need do a little research.


Meg and I saw a few altars in yards on the weekend...with pictures of the departed and offerings for them. It's a very colourful tradition. (Rocio...please fill us in on the details, por favor (0:)

Along the coast to Cuyutlan

After another long hot (37C) day, we drove into the Totonaki campsite in San Carlos on the Pacific and met some fellow BCers from Kelowna and Powell River. It seems like a lot of BCers spend the winter in San Carlos. The campsite was okay but the no-see-ums were fierce.

Since we had to get to Cuyutlan as soon as possible before turning around at heading to Guadalajara for school, the next day was another long day of driving. We made really good time and were near Mazatlan by 4pm. It seemed too early to call it a day so we decided to get to Teacapan, a small town on a peninsula off the highway. According to our RV guide book, we would have a number of RV sites to choose from.

Due to very slow traffic on the free road from Mazatlan, the suggested route in the guide book, it took a lot longer to get to our destination. By the time we got to Teacapan, the sun was long passed setting and the road was pitch black...no streetlights on these roads. After struggling to even find a RV sign or marker, much to our distress we found all the campsites closed or abandoned. We drove into Teacapan but felt uneasy and drove back out. October 21 turning into a veeeerrry long night.

By this time, Meg was exhausted and turned the wheel over to me. The Numero Uno rule of the road in Mexico is "Never drive at night"... because of roaming cattle, wild life, crazy truck drivers and banditos...and now I’m at the wheel! Surprise, surprise, just a couple of kilometres down this very dark road, I drive us right into a herd of cattle. Fortunately they are beige and their little butts showed up in the headlights! I also had to avoid potholes, turtles and frogs on the road...I don’t think I blinked for hours.

It seemed like, and was, a long way back to the highway where we continued south looking for Pemex stations to pull into for refuge. Turns out all the Pemex stations that are marked in our guidebook are non-existent so we continued along the toll road towards Tepic. [This is pretty well the same scenario that we encountered on last year’s trip along this stretch, although then we couldn’t find the cutoff from the highway to Teacapan.] Feeling tired and nervous, I pulled over at one busy toll booth to try to sleep but the van isn’t comfortable and we didn't rest. Big double and triple-container freight trucks would pull up beside us, check the airbrakes a few times... the driver would walk around, thumping the tires then, more often than not, pee on one of them. The only redeeming factor of this stop was a small group of fireflies that we saw out the window, twinkling on and off beside us as they zigzagged above the grass.

After a few hours of non-sleep, we decided to continue to Tepic, in the dark for a few more hours, till be found a quieter toll booth where we rested and slept. Turning west from Tepic, that morning we took the Hwy 200 via Puerto Vallarta...lovely lush jungle on route and sea vistas but we found what little we saw of PV was way too developed and touristy and couldn’t wait to drive past it. Between PV and Melaque was another beautiful but very tiring, hot, twisty drive then, again, a long, tiring drive down the coast past Manzanillo and finally on to our casa in Cuyutlan.

Arizona and beyond...

It was wonderful to snuggle down in the big bed in Ed & Paul’s mobile home...what a treat after those long days (and night) on the road...then to wake up to fresh coffee and Paul’s breakfast burritos.

Quartzsite is an interesting little town that swells in population as cold wintery weather advances on the northern regions. RVers pull into town to established RV parks or to dry camp on the desert. Paul & Ed have a cozy spot at Rainbow Acres. We climbed aboard their desert vehicle and headed out to explore. Ed & Paul introduced us to some of their friends who had just arrived from Richmond and Agassiz.

Saturday night in the big city of Quartzsite turned out to be a hoot. We moseyed into Sloppy Al’s Karaoke Bar and Pizza Hut...ordered a jug of the finest and some pizza and sat back to listen to the local vocal talents. At times it was difficult to recognize the tune or the song, even with the lyrics on the screen...but there were a few folks that made the experience enjoyable...including the host in her western gear.

Early the next morning, Meg and I continued east, and with Madge’s help, found our way to John & Pat’s home in Tempe. Tempe is a beautiful suburb of Phoenix with its small man-made lake behind its rubber dam. Yup, it’s made of rubber. John drove us around town, to pick up some last minute supplies and to show us the sights. The UoA campus has some great architecture. Piff and Doug joined us for dindin at Pat and John’s. Over a sumptuous dinner, yummy margaritas and wine, we caught up on the latest happenings in our lives. The next morning, October 20, we were up early and heading south to the border crossing at Nogales.

Crossing the US/Mexican border is just a wave of the hand by the border guard. 21 km down the road is the official customs/immigration check point which involves making photocopies of passports, vehicles registration and insurance and paying for permits. Although not the most efficient system, we only stopped for about 30 minutes, got another wave of a hand by the border inspector and we were heading south along Mex200.

Portland to Quartzsite

Day 2 - Meg was up early to find that the battery was dead in Celeste, our van...we had neglected to disconnect the cooler and drained her battery. Next the key broke off in the back door lock. AAA took no time to arrive to jump the battery while I picked the lock to remove the broken key. Then it was time to assemble the cargo hitch that we assumed would help redistribute the load of stuff that completely filled Celeste. Three times we unloaded and repacked Celeste - good thing it was a sunny morning - only to find that the cargo hitch was just clearing the road and would never withstand the 5000 kilometer journey...so much for having a sleeping area available in the back of the van. Patti waved bye shortly after noon and we were on the road briefly before stopping for last minute items at Costco (T-Mobile phone 503-515-3389), Frys (what a candy store of electronic delights!!) and the Chevy dealer for a new key. The sun was starting to wane as we drove through Eugene. Meg stayed at the wheel till be had to call it a night at a rest stop, somewhere on the I-5 in California...about an hour north of Sacramento. Since we didn't have room to stretch out, we attempted to sleep upright...doesn't work.

Day 3 - Breakfast at Denny's before 5am - somewhere on the I-5. Meg downed 6 cups of coffee. It's a long haul through California, especially on basically no sleep. I generally nod off while the van is moving and managed to rest a little...then took my turn at the wheel to give Meg a much needed break. We wanted to try the route through Los Angeles this year, having had too many experiences last year on the Bakersfield - Barstow - Needles - Quartzsite route. Being a better navigator than a driver, I relinguished the wheel before we started into the gruelling LA freeway system.

With temperatures climbing to 99F and Celeste's AC weak, at best, the drive into LA, over to Pasadena, past Palm Springs and through the desert was a little testy. Fortunately we had Madge, our GPS, on duty - she guided us through that winding maze of asphalt and concrete. I only mistrusted her once and got us onto the wrong freeway. Madge knows best! As the sun was beginning to set over the mountains (hills?) to the west, we rambled into Quartzsite to meet up with our friends, Ed and Paul, and a long anticipated rest.

On the I-5 South

Day 1 - Meg and I left Frida55, our mobile home in Aldergrove, mid-morning October 15,2008, crossing the border by ten. (Here's a picture of 0 Avenue that morning). Our neighbours, Ev and Sam, sent us off with some yummy fresh-from-the-oven scones and homemade grape jelly...what treat as we cruised through Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia on a beautiful fall day (although Meg snarfed one down before we reached Bellingham.) It probably was fortunate that we took longer than expected to finish loading the van...we missed all the rush hour traffic. We caught a little of it in Portland but only slowed for about 5 minutes and arrived at Patti and Joann's by 4pm. It certainly makes for a more enjoyable trip when one can visit with friends while on the road.