Starbucks

I feel as though I should justify my visit to Starbucks this morning for a coffee. It seems as though there are two valid reasons for sitting here. It's halfway between home and the grocery store and they have muffins!!

View from Starbucks

So, I sit here listening to Michael Bubble and gringo Spanglish. Around me, smart phones are busily fingering text messages. Outside, the city starts to come alive. Buses of every colour pass by, all headed to the same destinations. Beads and rosaries twist and sway above the drivers' heads. Joggers, passing each other along the Malecon, are connected to heart monitors and inspirational music. They are oblivious to the crashing waves and soaring pelicans. Auld Lang Syne fills the air. A bearded, pink skinned new arrival sings along. Cathedral bells announce 9am on the last day of 2011. Time to finish my quest for groceries.

An amazing shepherd

This german shepherd was amazing!

He allowed the interloping chihuahua to circle him,

sniffing all of his body parts,

being excessively rude,

without a sound or gesture of annoyance!

Bananas

Our breakfast was enhanced this morning by the arrival 

of a freshly cut swath of bananas from a neighbour's tree.

Andras, the gardener, led me under the neighbour's infinity pool

and gestured to the 50 pound swath that he had just cut.

How many did I want? I embarrassed him by asking how much they cost!

"No, No, No"!! he stammered.

I walked away with a dozen large bananas.

Yogurt and fresh fruit...

Always a special treat!!

Sunset

The end of another peaceful day!

Lactose intolerant kitten??

During JOHN and Doug's absence, I have attempted to keep a close eye on the kittens, restricting their access to the indoors. It is my great fear that they'll knock over some valuable piece of artistic expression or scratch the hell out of the furniture. They are only allowed inside during daytime hours, under close scrutiny!

This morning I was sympathetic to their repeated pleas and opened the kitchen door. They both charged inside and parked in their usual spot, on the cowhide rug. Fran started making strange noises. Unfortunately I didn't immediately recognize the sound. By the time I turned to look, Fran had expelled regurgitated breakfast, along with a hairball on the cowhide. Even more unfortunate was the fact that the sheer force of the expulsion had resulted in an explosion from the other end as well! OMG!! Baby diarrhea on the cowhide!! What could I use to clean up the mess?

That was when I remembered what the father had used in "My Big, Fat Greek Wedding"as a solution to everything! Out came the Windex along with copious amounts of paper towel and "voila", it worked like a charm!!...smelled good too!

I asked the neighbours if they had been feeding the kittens and they acknowledged that a dish of milk was given to them yesterday. Nothing like a lactose intolerant kitten!!

Sculptures of sand

From reptiles and apes wearing sunglasses

to wise men bearing gifts

and a jolly Santa Claus with his helper elf,

the sand sculptures are works of art that just keep giving. 

They eventually release themselves back to the shoreline,

each grain suspended in anticipation,

waiting to be part of the next creation.

They leave no human footprint in their wake.

The artists rely entirely on donations

from appreciative viewers.

Christmas Day in PV

Christmas morning beachcombing with Mitch!

Fran and Cisco sharing a special Christmas moment!

Shadows in the sand

Shadows in the sand

Sentinel on the Malecon

A silent sentinel

as the sun shifts 

sending shadows

over his shoulder

Gender confusion

Well, it seems that we were all wrong and the two little females have been officially identified as being ballsy. Now they have to become familiar with their new names. Originally named Spunk and Ringer by the neighbours, they were renamed Bessame and Gabriela when they moved to our hacienda. Now we have confirmation from the Veterinarian that they are males. Plagued with gender confusion, their new, new names are Francisco(Bessame alias Spunk) and Francisco(Gabriela alias Ringer). Brothers from different fathers, their nicknames will be Fran and Cisco. Whew! How creative is that?! Fortunately all of this misidentification doesn't seem to affect their personalities one bit!

Zumba

Zumba beat competes

with coffee shop tunes

dancers mimic movements

lovers perch on laps

gay guys giggle

as they all watch

cinammon fills the air

mixing with music

in a frothy morning tonic

as the sun warms my eyes.

OOPS!!

Why does there always have to be one idiot?! And where was the traffic marshall? It took this poor worker about five hours to repair the cement that had started to set when the truck drove over the wet pavement!

Our hope is that the road work will move past us in the next couple of days so that we will be able to breathe again as well as hear each other speak! They are doing an amazing job but ...it is very disturbing.

...and yet another, probably not the last!

It promises to be an interesting night!

Later this afternoon, a third semi truck couldn't negotiate 

the curve on our newly paved roadway.

A multitude of sidewalk superintendents offered advice.

Trucks and bananas

Apparently we slept through an exciting night on the road below us. Some engineering genius decided that it was a good idea to repave one side of the road only to start with. This works fine for the majority of vehicles but is a disaster for the semis that go back and forth. Last night a load of bananas(in crates) was dumped at the curve in the road.

By the time we visited the site, the crates were neatly stacked and the truck (and driver) had disappeared. The next semi to come along could not make the corner curve on the newly paved portion. Normally the drivers have to swerve into the oncoming lane in order to make the turn but he didn't have enough new pavement so the truck ended up off the road in the front and back.

Major traffic delays resulted as multiple crews tried to plan the next step. Fortunately we were heading out for a morning walk and not planning to drive anywhere. Doug is suggesting to passersby that I was responsible for this disaster!

December 12th - a celebration for the Virgin of Guadalupe

Yesterday was the celebration day for the Virgin of Guadalupe. 

During the past week several processions have passed along our road in the evenings.

Long lines of children carrying candles and flowers 

follow a replica of the Virgin to Our Lady of Guadalupe Church.

Church bells ring out in celebration of her arrival.

The replica sits on a motorized float of Dreams,

serenaded by the procession.

The shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe is the most visited Catholic pilgrimage destination in the world. 

Over the Friday and Saturday of 11 to 12 December 2009, a record number of 6.1 million pilgrims 

visited the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City to commemorate the anniversary of the apparition.

The Virgin of Guadalupe is considered the Patroness of Mexico and the Continental Americas.

Virgin of Guadaloup and Hair day!

Sydney visited us today with her magical scissors. Retired here from San Francisco, she is happy to visit the homes of friends and share her skills for a nominal fee of 250 pesos(less than $20 Can).

After redesigning my locks, she worked on our neighbour's, transforming her long tresses into a shapely bob. Our hairdressing included valuable discussion on the American political situation, Obama's chances for re-election and the apparent sanity of Canadians vs Americans.

Life is good in PV. During our weekly grocery trip to Costco, the young attendant offered John a motorized cart with a huge grocery basket on the front. He declined, afraid that he might lose control and run amok in the aisles, upsetting displays of laundry detergent and bottles of merlot! Next week will be a different story...and I promise to take the camera!

Bessame and Gabriela

Bessame(Bess for short) is definitely the star performer!

Every now and then Gabriela(Gabi) has to take a peek!

They were rescued by our neighbours when they were two weeks old. Their mother had been poisoned and lay dead beside them. Nurtured along, at the age of six weeks they have become lively participants in both households. Gabi is still the tentative one but Bess likes to entertain and explore.

Asleep on the job

Asleep on the job!

Balling the yarn for new socks

with Paradise yarn from knitglobal

in an array of Mexican colours.

The Mexicans are determined to complete the repaving job on the road below in record time. 

Much to our discomfort, they set up lighting and worked until 2am last night. 

The next crew was on site by 7am creating another dust storm!!

More noise and dust!

The roadwork, dust and noise continue each day. Today they were working directly below us.

Everything was going smoothly until one guy lost his rubber boot in the cement!

Everyone rushed to his rescue, three supporting him while two others searched!

Doug missed all the action!

So did John!

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary!

Noise and dust!

Day three in PV with repaving taking place on the highway below us. Even the cows have to wait for one way travel, usually a 15-20 minute wait with impatient drivers honking their horns incessantly! They don't tear up the existing roadway. They build on top of the old road which results in a lack of access to and from any of the side streets. You're out of luck if you wanted to turn into the gas station down the hill or any of the other businesses because there is a one foot difference in height...it's a drop-off! with the usual Mexican lack of forethought that has resulted in major frustrations. When they finally repave the highway section at the bottom of our road, all the residents up here will be unable to drive down the road and get(up) onto the highway until they drop a load of dirt and gravel to create an ONramp!! Endless noise and dust!

On the bright side, we have sunny skies, calm seas and a pool full of crystal clear water that is very inviting. Oranges and limes are plentiful on our trees. The cupboards and fridge are full of food in case we find ourselves trapped by the road construction. There is really no reason to complain and every reason to be grateful!