Road trip - day two

It was a busy day of shopping today. We started in Tonala at a business that manufactured everything from furniture to lamps from a collection of discarded metal, wood, plastic, glass. It was overwhelming! We even discovered three old "Coca-Cola" red typewriters alongside an old Underwood. The guys selected a small chandelier and arranged to have it spray painted white, to have the ceiling mounting changed and to have different glass attached to each of the six lights...ready for pickup tomorrow morning at 10am before we leave.

Next stop was a glass factory where we watched about 24 guys, in lime green t-shirts, creating a variety of glassware. Some had bandaged arms! Six glasses were purchased. Then we stopped at another glass factory where they created large plates and lampshades. Two lampshades were purchased. On to another glass store to purchase hearts and yet another one to buy glass tear drops for a chandelier.

Around noon we were on the road again, driving to San Juan Evangelista to pick up a ceramic virgin
from the master potter Martin Ibarra. His pottery is hidden behind a door in the wall on a narrow street
in this small town. The interior is crude with brick walls and a dugout earth floor. Martin (pronounced Marteen) sits on a small stool while his helper crouches on a step. The tools are rudimentary. The three small kilns are wood fired and unpredictable. The finished results are exquisite!!

He demonstrated how he incises designs on his creations. Pulling a small piece of clay from a plastic bag he proceeded to create a bird whistle while we watched. He succeeded in creating five different tones, etched feathers on the wings and gave it to me as a gift! Unfortunately the 16th century church across the street was not open for viewing so we left Martin and drove to Ajijic for a late lunch.

The buildings in the centre of town were colourful and interesting but there seemed to be too many gringos lazing around. Not sure that I would be happy to live here.

From Ajijic we drove to Chapala for a walk on their Malecon. Lake Chapala is Mexico's largest freshwater lake. It is the primary source of water for Guadalajara and over the years it has shrunk drastically.

Back in Tlaquepaque we picked up a piece of woven fabric from Guatemala for a seat cover. They brought us a delicious cup of coffee as the negotiations were being completed. Now(8pm) it's time to decide whether we have the energy or interest in eating before collapsing on our beds.