Last week we met at Tito's in west Melaque. The closest couple are building a house nearby that I've been helping with. Not helping much this year. The couple in the back are Glen and Evy who are staying in Barra. Glen comes down every year and this is Evy's first time. Sadly she is hopping a plane today because she's not doing well with the heat.
Bob and his wife are down from Ajijic and we planned to meet at Viva Maria on the beach but they were closed. We walked over to Sirenitas, my old favorite. Bob wanted the music so here's the band. The accordion player is my neighbor in Pinal. Love his accordion.
Barbara or Babs, the Blogger from San Miguel is spending about a month on the beach. She is staying with her long time friend that lives in Calechosa or Ranchito Beach. First time I was over there her friend was living in a trailer waiting to build but the Ejido didn't want him to. Finally, he got permission and now has a very pretty house with a great view. His house was the only one over there for awhile but Canadian developers are selling community lots next to him .... that aren't selling very fast.
I spent about two hours on the patio talking with Barbara as we kinda brought each other up to the present on each others lives. Very enjoyable time and a great view over the pool into Cuastecomate Bay. I wanted to leave before dark because the road in from Ranchito is very rough and longer than I remember. I stopped by the beach to capture the sunset
It's been a long time and I almost forgot how pretty the beach and water is at Punta Perula. Super clear water in the lagoon and the mouth that crosses over to the restaurant on the point. Seemed to me crossing over to the restaurant was easier but now you have to get wet if the tide is not way out.
This end of the beach really looks like Tenacatita used to with about 6-8 palapa restaurants and I almost wonder if a few moved up from Tenacatita because I don't remember that many. All along the beach the water was clear unlike the Melaque west end but similar to Tenacatita.
Glen and I drove up really with the intention of taking the boat trip out to the Islands only for some quick pictures and coming back. They will take you and come back in 3-4-5 hours but we just wanted to see them. Sadly we had not checked pricing and found they wanted 800 pesos for the extended stay and only reduced to 700 pesos for the quick trip. Next time we will figure out a way to go with a few more people to split the cost.
The Bahía de Chamela in the Municipio of La Huerta, Jalisco has about 7 islands of various sizes. The main islands are -- La Colorada, Cocinas, San Andrés, Pajarera. Pajarera is a bird reserve and about the best for snorkling.
It seems the whole west coast is being pounded with big surf. Surfers love it here and in famous places like Puerto Escondido. The beach and vacationers ... not so much. Most of the many visiting Barra for Semana Santa favor the lagoon side of the Malecon because there are no waves. Much safer for weak swimmers and little kids.
I wasn't aware of the 5-6 new GeoTubes they have installed. 3 or 4 more parallel to the beach out several hundred feet and 2 perpendicular but on the beach. I believe the perpendicular ones were meant to stop sand moving down the beach toward Melaque but the one below has had unexpected consequences. It has channeled the waves directly at the built up beach behind and laid bare the stone "breakwater".
After spending too much time walking the beach and Malecon looking at the surf and the Semana crowd it was time for some shade, a beer and something to eat. Our usual place is Nacho's who have Estrella and Pacifico and a very nice shrimp brocheta which is nothing like Italian bruschetta. It's simply shrimp and veggies on a stick. I usually don't like most Mexican rice but theirs is dry and very tasty. Picked up a kilo of shrimp at the local seafood store and will enjoy over the next week unless neighbors find out I have them ;)
Turbulence behind the GeoTube
Rocks laid bare
From the Malecon - new GeoTube
Up to 10 surfers out at one point (sorry, no zoom)
Glen and I had a relaxing day at the beach with almost nobody there around 2 in the afternoon, more came later. We solved most of Canada's and the US political problems, talked about local characters, water problems and a few medical issues that older folks like us are supposed to have.
Carnitas El Sorry
Couldn't resist this. I bought carnitas a number of times here in the past but never noticed the sign
I posted earlier about Lorena and the two girls fishing in the street but didn't think you could actually catch these little things. Yesterday two nieces gave these two to Nahima. I don't think they will last that long but Lorena says they last awhile and get bigger. How these things get here or why they would even want to live where it will be totally dry in another month ??
A Yari built mailbox to Santa - she made it for school
Seems like a good name. They brought around these tubs of turtles to 3 different Melaque beach locations last night and passed the babies out to kids to launch into the ocean. We picked up the kids at school at 7PM and this was scheduled for 7:30 at Bigotes only a few blocks away. Yari enjoyed it and Nahima was afraid. They move their paddle feet real fast and Nahima thought they could fly after her. Only in a four year old's mind.
Mostly just a bunch of pictures of the Barra de Navidad beach project but we also stumbled across the multipurpose plant they are using to hold down the beach sand. The guys working the nursery called the plant Raya and it's the same used as medicine for sting ray stings. Boil to make a broth for soaking and a poultice to apply.
The other most obvious use is to stop beach erosion. "Ipomoea pes-caprae, also known as Beach Morning Glory or Goat's Foot, is a common pantropical creeping vine belonging to the family Convolvulaceae. It grows on the upper parts of beaches and endures salted air."
Glen is leaving tomorrow so had to spend one last day on the beach. We figured most of the vacationers would be on their way home by now but no way. Stretch that vacation out till the last minute sees to be the rule. Sirenitas did not have an open seat on the beach. Lifeguards walking the beach and on Jet-Skis getting a workout with the large waves we've been having the last few days. Nice last day on the beach.
Driving home on the highway just past the bridge I noticed something new off to the left. Had no idea what they were so had to turn around.
Further away than this the first time
Tamarind drying?
Tamarind doesn't grow in this area but rather further up in the mountains. I also didn't know they dried Tamarind because it's always sticky-gooey when I've tried them. Maybe gonna do something different with them but nobody there to ask.
Glen and I went up to Arroyo Seco because neither of us had been there in awhile .... and we had to go somewhere. It's also not far from Emiliano Zapata and wanted to check out the Asi Azul Asian restaurant (another story).
We started out on Playa Chica trying to get good shots of the large waves both along the beach and the rocks on the far end. Nothing very exciting, at least for me. Didn't realize there is a good sized lagoon about mid-beach which is where the arroyo opens up in season. Decided to go over to Playa Grande and thought much more exciting waves if we could get over to the El Tecuan rocks. We walked over to Tecuan from the end of the road and had a wave shooting competition for a few hours. Haven't seen Glens fotos yet.
The road on Playa Grande now stops at the last house as someone built a new wall. No problem parking and walking. A number of restaurants and camping spots are being cleaned up and readied for Semana Santa. Over all an interesting day but I got way too much sun.
Linda just arrived from up north for the next 4-5 months and she is a MAC user but not a MAC guru. The issue is she still has the USB Modem program on the computer from last year, or at least part of it. Enough of it that inserting the modem does not wake the computer up for a new install. She came over yesterday and I suggested we look at the USB Modem under "My Computer" and run the install program manually. Problem is we found no way to look at the whole system. Searching the Internet and asking on a Message board tells me there is a "utility" called Finder that we need. It might be located behind that Dock button you see above. Strange that Apple likes to hide the inner workings of a computer and Microsoft assumes you need easy access. Time to visit Linda and see what we find.
My new Samsung Laptop has slowed me down a bit with Windows 7 and programs and drivers from XP not compatible. I finally got my XP machine back and am able to print with my older Lexmark's. Need to print taxes, kids homework and stuff from scanner on occasion. Being all English makes it easier as some programs will only install in Spanish on a Spanish system. The keyboard switch utility works well as I prefer an external keyboard and mouse.
Was thinking of getting a group together this weekend for the Pro Animal Melaque Bike-a-thon since it passes through Pinal but Jimmy and Sandy just took off for Mexico City, Danny and Linda have a bike problem, Mexican friends don't have the 200 peso entrance fee and if I could borrow my bike back for a day I don't think my bum would be all that happy.
Foto is from late last Sunday afternoon to let you know we still use the beach and the water is not freezing yet. About 10 of us plus a bunch of kids sitting in Sirenitas restaurant as usual. Ron and Dora are here till the end of the month and got a bite on one of their lots. We've been going over the logistics of selling, transfer, building, etc .... but really have to relax and let it happen.
Sunday was a beach day and we heard some complaints about street conditions from the Saturday Open Mic crowd at Sirenitas. That's our favorite place and figured we'd just walk a ways if it was bad. We were going to meet Glen and Marcos and I brought Lorena and the kids.
As we drove up I saw a car in the middle of the street and figured they were just parking that way because the street was closed. As we got closer I realized it was Glen's car bottomed out in the sand. First thing he said was "Wanna give me a push?" I don't think 5 big guys could have budged it ... well maybe but where were the big guys.
I remembered I carry this long tow strap so I turned around, let everybody out of the car and we hooked up the strap. Lorena and the kids were watching from the sidewalk and she took some videos of our adventure on her cel phone. Went well but didn't realize he came out that far. Looks like he was going to rear end me in the video.
Glen wanted to go to Tenacatita to see what was up with the snorkeling and access to Playa Mora. I suggested we checkout Playa La Boca while we were up there since neither of us had been. Playa La Boca was promoted as a Tenacatita replacement when Tena was closed down but sad to say it does not come close. The promotion was more to help the 2 Rebalsito families that had started restaurants there. We found one restaurant left after a long bumpy ride. To get there take just about any street to the right in Rebalsito and follow your nose past the cemetery on the beach.
The beach and river mouth are pretty but no swimming in the open ocean. The river, Purificación, divides the beaches of Tecuan and Playa La Boca. Rio Purificación is open to the ocean after the rains but closes up in the winter and wanders through the Tenacatita lagoon and eventually coming out at La Vena near Los Angeles Locos. The grounds of Shangri La on the Tecuan side over look the river and the ocean.
After some fotos we were off to Tenacatita and a swim - pretty as ever. The police are more relaxed, you can bring in beer now and more shade is available compared to last year. Not like it used to be but it's open. No restaurants or bathrooms.
Made a quick stop at Boca de Iguanas and then on to La Manzanilla for a lunch on the beach at Pedro's Tacos. The old Taco truck is parked inside and now it's a real restaurant with tables and shade on the beach. Food is good as ever.
Yesterday was a water day so the idea was to try Arroyo Seco just past Aguacate. The arroyo is dry most of the year but we are still getting run off from recent rains. Hugo works on Playa de Cocos and said there were a lot of people enjoying the "river" on Friday. The turn off is on the Aguacate side of the bridge.
Very attractive setting and we were early enough to find a shade tree for the car. Problem is there is no shade down by the river. The water was clean and clear, shallow for the kids .... but it was warm and not refreshing. We had fun for about a half hour and decided we couldn't spend the day there so we headed for the beach.
Back to our usual beach destination of Sirenitas on the west end of Melaque. The ocean water was cooler than the river which is probably unusual. Broke out the ceviche of caracol, beers and Coke and had a great afternoon on the beach.
Stingray Season in colder waters is in the summer but we have them here year round. There may be more in the summer or they may gather for mating season ... but don't really know. There are lots in Playa Mora at Tenacatita and also La Vena river mouth by Los Angeles Locos. Actually much of Tenacatita Bay as far south as La Manzanilla.
We were planning on going to Boca de Iguanas and the beach restaurant Las Palmas until someone reported they were stung right in that area. The last thing I wanted was to have to deal with a 2 year old or 9 year old after a sting. Boca is a long way from Melaque and I don't know where the clinic is in La Manzanilla .. or their hours. I suggested we stay in Melaque and have a much smaller chance of running into those critters.
There have been a number of conversations about what to do for a sting including using a beach vine made into a tea or poultice. Can't find any references to that plant as a cure ... so hot water and a doctor as soon as possible sound the best. They also say elevate the foot so hot water in a towel maybe.
I have 8 visitors down from Jocotepec and luckily we got our two perfect beach days in over the weekend on the west end in Melaque. Today the remains of a North Pacific storm just blew in and it has been raining since 10am. They are out checking out Barra de Navidad like tourists need to do since they are lucky to get to the beach once or twice a year.
Four adults, four kids and my neighbors family rented two tables with a shade umbrella. They had made up a lot of seviche so we just bought coke, beer and a few goodies from beach vendors. Lots of fun playing with the kids, dodging the diving pelicans who were after the sardines. Even fishermen in boats came in for the sardines with their throw nets. Haven't seen pelicans for almost 6 months. Ocean is starting to get chilly but still swimable. Next month it will probably be too cold for me.
The construction of the house finished in April 2011 and I'm pretty much settled in. As of March 2014 I'm in preparation for rain mode for this coming summer. That includes sealing and painting things and dealing with drainage issues from last year.
