I know, we haven't spoken about the weather in some time, so here's an update. Our cool weather suddenly disappeared and the heat came on a couple of weeks ago. Not that it was always hot, but these blasted concrete houses, once warned up, are loathe to let the warmth go.. Great in winter, but not so great in the summer. And the bedroom, being on the second floor, heat up nicely.
Although it's not really 'rainy season' yet - that's more May - it had seemed like it was going to rain but never did. Just met up with a friend at Starbucks who lives higher up in the hills in town and he told us that it had really poured down on the far side of the presa a couple of times recently.
But tonight it has turned up here. Great, dark clouds, really big rain drops, and a bit of thunder. Only enough rain for about 20 minutes, but it sure helps cool down the town. The rain has mostly stopped now, but traces of thunder can still be heard rumbling around.
Now if it could only arrange to do this most evenings, that would be appreciated!
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Monday, March 17, 2014
Home is Where the Heart Is
Marc
is searching the internet....and finding fun things. Our very first
house that we rented (but NEVER stayed in) here in San Miguel is on the
market and has been since August of 2012. Many of you may remember me
talking about the Gaudi-style house that really looked amazing.....and
then we saw it in person. Our first mistake - and one of only a few -
in San Miguel. Our new friends found us a different house the next weekend!
Our second home, though it was really our first REAL rental, is also on the market, recently listed. It was a great home in a very "authentic" Mexican neighborhood. We were the only gringos in the area and got along great with all of our neighbors.....except for that rock band (well, wannabee rock band) that lived next door and practiced at horrific hours. BUT we really liked it. We only moved away because we had absolutely no room/garden for the dogs. It was a fun year there....and we were close enough to our friends Carol and Norma and one of our favorite restaurants, Tacos Don Felix!
Home No. 3 in the La Lejona, 2da Seccion, was HUGE!!!!!!!!!! Five bedrooms, two HUGE living rooms, four baths, garden area, gated parking, and brand new construction.....so brand new that the master bathroom was never finished....and never was during our tenure there. Fortunately there were enough baths and showers throughout the house that we were never really wanting. Unfortunately the owner wanted to sell the house so we bailed after one year. Still on the market..........
Home No. 4 is two houses away from Home No. 3. Yes, still probably larger than we really need (surprised?) but we are VERY happy here....and the owners are very happy with us, which makes for a happy time everywhere! March 1st started our 2nd year in this house, the first year of a two-year lease (the first lease was for only one year). It's quite convenient to everything we need. It's an easy FLAT walk to centro, which as you probably know from reading my constant updates, is something I do on a daily basis. AND if we ever decided that we needed an ice cream fix, if we were ever so inclined, there is a block wall behind us that if we started to chip away at it goes DIRECTLY into the freezer section of our local grocery store (Mega) and we could scoop our our dessert! Here's hoping they will go for an additional 2 (or 3??) years on our next go around.
Ah, loving life.............
Our second home, though it was really our first REAL rental, is also on the market, recently listed. It was a great home in a very "authentic" Mexican neighborhood. We were the only gringos in the area and got along great with all of our neighbors.....except for that rock band (well, wannabee rock band) that lived next door and practiced at horrific hours. BUT we really liked it. We only moved away because we had absolutely no room/garden for the dogs. It was a fun year there....and we were close enough to our friends Carol and Norma and one of our favorite restaurants, Tacos Don Felix!
Home No. 3 in the La Lejona, 2da Seccion, was HUGE!!!!!!!!!! Five bedrooms, two HUGE living rooms, four baths, garden area, gated parking, and brand new construction.....so brand new that the master bathroom was never finished....and never was during our tenure there. Fortunately there were enough baths and showers throughout the house that we were never really wanting. Unfortunately the owner wanted to sell the house so we bailed after one year. Still on the market..........
Home No. 4 is two houses away from Home No. 3. Yes, still probably larger than we really need (surprised?) but we are VERY happy here....and the owners are very happy with us, which makes for a happy time everywhere! March 1st started our 2nd year in this house, the first year of a two-year lease (the first lease was for only one year). It's quite convenient to everything we need. It's an easy FLAT walk to centro, which as you probably know from reading my constant updates, is something I do on a daily basis. AND if we ever decided that we needed an ice cream fix, if we were ever so inclined, there is a block wall behind us that if we started to chip away at it goes DIRECTLY into the freezer section of our local grocery store (Mega) and we could scoop our our dessert! Here's hoping they will go for an additional 2 (or 3??) years on our next go around.
Ah, loving life.............
Monday, February 24, 2014
Our First Visit to an Outlet Mall in Mexico
Michael and I are pros at outlet malls, whether on the road to Las Vegas, closer to Palm Springs, up the California coast towards Santa Barbara, or even in the industrial part of Los Angeles. It's been like withdrawal since we've moved to Mexico - though there is a nice selection of shops just south of San Diego that was visited every time we made it back to the states.
Our nearest outlet stores are in León, about an hour-and-a-half away from San Miguel. Our nearest airport is on the outskirts of León/Silao - about an hour away. We had heard that there was an outlet mall of nothing but shoe stores in León from a friend, and since our shoe purchases since moving to Mexico nearly 4 years ago have consisted solely (sorry!) of tennis shoes from Costco - and since we had a couple of cruises coming up traveling on one of them with a group of fashion-conscience friends - we decided we should look around for some new shoes. [I'd already tarted up our tuxedos via the internet!]
And an outlet mall is an outlet mall!
A friend had recently shopped there and was more than willing to go back to show us where it is and guide us through the shops. So off we went bright and early at 9:30! (Not quite 'bright and early' by our standards, but still....)
Unfortunately this is the dry season, so our drive through the hills was boringly monochromatic: brown and more brown. But we usually travel through this area in a shuttle headed to the airport for an early morning flight, so this time we could at least see what we were driving past. And there had been some progress: the bridge they were working on and the roadworks outside Guanajuato had been completed.
It was a bit of a drive past the airport turn-off to reach León (I thought it was closer), and even then we were on the outskirts when the shoe outlet shops loomed alongside the roadway. (At this point the highway is sort of a large street, so it was simple enough to pull into the driveway.) Luckily for future shopping trips, there is a Starbucks at the entrance and a large Pollo Feliz sign, so we shouldn't get too lost if we try it ourselves!
León is the leather and shoe capital of Mexico, so the mall is huge! Mostly one level with shops devoted to individual brands run by the factories that produce them, there are over 200 shops plus a few clothing places and a food mall for hungry shoppers. I think we stopped into most of the shops, unless they specialized in women's shoes. Even then, since our friend's mother accompanied us on the trip, there were some stops there, too.
All told, the group of us purchased 5 pairs of shoes: Lucy (our friend's mother) purchased a pair of quite nice trainers, Michael - 'it's still too expensive' - came home with 3 pairs, and I got one pair of Flexi leather court shoes. Our friend even had two pairs of glasses delivered to the mall from the optician's shop he visited in Centro León last week!
A shame the stores didn't have everything in stock in our sizes/colors (it is an outlet, after all), but a good trip, nonetheless. I now understand Imelda Marcos' fascination with shoes. If the mall were closer, we'd be in BIG trouble!
Unfortunately, it was still another hour-and-a-half home with about a zillion topes to bounce over and cars/trucks to pass on two-way roads over the hilly, twisting landscape.
It's the thought of that drive that may keep us from visiting more than monthly....since the only way to see if they have shoes in our sizes/colors is to go there.
But we made it there and back, the dogs were happy to see us again, and we collapsed in a heap! Until next time....
Our nearest outlet stores are in León, about an hour-and-a-half away from San Miguel. Our nearest airport is on the outskirts of León/Silao - about an hour away. We had heard that there was an outlet mall of nothing but shoe stores in León from a friend, and since our shoe purchases since moving to Mexico nearly 4 years ago have consisted solely (sorry!) of tennis shoes from Costco - and since we had a couple of cruises coming up traveling on one of them with a group of fashion-conscience friends - we decided we should look around for some new shoes. [I'd already tarted up our tuxedos via the internet!]
And an outlet mall is an outlet mall!
A friend had recently shopped there and was more than willing to go back to show us where it is and guide us through the shops. So off we went bright and early at 9:30! (Not quite 'bright and early' by our standards, but still....)
Unfortunately this is the dry season, so our drive through the hills was boringly monochromatic: brown and more brown. But we usually travel through this area in a shuttle headed to the airport for an early morning flight, so this time we could at least see what we were driving past. And there had been some progress: the bridge they were working on and the roadworks outside Guanajuato had been completed.
It was a bit of a drive past the airport turn-off to reach León (I thought it was closer), and even then we were on the outskirts when the shoe outlet shops loomed alongside the roadway. (At this point the highway is sort of a large street, so it was simple enough to pull into the driveway.) Luckily for future shopping trips, there is a Starbucks at the entrance and a large Pollo Feliz sign, so we shouldn't get too lost if we try it ourselves!
León is the leather and shoe capital of Mexico, so the mall is huge! Mostly one level with shops devoted to individual brands run by the factories that produce them, there are over 200 shops plus a few clothing places and a food mall for hungry shoppers. I think we stopped into most of the shops, unless they specialized in women's shoes. Even then, since our friend's mother accompanied us on the trip, there were some stops there, too.
All told, the group of us purchased 5 pairs of shoes: Lucy (our friend's mother) purchased a pair of quite nice trainers, Michael - 'it's still too expensive' - came home with 3 pairs, and I got one pair of Flexi leather court shoes. Our friend even had two pairs of glasses delivered to the mall from the optician's shop he visited in Centro León last week!
A shame the stores didn't have everything in stock in our sizes/colors (it is an outlet, after all), but a good trip, nonetheless. I now understand Imelda Marcos' fascination with shoes. If the mall were closer, we'd be in BIG trouble!
Unfortunately, it was still another hour-and-a-half home with about a zillion topes to bounce over and cars/trucks to pass on two-way roads over the hilly, twisting landscape.
It's the thought of that drive that may keep us from visiting more than monthly....since the only way to see if they have shoes in our sizes/colors is to go there.
But we made it there and back, the dogs were happy to see us again, and we collapsed in a heap! Until next time....
Friday, February 7, 2014
Aerial Bonbs, or a lack thereof
Just wanted to note that neither on the actual day celebrating the Consitution (Wednesday) nor the legal holiday (Monday preceding the Wednesday) were there any cuetas (aerial bombs) heard! That means the dogs slept through the night and that means, we did too!
We now return to our regular programming.
We now return to our regular programming.
Monday, December 30, 2013
Tequila, of course
What took so long, eh? A post about Tequila....
Tequila is produced in Mexico. And a particular part of Mexico. As champagne is only a 'sparkling wine' outside of a particular part of France, tequila is only made within a certain physical location in Mexico.
And some tequila is made for distribution in Mexico and some is made for export.
We've tried - in our time here - to find a tequila that we like, preferably a bit smokey yet smooth. And we've found several that will fill the bill.
However, while still in southern California we ate frequently (about 5 or 6 nights a week during the last year) at a family-run restaurant in nearby Chatsworth. And our favorite tequilas there were Partida and Tres Generationes. Both were available in a Reposada version, with enough time in a recycled whiskey barrel to impart a fine smokey taste. It wasn't necessary to go with the Añejo version, but the Reposada was my favorite.
Most mixed drinks are made with the Silver (no time in wood) version and there are those who say 'Why bother with Resposada or Añejo in a mixed drink?' Well, I'm here to tell you that if you can't taste the difference between a Silver and at least a Reposada, your tongue needs an overhaul!
Our waiters used to look at me when I ordered the margaritas as if I was wasting the Reposada tequila, but as long as I could taste the difference, it was worth the upcharge.
Michael recently discovered Partida Reposada at a local beverage shop (La Europea - which has branches all over Mexico - including the place we're visiting later in January, Cabo San Lucas) which carries Partida and we've sprung for the cost. Perhaps we need to introduce my brother to Partida...
Now Michael tells me that Tres Generationes is available both at La Europea and Mega (which forms part of our back wall in the backyard). I'll probably be there tomorrow shopping....
Tequila is produced in Mexico. And a particular part of Mexico. As champagne is only a 'sparkling wine' outside of a particular part of France, tequila is only made within a certain physical location in Mexico.
And some tequila is made for distribution in Mexico and some is made for export.
We've tried - in our time here - to find a tequila that we like, preferably a bit smokey yet smooth. And we've found several that will fill the bill.
However, while still in southern California we ate frequently (about 5 or 6 nights a week during the last year) at a family-run restaurant in nearby Chatsworth. And our favorite tequilas there were Partida and Tres Generationes. Both were available in a Reposada version, with enough time in a recycled whiskey barrel to impart a fine smokey taste. It wasn't necessary to go with the Añejo version, but the Reposada was my favorite.
Most mixed drinks are made with the Silver (no time in wood) version and there are those who say 'Why bother with Resposada or Añejo in a mixed drink?' Well, I'm here to tell you that if you can't taste the difference between a Silver and at least a Reposada, your tongue needs an overhaul!
Our waiters used to look at me when I ordered the margaritas as if I was wasting the Reposada tequila, but as long as I could taste the difference, it was worth the upcharge.
Michael recently discovered Partida Reposada at a local beverage shop (La Europea - which has branches all over Mexico - including the place we're visiting later in January, Cabo San Lucas) which carries Partida and we've sprung for the cost. Perhaps we need to introduce my brother to Partida...
Now Michael tells me that Tres Generationes is available both at La Europea and Mega (which forms part of our back wall in the backyard). I'll probably be there tomorrow shopping....
Friday, December 27, 2013
Winter Willies
I know that our weather is nowhere near that our families and friends are experiencing in the States, but it's darned cold down here.
According to our nifty infrared thermometer, it's 58F outside and 65F inside. Why so cold?
Two reasons: Due to a lack of trees, homes here are made of brick, cement, and plaster. Once they get cold, they stay cold. Once the weather turns to something warmer, it will take at least 3 days to warm the house up. Until then, it's like living in an ice cube. Walls are cold, ceilings are cold, and floors are cold. With carpeting unknown, the tiles on the floor are cold, too.
Two: Without central heat you're pretty much at the whim of the weather. Many homes are without a source of heat at all; some have fireplaces in which you may install a set of gas logs (firewood is limited). We have the gas logs from our last house, but we have no fireplace in this house in which to install them. Instead we have two portable gas heaters that use tanks of propane the size one would use for a BBQ. The heaters produce an infrared heat source that works well when you're within striking distance of the heater. Further away it's not so warm - though there is some heat thrown off. It just takes a long time to heat a room.
And with the type of construction of homes here, there is no handy way to install central heat afterwards. It can be done in some circumstances, but not most. There has come on the market a heating/cooling unit that can be installed after construction, but that uses 220V electricity, which presents another problem which is addressed in the second paragraph down the page.
We're lucky enough to have two heaters - one for upstairs and one for downstairs. You just have to keep a spare tank or two on hand or you'll run out over a weekend. It's not like it runs off our main tank for the house. In our very first house we did not have gas heaters. Instead we had a few electric heaters and January & February were especially cold and wet that year. The dogs and we huddled in the office (the computers threw off some heat) during the day and moved to the bedroom at night. Luckily, we had read up on living in Mexico before moving here and had outfitted the bed with a heated mattress pad that provided low-voltage warmth. And there's a concern that the heaters produce carbon monoxide, so we really should have a warning system, but that hasn't happened yet, so we're very careful about using the heaters for any length of time. This makes it very icy in the morning....
The electric heaters did provide some heat, but jacked up our electricity bill by eliminating the supplemented reduction in the rate - for a 6-month period! The next year we went out early in the season and purchased gas heaters!
So we dress warmly inside and out, stay as dry as possible, use the portable electric heater in the bathroom only when taking showers, and think warm thoughts!
I suppose it's all relative....
According to our nifty infrared thermometer, it's 58F outside and 65F inside. Why so cold?
Two reasons: Due to a lack of trees, homes here are made of brick, cement, and plaster. Once they get cold, they stay cold. Once the weather turns to something warmer, it will take at least 3 days to warm the house up. Until then, it's like living in an ice cube. Walls are cold, ceilings are cold, and floors are cold. With carpeting unknown, the tiles on the floor are cold, too.
Two: Without central heat you're pretty much at the whim of the weather. Many homes are without a source of heat at all; some have fireplaces in which you may install a set of gas logs (firewood is limited). We have the gas logs from our last house, but we have no fireplace in this house in which to install them. Instead we have two portable gas heaters that use tanks of propane the size one would use for a BBQ. The heaters produce an infrared heat source that works well when you're within striking distance of the heater. Further away it's not so warm - though there is some heat thrown off. It just takes a long time to heat a room.
And with the type of construction of homes here, there is no handy way to install central heat afterwards. It can be done in some circumstances, but not most. There has come on the market a heating/cooling unit that can be installed after construction, but that uses 220V electricity, which presents another problem which is addressed in the second paragraph down the page.
We're lucky enough to have two heaters - one for upstairs and one for downstairs. You just have to keep a spare tank or two on hand or you'll run out over a weekend. It's not like it runs off our main tank for the house. In our very first house we did not have gas heaters. Instead we had a few electric heaters and January & February were especially cold and wet that year. The dogs and we huddled in the office (the computers threw off some heat) during the day and moved to the bedroom at night. Luckily, we had read up on living in Mexico before moving here and had outfitted the bed with a heated mattress pad that provided low-voltage warmth. And there's a concern that the heaters produce carbon monoxide, so we really should have a warning system, but that hasn't happened yet, so we're very careful about using the heaters for any length of time. This makes it very icy in the morning....
The electric heaters did provide some heat, but jacked up our electricity bill by eliminating the supplemented reduction in the rate - for a 6-month period! The next year we went out early in the season and purchased gas heaters!
So we dress warmly inside and out, stay as dry as possible, use the portable electric heater in the bathroom only when taking showers, and think warm thoughts!
I suppose it's all relative....
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Christmas Celebrations
So, it's nearly 4:30 in the afternoon of Christmas Day here and we're finishing off last night's eggnog. The 'nog' is a blend of rum and brandy which makes the egg part quite yummy! We did have a small gathering last night with the French-Canadien tourtiere (a pork pie) served with pickles and ketchup in the manner of the Michigan U. P. accompanied with green beans and cherry tomatoes (successful, so they'll make another appearance at the New Year's Day dinner) and a simple salad. And eggnog, of course. Hadn't made it in years, but it seemed so appropriate! Dessert was skipped (didn't get made) and it's just as well. Made it this morning and we didn't have the correct type of pastry so substituted rolled out biscuits. Not quite the thing - though the raspberry/blackberry filling was quite good.
Last night we also put together this morning's breakfast casserole - which we've nearly polished off! Not sure what's for dinner.... We've been too busy planning for last night and a larger party on New Years Day to be concerned with the day-to-day menus. I think we may be out of quickie things to fix - oh, no!!!
Friends and family keep suggesting that we go downtown so they can see us on the SMA webcam, but the Centro Historico is crowded for the holidays and we don't really 'do' bunches of people. We will be downtown to meet internet friends tomorrow - maybe we can manage something then - though many of our friends and family will be back at work, I suppose. Maybe this weekend would work better? The Jardin is about a 35 - 40 minute walk, so it's hard to be precise about appearance times. We did manage it once!
We have finally hooked up with some internet friends who are in town for a few weeks from the Great Northwest. We'll meet in person tomorrow morning. David proceeded me as a moderator on the Yahoo Groups List about San Miguel. So we've been 'we'll have to get together' for a couple of years without success. Hope we like each other in person!
Other than the explosions at the stroke of midnight - those well-known aerial bombs, some of which were set off just across the street - kept Miyaki awake and barking, but eventually stopped. Both Miyaki and I are very glad of that!
Otherwise it's been a quiet day. Would watch the finale of the eleventh Dr Who tonight, but it's on BBC America and we only get BBC World News. Drat! Maybe we can get it on a tablet???
I hear Michael rolling the downstairs heater around in the living room, so I guess I should throw some clothes on (bathrobes are so comfy) and see what's up.
Chat with you later....
Last night we also put together this morning's breakfast casserole - which we've nearly polished off! Not sure what's for dinner.... We've been too busy planning for last night and a larger party on New Years Day to be concerned with the day-to-day menus. I think we may be out of quickie things to fix - oh, no!!!
Friends and family keep suggesting that we go downtown so they can see us on the SMA webcam, but the Centro Historico is crowded for the holidays and we don't really 'do' bunches of people. We will be downtown to meet internet friends tomorrow - maybe we can manage something then - though many of our friends and family will be back at work, I suppose. Maybe this weekend would work better? The Jardin is about a 35 - 40 minute walk, so it's hard to be precise about appearance times. We did manage it once!
We have finally hooked up with some internet friends who are in town for a few weeks from the Great Northwest. We'll meet in person tomorrow morning. David proceeded me as a moderator on the Yahoo Groups List about San Miguel. So we've been 'we'll have to get together' for a couple of years without success. Hope we like each other in person!
Other than the explosions at the stroke of midnight - those well-known aerial bombs, some of which were set off just across the street - kept Miyaki awake and barking, but eventually stopped. Both Miyaki and I are very glad of that!
Otherwise it's been a quiet day. Would watch the finale of the eleventh Dr Who tonight, but it's on BBC America and we only get BBC World News. Drat! Maybe we can get it on a tablet???
I hear Michael rolling the downstairs heater around in the living room, so I guess I should throw some clothes on (bathrobes are so comfy) and see what's up.
Chat with you later....
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