Sunrise. The Raquete Club in San Juan Cosala. The sounds of bird song, dogs barking and donkeys braying drift up the hill as the village below comes to life.
The morning light on a Raquete Club home.
Afternoon view from Monte Coxala Spa, Raquete Club, San Juan Cosala.
To cap the end of pre-Lent festivities Ajijic holds a rodeo at the Lienzo Charro ring. It's packed with people of all ages - all dressed in fine clothes; dresses, pressed shirts & jeans, cowboy boots & hats. Young boys are smartly dressed like miniature versions of their Charro fathers.
Us - in the stands
A 20 piece Banda band plays live on stage during the entire event with a bouncy singer proudly crooning over blasts of trumpets, trombones, clarinets, sousaphone, accordion and drums.
A 20 piece band! - at a rodeo! How awesome. (You'll see them in the video below)
There was plenty of Tacate cervesas (beer) to be had but the local preference was Squirt soda with tequila. Rodeo fans came to their seats carrying big cardboard trays (box bottoms for cases of beer or soda) filled with 6-8 Squirt cans, plastic cups, a bag of ice and a quart of tequila laid flat. After they were seated they filled all the cups with ice and soda and passed them around to their neighbors - then, with everybody holding out their cups the ritual pouring of the tequila took place, it's golden stream arcing into each cup.... nice.
The rodeo was a lively event and the bulls got progressively bigger. Watch the video to see locals jumping in the ring to taunt the bulls and prove their manhood.
The most exciting part of the rodeo starts at 1:29 on the video - and unfortunately I was so caught up in the moment I took my eyes off the video camera and just watched. Listen to the crowd scream at 1:33. The bull targets a horse and rider, gets up under them and launches them out of the bull ring into a crowded alleyway of people. Holy sh@t! You can see the back of the horse in the alley at 1:38 after I realize I'm missing the action and pan the camera over there!
Great experience. I love getting out into community events when I travel and I love seeing this multi-generational way of life in Mexico. It's sad we've lost that in modern America.
We had some tasty street food on the way home. Drew got diarrhea. Ooops. :)
Beautiful Ajijic. This is my second visit here. See my previous posts for more info.
What a great place to hang out.....
The village is alive with families and kids - and the clip clop of horse shoes on cobble.
I want to get into this Cathedral. It's always locked when I stop by. Maybe I better come by on a Sunday morning.
Across the street from the Cathedral is an amazing coffee shop, El Cafe Grande Cafe. It smells so good from the sidewalk you can't resist it. The aroma pulls you in by the nose. I didn't miss my Starbucks one bit.
I love the hand painted facades. They are beautiful. Son bastante.
Native weavers set-up down by the lake shore to work and sell their wares.
The most beautiful weaving's I saw were rugs from Oaxaca. I decided not to buy one here but to wait until I visit Oaxaca to buy one direct from a weaver.
Calle Colon, the main commercial street from the Carraterra to the waterfront.
Here we are touring Ajijic. In the town plaza is an event for the local horsemen and ranchers who provided the bulls for the upcoming rodeo - then we head to the waterfront. Molly and I end up at Las Caballerizas, high on the mountain in San Juan Cosala overlooking Lake Chapala with the sun setting and a couple strong margaritas. Nice. It's Valentine's day so I wish her Feliz dia de amor.
We missed the final Carnaval parade on Fat Tuesday in which Los Zayacos dance through the streets. The festivities are based on the tradition of Toro de Once when livestock raisers used to drive bulls into town on horseback early in the morning to show off the quality of rodeo stock. Now the townsfolk parade instead with colorful floats, bands and Los Zayacos, who are boys & men dressed up like busty broads or bearded men. Giggling children chase them through the streets and Los Zayacos throw confetti or baking flour back. Eric and Karen from Trans America's Journeys were there. Here's their video.
For more Ajijic Carnaval parade videos from Trans America's Journeys click here.
The event was at the Lienzo Charro - which I think translates to "Horseman's Canvas," but it was a little bull ring. Very cool. It was filled with families, especially little kids who giggled and laughed at the little people fighting the little cows. I'll never forget it.
A young Charro ( buckeroo)
See for yourself! Yes, that's me laughing out loud in the video!
5 months after my road-trip into the heart of Mexico, I'm back. This time I flew - with the whole family.
Flying in is so much easier - and so antiseptic compared to driving. No dusty little towns, no road-side shepherds or stops for gas at a PEMEX oasis. See my Mexican road trip posts.
We flew from Boston to Atlanta to Mexico City to Guadalajara - and from there we drove another 20 miles to Lake Chapala. We didn't intend to fly through Mexico City but a snow storm in Atlanta canceled our original flight. Snow in Atlanta ...who knew?
Customs was easy and friendly, bright, clean and modern - very different from driving across the border, in the dark, at Nuevo Laredo those few months ago.
Traveler's note: You NEED to pick up your own luggage from international baggage and check it in again domestically if you are transferring through Mexico City. No one explained that to us. Thank God another couple had the same issue - and they were Mexican's living in Chicago. They helped us navigate the language barrier and opaque instructions. Finally we found our luggage and after missing our intended flight to Guadalajara, caught a later one.
The beauty of Mexico City surprised me. It sits in an enormous bowl surrounded by mountains. The sun was starting to descend in the west giving the whole city a golden glow. The landscape undulated with hills, canyons and small mountains. I expected a big flat expanse like LA but this was definitely more interesting. A tour of Mexico City is now on my "List".
My son Drew couldn't wait to try a Mexican Coke. It's made from sugar cane instead of corn syrup, and people say that the fizz lasts longer due to the glass bottle. Believe me, it tastes awesome! It tastes like Coke did when I was a kid ...and I'm a sucker for the glass bottles.
Drew in the Mexico City airport.
Arriving on the shores of Lago de Chapala in mid February we get to experience the tail end of Carnaval (yes Carnaval with an "a" not Carnival with an "i"), Carnaval is a full week of celebrations leading up to Lent. Ajijic and Chapala's celebrations involve parades, fiestas and rodeos.
Our first stop, Chapala and it's Malecon (boardwalk).
Carnaval Parade
Video of us along the Chapala Malecon - and check out the bowl made of lava rock called a molcajete. Our food is boiling - cheese, peppers, onions, shrimp, octopus. Man that was good with a Corona. And if you listen closely you'll hear the announcer of a soccer match on TV say Gooooooooooooooooooaalllllllll! for like 5 minutes. :)
Next, Midget bullfighters ...really. They are a traveling troupe - and a lot of fun, especially for the kids.
Bob is a travel writer and designer/ producer of interactive entertainment. He's traveled through Europe, North America and Australia. Bob loves immersing himself in local cultures and writes about the food, drinks, architecture, music, history, people and experiences along the way.
