Rodeo Days in La Manz !

There is SO much going on around here that I had to refer to our local blog to get all the facts straight.
 

Fiesta, fiesta, fiesta !!! Los Toros have started!

   There has been a lot of hype in town preparing for this weekend. This happens year after year around the same dates but do we even know why we enjoy this Fiesta so much, or why we even celebrate it in the first place? Here is some La Manzanilla history to help you prepare for the PARTY!

   This tradition started in when the town celebrated the definitive possession of the Ejido Land on February 6, 1938. However the first localization and delimitation of the Ejido La Manzanilla land happened from the 4th to the 11th of August 1937 by the Engenier Rafael Rincon Fregoso and then made oficial by General Lazaro Cardenas del Rio, el Presidente de la Republica Mexicana at that time (this is why the main avenue coming in to town is named after him). 

"El Toro"

   The activities during the fiestas usually are the same every year. Beginning the night before you dance through the streets of the town following "La Farola" and the live band as well as indulging in the free fruit punch that will surely get you loose and in to the mood for the Fiestas! Next is "El Recibimiento" where whom ever is sponsoring that day feeds the town at the Casino Ejidal. Each person get's a plate of food, a refresco and cervezas... muchas cervezas! The live band plays music while everyone shows off their botas and sombreros. After everyone is done eating people set off for the "Jaripeo" which is the rodeo that will take place in the towns "Plaza de Toros" with Bull riding and much more music for people to dance to for hours.  

  The first day of the Fiestas is usually Gringo Day, when the towns community of  foreigners come together to sponsor one more day of Fiestas. Gringo Day Tradition started February 5 of 1982 organized by David Godin, Joe Hostetler and the late Steven Rutherford (descance en paz).  

Los tres primeros Gringos :) 

    Birria has always been the food of choice in most recibimientos, but only on very few occasions was there anything different served. On the first Gringo Day ever they served roasted ducks and chickens and one time even some Dorado was grilled! 

   The official true La Manzanilla Birria recipe was provided by Don Jose Murillo Cambero "Moro", this same recipe is used today with the addition of few extra vegetables. 

   Last but definitely not least is the late night Baile, featuring more live Banda music and everyone in town sporting their best outfits for the Fiestas. 

So, now you know what we are partying for - what's holding you back?????

La Manzanilla - Up and Running!

The last 2 weeks have been wonderfully active here in La Manz.  All the restaurants are cleaned up and ready for customers, all the other businesses are likewise ready for customers. properties have been bought and sold, construction has restarted on those properties under construction and new homes are in the planning stages.  Yup - we are alive and well in La Manzanilla.

There are, however, a few streets that still need to be avoided ~ both in the dark AND in the daylight!

Yup - if you look close, that's Dave way back there!

I stood back a bit farther for this shot

This street is still like this because first they have to fix the sewer line, and then they have to fix the water line, and then they can fix the road.  It's a question of priorities - these crews are still serving other communities, some of which did not fare as well as we.

For the last 2 nights we have been blessed with a wonderful show of the ISS, having it's closest orbit to the earth (between us and the moon) - which I understand is the equivalent of missing a pool ball by a hair!  We had only a few minutes here to watch.  I was all prepared, I'd gone up to the roof-top by 6:30 pm to catch the 6:41 pm time set that we would be able to see it.  Then, at 6:41 exactly I saw it come out of the NE sky.  By 6:45 it had worked its way across to the NW sky, and by 6:48 it had settled down at the SW sky.  Incredible to see - awesome in it's proximity. 

Driving North

I saw the devastation south of us and wondered just how the bay north of us survived.  Boca de Iguana lies between 2 arroyos, and when the rains hit both arroyos overflowed and the small town was buried in mud ~ about 1 meter deep.  None of the pictures I took showed how deep or how devastating this was. One couple we know are still uncovering their stuff.   They have been washing clothes since the 14th, trying to dig out and decide what has been ruined and what can be saved. One of their sons is trying to revive the small electrical things - fans, drills, toaster, hair dryer for mom,etc.  Their 3  vehicles have been hosed off and are awaiting parts - but a section of the road from Guadalajara to us has been buried under the side of a hill just outside Autlan, so all materials have to go the long way 'round through Manzanillo.  They just might get one vehicle out of the 3 running again.

The resort farther north, Blue Bay, survived well - only a bit of windfall - the lawns and plants look just as beautiful as ever.  So, if your plan is to visit Blue Bay then you have no worries at all.  

Hurricane Jova

No sooner had I walked through the door ~ Hurricane Jova was on it's way and would be here in 2 days ~ no stopping it ~ and we are all praying that the angle of dangle of the wind would be pushing the water out rather than in.

Some people were really smart and trimmed their coconut trees so that they presented less of a sail area to the wind.  These great and majestic palm trees survived. 

And somehow, by God's grace, La Manzanilla didn't fare too badly.  The seas brought debris of all sorts up to and including the main avenue.  Yes, those properties along the beach suffered material damage and people here suffered losses, but nothing compared to other towns along our bay where one family we know has no house, no clothing, no nothing;  or Melaque which had about a meter - meter and a half of brown sea water . . . and people were literally swimming in the streets; or Cihuatlan, which had a mountain of earth and rain water combine to literally cover their lower streets (and the main throughways) in mud - dense, heavy, mud.  Barra de Navidad suffered massive property damage to those structures balanced along the shore.

this is looking looking up our street from the beach 

        this is the main highway outside of Manzanillo


Here are a couple of links:

www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=CKZ1T9kx2VA - Lalo made this one of the road connecting the bridge at Rio Cihuatlan to the turn off to Marabasco - all part of the highway to the Manzanillo Airport.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VK2KGaDgeWM - Barra de Navidad - don't know this person.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZsPNtSM0ZQ&feature=related - this is Barra before the big seas hit

You can google more on utube.  The losses are just too sad.

How did we fare?  We ran away! We went north-east, slightly up in the hills, about 200km away. The town was called Las Abras and is the family home of our friend Salvino Brambilla. His wife is Luz, my friend and the woman who makes those wonderful chili rellenos! We stayed in the home of his sister and brother-in-law who were thankfully visiting in the US for the summer and had not yet returned. There we experienced only a small gale (30 knots) during the evening and a LOT of water. It started about 10 in the morning and rained for about 28 hours.  The small river that forms every year from the water run-off ran it's course as usual this year.  The first vehicle to try to cross got stuck and Dave gave him a tug out.  He wasn`t stuck too badly - just not enough oomph as the rear tires hit solid ground and so mired himself.  We stayed with the family for 2 nights and then gambled on whether or not we could get through. 

The few kilometers to the highway wasn't too difficult, the trees and limbs that had been broken off by the wind had been chain-sawed, sorted and taken away by the time we got there.  The coastal highway was strewn with windfall and several minor landslides, people working hard to clean up and clear out ~ not too trecherous but a little freeky.  The real blow-out was just north of the new turn-off to Cihuatlan.  Here the highway was completely undemined by the overflowing river beside it.  This took a few days for the people to create a new way around this hole.

Shortly after this area we made our turn up the hill to La Manzanilla.  We anticipated a large number of landslides and so were surprised at the relatively few there were, again everyone working to clean up and clear out.  I guess what had us all worried was that there was no communication open all along the coast, so no one really knew what was going on.  And so we made it home ~ and there wasn't a scratch on her!  Nothing!  Well, we lost a few plants in the front garden - they call it Hola Santa and it's a great spice for cooking and salads - and 2 trees next door were felled and they felled onto one of the Mango Trees which is the only thing between the trees and our back garden.  We have dealt with the front area and our neighbour asked us to get someone to cut those trees so they no longer represent a risk.

We wandered into town and found some friends of ours trying to hold up in the building of their Spa business.  They were going to try to sleep on concrete floor - and she is 7 months pregnant.  We told them not to be silly and to come to our house (we have room for them upstairs) - bravely they said they would try and see what it would be like.  We told them not to be silly, they could take over upstairs and have a kitchen and king size bed (that would have been the selling points for me) - bravely they said they would stay.  When I saw them the next morning I only asked if they needed one key or two.  Everything they had was wet from the hurricane and it has taken them this week to get things sort of back on an even keel.  Their house is still not quite ready but they are eager to move into their brand new home - it will be lonely without them.

Will you LOOK at that BODEGA!

I know it's been longer than 3 days, but things happen - and I'll try to keep them in order.  The first thing that happened was that Barb & Sal came through with the cables for our trailer so back to Valle de Juarez we went!  I know I've said it before, but that quick transition from palm tree to pine tree in so few feet of altitude is amazing.  I could go on and on about the beauty up here, but I'll just let you see it for yourself.

Salvador and Barb took us back to the stone sculptureer and I couldn't help myself - I bought 3 more. This man is truly amazing - I envy his ability to see something inside these chunks of rocks and then to be able to release these creatures.  I am screaming inside myself because somehow I lost some pictures - but ha'e no fear for I shall return and take another picture of this gifted man with his family (and end up buyine more, I'm sure.

So - before I get carried away as to what else has been happening, here's some pics of the new bodega, complete with sliding, locking doors and a very nice speaker system!

 

I don't know about you, but I'd say THAT'S a happy guy!



Then I went back to Victoria for a week - saw me' mum and family ~ also saw the thorasic surgeon who gave me another clean bill of health (Yeah! 3 more years of cancer free and I'm in the clear!) and saw the pacemaker clinic - evidently should the unit fail I'll still make it to the hospital and that's a good sign.  So, don't have to see anyone until we get back to Victoria in May.

Next Episode:  Hurricane Jova

Three Days of Mourning

We will not be posting until Monday - we are mourning the deaths of the 53 innocent people in the bombing of the Casino n Monterey.

                        End the war on drugs -

We Got The "Stamp of Approval"

Needless to say a lot more was involved than just building something for the 2 meters to sit in.

The electrical connection from the power lines to our house have always been a bit tenuous, so it was decided that it would be advantageous to change those wires now from the CFE post to the house.  A new post had already been built to put the meters in but it wasn't tall enough to receive the wires ~ so Dave built a column on top of the post.  There is a pipe in the post that receives the wires WAY UP IN THE AIR (22 feet) and feeds them into the post built for the meters.
    

Now that wire goes to the new electrical panels ~ 

Did I already show you that?

Not wanting to find ourselves digging up the driveway in the future and going through all this "dirty" work again, David decided he'd prepare the bodega for "luz".

I think that should probably do us for electrical improvements for a while, don't you?