This is one of those times of year when locals, folks who live here most of the year, or year ‘round, go into the tropical equivalent of what is sometimes called cocooning up in the Great White North. We try to stock up on supplies, and we try to venture outside our own homes as little as possible - until the madness subsides.
Unfortunately, I did run out of some very important stuff (dog and kitty food!) and had to go out. I was very glad that our neighborhood market on the south side - Gutierrez Rizo - stays open until 11 p.m. At ten o’clock in the evening there was no traffic and no lines at the cash. So once that was done, I felt better knowing that at least my little mini-zoo had enough to last a couple of weeks. Mind you, it didn’t help my situation with my favorite company, Telefonos de Mexico, affectionately called TelMex. You see, I did not receive my telephone bill this month. (I guess the messenger service fellow in charge of delivering them decided to take his holidays early…) I tried -again- to log on to their web site in order to pay it on line - unsuccessfully. The screen told me I would get a password sent to my account within 10 minutes. Never happened. So now I have to find the time to go to their office to pay it. What a system! I confess that I long for the time when such conveniences become available, along with being able to make deposits in an ATM instead of having to enter a bank and wait in line for hours with the other folks who wish they could use the ATM for such simple transactions…
I also ventured out on another occasion, to attend the Passover Seder at Café Bohemio. Now that was really worth it! Not only was the restaurant full (they even had to turn away a number of people…), but Chef-owner Sol truly outdid himself. In a one-man tour de force, he replaced traditional Ashkenazi dishes with Sephardic ones that were not only new to us, but also super delicious! As was to be expected, the reading of the Haggadah, led by Broadway star Sol himself, was touched by this man’s renowned stage presence - and humor. It was a most enjoyable evening, with participants from all over, Canada, the U.S. and Europe.
The Jewish celebration of Passover ends on Monday evening, but Semana Santa will be going full strength all week throughout Mexico, including all the municipalities around the Bay of Banderas. And then… the long awaited calm. Snowbirds will have flown back to their northern homes and only we full-time residents will remain. Don’t get me wrong. I love reading positive statistics, tourist numbers, income, flights, etc. as they help our ever-growing "little paradise" survive and thrive, but I also enjoy the calmer times. Here, around our beautiful bay, they occur twice during the year: once from mid-April to the end of June, and then again from mid-August to the beginning of November, after the summer holidays, when the kids have to go back to school.
I’m also looking forward to the rains because I want to believe that all those palm trees they planted in the three parks-turned-into-parking-lots …will survive, somehow, ‘cause right now they look like they’re in the throes of death. On a positive note: the authorities must have figured that Mexican tourists don’t have as good eyesight as we local Vallartans and furrners do… they replaced most of the burned out lights in the tunnel! Now we who have gotten used to driving through that tunnel over the last year or so, in near total darkness, are truly "blinded by the light"! Yeay!
Please drive carefully, dear readers. The roads are full of visitors unfamiliar with the town, some in pick-up trucks with three or four generations in the back. When I see those, I always find myself praying that those drivers never ever have to apply their brakes suddenly.I wish you all a wonderful holiday, and don’t forget your sunblock! The sun’s gotten quite a bit stronger these last few days. Hasta luego. pvmom04@yahoo.com
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