Pool Day

Today was a big day for the Pope. I just read about how he turned in his ring, red shoes, cape, and keys to the popemobile. Seems like we won't hear a peep from him again. Not a tweet either since he closed his Twitter account too. One wonders if this development will all unfold as planned or get complicated down the road. We live in such interesting times.

We visited again with Jack, Linda, Becky and Paige enjoying some down time by the pool. I learned that Paige is much interested in things like computers and cell phones and when I took the picture below Paige had fun moving it around on my iPhone screen. So here is a photo of Paige responding to the appearance of my cell phone. We can call this portrait Becky and Techy ...

I'd like to say, "Now you know what Becky looks like." Maybe later. Next, the scene at poolside. No, the bird is not superimposed. It pulled a genuine photo bomb, a good one though.

Since we stayed for the sunset we ordered up a gourmet supper from the bar.

Ocean waves were pretending to be tsunamis today spraying high enough to be visible above the pool. There are no people in this photo because it is intended merely as an outstanding minimalist work of art.

And here is one of those crashing waves in action ...

I must say that although my progress in learning Spanish is lamentably slow, on the other hand I have absolutely nailed the siesta.

Between siestas I continue to read my book on currency wars. An interesting expression pops up sometimes among the big players, that we are living in "the twilight of sovereignty." The anticipation is definitely present that much national sovereignty will ultimately be yielded to some sort of world administrative body if utter collapse and catastrophe in global affairs is to be averted. It is fascinating to see leaders acknowledging that such an arrangement, unthinkable for all human history so far, is now seen as inevitable, especially when one knows the book of Revelation foretold this two thousand years ago.

We got back to our place shortly after nightfall and jumped in the pool here for a delightful cooling down under moonlight. It's quite agreeable to have pools wherever you go.

Babylon and other places

We discovered the hard way that after the administration office locks up at 6:00 pm the security guard is unable to call for a taxi. This is exactly what we wanted him to do twice so I visited the administration office this morning seeking a solution. The lady spoke absolutely no English and me no Spanish. But on her computer she brought up a Web site named Babylon that instantly translates text. She yielded her seat and I typed in my request.

Her translated response read, "No key will leave locked door."

That did not look like the answer I hoped for so I rephrased that translation into what I wanted and asked if I got it right. Her translated answer was, "Forgiveness?" So I reworded it again and asked if it was right. Her translated answer: "Guard no key. Arrangement will be good."

After much musical chairs before the computer we finally got things sorted out. It reminded me of the story of a computer translating into Russian the English expression, "Out of sight, out of mind," and which came out as, "Blind and crazy."

In other news, due to popular demand I post another photo of that rising star Paige. Unfortunately those sunglasses were not enough to fool the paparazzi.

For those of you who thought I might have been exaggerating in an earlier post about Mexico's love affair with changes of floor levels I submit additional evidence from *inside* a store ...

 

 And here again is a view of the pool as seen from our balcony - a photo with a subtle hint of life to it ...

 

Poetry Alert! This is not a drill. The following verse just happened all by itself out of the blue so it's not my fault ... 

All About Paige

Today was distinguished by the privilege of meeting a newcomer to the world, Jack and Linda's granddaughter, Paige. We also had the fine privilege of meeting Paige's mother, Becky, who brought her along to Mexico, but we have to confess the day belonged to Paige ...

Paige was very obliging in posing for a portrait which I am pleased to post here ...

 

Paige is fond of the pool and was clearly feeling very much at home in it ...

 

 

Paige resembles her mother very much and that will have to serve for now as an indication of what Becky looks like because at the moment I see I have no photo of Becky.

In unrelated news, here's a photo of another of those interesting architectural features that are possible on buildings never visited by snow and ice. The staircase corkscrews its way up to a simple white door at the top. Lovely to look at even if less tempting to climb. If it is meant to serve as a fire escape they have certainly succeeded in turning it into a visual treat, which cannot be said for exterior fire escapes in New York City or Montreal. By the way I am only presuming it's a spiral stairway. For all I know it could be a water slide. That would certainly get the occupants down from a burning building with amazing dispatch.

Warm Day Reading

The day grew quite warm today so reading in the shade appealed to us much more than moving about in the sun. Clouds drifted in with the evening darkness and I offer you a view of a not-cloudless Mexican sky around sunset. This was taken on the roof of our dwelling and the foreground dome with finial is a stairwell covering.

Speaking of our dwelling, the windows in our rooms and in the rooms of Jack & Linda's hotel go right to the floor. This means the blinds descend to the floor as well. I recall back in the days when I did architectural design I was taught to have windows stop about three feet above the floor because that provides residents with a sense of safety, not to mention safety itself. Living with the windows the way they are here I better understand what they meant. Good thing I seldom roll out of bed or I'd stand a good chance of waking up twenty feet below in the pool. Can you imagine how annoying that would be? A person could drown while waiting to wake up from that bad dream.

Tomorrow we expect to get on the move again, to a modest degree, so tomorrow's post should have something more substantial to report. We'll see.

Sunday

A short report of an uneventful Sunday. We made the five-minute walk to Emelio's and ordered take-out Lasagna for supper. Here's a photo of their pizza oven which turns out great pizza as you can imagine.

...and a photo of Carol waiting for our order. The bag on the table contains baked goods which they also sell and which are outstanding - one eats well in Mexico:

...and a photo of the moon, and a horseback rider we encountered on the way back home:

To conclude, here's a tidbit about construction in Mexico ...

As illustrated in the above photo, it is not uncommon to see buildings with reinforcing rods standing high above the roof as though in expectation of an early second story addition. I have been informed this is often a consequence of the property tax system. The taxes become due once the building is completed, but with steel reinforcing rods jutting out of the roof, a proprietor can make the case that, as soon as his funds permit, he will complete yet another story. Such completion is indeed 'yet another story.' Many buildings may sit like this till doomsday.

Catching Up

Thursday night Jack and Linda visited us for supper. Linda explored the mezzanine in our bedroom and we took photos for the blog. First, here's Linda who braved the pipe ladder to the summit and explored the nosebleed section of our bedroom. Tadaaa ...

A portatrait of Jack and Linda at the supper table...

From the table's other side, a portrait of yours truly with his better half ....

And the evening concluded with a silvery moon high over our hacienda ...

Friday evening we took a bus to the commercial plaza and its wide choice of restaurants.The bus interior featured orange seat covers and curtains. This man clearly takes pride in being a step ahead with his vehicle. His ten-year-old son served as helper. To passengers seeking to pay the fare he commands, "Sit Down!" Then later he collects the fare in the aisle, giving the official nod when the amount is accurate. I also post a photo of him demonstrating to debarking passengers that it is safe to take the crosswalk in front of the bus. Another proof that the first idea isn't always the best.

We chose an outdoor restaurant, one where a man often sets up a little table with supplies of vodka and brandy and abruptly dispels the night tranquility with great balls of fire, much to the amusement of the clientele who then dine on the results with singed eyebrows.

You will also notice a guitarist who plied his talents for the crowd, as did a girl quartet and a formally costumed mariachi band.

This means we enjoyed more than our share of La Bamba, the great Mexican classic, not to mention the enduring Cuban one 'Guantanamera' which means 'woman from Guantanamo' in case you weren't aware. Has anyone ever counted how many times this word occurs in that song?


... more another day.

A Little More San Luis Potosi

Since the day was ultra-quiet in Ixtapa today, with the exception of struggles with our electronic technologies which I'm sure you all have tasted as much as us, I propose to say a little more about our visit to San Luis Potiosi.

It resides at the bottom of a pan ridged about with mountains. This "pan" rests at an altitude of 6,300 feet above sea level which was in fact our point of departure. A view from about 6,400 feet is offered below ...

Please note that the little round hole in the back of the car is merely a key hole for the trunk, so get off the panic button will you?

We were advised that it takes about five days to acclimatize to the thinner air. Carol felt the difference but for some reason I did not. But I certainly did feel the difference once back at sea level. At first the air seemed almost gelatinous down here compared to up there.

The city has its version of New York's Central Park which is a pleasant touch. Dan and I sat on the bench where one of Dan's current Bible students was sitting when Dan approached him a while back. He is a young man in his early twenties and had just packed a knapsack and left home under unhappy circumstances when Dan spoke to him of the Bible's message. The man has been studying the Bible for a while now and is very happy about what he is learning.

Below is a view of a duck pond across from that bench ...

While passing through another part of town I snapped this photo of yet another Memorial, this one definitely of the general-on-a rearing-horse persuasion. I'm not sure whether the horse is chafing for battle or reacting to the cactus growing there. Note: you may be able to defeat a great colonial power but defeating graffiti artists is something else.

To close the San Luis Potosi story (for now anyway) I offer you a sunset photo taken in the heart of the town ...

I'd love to boast that I took this photo but in fact this exquisite composition is Heather's.

As for Ixtapa, our quiet day was interrupted only by a trip to the local convenience store across the street where I bought a bag of ice.

That's the store in the center of the background. I asked the man for ice and I thought he said, "Yellow?" I've always been taught to avoid yellow snow and yellow ice so I said I'd rather buy the clear kind. But then I learned hielo is Spanish for ice.

Observations (cont'd)

A cultural phenomenon of no little prevalence in Mexico is the love affair with levels. While walking in a plaza, on the street, or even inside a store, one often comes across seemingly arbitrary steps up or down. These can range in height from a trifling 2 inches to a nearly lethal 8 inches or more.

A sidewalk may abruptly split in the middle with half of its width sloping up and the other half down. The element of surprise is occasionally enhanced by an unannounced sink hole or other break-a-leg rupture in the walking surface but I won't get into that.

Now, personally, I've always viewed the chief virtue of a floor, or other walking surface, to be its flatness. It enables one to amble from point 'A' to point 'B' without steady scrutiny of one's steps for fear of losing the perpendicular and possibly even losing one's ability to amble further.

However, things are different in Mexico. When walking, a variation of level every few seconds evidently provides a welcome change of pace here although it definitely diminishes the amount of time one is able to keep one's head up to drink in other details of the environment.

Speaking of levels:
On the flight back to Ixtapa on Monday we airplaned over much mountainous terrain. In the photo below I captured a tiny village isolated amidst this rumpled landscape. Can you spot it? I have no idea whether or not they are online.

In other news:
Below is a photo of a monument in San Luis Potosi commemorating the Revolution. As you can see this sculpture has clearly avoided the clichéd general-on-a-rearing-horse design. No, there is no monument on the other side of the street of those shooting back.

In other sculpture news, an enterprising fellow on the beach today contributed the two items below to the environmental esthetics. Yes, it was a sunny, hot day today, exactly the way a February day ought to be.

And that's it for now. Thank you for tuning in.

From San Luis Potosi to Ixtapa

Our stay in San Luis Potosi was a highly interesting adventure.  Below is a photo of the Privada where Dan and Heather live. Their residence is at left at the end of the street. Their dark blue Corolla is parked outside.

An unforgettable highlight was visiting people in their homes to study the Bible with them. One young man in his mid-twenties lives with his parents in what are extremely humble surroundings by North American standards. His personal Bible is falling apart from use. Once pointed to certain scriptures he catches on quickly. The front door was more like a barred gate with a sheet of acrylic to keep out the rain. It had a small piece broken off at the bottom where passing dogs would stick in their heads to sniff and look around. Their reverence for God and his inspired word makes these people very lovable.

Dan and Heather treated us royally, taking us out to eat in interesting places one of which was like a palace. We had Sunday brunch there accompanied by one of their friends, a young man named Ben. The following photos are from there ...

The photo below is of Dan in a park near his house. The park as you will notice, is distinguished by a bold innovation which drastically reduces the need for municipal lawn-mowing crews.

We had a delightful time in SLP and carry away rich memories. I also got to see a photo of my brother and I when we were young that I do not recall having ever seen before. So naturally I asked for a copy and here it is ...

 From Evelyn Street in Verdun to San Luis Potosi in Mexico.

San Luis Potosi

Our flight from Ixtapa to Mexico City was smooth sailing all the way and offered us some magnificent vistas of the country of Mexico. Our aircraft spent much time plying the air over Mexico City before reaching the airport. It is a huge city and our altitude diminished enough while over it to give us a fairly detailed tour.

 

Next we transferred onto a plane for San Luis Potosi. This flight was also smooth until we were over the city. Then we learned our pilot was a cowboy. We banked steeply to the right, then we banked steeply to the left, tilted again way over to the right then back to the left. Why we zig-zagged to the airport remains a mystery.

Dan and Heather met us at the airport and today we spent the day, Carol with Heather and me with Dan, doing the round of people who are studying the Bible with them. Their students are sincere, humble, and serious about learning God's word. It was a privilege to meet them.

Driving in this city can be complicated, especially when going through a market area as shown below where cars appear out of nowhere, parked trucks suddenly start moving, and motorcyclists worm through impossible spaces.

 

A market square is shown below...

The photo below is of a typical side street showing Dan outside the door of one of his Bible students. One was an English teacher named José and we held the study in his classroom seated on chairs with built-in writing surface, classic grade school furniture I have not sat in for over half a century. José has recently learned what the Bible really teaches about the condition of the dead, that they are "sleeping" and awaiting a resurrection. His mother died when he was a young boy and he said he used to believe one day he would go and see his mother where she is. By studying the Bible he now understands that instead his mother will be coming back to see him where he is, only under far better conditions.

 It was a very good day.