Holidays in Mexico

I have been under the weather lately, so no posting has been done. Since I have been at home resting a lot there isn't much activity to share with you. But one week ago we did attend a fundraiser attended by gringos to raise money to help the poor families in the area. It was a potluck and silent auction and I donated this photo taken in La Penita. The evening event generated 44,300 pesos (over $4000 U.S.).

For the second night of Hannukah, December 16 we invited new friends over for latkes (potato pancakes), sweet and sour cabbage, and kugel (noodle pudding).

My physical ailments started with vertigo a week ago. Researched the internet and using the Epley maneuver, I now only have some slight vertigo. Some bug got me, and I have been laid up with a fever, cold and headache four days now. My friend Juana asked if I could print a photo she had of her baby (enlarge a small photo). But in the original photo, the newborn laying on the bed was about 1/20th of the entire shot (it was mostly bed). After scanning it and enlarging I was able to make this print of the baby, and it will be matted and framed to make a nice Christmas gift for her and her husband.


Emily and Luke spent a week in Guadalajara recently, and if you saw Jack Black in a movie called Nacho Libre, you will appreciate this photo. They attended a Lucha Libre (Mexican masked wrestling event), and it was quite an experience for them. Take a look at this site for more interesting facts about it.


I actually did go out of the house this week, to attend a Spanish class, and will go tomorrow too. Attending class four times a week, using my Berlitz computer program, studying the 500 Verbs book, speaking Spanish with Mexican friends and neighbors, and having our friend from San Luis Potosi visiting us now, should all help me gradually get better. But it is definitely going to take work and practice, and a time commitment to make good progress.

The weather today is probably the coolest I have experienced since living here, 79 degrees and overcast. It even rained this week, with high winds preceding it. There have been evenings when I put on long pants and a long sleeve shirt, which is a drastic difference compared to October and November when it was so uncomfortable, I just wanted to remove all my clothes, take cold showers, and be in front of fans 24 hours a day.

An interesting and enlightening article on Mexico's poor can be found at CNN. It helps us to understand just how far a poor family's income is stretched here.

With Christmas approaching there is a lot of activity the whole week leading up to the holiday, and afterwards. In our town, there will be Pinatas hung in the town square on Sunday for the children. You can learn about the posadas, Noche Buena (Christmas Eve), Day of the Holy Innocents (like April Fool's Day), and Three Kings Day here.

That is all for now, and enjoy your holiday season wherever you may be.