Last week the families who live on the Ranch had a huge Feliz Cumpleanos (birthday) party, with many extended family members attending. There were 35 people fed and entertained over the course of the evening. The party was for the eldest son of our maintenance mgr whose mother has been our maid for a couple of years now. It was his 19th birthday. Again, we were the only gringos invited.

Cooking up some pig in a pot

The pig being cooked up in the pot was butchered on site that morning, and we were told they were fixing Carnitas when it was done. Rather than shredding the meat after it was cooked to tender, they just filed large platters with chunks which you could put on your plate. Then you could pull the meat off the bones yourself and assemble "soft tacos", as we call them in the US, with all the fixings on the table. Gregg made a wonderful batch of Ceviche made with fresh tuna, local white fish (from the coast), mango and avocado. Then, after comida, Gregg brought out a bottle of very nice Tequila which he and all the guys proceeded to finish up, one shot at a time... In the meantime, the kids (who ranged from 6 mo - 6 yrs) ran around in the open space playing old-fashioned games like Tag and Hide & Seek. To be honest, there was one little boy whose mom had an IPhone with some game on it. Reminded me of kids back home. The dogs were having a field day, being fed scraps with bones attached from EVERYONE there. Our dog got very sick that night - I thought she might explode she had eaten so much!

Open Studios event in Ajijic

This was the other happening early this month. I love this event and have volunteered my help for two years now. The picture above was taken from inside one of the venues that allowed artists to display their wares in. It's a win-win situation. The owner of this B&B got exposure as person after person said "Wow - I've never been inside the doors here. Can I get some information on the rooms and the rates?" The artisans got a beautiful setting in which to display their work. This recurring event is in February every year and is sponsored by the Ajijic Society of the Arts. We have an astounding number of very talented artists here and this group keeps growing and growing, with many shows, sales and display opportunities throughout the year.