Letting days slip by..... we left Santiago on Monday morning, Feb. 26 and went around the corner to the anchorage at the base of the Las Hadas resort. The movie "10" was filmed here -- the location is spectacularly beautiful. Our first day here John and Linda from Nakia helped orient us to the various shopping locations. John picked us up in their dinghy and the three of us walked along the beach, then through the tennis courts and part of the golf course to the main street. A short distance further was Soriana and the restaurant next door where we met Linda and had a delicious lunch before our shopping expedition. Soriana didn't have all we wanted so we knew we'd shop again on Wednesday to try another store. A quick run back to the boat to put away all the groceries, then we were off to Stan and MJ's house in Santiago for an afternoon get-together. They are cruisers we met back when they were on Solmate and we on Jellybean. They have since sold their boat and are permanent residents of Santiago. Stan produces weather reports for cruisers every day, publishes them on the internet, on his website and also distributes them via SSB radio so boats at sea can receive them. Huge kudos to Stan! Stan and MJ are actively involved in PATA, an animal welfare organization -- they recruit veterinarians to spay animals for no fee -- more kudos!
Tuesday, with seven other cruising friends, we went on tour to Colima, Camala, Suchitlan and up to the base of the currently quiet but active volcano Fuego. This is Mexico's most active volcano; we were lucky to see it at all since it is often shrouded in cloud.
Colima is known for it's archeologically important sites. Recent digs have produced a wide variety of ceramics, the most famous being the Colima Dogs. Dogs were believed to possess mystical curative powers and people often slept with them, hoping to be relieved of their ailments. Aztecs believed that Xoloitzcuintles (Colima ceramic dogs) helped human souls reach their final resting place in the afterworld. We spent a few hours in a museum which had a replica of a typical tomb in which these ceramic dogs are found.
Lunch at a very hard-to-find restaurant in Suchitlan was served outdoors shaded by coffee and other trees. Upon seating all of us, the tour director ordered appetizers for all: blue corn tortillas, guacamole, cheese, refried beans and two different delicious salsas. Lunch followed, everyone very happy.
On the way to the volcano we stopped at a coffee roaster. Some beans were drying on some pavement in back, but since this wasn't harvesting time we didn't get to see the entire operation. We did learn, however, that it is a cooperative, that all the growers in the region bring their beans to the roaster, and we presume are compensated accordingly.
On the way home we asked the tour driver to let us off at Comercial, so at 7pm we started our second shopping expedition, found most of what remained on our list and took a taxi back to Las Hadas.
Yesterday we stayed on board all day, baking and cooking, since we had invited John and Linda over for dinner. Luckily we found some good provisions at the local stores and served Catalan Feast along with salad and Focaccia, brownies for dessert.
Today, I, Marlene, left with John and Linda early to walk to Walmart for my final quest: sponge cloths! Found them and a few other items before walking back to the anchorage, probably got in five miles of walking today. I walked along the jetty, waved at Roy at 11;45, 15 minutes before my expected return time, and a few minutes later he picked me up. Finally found a few minutes to update this blog!
~~~ Marlene ~~_/) ~~
