Lake Chapala

Lake Chapala is Mexico's largest lake, and home to around 30,000 American and Canadian retirees. There are 5 towns around the lake, and the climate is ideal, 70s and 80s year round, dry in the winter and spring and the rains during the summer and fall are mostly at night. I am standing in the gardens of a boutique inn on the lake where we had lunch.

Telaquepaque

Telaquepaque is one of the municipal areas within Guadalajara. It is famous for its artwork and classic Mexican Architechture. Although it is much larger than we remembered, it is like a small village with beautiful plazas, surrounded by restaurants, shops and art galleries. A great area to walk around in and enjoy the music. On Sundays, several Mariachi and Folklorico dancers perform in the gazebo in the square, which is surrounded by several restaurants. The church is one of the newer ones, from the 1700s, the main cathederal in Guadalajara was constructed in 1560.

Round Pyramids

We traveled from Telaquepaque to the Round Pyramids called Guachimontones, which are believed to be over 2000 years old. There are 10 in this site and several other sites are being excavated by an American professor of the University of Michoacan. Linda is standing in front of the largest pyramid and I am in the ball court with our guide, Chava. Each of the pyramids is a perfect circle, surrounded by another circle with multiple platforms, arranged in another of the 3 concentric circles. The ball game was played using only the hips and a 10 pound ball. They are believed to have played from dawn to dusk with the captain of the winning team beheaded at the end of the game. We visited another area where they are carefully excavating in a grid pattern and preserving the ancient obsidian knives, arrowheads and spearheads as well as pots, and sculptures.

El Super Classico

For this year's inland trip, we traveled to Telaquepaque (Guadalajara), and we were fortunate to acquire tickets to Chivas vs America, a football (soccer) match between Mexico's two most popular teams, Chivas (Guadalajara) and America from Mexico City. Chivas only plays native born Mexicans, while America has many foreign born players. This game has the highest ratings of any sporting event on Univision in the US The stadium in Guadalajara has hosted the World Cup twice and the 1968 Olympics. Chivas won 3 to 2 although the game was not that close. We were probably the only Americans there but it is a really exciting event, with everyone including us, wearing the jersey of the team they support. The staff at the hotel helped us acquire the tickets, at only twice the face value. Everyone at the restaurant in the square was also wearing a Chivas shirt, whether they were going to the game or not. A great cultural experience

Barra Bay

This is the south end of the bay taken from atop the surfer hotel, our favorite place to watch sunsets. The second photo is taken from the Grand Bay Hotel, and shows the lagoon entrance in the foreground, the town of Barra de Navidad and the beach looking north to Melaque.

Melaque

This is the view from the a restaurant on the beach in San Patrico de Melaque, of the bay of Barra de Navidad. The previous photos are of the opposite end looking toward Melaque. Melaque's patron saint is St. Patrick and they really go all out for St Patricks day. We were there last year for the celebration with a carnival midway, multiple bands on the square and the biggest fireworks display we have ever seen.

Cruiser exercise

Linda is always looking for new exercises to do on board. Last year she hosted a yoga on-board instructior. She decided this is a great exercise for her waist. The hoop comes apart so we can store it more easily, and she has fun doing it. So far, I have abstained.