• 01Jul

  We hit the big time?

  maz odds + ends 6 Comments

  

  The director of the Instituto Sinaloense de Cultura, Sergio Jacobo, officially starts the filming

  There’s a movie being filmed in Mazatlán this week.  It is called “Asesinato y Reencarnación: Un Romance.” It is based on a book by Juan José Rodríguez that’s titled Murder in A Chinese Laundry.  Filming started Monday, and stars Shalim Ortiz, Liz Gallardo, Raúl Méndez, Martha Aura and Ari Brickman.  The director is Eduardo Rossoff.

  The main drag through Olas Altas in Centro has been shut down now for three days of filming.  While we haven’t watched anything but people carrying things on and off trucks, friends of ours watched them shoot one scene for more than an hour.

  The first indication that something was up was when the normal front of the old Belmar Hotel was transformed into an old style jewelry store.  This is where most of the filming has taken place so far.  (See below)

  

  We’re lucky, as we mostly walk when we do things around Centro, so the street closure hasn’t affected us.  The paper reports that the filming will take place over three weeks, but doesn’t say if it will all be at the Belmar.  For trivia lovers, the Belmar Hotel was a favorite in the 40’s and 50’s of film star John Wayne and his friends.

  I’m sure we’ll go see the movie when it comes out, whenever that is!

  
  

  
  

  
• 26Jun

  Comfortable as a pig in mud

  blogging, knitting, maz odds + ends, weather 12 Comments

  

  The rain came a couple of days ago and we have been experiencing cooler than normal temperatures - not humid and VERY welcome.

  Paul and I went to a hotel in Nuevo Mazatlán for an overnight for Paul’s birthday.  We had a nice time swimming and lounging around the pool and had a very good dinner. But it was quite a shock to hear so much English spoken, as every waiter or bell boy spoke perfect English.  I think the best part was the bed…it was a king size with a feather bed topper.  Ours at home is just too hard!  It was fun to get away but I think next time we’ll go somewhere way off the beaten path.

  We had a housesitter stay at the house while we were gone, and it worked out really well.  So we now have options if we want to get away, and options are always a good thing.

  Paul has made arrangements to go to intensive Spanish classes in Guadalajara for two weeks.  He’ll be living with a Mexican family, and he is really hoping that this will be the boost he needs.  His Spanish is quite good and he has a very good accent, but his comprehension continues to be a problem.  He is going to scope out whether I would be able to have my vegetarian diet accommodated, and if so, I will probably go in the fall.

  I think it will be kind of nice to have a little time apart - we’ll probably appreciate each other more when we are reunited.

  The blog has had an unexpected benefit for me this week.  A woman who has been visiting Maz for years was making a trip down from Canada and offered to bring yarn for me if I wanted to make an order at her local yarn shop.  I hesitated for all of one second and am now the happy owner of the yarn, below.  Plus we had a nice visit and learned that she and her husband and another couple just signed the papers on a home near us in Mazatlán. They are really nice people, I hope to get to know them better.

  

  I am doing pretty well with the weight loss and exercise.  I set a really aggressive dieting regime for myself at first that I have kind of backed off from, but I am feeling very good about my progress.  I have not been weighing myself but my clothes fit a bit looser.  I’ll weigh myself on Sunday and may or may not report in!

  I have really been enjoying the exercise.  I get going with the iPod on my high energy music, and most days go for a half hour.  By that point I am dripping from my head to my toes.  I never knew my calves could sweat!  I tried the Zumba dvds I have again and think I am hopeless with the dancing, but it is a lot of fun.  Right now I am downloading (thanks, bit torrent) Tae Bo and Callanetics, two exercise programs I used to have years ago and really liked.  I have discovered that if I don’t have cardio around five times I week I feel off.

  I guess this post has turned into a hodge-podge, but one last thing that is great is I am going to make spring rolls!  I got so excited after reading Theresa’s post, and I have finally located all the ingredients!  I finally found the asian food store I had heard about (Toyo Foods, on Benito Juarez between 16 de Septiembre and the malecon) and they had the spring roll wrappers I needed.  I also bought jasmine rice and several sauces.  Yahoo!

  
  

  
  

  
• 21Jun

  Thanks, La Gringa!

  blogging, gardening, weather 8 Comments

  

  A few times recently I have said a silent thank you to La Gringa, an American woman blogging from Honduras, and I thought it would be a bit nicer of me to thank her publicly.

  First, it is drippy glass season again!  While I have more or less given up on crisp neat clothing for the duration of the summer (15 minutes after dressing, anyway) I hate to have drips all down my front every time I take a sip out of a glass.

  La Gringa’s post La Gringa’s Invention works like a charm.  A before picture of my glass and the puddle of condensation is at the top of the post.  Below, is my glass outfitted La Gringa style!

  

  All of us adjusting to life in a new country have certain things they miss or would like to be able to get more regularly.  One of those for me was fresh ginger.  I love ginger and while it would be in the stores now and then it often was pretty well past its prime.

  

  La Gringa’s post Grow your own Ginger inspired me to grow my own!  It grows just fine in a pot and I am enjoying being able to have fresh ginger whenever I want it.  And having never had really fresh ginger, I didn’t know the joy of just washing it off and grating it or mincing it as is.  The skin is so thin and beautiful you don’t need to bother peeling it. See a picture of a piece of just picked ginger, below.

  

  So thank you, La Gringa, for making my life a little better.

  
  

  

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