criplomats

John and I are trying to get out more and see the sites. Last Sunday, we went to Tlalaquepaque for lunch and poked around the shops there. It’s a lovely little town albeit touristy. It’s clean with nice shops (lots of Mexican glass and weavings) and loads of restaurants. The nice thing is that it’s less than half an hour to get there.

This morning we ventured out a bit farther, to Tapalpa. It’s a little town about two hours away, up in the mountains. The last 30 minutes are slow as you go through some hairpin turns. We had lunch at a little place with excellent queso fundido (melted cheese). It’s Palm Sunday, so the square in front of the church was packed. I think we had just missed a procession; tons of people had their palm fronds and were going into the church. Those that weren’t in the church were at the outdoor market where lots of pots, pans, dishes, and toys were being sold. The streets are all cobblestone – quite cute.

The draw about 10 minutes outside of town are the piedrotas, or really big rocks. You can ride horses around the field or take zip lines from rock to rock. Or, just admire them, like we did:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday I worked in the office all day, writing my annual employee evaluation. They’re the bane of our existence – all narrative. We all hate them but at least I pretty much have mine done! John treated me to a nice dinner afterward at a place up the street from us that we hadn’t been to before.

I’m super-happy because mangoes are officially in season now. When John and I don’t have time for lunch, I’ll grab a big fruit cup from the little cart across from the Consulate. For less than $2, I get a huge cup of mango, papaya, and watermelon – delish!

I’ve talked to Mom a few times this week and she seems to be doing fine. We had trouble with a couple of the temporary caregivers – they stole $300 worth of stuff on the Walmart card we use for them to buy Mom’s groceries. I spoke with the agency, and they won’t be back – obviously. But, geez, it’s always something! But I think Mom likes the ladies who alternate staying with her now, so hopefully we’re on a roll for a bit. I’m sad to hear that Aunt Bonnie is not doing well but is home from the hospital.

Here are a few more photos from Tapalpa.

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 29th, 2015 at 4:31 pm and is filed under Foreign Service. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.