criplomats

The highlight of the week (if you can call it that) was my first prison visit in this consular district. A team of us headed to the federal penitentiary in Tepic – a huge sprawling complex. We have about 25 American prisoners there, both men and women. It was a long day, and hot compared to Guadalajara (I can tell I am already getting spoiled by the weather here), but it was fun to get out of the city and see some of the countryside. The mountainous drive took us pass the town of Tequila, as well as Volcan Tequila, and we saw miles of agave plantations. I’m looking forward to visiting there at some point.

Monday was a holiday, so John and I went to Sam’s and Walmart to stock up on groceries and household supplies. I wasn’t too impressed with Sam’s here, so will be checking out Costco to see if it’s better.

Yesterday, my new Honda was delivered to us, along with part of our air shipment from Hot Springs! It’s nice to have some different shoes and clothes to wear, and I look forward to driving here!

The rest of the week was pretty calm – just to work and home. John went to a newcomers’ party hosted by our Consul General on Wednesday night; I missed it since we didn’t get back from the prison visit until 8PM, but John had a good time.

Flavie seems to be getting more used to the apartment and is eating better and exploring a bit more. She’s really a trooper.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve never seen so many fruits and vegetables in my life! We joined in a CLO trip on Saturday to go to the Abastos Market. It’s like a local market on steroids – rows and rows of wholesalers, selling to restaurants and to the general public, along with little eateries, cheese stalls, etc. It’s huge! To see more photos, click here. We had a lot of fun – the group ended the adventure by stopping at a delicious Korean food stall for some stir fry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another highlight of the week was getting the 4Runner delivered! It’s been in storage in Belgium since John left Tel Aviv in 2012. It’s wonderful to have wheels again, and not rely on taxis and friends to get around everyday. We were lucky that it arrived so quickly (although we did start the paperwork in late May to move it).

My boss was working out of town this week – I was glad it was a quiet week with no big emergencies in the office. I was happy to see a Facebook post from a fellow we knew in Tel Aviv – he was in town doing some college recruiting. I quickly pinged him, and we had a nice lunch together on Wednesday – small world!

It was a quiet week at home, too. Last Sunday we stayed home and watched “The Way, Way Back” – a really good movie. Flavia disappeared – in the late afternoon, it dawned on us that we hadn’t seen her all day. We searched high and low – I even went outside the building to look, even though we had only opened the door once all day. Finally, as I was searching in the closet, I pushed a drawer closed and she popped out! She had climbed up behind the drawer somehow and had found a nice spot to nap! She seems to have adopted it as her “safe spot.” It reminded us of when we were leaving the house on Saddle Hill in 2007 to drive to DC to join the Foreign Service. The house was completely empty, yet she managed to hide for about an hour as we went crazy trying to find her! She’s a little Houdini.

We got back in the gym grove this week, setting the alarm for 5AM and going downstairs to the apartment gym. It’s small, but does the trick.

Yesterday I happened to look at a couple of golfers on the fairway and noticed they had hit good drives and looked like their second shots hit the green (we can’t see the green from the balcony due to trees). Then I noticed about 20 people standing around the green, heard the polite golfer applause, and realized the golfers and their caddies were walking and not in carts. I Googled it on the computer and realized it was the GCC annual tournament – it will be fun where there is a big tournament here!

Thanks to our friend Petit, we’re now hooked on the TV series “Scandal,” and have been watching episodes at night. Yes, it’s a little trashy and far-fetched, but who cares!

Congratulations to John on his promotion this week! It was our first time to be considered for promotion to FS-02 and it’s pretty unusual to get it on your first time – but, of course, John did! It made for a very happy week, with lots of congratulation notes. I made the “honorable mention” list, which made me very happy, as well – but not the same as actually getting the promotion. So for now, John outranks me! Congrats! We celebrated at a nice steak house in the fancy mall in our neighborhood.

The rest of the week had a rosy glow about it in light of this good news! Saturday was especially fun – we went next door for a paella cooking class. Turns out that our neighbor Arturo (married to a Consulate employee and the only other Consulate family in our building) is a professional chef – lucky for us! We had a small group from work to learn how to make paella and then we enjoyed a meal together. Quite nice!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friday after work, Cindy and Raoul picked us up to go to our consular chief’s house for a party. It was a lot of fun, and was nice to socialize with folks outside of the office.

Tuesday, the fire marshal from Washington was in town. We loaded up into a van and went to a deserted parking lot to learn how to use fire extinguishers. It was a lot of fun, and reminded me of Thanksgiving with John’s family in Texas a few years ago when Mitch brought a bunch of extinguishers and taught us how to use them (that branch of the family needs them, given their penchant for bonfires!).

Yesterday after the cooking class, we walked across the street to the VIP movie theatre (meaning they have recliners and serve drinks) to see “Gone Girl” – it was excellent! We read the book when we were in Indonesia for vacation in 2013 and loved it, so we were happy to see a good adaptation of it. I love Rosamund Pike.

Also, John taught me a new strategy/card game for two, “Lost Cities,” so we enjoyed several rounds of it yesterday, too.

Flavie continues to get a bit more comfortable every day!

 

After a year of waiting, we finally arrived in Guadalajara – and we are not disappointed! It’s a beautiful city and everyone has been very welcoming, including our sponsors, Cindy and Raoul who met us at the airport when we arrived Monday.

They got us settled into our temporary digs, then took us out for grocery shopping followed by a drink on their balcony and a nice dinner out on the town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tuesday was our first day in the office – everyone seems really nice and friendly. The Consulate building is old and pretty decrepit, but it’s in a busy location downtown with lots of restaurants and a Starbucks within walking distance. My immediate boss, Pete, is a fun New Yorker who seems like he’ll be fun to work with; the other managers are nice, too.

Wednesday we moved into our permanent apartment in the afternoon – it’s nice to finally unpack the suitcases and know we’ll be here for a while. The apartment is lovely with a fantastic view over hole #2 of the Guadalajara Country Club. It’s fun to watch the golfers from our balcony.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday night we grabbed a taxi and braved the rain to go to a nice reception sponsored by the Guadalajara American Chamber of Commerce at a local hotel. Met some nice folks there.

Thursday we walked to an excellent oyster bar in the neighborhood where I had the best po’ boy I’ve ever had, along with a good cold Mexican beer.

The Ambassador was here for a visit on Friday. He led a town hall meeting on the Consulate’s patio, then we mid-level officers had a meeting with him afterward.

Old habits die hard: on Saturday, John and I went to work. John’s group actually had work to do since the fiscal year closes next week; I didn’t have so much work, although it was nice to have some quiet time in the office. We went out for lunch and then after work, grabbed a beer at a fun little outdoor spot close to the Consulate.

Today, Raoul and Cindy picked us up and took us to Tlaquepaque, a fun little town on the outskirts of Guadalajara. We had a good lunch with a margarita, then moseyed along looking at the little shops. Fun!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The trip here was uneventful. We had to get up at o’dark thirty for our 6AM flight out of Little Rock. We ran into a college friend, Connie, and also John’s buddy Leland from Systematics. Flavie did great on the plane. After my normal stressing about her paperwork, the airlines in Little Rock looked at it, but no one in Mexico did – typical! She’s gradually getting used to her new surroundings.

It still hasn’t quite sunk in that we are here in Mexico – and will be here for three years! Pinch me!

We’re enjoying our remaining days in Arkansas! Last Tuesday, my good friend Kelley organized a get-together of our old golf league – it was so fun to see everyone! John made an appearance, so everyone got to hug on him, too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before the golf girl gathering, I met Leah for a glass of wine in downtown Little Rock – so good to catch up with her! It’s hard to believe we were working together in the late 80s – seems like yesterday.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friday night, my dear friend Pamela and her standard poodle Gus came to Hot Springs to spend the night at a friend’s house on the lake. I went out to have dinner and stayed the night. We sat up yakking, then continued the next morning over coffee until John came to pick me up. Fun!

Monday, John spent the day with his good friend Russ – how cool is it that he lives up the road in Mt. Ida?! Russ’s wife Cathie picked me up on her way home from work and we spent a great evening with them and their wonderful critters (Penny is John’s favorite). Good times!

Other than these outings, the rest of the week was pretty low-key. Mom took us out for great steaks at The Porterhouse downtown, and again for a good Outback lunch on Friday. Pete and Ginger made the trek down to Hot Springs for a Smokin’ in Style BBQ lunch at Mom’s house. Afterward they dropped us off at the airport in Little Rock so we could rent an SUV big enough for all of our luggage – it’s huge!

We’re disappointed that our air freight got hung up in Pakistan’s demonstrations and didn’t get to us in time. We owe Cousin David a good bottle of tequila for taking care of it for us after we leave.

Last night, we went to a great magic show put together by Hot Springs’ own Maxwell Blade! We were thrilled to see our favorite, Michael Ammar, and Jeff McBride. Amazing that these fantastic magicians were in Hot Springs – normally we would have to fly to Vegas to see them.

It’s been a great three weeks in Arkansas. There are so many folks I didn’t get to see, but there is always next time. And everyone is welcome in Guadalajara!