Tlaquepaque and Guadelajara

My last full day in Paradise Village was very hectic.  The welder finally showed up, I had to complete arrangements for having the boat watched and I had to pack.  The bus ride from Nuevo Vallarta to Tlaquepaque was a long slog even though the bus was luxurious and the scenery fantastic.  Six hours sitting ain't fun.  But I finally made it.  Caught a cab at the bus terminal to address of the house where I would be staying.  No one answered my knock on the iron gate or pressing what looked like a door bell.  While it was an uneasy feeling standing there on the street with a suitcase, a call to the director of the language school took care of it.  He was there in 10 minutes and found the landlady.
Although I've only been here five days, they have been so chock full that it seems like more.  I'll let the many photos tell the story....

Since I would be away for three weeks, I flushed the outboard and ran the carb dry.

FINALLY the welder arrived with equipment to weld the loose baffle in the water tank.

Nice job!

The welded stanchion bases were returned all polished up.

Won't be able to reinstall them until I get back.

Circadian without stanchions and lifelines

Last sunrise in Paradise Village Marina until I return

In the Nuevo Vallarta terminal for the Vallarta Plus bus to Guadalajara

Vallarta Plus has the most luxurious buses:  movies, video games, music, reclining

seats with leg rests, restrooms, even hardwood floors!

Driving through Bucerias

Leaving Bucerias

Last town before heading into the mountains

It was all mountain road after that.  But it was a well-maintained highway.

Good roads cost money

The scenery was great.  Unfortunately, all the photos had to

be taken through the window of a moving bus.

Laguna San Pedro

Agave farm

Pretty abruptly the mountains give way to the industrial outskirts of Guadalajara

I think this large building was a church associated with the adjacent theological school

I was very happy to have finally arrived at the Tlaquepaque terminal!

This very unusual house would be my home for two weeks.

The black door on the far left is the entrance to the courtyard.

Panorama of the inner courtyard

Looking up at the second floor,  According to the landlady, the house

was once owned by a doctor who had been to Spain, liked the

Alhambra and apparently made his own version.

The door to my room

My room with private bath:  plain, but serviceable.  A bargain at

$25/day including meals.

The living room in the private part of the house

Many antique, art and craft items were on display

This is Sylvia, who does the cooking and cleaning. 

Here she is making albondigas (meatballs).

Part of the fun has been experiencing authentic Mexican home cooking.

Meals are simple, but always good.  This is tuna.  Not the fish, but

the fruit of the prickly pear cactus.  Served as the fruit with breakfast.

This is Trulu, the family dog.  A big puppy.

Resistance is futile.

The house is right across the street from the Museo Pantaleon Panduro

The museum is in a large complex containing the Refugio Cultural Center

Right now, the museum has a large ceramics exhibit.

Admission is free and almost all the work is displayed

in the open.

A wide variety of styles were on display.

An intricate and colorful depiction of the history

of the production of pulque

A cock fight

  Most of the work was traditional, but there were also

some contemporary pieces.  I would call this

"First Taste of Pulque.

I went to a story-telling in a hall of the museum this morning after class.

.  All the stories but one were in Spanish, with bad acoustics. But it was free too!

All the story-tellers were good, and totally engaged

the many children in the audience.

This is the Guadalajara Language Center . Two blocks

from my homestay and close to the cool part of Tlaquepaque

My teacher Roberto.  There are only three of us in the class,

so there is lots of personal attention...no coasting!

No meals in the house on Sunday, so I went to this nearby

very hip pizza joint.

This is the street market that is set up in the neighborhood every Monday.

Unlike most local markets, this one is geared totally to locals

and resembles a huge swap meet in the U.S.  But it's so big it's

hard to believe it gets taken down and moved.

There are grains, fruits...

vegetables....

and chickens!

This is the Benito Juarez Municipal Market

It is permanent, indoors and open every day.

It too has all sorts of food stuffs

A section just for restaurants

Some with their own singer/guitarist

There's even a aisle just for butcher shops.

One level is just for crafts.

The region is known for its ceramic ware

Into pink flamingos?  Got ya covered!

Just exploring the streets can be interesting.

San Pedro Tlaquepaque Parish.  The original church in Tlaquepaque.

The snobby early Spaniards didn't want the locals in their church,

so they booted them out, but gave them some nearby land on which they

could build their own.

The locals had the last laugh and built a bigger,

fancier cathedral, the Sanctuary of Nuestra Senora de la Soledad.

The Sanctuary viewed from the gazebo in Plaza Jardin Hidalgo

The Plaza is a gathering spot for both locals and visitors.

Pigeons like it too.

Several pedestrians-only streets radiate off the Plaza.  The

deco-looking booth has someone providing tourist information.

I had my first pulque at a bar on one of these streets.

Very different taste:  sour, lemon, cactus and yeast.

Jalisco claims to be the birthplace of mariachi music,

and these streets are lined with restaurants featuring mariachis.

Also in this area is a stop for the Tapatio tour buses as well as many shops and galleries.

I got on one of the buses to get into Guadalajara, check out the city a bit

and find out how close I could get to the hotel in Guadalajara

that Carol had booked.

The bus stopped at the Rotonda de Los Jaliscienses Ilustres

which is part of the Cruz de Plazas in Guadalajara.  Here I changed

buses to do the Guadalajara loop.

The Cruz de Plazas is truly a multi-modal transportation hub

The Rotunda with the spires of the Catedral Basilica La Asuncion De Maria behind.

Catedral Basilica La Asuncion De Maria, known as

the Cathedral of Guadalajara

Unfortunately, just as I was getting on a bus at the next stop,

the heaviest downpour of the season started.

Standing room only on the enclosed lower level, so I braved the open top.

Although there was a roof, the rain blew in through the open sides

and it was pretty wet.

Still, I got a quick look at the city.  It is a large and diverse metropolis.

And I figured out how to get to the hotel and show Carol around.