Mexican bees wake up promptly as the sun pokes over the horizon, but the Mexican vendor in Aguascalientes, who sells us bees and other supplies for making honey, is not much of an early riser. Felix, in his new beekeeper costume, checking our four hives. The drive from San Miguel to Aguascalientes Tuesday afternoon was tedious, curvy …
Continue reading Here's hoping for a better honey season this year
As soon as you set foot in this sanctuary of privilege, you know this is no public park where the hoi-polloi would gather on a hot Sunday afternoon, to spread old blankets on the grass, drink Coronas and cook ribs on a beat-up Weber grill.At the end of a five- or six-kilometer dirt road, you …
Continue reading The poor will always be with us, but not here
Once upon a time, maybe 15 years ago, in a place far away, Chicago, I used to be an avid cyclist. I would ride to work and back, about five or six miles each way, and most astonishingly, I would do so every morning, regardless of the weather, with a tenacity bordering on insanity.There were …
A few days ago we watched Dr. Zhivago on Amazon Prime, a three-and-a-half hour whale of a movie that calls for at least two bags of popcorn and multiple trips to the bathroom. Omar Sharif, as Zhivago, was at the height of his hottie-ness when the movie was made 55 years ago. That far back …
Continue reading Dr. Zhivago visits Havana and feels at home
A couple of weeks ago we heard that Jon, really an acquaintance more than a close friend, whom we had met at the Unitarian group in town, had died. His death by itself was not that newsworthy; given the geriatric demographics of San Miguel's expat community, we constantly hear of folks who've died or are battling …
Our legal battle with someone trying to take a piece of our ranch began in June 2018, and it's been working its way through the innards of the Mexican judicial system since, slowly and methodically, but not definitively. It's a fight not only over ownership of a piece of land but, more crucially, to preserve …
Going on vacation while you're retired may sound like an oxymoron to those still driven by the nine-to-five workaday life. Not so much, though, I've found: Even in retirement one quickly gets entangled in schedules, routines, things that need attention, that eat away at the time every day that should be reserved for imagining and even …
In this morning's Civil List, the internet bulletin board shared by expats in San Miguel, there was a post about the escalating security problem. In addition to alarm, I felt curiosity about what tune the usual chorus of civic boosters, particularly the municipal authorities, would intone this time, to downplay bad news about a town …
Continue reading My denial runs thin about crime in San Miguel
I realize it's a very uneven match, but this Christmas we decided to do our share to beat back the onslaught of U.S. marketing and cultural influence that threaten to undermine traditional Mexican traditions.We wanted to give Christmas presents to Félix's three kids, Alondra, 11; Edgar, 8 and Jessica 4, but didn't want to participate …
Contrary to the wistful notions we brought down with us, San Miguel de Allende does have a winter cold, gray and windy enough, to send us rummaging through the coat closet for one of those heavier jackets we'd thought we'd never need again.And for three days last week, winter really stretched it claws here.Sparrows and …
El Rancho Santa Clara 