Seeing more of Guadalajara

 Tuesday, April 2, 2024

So good to have time in the morning to blog and yoga and shower and dress without worrying about being late somewhere!  I'm just finishing up when Ginger texts that she's on the roof and I go up and join her.  It's as lovely in the morning as it was last night and there's a fresh breeze blowing.

At nine we go down to meet our bus driver for the rest of the tour, starting tomorrow.  Juan is already there and says there was a communications breakdown...but that's okay, he just comes a little later.  By that time Lisa has come down and Norm is here.  Javier, our driver, is very communicative and we're sure we will be in good hands.  Anyway, Juan selected him, so he knows to take good care of us!!

BEautiful detail in y headboard!

So different in the morning light!

Gorgeous jacaranda trees!

Modern building amongst the ancient ones.

Beautiful wood work

Grab shot of Javier, trying not to be conspicuous!

We set off with Norm to see more of the city, including several fascinating fountains and the largest market in Latin America!  There we have breakfast and wander, noticing that there is a lot of leather and cowboy related goods. Of course!  Cattle ranching is big business in Jalisco, Guadalajara's state.

The Devil's corner!  I didn't see him but maybe you do?

The kids are off from school and everyone helps out.

Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent

Lovely murals, but not as many as in other cities

Down the stairs to the market.

It's three stories tall!  These are the roofs of the stalls underneath.

Breakfast

Beet and carrot juice!

The kids help out, as I said!

It's pork and yummy.

Gardening

It's time to go to the airport to pick up Karen and Alex.  Juan will be doing pick-ups later, so Ginger and I hop a cab and head out. We arrive in plenty of time, since their flight is slightly delayed and we scoop them up and head back to the hotel.  Ginger gets them checked in and they go to their room to get settled.  We go up to the roof and find a shady spot. Soon Alex, Kathy, and Lisa join us and everyone gets acquainted.  

Welcome to Guadalajara, Alex and Karen!

  

Will you marry me?

Karen is particularly interested in seeing the market, and Alex hasn't eaten all day, so off we go!  There is so much to see and so many food places to choose from, but we select one and everyone chows down.  Ginger and I had thought that breakfast was so huge we'd ever eat again.  Silly us!  But at least it was just a little taco and jamaica juice, made from the hibiscus flower.  For a while there is a saxaphone player and eventually he is replaced by a really good singer!  

More wandering and Ginger gets a new belt that she's been needing and Lisa gets the guy to punch a couple of extra holes in her belt. We're all a little beat so we gradually make our way back home.  And what to our wondering eyes should appear but Norm! We veto his suggestion of walking ... somewhere, it doesn't matter.  We're tired!  Lisa and I split off to take some shots and Norm stays with the rest of them.  But they plead exhaustion and he comes to find us.  We're tired, too, and he goes off to run a few little errands and we escape upstairs.  He'll be back for sunset on the roof.

Dress like your favorite Mexican wrestler!

Our hotel

While we're out Ginger gets a call from Laura, saying her plane was late and she missed her connecting flight.  She won't be here until tomorrow.  We'll have to see how that all plays out. For now, I'm just resting and blogging.  Soon I'll text Ginger and we'll probably go up on the roof.  It's so lovely there!

By the time I head upstairs, Ginger and Norm are about to come down!  Juan is almost here with the next six members of our group.  Ginger gets them all checked in beforehand so that they can just take their keys, drop their bags, and meet us back in the lobby by 7:30.  We have dinner reservations at 7:45 at Casa Dolores and it's just a few blocks away. The people in front know where they're going and Juan is at the back to catch stragglers.  We actually have a bit of time to talk and that's a treat!

I hope we pass this way again!  He's got two buddies that are just as cool!

I need to learn his story! And, maybe, climb the steps!

Such a lovely carousel.

And we're here.  All the restaurants seem to be upstairs!  

But that gives us a lovely view!

Ginger stayed in the lobby until the rest of the crew appeared.  They all made it (except for poor Laura!)

What a hoot dinner is!  These people are all so entertaining and the restaurant is a delight! Karen orders a margarita and it arrives in a ceramic skull! The little mini Coronas are free, but mini, and I order a Limonada Electrica, made with Blue Curaçao, cadramom, lemon mineral water and gin.  It must be bathtub gin, because it arrives in a ceramic bathtub, complete with tiny little rubber ducky!

He's stamping a little game board at everyone place, and we each get 
a crayon, too.  I think it's like tic-tac-toe for grown-ups!

"Rubber ducky, you're the one..."

These numbered pictures are all around the ceiling.  It is some sort of very popular lottery 
game.  I think it is the same one we saw in Guatemala.

Such a cool presentation!

They look so innocent and the guac was delicious.  There is meat in there, too.

Love this presentation, too!

I'm still pretty full from lunch so I just order the Tacos de Asada Tijuana, which has three pieces.  I'd have been happy with just one!  They're delicious but I don't make it all the way through. Linda gave one of hers to Juan, but I couldn't convince him he needed another!

Well, we've closed down another restaurant, but it really wasn't our fault! There was quite a bit of time between ordering and serving.  Not that we minded because the conversation never stopped.  But I'm sure the staff wanted to go home.  As do we...

You have to insert your room key, then choose your floor. 
It will only accept the floor on which your room is located!

Ginger and the rest want to get water, but Lisa and I go straight back to the hotel and it is really good to have some alone time with her.  No wonder she and Ginger have been friends for so long.  I already feel close to her! But it's late and we're both really ready for bed! Another wonderful Ginger-tour day!!

(Maybe I can convince Blogger to add videos another day!)