Visit to Tonala & Tlaquepaque

Guadalajara is home to many artists, creating in many media. As is often the case, artistic communities cluster together, and around here the center of the action is in Tonala and Tlaquepaque (T&T), two suburban areas of Guadalajara.

Tonala is an area of small factories and workshops where much of the work is done, and Tlaquepaque the more upscale retail area where more shopping takes place. A small tour company does a weekly one-day trip from Ajijic to T&T, so we signed up for a December visit.

Our guide, Rosie, picked us up in a small van along with 4 other guests, and despite a lot of early morning traffic, we arrived in Tonala at our first spot – a Papier Maché factory, about 9 am. It was essentially a large cement warehouse, divided into various stations where the mostly animal and bird sculptures were created. The initial creation is made in a rough mold, and when it has dried, various imperfections are filled with wet newsprint. Again after drying, the whole piece is coated in thin clay-like cement, thus smoothing the surfaces even more. Then comes the addition of details, such as the insertion of the eyes (see photo), and the carving of refinement such as feathers, fur or gills. Then comes the painting – brilliant base colors, extreme detail (spots, feathers, etc). Lastly the whole sculpture is glazed, most often with a shiny varnish. All of this is done completely by hand, and the purchase prices are remarkably low. One can’t buy at the factory, but we went to a small store nearby (still in Tonala) where these items are sold. In the end, we decided to wait to purchase the peacock and the toucan that we fell in love with – we’ll be going back! (It seems there are many copycats, including some in China, but these are reputedly the only ones that are done in the traditional way.)



We went on to another factory, this one at the opposite end of the spectrum. Salvador Vázquez Carmona is a well-known sculptor in Mexico whose works grace several major museums. He is generally considered to be the best artisan in Tonala. His studio is a back room of his humble home, which also doubles as a small restaurant on the street side. He creates large and small vases, plates and jugs, all from clay, and all hand-painted with traditional colors and designs. Most he also burnishes by hand using a lump of iron pyrite, which gives them a slight sheen. He is completely unprepossessing, speaks no English, but happily invites visitors to watch him work, and of course, to buy from him. We bought a small vase, with fish on it (no surprise), and it remains a happy reminder of what a single person, with essentially no money, but much skill, can create.

Our last factory visit was to a glass-blowing barn, where many of Mexico’s signature glass styles are created. The most interesting part of this visit was learning that all the pieces are made from recycled glass. This, in addition to being good for the environment, adds bubbles to the glass, which makes it quite distinctive. The shapes are quite dramatic, and not to everyone’s taste, but it was great fun to see them being made.

A short trip brought us to Tlaquepaque where we had lunch, and then wandered the retail areas afterwards. The stores are mostly magnificent old haciendas that have been renovated for retail purposes, though some still have a residential portion in the back. The prices in this area are MUCH higher than in Tonala, for essentially the same thing. The local wisdom says “Shop Tlaquepaque – Buy Tonala”. Should we be in the market for furniture eventually, that’s what we’ll do!

Ajijic - A beautiful spot for the winter

Our apologies! It has been ages since we posted on this blog. We’ll try to post more regularly despite the fact that most of what we are doing is finding our way around the local geography, culture, and language. That and, because Garry is a rabid political junkie, following every nuance of the US election campaign on Star Choice.

We are enjoying Ajijic so far. When we arrived, we stayed with Garry’s sister and her husband Lynn for two weeks while we looked for a place to lease. After two weeks of looking at places that were either too gross or too expensive, we became concerned that it was getting late in the rental cycle. We felt that if we didn’t find something soon, our choices would become fewer and fewer. So, we took a small condominium apartment in a nice but older development called Aves del Paraiso (Birds of Paradise). It's not perfect, but for lack of a better choice, we took it for 5 months. Although it is small, it does have a wonderful view of the lake. Of course, all of this took place before the full force of the economic meltdown had taken hold. Now, it seems that many regulars (Canadians and Americans alike) have cancelled plans to come to Ajijic this year and there are now quite a few nice places for rent.

As it turns out, however, Birds has not been such a bad choice for us. It is a smallish development owned by mostly Canadian snowbirds, and they all seem to have come south this year. They are a very social and friendly bunch and so we have quickly met a number of them. In addition, we also met a number of Daph and Lynn’s friends when we were staying with them in the development next door. Over time we’re confident we’ll have an interesting circle of friends here.

Ajijic is a very walkable town. Most shops and restaurants are within two or three kilometres of where we live. The streets are cobblestone and it’s all very Mexican despite the number of expats who live here. Most things one might need are available, and what is not can be readily found 45 minutes away in Guadalajara, which is itself a major adventure. Ajijic has two or three local “supermarkets” and a brand new Mexican Walmart has just opened. And, there is a local street market every Wednesday morning which has everything from fresh fish to beads and sandals. There is a movie theatre, an active and very good live theatre, many excellent restaurants and cafes of every style (a wonderful new creperie just opened and we are working our way through the menu), and dozens of fiestas celebrating every known event in Mexican history!

The western end of Lake Chapala (Mexico’s largest or second largest lake depending on who you ask) consists of a series of villages along the shore, some of which run together. In order from east to west, there is Chapala, Riberas del Pilar, San Antonio Tlayacapan, Ajijic, San Juan Cosala, and Jocotopec. Ajijic is the largest and has the largest expat population. Chapala, San Antonio and Jocotopec are smaller and mostly Mexican, so there is a lot of variety.

The whole area is very favourably situated for travel to other parts of Mexico. Puerta Vallarta is a five hour drive, Manzanillo a three hour drive, and the beautiful old colonial city of Morelia is only a three hour drive as well. Guadalajara is the closest and with a population of 8 million is the second largest city in Mexico. It has a fabulous cultural life - a State Symphony, live theatre, concerts with international stars like Sarah Brightman who just played last week, Celine Dionne who plays there next week, and this week the Lorena Ochoa LPGA Golf Tournament. It has a wonderful artistic suburb (Talapaque), another suburb where beautiful local furniture is crafted (Tonala), and one of the top two or three universities in Mexico. There is an international airport which has flights pretty much anywhere you want to go domestically or internationally. And first class bus service to anywhere in Mexico (seating pitch is better than executive class on most airlines).

Even though all of this travel infrastructure is available, we haven’t had time to utilize it much. We did, however, have the opportunity to bus it to Puerta Vallarta where we spent a wonderful week with our friends John and Rosalie in their gorgeous condominium in Conchas Chinas. We hope to explore some of the other places during the next several months.

We had a bit of excitement on our return from PV. Sunday afternoon we went to go out for a bit of shopping, and when Garry turned the car on, it started perfectly. Then, almost immediately, there was a loud clunk, followed by a horrible squealing sound which didn't stop till he turned the car off (almost immediately). A bit of research determined that a rather luckless squirrel had found a nesting place near the engine - turned out to be a fatal choice on his part. The bad news was that in the process, a couple of drive belts got destroyed, and the car became unusable. So there we were miles from a VW dealer and with no idea what to do. In the event, we decided to call Volkswagen Americas, a very large dealer in Guadalajara. After informing us that they couldn’t help us unless we could get the car to them, they suggested we try the Mexico VW roadside assistance. We tried that and were informed that it is only for cars purchased in Mexico. We really didn’t know what to do next. Then, a light bulb went on for Ann who said that she dimly recalled that our Mexican auto insurance policy covered roadside assistance and sure enough it did. So after talking to them in Mexico City at around 10 am, a truck (which they arranged) arrived at our place at about 2:30 pm. A very skilled driver loaded the little VW onto the truck's flatbed, and off we all went to Guadalajara - all at no cost to us. By 4 pm we were at Volkswagen Americas and by 5:00 we were back on the road (in a taxi) to Ajijic. Their English-speaking service attendant, Omar, showed us that the belts were in a very difficult location and informed us that it might take a day or two to complete the work. We left thinking that this would be interesting and probably expensive. But, would you believe it, the work was completed on time and for a total cost of 680 pesos, just a little over $50 US. Just another first in a whole series of firsts for us during our six weeks in Mexico.

As we said at the start of this post, we’ve been remiss in keeping up. We promise to be better and post regularly on all of our adventures in Mexico. Stay tuned...

Mexico - the first week

What a week we’ve had! We arose early on Tuesday, September 23 and drove to the border at Nogales, AZ. Our plan was to cross the border using the truck crossing to avoid the hassle of downtown Nogales, Mexico. Following instructions provided to us by our auto insurance company, we crossed the border. It’s rather odd because one drives out of the US and into Mexico for 6 miles (KM 10) before actually reaching the first border station (just a checkpoint really). The road has fences perhaps 20-30 feet high on either side so it’s impossible to wander into other parts of the country before getting to these officials. One must continue traveling to KM 21 where the actual entry paperwork is completed. We arrived there at 8:00 a.m. and were on our way in 45 minutes with tourist visas and car permit in hand. The officials were very friendly and, despite the fact that they speak only Spanish and ours is highly limited, it really was a breeze. And, when we got back to the car, there was a beautiful green cricket-like bug waiting for us - a good luck sign, we figured.

Cricket visitor

After an uneventful 6 hour drive to San Carlos on the Sea of Cortez, we found a reasonable hotel overlooking the marina. A beautiful area, if a bit touristy. We dispatched several large black crickets, turned on the air conditioning (which sounded a lot like a jet engine), and settled in for the night.

San Carlos

The Sea of Cortez was an evocative experience for us because we previously spent 5 months sailing in there in 1984 and another 10 days chartering there with friends in the late 90’s. We have always loved Mexico and it was a pleasure to be back again.

On Wednesday (24th), our destination was the old colonial town of Alamos, a scant 200 km from San Carlos. The town is located 52 km up in the hills east of Navajoa and it’s a very pleasant drive through green fields and forest, a pleasant change from the desert. Alamos has been a town for more than 500 years and at one time boasted 30,000 residents. Now, however, all that remains is the central core with many old colonial buildings. Many of these have been purchased by gringos and restored to their previous glory. Several of the larger colonial houses now operate as B & B’s and others as shops, restaurants and cafes. It is normally a sleepy little place with about 300 ex-pats in residence during the winter months. But, on the occasion of our visit, everything was hustle and bustle because the President of Mexico and several state governors were meeting there the next day. We planned to stay for two days but were restricted to one because all of the rooms had been booked months in advance for the President and governors. However, we were able to spend one night and chose the lovely Casa Puerta Roja Inn, an old colonial that had been lovingly restored by an American couple. The rooms were large and beautifully decorated in the Mexican style, each different from the other. And, the bed was superb. In the morning, we were served a fabulous breakfast of grapefruit (which had been lightly broiled, unusual but very good) accompanied by two scones and a glass of blended orange juice, banana and watermelon. To our astonishment, this was followed by a fabulous omelette filled with cheese and peppers and topped with a zucchini coulis. We ate it all and didn’t eat again until supper when we had a small salad to compensate!

Puerta Roja

Mazatlan was our target for Thursday, a rather long 600+ kilometres from Alamos. We arrived weary and found we couldn’t stay in our preferred hotel in the Mexican sector of the city because there was a convention in town. Down the road two blocks, and right on the water, was our second choice, a very old and very Mexican hotel that has never been renovated. Nevertheless, it was clean and the view of the ocean right across the street was wonderful. In the morning, upon taking our luggage to the car, we discovered that it had rained during the night and a little man from the hotel had completely wiped down our car so that it was shining.

View from Mazatlan hotel

We left Mazatlan early on Friday so that we would reach Guadalajara before the weekend rush started. It was a lovely drive which wound up through green rolling hills planted with pineapple and other crops. Then, as we reached the more mountainous section, the hills were covered with beautiful pine trees with needles perhaps 25 cm long. They were striking and unlike anything we had seen before. We reached the Perifico (ring road) at Guadalajara around 3:00 p.m. and although traffic was heavy we negotiated our way through it and on to Ajijic with little trouble. We arrived at the rental home of Daphne and Lynn to find a note on the door saying that they would return shortly and so we took a few minutes to walk around the El Dorado development where their new house is being constructed. We returned to their temporary home to find they had arrived and we were boisterously welcomed. Shortly after, we discovered that we had been invited to join them and several of their friends for drinks at the home of their neighbours Rod and Terri.

Daph & Lynn's house (rental)
Ajijic town plaza

The next day we wandered around the town of Ajijic, and had our first beer, chips and salsa at a local restaurant near the town plaza. A fine start to our stay in Mexico!

More Tubac adventures

While still at Tubac, we decided to take a run north about 25 km to Green Valley in the hopes of finding a place to wash the car. We couldn’t find a regular car wash but found a good self wash similar to the one we used in Victoria. We were happy to finally be able to clean off a solid accumulation of bugs and dirt, and to vacuum out the interior. However, just as we pulled up to the vacuum machine, we discovered yet another nearly flat tire. Thinking that this was a repeat of the mysterious leak we had in Provo, we looked around for a tire store to have it checked. My, we are lucky! Just as in Provo, there was a tire store not 200 metres away so we very gingerly drove to it and asked them to take a look at the tire. No mystery this time—there was two inch nail embedded in the tread. The OK Tire store removed the nail, repaired it with a boot, remounted it and put it back on the tire. They also replaced a faulty valve in the tire with which we had previously had a problem. We asked for the bill and nearly fell over when the man said it would be ten bucks! Doesn’t get any better than that.

Tubac, AZ

In our last post, we neglected to mention one important subject. When we left Phoenix for Tucson, we decided once again to take a byway rather than the freeway. Along the way, we encountered a massive open pit copper mine, certainly the largest either of us has ever seen. It stretched for miles along our route and the immensity of it was overpowering. The destruction of the landscape was absolutely unbelievable. We later determined that it was the Ray Mine belonging to Asarco. The mine has been in operation for decades, producing 250,000 tons per day. Complete with concentrator and many other facilities, it has to be seen to be believed. We now have a much greater sense of why environmentalists tend to oppose such operations, obviously with little success.

After leaving Tucson, we drove down yet another byway which ultimately took us through Arizona wine country—that’s right folks, Arizona wine country. Ann had stumbled upon a writeup in one of the local tourist leaflets so we decided to take a look. The area around Elgin, AZ has been developing for nearly 15 years now. It is higher country and the soil is reputed to be similar to the Loire in France. After a slow start, some of the producers have now come into their own. Callahan, one of the wineries we visited, produces a wonderful white (its name is “Ann’s”!) that is a blend of chardonnay and sauvignon blanc. It sounds odd, but Robert Parker rated it 92 points, so we bought a bottle and consumed it over the next two days. What a treat – we sorely regretted that we couldn’t take a case to Mexico with us. There were other wineries with some very good offerings although not quite at the same level that Callahan has attained. The whole experience was reminiscent of Mendocino wine country 10 or 12 years ago.

We left wine country, regretfully, and continued on to our stay for the next two nights at Tubac Golf Resort and Spa, which was a rather hyperbolic description of a lovely golf course with an aging resort alongside. However, the rooms were clean and the gracious grounds made for some good walks.

Tucson, AZ

After a night in Peoria (Phoenix), we drove on down to Tucson, found a suitable hotel and settled in for two days of preparation for the next big part of the adventure – Mexico! We purchased automobile insurance for Mexico. Ann did all the photocopying (massive amounts for officials at the border) on the hotel machine, used a third of a ream of paper and the hotel refused to charge us anything. We did laundry, repacked all the suitcases, researched all of our routes and hotels, caught up with our blog and generally dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s. Our plan is to drive south of Tucson to Tubac and Green Valley where we will likely wait until Tuesday morning before crossing the border at Nogales.

Phoenix, AZ

When we left Prescott, we continued on AZ 89 rather than taking a short route over to the freeway and on to Phoenix. We were not disappointed. The road continued to wind through the high country, eventually leaving the forest and continuing through the high desert through tiny little towns like Groom Creek, Wilhoit, and Peeples Valley. Shortly thereafter, the road split and the old road became one-way down while a newer and much better constructed road became one-way up about 600 feet below us. We began a long descent on a hair-raising bit of road that dropped very quickly from 3,000 feet to the desert floor. Many of the corners were marked at 20 and 15 mph and I can’t imagine anyone cheating on those speeds. The views over the desert were splendid when one chanced a glance from the roadway. Thereafter the road became flat and straight through Wickenham and on in to Peoria, a suburb of Phoenix. After a bit of searching, we found a modest hotel for the night. We were anxious to get further south, and we decided not to explore Phoenix any further on this trip.

Prescott, AZ

Much of Historic Route 66 has been subsumed by Interstate 40 which runs across Arizona east into New Mexico and west into California. However, there is still a section of the old highway which starts in Kingman and ends in Ash Fork. It’s a wonderful experience to drive on this scenic old bit of highway. All along there are markers for “Historic Route 66” in the old font and best of all, there are several series of the old Burmashave ads that anyone who drove US highways in the 50’s and 60’s will surely remember. The only thing missing was a picture of Michael Parks and a recording of the old theme song!

Just before Ash Fork, Route 66 intersects with AZ 89, a lovely scenic byway that travels from there down to Prescott, AZ. The paved road is two lanes, and travels for a bit through lush pine forests, the desert unseen until about half way along. We enjoyed the drive immensely and in due course arrived at Prescott.

Prescott was a bit of a shock for us. We had last visited in the mid 90’s when it was a sleepy old town where it was difficult to find a bit of lunch. No more. Now rated as one of the top places to retire in the US, the old historic buildings have been spruced up, new hotels and shopping centres have been built, and thousands of new homes in developments surrounding Prescott have been completed. Though for the most part the developments are in good taste with golf courses, desert landscaping, and decent size lots, alas, even Prescott is not immune to the current financial crunch in the US. There is a lot, and I mean a lot, of real estate for sale, some of which is very attractively priced.

We took the opportunity to wander around the town looking at the lovely old buildings and discovered several interesting restaurants that had not been there on our previous trip. Safe to say, no trouble getting a fine meal in Prescott now!

Kingman, AZ

On our Hoover Dam trip, we had stopped for lunch at Boulder City when we were through. We found a little spot called Milo’s Wine Bar which, as it turned out, made fabulous sandwiches and salads. We all enjoyed it so much that we decided to have lunch there again on Monday. Taking separate cars, the four of us met and had a wonderful last meal together before saying goodbye. One aspect of the life we lead is that we have friends all over the world with whom we stay in touch by email. But, we never really know if or where we might see them again. And so it is with Steve and Patricia who, in their classic yacht Equus, sailed alongside us through the worst of the piracy areas in the Gulf of Aden, sailed down the coast of India with us until their spinnaker blew up, and arrived in Langkawi just a couple of days after us. We had a fun two days with them in Las Vegas and we look forward to being in the same hemisphere again with them in future.

We left Boulder City after making some repairs to the small cooler we carry for lunches, wine, etc. Our route took us over the top of the Hoover Dam (again) and then along a rather straight road to Kingman, AZ. There is nothing in Kingman save for a few modest motels and the usual small town stores. However, it has the singular feature of being the start of one of the original pieces of historic Route 66 which was our target for the next day.

Hoover Dam, Mamma Mia!

Our choice for Sunday morning was a tour of Hoover Dam, an engineering masterpiece that all four of us were interested in seeing. After only about a 35 minute drive from our hotel, we arrived at this truly impressive structure. Constructed over a 5 year period from 1931 to 1935, the dam is 726 ft high, 1244 ft long, 660 ft thick at the base and 45 ft thick at the top. A two lane highway with sidewalks on either side enables cars and people to traverse the top. 4.36 million cubic yards of concrete were used during its construction and, had the concrete simply been continuously poured, it would have taken 125 years to cure, obviously an unacceptable situation. To enable faster curing, the concrete was poured in interlocking 5 foot blocks. The forms for the blocks contained cooling coils that were hooked up to what was at the time the world’s largest refrigeration plant. This enabled the concrete to cure at a much faster rate. Amazingly, even today, the concrete continues to cure. The total cost for Hoover Dam was $49 million which, adjusted for inflation, amounts to $676 million in today’s dollars. Although the primary purpose of the dam was to control flooding on the Colorado River, a power plant was also built as a means of paying for the dam. Today, its 17 huge generators produce up to 2.08 gigawatts of power annually. The profits derived from the power have paid off the cost of the dam and continue to pay for all of its maintenance.

After purchasing tickets for a tour of the power station, we were escorted (much like the Japanese are escorted into a bullet train!) into an elevator capable of holding 40 people for the 560 foot 70 second journey down to the power station. The power station actually has two sides, one in Nevada where we were, and one in Arizona. For some reason, the Arizona side has 9 generators and the Nevada side 8. No one seems to know why. At one point on the tour we were standing in a room built over top of one of the main penstocks. The whole room was vibrating from the force of the water. All of the water from the Colorado River passes through the penstocks reaching a speed of 85 miles an hour by the time it reaches the generators. And yet, with all of that going on, it is still possible to talk in a normal voice while standing in a huge room with 8 huge generators rotating almost silently. An awe inspiring experience! Afterward, we all walked across the dam and the magnitude of the accomplishments of all those workers who had none of today’s construction technologies, really struck us.























On the way out to the dam, Patricia was working the LV ticket agents via cell phone to see what shows were available for the evening. We had hoped to see one of the Cirque de Soleil programs but all were sold out until Tuesday. However, Patricia did score 4 tickets to see Mamma Mia! at Mandalay Bay. And what a show it was. The theatre at Mandalay Bay is a 1,600 seat showroom with one of the best sound systems we’ve ever experienced. The show, as you probably know, is a musical built around the songs of Abba. All the old favourites are included in the production but many of the arrangements are interesting and new. It was a terrific show with a very talented cast and a very energetic audience. It’s one of those shows that have you smiling from the first beat and still smiling when you exit. A great evening, a great finish to a very full day and, at 60 bucks, one of the best entertainment values we’ve had in a long time.

Las Vegas, NV

On Saturday morning, we had a leisurely breakfast of fruit and coffee before packing up and driving from St. George to Las Vegas. Although by this time we were unquestionably in desert country, we were treated to a startling and beautiful drive on that portion of Interstate 15 that traverses the Virgin River Gorge. It was only forty minutes or so but the canyon was gorgeous in the morning light and the highway a delight to drive with long, sweeping, high speed curves around each of which was another unique and wonderful vista. However, that was the best of it. Once through the canyon, it was 4 to 6 lanes of 75 mph freeway right on in to the Strip.

Our friend Steve had made reservations for us at the Sahara which is, I believe, the oldest major hotel on the strip. The four of us had agreed that we would spend our money on food and shows, and not on expensive hotel rooms. The hotel is not a place that one would recommend for its luxury and ambience but it fit our requirements nicely given that all we did was sleep there.

Steve and Patricia arrived late that afternoon and it was wonderful to see them both again. We freshened up and then headed out for drinks and dinner somewhere on the Strip. We started in a bar in Caesar’s Palace and later went on to a terrific dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in the Forum shops. Fortunately, all of us were attuned to American food portions and, sensibly, ordered two plates instead of four. It was all we could do to wade or way through that amount of food. However, the quality, presentation, and flavours were spot on. We agreed on an early night with a view to meeting for breakfast and organizing the rest of the day.

St. George, UT

Our plan was to leave Provo early on the 11th, drive to Bryce Canyon for sightseeing and then stay the night. In the event, things worked out a little differently.

We got up in the morning and logged on to check the weather at Bryce only to find that there was a controlled burn in progress and heavy smoke lay over the canyon. Zion National Park had been our second choice so we decided to proceed with that plan.

We drove to the local Starbucks for a cup of coffee for the road and when we returned to our car we found the right front tire was almost flat. We called VW roadside assistance and, promptly, the Road Medic arrived, changed the tire, put the damaged one in his car and led us to the local Big O tire shop. Upon inspection, which included filling the tire with air and submerging it, no damage was apparent. As a precaution, we had the shop switch the tire on the spare rim (black and ugly) to our normal rim and put the suspect tire on the spare rim. That way we would have no worries about the front tire as we continued on our journey. By the time all that was finished it was 12:30 so we had a quick lunch and then drove directly down I 15 to the brand new La Quinta Inn at St. George (about 100 mi north of Las Vegas).

On Friday morning we drove back north to Zion. There are a couple of options at the south end of the park. One can park the car, shuttle to the park entrance, and take a local bus tour into the park. Or, one can drive up the road to Kolob Terrace and see some of the park that way. We chose the second option and had no regrets. The scenery was varied and, at times, breathtaking. We had a picnic lunch about half way up where the temperature had dropped to a respectable 24C and then completed the rest of our journey taking many photos along the way. We posted the best of the lot below. Hope find them as interesting as we did. Cheers...


Lunch stop







Fields & peaks

Views along the way

Provo, UT

Shortly after we left Logan, we departed Hwy 89 that had brought us such great pleasure and caught I 15 down to Provo, Utah, the home of Brigham Young University, just south of Salt Lake City. Not a particularly interesting or eventful or lengthy drive and we made a short day of it. The next morning we took the car into the local VW-Audi dealer for our first service. With that taken care of, it was back to the hotel, which had a washer and dryer on every floor so we were able to perform some of the tedious personal maintenance that all travellers require from time to time. Later, we took a drive through the university and old Provo with its many historic buildings, all in wonderful condition. It was raining, unfortunately, and once again we were not able to take photographs. For the balance of the day, we rested and read and generally recharged our batteries in anticipation of the next leg to Bryce Canyon and on to Las Vegas.

Logan, UT

Today, we woke up to bright sunshine and very nearly a hard frost. The temperature as we loaded the car and checked out was 3C and definitely chilly. We stopped at a small local cafe for breakfast and had absolutely sublime fresh baked blueberry scones with our coffee. Once more we headed back into the park to rejoin Hwy 89. Our first stop for the day was Old Faithful. Upon arrival, the parking lots were filling quickly and the time posted for the next eruption was 11:19 plus or minus 10 minutes. We had 45 minutes to kill and toured the various shops containing all the amazing tourist kitsch you can imagine. We were tempted by one or two of the more bizarre offerings just for fun but, in the end, kept our wallets secure.

To view the geyser, the park has built benches two deep in a huge circle a safe distance back from it. As we awaited OF’s appearance, there were volumes of steam and the odd burst of water. At 11:14 precisely, the geyser began to erupt. First a few feet, then a few feet more and ultimately to perhaps 50-60 feet in the air it spewed before slowly collapsing on itself to rest until the next event. Despite all the hype, it really was a sight worth seeing and we were again pleased that we had taken the time to stop for it.

We spent the rest of the day travelling south through Yellowstone and on in to Grand Teton National Park with the spectacular Grand Teton clearly visible. Along the way, we crossed the great divide on three separate occasions and reached an altitude of 2,580 metres (8,460 ft) before exiting the parks at Jackson, WY

Just south of Jackson, Hwy 89 winds slowly through the Grand Canyon of the Snake River. It was very scenic with the river and/or the canyon alongside all the way. From there we wound south through a host of small towns with overreaching names like Etna, Geneva, Montpelier and Ovid. Ovid stands out because there is a substantial lumber operation there with a yard full of very sizeable logs and not a forest anywhere to be seen within a hundred mile radius!

We stopped at Logan, UT for the night, another lovely little college town. The temperature when we checked in to our hotel was 29C, quite a stretch from the 3C at the beginning of the day.

West Yellowstone, ID

On the 7th, we left Helena, a very pretty University town, heading east on Hwy 12 and connecting with I 90 at Three Forks and then continuing through towns with wonderful names like Manhattan, Belgrade, Bozeman and Livingston where we connected with Hwy 89. Along the way, we crossed the Boulder, Madison, and Gallatin rivers and, of course, our old friend the Missouri.

(An amusing aside, we had selected one of the smaller hotels in Helena the night before, but upon pulling up to the front door, we discovered a large bus disgorging the Billings Bulls (sport unknown) with all of their equipment. We quickly copped a u-turn and found another hotel a few hundred metres further along where we enjoyed a blissful night’s sleep.)

We chose Hwy 89 on the advice of acquaintances who suggested that we take the scenic route south rather than Interstate 15. It was every bit as good as they had said it would be. From Livingston Hwy 89 winds south into Wyoming to Gardiner and through the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

Yellowstone was such a different experience for us. Generally one thinks of US National Parks as places of awe inspiring natural beauty and, in its own way, Yellowstone fits that pattern although with a slight twist. In 1989, the west side of the park was burned out. Six hundred and fifty thousand acres, more than a thousand square miles, burned to the ground. As a consequence, as you make your way south through the park you are in a seemingly endless expanse of naturally regenerating forest land. And, it is truly amazing how much nature can accomplish in 20 years left to her own devices. Everywhere there are coniferous trees 6’, 10’, 12’ high growing up amongst the standing dead timber which still remains today. It was a powerful experience which, somehow, enhanced our feelings about the park despite our expectations.

Of course the wonderful clear rivers and lakes are all intact and everywhere you see fly fishers enjoying themselves despite the generally cold temperatures we experienced. Surprisingly, we did not see a lot of wildlife although we were very fortunate to see a lone wolf, several wild bison, and a very large eagle.

We stopped for the night at West Yellowstone, Idaho just outside the west entrance to the park. It seemed a little unusual to spend the morning in Montana, the bulk of the day in Wyoming and then dart out for the night to Idaho!

Helena, MT

It was cold when we left Myrna and Eric on the morning on the 6th of September...6C cold. Although we started out in sunshine by the time we reached Waterton Lakes the clouds set in and were to remain with us for some time. After crossing the border into Montana at Glacier National Park we were in completely new territory for both of us. To our surprise and delight, we found great natural beauty throughout Montana.

Our first day’s journey, to Helena via Great Falls, took us through miles of golden flatlands bounded by low mountains on either side. For most of the day, we kept company with the Missouri River which, disconcertingly, meanders north through Montana for hundreds of miles before turning east not far from Great Falls into North Dakota where it eventually turns south east on its long journey to join the Mississippi near St. Louis. We were reminded again how all great rivers have small beginnings. Though cloud cover and intermittent light showers left us little opportunity for photographs, we enjoyed our first day immensely. Luckily, the sun cam out just as we were passing through some spectacular mountains, and we managed to get a couple of good shots.

Summer 2008

June was our first month at our tiny apartment in Victoria, and we spent it mostly exploring locally, including some great hike/walks on the Galloping Goose Trail. While it wasn't hot, we had many good weather days, and managed to regain some of our fitness levels.

July first half was more of the same, but the second half became more interesting. First, we visited with friends Stan & Lynne on Quadra Island (off Campbell River in Vancouver Island). They have a fabulous property on the water, and we enjoyed many hikes, walks and great meals.

In late July, Ann flew back to Montreal to visit her family, while Garry spent that week in Vancouver “receiving” our 40 boxes of stuff which arrived very much intact from Malaysia. Around mid-August, we left our apartment in Victoria. First we headed south of the border (temporarily) to visit with friends Bev & Greg in Bellingham WA. Again the weather was not totally cooperative, but we had a good visit, again peppered with a bit of exercise and lots of good meals.

Then back to Vancouver for a few days in Vancouver with John & Ro, who had very kindly let us leave many bags with them while we made our short trip into the US. Given that they had hosted us for a couple of weeks when we first arrived back in Vancouver, we were doubly grateful. Once again, as you might expect, we ate and drank very well. It was much easier to say farewell to them this time as we expect to see them in Mexico at least once during the upcoming season.

Near the end of August, we drove up to Whistler, where Barb & Harry had generously allowed us to stay at their beautiful new home for a few days. We had a couple of days on our own, and then they came up from Vancouver and we spent a great 3 days with them. What an amazing place is Whistler! Extraordinarily expensive now, but everything is beautifully done, and it was a real pleasure to be there.

We left Whistler and went “over the top” through Pemberton and Lillooet en route to Salmon Arm where we spent one night, then on through Roger’s Pass to Banff for the next night. Again the weather defeated us, and we didn’t see much of the mountains, but what we did see was spectacular. It got very cold, (not freezing at highway elevation, but close) so there was lots of snow on the surrounding mountains.

We passed through Canmore (beautiful spot), and then tooled on into Calgary to Ann’s brother Tom’s house, where he and wife Kathy and sons Paul & Scott welcomed us for the Labour Day weekend. Graham & Dale had us out to their place for a wonderful dinner and reunion Saturday night, but the rest of the time was spent with Tom & Kathy, watching (on TV) Paul play football, watching (live) Scott play hockey, and partying with their friends. An unexpectedly long (3 ½ hour) hike with Kathy in Fish Creek Park gave Ann a couple of stiff legs – and the subsequent hot tub was warmly welcomed. Tom and Garry watched the Calgary Stampeders get unfortunately badly whomped by Edmonton in the annual Labour Day game.

Last on the Canadian tour was the Crowsnest, where Myrna & Eric were great hosts to us for a couple of days. Naturally we ate well, and as a bonus had a chance to meet their friends Ray & Wallace over some of Eric’s personally caught salmon. Eric was heading out to do some halibut fishing as we were leaving, and we almost decided to wait till his return, but fortunately common sense prevailed, and we left Canada on Saturday, September 6, with a virtual Mexico or Bust sign tacked on the car!

Ann & Garry - On the Road

This is the first entry for the ex-crew of the Toucan Tango. As we begin the next stage of our adventure, mainly land travel in North America, we plan to use this blog to keep everyone updated.

We haven't quite started our journey yet, but you can see we've got a zippy little VW Rabbit to make the trip south.