It has been a long time since I last published on this blog and I am sorry about that. BUT! With this long break, we have some exciting news: we have a new casita. Let’s back track a little bit. Last week, our great friend Dianne invited us to stay in Casa Luna. One night turned into three turned to one week. Our week in Centro was fantastic. We went to our studio to work during the day, sat on the roof of Casa Luna with beer and guacamole in the afternoons and ate at great restaurants in the evening. We [View Full Entry]

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As always, the whirlwind of holidays have come and gone. The Jardin has been decorated and the flickering Christmas lights are still around the little houses in our colonia. I always dread having to take down the Christmas tree...but it is that time. I think the most amazing thing we saw this holiday was at our little gordita restaurant down the street. We went for breakfast one morning and enjoyed our usual egg and picadillo gorditas and Cafe de Olla. We have become pretty good friends with the family that runs this little business and so while we were eating, the [View Full Entry]

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Ronnie and I have been here just under 6 months now...and it was time to take a short trip back to the Land of Liberty. We decided on the most calm, neutral and relaxing city to ease us back into American culture...Las Vegas. We left our little casita very early in the morning and took the long trek to Sin City. We arrived at 1:00pm which left us plenty of time to do some major clothes shopping and to induldge in one of the things we have missed the most in SMA: really fresh sushi. It just happened to be Happy [View Full Entry]

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It's my second year of having Thanksgiving away from my family. Last year I was in New Jersey with Ronnie's folks. This year, I am in the middle of Mexico. But to say that I was away from family doesn't feel right either. Last year I was with Ronnie's wonderful family who always treat me like one of their own. This year, I was with my new international family. The magic of the holiday and the feeling of a family that goes beyond blood relations was one of the most powerful emotions I have experienced in my time here. Ronnie and [View Full Entry]

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It has been really cold lately here in SMA. Everyone is wearing puffy jackets and scarves, but cold weather never stoped a great Mexican Celebration nor a Parade...(I think in fact nothing can stop them.) Yesterday was the aniversario of the start of the Mexican Revolution in 1910. The conflict lasted until around 1920 and many legendary Mexican heroes were involved: Pancho Villa, Emiliano Zapata, and Francisco I. Madero among others... The memory of the struggle lives on today in a parade in which children dress as revolutionaries with fake mustaches and long braids with ribbon. Last w [View Full Entry]

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Halloween is always tied for me (with Christmas) for favorite holiday of the year….well I really love Thanksgiving too…anyways, Halloween is only kind of celebrated in Mexico. The holiday here is called Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). We bought all the items to make our alter to our loved ones: Marigolds, candles, pan de muerto, sugar skulls and sheep, a cup of water, a plate of salt, paper cut-outs and pictures of our dearly departed. Our alter has been up for the past week, awaiting the night the dead walk among us. Let’s go back a bit though [View Full Entry]

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We can't take pictures as our memory card broke! We are going to buy a new one before Dia de los Muertos. Sorry for the delay in blog postings! Happy Halloween! [View Full Entry]

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Before we moved to Mexico, there were several fiestas that I was particularly looking forward to experiencing...one of them being the celebration for Archangel Michael, that rad angel that lead the army of angels against Lucifer. Michael is always seen here wearing armor with a helmet, holding a sword and usually stepping on the devil's face. San Miguel de Allende is named after this protector and so when the day comes to honor him, it is not only to celebrate the angel, but to celebrate the town itself. Ronnie and I had been looking forward to this event for weeks. Finally, [View Full Entry]

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Since Ronnie is much braver than I, he went to a bullfight and I did not. Since I think this is such a neat cultural experience, I am handing this blog over to Ronnie to write for this entry. Enjoy! -JB "Bullfighting is the only art in which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter’s honor." - Ernest Hemingway A guest blog entry by Ronnie: “It’s so cruel.” “Oh disgusting” “The poor animal.” Inevitably I would receive a response like this when I mentioned [View Full Entry]

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Both Ronnie and I have been wanting to learn more about Mexican cuisine while we are here, especially all those different chiles! Luckily, my mom and step-dad Mitch were also very interested in taking a class....luckier still was that Dianne was offering a class out at her rancho with the amazing chef Kirsten West! (She worked with Dianne Kennedy, Rick Bayless for years and was Mick Jagger's personal chef for four years! He is very nice and down to earth she says) We drove out the the beautiful rancho with 2 other couples. Still, every time Ronnie and I go there, [View Full Entry]

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