On this date, in the Plaza De La Liberation, we visit a rally of civil servants. The purpose of the rally is to fight against a proposal to change the pension law. The proposal in congress would change the worker contribution to pension plan from 3.5% to 11.5%! That's no small increase! There was a massive turnout of civil servants against this proposal! Teachers, education workers, water workers, medical workers were some of the many occupations we saw represented! When we took the picture of the education workers, we were asked where the photo would be published. So here it is [View Full Entry]

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During our travels in west/central Mexico we take the oppertunity to vist some of the ancient pyramids in the area. In Colima, we visit "La Compana" site and are treated to an eruption to the nearby volcano while we are looking around. In Jalisco, about 1 and 1/2 hours outside of Guadalajara we visit Guachimontones site. This is on the south side of the volcano of Tequila. Here we see what are clamed to be the only round ancient pyramids in the world. Le learn about how aguave has been a source of food, fiber for clothing and shelter & source [View Full Entry]

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When we decided to visit the beach we wanted to visit a Sea Turtle refuge and to go snorkeling. We got a ride with Rosa from Comala to Tecoman on the day we were going to visit el Tortugario. In Tecuman we hopped on a bus to Armallia where we get a local bus to Cuyutlan. In Cuyutlan we find a taxi to take up the last 3 KMS to el tortugario. Here they collect tortise eggs after they are layed by the sea turtles. They incubate them & on Sundays, they release the babys into the Pacific. We view the [View Full Entry]

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The day of the Dead is a happy time to remember ancestors and loved ones & to feed their spirits. We spent the eve of the Day of the dead in Comala, in the state of Colima. We stayed at a WONDERFUL inn (or Bed-and-breakfast) called Hostel Casa Blanca. Comals is a beautiful, friendly, little town, & the perfect place to unwind after 2 weeks in the big city. On Sunday morning we decide to walk up the road a ways to a small museum in Nogueras. The climate here is definatly tropical, much warmer & more humid then Guadalajara, but [View Full Entry]

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Staying in the Historic Center of Guadalajara has really been a treat. There is always something going on. The Fiestas Octubre has events going on all over town & I was able to catch some wonderful music acts for free on the Plaza de la Liberation or at the stage set up behind the Teatro Degollado. Also wonderful street musicians. We visited the Instituto Cultural Cabanas, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is famous for Orozco's Murals in the main chapel. They were stunning and worth the trip there, but we also got to see the Russian Imperial Crown [View Full Entry]

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When we were approached on the street in Bangkok & asked to be english teachers, that really got me thinking. I knew at the time that I would not have any idea on how to begin to teach english as a foreign language, but I thought I might look into learning. As it turns out there are lots of schools offering certificates for teaching English. I decided to get my feet wet before diving in, so in Feb. 2008 I enrolled in as online class for teaching ESL (English as a Second Language). That class went pretty good, I finished it [View Full Entry]

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My first day in Guadalajara I found out about the Sunday recre-active event. The main street in town, which most of the time is FULL of traffic, is shut down to all motor vehicles, & open to bicycles, skaters, skateboarders, wheelchairs and walkers. There are volunteers monitoring the traffic at all the intersections and it is a big, citywide cycling party! Loads of fun with other groups sponsering events along the way. [View Full Entry]

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I thought I'd include some pictures of relating to the Blues & Jazz Scene for my friends Dan, Soulideth, and anyone else. One of the coolest jobs I ever had was being on the stage crew for lots of Kansas City music events. I worked on the KC Blues and Jazz festival for about 7 of it's 10 or 11 years. Got to work for lots of big name acts but especially enjoyed getting aquainted with several Kansas City music Legends including the Late Jay "Hootie" McShann, Sonny Kenner, and Claude "Fiddler" Williams. Over on the Missouri Side, they opened the [View Full Entry]

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We went to the Prairie Band Potawatomi Powwow & had a great time. It has really become one of the best powwows in this part of the country. I took some pictures of the kids and of a few of my friends dancing. There are lost of Powwows across the US and Canada. They are open to the public. [View Full Entry]

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"Mardi Gras in Kansas, just another day of the week" is a line from a song by my friends Truckstop Honeymoon. Bless their hearts, they decided to do something about that, & start a Mardi Gras Parade in Kansas. It was fun practicing the songs, & working on the costumes! It was fun havin a parade. Here's a few pictures: [View Full Entry]

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