Trip to La Noria and just some observations

Thursday a.m.

Yesterday after we got our household chores done we took a drive to La Noria.
As we were going out the gate at the RV Park [Las Jaibas] I noticed this little bunch of green bananas trying to become a big bunch of yellow bananas. The park has lots of mango trees too – so in a month or so fruit salad!

This is a restaurant just before La Noria – the hive shaped thing in the yard is an horno – a wood burning oven. (Bill loves to tell the story that when he was just a little tyke - around 5 or so living on a ranch in Argentina his mother used an oven like this. And he was the only one small enough to crawl into the oven and clean out the burnt wood. Gives a whole new meaning to Hansel and Gretel) – They do make the best bread though. The oven is just like the one the bakery in Malpica has only this one is outside. Bill wants to build us one when we get home. Just what we need another hobby.

When we were in this area a month or so ago every thing was still really green, but now winter has set in and the plants are brown and or have lost their leaves. But – these beautiful yellow trees are starting to bloom.

Beautiful blooming trees in La Noria

We went to La Noria mainly to visit with Bill’s friend, Roberto, in his leather working shop. Bill wanted to give him the name of the tannery in Guadalajara where we went a couple of weeks ago. As the price of the leather there was very good.

Leather shop La Noria

Bill and Roberto talking about hides. He had just finished working on a custom made black saddle. It was ordered by a Canadian to his specifications and cost US260.00.

The treadle sewing machines he uses. His whole shop is no bigger than 20’ by 20’ if that.   

While he and Bill talked I walked around outside. As always with my trusty camera at the ready. The main corner of town.

Main corners town of La Noria

Looking down one of the little side streets.

The pretty little gazebo. This is one of the few towns where the plaza and gazebo aren’t in front of the church. The church sits up the hill a few blocks. The green building behind the gazebo is a small general store and a home.

Walked up the hill a little – there is the newly painted church in the background and an old crumbling adobe home and a nicely kept newer one.

Had to stop and take a look at these iron stairs leading up to a front door. I can’t imagine climbing them, especially with groceries or something in my hand. I’d break my neck! So many things we just take for granted at home.

By the time I got back to the shop Bill was ready to leave. With a promise from Roberto that he and his wife will come visit us Sunday. We’ve met his wife a couple of times before – she works at the Tequila distillery just outside of town.

Before going home we dropped the laundry off and stopped at Office Depot – needed some of those little plastic rings you stick on pages around binder holes to stop the ripping and some white glue – ours was so old it wouldn’t even come out of the bottle. And need some to reglue the border of wallpaper in the bathroom. (That’s what happens when you clean really good you find all kinds of things that need doing.)
Then to the big grocery store Soriana – we found Basil that we’d been looking for and a new rug for the bathroom. Also got my Dulce de Leche Häagen Dazs ice cream. So it was a productive shopping day.
Came home for awhile and went out later to a restaurant on the beach in Cerritos.
Still haven’t fooled around with the satellite dish – just don’t want to deal with tech support – cause we can’t tell them it is on an RV – that makes them real upset –
Saw a couple of comments on the water truck. I agree the outside looks pretty bad – but it wasn’t leaking and the water coming out looked clean. Remember your system gets used to what you have. Also most of the homes buy bottled water to drink. Also wanted to add that now in the towns and especially the bigger cities themselves the water comes from a city water supply and the old “Don’t drink the water” no longer applies. Same with the ice – it is made with purified water.
Our agenda for today? Who knows. Pick up done laundry, maybe exchange some books, maybe go looking for goat hides or fish skins…….Sound fun?