check out my new writing computer desk. i spotted the frame first and then realized it came with a desk. we got it at a local furniture store that is owned by a brother and sister. he is the master furniture maker and does the carving. he's into antiques and has some very interesting pieces mixed in amoung the furniture. the also sell some pottery and yesterday had metal mirrors from san miguel de allende. my favorite store around here.

beach glass and shells


our very own bananas - almost ripe. the ones on the bottom look ripe but they're not. they have to be totally yellow. even a tiny green spot means a bitter taste. they're yummy when done though. a little tangier and firmer than the ones we get in grocery stores. and a lot smaller!

i have no idea what this plant is. it's viney and is growing on our fence. has a neat little yellow flower then yesterday i discovered the fruits in the open and closed versions.

la colonia beach

Today was a very good day. We hired a ponga to take us to the island that is right out in jaltemba bay in front of la penita. nice ride out there. we arranged for him to pick us up 4 hours later. we took lunch, beach umbrella, snorkel gear, etc. there is a small sand beach there at high tide line then about a 5 foot stretch of small rounded rocks then a strip of firm white sand . the tide went out during the day so this strip went from about 30feet wide to maybe 50. the water there was very clear and a lovely turquoise over the sand and deep blue out further toward town. we were on the lee side of the island so it was very calm most of the day for snorkeling. there are a lot of rocks and in front of the bay that attract various neat colorful fish. i have no idea the names of them but tiny deep blue ones, ones with yellow stripes, a black one with neon blue spots, etc. lots and lots. the water is so warm you never get cold. too neat.

Kris and Paul boogie boarding on Jaltemba Bay about half way between Guyabitos and Playa de Naranja.

check out the squirrel. seems funny to see one in a palm tree doesn't it. the leaves on this type of palm really rustle when the wind starts to blow.

the pumphouse iguana

Iguanas

Yesterday as i was washing the dishes i happened to look out the window. there is a tall dead tree with a few branches at the top just down the hill a bit in the jungle. on top of one of the branches was a big lime green iguana. i suppose it was maybe a foot and a half to two feet long. it stayed up there for hours. i checked again in the afternoon and there was another one, a bit smaller and the same green up there. wow! i thought about how difficult it would seem to be for them to climb up there as they move pretty slowly and awkwardly up there. and probably even more difficult to get back down. i thought it would be fun to try to get a little video of them, if they would move that is. i went outside around the house and was about to turn the camera on them when the smaller one must have seen me and got frightened, though i don't know why as the other one watched me hang up clothes etc for a long time. the little guy just heaved him/herslef off the tree and leaped down into the jungle. hummmm.....slick and it never would have occured to me that would be the way to get off the tree.

we also have a big grey iguana living under our pumphouse. we think it drinks from the swimming pool as it comes out and heads over that way. yesterday the pool was empty so i took a bowl of water over by the hole it goes down in and sure enough it drank out of it.

there is some kind of fairly large lizard living in a pile of bricks beside the house too. i have not seen the whole lizard but have seen its tail. when it hears someone coming it apparently jumps headfirst into the brick holes but about 10 inches of its tail stick up in the air. when i first saw it i thought it was a stick but it looked a bit weird and on closer inspection i realized it was smoothly round and scaly. i had a very strong urge to grab ahold of it but resisted that as who knows if they bite or what!

I couldn't get to my camera cord as it is early in the morning and kris is still sleeping and the cord is in the bedroom, so I put on the photo of a wonderful Chilkat Dancing blanket that i have partially restored. if you look close you can see that the middle section is still unrestored.

the sun is almost up here in la penita. birds are starting to wake up and get noisy. just as the sun hits the tops of the trees is the best time to watch them. i'll have to get out there soon. i think i hear some oriels and maybe a caicique (not sure that is spelled right but it sounds like caw-seek.) they are about the size of crows and look a bit like them but have bright yellow on wings and light yellow beaks. fly around in flocks and are quite raucous.

trying to kill the mold

We arrived here about 6pm after a really safe ride in a Puerto Vallarta taxi. Decided just to bite the bullet and pay for the convenience of a taxi to our doorstep (well not quite as i explain later). We got behind a super slow old truck. Our driver was a nice older guy and valued his life and ours quite a bit it seemed as he didn't pass the thing though cars and trucks piling up behind took every opportunity to pass both our taxi and the truck. i told the driver in my bad espanol that this was just fine, i liked his cautiousness.

This cautioness was not a plus when we actually got to calle oceano atlantico though. Its a rough dirt road and our house is at the end of it. The last two blocks of it were a mess. I guess about a week ago the water company came up and dug a big ditch alongside this road leaving a 3foot pile of dirt in one of the wheel tracks of the road. Vehicles have to drive in the remaining track and in the weeds to the side of the road. Not that bad really but it looked pretty scary to our driver. After he drove us about half way down to our house, leaving us probably a 500 yard walk with our loads of heavy baggage, he said no he just couldn't go any farther. sigh. Kris paid him and we set off with a dim flashlight and a couple of lighter pieces of the luggage along the rocky road toward our house. The neighbors dog heard us and started barking furiously which alterted our neighbors who came to their gate to see what was out there. At any rate they ended up driving their car up to our luggage and helping Kris get it down here.

Inside our living area, the lower part of the house, we discovered (not really to our surprise too much though) everything covered more or less with mold and rank mold smell in all the rooms. Not having enough time or energy to do much about this, we made up the bed in the upper level guest room and called it good for the night. Walked down the hill to find a restuarant but were so tired we opted to get some bread, cheese, milk and cereal and took a taxi back up the hill. (ye we had to walk a couple of blocks at the top but at least it is flat up here)

Photos are of all the bedding etc we are trying to get the mold smell out of. All if this said, it is still wonderful to be here. There are more bananas on the trees than I've ever seen. My plumeria is starting to bloom (after a couple of years looking like a dead stick tree!), bouganvillas thick and healthy looking, butterflys everywhere, and best of all the warmth ad blue sky and lovely greenery everywhere.