My Photo Albums
January 2012
Aiden's Birthday.
April 2012
My backyard in April when the flowers start to bloom and the Iris and Dianthus show off their spring colors. Aiden kicking the soccer ball for soccer practice which he seemed to enjoy. Easter would not be the same without the Easter egg hunt and dinner at Grandma Roark's.
May 2012
Aiden's field day at Howard's School in Gallatin, Smyrna Air show with the Navy's Blue Angels and the whole hoopla for a fun day in the sun.
June 2012
Family in East Tennessee and the Dragon a curvey ride in mountains.
Drive to Mexico 2012
Driving to Mexico was a big adventure. Yes, I had to stop in the town with no morals, New Orleans, a town I alway enjoy. I take in the beautiful scenery of West Texas before getting to the border. Crossing into Mexico and driving south I had never seen such a diverse place of grand granite mountains, deserts with Joshua trees, and vast farm lands. A change in climate and enviroment was rapid as I drove along.
Faraway Places June 2012
After a long drive to a new place, here we are in Ajijic Mexico, with mountains, lake, hiking trails, and lots of retiries.
July 2012
El Tepalo water falls with CB, Ajijic Festivals, and Ajijic street scenes. A climb to La Chupinaya it would be my first. The mountain starts two blocks up the street I live on. The Sacred path to the Chapel and Three Crosses is the starting point. You hike to the chapel on a path that zigzags up. At that point the path starts going up until you reach the saddle which is an open area with corn fields and the top of this mountain. You go around and down the mountain a little ways, and then you start climbing again till you reach the top of La Chupinaya at about 7,900 feet. It is not an easy climb, but it sure is one pretty one.
August 2012
Chapala with Sara and CB to be tourist. We caught the bus out of Ajijic for a trip to the market. Mercado Libertad (Liberty Market), better known as Mercado San Juan de Dios (San Juan de Dios Market) is located in the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. It is one of the largest indoor markets in the country with over 2600 stalls. The market has three levels, and laid out so each floor has a theme. There are little paths through vast amounts of goods that you walk. It is just incredible. Guadalajara's Catedral Metropolitana (1568) , Plaza de la Liberacion (Liberation Square), and Plaza Tapatia which stretches out over seven city blocks are just a few of the other things to see. Guadalajara being Mexico second largest city has so much to see there is no way possible to take it all in one day.. Mezcala Island, also known as El Presidio, is located a few kilometers southeast of the town of Mezcala on the northern shore of Lake Chapala, a few miles east of Chapala. From 1812 to 1816, a small band of Mexican rebels held off the Spanish army and navy against overwhelming odds. Tired of the humiliation, the Spanish finally negotiated a peaceful surrender with the insurgents. The island then became a Spanish prison for many years. Rumors have it that indigenous structures and hieroglyphics existed on the island before the fortifications were built, but if so all traces disappeared with the construction. Jocotepec, Ajijic Tianguis, hiking the mountains.
September 2012
Ajijic Globos Festival was a sight for everyone to see. Globos are kerosene fired light paper balloons. Some of the Globos do not make it, and they become balls of fire. Ajijic Festivals are many. C.B and Sarah's last day in Mexico and our hike to the top of the mountain. C.B. 73 years old with a pacemaker and they sit at the top of the first ridge of mountains. I hiked to the Indian Ceremonial Grounds at a 6325 feet elevation on the mountain above Ajijic. At the very top of these grassy fields is the Ceremonial Grounds. The area contains wooden structures that have a fire pit in the middle went covered they become sweat lodges. The center rock circles are where the ceremonies are held.
October 2012
Ajijic, Chapala, Guachimontones Ruins in Teuchitlan, Mexico. These pyramids were built by a highly organized society which had begun in western Mexico in 1000 BC and had reached its apogee in 200 AD. In 1999 they begin to excavate and eventually to restore the ruins at Teuchitlán., Halloween, and hiking in the mountains. A tour through Tres Mujeres Distillery in Tequila
November 2012
Día de la Revolución Parade, Maestros del Arte a craft show, Thanksgiving lunch with friends.
December 2012
Lunch with Mary at La Iguana de Piedra, a hike to La Chupanaya, Monte Coxala.