Party town...when the party is over

It's hard not to feel a little let-down today.  Like the day after every big event, Xmas, birthday, wedding etc......the party is over! 

We've just enjoyed another "week in paradise" attending as many events as possible of the annual Zihuatanejo International Guitarfest.  By everyone's account, this was indeed the best ever.   It's the 10th, and it was time to move up into the big world of concerts, overcome past problems of sound, lighting and venue suitability and I would have to say that this week showed how well it can be done.  How does a small Mexican tourist and fishing town, plagued by problems related to the US travel advisory, worldwide economic collapse and drug cartel violence stage an international festival of this calibre?  Well, in my mind, it boils down to a few good women who knew it could be done better.    The women who organized this event are a mix of local Mexican business women who wanted to embrace the slogan from last year's festival...."es tuyo" or " it's yours"....this festival truly is the town's opportunity to highlight Mexican's love affair with music and guitars.  They were on the committee lead by a few young American women who are savvy with e-marketing, music and networking.   The goal of the festival used to be to support a small Casa de la Cultura (Arts workshop) here, but in reality, the biggest benefit to the festival is to tourism...which is the lifeblood of this community.  When tourists come, everyone is happy!   

The musicians are an eclectic mix of classically trained perfectionists, playing intricate pieces on highly specialized instruments to the down and dirty sounds of aging folk guitarists who play a single chord while belting out their soulful melodies.  And for the most part it works, cause just like in everything,...there's no accounting for taste and the range of tourists attending is as diverse as the music.    But the highlight of every festival is the finale where no matter what style the guitarist prefers, they all blend into jam sessions that have the audience cheering for "uno mas"..and those of us who can, dancing like there's no tomorrow..

 But the "tomorrow" has arrived.  Our friends Lynn and Barry, my longtime nurses' training amiga and her husband, are staying in Zihuatanejo for 6 weeks, at our rental apartment and experiencing Barry's first two months of retirement Mexican style.   We want to give them their personal space, but as always, we like being "tourguides".   So lucky for us, they've enjoyed our regular run to Saladita, a second shopping spree to Petatlan and the new archeological site at La Chole.  Lucky for us, but not so lucky for my camera.   3 digital cameras in as many years have bitten the dust here.  This one actually did bite the dust along the road edge as we squeezed our 3 generous bottoms into the back seat of our already tightly fitting car with Cori in between...and somehow the camera missed entering the vehicle, and may well have been driven over on our way to the museum at Soledad de Maciel.   I'm sad, but can only say...it's one more sign along the way that it's time to head home...time to face whatever reality living is going to throw our way this year.  

We've got 5 more weeks to experience our Mexican life in the tropics.  Between now and when we return to Canada, there's Zihuatanejo's version of Carnavale...a visual spectacle that includes an awesome costume parade and the annual Feria de Artesanias in Uruapan  Michoacan.   And last but not least, how can I forget Semana Santa, the two week period that is a combination of Easter and Spring break that draws crowds to Zihuatanejo.   I've been dealt a blow, with the loss of a functioning camera, but Gene has promised to help me to keep my photographic interest alive. So on our nightly walk down Calle Adelita, when he spied the "shaving brush tree" still showing off it's lavishly exotic nighttime flowers that are the magnets for the bats in the area...he made me proud with this little visual extravaganza. 

 
Party on.... till the cows come home..or in this case, till we head home with Cori...the best travelled dog in Mexico!