Dia de la Candeleria is a Catholic holiday with many names and meanings. In English, it’s called Candlemas. It’s also called Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord Jesus and Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It falls exactly 40 days after Christmas (birth of Christ) and is the final celebration day for…
I admit it, we are slacking on learning about human healthcare, but finding a good veterinarian for Hayley is a must. As a 16-year-old dog, geriatric care is important. I keep her in good health with a 2 mile walk in the mornings and almost a mile in the evenings, but things do pop up…
On Three Kings Day, our friends Michelle and Alex invited us to go on a day trip with them to a little town called Acambay. Alex’s grandfather grew up in Acambay and the family had some land just outside of town. We didn’t know anything about Acambay, so we were excited to see something new. Located…
It’s one thing to SEE a tradition in another culture, it’s a whole other world to be a part of it. Living in Mexico has allowed us to get to know our neighbors and learn about Mexican traditions and culture. One of those traditions is Las Posadas. Posadas is Spanish for lodging or accommodation. This…
Experiencing Christmas in another country is always exhilarating. What will be similar? What will be different? This is our first Christmas in Queretaro, Mexico. Lights shaped as Christmas trees and stars hang from the lamp posts. Stores are draped in garlands of poinsettias and sparkling lights, and Christmas music blares out of every doorway and…
Halloween in Mexico has many similiarities to the Anglo version. Since this is our first Mexican Halloween we wanted to make sure we were honoring the tradition correctly. We asked our neighbors and they confirmed that kids dress up and go around door to door asking for candy. They don’t say “trick or treat”, but…
Our boxes have arrived! All 63 of them… Yes, we packed WAY too much. The kitchen stuff alone was 42 boxes. No, we didn’t bring our own stove and refrigerator, but Tom is a self-made chef, so he has plenty of “toys.” We shipped a cryovac machine, 22 cutting boards (I don’t know why we…
We did quite a bit of research before selecting the greater Queretaro area to relocate to. One thing we did not look into was what are the local food specialties? Call it dumb luck but we were fortunate enough to stumble onto some fairly remarkable local delicacies, most notably carnitas and barbacoa. Carnitas Santa Rosa…
We were driving to the airport yesterday to pick up my parents during a rain storm. Flooding was everywhere, and Mexicans are horrible drivers even in good conditions. We live 45 minutes away, around a few small mountains on the other side of Queretaro. As we were driving we saw all this white stuff on…
Did you know that Mexico produces and supplies 45% of the world’s avocados? And did you know that Mexico grows 14 varieties of mangoes? One of the highlights of traveling around the world is visiting local markets. Now that we live in Queretaro, the Mercado La Cruz isn’t a tourist attraction for us. It truly…
Deciding where to stay in San Miguel de Allende can be a tough decision. Location isn’t much of a problem since many choices are within a kilometer of the Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel, the pink church in the heart of San Miguel. Beautiful boutique hotels are on every street, all with their own particular…
It’s hard to believe how much we’ve accomplished in our first 100 days in Mexico, and what still needs to be accomplished. Starting a new life in a foreign country is exciting, but it isn’t easy. We aren’t only in a foreign country, but in foreign territory when it comes to the basics of setting…