Jo-Lynne Sutherland

gereisd in 8 landen Meer informatie Toronto, Canada

Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 17 mrt 2023
- ☀️ 25 °C
- Hoogte: 1.900 m
- 20.915871, -100.74694120°54’57” N 100°44’49” W
Dag 21
Final Day in SMA
17 maart 2023 ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
So sad to know our time here has come to an end. I’m totally charmed by this place - it’s music, culture, architecture, food - everything. Hope to spend a full month here next year.

Early morning I headed out again for my final hike up the steps, plus new adventures. This time I ventured into a small boutique hotel Cassa de Sierra Nevada, where I saw lots of mojigangas - hence some pics. Next I headed to cafe Rana, that’s said to have great coffee, but I was more interested in the decor - colourful & funky.

At our last Spanish class, I took a couple of pics of our teacher David - such a nice, patient guy. Would love to speak the language well, but have to see if the old brain can hold both French & Spanish.

After lunch we scouted out a Bhuddist Meditation Centre, and actually spent 40 minutes there. Have to confess I don’t know how to mediate, but enjoyed the calm and tranquil ambience.

The highlight of today was when heading home we came across a wedding complete with large bride & groom mojigangas. I couldn’t resist taking pics and a video.
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A wonderful ending to our time here.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 16 mrt 2023
- ⛅ 25 °C
- Hoogte: 1.896 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato Zona Centro 20.914446, -100.74528520°54’52” N 100°44’43” W
Dag 20
Night Out on the Town
16 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
Such an active fun day today. Peter was meeting Glenn for coffee so I headed off on my own adventures in the morning.

This time I climbed up to the look out point for some great views. Then after Spanish and lunch we walked to the Biblioteca Publica because we’d heard they offered all kinds of courses and activities. Like most buildings here, it’s centred around a courtyard with numerous rooms leading off of it. We didn’t have much time to explore, but certainly will next time.

The highlight of the day was a delish Thai dinner that Madeline had prepared, then we headed off for a Big Night Out. What fun it was.

First, we stopped at Ocre to listen to Antonio, who John calls « the piano man » Antonia loves taking requests and can play anything you wish. Little did we know it was 2 for 1 night - this didn’t mean sharing between 2 people - NO, they brought 2 large drinks for each of us. The bonus - and surprise - was that Peter convinced John to play the piano. WOW what talent.

Next stop was El Tupinamba, a matador themed bar, for some good old rock & roll. We were all dancing up a storm like we were 20 again. Such fun. Wish I could post all the videos I took.

Our final stop was Centanni where the floor was packed with expert Salsa dancers. Would love to be able to dance like that. Took a video to show how it’s really done - our old 50s jive just doesn’t compare. 😉

All in all a super fun dayMeer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 15 mrt 2023
- ⛅ 26 °C
- Hoogte: 1.946 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato San Miguel de Allende El Chorro 20.90893, -100.7407720°54’32” N 100°44’27” W
Dag 19
Some of My Fav Places
15 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
This morning I headed out alone to explore some of my fav places. Peter was off listening to John practice piano, then going for coffee.

My fav, of course, is Benito Juarez Park. On route to and from there, I popped into all the lovely boutique hotels along the way, plus some private homes when their doors were open - beautiful sites and sounds everywhere.

In the park, I paused at the children’s playground, herb gardens, our exercise spot, etc etc. On route back, before heading up the stairs for my real workout, there was an art class on the deck of the cultural centre. Lots of talent everywhere.

After breakfast, we headed to Spanish class, which was fun as usual - we seem to be making some progress- simple sentences with millions of grammatical errors but starting to almost make ourselves understood. Fortunately David, our teacher, has a great sense of humour, so there are lots of laughs.

After lunch it rained - was great to have some quiet time to catch up on emails and write a bit on this blog.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 14 mrt 2023
- ☀️ 27 °C
- Hoogte: 1.904 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato Azteca Presa del Obraje 20.923538, -100.74033420°55’25” N 100°44’25” W
Dag 18
Celebrating our 52 & Fabrica Aurora
14 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
After the steps and Spanish, we met John & Madeline at Hotel Santo Monica just across from Benito Juarez Park for lunch. What a beautiful setting. Good food & fun conversations as always. Didn’t mention we were celebrating our 52nd until we were about to leave - so Madeline took some pics.

From thee we walked to Fabrica Aurora, a former textile mill from 1902-91 that still has some of the equipment there, but is now a showcase for artists. There were several artists working there, plus an art class was underway. We had a nice chat with one artist - Germain Ortega Gutierrez - whose work was big & bold and resembled Miro. There we tons of other beautiful - extremely expensive pieces of art.

On route home, we of course passed by the Jardin to catch the action - Mariachi bands, huge Mojiganas, lots of people - a cacophony of sounds.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 13 mrt 2023
- ⛅ 27 °C
- Hoogte: 1.944 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato San Miguel de Allende El Chorro 20.908628, -100.74086820°54’31” N 100°44’27” W
Dag 17
52 Wedding Anniversary
13 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
Can’t believe we’ve been married 52 years. Must say it hasn’t been boring - loved our diplomatic lifestyle moving from country to country and traveling all around the world - not to mention raising 3 impressive girls and travelling extensively now. Life is good. 🤩

Per usual, we headed to the park in the morning before breakfast, but for the first time we paused to notice all the snowy white egret birds up in the trees in front of the cultural centre. Seems it’s mating season so the males were fluffing their feather frantically trying to impress potential mates. Quite the spectacle.

It rained in the afternoon after our Spanish class, so was nice to have a bit of quiet time to catch up on emails etc. We decided we’d celebrate our 52 tomorrow when we have lunch with Madeline & John, so had dinner at home and a calm quiet evening. Soooo relaxing.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 12 mrt 2023
- ☁️ 28 °C
- Hoogte: 1.901 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato Azteca Presa del Obraje 20.916529, -100.74484320°54’60” N 100°44’41” W
Dag 16
Cowboys & Oscar Night at Glenn’s
12 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C
Another beautiful sunny day. In the morning I set off alone, wandered through the park, popped into Santa Monica Hotel to book lunch with Madeline & John the next day, came across several cowboys on horseback, then headed up the steps for a good workout - all before breakfast. I never cease to be amazed by the beauty of this place - aesthetic architectural designs in their buildings, gardens and pathways.

That night we were invited to Glenn & Sharon’s lovely place to watch the Oscars. Interesting to see the various rental homes here and compare value for money. Although we couldn’t find a TV station showing the whole event, the party was good fun.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 11 mrt 2023
- ⛅ 29 °C
- Hoogte: 2.034 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato San Miguel de Allende El Saltito Arroyo de Pilas 20.884871, -100.74455320°53’6” N 100°44’40” W
Dag 15
Hiking with John & Madeline
11 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
What a great day. John & Madeline took us on huge adventure up to the communications towers - a good 4 hours of trekking with great vistas of the city below.

We headed up “our” steps, then towards Centro Comercial La Luciérnaga. The route up, then down to somewhere near the grocery store, La Comer, was strenuous, but gave us amazing views of the city below. We found ourselves often in areas saying “Propiedad Privada” and “Peligro (dangerous) Prohibido.”

The highlight perhaps was a long rope bridge over a deep canyon. We watched a local man and his dog walk along it. While the man could hold the side ropes, the poor dog had no barriers at all. Talk about a loyal friend - he followed his “master” the whole way. Peter & John ventured out a few steps, but said it swayed crazily.

Our reward at the end was a delicious lunch at Rústica - lovely ambience, good food, plus a well deserved Corona, of course. My Fitbit was soooo proud of me.

Definitely one of the highlights of our trip so far. 🤩 We got back in time for 2 hours of Spanish. Not sure if our brains or bodies were functioning well by then.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 10 mrt 2023
- Hoogte: 1.899 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato Mexiquito Cachinches 20.91758, -100.74697120°55’3” N 100°44’49” W
Dag 14
David & Lisa, Berlin Restaurant
10 maart 2023, Mexico
We’ve been varying our morning routine a bit - still the park, then the steps, but in various orders - plus we found more steps even higher up. A good workout.

In Spanish we’re making slow progress - can now say a few phrases but it’s still painful, but hilarious, listening to us trying to express ourselves.

In the evening David & his sister Lisa invited us to their home for drinks. We then hosted them at their fav restaurant, Berlin. Their father was a graphic designer who lived here for many years and designed lots of homes. David & Lisa have now inherited his place. It was such a fun evening - both had so many interesting unusual stories to tell.

Another good day.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 9 mrt 2023
- ☀️ 29 °C
- Hoogte: 1.913 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato Zona Centro 20.911158, -100.74453720°54’40” N 100°44’40” W
Dag 13
Pickelball & Drinks at Sue’s Place
9 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C
Finally, I had a chance to play pickelball in San Miguel. It’s more complicated than in Arizona as you have to sign up in advance on Playtime Scheduler. After I’d set up an account and logged in, I saw that all the courts were full for the next 2 weeks.

David, my PB friend from Toronto, told me to come anytime and join his group. He plays in the highest level 4- 5 so it was great fun. The 6 men were extremely good, but “kind” - and I was delighted as I really played up. Such fun. Getting there & back, though, is a real pain as it’s far away, so think I’ll leave my PB to Arizona where I just have to walk across the street.

In the evening, Sue invited us to her place for drinks & pizza. It was spectacular - large, spacious & tastefully decorated. We found out it was $US 10,000 / night. 😲Tony & June Eyton were also there so Peter enjoyed reconnecting with him, and I enjoyed meeting them both.

Another fun day.Meer informatie
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Reiziger Mexico & Arizona 2023
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- 8 mrt 2023
- ☀️ 29 °C
- Hoogte: 1.927 m
- Mexico Estado de Guanajuato Azteca Presa del Obraje 20.915434, -100.74050120°54’56” N 100°44’26” W
Dag 12
International Women’s Day Parade
8 maart 2023, Mexico ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C
Such a great day - morning exercises, first Spanish class, then an amazing
parade celebrating International Women’s Day. A bit about each:

The steps in the morning are getting a bit easier, and the photo ops are great.

At 12:30 we started the first of our 10 Spanish lessons. We were hoping a bit of what we’d learned in Guatemala 47 years ago would pop back into our brains - but no luck. We started at the basic basics - my name is. It was hilarious listening to us throwing in French words, with a weird Spanish accent in the hope they might work - which they seldom did. Our teacher David is young, only 27, animated, positive, and smiley with a good sense of humour.

The bonus was in the afternoon when we wandered to the Jardín there was a huge parade with hundreds of girls & women. Even all the police were women. Wish I could have understood what they were saying. Absolutely loved the vibe.

A great way to end the day.Meer informatie
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