Sunrises

Lately we've had some really pretty sunrises back over the hills.

These are some photos Carla took one morning while she was here.  They were taken from up on our roof. 

 

 

And Carla also snapped this interesting photo from our courtyard one morning.

A few days later I shot photos of this sunrise.

And last week, I shot this colourful sunrise.

This is an interesting photo that I took yesterday morning.  The light was just right to outline the hills.

 

Big Beautiful Basil

When we were at the La Cruz market a couple of weeks ago, one of the vendors was selling fresh basil.  Even though I grow my own basil in pots, this huge 14" x 14" bag of fresh picked basil looked so good, I couldn't resist buying it.

The leaves on my basil plants never get anywhere near the size of the leaves on the basil I picked up in La Cruz.

My basil plants looks like this.

And when I harvest my basil, it looks like this.

I don't know what the basil from the market was fertilized with, but the leaves were really bright green and huge.










The first thing I did with the basil was make a batch of pesto which I spooned into small baby food jars and froze.  After I filled my jars with pesto I poured a bit of olive oil in each bottle before freezing.  My pesto remains a beautiful avocado colour and is good for at least six months in the freezer.

This is what stilled remained of the bag of basil after I'm made my pesto.
  




I placed the stems of the balance of the basil in a container with a bit of water in the bottom, covered it with a plastic bag and put it in the fridge where it stayed fresh for a good three weeks.

We had fresh basil in sandwiches, salads, salsas etc. for many days after I'd bought it.

Not bad considering that humongous bag of basil cost me only 40
pesos or about $3.40 Canadian. 

Early Semana Santa

Semana Santa (Easter/Holy Week) is obviously coming early to Guayabitos this year.   Yesterday, we had Mexicans setting up camp in front of Casa Que Sera, and the holiday is still weeks away.  

It started out with one small tent.

But by the afternoon, more tents were being set up.

This large extended family of about 10 adults and 15  - 20 children certainly aren't poor Mexicans and could well afford hotel rooms.

The crew has top of the line tenting gear with all kinds of bells and whistles, high end clothing, the best of beach toys and nice vehicles. 

It's very frustrating, because we keep our end of the beach in really good shape and free of weeds and other beach refuse, but I guess it's only natural the campers like to set up their "home away from home" right in front of us.

There are rules in Guayabitos that prohibit any camping on the beach and any parking in cul-de-sacs.  It's just too bad the rules don't always get enforced.  

The camping wouldn't bother us so much if there were public toilet facilities on, or near the beach for all these people.  The closest banos are at least 20 - 30 minutes away in the town's shops, hotels and restaurants.  Not nearly close enough when nature calls ! 

It will be really interesting to see just how many campers appear over Semana Santa this year.

Good thing you were here when you were, Carla. 

Patiently Waiting to Steal

Several times a day, local fishermen set their nets out in front of Casa Que Sera.  I  have seen this done thousands of times over the ten years we've been here.

As soon as the fishermen arrive with a net, the pelicans and frigates start to circle in anticipation of a free meal.

But yesterday morning a new thief arrived and quietly stood near the gate of our property.  The heron, in the following  photo, waited patiently while observing the busy scene that was happening just a few feet away.

After patiently watching for a while, the heron surprisingly started inching its way towards the crowd of people and other birds.

 

And pretty soon he was within a couple of feet of the fishermen and these spectators.  This was the first time I'd ever seen a heron get this close to people.

The heron stood deadly still and watched 'til one of the frigates grabbed a fish from the net.  Because the frigate didn't have a good hold on the fish, it immediately fell to the ground.

 

With lightening speed, the heron snatched up the fish, headed back towards our gate and swallowed the entire thing in just a couple of gulps.  You can see the fish lodged part way down the heron's long slim neck.

The heron then took one more look back at the crowd, obviously decided not to push its luck any further and flew away. 



As usual, the frigates and pelicans managed to steal a bunch of the fishermen's catch, but they left more than enough fish to keep the fishermen happy.

One of the younger fishermen grabbed a few of the larger fish and headed towards the river to try and sell them to the Mexican couple who'd been standing around earlier.

I'm sure it'll be a long time before I ever get to see another heron get this close to human beings.

 

Bold Bright Beautiful Pink !

Who would have ever thought I'd turn into a "Pink" person at the ripe old age of 65 ?

I have pink in my garden.



And I happen to own a few pink pareos (wraps - sarongs) which I love to wear.

And there is just a hint of pink throughout the interior of Casa Que Sera.

Pink makes me feel happy and alive and almost, but not quite, Mexican.