Theme Thursday

This week's theme is WONDER.

I wonder who stops by and buys these hats on the side of the highway in Mazatlan Mexico (February 2013). I wonder how many little girls will love their Easter bonnets that their daddies stopped and selected for them while driving home from work. I wonder if a cowboy just gets an urge to stop and shop for a new hat as he zips by in his pick-up truck. I wonder if the farm workers stop and buy a sombrero to shade them in the hot sun.

Texture Tuesday

This week's theme is DREAM LIKE.

I used Kim's texture Violet.

The original photo was taken in Mazatlan Mexico (February 2013).

Wordless Wednesday

 

I'm posting at Wordless Wednesday today.

 
Also posting at Signs, Signs.

52 Photos Project

This week's theme is Vintage.

This photo was taken this week in Mazatlan Mexico. I converted it to black and white and put a poster edge texture.

Ruby Tuesday

                              

I'm posting at Ruby Tuesday today.  

Salsa in Mazatlan Mexico February 2013

Mazatlan Mexico

About 4 miles north of downtown lies the Sábalo traffic circle in the Zona Dorada (Gold Zone) near the Punta Camarón, a rocky outcropping over the water. The Zona Dorada begins where Avenida del Mar intersects avenida Rafael Buelna and becomes avenida Camarón Sábalo, which leads north through the abundant hotels and fast-food restaurants of the tourist zone. From here, the resort hotels, including the huge El Cid Resort complex, spread northward along and beyond Playa Sábalo. The new Marina Mazatlán development has changed the landscape north of the Zona Dorada considerably, as hotels, condo complexes, and private residences rise around the new marina. North of here is Los Cerritos (Little Hills), the northern limit of Mazatlán.




A pulmonia is a taxi that looks like a souped-up golf cart. Hundreds of these roam the streets. They are very popular among locals. 
Tell the driver what are you interested in seeing or simply tell him to drive you around and get familiar with Mazatlan. You can have a Pacifico or Corona beer if you want. 
The name Pulmonía (pneumonia) comes from the idea of old residents that riding an open air car can give you a cold !!

Viejo Mazatlán, or Old Mazatlán, lies at the southern end of the 15-mile Mazatlán peninsula. The Plaza de la Repubica is the central city plaza, and sits in the center of the historic district. Nineteenth century mansions can still be found here, together with the upscale shops and restaurants of Plazuela Machado, the restored opera house, Teatro Angela Peralta, and the twin-spired cathedral, Basilica de la Purisima Concepcion. Across the street from the cathedral is the popular Panamá Restaurant and Pasteleria, home of the best pastries in Mazatlán.

Two blocks north of the cathedral is the Pino Suárez market, the sprawling central market that covers a full city block. The bustling Pino Suárez market is the real heart of old town Mazatlán, a 110-year-old "super" market that is as colorful as it is functional. From the northeast corner of the Pino Suarez market, the shrimp ladies can be found just five blocks north on Aquiles Serdan.

it's Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. For this meme, bloggers post what they finished last week, what they're currently reading, and what they plan to start this week.

My comments are not meant to be recaps of the story lines as I include a link to Goodreads for their synopsis of the book. I am merely stating how I felt about the book without giving any spoilers.

2012 Recap and 2013 Recap

FINISHED THIS WEEK:

Synopsis here.

I remember my parents talking about how many German prisoners of war remained in Ireland after the Second World War but didn't know about Nazis.

A good novel can teach the rider about a subject. In this case, I learned something I never knew: that Ireland had sheltered high level Nazis after WWII. Ireland was officially neutral in WWII. However, perhaps due to the animosity between Ireland and Britain, the Irish government chose to allow a large number of high level Nazis as well as sympathizers to settle in Ireland after WWII. 

Stuart Neville is a wonderful author. His writing is smooth and clear, his characters realistic and compelling and the dialogue sounds true. The way he describes the action makes it easy for the reader to picture exactly what is going on. 

What’s the point in solving murders if we’re all going to die soon, anyway?

Detective Hank Palace has faced this question ever since asteroid 2011GV1 hovered into view. There’s no chance left. No hope. Just six precious months until impact.

The Last Policeman presents a fascinating portrait of a pre-apocalyptic United States. The economy spirals downward while crops rot in the fields. Churches and synagogues are packed. People all over the world are walking off the job—but not Hank Palace. He’s investigating a death by hanging in a city that sees a dozen suicides every week—except this one feels suspicious, and Palace is the only cop who cares.

The first in a trilogy, The Last Policeman offers a mystery set on the brink of an apocalypse. As Palace’s investigation plays out under the shadow of 2011GV1, we’re confronted by hard questions way beyond “whodunit.” What basis does civilization rest upon? What is life worth? What would any of us do, what would we really do, if our days were numbered?

I read this in an afternoon. A good read and didn't realize it was part of a trilogy.
I'm not sure if I will read the other books in the series. It read a little too much like a young adult story.
The new green cop is gung ho and a little wet behind the ears. His aw sucks personality grated on my nerves a little.
A good book for a cloudy afternoon.





In a flat near Reykjavik city centre, a young man lies dead in a pool of blood although there are no signs of a break-in or any struggle. A woman''s purple shawl, found under the bed, gives off a strong and unusual aroma. A vial of narcotics found in the victim''s pocket among other clues soon lead Erlendur''s colleagues down a trail of hidden violence and psychological brutality, and of wrongs that will never be fully righted.

This is part of a series but is easily read as a standalone. The author has brought another character to the forefront, female Inspector. The mystery flows smoothly and is layered with Detective Elinborg's problem solving abilities, on and off the job, giving the reader a sensitive side to the team's everyday challenges.

I would definitely read another in the series.

Twenty years ago, Henry Evans fell in love with an English girl he met backpacking in India, and he has regretted the abrupt ending of their relationship for years. But when he goes to England to look her up years later there is no easy rekindled romance because he learns that Francesca Chisholm in prison for killing her 5 year old son Harry. Henry is warned to forget about her and leave town, and disillusioned, he wants to, but eventually lingers to find out the truth behind the incident. 

It was too sunny to read on my ereader by the pool as we relax in Mazatlan Mexico. I picked up this book 
from the library by the pool.
One word - boring!! I had figured out "who done it" a quarter of the way through the book.

STARTED THIS WEEK:

Suspended in a strangely modern-day version of limbo, the young man at the center of Russell Banks's uncompromising and morally complex new novel must create a life for himself in the wake of incarceration. Known in his new identity only as the Kid, and on probation after doing time for a liaison with an underage girl, he is shackled to a GPS monitoring device and forbidden to live within 2,500 feet of anywhere children might gather. With nowhere else to go, the Kid takes up residence under a south Florida causeway, in a makeshift encampment with other convicted sex offenders.

Barely beyond childhood himself, the Kid, despite his crime, is in many ways an innocent, trapped by impulses and foolish choices he himself struggles to comprehend. Enter the Professor, a man who has built his own life on secrets and lies. A university sociologist of enormous size and intellect, he finds in the Kid the perfect subject for his research on homelessness and recidivism among convicted sex offenders. The two men forge a tentative partnership, the Kid remaining wary of the Professor's motives even as he accepts the counsel and financial assistance of the older man.

When the camp beneath the causeway is raided by the police, and later, when a hurricane all but destroys the settlement, the Professor tries to help the Kid in practical matters while trying to teach his young charge new ways of looking at, and understanding, what he has done. But when the Professor's past resurfaces and threatens to destroy his carefully constructed world, the balance in the two men's relationship shifts.

Suddenly, the Kid must reconsider everything he has come to believe, and choose what course of action to take when faced with a new kind of moral decision.

Macro Monday

Macro Monday is hosted by Lisa at Lisa's Chaos. 
Macro Monday is easy to play, snap a macro (or any close-up) photo, post it on your blog and come back to Lisa's blog and sign McLinky. 

We watched the pelicans last week while strolling along the malecon in Mazatlan Mexico.

Monday Mellow Yellow

I'm posting at Monday Mellow Yellow today.

Mazatlan Mexico February 2013

Blue Monday

I'm linking up at Blue Monday today.

Mazatlan Mexico February 2013

52 Photos Project

This week's theme is Harmony.

Mazatlan Mexico February 2013

Shadow Shot Sunday

Shadow Shot Sunday

A side street in Mazatlan Mexico last week as we found our way back to the Malecon. These banners always remind me of being a child in Dublin Ireland when they would be hung for any holidays.

New (to me) Blogs This Week

Travel Quest

The Simple Things - Fishing

I'm linking up at The Simple Things today.

We were in Mazatlan the other day and watched the fishermen along the Malecon. 

This fisherman convinced DH to let the birds grab a piece of fish from a stick.

However on another try the bird dropped the raw fish onto DH's shoulder and DH was less than pleased to have raw fish all over his new LV t-shirt!

Menu Plan Update - Week 8

Sunday - Last day in Las Vegas. Packing and afternoon on Strip
Lunch - wings and fries Blondies Planet Hollywood
Dinner - TGIF steak - we had our first meal here when we moved into the condo and have enjoyed almost weekly dinners since December 16 so it seemed fitting to have a last meal here.

Monday - we leave early morning for LA and spend the evening at the airport Hilton
Lunch - Jack in the Box burger - mediocre but we were in bumper to bumper traffic from Vegas to LA. The trip took six hours instead of four.
Dinner - LAX Hilton. Tuna salad and curry chicken.


Tuesday - we fly to Mazatalan
Lunch - aboard Alaska Air, we shared a delicious cheese platter with fruit.
Dinner - Torres Mazatlan restaurant. Shrimps in garlic butter with rice and vegetables.

Will update once we arrive

Wednesday - took the bus ($1 each) to the grocery store Soriana and a cab back ($10)
Lunch - La Palapa restaurant at Torres Mazatlan. Salads
Dinner - rotisserie chicken and salad 

Thursday - lazy day 
Lunch - chicken sandwiches on crossiants
Dinner - beef patties, gravy, potatoes and corn.

Friday - downtown Mazatlan by bus - market and photos
Lunch - calamari and shrimps at The Shrimp Bucket
Dinner - cheese and crackers

Saturday - pool time
 Lunch - club sandwich from Palapa restaurant by the pool - Palapa on the left below.
Dinner - a take on cabbage and sausage stew with chicken. I have homemade stock from Wednesday's chicken. No diced tomatoes available in condo shop so will use just tomato paste.

Saturday's Photo Hunting

Keyhole Pictures this week's theme is your favourite pet.

We don't have a pet currently as we have just moved into a condo and are wintering down south.
We did have a gorgeous cat until last July when we found a good new home for him. He is thriving there.

Weekly Top Shot

I'm posting at The View From Here this week.

Wandering around Mazatlan Mexico this week we happened upon the flower market first by smell - lilies! Hubby dragged me away so I will have to go back for more photos!!

Weekend Cooking

February 2013 - Mazatlan Mexico

We are in Mazatlan Mexico this week. Yesterday we took the bus into town, 10 pesos or just under $1 per person. Not sure where we wanted to get off, we got off at the market, mercado.

Mazatlan has twenty miles of ocean stocked full with lots of fresh seafood ready for catching, especially shrimp and oysters.

Las Changueras are iconic, mostly female street vendors in Mazatlán, Mexico, renowned for selling fresh shrimp from barrels in a dedicated area of the city. Located primarily near the Pino Suárez market, they are integral to the city's identity as the "shrimp capital of the world," offering fresh,, head-on shrimp that can be cooked by nearby restaurants. 

The term changueras refers specifically to these shrimp traders who have operated in the city for decades, often in a male-dominated, patriarchal fishery industry.

Many travel daily, starting work at 4:00 AM, working long hours, and navigating intense competition while dealing with challenges like lack of government support, as reported in studies highlighted in.

We wanted to see the shrimp ladies or changueras. We lucked out and happened to turn down Aquiles Serdán and saw the ladies lining the street under colourful umbrellas. Plastic tubs are filled with brown shrimp, blue shrimp, white shrimp, fresh water, deep-ocean and farmed shrimp piled high upon floating ice. We didn't spend a long time there yesterday, but will be making a longer visit which will include lunch during the week and I'll provide an update next week.