Flying visit to Spain

Last weekend was a bank holiday and I had booked a flight to see Ciaran in Spain.

It was a flying visit and I think I was in Malaga for a total of 36 hours. I had a great time but far far too short with my arrival on Saturday night being nearly at 11.30pm. And although I was too late for dinner I was greeted by Ciaran with a glass of cava and a slice of cheesecake which was a really nice thing!

On Saturday morning we walked to the beach and had a swim in a little cove. I really enjoyed this and found it so invigorating and made me completely forget that I had been in Ireland less than 12 hours before.

Later for dinner we ate in Araboka which we had been wanting to try for a long time - perhaps since we had lived in Malaga during the pandemic! 

Food was great and the setting was gorgeous and I took the opportunity to wear my vintage Dolce & Gabbana dress.

Of interest about this dress is that Amy Winehouse wore it (not this actual one!) on stage in 2007.  Here's a photo of Amy on stage wearing the dress which is very cool....

And then after a swim on Sunday morning my flying visit to Spain started to come to an end with the need to get to the airport for about 2pm. I was sad to leave but it won't be long before Ciaran is back in Ireland and then I get back to Malaga in July, so all is good!

Ciaran took a break from working in the studio while I was there which was so nice of him (I'll repay the favour when he is next in Dublin!) and we spent the whole time I was there together.

Here's a video of him working in the studio in Madrid so you can get an idea of what he's doing 

A weekend of Culture and Fun!

 I had the busiest and best weekend!

It started with a train ride directly from work in to Dublin City where I headed to Merrion Square Park to attend a Dublin Literary Award event. The winner of the award, Mark Crummey author of "The Adversary" was giving a public talk with a book signing after. Wow, what a great guy, a truly natural storyteller and I'm really looking forward to reading his award winning book. Nominations for books are submitted by libraries all over the world and if a translated book wins, the prize money gets split between the author and the translator which is interesting. 

After this event it was time to meet Ciaran on the Luas on his way home from the airport where we planned to get home and cook dinner and have a chilled evening. Which is what we did!

The next day was where it got really busy! 

The first thing we did was cycle in to town where Ciaran had an appointment to get his eyes tested in Specsavers on Sawson Street. Then it was a quick cycle home to Ranelagh (we cycled the great new bike lanes in the village) where Ciaran met a friend for coffee. A neighbour then dropped in a Rhubarb Tart for Ciaran (nice!) so he popped in to see her when he returned from coffee.

Next it was back in to the city, this time on the bus, where we headed to the IFI in Temple Bar to see the Eileen Grey 1027 film. It was a great atmosphere in Temple Bar and I really enjoyed walking through it to get to the cinema.

After the cinema we walked over the Liffey and headed to Capel Street to go to All Bar Chicken to get wings for a late lunch. These were great, so tasty and a good atmosphere in the restaurant - just good informal food. 

The rain was really coming down at this point but we didn't mind so much because it was not too cold. And so it was another walk back to Grafton Street where we bought a gift for the birthday boy in Brown Thomas. 

After out little shopping trip, it was on to another mode of transport when we caught the Luas home to Ranelagh and then had a little walk back to the house.

A change of clothes, brought us back a few decades, where we kitted ourselves out for a Seventies themed birthday party for Gerry's big day. 

Well what a fun party, we had the best time.  We were home by about 2am but we were too hyper to sleep so we chatted to probably about 3am. 

Sunday I was up earlyish (about 8am) and we headed to Gerry's to give him his birthday present. Then it was back in to town where we hung out on Grafton Street for a bit before going to Bunsen for lunch before Ciaran caught the bus back to the airport.

And for me after Ciaran went to the airport, I went on the bus from O'Connell Street to Rathmines where I bought a cinema ticket to see the new Mission Impossible Movie and I settled in for a nice 3 hours of enjoying Tom Cruise in his latest (and I think last) Mission Impossible blockbuster.

Wow, what a great weekend. I crammed in so much and yet I wasn't one bit tired heading back to work on Monday, in fact I was invigorated by all that I got up to!

Travel recap!

 I'm planning on getting back in to blogging after an extended break where I was travelling so much I was too busy to blog.

Here's a recap of all of the places I visited over the past time while I was on a career break from work:

Spain - Malaga, Madrid, Granada, Seville

Morocco - Marakesh

Mexico - Mexico City, Guadalajara, Oaxaca, Puerto Escondido, Ajijic, Chapala

Guatemala - Guatemala City, Antigua

Colombia - Bogota, Cartegena 

All such great places with the most amazing sights. Antigua in Guatemala was one of my favourites and I think it was possibly the most beautiful place I have visited in the whole world.

Here's a few pics which capture the spirit of our travels

We sent postcards from most of the places we visited - with many of them arriving months after we had left the place where they were sent from 

On the streets of Bogota, Colombia across the road from the Bottero Museum

Beautiful Cartegena, Colombia

A stunning view from a restaurant in Antigua, Guatemala

The incredible Belles Artes in Mexico City

And now it is back to reality with me here in Ireland back at the day job while PIGSY is creating art in an art residency in Spain.

Look forward to some future blogs outlining what we are both getting up to!

And in the meanwhile, you can check out this awesome video of a rooftop PIGSY art exhibition in Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico

Mexico to Madrid

 Well it has been a trip!

After spending 5 months in Mexico I am now in Madrid via Malaga. The 23 hour door to door trip from Ajijic (car to Gudalajara airport, flight to Mexico City, flight to Malaga, taxi to the ciudad) left us in a fairly jet lagged state - we may still be recovering even though it is nearly 2 weeks ago. 

Here's the bones of a post that I made on Facebook just as I left Mexico and I think it highlights a lot of what I loved about my travels.

My time in Mexico has been the most incredible adventure and I will miss it so much. From the hecticness of Mexico City and Guadalajara to the sleepiness of Ajijic with its mountain and lake views, to the welcoming greeting of "Bienvenidos" everywhere we went.

The food has been great and I doubt I will ever eat any better tamales, tacos or my fave, the deeply decadent dark spicey mole. And to think I had my first ever Margarita at Garibaldi Plaza watching a mariachi band while now I've acquired a taste for slowly sipping a reposado tequila after dinner!

Which leads me to all of the dinners and events we've enjoyed with the most truly wonderful people we have met including talented musicians, singers, artists, playwrights, actors, writers, architects, residency directors and residency staff along with other friends that we've encountered along the way. They will all stay in my memories and I hope we will meet again.

Mexico is a place like none other I have visited and it's perhaps the sounds that will stick with me the longest. The sound of the cowboys returning from work as their horses trot along the cobbled streets of Ajijic, while they hold their reins in one hand and a well deserved beer in the other. Or being woken in Mexico City to the ringing of a hand bell to alert residents that the garbage truck is following behind and they need to put their rubbish out. Or in the different towns we went to having a constant sing song soundtrack of trucks blaring out what service they are offering "Estufa....limpiadora" - reminiscent perhaps of the ice cream truck in 1980s Ireland but selling literally everything from cheese, to water or fresh berries from the local farm or of course as above a service to have your oven cleaned!

I got a kick out of the simple things like paying a few pesos to go on a short bus trip. Bus journeys were always fun adventures where a musician or juggler might board to entertain passengers -someone had their rabbit on board one time!

And then there was the nighttime views of stars that always grounded me and reminded me that no matter where I was or how far away from home & friends I was that we can all look up at the stars and know that we are always connected across the miles that separate us.

I've been remiss in writing blogs of late. Probably because I have been having the most amazing time in Mexico. So here's a catch up big blog of all that has been happening and where I have been over the past few months. Now that I have this down, I will promise to keep up with my blogging and write more regularly.

So since I arrived in Mexico back in September we have been in Mexico City, Guadalajara, Oaxaca, Puerto Escondido, Chapala and Ajijic.  In no particular order (I did mention this is a big catch up blog!) here's some of the highlights of the places I have visited and what we got up to.

Xochimilco (Mexico City)

Xochimilco is a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its canals stretching more than 100 square miles. The gardens, or chinampas, were constructed by the Aztecs from juniper branches, allowing them to cultivate crops on the little man-made islands and it was how the whole of Mexico city was in the past.

We journied down the Xochimilco canals formed by these islands in a colorful "trajinera" boat and enjoyed the sights and wildlife.

It was a lot of fun, very chilled out, and I even drank Tequila mixed with a Mexican Mango drink!

Casa Azul, Mexico City

we got to visit Frida Kahlo's "Casa Azul" along with Diego Rivera's monumental temple of art "Anahuacalli".

Such an enjoyable visit to both along with our Mexican guide Mireya and Casa Lu Sur Artists

Luis Barragan in Tlalpan

We visited the incredible Capuchin Poor St Clare's Convent Chapel, designed by the great Mexican Architect Luis Barragán.

Entry is at the discretion of the Mother Superior and everyone hands up their phone as they enter as the convent is a place of quiet and worship.

Photos are not allowed so unfortunately I can't show you what this modernist masterpiece of design is like - and this photo of the very ordinary front door does not indicate in any way what awaits behind it.

After the tour with one of the Sisters, Ciaran bought these great handmade rosary beads. The nuns also sell a special egg nog like drink for Christmas which includes the special ingredient of Tequila One man on our tour bought 3 bottles!

Juan O'Gorman Library Building Mural, Mexico City

Visited the National University of Mexico yesterday and got to see the most amazing library.

In 1948, Juan O'Gorman (his father was Irish!) was invited to create a mural on the library building - and what a mural he created on all four walls showing the history of Mexico.

A university education is practically free here in Mexico costing just 1 peso (50c) a year. But of course it can be challenging for many to attend with the costs of books and supplies and the need of many families for their children to go out to work and earn money as soon as they leave school.

It was a beautiful campus with stunning buildings and there was a great atmosphere in the whole place. We visited the School of Architecture and the MUCA Art Exhibition Space. Anyone who gets to study here is very lucky, and I loved it all!

Back in Ajijic

We have returned to Ajijic staying in the 360XQMX Art Residency (PIGSY is working towards a solo art exhibition in January). Below are some of the things that we are currently up to.

Spanish Lessons

We are back taking Spanish lessons since we arrived back in Ajijic. We are doing two classes a week with Javier - hopefully we can gain some fluency. 

Christmas Plans

The big event for us will be the "Feast of the 7 Fishes" on Christmas Eve. We are doing this with a group of Art Residency friends and we are all bringing a dish or two. Ciaran is bringing a Fish Dip Appetizer with crackers while I am making a Tilapia fish dish with a side of brussel sprouts (Ciaran's a fan of these!)

Trivia Nights

On Wedsday evenings we have been going to Triva in The Cocktail Bar (Tom's Bar) which has been a lot of fun. It's finished for the Christmas break but we will be back at it in January.

Saturdays take us to La Fiesta from 4pm to 6pm to watch the very good "Old Souls" band with Northern Irish lead singer Yvonne Watterson.

Fireworks in the morning!

Dia de Muertos in Mexico

It has been a time of celebration here in Mexico for the past few days.

We are in Ajijic and have been able to view and join in all of the festivities including the Virgen del Rosario celebrations, Halloween and of course Dia de Muertos.

There has been fireworks (VERY loud bangers) going off at dawn all over the town leading up to the Virgen del Rosario and then an amazing parade that went past where we are staying.

For Halloween, we bought a huge amount of sweets that we passed out to local children - who surprizingly arrived for trick or treating in cars or whole families loaded on to motorbikes!!

Ixtlahuacán de Membrillos 

And then it was on to the Dia de Muertos festivities with a highlight being a visit to Ixtlahuacán de Membrillos  to see the incredible memorial altars and also all of the ladies dressed as Catrina's for a competition to select the best Catrina. Another highlight was getting my makeup done by JJ in his local beauty salon - didn't he do a great job?!

Here's some pics from all of the different places we have visited including Ixtlahuacán de Membrillos, Tonalá and Tlaquepaque.

Mexico City

Wow Mexico city is incredible!

We've had the most amazing few days after arriving with Aeromexico from Madrid on a super flight.

Literally by the end of the first day we had already visited 2 museums, stopping in to the Women's Museum to see their permanent exhibition and also viewing the Jan Hendrix (pic above) exhibition in Citibanamex Cultural Palace.

We also found time to stop off for a little brunch of eggs, served with a beer and a mimosa.

Constitution Plaza is a stunning place to visit - it is absolutely huge and the buildings surrounding it are immense including the palacio.

The weather is just perfect. However, it is the rainy season so every afternoon a thunder and lightning storm rolls in with rain - but in fairness even while it is raining it is not too cold, so all is fine with a light jacket.