Hal

I did that Sandwich to go promotion and the sandwich was big enough for two of us to share that night

GOD I LOVE MEXICO!

Thank you Val. I do appreciate your professionalism and willingness to listen

If you believe an 85 year old Mexican grandmother who lives at 6 corners and the public servants in town hall have the same core value I do not know what to say. I have made my statement and it has been dismissed and the your response, and inability to entertain any change tells me all I need to know. I had not supposed this forum would be the place to create a new awareness and it seems I was right. Thank you

The term grumpy gringos is completely false as is computerguys assumption that I am new to this area. I am one of the few gringos in the area that you will find at almost every Mexican Fiesta and event and I do not live my life as if I am still north of the border or shuttered away in a gated community. I have been here almost 15 years lakeside and am not trying to re invent the wheel. If anything my objection is gringo events that are thoughtlessly planned with little consideration or respect for the Mexican community who was here long before we were. I knew Elliot and she was a fine woman. I understand that the Thrill of the world event happens at exactly the same time all over the world and local planners can not change that if they want to participate in the world wide event. I also appreciate that this event raises money for local charities. I understand you have no control over the date or time but you DO have control over the venue. I can understand perhaps in the first years how it had to be in a prominent public place to draw attention to the event. That is not the case now and it is certainly a destination event that people plan to come and see. It could be just as successful in the venue I suggested in La Floresta and you could completely avoid any of the negativity that has become associated with it. I may be the lone voice on this thread but I assure you I am not alone in my feelings regarding this, especially in our local Mexican community. It is not in the nature of our local Mexican community to get in the face of the gringo planners and participants especially by the older Mexican members of the community but this IS distressing to them. Perhaps the planners have been unaware of these feeling but they certainly are not now. When you are planning to participate in a gringo event that glorifies un-dead zombies who are living in a kind of purgatory instead of the afterlife that is the base of the Mexican tradition of Day of the Dead and the goulishness on Halloween is put in the face of one of the most holy days and processions as the Procession of the Virgin of the Rosary (the culmination of a month of fasting, prayer and masses); it defies logic that you could be unaware of the cultural conflict unless you live your life divorced from the local Mexican community. The Virgin of the Rosary Procession route is from seis esquinas (six corners) to the church at the plaza and even if you endeavor to be complete before they march that route, we all know zombies do not just go home after the event. Why is that venue your choice when there are other options? I can not understand it or the push back I am feeling on this thread. To me it just feels like another example of "we are gringos and we do what we want" with no thought to others.

Thanks Gringal. This makes me feel much much better. Hopefully them dancing across the plaza and then back to 7 corners did not interfere with the virgin of the rosary procession. It still seems unnecessarily close to the Virgin of the rosary. I don't understand why they don't just avoid the issue and move it to a place like the La Floresta Castillo Plaza. Plenty of room, plenty of parking no issue for anyone

They had moved it to the malecon in the past. I obviously do not attend it but the calendar this year said it was in the Plaza once more

I am surprised that you seem to be taking this so personally. There are numerous posts on this thread about the inappropriateness of Halloween and it's conflict with a very spiritual celebration of Day of the Dead. That the Thriller event is held in a public place at the same time that the virgin of the rosary procession IS a conflict in the community and I am not alone in my feelings about this. If it was held for instance at the La Floresta Castillo plaza it could be a non issue, that it is held on the Ajijic plaza between the two churches when there is a very important religious procession is at the least insensitive. The fact that the organizers of this event as well as yourself see no issue speaks to the problem. I have no illusion that I can change your opinion or the Thriller organizers on this. This, as I stated, is my opinion and you obviously have yours. The difference is that I choose to present mine politely.

Then I am nearsighted. I think living in a foreign community where your charity event insults the culture because of its timing and nature is a problem. That is my opinion. You could easily create another fundraising event that would not be rude to your Mexican neighbors. I believe it is shortsighted to think the end justifies the means when there are other ways to reach that end

I remember now from these posts that it was the procession for the Lady of the Rosary in Ajijic (not a day of the dead procession) that one year was coming to the church on the plaza and was met with gringos dressed as Zombies doing Thriller. Some of the Gringos got right in their faces and all their cars blocked the procession and they were throwing candies at the little old ladies walking in a religious procession. It was horrible

To my mind the difference is to NOT bring Halloween to the public plaza or malecon and thereby forcing it onto people (like Thriller) as opposed to Mexican children coming to your frac and you graciously giving out treats. Active celebration vs passive celebration. IMO

I agree with much of your post ezpz. One of the best pieces of advice I received from a long time expat resident more that 14 years ago is to remember you are a guest in this country. No matter how many years you are here. You are a guest. Act like a guest. Be polite and respectful. You do not drive the car....you sit in the back seat.

We recently bought directly a lot in Chapala. The secret I think is using a really good Notario who will do the proper title search. Unlike with an agency who will hold payments in escrow it gets a little trickier since the Notario most times will not hold money in escrow. Their solution is that buyer and seller met together at the closing. The seller signed their portion of the sales papers. We then transferred the money and the Notario did not have us sign and complete the transaction until the seller confirmed they had the money. Clever way I thought to protect everyone's interest.

The only time I observed that lakeside was when one year they chose to perform Thriller on the plaza on the same day there was a day of the dead procession going to the church. As a gringo I was appalled at the insensitivity. Mutual respect and not overlapping celebrations goes a long way in smoothing out cultural differences. I think they moved the Thriller to the malecon in other years. Halloween could certainly be perceived as a conflict where you embrace the terror of the dead and zombies as opposed to celebrating the memory of the departed. In comparison Halloween does come off as a little barbaric when you contrast it with Day of the Dead IMO. But I see many Gringo's going to Halloween celebrations dressed as Catrinas and I know a lot of Mexican children wanting to dress up as Freddie Krugar or Chuckie. I certainly have respect for Mexicans not wanting their celebration tainted, but I have observed little problems in that area locally

Please if you have trick or treaters visit your home be as gracious as they are when we partake in their holidays. Many do not have the money or resources for expensive costumes or any costumes at all. That they are choosing to celebrate Halloween should be enough. IMO

Hi Trudeaue There is not anything structured that I know of for children although more and more Mexican children go around trick or treating. I have seen it increase each year. A lot of the children with their parents tend to go to gringo subdivisions (where of course it is more likely people will have candy to give). The problem of course is a gated community does not just throw open their gates on Halloween so places like Chula Vista and Upper La Floresta are two of the choices I have seen. I love that in Mexico we are multicultural. We embrace day of the dead, and they have begun to celebrate Halloween. Because they are celebrated on different days there seems to be no conflict. Day of the Dead is a beautiful tradition here in which families and friends remember those who have passed and keep their memories alive. Cooking their favorite dishes, playing their favorite songs and sharing stories. It is believed that as long as you are remembered you are not truly gone. The movie Coco does a beautiful job of explaining this. Cemeteries are a popular place for people to feel close to their loved ones and gringos who choose to visit the cemetery are often included in gatherings if they respectfully ask to learn about the family member they are remembering. This also happens in front of peoples homes where they create alters to the dead. Unlike other countries children are taught not to fear death and the beauty of death is celebrated by decorated skulls and face paint. Nov 1st is dedicated to children who have died and is bitter sweet and a little sadder. Nov 2nd if for adults who have died.

The biggest danger of coming to Mexico is ....... coming and never leaving 🙂

FYI Trip advisor works on an algorithm. To protect existing restaurants from becoming irrelevant when a new restaurant opens with a lot of fan fare and hoopla and interest. There are three components which advance a restaurants rankings. #1 the rating of the review #2 the recentness of the review (a review of an established restaurant this month carries more authority that one a year ago) #3 a steady flow of reviews (Trip Advisor gives more weight to a restaurant that has a steady stream of reviews over time than one with 200 reviews all at once. If a new restaurant is good over time they will advance up the ranks, but it is not appropriate and Trip Advisor guards against, a new restaurant eclipsing established good restaurant just because they are new

No idea. I am not a lawyer, just sharing my recent experience when we sold a lot this year. We were prepared to pay Capital Gains and at the closing the Notario asked if we wanted to use our exemption. We did not but were offered that option. This was in coastal Mexico, but I would assume such a rule would extend to all of the country.

My understanding is a shed is not sufficient. It requires at least a bathroom. It is a somewhat grey area of the law subject to interpretation. A notario can give you better information (since they are the ones who collect Capital gains for the Mex Government) than a lawyer can. I know from past experience that even with a lot you are allowed to use your cap gains exemption (which is once every 5 years) here in Mexico. You will need at least your temporal visa status for that exemption.

Was just by and they are laying floor tiles. At this stage things could move along quite quickly.

I think there is little danger of small independent restaurants going away lake side. Favorite restaurants we love like Yves, La Terraza, Brunos, and Go have a big local following and support. The upscale restaurants will be utilized by the Tapitios and some of the Gringos on special occasions. But the community is changing. I think there is room for all

We recently bought a lot from a Mexican owner for a fraction of what other lots were selling for. There is a convenience factor in dealing with a real estate agency but that comes with a cost since the owner wants to walk away with a certain amount of cash and now there is a commission to factor in. I understand a lot of sellers also do not necessarily want family members to know they have sold a property as well and prefer a private transaction. It does require having a good notario to make sure all papers are in order and to orchestrate a system of escrow and a level of Spanish, but for us it was well worth the extra work. Deals like that require asking neighbors and friends and almost always come about by word of mouth but we found ours just walking a neighborhood we liked. NOT recommended for newbies to the area. Real estate agents are necessary when you do not know the community.

If I am coming off as a know it all or condescending I apologize. That is not my intention and as a newbie on the board I certainly do not want to ruffle any feathers of the senior members. Sorry

Not sure I understand the question. Always been Hal. I am a newbie on the board. Am I reminding you of another member? or as a computer guy are you thinking of Space Odyssey and their computer 🙂