Winter Solstice 2018

As I sit down to write this greeting it doesn't seem to me that 2018 was all that eventful.  But as I begin to reflect on the year gone by it becomes obvious that it was very busy year in fact.  If you read my blog, you've already seen detailed accounts of my year. If not, here's the short version.  (If you haven't read it and would like to, go to: http://wanderingsonward.blogspot.com/)

As always, the first three months of the year I spent in Mexico.  This year my experience there was mixed.  I thoroughly enjoyed Mexico City which I continued to explore and continued to be surprised and delighted by.  

 Car-free Sunday in the Centro

The layers are endless and new sights and events are constantly revealed.  

National Center for the Arts (CENART)

I took a side trip to Puebla, another large city a couple of hours south of Mexico City renowned for it's colonial architecture characterized by beautiful tile work that adorns many of the colonial buildings, and for it's cuisine.  Mole poblano is a signature dish known throughout the country. 

 The old colonial core is indeed beautiful but the wonderful cuisine eluded me for the most part.  

Near Puebla is the town of Cholula known for it's many churches and for the archeological site where the largest pyramid in the world is located. (largest by footprint)

 

After leaving Mexico City I spent the next two months in Guanajuato where my friend, Nancy, joined me.  I've visited Guanajuato many times over the last 12 years and always enjoyed it. This year we saw that it has been truly "discovered" and has become overwhelmed by visitors, foreign and Mexican alike.  

Nonetheless, there was some good hiking, and entertainment and socializing but we found the crowds and noise a bit much.  So we escaped periodically with side trips to San Miguel de Allende, Zacatecas and Dolores Hidalgo.  I particularly like Zacatecas for the plenitude of art there. In Zacatecas are more museums per capita there than any other city in Mexico. 

Museo Francisco Goitia

Museo Rafael Coronel in a former monastery containing his 5,000 masks, and artifacts from around the world.

Pedro Coronel Museum, brother of Rafael and renowned artist himself, houses works from pre-Hispanic Mexico, Egypt, Greece, Italy, Africa, China, Japan, India and Oceania as well as works of internationally renowned artists such as Dali, Picasso, Goya, Miro, Chagall, Braque, Hogarth and Vasarely.

Those are just three of the many museums and it's easy to spend a few days there feasting on art.

Back in Guanajuato they were furiously gearing up for Easter.  I hadn't realized that Semana Santa was so early this year and for the whole month leading up to it there are events and fiestas and more and more visitors pouring in culminating with Easter week itself.  So on Easter Sunday we were both happy to get on a plane, Nancy to return home to Nova Scotia and me to enjoy a little more time in Mexico City before returning home.  

Not long after getting home, I made a couple of quick trips to Seattle, the first mainly to attend a David Byrne concert with my son, the other to just visit family.  As always, it was lovely to be in the kids and grandkids and catch up with their lives.

Later in the summer, my other grandson, 10 yr old Lucien, made his first solo trip to visit his Opa (that's me) and we had a lot of fun biking and kayaking and exploring Victoria.  

Also in August, we had our second annual Guanajuato hiker's reunion, a group of people who met hiking together in Guanajuato over the years.  We assembled in Comox, north of here on Vancouver Island and from there went to Quadra Island for some camping and fishing.  

Next up was a trip to visit my brother, Rolf, at his lovely home in the Sierras in California.  

Grandson Sam met up with us there and we had a fine time exploring sights with Rolf and Tanzy acting as tour guides.

In October I went to Nova Scotia to visit Nancy.  It was a little late for visiting the Maritimes and it was getting cold with even a bit of snow but the fall colours were at their peak and it was quite beautiful. 

My children and grandchildren continue to be exceptional and bring joy and delight to my life. Sam is on the verge of getting his undergraduate degree and is likely headed to med school.  His sister, Lily, has been doing an exchange semester at university in Maastricht, Netherlands and will return to Portland State University where she is also headed in a medical direction.  Small grandson Lucien, is 10 and doing what 10 yr old boys do:  soccer, kung fu, school band.  Lovely families. 

And now, departure to Mexico looms and preparations are in full swing. And that brings us to the end of this year's adventures. 

I hope it's been a great year for you and hope that the coming year will find you thriving.  

Love from Andrew