Last Post of the Year....

We've lived here in our house at Lo de Marcos, Nayarit, Mexico almost 3 months already and the days just fly by.  I don't think I mentioned in a previous post that my Leica camera broke last month and I've been using my "back-up" Canon Powershot.  It's a good camera but is difficult for me to use because it doesn't have a view finder....  locating anything in that flat screen thingy is just by chance.  So I don't take very many photos these days.  Well... I take photos but I'm lucky if I even get my subject in the shot.  But that will all change...  next week our daughter and son-in-law from New York will arrive for a visit...  and they are bringing a new camera for me.  I'm thrilled they are coming to visit and the camera will be a bit of icing on the cake!

The contractor and his crew left a few weeks ago, but there's still work to be done.  Bill works some each day on things...  like installing a light above the place I use my laptop, painting things, organizing his workshop, and stuff I don't even know about.  We go to Spanish lessons twice a week.  We both spend a lot of time studying...  Bill's much further along than me, but I love it when I actually understand parts of a conversation and can say a few words.

Enough of that...  let's get on to a few photos ...

Isn't he beautiful?  This young Broad-billed Hummingbird comes to our feeders several times a day.  I keep trying to capture the iridescent colors on his breast.  A mature male will have a totally green/blue front.

 Can you guess what species this guy is?  He's a Cinnamon Hummingbird.  He arrived before any other species and has already claimed all 5 feeders in the yard.  When not chasing any interlopers away he can usually be seen on this tiny perch in a tree just in front of the veranda.

 We have 2 red hibiscus plants...  one fairly large and one we just bought.  The blooms open up in the morning, close in the evening... then drop off...  only bloom for 1 day.  The flowers are quite large...  6"or more across.

When walking along the River Road the other day I saw some  splashing going on across the river.  I could see color,  and thought these were Painted Buntings.  I couldn't see well enough what the camera was catching, but when I got home and downloaded my memory card, I saw that these were about a half dozen Striped-back Orioles taking a bath.  While not a very good photo, I really liked it because it looks almost like a watercolor painting.

I've been hoping that the fountain we put in our yard would attract birds...  and finally this beautiful female Bunting flew in and spent about a half hour at the fountain one day last week.  

 I believe this is one of the "Sisters", but those spots are definitely yellow-orange with not even a hint of red.  I'll look it up later...

 These guys are harvesting coconuts.  There really is a man way up in that tree using his machete to hack loose bunches of coconuts.  Coconut milk is a very popular drink at roadside markets, on the beach and from street vendors.  They just slice off one end, insert a straw and there you are!  A drink with it's own disposable container.

 The Malachite butterfly was on my "must see" list for years.  They don't live in the USA (maybe sometimes wander into the very south of Texas) and I finally saw them in Mexico over 10 years ago.  We had them in our yard when we stayed in Costa Rica, and now they visit us here in Lo de Marcos.  I find it interesting that butterflies, as beautiful as they are, love things like old fruit, piles of horse manure, yucky mud puddles and other really gross things.

 Speaking of liking old fruit....  this Casique is having lunch on a banana from one of our trees.  As we expected (but hoped wouldn't happen)...  the whole bunch (50+) of bananas all ripened the same day.  And, as I wrote, I totally dislike bananas, Bill ate his fill, and we gave away all we could.  So, even the birds and butterflies enjoyed our crop.

We closed on our house back in July.  But, as is the norm in Mexico, we didn't get our deed and title then.  Finally, December 24th, Armando (left) and Robert (right) were contacted by the Notario (lawyer) that our paperwork was complete.  They picked it up and I just had to take this photo of them presenting it to Bill.  Yeah!  Now we're the official owners!

Right now our quiet little town is hoppin'!  While we're not the resort towns that Puerto Vallarta and Sayulita are, (I counted 12 tour buses waiting on the road leading up to Sayulita the other day), the beach and hotels here are crowded with folks from Christmas through New Years.  Most of the tourists here are Mexicans who live in big cities like Guadalajara and the like...  some actually have homes here that they only stay in a couple times a year...  some just take their vacation and rent hotel rooms or bungalows.  But come this coming Monday it will all be quiet again.

 This man probably has a trail ride lined up...  maybe a ride along the beach or up into the jungle into the mountains.  We might do that one of these days...   But for now...  this is...

The End

That's All For Today!