Back From Baja

We took two whole weeks off this summer! Yea!!!!

The first week was spent at our timeshare close to San Jose del Cabo and the second week was at the Hacienda del Mar, closer to Cabo San Lucas. When we were near San Jose, we took advantage of the Urbano (city bus) into town. The rides back were usually in a taxi because were were either coming back late from dinner or laden with purchases. Twice we went to our favorite restaurant in S.J., Don Emiliano's. If you are ever in the area, don't hesitate to stop in for dinner.

Perhaps the most unusual dish we tried was "Mexican Caviar". It is called Escamole and you might be surprised what the main ingredient is....

The Grand Mayan just outside of S.J. is a beautiful resort with an exceptional staff, well maintained rooms and pools. We have never been disappointed with their properties.

Our other timeshare, Hacienda del Mar, has stunning architecture, beautiful grounds with mature plants and the Pitahayas Restaurant, another favorite. The seating is open air, on a terrace overlooking the beach.

It is hard to see, but at the bottom of the evening beach picture, there are whale bones.

Since Greg and I usually split meals, were were able to enjoy some delightful dinners!

Perhaps you are wondering, did she do any knitting?? After all, this is a knitting blog....

Back From Puerto Vallarta

When we arrived back from our Easter Break in Puerto Vallarta there was no time to post or upload pictures. So...sorry for the delay but you know how it goes! We did have a wonderful time and became more familiar with the beautiful city of Puerto Vallarta. Our favorite Italian restaurant located on the Malecon, La Dolce Vita, did not disappoint. While strolling along the boardwalk we found Xaime's art displayed near the Naval Museum.

This is Xaime with me.........

Two of his smaller pieces now reside in my craft room!

The city of Puerto Vallarta has so many delights to see...from the interesting statues and sand sculptures along the boardwalk...

..to colorful displays in town to tempt shoppers....

We had an especially nice view from our room at the Grand Mayan.

Now I am back to a normal level of activity at home after teaching five days last week. "Normal" is three days of teaching, housework and knitting. On the knitting front, I have finished the latest installment from my Rockin' Sock Club - Slip Jig. It was really fun to knit and the colorway was beautiful!! Thanks Tina and Carrie. You can check it out on my Ravelry project page, if you have a mind to. There are actually five projects on the needles right now...some of them will be done (in theory) in time to go to Alaska with me in mid-May.

Journey's End and Back to Work

Yesterday was my first day back to Skein after Christmas vacation. It was a wonderful, busy day filled with old students, new students, a very good friend and many (yes, many) customers.

Unpacking is going slowly. There were a few souvenirs from this trip. Xcaret, as I mentioned in the previous post has many little areas that you just happen on. On our way to the wool shop we found a wood carver. He had been trained by his father and had many designs fashioned from mahogany. I selected this one because it reminded me of a Mayan dancer we had just seen.

He placed a hole in the back for hanging and signed the piece, too!
We spent most of one afternoon in Playa del Carmen. One shop had the most colorful textiles displayed...

There were a few interesting signs along 5th Avenue in Playa del Carmen.

Then it was back to the Grand Mayan to work on our skills at taking panorama shots with the new camera(the same one used for underwater shots). The panorama feature actually splices together a 3 shot series with internal software. There is a ghost image of the previous shot to help you line up the next one. It is very user friendly. We used it at the Xcaret show and for some outside shots on the resort property.This is the front end of the snake sculpture.

The final pictures from our adventure is something we haven't done since we were married. A professional portrait of the two of us..there are actually three. Which one do you like best?

Please let me know.

Xcaret and a Knitting Lesson

We arrived home from a wonderful Christmas in Cancun late Sunday. Christmas week is a good time for my DH to take a break from his busy schedule for sun and some fun activities. Many of his students travel to see family, ski or are involved in school activities.....so a perfect time to steal him away!

I went to the Yucatan with our daughter a few years ago and spent a fun day at Xcaret. This was Greg's first visit. We bought the "all inclusive" and added a snorkeling package. It was a very full, fun-filled day. The evening show was truly spectacular. We saw a Mayan ball game, an early version of field hockey played with flaming balls (I have video), flying men, mariachi, equestrians, and many dancers. Here are a few pictures-

Xcaret is a huge park with more features than you could take in in just one day. Last time I was there I swam the underground river. This trip we walked the grounds and saw some different things...

Yes, there is a yarn experience to be had at the park!

Back at the Grand Mayan for a day of sun and relaxation, when I least expected it....

Greg came over and said, "I think someone needs knitting help over there." He indicated an area near the pool's sandy beach and a woman in a black bathing suit. He wasn't kidding. I went over and easily found Nina (from Wisconsin) who had unraveled her twirly scarf for the third time. She needed a few pointers and was good to go in no time. Who would guess that knitting skills would come in handy at the Grand Mayan pool?

I did finish the Jack-in-the-Box mittens over the break. You can check them out on my Ravelry project page. They are a fast knit and a good pattern.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday as well!

Puerto Vallarta/Nuevo Vallarta

We took a brief but enjoyable trip to the states of Nayarit and Jalisco, Mexico last week. Our timeshare, Grand Mayan, is located just north of Puerto Vallarta (which is in Jalisco) in Nuevo Vallarta (state of Nayarit). You think you are confused??? But locals in NV use the PV time. It certainly made it less confusing when preparing for our departing flight, as the airport is located in Jalisco. Thank goodness we were actually early for our flight home because it took FOREVER to check in. Someone needs to do some serious reorganization of that airport!! Everything else about the trip was great - with that one, small annoyance.

Here is a shot of Greg chasing me down the "Lazy River" or "Rio Lento" at our resort...

Yes, that is the famous chainsaw scar above his knee.

We took two "side trips" during our vacation. The first, last Wednesday, was to the town of Tequila. Guess what the main industry is....that is right. Tequila! We toured the Jose Cuervo factory. Cuervo means raven, thus the bird pictured in the family crest on the website.

I couldn't take any shots inside the building to show the beautiful barrels and copper distillers as it was prohibited. The town is also where one of my favorite hot sauces, Cholula, is produced. On Thursday we ventured out again - this time our destination was San Blas. Over 50 years ago I spent two weeks there with my parents and a friend of the family who lived in the small port town. I had fond memories and was relieved that things were much the same...

Above is the old church in town and below is the new one.

Then, outside of town is the original one... it was burned many years ago. Residents point out figures that they say some can see. In this photo is the face of a woman. Do you see it?I was intrigued by the vendors in the marketplace on the plaza. The masks were colorful....
But the highlight of the day was the "jungle" trip through the swamp just outside town. There were many birds and reptiles (herons, hawks, iguanas, turtles)...but my favorite was the crocodile. There were many!

This week will be filled with work at Skein and some serious knitting which I will take pictures of to post both here and on Ravelry.

Cancun Christmas 2008

The Adams Family took a Christmas break from our normal routines by traveling to the Yucatan Peninsula. Our ultimate destination was just south of Cancun on the Mayan Riviera. We stayed at the Grand Mayan and took side trips to Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen, entered the Nohoch Nah Chich cave system and snorkeled in cenotes, snorkeled off the Fat Cat catamaran in the Caribbean, unimogged through the jungle to a Mayan settlement for lunch, and kayaked to a reef through challenging currents. We also spent some serious "sloth time" at the hotel pool, sipping coco naturales(not coco locos).


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Now to the yarn portion of this blog...

I received two skeins of quiviet, a scarf pattern, Signature needles and two skeins from Ancient Threads Farm.

Then, when we arrived home, our neighbor came over with mail and packages from Germany. Yes, most of the Wollmeise has arrived. It is truly breathtaking! Claudia emailed and said the next package should be arriving in a few days.

 I hope you enjoy the pictures...

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We're Back...

Greg and I took some much needed time away. We visited Baja and spent a week at each of the "cabos"- Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. Over a year ago I purchased two timeshares on ebay(sounds crazy, but I researched them before bidding). One of them, the Hacienda del Mar, is located closer to Cabo San Lucas and the other, the Grand Mayan, has several locations sprinkled throughout Mexico. The newest Grand Mayan, located just outside San Jose, was completed a year ago. We stayed at the Hacienda del Mar for the first week and enjoyed the lovely grounds, architecture and pools.

The beach was beautiful, too.

Before moving on to our next stop, we visited Todos Santos up Highway 1 on the Pacific side. Todos Santos is called a "Magical town" in the tour books. There are many galleries..we purchased two prints by Jill Logan and spent some time chatting with her 

...before stopping by the Hotel California for a pleasant lunch on the patio. 

 As we transitioned from one hotel to the other, tropical storm Julio hit Los Cabos. We encountered flooded streets and experienced high wind and rain for a day.

Our second week was spent at the Grand Mayan, just outside San Jose del Cabo. It is much smaller the GM in Cancun but the staff and accommodations were perfect.

I did manage to do some knitting on this trip. The second Zombie Sock is well on the way and should be finished later this week. Another project that I knit on can't be mentioned yet as it will be a gift for someone special.

When we arrived home a package containing yarn was on top of the stack. I volunteered to to test knit a hat pattern for Cathy (a friend from sock camp). Currently it is called The Hat With No Name. It starts at the top with a circular cast on that is new to me...another challenge. Should be fun! More about this in days to come...