Balloon Fest
Hot-air balloons flown by top pilots from Mexico and Europe will be floating over Mexico’s largest lake during Chapala en Globo, Lakeside’s first ever balloon festival, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, May 26, 27 and 28 at the Boca Laguna waterski club, located on the outskirts of Santa Cruz de la Soledad.
Gates open at 5 a.m., as the giant aerostatic balloons will be unfurled for early morning flights. Ideal wind conditions for flying usually occur between 6 and 10 a.m. when passengers will have the chance to enjoy short rides, going up around five to ten meters above ground level.
Spectators will be able to watch the vessels in all their majesty after dark, as pilots take off for solo flights planned from 9 to 11 p.m.
Other goings-on include mechanical rides, live daytime entertainment by some music and dance groups, food and drink stands, and nighttime concerts by more than 20 of Guadalajara’s best known rock, pop, jazz, electronic, and reagae bands during the three-day extravaganza.
Admission is 100 pesos for adults, 80 pesos for children, and 1,000 pesos for entry to the VIP zone. Secure parking on the grounds costs 50 pesos per day. The charge for balloon rides runs to 200 pesos. Lakeside residents may purchase advance tickets at Chapala city hall during regular weekday hours or at the Malecón in the area where the Flying Men of Papantla perform on weekends. Tickets are also being sold through www.superboletos.com and at the Boca Laguna gate.
Bass fishing tourney
Lake Chapala is hosting a largemouth bass fishing tournament, with some 200 anglers expected Friday, May 26 and Saturday, May 27 to compete in the first Torneo Nacional de Pesca de Lobina.
Black bass, though not native to Lake Chapala, have apparently thrived since introduced to the lake some years ago with fishermen snagging fish that weigh two and a half to four kilos each.
Next weekend’s tournament is held at Ajijic’s Nimue Marina Residence & Sport Club (formerly Club Náutico).
The competition will run as a team sport under a “catch and release” mode, with up to four anglers allowed aboard each boat, or a limit of five if one of them is under age 14. Winners will share a purse of 250,000 pesos, with a top prize of 40,000 pesos going for the highest accumulated weight for five fish reeled in per day and an equal sum for the heaviest single specimen.
Registration fees are set according to category, ranging from 500 pesos for the junior anglers up to 2,200 pesos for adults. For information on signing up, call 33-3969-4760 or 33-1401-2847.
Spectators will be able to view the competition from many waterfront points along the north shore corridor.
Huichol visitors
Huichol visitors from Nayarit went to the Isla de Alacranes (Scorpion Island) May 20 to leave offerings at their ceremonial temple, Kaliwuey. An award-winning film, “Huicholes: Los Ultimos Guardianes del Peyote” (“Huicholes: The Last Guardians of Peyote”) is now available free online.
Open Circle
Sunday, May 28, Gale Park will present “Celtic Faery Lore” at the Open Circle in the Lake Chapala Society (LCS) Sala, 10:30 a.m. to noon.
Park will explore Celtic legends and lore about the faery folk through storytelling and testimonials. These faeries are not Disney confections with tiny wings and glitter wands. They are powerful beings of the natural world who in the Celtic lands were highly respected and even feared. Belief in faeries’ existence is not required to enjoy learning about the folklore surrounding them.
Park is a writer, artist and mystic who has explored and practiced various forms of spirituality from an early age. Since 2000, she has studied shamanism and druidry, with a special focus on ancient Celtic traditions. She recently returned to Mexico after living in an off-grid cottage in the mountains of East Tennessee. She is working on a book about the wheel of time and the seasons, which is basically a Celtic version of a Native American medicine wheel.
For more information, see opencircleajijic.org.
Memorial Day
American Legion Post 7 in Chapala hosts a Memorial Day celebration Monday, May 29 at the post. The ceremony will begin at noon and dinner is served 2 p.m. The menu is a pig roasted in a pit, baked beans, corn on the cob and dessert, all for 200 pesos.
Live music from a hot new Lakeside band, a meat draw, a 50/50 draw and other events will round out the day. Call 765-2259 to get your tickets.
Genealogy Forum
Have you ever wanted to see the land of your ancestors, or to find a grandparent’s house, or grave? This is a wonderfully rewarding reason to travel, to uncover your roots. But to get the most out of it, one needs to do a great deal of planning and preparation. Phyl Gaskell is going to share some tips and pointers about how to get organized in advance, to do all you can before you go, and not miss some important discoveries awaiting you at the Genealogy Forum Monday, May 29, 1 p.m., The Forum meets at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormon) in Riberas del Pilar the last Monday of every month. Everyone is invited. For more information, call Fran Murphy, 766-0067.
LCS seminar
Lake Chapala Society (LCS) members are invited to attend a TED seminar, featuring technologist Jeremy Howard on “Computers That Can Learn” on Tuesday, May 30, noon to 1:15 p.m. in the LCS Sala.
What happens when we teach a computer how to learn? Howard shares some surprising new developments in the fast-moving field of deep learning, a technique that can give computers the ability to learn Chinese, or to recognize objects in photos, or to help think through a medical diagnosis.
One deep learning tool, after watching hours of YouTube, taught itself the concept of “cats.” Catch up on a field that will change the way the computers around you behave sooner than you think.
Buddhists
The Heart of Awareness Buddhist Sangha offers several opportunities for meditation practice each week. Wednesdays, the center opens at 3:30 p.m., with a formal meditation period from 4-6 p.m. The one-hour sitting and walking meditation is followed by a talk (live or recorded) and an opportunity for discussion. The sangha is open for silent sitting and walking meditation on Sundays and Mondays from 9-10 a.m. and on Thursdays from 11 a.m.-noon.
The Heart of Awareness is grounded in the teachings of the Buddha as preserved in the Theravada/Vipassana tradition. Prior experience or affiliation is not required. The sangha’s location is at Guadalupe Victoria 101 in Ajijic. For more information, visit heartofawareness.org, or call Janet Reichert, (331) 043-4669.
Legion Spanish classes
Grammar classes are held Saturdays, noon, at the American Legion Post 7 in Chapala, while a conversation club is held Thursdays, also at noon. Bring a notebook and pen to class. For more information, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Post 7 is located at Morelos 114.
British Society
The Lakeside British Society holds its monthly luncheon Saturday, June 3, 1 p.m. at Manix Restaurant, Ocampo 57, Ajijic. Mark Foster will explore the theme “Living with English blood and a Mexican heart.”
Menu choices begin with a small salad or lentil soup, choice of shepherd’s pie or fish and chips or chile relleno (stuffed chile) or a large salad. Dessert is chocolate mousse. The cost is 150 pesos plus tip.
Call Sue Morris at 766-0847 or contact Sue Sterlini at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to confirm your attendance and choice of menu.
LCS Spanish classes
The Lake Chapala Society (LCS) has announced its next round of Introduction to Spanish language classes for members. This is a casual class offered for the beginner that covers the Spanish alphabet, simple vocabulary and phrases to use about town for shopping, and other useful information about the area and Mexican culture.
Classes are held each Tuesday beginning June 6 and run through June 20 from noon to 1:30 p.m. at the LCS campus. Learning materials are included in the 175-peso cost. You must be a LCS member to attend.
Sign up is available at the LCS office during regular office hours. Call 766-1140 for more information.
LCS picnic
The second annual Lake Chapala Society Picnic and Beer Fest is slated for Saturday, June 17, 2-6 p.m.
Music will be by the Ajijic Jamm Band. Various micro breweries will offer their most recent brews for sale. Tickets are 100 pesos for members, 150 pesos for non-members, 180 pesos on the day at the gate (if not sold out) and are available at the Lake Chapala Society.
U.S. Flag Day
If you have an unserviceable U.S. flag that needs to be properly disposed of, you can drop it off at American Legion Post 7, Morelos 114 in Chapala, before U.S. Flag Day on June 14.