General News

Chapala artist and photography Jaime Barbiery conceived  a new public art form during the 2010 Ajijic mural contest that formed part of the bicentennial celebrations. He added the words fachada (façade) + arte = Facharte. Chapala resident Carole Stern (shown at left above) recently asked the Facharte project to create murals and street décor in her Plaza de Toros neighborhood. Ajijic artists Miguel Angel Flores and Guillermo Gonzalez Hernandez (shown at right finishing the nets) responded with these works of art for the neighbors. Contact Facharte for your own piece of public art by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call Jaime at 33-3474-1192. Visit Facharte.blogspot.com to see other Facharte murals and works.

Democrats Abroad, Lake Chapala Chapter has elected a new slate of ten officers, including  chair, vice-chair, secretary, treasurer, and six members-at-large.

The Feast of Saint Valentine’s Day is originally about an Italian priest martyred on February 14, 269 AD. Legend says that he was executed for performing weddings for soldiers and their maidens, an action forbidden in those days. His farewell message to his jailer’s daughter, who Valentine apparently healed, was signed “Your Valentine.” The word “feast” then does not mean “a large celebratory meal,” but instead “a religious celebration dedicated to a particular saint.”

The able-bodied men from Chapala’s Firefighters and Civil Protection Unit earned the champions’ trophy at the first annual Bomberos Torneo de Fútbol, held Saturday, January 24 at the municipal soccer field. 

The former teacher’s union boss Elba Esther Gordillo has asked for house arrest in her luxury mansion as she awaits trial for embezzlement.

The Satellite Rotary E-Club of Lake Chapala has accepted an exciting vocational training project, Mariposa Project/Butterflies in Mexico which is aimed at teaching local girls and women, ages 13 to 25 the skills needed to find employment in the fields of textile design and production.

Instructor Jan Manning, and Bernadine Jansen, the group’s executive director, have created a curriculum and are ready to begin a pilot project 

with the group’s partner, El Corazon Creativo, the local artisan cooperative at Galeana 14 in Ajijic.

The sales of the beautiful prototype garment style entitled “the Ronda,” have generated enough seed money for fabric and thread for the first class. Interested students must commit to attending a two-hour class every Saturday for six months in order to complete the 48-hour course of study. The requirements for participation are demanding, but the rewards will be great. 

The pilot program will begin with a small number of students in February. For more information about donations of fabrics, thread, notions, tools and other items, call Janzen, (387)761-0360 or 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..   

Tell someone in Guadalajara that you are going to eat at a food truck and the reaction could be, “I don’t eat on the street,” with all the worries about cleanliness that implies.

“The true power and beauty of flamenco comes from the way the music and dance combine -- they are one entity,” says internationally acclaimed flamenco guitarist Daniel Ward. The California musician will demonstrate the combination of those art forms during a dinner performance of the Spanish art on Thursday, January 29 at 6:30 p.m. at El Jardin de Ninette restaurant at Javier Mina 7 in Ajijic.