Judging by off-the-wall comments floating around in cyberspace these days, it’s obvious that newbie immigrants at lakeside and others who have been here for a while ought to make an effort to get their bearings in terms of local geography, Mexican history and long-held customs in the communities they’ve chosen to inhabit.

Last week’s hot topic was the second round of Sinovac vaccines available to seniors in Jocotepec. It brought to light that some Ajijic and San Juan Cosalá residents, puzzled about who qualified, are completely clueless about the lay of the land.

Chapter One of a primer on government jurisdictions would explain that Jalisco is divided into 125 municipalities. Narrowing down to the lakeshore region, the expat population is concentrated in the municipalities of Chapala and Jocotepec, and scattered to a lesser extent among Tuxcueca on the lake’s south shore, Poncitlán to the east, and Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos on the north side of the mountains.

Chapala proper is the municipal seat, with administrative delegaciones in the satellite towns of Ajijic, San Antonio Tlayacapan, Santa Cruz de la Soledad, San Nicolás de Ibarra and distant Atotonilquillo.

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