Highway Alert!
If you’re headed to the Guadalajara airport late evening or early morning, add 20 minutes on to your schedule for traffic delays due to pavement crews working the graveyard shift. It looks like they have a few weeks to go to finish the repaving of the Guadalajara-Chapala highway, and most of it is south of the airport.
Although it is generally just a few minutes of delay, rainy weather may also cause traffic to slow down considerably.
Democrats Abroad
A silent “Lights for Liberty” candlelight vigil will be held Friday, July 12, 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Centro Laguna food court.
This non-partisan vigil has been organized by the Lake Chapala Chapter of Democrats Abroad to show Lakeside’s solidarity with migrant families being held at the southern U.S. border, as part of a nationwide mobilization against the inhumane conditions faced by the refugees in human detention camps.
Other Lights for Liberty vigils are scheduled in over 340 locations around the United States and the world, with new locations being added daily.
Concerned residents and visitors at Lakeside are encouraged to join even for only 15 minutes at 9 p.m., as photos from participating groups will be taken and posted on the Lights for Liberty website (lightsforliberty.org). The starting point for gathering together will be in the parking lot by Telcel. The vigil may include a short walk to Black Coffee Gallery.
Organizers urge anyone interested in participating to bring their friends and neighbors. For more information on Democrats Abroad activities at Lakeside, see 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..
Open Circle
Michael Warren presents “Exploring the Mystery of Poetry and the Emotions” at the next meeting of Open Circle, Sunday, July 14, 10:30 a.m. to noon on the patio of the Lake Chapala Society (LCS).
Poetry is a mystery. How is it that words on a page can move us to sing, laugh, or cry? Warren will explore the connections within the brain betweem language and emotion and the music of words that a good poem exploits. He will speak about how he discovered he was a poet and give examples of poems that effectively work on the emotions.
Warren went through the classic stages of grief after his wife Marianne died in 2004, and then produced a prize-winning sonnet that seemed to write itself.
His book, “A Particular Blue,” was published in 2005. His poems also appear in the 2017 anthology “Romancing the Muse.” For the last several years he has been writing the theater reviews for El Ojo del Lago under the title “Front Row Center.”
Information: opencircleajijic.org.
LCS courses
• Mexican Manners, Thursday, July 25, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The cost and course description is available at lakechapalasociety.com or at the LCS office. For LCS members only.
LCS Summer Music Fest
The Lake Chapala Society’s fifth annual summer music fest attracted a huge crowd for an afternoon of lively conviviality on Saturday, July 6. Snapshots of the bash (clockwise from top left) show Guadalajara’s Gargamel band playing to its local fans; unbridled action on the gazebo dance floor; Thomas Banks and the No Borders rocking out; and a sample of fresh tastes from the sea offered by La Paceña.
Copa Jalisco
The Chapala’s men’s team placed top of the pack in the first round (Southeast Region) of the 2019 Copa Jalisco amateur soccer competition, finishing with a 1-0 win against Quitupán Sunday, July 7 on home turf. Chapala racked up five victories and one tie, scoring 19 goals, against teams from Jocotepec, La Manzanilla de la Paz, Mazamitla, Valle de Juárez and Quitupán. Chapala now proceeds to the second phase featuring 32 qualifying teams.
TED Talks
Professor of marketing Scott Galloway presents “How Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google Manipulate Our Emotions” at the next Ted Talk, Tuesday, July 16, noon to 1:15 p.m. in the Lake Chapala Society Sala. Open to LCS members only.
The combined market capitalization of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google is now equivalent to the GDP of India. Galloway shares insights and eye-opening stats about their dominance and motivation — and what happens when a society prizes shareholder value over everything else. Followed by a Q&A with TED Curator Chris Anderson.
Hosted by Susan Weeks.
LCS bus trip
The Lake Chapala Society takes a bus trip to Galerias Mall/Costco in Guadalajara, Thursday, July 18. Check the LCS office or website to sign up and learn the departure times and cost of the trips. Registration and payment can now be made online at lakechapalasociety.com/public/bustrip_form.php.
Fundraiser
The Rotary Club of Ajijic and Butterflies en Mexico (BeM) are working to uplift the village of Hacienda La Labor, located just four kilometers east of Chapala.
To continue and fortify the work they are doing, BeM has teamed up with Rotary Club of Ajijic President Carole Wolfe to reach a fundraising goal of $US25,000 in order to apply for matching funds from a Rotary Club World Fund Global Grant. So far about one quarter of the funds have been raised.
The two organizations will hold a Rotary Club of Ajijic membership drive and adopt-a-village Rotary Global Grant fundraiser Saturday, July 20 at a beautiful home in San Juan Cosala. The event is by invitation only. Call for your invitations and directions: 387-761-0360. Van pick-up is available in Ajijic.
Lake Chapala Birders
The Lake Chapala Birders will meet at Donas Donuts in Ajijic, Monday, July 22, 8 a.m., to carpool, leaving immediately for the Rosa Amarilla Loop on the plateau above the south side of the lake (a 60-minute drive). Expect to see wood storks, and possibly a white-tailed hawk. Bring refreshments for the morning and sandwiches for the 12:30 p.m. lunch stop. The group returns about 3 p.m.
If you plan on going, email John Keeling at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. at least 48 hours ahead of time to help with carpool planning.
Lake Chapala Birders is an informal group of bird observers led by John and Rosemary Keeling. Information: chapalabirders.org.
Grant Program deadline
The Lakeside Charities Grant Program is asking registered charities in the area to complete applications for Summer 2019 grants by August 14. Grant awards up to 25,000 pesos are available for projects with priorities on supporting access to basic necessities of life, which impact a group of people, and which have limited access to funding.
Applications, instructions and questions: 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..
Insight Meditation
The Heart of Awareness Insight Meditation Community offers multiple opportunities each week for silent meditation: Sunday, 9 a.m., Wednesday, 4 p.m. and Thursday, 11 a.m. There are no fees and all sessions are open to the public, regardless of experience or affiliation. Chairs and cushions and brief written instructions on meditation for beginners are provided.
Every Monday in July the Community will screen a film from the recent Buddhafest in Los Angeles, California. Admission is free. For details about the films on July 15 and the following weeks, visit heartofawareness.org.
Wednesday, July 17, the meditation period will be followed by a selection from talks given live at the 2019 Tricycle BuddhaFest. HoA will access the best of the best from teachers such as Robert Thurman, Roshi Joan Halifax, Sylvia Boorstein, Norman Fischer, Sharon Salzberg and Roshi Pat O’Hara. The video will be followed by a discussion period. Individuals are welcome to come for just the meditation period (4-4:45 p.m.), just the program and discussion period (4:50-5:50 p.m.), or both.
A yoga class suitable for beginners and advanced students, is offered Thursday, 9 to 10:45 a.m.
The center is at Guadalupe Victoria 101, Ajijic. Information: heartofawareness.org.