A reason to party
Every day there is a reason to celebrate being alive and the Costalegre is here to help!
Carnival celebrations started off with amazing dancing, music, and food and continued with fabulous fireworks, parades, and more good food. Every evening you could venture to the jardin in Melaque or Barra and find people enjoying the party. This year, the buildup to St. Patrick’s Day overlaps Carnival and there is a noticeable increase in people and energy. In the jardin at night and down the side streets there is a mix of local families, tourists and extranjeros, all enjoying the live entertainment, the local food and the carnival.
In addition, the foreign community has hosted several big fundraising events. The Melaque Tennis Court fundraiser raised 4,800 pesos to have a second gate installed on the second court.
A great dog adoption event hosted by Second Chance Dog Rescue Centre successfully adopted five dogs to happy and loving homes.
The first-place ticket for the annual CASA fundraiser in Autlan was won by our very own Ken Merrill. Barra resident Ken, who hails from Armstrong, British Columbia, took home an Abraxas edition guitar signed by Carlos Santana. Although he doesn’t know how to play guitar, he plans to learn. The second place prize of two tickets to a Santana concert were won by Barra’s Dawn Perry. She will be heading to Guadalajara to see the Autlan native in a March 21 concert at the Auditorio Telmex.
The Beccas for Barra Bash raised 35,000 pesos and was an all-around success. The music was fabulous, the dancing was wonderful and together they created an amazing experience for all. The money raised is enough to pay for two children to attend one year of high school.
The party continues this weekend in Melaque for St. Patrick’s Day. The action gets started after the sun sets and is in full swing around 11 p.m. This is not for the faint hearted and will include a lot of music, bombas, fireworks and revelry. This is one day a year that our area of Mexico honors the contributions from Irish immigrants in the during the War of 1846-1847. And we live in the namesake – San Patricio – area so the celebrations are grand. If you are up for a late night, I highly recommend you join in because it is going to be loud!
Next week is the start of the two-week spring break for most schools in Canada and the United States. Our beaches and towns will stay busy with vacationing families visiting their relatives here. Following this, we have a couple weeks of quieter time while many of our seasonal friends head north. This of course means more dinners out, last swims in the warm ocean and final souvenir shopping sprees before we say “adios.”
No falta!
•Skim board Competition in Melaque hosted by X3M is March 15-17 and will feature three categories – female, amateur, and beginner.
•Cisco’s 2019 Spay and Neuter Clinic for Dogs and Cats will be held March 16-19 at the Event Center on Nueva España in Barra. The doors open at 8 a.m. This event is free but donations are gratefully accepted. Contact Donna at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to volunteer or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.
•Mini Volunteer Week Experience hosted by Project Amigo is March 19-20. This hands-on experience costs 3,000 pesos. Contact Elly at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.
•Woman’s Moon Temple Series continues on March 21 at 8 p.m. at Buena Onda Centro de Yoga in Barra. This event welcomes the full moon and the cost is 100 pesos. Contact LaRaé Godoy at 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..
•Reminder: Monday, March 18 is a holiday which means our beaches and town centers will be busier than usual. Be sure to join in the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations!
March 11 to April 5. Contact Jeanne McGee at 360-647-8137 or 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..
Keeping up
•Galeria Amiga presents artist Julian Portilla from Ecuador from
•Galeria Barra de Mi Corazon is open on Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in Barra. The current exhibit features painting from artists in Tomatlan. Contact Linda Bello Ruiz for more information.
•United for Barra meets Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m. at the Sunset Bar. This meeting is in Spanish, but volunteers will help with translations at the end of the meeting.
•Rotary meets at Cabo Blanco in Barra on Wednesday at 9 a.m.