A crowd of nearly 100 north shore residents, most of foreign extraction, turned out at the Ajijic waterfront Saturday, May 24, to raise their voices in conjunction with the global grassroots campaign aimed at toppling biotech giant Monsanto.

In a prelude to the 2013 rainy season, early storms have brought a tad of relief to a thirsty Lake Chapala, keeping its dwindling water line on an even keel throughout the past week.

Ajijic town administrator Hector España keeps pulling new tricks out of his sleeve. Last week he and Chapala Sport Council chief Jesus Dario Hernandez buddied up to a lead family-oriented bicycle excursion around the village. The bi-monthly bike rides will be repeated June 7 and on alternately Fridays thereafter, wheeling out from the plaza at 7 p.m.

Ajijic town administrator Hector España has unveiled a plan to utilize the beach area just east of the local pier as a paid parking zone, taking effect as of Monday, June 3.  

The mountain range overlooking the most populated segment of Lake Chapala’s north shore has gained a hypothetical shield against human depredation under the “Cerro Viejo-Chupinaya-Los Sabinos” Natural Protected Area (ANP) decree formally enacted by the Jalisco government on May 18.

Under the title Manos para cuidar el Lago (Hands to care for the Lake), a loose-knit group of local activists is putting out the call for volunteers to conduct a massive one-day clean-up of Lake Chapala’s shoreline, slated for Saturday, June 1, from 9 to 11 a.m.