When July 1st rolled around we will have lived here in paradise for five years. In that time we think we have ferreted out some shops and people who offer quality goods or wonderful service for your peso.  Once you move here <G> you can check them out for yourself.

Many gardeners here miss the fact that very few seed or supply companies mail to Mexico. Lexis greenhouse supplies does ship here    www.lexisgreenhouses.com  and has an online store.

June 2006-  OK let's see if people who complain that the prices are rising are right! I can not exactly duplicate the shopping list from El Torito because the weights on the fruits and vegetables will not be exactly the same. And yesterday was Tianguis day so some of the vegetables came from there. You have to bear with me as we convert kilos/lbs. and dollars/pesos. I'll explain as we total up at the end.  Here goes

OK, kilo is about 2.2 pounds, Campbell's makes Spanish label stuff that seems to be the same as the English label stuff both in the store but the Spanish label ones are cheaper, Bimbo is a cute little teddy bear NOT a hooker, there are now more  Mexican brands of low or non fat but so far no cottage cheese. So you are still stuck with the higher priced imported brands of cottage cheese. They are starting to bring out more low fat non fat yogurt and even sour cream. The price actually in two years went way down! The better cold cuts are as you see pretty pricey.  The Mexican brands are fatty and pretty nasty. All in all the prices even allowing for inflation have either stayed the same or gone down. So it still isn't that $$$ to eat well here.

October-2004- A recent poster on www.chapala.com  railed against the foolish Americans who think that moving here will somehow cure their economic insuffiencies! He was especially incensed about the books and magazine articles like AARP which are soo inaccurate about the cost of living here. So every few month you guys are going to go to the grocery store  with me. This isn't a major shop, just that stop by for a few things trip we all make a couple times a week.  With the exception of the veggies/fruit, most of what I bought could not be purchased at the abbarotes ( little village shops) or the Wednesday Tianguis. Unless you are off to Costco/Guad you are pretty much stuck with the village gringo grocery store. This was El Torito. You have to bear with me as we convert kilos/lbs. and dollars/pesos. I'll explain as we total up at the end.

Current peso to dollar thing is about 11 pesos to the dollar, so about $35.82 in dollars.

OK, kilo is about 2.2 pounds, Campbell's makes Spanish label stuff that seems to be the same as the English label stuff both in the store but the Spanish label ones are cheaper, Bimbo is a cute little teddy bear NOT a hooker, there are no Mexican brands of anything much non fat so you are stuck with the higher priced imported brands of cottage cheese. The better cold cuts are as you see pretty pricey.  The Mexican brands are fatty and pretty nasty.  If I want food similar to what we had back in the states it is expensive.

Curtains: September-2004 After last year's winter, we decided to add curtains to all the bedrooms. First we went to Jaime (see ironwork above) to have him measure and make custom metal curtain rods for the rooms. These are the kind you see in the fancy home catalogs for like $100.00 and up a  rod.  He made the ends on the master BR rod to match the finials on the bed posts. The downstairs guest room rod had ends that match the wrought iron handles on the dresser and upstairs he did the leaf ends that match the closet racks up there. Four very long curtain rods, metal curtain hanging rings for all and heavy metal brackets to mount them, painted to match whatever for each room.... about $180.00 US. In the states one would have cost me that much. The curtains were made right here in town.  We used Disenos Magnolia the shop down Independencia towards LCS.  She sells pillows and custom makes bedspreads and curtains.  The fabric selection was good and we took friend Marianne O.'s advice and bought a cotton blend. She says all cotton if it is Mexican SHRINKS! The owners husband came with a worker to hang the curtains after Jaime put up the rods. All three rooms look very nice.

Health Insurance: March 2004-The blurb below about our prescription and health coverage is a year old.  We have found over the past year that just like back in the states getting any money from an insurance company is a bitch! Same old same old. They never received the paperwork. Sometimes we send it three times! The prescription people apply their 80% reimbursement in some VERY abstruse ways. Yes we do get money back but it is NOT 80%. Blue Cross & Shield has been just as bad. When I was due for knee surgery this month the hospital in Guad that takes BC&S told us they had had so much trouble collecting that we had to pay up front and get the money from them ourselves! Yes we don't have to pay for the privilege of using these companies but they cause a lot of stress when you are trying to collect from them.  If you have to self insure I sure would NOT recommend these two!

"We have Blue Cross and Blue Shield Traditional. We submitted all our Doctor's bills for the two small,  out-patient surgeries and our visits to Dr. Lastra, our internist. Not only did they pay their share, the check was in dollars, not pesos! We also submitted all or drug costs to the prescription service. We got a letter back from then only questioning the Nopales script for my high cholesterol! They want a U.S. drug equivalent. So I guess that means they will pay their 80% share for the rest! They should considering they are getting off with cheaper prices than the states!! So for the moment the insurance seems to be covering here as it should."

New Construction/Renovations: We have been very happy with the work of architect Roberto Millan, he can be reached at  0133-3640-6284 or cell 0133 3131 5386. He speaks English and does a lot of work in Guad and Ajijic. We watched him build a friend's new house and were very impressed with the price, the quality and professionalism of the workmanship.

We met with him; he was interested in our plans and helped us clarify and design what we wanted. We got scale drawings of the proposed work,  a detailed 5 page contract, in English, spelling out all the specs and materials, and the time frame to completion. The payments are in stages  with dates arranged in advance. He has a good maestro who keeps the crew on task. His workers are courteous and industrious.  And the crew depending on what stage of work you are at may number up to ten workers. At the end of each day they sweep and clean up all debris, not leaving you with a mess of bits and pieces.  The job should be done by mid June. We had only one holdup. Blue Door, the tile factory that made all the other tile in the house was out of many of the tiles we chose for upstairs. We had a three week wait for them to make the tile at the factory. Otherwise we would have made the June 6 completion date.  So far we have had none of the horror stories others have told us about construction and we are very pleased with the quality of the work.

Update: August 2-2003- Well the job is done. Roberto just came with the maestro to put up the towel racks, soap dishes,  etc for the bath. These were ceramic and were made to match the tiles and floor colors.  The job was finished almost a month ago but this was  a small undone thing. Again we had t wait for Blue Door to make them. We can certainly recommend the architect. The job was finished on time and on budget, I have compared the workmanship and quality of the construction with any job I have seen done in the village and ours is very well done. We are very happy with the work we had done.

Ironwork: This can be anything from custom made furniture, to custom metal curtain rods with rings, gates, fireplace screens, new doors, window grills. We use a nice young man at the top of the hill/Calle Pedro Moreno, on the highway across the street from El Serape. His name is Jaime Lopez. There are three iron work shops there. . His shop is the middle one with the green gates. He rides down to our house on his bike. He measures and draws meticulous diagrams. Then several days or a week later, depending on the size of the project, my latest creation arrives. We have used the Nunez brothers for furniture. They made the barstools in the kitchen and the decorative shelves that hold the TV and VCR in our bedroom. They matched the  bedroom shelf to the decorative metal bed.

Stonework: We don't even have a name for this one. It is a stone cutters yard on the highway coming to Ajijic from the airport. You will see the fountains and statues as you drive up. We went there to get a second canterra marble pedestal for the new dining room table. We wanted to go from round glass top that seats 6 to a rectangular top that seats 10. Thus we needed another, matching, pedestal. We stopped and the nice, stone dust covered man said he would be at the house in Ajijic that evening. He came by bus and was there about six. He measured, drew and did careful diagrams to reproduce another pedestal exactly like the one he made two years ago.  Refused a cold drink and went off to catch the bus toward Guadalajara.  A week later for a 100 peso delivery charge he arrives with the new pedestal.  It matches exactly , except when he measures the old one, he discovers it is 1 centimeter taller. No problema. He wheels the old one out to the garden and takes out his hammer and chisel and chips 1 centimeter off the bottom. When it comes back in and gets lined up with the new one, a level laid atop the two has the bubble right there in the middle.

Carpentry: As I mentioned previously the village favorite for discerning customers is Jose Espiritu. He speaks very good English, shows up at the appointed time, and does METICULOUS work.  For us he has done kitchen and bath cabinetry, added or modified existing furniture, and mounted Harry's heavy pictures and giant carved wooden pieces on the wall. He has built new furniture and done custom kitchen work for several friends. I have yet to meet anyone he has worked for who didn't think he was the best carpenter in the village.

Furniture: There is Mexican style furniture and there is U.S. style furniture. For U.S. style furniture at Lakeside, one of the very best people is Ricky at Furniture Connection (west side of town on the carreterra.) Ricky is a sweetheart. He has a wonderful decorating sense. He will custom match fabric and accessories for you. For us he even talked himself out of selling an extra chair, because it wouldn't fit in our TV room.  He will come to your home to offer decorating advice on a special order or custom made piece. You can find cheaper Mexican style furniture. You need to test/measure the cushion width since it is sometimes a bit skimpy for Northern posteriors.

Upholstery: Your house may have come with some usable furniture that just needs refreshing. And everyone shops Barbara's Bazaar for bargains. If your bargain needs to be recovered then take advantage of several wonderful craftsmen here in the village. When Rafael Morale the upholsterer did the recover on my cheap chair from Barbara's Bazaar he made it look brand new. His office?? doesn't look like one. Find the veteranaria on the highway with the big cow statue in front. About three doors down heading toward Joco you will see this hole in the wall type door. It is between a veggie shop and the weaver's place that sells table settings and place mats. There in a little yard with a tarp over it is where Rafael and his son do their magic. If you need something reupholstered he will bring fabric samples to your home and also his English speaking son. 

Personal Services: I have used Paty's Scruples salon for cut and color. She speaks English and worked for a time in the U.S.   I have had manicure and pedicures done at Yoli's and manicures at Edyth's on Constitution. She is known for really good haircuts if you favor short styles. Total Body care on Ocampo does a killer pedicure complete with leg massage, soothing music and aroma therapy! Only thing is you need to budget almost two hours. But it is worth it! They and Yoli also do body massage. On all these services you won't believe the prices compared to the U.S.

Wood Carvings: This could be a headboard, a coffee table, a dining room table, whatever. At the Wednesday market see David Robles. He has a stand at the top of the street across from El Torito. His family often has cut fruit or fresh strawberries as well.  If you need inspiration sit there on the bus bench and look through David's book of photos. We wanted something for behind the couch in the den, but not a picture. David carved me a Green Man. Sort of a mythical man's head, but his hair and beard are ferns, leaves and flowers. It is framed and painted in the green and gold colors of the den. It is about 30 inches by 30 inches. Cost $120.00. He is a one of a kind and looks perfect there.

Silver Jewelry: Be sure any silver you buy has the weight stamp on it. It should say 925-  In Ajijic when you are out to eat somewhere you will probably meet Mary. She travels around to the restaurants with her case and she has nice silver  jewelry at good prices. She is also at the tianguis on Weds. She is towards the top of the hill on the fence side. If you go to Tonala look in at  Casa Amarilla.  Just be for warned that is all the sign they have! You would think it was just someone's house! It is at #4  Lopez Cotilla. The young man there has beautiful sets with bracelets, earrings and necklaces. Prices are very good! A good place for bring back gifts.