I left Mexico for the first time over 60 years ago.  I was 4 or 5 at the time; my parents had wanted to be missionaries in the state of Chihuahua but were unable to secure long term visas.  So we left.

The second time I left Mexico was in 1978 after we had lived in Guadalajara for 2 years.  It was a rich two years, and we knew we would be back.  In fact, we have gone back dozens of times, and now own a condominium in Zihuatanejo (on the western coast).

We’ve just left again – we had spent three weeks in Zihua and came home yesterday – moving from hot to cold.  What was different about this stay was my dedication to “blipping” – the daily collection and posting of a single photograph taken that day.

You can see them all at www.blipfoto.com/raspberryjefe but if you want a bit of guidance, here are some of my favorites from the last the weeks.  Lots of links but don’t despair … just look at the ones which interest you.  (Oh, and inside the introductions to the photos, are further links to Flickr collections.  You will really have to be curious to go to those).

Nov 18:  The Mexican – a great looking Mexican hombre in the Houston airport.  This photo made it to the Blipfoto Spotlight.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3668945

Nov 20:  Purple on the bus – although it was after she got off the bus that I took the portrait.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3674872

Nov 23:  A Fish called Wanda – a playful fish seller in the municipal market.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3682793

Nov 25:  Selling poinsettias – a young woman giving her young son a bit of personal nourishment while relaxing in a hammock.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3689618

Nov 26:  Mexican stereotypes – exploring some of the iconic dimensions of Mexicans.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3691800

Nov 28:  Una cerveza for favor – a portrait of Mauricio, a fellow I learned to know while hanging around downtown.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3698205

Dec 01:  Olivia Velez – a strikingly attractive young chef.  This photo also made it to the blip spotlight.  http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3706856

Dec 03:  Pregnant Promise – what piñatas and pregnancy in the Christmas season have in common.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3712472

Dec 04:  Sombreros – more common than I realized in Mexico (I wear one too).   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3715476

Dec 08:  Jesus in the bus window – for a country as religious as Mexico, this should not be surprising.   http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/3727974

So that’s just a little sample of daily life in Mexico.  What a great country.  We’re going back again in mid-January.

Al Doerksen