La Peñita RV Park organized a shopping trip for the women of the RV Park. This was the RV place we stayed when, back in early November, we limped into that town with our brake problems. It was a THREE day shopping trip near Guadalajara. Tinka was invited to go with one of the women there. Guadalajara is a 4 1/2 hour bus trip up the mountains from the coast. We climbed on our charter bus at 7:30 AM on Wed.
The destination was Tónala, a suburb of Guadalajara. Tónala is well known for the craftsmanship of many different types of mexican crafts. For example there are 11 different types of ceramics made and produced in Tónala plus paper-mache, brass, furniture and hand blown glassware. If you have ever been to a border town or to the interior of Mexico you have seen many of these crafts. This is where all the vendors and shopkeepers all over Mexico go and buy their wares to sell in their shops and on the beach.
The market is on Thursday and Sunday.
The plaza is covered with merchant stands of every known craft to sell. It was very busy so after tiring of the crowd we would go shopping in the regular shops of Tónala.
All the merchants would wrap our purchases up in newspaper and sometimes in boxes to protect from breakage. For items which were not protected, we bought bubble wrap and boxes to put our purchases in and transported them home in our chartered bus.
Even more purchases.
We stayed at the old Hacienda del Sol Hotel which was near the market.
We took a taxi into Guadalajara to eat dinner one night. It was a beautiful indoors and outdoors restaurant called Santo Coyote. Forgot my camera.
The next day we took a taxi to another suburban town of Guadalajara called Tlaquepaque. This was a city where the rich people of Guadalajara would build their summer homes to get away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. These were houses with big courtyards. When the people quit coming to their homes they were eventually converted to upscale shops of more talented and renowned artists and restaurants.
The Plaza of Tlaquepaque.
Cleaning the brass on the street.
Houses converted into upascale shops.
Jose playing the guitar for Liz and Pat.
Tinka about to get forked in a ceramic Chef’s chair.
We ate at a restaurant called the Patio. On Friday, Saturday and Sundays they have live entertainment starting at 2 PM for the lunch crowd. First there is a guitarist and then a mariachi band at 3 PM. What is unusual about the mariachi band it is all females!
We arrived back at the RV park about 7 PM on Friday night with all the husbands having a heart attack of all the boxes being delivered off the bus.