January 9, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Making Tiles in Malpica, Mexico

We recently showed you the great bakery in Malpica, Mexico. There is also a fantastic silver store there. But today, we will show you how to make tiles.

So many tiles

Behind the silver store, this gentleman makes beautiful tiles. He is ready to begin. He started with this powder.

From this pile of powder to a beautiful tile

The mixture goes into a form.

Mixed and spread in this form

Then color is added.

Adding the blue color

Today it is blue. Now the tile goes to the next form. He swirls and makes a design with a pencil.

Using a pencil to swirl and make the design

He is finished with the tile.

That is amazing!

This looks great! All that is needed now is for the tile to bake and dry.

Zeb and Eider like these tiles

These tiles are all the same shape.

A perfect fit every time

Thanks to the molds and forms. The individual tiles fit together perfectly. Our tour guide buys a few tiles each time he comes here. He says his backyard patio is almost all tiled now, and he says it looks fabulous. This gentleman makes tiles of various colors and designs.

So many choices

We really liked these tiles, but the humans said they were not carrying tiles home. So, we admired them and took photos to remember the tiles and this man. It is now time to return to our van and leave the cobblestone streets of Malpica.

Leaving Malpica

We really enjoyed our time here and everybody was so friendly and nice to us. When you visit Mazatlan, we hope you take a side trip to Malpica. Have a fresh roll from the bakery, get a tile and think of us, the Colorado Traveling Ducks.

January 7, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Bakery in Malpica, Mexico

One day, Eider and Zeb Duck left Mazatlan and the beaches to go to Malpica.

We are in Malpica, Mexico

Malpica is a small town, heading toward the mountains. We stopped at this panaderia.

Let’s go into this bakery

A panaderia is a bakery. Boy did it smell good in here!

The bread is baked in this oven.

We can see the fire in this oven

Here is a pan of rolls almost ready to come out.

Almost ready

Look at these fresh rolls.

Fresh, warm and ready for us

Some have filling; some have sugar on top. There were so many choices. This lady bakes some of the bread.

She likes Zeb and Eider Duck

She liked us and we liked her. She sold a roll with pineapple filling to Eider’s dad and Zeb’s mom got one called concha, or shell. It had sugar on top. They were both delicious. This bakery could be our favorite place. As we left the bakery, mom spotted this jewelry store.

Mexican silver is so pretty

Guess the bakery is one of our favorites. This jewelry store is another favorite. We liked Malpica. But there is more in town. Next time we will show you more of Malpica, Mexico.

January 5, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Cruising near Mazatlan’s Lighthouse with Zeb and Eider Duck

We, Zeb and Eider Duck, are going on a boat. We took a bus from our resort to near Mazatlan’s lighthouse and now we are cruising in the bay.

We love boat rides

Isn’t this pretty? We love boats. This is Mazatlan’s famous lighthouse.

El Faro, or the Lighthouse

This is the highest natural lighthouse in the world. It is 157 meters, or 523 feet above high tide. In 1933 this lighthouse was converted to electricity and now uses a 1,000 watt bulb. That is equivalent to 600,000 candles. Our guide told us that pirates previously used these caves under the lighthouse.

Former pirate caves under the lighthouse

No pirates here now, though. You can see that we are cruising near the city of Mazatlan.

Close to Mazatlan

This is the first sea lion to arrive this year.

More sea lions will arrive soon. He looks a little scared of us

We were told that many sea lions spend the winter here in Mazatlan. We are approaching these white islands.

Bright white, because???

Many birds spend either the winter, or live here all year. So many birds that our guide told us the rocks are not really white; they are covered with bird poop. Here are some of the birds watching us arrive.

We are being watched

Our guide told us these are brown boobies.

Brown Boobies at the top the rock

This one is our favorite.

Our new friend

We, Zeb and Eider Duck, liked our boat ride. When you are Mazatlan, you would enjoy a boat ride also. It was great, but now we must get off the boat.

This was fun. Hope you go on a boat soon

January 3, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Old Mazatlan with Zeb and Eider Duck

Zeb and Eider Duck visited the market, or Mercado, in Mazatlan. Then we walked to the main plaza, or zocalo. We admired the fruit available from this vender.

These look so good. We love the little oranges

Here is another vender with even more choices for shoppers.

Colors are so bright

The policeman was directing traffic in this congested area.

Directing traffic in Old Mazatlan

Mom told us that most old Mexican cities have a main plaza, called the zocalo and the main cathedral faces this plaza. Mazatlan’s cathedral is old and beautiful.

Main Cathedral in Mazatlan

Inside people were working, preparing for a ceremony almost ready to begin.

Ornate altar. Flowers arriving now.

We are not sure if it was a wedding, but the flowers were being delivered and we saw a young girl in a beautiful long white dress. She may have been the flower girl?

Across from the cathedral, in the park, the gazebo is very pretty.

We sat in this gazebo for a few minutes. Love it!

Near the gazebo, the monument to military heroes stands.

Brigada Sinaloa. Celebrated 100 years.

Since it was near Christmas, Santa’s temporary home was on the edge of the park.

Santa’s temporary home

He was not home when we were there. Probably supervising the elves. We really liked this Nativity scene.

In Mazatlan’s main plaza

Santa Claus and presents are fun, but we all remember the real reason for Christmas. When you are in a Mexican town, visit the main plaza, or zocalo. It is a peaceful and pretty part of any town or Mexican experience.

January 2, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Mazatlan’s Market with Zeb and Eider Duck

I, Zeb the Duck, and my Alaska cousin, Eider Duck, went to the market in Mazatlan, Mexico. This is not like going to the mall at home. The market is exciting! They sell so much stuff here. This man is selling meat.

Fresh meat here

We have a kitchen in our condo, but the humans do not want to cook on vacation, so we did not buy anything from him. Here is more meat.

This will be cut into smaller pieces

Another man cuts this into smaller portions.

Moving away from the fresh meat, we admired these hats.

Colorful, but too big for ducks

This cabinet has so many ceramic skulls and masks.

Skulls of many sizes

Mom bought a small skull. We don’t know why, but she liked it. There are so many booths selling souvenirs of Mexico.

So many choices

These are so colorful.

Can we take it all home???

Look at all these shells.

Shells for all occasions

Other booths sold clothing and leather. This market, or Mercado, has everything. The lunch counter looked inviting, but we did not eat here.

Mom loves lunch counters and food from street venders.

Maybe next time. This man is entertaining people while they shop and eat.

We like him

He is working for tips only. Piñatas are at many Mexican parties. This one is a typical shape.

Big and colorful

At parties, or fiestas, the piñata is filled with candy. The young humans take turns trying to break the piñata and then everybody dives for the candy. It looks like a lot of fun for humans. These are special piñatas for Christmas.

Piñatas for Christmas.

Aren’t they fun? This is a sample of what you might see walking around the Mercado in Mazatlan.

Visit a market soon.

This place is wonderful. We hope you visit a Mexican market soon. You will have a great experience. We did.

December 27, 2014 by coloradotravelingducks

Christmas Decorations at Torres Mazatlan

I, Zeb the Duck, and Eider Duck, loved the Christmas decorations at our resort in Mazatlan, Mexico.

Torres Mazatlan. Our home for the week.

It was great having Christmas decorations to remind us that Christmas is almost here. We are used to colder weather for Christmas, but we are enjoying the pool, beach and warm, sunny weather. The Christmas tree and Nativity scene were beautiful.

These decorations were made by Torres Mazatlan employees in 1992

We especially liked the story of the Christmas tree. The employees made the tree from palm fronds and decorated it with coconuts wrapped in colored paper. Torres Mazatlan has used this tree since 1992 as a symbol of Love and Peace on Earth.

Entering the resort, just past the security station, this festive scene greets us.

Just past security station near the entrance of the resort

The Christmas flowers near the registration desk are very much a sign of Christmas.

Such vivid colors

The Santa display with Santa’s mailbox was very popular.

Letters to Santa go in this mailbox

Leaving the registration area, we passed through this decorated arch.

Looks so tropical

Wandering through the grounds, we liked this cart of flowers with Christmas decorations on the ground.

Flowers are always nice.

Near our patio, we enjoyed this cart of Christmas packages.

Presents everywhere

It was especially nice at night when the lights were on.

One day we watched the younger human children break a piñata.

He is trying

This is a great Mexican custom and the kids had fun.

She is older, so the piñata moves while she tries

We had fun watching this also.

It won’t be long before piñata is broken and candy falls to ground

Our humans said we were too small to swing the stick and also too small to scramble with the humans picking up the candy.

While enjoying tropical weather it was nice to see the Christmas spirit around us. We hope you are enjoying seeing Christmas decorations wherever you are during the Christmas season.

December 24, 2014 by coloradotravelingducks

Welcome to Torres Mazatlan

I, Zeb the Duck, and Alaska cousin Eider Duck, went to Torres Mazatlan resort in Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico.

Torres Mazatlan. Our home for the week.

We love Mazatlan.

We thought this Christmas tree made from palm fronds

The employees of Torres Mazatlan created this tree.

and decorated with wrapped coconuts was great. The Nativity scene was beautiful also.

Nativity scene to remember the birth of Jesus

There was his big red box labeled Toy Box.

Toys for the children of Mazatlan. This is the season for giving.

The staff at Torres Mazatlan donates toys and money to provide Christmas Eve dinners and toys for the people of Mazatlan. We think this is great. We will give them money also. Eider, Zeb and the humans want to help.

We attended the welcome party Monday evening. They served mango daiquiris and mango margaritas. We ducks did not try any but the humans seemed to really like the mango daiquiris. We liked the mariachi band.

Mariachis to welcome us to Mazatlan

The music is so happy.

Let’s dance

Just makes everyone want to dance and be happy.

When it got dark, they had the official lighting of the Christmas tree

Wow!

and the Nativity scene.

The lights create magic

Aren’t they pretty? We liked the welcome party. We liked the mariachis.

So typical of Mexico

We liked the popcorn. And we really liked the Christmas tree being lit while we were there. As they say in Mexico, Feliz Navidad. Merry Christmas to you all. We will tell you more about our time in Mexico soon.

October 26, 2013 by coloradotravelingducks

Palomas, Mexico

I, Zeb the duck, am still excited about visiting Mexico for a few hours. Yesterday I told you about the Pink Store in Palomas.

This is a great place

It was fascinating and had skeleton items for Mexico’s Day of the Dead. If you missed my experience, please go back and read it. I love that store.

But, as much fun as shopping was for me, there are other parts of Palomas. There were a few other stores. There are liquor stores and pharmacies. We did talk to a few street vendors. One man was selling sunglasses, another sold straw hats and another sold DVDs and CDs. There were more restaurants in town. They had a tempting aroma as we walked past. We eat a lot, but one lunch was enough. These ladies were dressed up and looked very nice.

Dressed up and so pretty

Thought you would like to see them.

I did see a lot of dental and vision offices.

Medical tourism is big here

I learned that many people come to Mexico to have medical procedures done. Being a duck, I don’t worry about dental and vision problems, but humans do.

Leaving the main shopping and tourist area, we walked to the park. Most Mexican towns have a large plaza in town. Sometimes this is called the alameda. In Palomas this plaza is very pretty and there is a large gazebo in the center.

Great gazebo in plaza

Lots of grass and trees here and sidewalks leading to the gazebo. I love these plazas.

Across the street from the plaza is an old church.

Old churches are comforting. Love them

We were there Sunday, and mass just ended as we arrived. Everybody looked so nice coming out of the church.

A few blocks from the plaza we saw this statue of a horseman.

This is a big horse

A large statue but the sculpture had great detail on it. I felt proud to be here.

I know that people are concerned about safety going to Mexican border towns now, but mom and I felt very safe here. Everyone was very nice. There were several Americans in town. Some drove here but most like us, walked across the border. If you are near Columbus, New Mexico, I hope you will come to Palomas. We had a wonderful time here and I know you will enjoy it also. Come to eat, come to shop and come to enjoy the city of Palomas, Mexico. Look at www.palomasmexico.com for more information.

October 25, 2013 by coloradotravelingducks

The Pink Store in Palomas, Mexico

Mexico! I just got back from Mexico. Wow! Zeb the duck is now an international traveler.

Zeb the Duck is in Mexico!

We spent a few hours in Palomas, Mexico last weekend. Most of our purchases came from The Pink Store. Let me tell you about this store.

But first, Palomas, Mexico is a border town in the state of Chihuahua. It is across from Columbus, New Mexico, just south of Deming, New Mexico. We drove to the border, parked on the US side and walked into Mexico. So easy. The Pink Store was recommended to us, and this is why. The Pink Store is huge and has everything.

This skeleton lady was the first thing I saw.

She is just too thin

A bit of a shock to me. Mom said that Mexico’s Day of the Dead is Nov 1 and Nov 2. The spirits of the deceased return and much celebrating occurs. I saw lots of skeleton displays.

Skeleton stuff everywhere

Everything seemed so festive.

A skeleton wedding

I was amazed and loved it all.

Mexico produces much pottery and hand blown glass and it is beautiful. These were displayed on a wall,

So festive!

but many more are on shelves. Some of my favorites are the dolls made from cornhusks.

Dolls and a duck

Perhaps a duck on the shelf enhances the display. I wanted to play with these piñatas.

Oh to be a human

Too bad I am not human.

We ate lunch at the Pancho Villa Restaurant in The Pink Store. Excellent food and service. So many choices. A man played music while we ate. He was nice, too. Near the restaurant was a large bar. Looking out the window at the The Pink Store Plaza I saw General Pershing and Pancho Villa shaking hands. I joined them in the handshake.

I love a firm handshake

In the plaza this wooden door caught my attention.

This is a wooden door

The carving on this door was magnificent. Took lots of talent and time to carve this door.

This is just one section of the door. WOW!

Also love the peaceful feeling of a fountain.

Fountain in Pink Store Plaza

I could have stayed all day at The Pink Store, discovering and shopping. Mom bought vanilla, Kahlua and some other souvenirs. Look at this site www.Palomasmexico.com to see more photos of the Pink Store. I will tell you more about Palomas soon.

	Reagan on Eider Duck Heads to Homer,…
	Calvin F on Lilongwe, Malawi with Zeb the…
	Carl on Tabernash, Colorado with The C…
	Cindy B on Tree Rock in Wyoming
	coloradotravelingduc… on Cathedral of the Plains in Vic…