zihua.

As I write this, three lagartijas (small lizards) are playing tag across the ceiling and walls of our gorgeous villa. The steady pulse of the surf a couple of blocks away is interrupted by the occasional Saturday night joyride or a strain of mariachi music wafting up from one of the bigger resorts nearby.
Today was one of the few here in Zihua. when we really thought seriously about our safety. The other day, four local policemen were killed when gunmen attacked their car with rifle fire and grenades. The U.S. State Department (and Canada's too, I think) have advised great caution in traveling to Mexico, especially border towns crazy with narco-violence. Today, we'd planned to take a local second-class bus to La Barra de Potosí , about 15 miles south of here for our second visit. But we were thinking twice about going and decided to compromise and take a cab there again instead of the much cheaper and, we figured, less secure bus.
Barra today represented a breakthrough of sorts for me, my first attempt at surf fishing. As luck would have it, there was a very stiff wind off the Pacific. Between that and my less than practiced casting technique, I could barely get my lures past the crashing surf. Still, I did manage to get one strike -- some encouragement for the next time. For Sally, the highlight was her "adoption" of yet another beach dog. We've met several now, and each seems sweeter, gentler and more unassuming than the last.
The cab ride was again terrific practice for my Spanish conversation skills, with Alfredo and I covering every topic from his family to names of trees and plants, to why Mexico won't soon come even close to winning the World Cup.
When we got back to San Sebastian, we had a cooling, relaxing inner tube float on the pool. Then I ran to the Comercial to pick up some more groceries and liquor.
For dinner, we tried the nearby Catalina Beach Resort's restaurant. The Catalina, it turns out, is one of the "original" resorts in Zihua, dating from 1953, and lays claim to having accommodated an impressive list of celebrities from Ms. Guggenheim to Mick Jagger. We've walked by the resort scores of times, by both road and beach, and have barely noticed its very low profile. We enjoyed our dinner while watching the sailing of a huge cruise ship, in port for an afternoon of shopping. It steamed its way out of the bay and swung north for Manzanillo as the sun set on another wonderful (and safe) day.