Three years ago Paul and I came to Mexico to live, and we settled in the colonial city of Morelia in central Mexico. In mid-March our family was finally able to visit us and sample the joys (and frustrations) of living here. A special treat for us was getting to know little Riley, who turned one while they were here. He was leery of us at first, but after a few days, he really warmed up to us. He walks a lot already and surprised us all at what a good traveler he could be.
We all spent a day exploring the historic zone of Mexico City, the third largest city in the world. At Alameda Park our daughter Vivian and I indulged in henna tattoos. Vivian is a social worker in West Virginia and works many hours of overtime due to the demands of the economic recession. This vacation gave her a much needed break. 
Khaleb, our 15-year-old grandson, wants to be an architect. He was especially impressed with the skyscrapers, colonial buildings, and monuments. Here he is taking a picture of the monument to Benito Juarez, a full-blooded Zapotec Indian who became Mexico’s most beloved president.
At the pyramids of Teotihuacan the baby back pack really came in handy. We all climbed to the top of the smaller Pyramid of the Moon. Paul, Hunter (our son-in-law), Khaleb, Miguel (our guide) and Artemiza (our friend) waited over an hour in line in the sun to climb the gigantic Pyramid of the Sun. Vivian, Riley, and I enjoyed the museum and the garden of statues in the shade.
We spent a week together in Morelia. We did the mandatory walking tour of the colonial buildings in el centro, a UNESCO Heritage Site. We ate out in Mexican and Italian restaurants. Vivian, Riley, and I went shopping at the Mercado del Dulce (market of sweets, which also has embroidered clothing, hand-carved wooden toys, and other arts and crafts), Mercado Independencia (Morelia’s largest traditional market of stalls), and several galleries.
Paul, Hunter, and Khaleb made the trip up in the mountains to see the Monarch butterflies just before the millions of tiny insects started their trek back to the US and Canada. Because of the warmth of March the butterflies were flying all over instead of clinging to the trees as Paul and I had seen on two previous trips. They were also mating having recently matured at the end of their semi-hibernation.
We did a day trip to Pátzcuaro, one of three Pueblos Mágicos (Magic Towns) in our state of Michoacán, and to Lake Zirahuen. At the lake Hunter, Khaleb, and I went on the zip line, which was a lot of fun. Here is a picture of me going across a finger of the lake. The employees at the zip line were always close by, and we were never unattached to at least one big cable so I felt completely safe. When I paid, they did look at me strangely. I think I was the first person ever to ask for a senior discount to go on the zip line.
Because Khaleb is an excellent soccer player, their trip would not have been complete without attending a game of the Morelia Monarcas. And to their delight, the home team won 2-1.
I asked Hunter, our son-in-law, what he enjoyed most about the trip. He said it was seeing Paul and me spending time with Riley. I told him I thought he was one of the most considerate people I had ever met. Hunter spent seven months with the National Guard learning the electronics of Black Hawk heliocopters. He liked it so well he went back to college to get a degree in electronics.
Since they were flying out of Guadalajara, we all went the day ahead to spend some time south of the city in Chapala. We stayed at Villa Montecarlo, a hotel with lovely grounds right on the lake. With a hot springs on the property, they have a thermal pool, which Riley thought was much better than the colder swimming pool. Paul and I were very sad to see them leave, but we have to admit that we were exhausted. It look us a week to recover yet we are eager for them to come again.
