Hello from Yakima

Today, I went to my first ever Zumba class. I had been hearing about Zumba for a couple years now and really wanted to check into it. I found a lady from Minneapolis, Minnesota who is living here in Mazatlan and teaching Zumba classes out of her home. For those of you who aren't familiar with Zumba, "it's a mix of body sculping movements with easy to follow dance steps like the merengue, salsa, cumbia, mambo, samba and flamenco, as well as, other dances from around the world including hip hop and belly dance. The dances are set to toe tapping, hip swiveling, arm swinging, high energy Latin music that just makes you want to get up and moooovve." Check out this site for more information on Zumba Fitness. http://www.zumbacize.com/ I have to admit, it was a little challenging for me but I made it through my first class and plan to go again. I would like to try to take the 3-day a week classes (M W F) that this lady offers. The class was held on the back patio of her home ...

Today, Greg and I went to FloreSer (the teenage girl's home here in Mazatlan) to help teach them English. Out of the 6 girls, 3 of them participated. They were like little sponges, so eager to learn. The home mother's have been instilling in them the need to learn English to have a better future. 2 of the girls take English in their schools but the others do not receive it. Not sure exactly how the curriculum works at the different ages here in Mazatlan. The opportunity to work with these girls is so rewarding and is helping us with our Spanish too. We just hope in some way we can help make their futures a little brighter.

As many of you know, while living in the states this past fall I worked as a Circuit Coach at the Curves near my hometown of Yakima, Washington. The Curves here in Mazatlan is a little different. The one I work at in Selah is much nicer and bigger. As you will see in these pictures, they really need a larger space and are moving soon. They do not have Curves Smart and only have 9 machines. Really makes me appreciate our Curves in Selah.

I thought you might enjoy seeing where I go once a week for my yoga class. I attend this class on Thursday mornings at 8:00. It's held at this beautiful Bed & Breakfast in historic El Centro, Casa de Leyendas. If you're interested, here is a link to their website. http://www.casadeleyendas.com/ Below are a few photos taken of the B & B and my class. This is the patio dining/pool area . Living room. At the top of this beautiful staircase are the bedrooms and the outdoor terrace where my yoga class is held. I'm going to attempt to describe for you the sounds I hear as my 1 hour yoga class begins. In a typical yoga class their is silence or very soft music as the yoga instructor works you through the poses. Well, of course, not in Mexico. I hear at 8:00 in the morning the businesses and homes, on the street below, waking up - the hustling and bustling of preparing for the day. I hear the sound of broom sweeping, chattering of voices in Espanol, clanking of dishes in pr...

Ready to eat, drink, dance and be merry? This was the class we attended this week that had promised us we would be leaving shouting OLE! While dining on cheese quesadillas, chicken taquitos, and more, we learned to mix an authentic Mexican Margarita and how to make 6 Sassy Salsas and Ole-Guacamole. We enjoyed all-you-can-drink margaritas while preparing the salsas and then had the opportunity to learn the basics of the popular dance, Salsa. For those of you who don't know, a traditional margarita always contain three ingredients: real tequila, orange liquor (Controy - Mexican version of Cointreau) and fresh lime juice. You vary it from there. Salud!! Here are a few pictures of the fun time we had. Our chef and dance instructor, Maureen Geraghty (aka Mo) We're ready to start whipping up those margaritas and salsa! Am I doing it right? After we had enjoyed a few margaritas, Mo tries to get our attention. Then Mo gives instruction on the basic Salsa dance steps. Step to the pool, ...