Carnaval is right around the corner and San Felipe is gearing up for a few crazy nights for all the families to come out and enjoy. The weather is perfect this time of year to come out and spend time with friends and family. Carnaval is always a ton of fun with extravagant costumes, parades, music, dancing, and entertainment up and down the malicon.....and all over town too! So make your way to the malicon starting on Feb 12th and ending on the 16th, I know i'll be there with all my closest friends and making memories that will last for a lifetime.....see you there!!!

        

We would like to intoduce SeanHarrington who has been a member of the San Felipe community for over 6years and a full time resident for over 4 years. Not young enough orrich enough to retire, Sean was introduced to San Felipe by a long timefriend who was developing property in San Felipe. Enchanted with SanFelipe and enthralled with the prospect of learning the Mexican realestate & development business, and being more than just a littleburned out on owning and operating his own business in California,Sean jumped into San Felipe with both feet and never looked back. Hesays that the BIG secret about life in San Felipe is that despitesensationalized reports of violence in some parts of Mexico that hefeels as safe, or safer in San Felipe than when he lived in Carmel,Monterey, and the San Francisco Bay Area for more than 30 years.

 

Hisdue diligence started by making the rounds and visiting and touring allthe developments and meeting with the key people to learn of theirtrack record and their plans for the future. Sean regularly attendsmeetings of the San Felipe Developers Association, has attended "TheMeeting Point", a 3 day summit sponsored by The Mexican Government tomatch up Investors with developers, and holds an AMPI certification.

 

 AMPIis one of Mexico's National Association of Real Estate Professionalsthat have, since 1956, gathered under the laws and codes of ethics andconduct to create a reliable, trustworthy and efficient real estateenvironment in Mexico.

 

Seanhas worked for both National brand realty companies such as ColdwellBanker Mexico, and was the Director of Sales & Marketing for a newdevelopment in the South Beach area of San Felipe where he had theopportunity to watch the company develop its infrastructure as well asthe company’s expansion of the electrical service to meet thedevelopments needs.

 

An amateur photographer and writer, Sean has written articles on thereal estate business for his own blogs, as well as supplying articlesand photographs for Mexico Living Magazine.

 

Oneof the reasons Sean choose to work for Baja 24/7 Realty Specialists isthat it was born out of a construction business with over 30 years ofexperience at the helm. Another reason was Baja 24/7's commitment to"doing it right" from the formation of their companies legal standingin Mexico, it's commitment to protect the buyers & sellers, it'smembership & support of API another of Mexico's NationalAssociations of Real Estate Professionals, and their commitment to thepromotion and direction of San Felipe for the benefit of all. 

 

As he has said "I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly in San Felipe Real estate".

 

Get informed on San Felipe's real estate market with Sean through his blog San Felipe Real Estate Musings II. Subscribe by RSS or email alerts and keep informed.

Youcan reach Sean in San Felipe at our downtown La Plazita Office from theUS 925 246-5329, or from Mexico 577-6196 his cell phone is 686 179-1849email baja247.realty.sanfelie@gmail.com or through the blog.

        

 

  The time is here once again to enjoy all the wonderful flavors of the local cuisine that touristic San Felipe has to offer. Every year, the Rotary Club hosts 'The Taste of San Felipe', all proceeds go to benefit the community.  I have taken part in this event a few times over the years and always had a fantastic time walking from restaurant to restaurant sampling all the tasty treats that were offered. This year, the event will take place on Tuesday, January 19 at 1:00pm - 3:30pm and the tickets cost $15usd (200pesos)each.

        

                       HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

                         

 I just attended the annual Christmas party at El Dorado Ranch, and had a lot of fun. There was a great band that played........

 

 We had a taco lunch and some sodas as we listened to the band play. Then we heard that Santa was on his way! We looked up into the sky and there he was!!!



 He waved to everyone and all the children yelled for him to come down. So here he came......



There were a ton of kids there, but everyone got a gift and some candy.



So, Merry Christmas to all....and, well you know the rest!!!

 

        

How was everyone's Holiday? I hope your Thanksgiving was a blast!

 We took a break from the office, but not from work thanks to modern technology, to visit our family in Central California. It was really good to see my Grandmother in Modesto, even though she was wearing a purple cast on her broken arm. But she was still as feisty and stubborn as ever!  Here's a hand-painted picture of Grandma when she was in the Navy...

Then we went to Hal's (brother of the Famous Patty Bell) up in Sonora. The Mountains were beautiful and all the trees had gorgeous hues of red, orange, and yellow. The mornings were chilly but a nice hot cup of coffee was just the pick-me-up we needed.
LOL
We had a lovely Thanksgiving with our family, we ate dinner at the Moose Lodge and everything was delicious! It was a pot-luck type dinner and we brought salad and stuffing, but left with some of the extra ham.....it was fall-off-the-bone wonderful!!

On Black Friday we headed back down to the Bay Area. We tried to do a little shopping but there wasn't anything worth buying, all the best deals were already gone....and it was only 8am! We wanted to go to the mall, but couldn't get a spot. Oh well!

We continued on to San Lorenzo, it rained for a little bit but had stopped by the time we arrived at my Brothers home. There was an amazing rainbow, a full arch! The rainbow also had a friend!....
See it?

My Brother really keeps us in the loop when it comes to movies, this trip we all sat on the couch and watched "UP". Of course my nephew kept saying 'this is a good part', watch this!', etc... LOL. Here's my nephew reading to the Famous Patty Bell....
Isn't that sweet?

We had a great time, and even saw some dinosaurs!!!!!

        

Saturday was a really busy day in the little fishing village of San Felipe. But as the sun set behind the mountains, the baseball field filled up with many excited people ready to see some bull riding. There was a rodeo in town called Media de Noche Rodeo, and I was extra excited because it was my first rodeo! I went with a really good friend of mine named Ben, and it was his first too!

To fill up some time for the crowds to arrive they play a game with some of the youngsters.

Let's just say a few plastic chairs got broken and the kid in orange may have been clothes-lined. lol

The emcee sang a few songs to a very impatient crowd. What a trooper for toughing it out!


And to keep the kiddies awake.......

CAAAAAANNNNDDDDYYYYYYYY!!!

Then the riders were introduced, and they were all so very young! Their ages ranged from 16-19 years old! Their mothers all must have really gray hair!!!


Here are a few of the shots I took, enjoy!














Well my friends, I hope to see you at the next rodeo, you really don't want to miss it!

P.S., check out this hilarious video!!!

This is one of the couples who was trying to win free beer at the rodeo.

        

   
                                                                         

  Every now and then, the town of San Felipe has somewhat of an event conflict. Now that most of the Snowbirds have returned from up north to spend the winter season in Baja, things seem to start jumping. See all those pictures at the top?? It's all on November 14th....this Saturday!

  We will definitely be at the Home Show which will be held at El Dorado Ranch in front of the Pavilion starting at 10am and will run until 5pm. Admission is only $50pesos, about $3.75usd, and kids 5 and under are free.

  The Lions Club is hosting their 4th annual Turkey Trot Poker Walk starting at 11am at Fandangos Bar. There will be prizes for the top 3 poker hands, drinks (5 drinks, so try not too get so hammered that you forget to return to the bar for all the fun!), spaghetti dinner, raffle drawings, and as always....your annual t-shirt. The tickets are the usual $25usd and the "Trot" is always a blast!!

    There is also an event at F.A.M.A., but this one's by invitation only. I only mention it because I will be attending, and have to remember to save room in my tummy for the lunch that will be served. LOL


   Rodeo de Media Noche will be in town at the baseball field starting at 5pm and will end whenever! There will be classic rodeo action, clowns, live bands, and lots of fun! It costs $15pesos (donation) to enter, all funds go to the local Red Cross and UABC (the University of Baja California at San Felipe students).


  Baja Java is holding a wine tasting from Bibayoff Winery, Valle de Guadalupe. A 6 course dinner by Chef Antonio Santoya, yummy. And Classical Mexican Vocalists from Mexicali will perform. Tickets are available at Baja Java (on the highway next to Pete's Camp) for $40usd. Everything there starts at 5pm.

  In the Ejido, there will be an authentic Mexican Feista with folk dancing, live music, and a meal and drink are included in your ticket price of only $5usd or $65pesos. The proceeds will go to the purchase of a school bus for the Ejido schools. The fiesta will be held at 2pm in the Salon Social. I will try to remember to save room in my tummy for this one too!!

 

        

This past weekend here in San Felipe was an animation convention that took place in the Rockodile. A ton of teenagers were bussed in from Mexicali to spend a day doing what they love...........play video games and socialize. This is the first time San Felipe has hosted something of this nature, and I hope to see it many more times in the future! Everyone had a fantastic time thanks to the vision of Derek Hamlin, the Master Mind. Here are some of the pictures I took, I hope you enjoy!!



The Emcee was dressed as Sub-Zero (the only costume I reconized) and the pinata looked oddly like Derek!


All the kids, and a few older kids, had 3 chances to whack the candy out of it's brains.


This room was FULL of kids glued to the games trying to prove who's better.



Some had REAL talent!!



Some of the costumes were really really good!



And finally the Master Mind himself.....Derek


Well, everyone....I hope you enjoyed the pictures, and next time.....I hope to see you there!

        

 A while ago we got a new addition to our family, a teeny puppy that was some sort of mix of Chihuahua and Terrier. A little solar powered puppy who we affectionatly named Sunshine.
Can you spot her?

 However, on the 10th while we were getting ready to go check out all the fancy sand-rails that came down for the Poker Run, Sunshine squeezed out of the front gate and was attacked by a pack of neighborhood dogs. We ran out there as fast as we could and chased the dogs away, Sunshine came straight to me but was in much pain. We spent the morning calling all around town for emergency Vet service but there weren't any in town that day. A vet-tech gave Sunshine a shot for pain and inflammation, she seemed to get a little better, but after a few hours, she passed away. We are all terribly broken up over the loss of our cuddly little pup. She was a good dog and a great friend. Here are a few pictures we would like to share with everyone.


Her first day at the beach, she had a great time.


She would have stayed there all day if we let her.


Trying to win over Daisy.

Ready to party!


Rolling to the store.

And finally, her favorite daily activity.......

This is Sunshine playing with Sophie.


Good-Bye little Sunshine, you always brightened everyone's day. You will truly be missed.

        

 It seems like health care in Mexico is a big issue on both sides of the border lately. Most everything I've heard is positive and reassuring,
I received this e-mail from a friend of mine the other day.
"Just an idea, but one of the fears gringos might have about coming here I think could be health related and I can personally allay any fears there  as I had a recent emergency do to issues stemming from my diabetes and not only was I professionally tended to, but with care and feeling and consideration for the best AAAAANND the most comfortable and accessible  treatment for me. If Americanos have any fears about coming here for health reasons I can personally allay them as this is the second time I have had life threatening problems taken care of here in a humane, courteous, correct and warm way. Gary"

 I personally don't have much need for any kind of extra fancy insurance, I'm not much of a dare-devil, but if I ever get hurt or sick.....I have no fears of going to the local Centro de Salud to patch me up in a very professional manner, and at a price that won't break the bank!

 If you want to read up on other great stories and tips, be sure to visit our friends at Mexico Living    

Salud!!!