Wedding in Paradise

After a week in Zihuatanejo, we were ready for the grande finale: the wedding of our close friends, Sandra Sotelo-Miller and Tom Simmons. Sandra’s father’s family is from Zihuatanejo, so it was very special to celebrate their marriage in the village where she had her roots. The couple rehearsed their vows on Playa la Ropa in front of La Perla restaurant…

Los novios durante el ensayo

While the betrothed rehearsed, we found other ways of amusing ourselves…

Totem pole!

The rehearsal dinner food was excellent – tiritas de atún, guacamole, and parillada de mariscos y carnes – but the real topper was the 75-year old (Sandra, correct me if I’m off on this!) bottle of tequila brought by one of Sandra’s aunts. We sipped it during dinner and toasted the lovely couple with it. I’ll choose that over champagne any day!

Gustavo Sotelo, in his element

When we arrived at the wedding the following evening, we were greeted by the bride and groom. Judith (Tom’s brother-in-law’s mother) had painted colorful portraits of the gringo and the chilanga and set them by the entrance…

Portraits of the bride and groom hand-painted by Judith

Sandra and Tom had worked hard to plan a beach wedding, but sadly, the rain gods weren’t cooperating.

La lluvia amenaza

Luckily, they were able to have the ceremony under a palapa overlooking the beach, so we were still surrounding by the majestic views and soothing sounds of the ocean. But we were much more captivated by the beauty of the ceremony unfolding in front of us…

La ceremonia

The party decorations were colorful and vibrant, just like our favorite newlyweds!

Las flores flotando en la pileta

Each table was named for a place that Sandra and Tom had visited (they are avid travelers).

Table decorations at the reception (Tom's sister Shannon did all the stationary)

After a long day of getting dressed and worrying about the weather, followed by GETTING MARRIED, greeting all of their eager guests, and listening to toasts made by relatives, the couple seemed ecstatic to finally hit the dance floor.

La primera danza

A Simmons family gathering wouldn’t be complete without some kind of performance, and Patrick, Jason, Elisa, and Shannon delivered. They had prepared a song about Tom and Sandra’s future life together and sang it to the tune of the Black Eyed Peas “Tonight’s Gonna Be A Good Night.”

Los hermanos de Tom prepararon una canción especial para los novios

Then “tía Sandra” was honored by her two nieces, Ingrid and Galia, who had prepared dances for her…

Galia baila

And then the pool party ensued (led by the life-of-the-party bride and groom, of course!)…

Bridesmaids in the pool always makes for a good reception party

When the mariachis arrived around 3 a.m., we all climbed out and continued to dance the night away. It was the perfect ending to a perfect wedding. Congratulations to Sandra y Tom. Two of our favorite people in the world. We wish you well in your future life together. A huevo!!!

Los mariachis serenaron a los recién casados

¡Hola from Zihua!

Christian and I took our (second) honeymoon to Zihuatanejo last week. This trip wouldn’t have been possible without the overwhelming generosity of Bart Cousins and Missy and David Boone. Thank you!!!

We stayed at The Tides resort. Upon arriving and taking note of the flowers tucked neatly into the toilet paper rolls, we realized that this would be the nicest hotel we’d ever stay in.

Soft and scented!

They also had palapas lining the beach front where you could lounge and raise a little orange flag if you needed something, such as a deliciously fresh michelada.

Lounging under a palapa

In Mexico, a michelada is made with fresh lime juice, beer, and salt.

We swam in the ocean…

That's not our boat.

And met the local residents…

Sarah greets Juan

And of course, ate a lot of food.

Scallop ceviche

Parrillada de mariscos, a.k.a. "Los misterios del mar"

Huevos motuleños (eggs with ham, plantains, black beans, tortilla, and ranchera sauce)

Frutas tropicales y jugo de mango

Tacos de queso oaxaca y huitlacoche

Tiritas de atún (tuna ceviche)

Early on in our stay, Hurricane Beatrice paid us a visit. We got heavy rains, but not much else. Luckily, there were marble backgammon boards built into the bar. So we kept busy!

A friendly game of backgammon to pass the time

Hurricane Beatrice left some beautiful skylines in her wake…

¡Adiós Beatriz!

But that’s not all…Sarah tried to go for a swim the morning after and was terrified to be warned to “get out of the water, ahora” by Eduardo, the head of hotel security. Apparently, the local crocodile population particularly enjoys a swim across the bay after heavy rains. Sarah’s worst fears about swimming in open water were confirmed, and she steered clear of the ocean for several days. Thankfully, The Tides had some really nice pools.

Crocodiles? WTF?!

Our Spanish skills helped us to quickly befriend the hotel staff, and we reaped the benefits. Israel, the gardener, brought us some fresh coconut water on the beach.

Agua fresca de coco

We ended our stay with a spectacular sunset and a gorgeous wedding between our two best friends, Sandra Sotelo-Miller and Tom Simmons.

I should be a postcard photographer.

Dinner with Friends: a Tribute to “Homesick Texan”

I recently hosted some friends from Quality Seafood for a farewell dinner party. I made the food and they provided the adult beverages (Hi-C, milk, imbibe-ables of that nature). There were two inspirations for the menu: first, between our CSA farm box, my in-laws, and the garden at Flat Creek, I had a serious quantity of summer squash and jalapenos that needed to be dealt with. Second, I asked myself, what do we have a plethora of in Texas that we won’t have in Virginia? Ehem…Mexican food. And where better to look for authentic Mexican recipes than a Texan gringa living in New York? She may not be from south of the border, but her recipes have an authentic essence that is hard to replicate. I hope you enjoy oggling at the photos. Please forgive my amateur point-and-shoot camera.

A Fishmongress’ Farewell-to-Texas Party Menu

Chile Con Queso – Note: Make right before serving to avoid separating!

Sopa de Lima – Note: My friend Sandra recommends using lemon juice instead of lime to avoid bitterness. Garnish with lime slices if preferred.

Summer Squash Enchiladas

Watermelon Agua Frescas – Note: Add mint simple syrup to taste.

Key Lime “Itty Bitty” Bundt Cakes (from Whole Foods Market) and Black Forest Bundt Cake (brought by Skylar)