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La Manzanillo Memo – January 23, 2015

A new year and lots of new businesses have cropped up in our little village. 

Café du Calcetin

La Manzanilla’s newest coffee shop opened this past weekend.  Café du Calcetin is owned by husband and wife team Roberto Espejo and Laura Galvan and their partner Juventino Colunga.  Espejo and Galvan are recent transplants from Monterrey where they had a coffee shop of the same name.  

Literally translated, Calcetin, is sock. Café of Sock coffee.  Are you skeptical? I was.  The name comes from the way the coffee is prepared, which is very similar to a French Press.  A cotton bag hangs from a wood support, hand roasted coffee from Veracruz is placed in the bag, hot water poured over the top and coffee drips out of the bag into the cup.  The coffee has a nice, smooth flavor and the temperature is perfect, slightly cooler then what you get from machine made coffee.  

The café is a tiny space on the main street, Maria Asunción, and there is a small shaded seating area located on the side of café.   They offer Frittata and several sweet breakfast breads to accompany your coffee and if coffee’s not on your agenda they are the only place in La Manzanilla you can find craft bottled beer from Colima.   The trio of owners are extremely friendly and excited about the new shop, making this little café come alive with positive energy.  Open daily 8:00am.

Architecture and Design

A unique and beautiful office space beckons clients to La Manzanilla’s new architecture and design firm, Casa Marmaya, opened by husband and wife team, Conrado Marínez Serrano and Leticia Hernández.

   Services include new construction, remodeling, and garden design, with a specialization in using natural and locally sourced materials.  After earning a degree in design from the University of León, Hernández studied lighting design in Milan, Italy.  Her whimsical, yet functional designs highlight reclaimed materials and express a clear connection to the environment.  Serrano studied modern architecture in León as well as in Barcelona, Spain.  They are a young and energetic pair with an impressive portfolio

of work, an excellent addition to the La Manzanilla business community. 

Serrano is from La Manzanilla and Hernández from León, but her family used to vacation here often. The two met during one of those family vacations and began a life and family together, moving to León.  After seven years of living and working in the city they decided it was time to return to La Manzanilla.  They moved Casa Marmaya hereand the new office opened this week.  They already have projects in Melaque and Barra de Navidad. 

Flowers Lalo

La Manzanilla has a florist. Eduardo Gonzalez Mendoza and his wife Cristy have opened a shop across the street from the church on the main jardin.  This is La Manzanilla’s first and only florist.  You’ll find cut flowers and arrangements or you can order arrangements for special events.  Mendoza started coming to La Manzanilla three years ago.  He would arrive Friday mornings, his small car packed with fresh flowers, and set-up on the main street of town.  It wasn’t long before people made stops at this location part of their Friday routine.  Soon restaurants and people planning special events started ordering arrangements.  His reputation for reliable services and beautiful arrangements grew quickly.  With the customers already in place it made sense to open a shop here and he plans to stay open all year. This is Mendoza’s second location, he has a shop in Melaque as well. Flowers Lalo is open Monday through Saturday 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. and Sundays 9 a.m. - noon.  To place orders call 315-100-5674.

La Manzanilla Happenings

Art Walk/Camino del Arte Sunday, January 25 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. stroll the streets of La Manzanilla and enjoy art produced by local artists.  There will be two-dimensional works in acrylics, collage, oils, pen/pencil, and watercolors. You can see jewelry, functional and decorative pottery, paper maché, fabric crafts, the emergent work of student artists and more. Venues are throughout town and many are in the artists’ homes.  Maps are available in advance at the La Manzanilla bookstore and Galeria La Manzanilla, or wait until the day of the event and you can find them at all the venues. 

African Dance with José Luis Ruiz a special workshop January 27, 28, and 29 from 5:30-7: p.m. at Activos Gym.  175 pesos per class.  

The TallBoys are back at Jolanda’s Friday, January 30 at 8 p.m.  Dinner reservations start at 6 p.m. and the show is free with dinner.  If you just want to catch the music there is a 50 peso cover.  Stop by Jolanda’s to make reservations.

La Manzanilla’s own “Dia de Bienestar Familiar (Family Wellness Day) Fun Run” taks place Sunday, February 1 at 8 a.m.  Join Activos gym in this great family event.  There will be 3 recreational races: 500 meters for kids with one of their parents, 2 km for kids of secondary school age, and a 5 km for anyone over 15 years old.  Participants are welcome to run or walk with the emphasis placed on the most important part, participation! There will also be informational booths with supporters as well as organizations and businesses who promote health. All participants will receive a T-shirt and a certificate, and the top 3 in each category will receive cash prizes.  Cost is 35 pesos and you can pre-register at Activos Gym.

La Manzanilla’s annual Rodeo February 6-8.  Fun starts on the evening of Thursday, February 5 with a farola, parade, and the crowning of the king and queen of the event in the main jardin.  Friday at 3 p.m. the birria and beer start to flow at the casino, and around 4:30 p.m. everyone parades out of the casino and makes their way to the rodeo grounds to see the cowboys busting bulls.  The afternoon’s activities are repeated on Saturday and Sunday.  It’s a loud, dusty affair but if you’ve never experienced it it’s worth checking out. After living in La Manzanilla for eight years I still can’t resist heading to the event at least one of the three days.

The Costalegre Rotary holds its 5th annual charity golf tournament and dinner Saturday, January 24 at Grand Bay Hotel at Isla Navidad. The cost for Rotary members is 800 pesos, non-members 1,600 pesos; dinner only is 400 pesos. Call Don, 315-355-8412 for more information.  

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