Camping Over

Sergio thought it would be great idea to camp at our lot while we waited for a roof over our heads.  He was so enthusiastic about the idea that I couldn't say no.
Last weekend we had just the opportunity.  We purchased a tent, an umbrella and two sleeping type cot things at, where else, Costco.
We'd been invited to a dedication luncheon at a house under-constructions by the same architect we are using.  The owners, friends of our favorite neighbors, we're delighted we could join them while they buried various items into the walls at north, south, east and west locations.  It was a very neat idea and we had a blast - and way too much tequila and beer which made the sleep over more tolerable.
These pictures were taken before the party so all we had to do when we returned was crawl into the tent and fall sleep - which happened quite quickly not surprisingly.
I suspect that as our house takes shape we'll look for other opportunities to "camp".  The pictures are a tad grainy because they were taken with my BB.

This tent is supposed to sleep five - midgets I'd guess.
Notice the beer in Sergio's hand

Me with Emilio on my lap taking the sun

Constructing a Perimeter Wall

The first job was to secure the property with a stone wall along the two sides where there lane is.  The other two sides abut neighbors.  The existing neighbors already installed a two meter chain link fence which will be covered by ivy and bushes.  The other open side faces an empty lot (also secured) and we hope to negotiate an agreement with the owners on what to build along the property line.

The wall had to have very deep foundations because of the lay of the land

This is the front gate.  The chain link is temporary.
Eventually it will be a solid metal door and there will be a sort
of roof thing across the top.
The parking will be at this level with a wall and stairs going
up to the lawn and house just by the tree over my shoulder.

This is from inside looking towards the village and the cliffs in the distance.
The top of the greenhouses will be blocked by bougainvillea bushes   

The wall is over two meters high.
This is from the access road looking to the cliff.

Owners

It took about eight months before all the necessary paperwork was completed before we actually owned the land.
This rather unflattering picture was taken (at arms distance) just after we signed at the lawyer's office and gone to the lot to celebrate.

Anthropological digs on our lot

The place look like a disaster while this was all going on

All the land in Tepoz is protected by the National Culture Ministry.  Before you can get a building permit the land has to be checked to make sure that there are no ancient (in this case Aztec) ruins on the property.  It took them forever to organize the dig and prepare the report.  And, you guessed it, they found "stuff" (an old wall and some building foundations in a couple of places).  Basically it means we can't do anything that would damage any of it (heck, it's already a ruin!).  We can build on top of it as long as it doesn't get disturbed.  Our architect has cleverly placed everything; house, pool, septic system, cistern etc, on top or away from the ruins.

Apparently - this is part of a stone wall.
Luckily it is so deep in the ground it will have no
 effect on our plans

There were about eight large holes dug all round the lot
(and all since filled in)

The Rainy Season

You can see what a difference there is when the place is not bone dry.  The rainy season starts in May and lasts for a couple of months.  It usually rains every day but not for long.  It comes down hard and then stops.  The thunder bounces off the cliffs and makes a huge rumbling noise - very neat!  This generally happens during the day.  Everything stays wonderfully green for the rest of the year.

The bit of white you see is the roof of our neighbors house.
That will eventually be obliterated by bushes.  You can just make
out the water cascade in the middle of the picture.  You
can actually hear the water falling.

We have access to water and will have a big cistern
so hopefully we can keep the lawn looking this green
all year-round.  Two medical doctors own the land
beyond the low stone wall.  They'll see the back of our place!

Our first blog posting!

Welcome!
We decided to create a blog so you could follow along as we progress with our holiday home in Tepoztlan (from now on know as Tepoz).
We've actually got some blog catching-up to do since we started looking for property over a year ago and decided on this lot in the Spring of 2011.
These first blogs are going to come fast and furious (well, I'm not sure - it took me an hour to figure out how to change the background image on the template!)
For those of you who know Tepoz, we are, as you can see, right up against the cliff edge.  A little further out from the village than before but still within walking distance.

This is what the lot looked like about this time last year.
This shot is from the upper corner (the lot slopes a bit).
We go all the way to the two trees and low stone wall
and a bit more to the right.

This is looking in the other direction.

The lot plan (the squarish thing near the bottom).
We are in a private compound which we share with 7 neighbours.
Right now there is only one neighbouring house (to the left of our lot).
The land on the top of the plan (looking towards the cliff in the picture above)
 is government protected which means our view will never be obstructed.
Across the lane - to the right -  is a greenhouse for fancy lettuce!
The lot is 1300 square meters (about a third of an acre).

This picture doesn't do it justice but as the sun sets the cliffs are
bathed in a golden light.