Puebla to Oaxaca.

We took a City Tour bus of Puebla and really enjoyed seeing the surrounding suburbs as well as viewing the City from a lookout point. The city is surrounded by volcanoes (some still active) but the city haze made it hard to see them in photos. 

From Puebla we took a local bus to Oaxaca, a journey of 5 hours which was more comfortable in the large coach.

Oaxaca is another small city which is easy to explore as our hotel was conveniently situated near the City Square. 

Sunday morning we visited the beautiful Cathedral in the Town Square and attended Mass. It was a very uplifting experience with a beautiful choir and music and a highlight of our trip,so far, despite us not being Catholics. 

In the afternoon we took a City bus tour of Oaxaca and you could see why Mexican embroideries and handcrafts use such vibrant colours to represent the colours that surround them.  Many of their buildings are also painted in bright colours which contrast well with the trees in bloom.

 Tomorrow we're off to Tehuantepec for one night and we'll be visiting  Teotitlan del Valle, which is famous for its weaving and textiles. I'm really looking forward to seeing those.

Hugs, Jan Mac xx 

Relaxing Puebla.

On Thursday we travelled to Puebla via mini bus. Unfortunately it was a very cramped and uncomfortable journey so the Tour Company has apparently arranged for better mini buses for the rest of our trip.

We stopped at the community of San Pedro Tiahuac on the way to see a family's traditional food and farming practices.  

After a delicious vegetarian meal we drove to Puebla.

We spent 2 nights in Puebla and enjoyed it's relaxing vibe, despite being a big city.

The adventure continues.

Hugs, Jan Mac xx 

Hola From Mexico.

Our first day in Mexico we visited Teotihuacan Pyramids which are 50 kms out of Mexico City.  It was a very interesting tour with lots of interesting information about the history of the sites.

The temples are very steep with few handrails so we didn't climb all of them.

The Temple of the Moon.

The temple of the Sun.

Today we did a walking tour around the central part of Mexico City. 

After lunch we visited the Frida Kahlo museum which is in her former home. She had quite a sad life but her use of colour and design with textiles was fabulous and I  enjoyed seeing the clothing she designed to wear even more than her art.

Beautifully embroidered tops she wore.

 We're still recovering from the long flight and altitude variation but we leave Mexico City for Puebla tomorrow. 

Hugs, Jan Mac xx 

Comings and Goings

Carol Fordham delivered these 11 beautifully crocheted blankets made by 2 ladies in a Cranbourne retirement village. 

Wendy Brown donated these 5 lovely blankets and 4 lovely knitted scarves. 

Annette Pascoe delivered these bags of teddies which have all been washed and are now ready for their custom made jumpers. 

 Sharon Barnes delivered a large number of beautiful quilts and Kathie Williamson has sent another large parcel.  Unfortunately I ran out of time to photograph their lovely items and I'm going away tomorrow until the end of February so I will photograph them when I return.

  This week I delivered 42 quilts with 10 quilts going to SECASA and ECASA respectively and Norma Aitken is very kindly couriered them for me.  We delivered 2 bushfire relief quilts earlier in the week and we also donated 20 quilts to Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre which Beverley Brooks very kindly couriered. 

Many thanks everyone for your generous support. 

Hugs, Jan Mac xx 

Many Thanks Sue Graham.

Sue Graham from Safety Beach,  Victoria has very generously donated these 10 fabulous quilts and a bed runner. They are beautifully made and professionally quilted and will be ideal for the Quilt Drive for the bushfire affected areas as they are mainly very large.

Many thanks to Kaye Hardman who very kindly couriered them for me. 

 Many thanks everyone for your generous support. 

Hugs, Jan Mac xx 

A Gift Of Comfort.

 

As well as gifting quilts to the quilters who lost everything in the Longwood fires, we also took a care package of sewing items such as small rechargeable light,  cutting board and Rotary cutter, cross stitch kit, embroidery threads, sewing compendium, scissors,  rulers, templates, needles, threads, a lovely cup, notepaper and pen, pretty tote bag, all couple of small quilting kits and so on.

These 2 fabulous quilts were gifted on Tuesday to a quilter and her DD, as they have lost everything in the recent Longwood fires. Norma Aitken and Waverley Patchworkers very kindly donated these fabulous quilts and the hand appliqued one was made by Annie Andrews while the other beautiful quilt was made by Margaret Grinton.

Many thanks to Waverley Patchworkers and Norma for their collaboration in providing beautiful quilts for the Quilt Drive for bushfire affected communities. 

  Hopefully these gifts will bring some comfort. 

Hugs, Jan Mac xx