The neighbourhood park

Just a block from our house there's a lovely little park that has become a regular part of our Mazatlan life.  It's rare to find a well-kept green space here so we're really lucky to live so close. The park has two basketball courts, palm trees and flowers and little pathways, playground equipment for the kids, benches, and even a bandstand.

It's well used all day long and into the evening when kids play basketball on the lighted courts.  And every day but Sunday there are workers tending to the shrubs, raking the soil around the trees, and sweeping the courts with brooms made out of palm leaves.

We take our dogs there in the mornings to play and we've met lots of people, both English and Spanish-speaking.  They're talking a walk, exercising their dogs or bringing their kids to play ball or ride bikes.  Sometimes groups of young people use the courts to practice dance routines or band music.  It's a real neighborhood place.

 Two weeks ago we took the dogs out earlier than usual and discovered a group of people doing exercises on the basketball court.  Turns out that Daisy and her husband like to follow a fitness plan and invite other people to join them at 8:00 in the morning. 

So it's now part of our routine. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday we head out early with our blankets to join the others on the basketball court. 

My favorite part is when we lie on our backs to do stretches and I can look up into the trees and see the birds wheeling around in the blue sky and feel the breeze.

I think we've met more people here in our Mazatlan neighbourhood in the four months we've been here than we have in the three plus years we've lived up on Haliburton Hill.  Maybe it's something about the warm weather and being outside more--plus having the time to chat and enjoy the park.