Welcome to San Miguel de Allende and Mexico, through the experiences of Carol Schmidt (right) and Norma Hair, pictured enjoying the Dolores Hidalgo Jardin. We'll show you how to live your dreams in Mexico and in San Miguel de Allende, which is a UNESCO World Heritage city; a writers, musicians, actors and artists colony; and a tourist draw for Mexicans seeking to recapture their own historic and cultural roots in the hundreds of fiestas and celebrations throughout the year.. The latest news on this site and in San Miguel de Allende are highlighted at the bottom of this message. Be sure to read "Carol's Blog," "Norma's Kitchen," our forums that have more than 900 registered forum members, the SMA FAQs, the 1,400 pictures of life in San Miguel de Allende and Mexico in the Photo Gallery, our list of recommended businesses and services, and the links to smamap.com, SMA weather, and current money exchange rates. Carol's reviews of more than 100 "Cheap Eats, restaurants and food stands in San Miguel de Allende, where you can get at least the main course and often the entire meal for under the peso equivalent of $6 USD, are no longer on this website; they will be in an inexpensive separate book soon, to be sold throughout San Miguel de Allende. Next year will come a regular book, San Miguel de Allende on a Budget, including the Cheap Eats smaller book. Carol and Norma tell you much more in their books, including their newest, out in September, called The Best How-To Book on Moving to Mexico: Living Your Dream in Mexico, co-authored with Rolly Brook (www.rollybrook.com). He's the only gringo in Lerdo, Durango, compared to Carol's and Norma's life among about 12,000 expats in San Miguel de Allende, so the book shares diverse experiences with all aspects of your decision-making and your possible move to Mexico. Presales will be offered on this site in the next week or two. In Falling...in Love with San Miguel: Retiring to Mexico on Social Security Carol and Norma share their first four years discovering San Miguel on average Social Security income, presenting a calendar year's fiestas, learning Mexican history and culture, dealing with the hassles and adjustments of a new life in Mexico, and becoming totally smitten with San Miguel de Allende. Seven years later, they're still in love with San Miguel. Thank you for visiting our website, and we hope you return often and sign up to participate in our forum community. Now read below on what's new inside. New August 22, 2009: In the Living in Mexico forum is a link to a thorough article on Mexico's new drug decriminalization law, with some discussion. New August 21, 2009: Carol's blog: "Broadway Loves Casita Linda," the Los Frailes castle just keeps on growing; a bus trip to Casa Diana furniture store in Comonfort. Photos of all three in the San Miguel Scenes album of our Photo Gallery. New August 20, 2009: Ballet Folklorico de San Miguel hosts a Fiesta Mexicana with dancing, music, traditional Mexican buffet, ethnic style show and raffle to help a woman with cancer, on Sunday, Aug. 23, 1:30 pm at the Lions Club hall across from San Antonio church. See the SMA News and Events page for details. In our forums, we're discussing allergies, requests for money from housekeepers, and Mexico news stories including Mexico City's ban on plastic grocery sacks, the flowing indigenous culture across the US-Mexico border and how one tribe is being hurt by border tightening, and the fighting between traditional Catholicism and evangelicals in rural areas. New August 19, 2009: Amigos de la Presa will host an open house and clean-up event Sunday, Sept. 6, 10 am-2 pm. For details and directions see the SMA News and Activities page. New August 18, 2009: This could be huge for Mexico--a Chinese news agency has announced that Mexico's plans are back on to build the third largest port in the world, surpassed by only Singapore and Hong Kong, larger than the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach combined, at Punta Colonet just below Ensenada on the Baja Pacific coast. The plans were shelved in October due to the economic crisis. The sleepy fishing village of Punta Colonet would grow to 200,000 residents when the port is built. See the links and key paragraphs of the story on the Living in Mexico forum. New August 17, 2009: Carol's Blog: August 17, 2009--A vegan raw foods brunch; a friend's new house security system; a little girl has a seizure on the bus. "Broadway Loves Casita Linda" at Teatro Angela Peralta Wednesday and Thursday at 8 pm--read the SMA News and Activities page. August 18, 1:30-2:30 pm, US Embassy goes online interactive with passport questions--read details from SMA Consular Agent Ed Clancy on SMA News and Activities page and on Living in SMA forum New August 16, 2009: Carol's Blog: August 16, 2009--The website is just about rebuilt; two presales already; a friend buys a horse and we visit the horse ranch; sunburned from swimming at El Encanto; a teensy parade messes up Centro traffic for much of a Friday night during which we get our nights mixed up; such a tragedy, having to eat two nights in a row at Tacos Don Felix. Featured in the blog and in the Photo Gallery album titled, "Horses and Tiles at Granja Las Animas" is Lucinda Johnson's horse ranch and tile factory, on the way to La Cieneguita. Barbara Kingsolver, author of 12 books including the best-sellers Poisonwood Bible and Prodigal Summer, will keynote the 2010 San Miguel Writers' Conference February 19-23, 2010! Her next book, The Lacuna, due out in November, is set in Mexico and the U.S. during the 1930s, 40s and 50s and will be the featured book for the Literary Sala Community Book Read.  See the SMA News and Activities page. Forum discussions are on the kidnapping of the heir to 40 Mexico daily newspapers that happened just outside San Miguel de Allende two years ago; questions on scorpions and on medical costs for housekeepers; my draft of the news story on Mayor-Elect Lucy Nuñez's speech to expats at SMA Democrats Abroad earlier this month; and recent Mexico and SMA news links of interest to expats. Norma's kitchen: recipe variations for our favorite breakfast.