Paula Liebe's Blog, page 9

DRAG QUEENS & THE QUEEN’S MANIFESTATION

The other day I was talking with my Mayan chef Emiliano about the fact that within many of the indigenous communities the gay members of their tribe are called Two-Spirited People, and are even considered sacred and are highly revered.

 

Within moments my chef confided in me that he likes to dress like a woman, and has actually performed on stage. Soon there after the idea was born to organize a real ‘Transvestite Show’ at El Jardin, or as they say in Mexico: ‘Noche de Fantasia’. We had no idea what to expect, but our chef united quite a few members of his ‘Drag Queen’ circle and 6 performers were lined up for the evening.

To refresh your memory, this is how our chef looks like during the day.

And this is what he looked like that night, transformed into Valeria Castelly Miranda.

And this is Arlette Bracamontes impersonating Rocio Dulta

And this Taylor de Luna impersonating Jenny Rivera

There was also a Tina Tuner, a Beyonce, an Alejandra Guzman and a Lady Gaga. In other words, there was great variety, and above all, the quality of the performers was far above our expectations. And I had lots of fun introducing them all to our captivated audience.

In other words, it was such a great success that we have decided to repeat this show once a month. The next one will be on Tuesday the 16th of March. Be square and be there!

Something else that I’m more than excited about is that the publishing date of my next book is coming closer and closer. The content and the new cover have been submitted with Amazon, approved, and now we’re waiting for the shipment with a proof read of the actual paper book. Since we live in Mexico that shipment can take anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks. That’s also the reason why it’s complicated to set a publishing date.

Here’s the description on the back cover:

Book 4 of The Queen’s Saga can be read independently from the previous 3 installments. Paula Liebe continues to describe the dream she and her husband Honza are living against the backdrop of the lush tropical surroundings of the Mexican Riviera Maya. In their latest adventures, they continue to experience everything life has to offer, from spiritual highs like Honza’s visitation by hundreds of extraterrestrial beings, to terrifying lows wherein they were challenged to withstand evil and corruption.  Paula’s books are always filled with a treasure of well-researched information about the true history of the human race, and past and current visitations of highly advanced extra terrestrial civilizations, and this 4th book is no exception. In order to release ourselves from the global turmoil we find ourselves in today, it is essential that we learn about our Galactic ancestors. Paula writes in her typically face paced style, brutally honest, and with a few sexual revelations that can’t be missed.

As soon as the paper version has received a final editing round, then the file will be conversed and formatted for an Ebook version, for a Kindle or any other reading device.

 

This is the 1st review I have received so far:

“Paula’s writing flows like water, so easy to read and easy to follow. I couldn’t stop reading and reading until I was finished. I laughed and I cried, and basically fell in love with her and her stories. This is her best piece of work. It is perfect. It is timeless. It’s one of her many masterpieces. She’s my hero!”

 

Good things come to those who wait…

SACRED BLISS, DREAMS, AND SPHERE BEINGS

Today Honza and I celebrate the amorous fact that exactly 9 nine years ago we threw ourselves in each other’s arms, after an absence of almost 30 years. Romantic souls as we are, we’ve been honouring the 19th of each month as a special day, just for us.

Needless to say that we soon figured out that we’re actually celebrating 108 months of marital bliss. The number 108 is a sacred number in many Eastern religions.  The average distance of the Sun and the Moon to Earth is 108 times their respective diameters. And according to yogic tradition, there are 108 pithas, or sacred sites, throughout India. There are also 108 Upanishads, sacred texts, and 108 marma points, or sacred places of the body. I could fill an entire blog on the sacred meaning of the number 108, but I’ll leave that for another time. Maybe.

Here are a few images of our 1st summer together, where it all started.

A romantic lunch in Prague

 More romance in Prague.

At Honza’s summer house in Horni Kalna, with mom visiting.

What we still do best: Drink wine and laugh!

A few weeks ago we moved from our emergency studio to a sweet condo just a couple of blocks from our restaurant. About the why and how you may read in my 4th book coming out the end of this summer.

The very 1st night at our new home I had an extremely powerful dream.

Honza and I had begun walking down a jungle path, similar to a trail at Pueblo Sacbe , heading towards a lake, when we realised that heavy rains had turned the track into a small river.  Then, out of nowhere, a jaguar appeared in front of us. Naturally, at first, I was scared of such a wild animal, until the creature set its eyes on me, and I was hypnotised with its gaze. Then this elegant wild cat turned around, forcing me to observe a ferocious wild river with a giant white serpent sliding through its waves. I didn’t see its head or tail, but this is what it looked like.

Image of the feathered serpent, the Mayan deity Kukulkan or Quetzalcoatl.

Any comments about the meaning of this particular dream are more than welcome.

In previous blogs I’ve reported about the night that Honza was visited by hundreds of extra terrestrial Sphere Beings. If you’ve missed it, here is a video that gives a good impression how these Sphere Beings look like.

I’ve also written about another extra terrestrial race, one of the 5 races within the Sphere Being Alliance, who are called the Blue Avians.

Blue Avian, one of the races of the Sphere Being Alliance

Now recently I’ve come across an article where the ancient Egyptian falcon headed god called Horus, appeared blue. Only 5 years ago, when the Egyptians had restored the ceiling and had removed the layers of black soot at Denderah, it was discovered that Horus was actually blue.

Horus with a blue head.

Is there a connection?

Furthermore, the Sphere Beings are mostly seen with a blue hue. That’s exactly what Honza had reported. Those blue spheres are also used as transportation vehicles, a Merkaba.

In that same article a connection is made  between Jesus Christ and the blue spheres. Is it a coincidence that Jesus Christ was portrayed with a blue sphere around him, the vehicle of ascension?

Enough talk about Jesus, serpents and aliens.

It’s time to party!

This coming Tuesday, the 21st of June, on the summer solstice, we’re throwing a big dance party with our famous DJ Greco, to celebrate our 9 years (or 108 months) of marital bliss. We’re offering a generous Mexican buffet, free of charge of course. So, put on your dancing shoes, and we’ll see you around 5pm, cause we like our parties early.

 

 

PRINCE, PAUL & THE PANAMA PAPERS

The news that Prince has died at the age of 57 shocked the world, including myself. That afternoon I put on the song Purple Rain, turned the volume really loud at our restaurant El Jardin, and instantly it started to rain like crazy. I cried my eyes out.

Immediately after seeing the movie Purple Rain – I was 19 years old at that time – I broke up with my boyfriend. He was a wonderful and kind man, but there was one very important part missing in our relationship: unadulterated lustful sex. Thankfully I’ve found my own rock star who is able to keep up with my insatiable appetite for sex… Honza.

Honza never understood why millions of women felt sexually attracted to this midget.  “Honey,” I said, “He gave us the promise of receiving the best sex. Ever.”

Prince spoke critically about the power of the music industry , about chemtrails , and about the power of the Illuminati.

Now we all know that the dark Cabal , the ruling Elite, doesn’t take criticism easily, especially from influential people who have a large following.

Prince’s last message on his Instagram account was disturbing, to say the least:

JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE SAFE

Controversy surrounded Prince, who gave few interviews and kept his life private. That he became a Jehovah witness was one of the most surprising facts. Reportedly he was in need of a double hip replacement surgery, but his faith prevented him from having one, forcing him to take heavy pain medication from which he reportedly overdosed.

I’m not sure if we’ll ever find out the truth. As I always say:

Question everything!

Nevertheless, we’ve lost a musical genius, and even more importantly, a great humanitarian.

What’s my favourite Prince song? I truly have no idea. There are so many. But for now I’ll say Cream, as I will sing this song during our Prince tribute at ‘Noche de Divas’ this coming Friday.

Talking about songs, recently I’ve added a Dutch song to my repertoire because I wanted to sing this song to my mother when she was visiting me in January. I rarely kept it dry singing this song. Recently I’ve dedicated this song to a very dear friend of mine, who’s campaigning for a Dutch organisation called ‘Free a Girl’.

This video has a long intro. I start singing at 4.44.

This organization is committed to freeing young girls from forced prostitution in brothels, mostly in Asia. In the past 7 years they’ve been able to free 3.735 girls and placed them in rehabilitation programs.

Of course I felt inspired to see what we could do here in Mexico and I started a little research. The results are alarming. Child sexual exploitation is a serious problem in Mexico with an estimated 20,000 children being victim of this industry, and the Riviera Maya is an important tourist destination for sex offenders with minors. Mexico is also one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and anyone trying to expose this corruption is easily silenced. Of course there are several Mexican organisations that are involved in ending these atrocities, nevertheless it will be challenging.

But there might be a connection from an unexpected corner of the world, namely the Dutch ambassador of Unicef.

Paul van Vliet is a famous musician, actor and cabaret performer from the same city, and the same neighbourhood, as where I grew up as a little girl, The Hague. Paul was a personal friend of my father and I remember being invited backstage after one of his performances.

In December last year Honza and I watched a documentary about his life, created by his daughter in honour of his 80th birthday. To this day Paul still performs.

Both Honza and I were so touched by this intimate portrait that I felt compelled to write him a long letter. His manager informed me that he had received the letter and that I was on his list of correspondence. It wasn’t until I had sent him that beautiful Dutch cabaret song I had dedicated to my friend’s campaign ‘Free a Girl’, before he finally responded. He was glad I hadn’t given up and had sent him that song which he thought I sang beautifully. Yes, he did remember that little girl from back then, and that he had no idea I had turned into such a gorgeous woman. Whenever I would find myself in Holland he would love to meet with me and talk about my life, back then and now. Small chance I’ll be going to Holland anytime soon, but the connection has been made.

I have set an intention to help these poor children. How, when and where will show itself.

The last thing I want to mention to you that caught my attention are the Panama Papers

The Panama Papers are an unprecedented leak of 11.5m files from the database of the world’s fourth biggest offshore law firm, Mossack Fonseca. The records were obtained from an anonymous source by the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, which shared them with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). The ICIJ then shared them with a large network of international partners, including the Guardian and the BBC.

Sounds great. Finally we can jail all those tax dodgers. But let’s first take a look at the ones who funded this research. You guessed it right; Goldman Sachs and the Rockefellers are one of the Cabal members who made sure that some enemies were immediately taken out. The 1st one was the Prime Minister of Iceland. Wasn’t he the one who oversaw the jailing of 29 bankers? And why are no American companies mentioned?

An army of internet journalists has already unraveled and flushed the “false flag” operation known as the Panama Toilet Papers.

And I suggest you read more about it here.  

As I keep saying: Question everything!

El Jardin’s 1st Year Anniversary Invitation

Can you believe it?

This coming Wednesday March the 16th El Jardin is celebrating its 1st year anniversary!

Needless to say that we’re throwing a big party with a large free Mexican buffet and DJ Greco will join us for some dance tunes.

You know we like our parties early and you know where to find us.

We’re happy to share with you that  El Jardin is doing well.

From Tripadvisor we have been receiving (almost) nothing but 5 star reviews. Here’s a nice one titled:

“A PERFECT ANTIDOTE TO FIFTH AVENUE”

Great food, charming hosts and an oasis in the busyness of downtown Playa del Carmen. El Jardin, located behind thick stone walls and amidst towering palms, a tricking stream and small gardens is an extraordinary treat. The food is fresh, delicious, well-portioned, but the real treat is the live music on Friday evenings. Paula, one of your hosts at El Jardin has a stunning voice and repertoire–ranging from blues, to Jazz to soft rock and sentimental favourites. She also mentors local singers and regularly features local divas and the occasional divo. A night to remember and repeat.

We also receive much clientele from the site www.everythingplayadelcarmen.com.

Seth, the owner of that site, is a big fan and recently he even taped a short video.

We were also featured in a video made for PlayaPalms Condos and this clip gives a nice impression of our Noche de Divas, and some of our food styles. Yes, when the video was taped it was cold, hence the turtleneck.

Another big event in the history of El Jardin was the recording of an episode of Chef Rick Bayless’ ‘One Plate at the Time’, one time winner of Top Chef. On a Friday morning a crew of 16 people entered El Jardin and set up their stage in the kitchen of our Funky House. At the end of the day we received a signed copy of one of Rick’s cookbooks and in return he received a copy of my yoga DVD.

Guess what? He’s an avid yoga practitioner

He has a great sense of humour too.

Here’s a 1.30 minute ‘behind the scenes’ video clip of that specific day. They’ve edited it in such a way that it appears I’ve completely ruined Chef Rick Bayless’ recordings with singing Edith Piaf in the background.

All in all it was a great experience, but the only thing that we were rather disappointed with was the fact that the production team never told us that they would be entering our property with a professional production team to film an episode of a very famous chef. They booked our airbnb ‘Funky House downtown Playa’ without mentioning what is was intended for. Both Honza and I have had experience in the film production business, and we both know that a contract is presented before hand, and not after the filming. We also know that the price for a location is slightly more than an economic airbnb. In short; we felt cheated. And no matter how famous you are, this is simply not done. Period.

 

Blue Avian, one of the 5 races of the Sphere Being Alliance

Last but not least – and I’ve mentioned this before – I want to bring to your attention again that Honza was visited by hundreds of extra terrestrial sphere beings last year.

In one of my previous blogs I’ve posted a video that gives a good impression how these sphere beings look like. If you’ve missed it, here’s the video:

Within the Sphere Being Alliance there are 5 different races.  The actual sphere beings are one these races, and so are the Blue Avians, of which I have placed an image. The Sphere Being Alliance is playing a very important role in the current transition process of planet Earth moving from a ‘war zone’ into a free, thriving and peaceful planet.

If you’ve missed the documentary Thrive, here’s another chance.

The technology to heal every single person from any imaginary disease is at our fingertips. So is the technology to clean our water, our air and the earth crust. And so is the technology to free ourselves from the control of the petrol industry and subsequently the financial tyranny of which we have been slaves.

So where is all this technology? As you may very well know, I’ve been studying these matters for many, many years. Countless books I’ve read, and Honza and I have been following certain scientist, journalists and bloggers  for many years. A little over a year ago we started reading about whistle-blowers who – with fear of their own lives – were reporting about Secret Space Programs; Colonies on the moon, Mars and other locations that had been operating since the ‘50s.

The reason why these space programs were secret is because without this knowledge we could be controlled much easier.

Don’t you think you have a right to know where your taxpayer money went?

Don’t you think you have a right to know what kind of technology they have developed with your money?

Don’t you think you have a right to access to that technology, for which you paid?

Don’t you think it’s time to ask questions?

You know you’re too smart and too intelligent not to start asking questions.

Many of your questions will be answered in the following article, which gives an insightful overview of the history of this solar system, and the history of the Secret Space Programs, and which role you can play in the liberation of this planet. Here’s a link to that article. It takes about 2 hours to read.

 Don’t you think it’s time to reclaim your freedom?

Remember… you are part of the solution.

It’s time for full Disclosure!

 

PAULA & HONZA’S NEW YEARS WISH TO YOU

It’s been a few months since I wrote a blog. Why? There simply wasn’t alot to write about.

El Jardin survived the slowest months of the year. This period gave us the opportunity to add a few artistic details to our decor.

Before

After

Close up

Other side of the bar

Kitchen with a selection of decorations

The decorations at the entrance you’re familiar with.

Now with the addition of a sign and a menu of the entrance door.

Our big new outdoor sign

Our new menus.

And here are a few artistic mobiles created by the Dutch artist Anna Liz Spann.

This period also gave us the time to find the right people to strengthen our team.

Anna, Marce, Carlos and Emiliano in the background with his sister helping him out.

Chef Emiliano is now assisted by Elvis, who is expecting his first daughter this coming January.

Emiliano & Elvis

Our waitress Anna is now assisted by Oscar, a young yoga teacher who knows how to charm the ladies, and who blended  just perfectly in our family with his quirky sense of humor, and like Anna; an equally original sense of clothing.

Anna & Oscar

Nevertheless, El Jardin’s ‘Noche de Divas’ has been an ongoing success throughout the low season. Divas have left our stage; new divas have appeared, and surprisingly talented I might say.

I always love to sing classical repertoire with the talented soprano Victoria Carpio

Daniel Villareal made his debut last Friday and we’re planning many more duets.

Feliz Navidad was a great song to get everybody in the Christmas mood. But so was Eartha Kitt’s famous ‘Santa Baby’. I feel sorry I don’t get to sing it until next year. Ni modo.

Then a blogger called Janicita posted a video and wrote the following about last Friday: “In Playa Del Carmen, while you can enjoy readily the sun, sea and sand, there is not much of an arts and culture scene in this beach town. But one night, what a surprise discovery of live jazz and cabaret in a magical garden! Janicita is proud to present to you the ‘Divas of El Jardin”, live every Friday evening from 7-9pm!”

The only thing that disturbed our peace was the arrival of our new neighbours. When we signed the lease we accepted the fact that during the winter months a retired Canadian couple would stall their motor in our patio. Canadians and a motorbike; what’s not to like? Except when that bike doesn’t have 2 wheels, but 5. And… when it comes with a Spiderman design. And…  when those 2 Canadians refuse to speak English, because they are from Quebec. We peacefully ignore and avoid each other.

Spiderman vehicle.

Spiderman in full glory.

Pedal in the shape of spiderweb.

We’re not sure of Jesus believes in Spiderman.

Talking about Jesus, it’s the time of year where we celebrate Christmas with our loved ones. We hope you are all having a wonderful time during these festive days, filled with joy and laughter.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Applying the final touches.

You look so beautiful.

Merry Christmas to you all.

Not only do we want to wish you Merry Christmas.

We also have a wish for you for the New Year:

BE HAPPY!!!

And we have another wish for you for the New Year:

RECLAIM YOUR FREEDOM!

It’s time that you free yourselves from the shackles of this prison planet. It’s time for Disclosure. It’s time that you demand the truth from your governments. The truth about historical and ongoing visitations from highly intelligent extra terrestrial races. And the truth about extensive Secret Space Programs where every imaginable technology is available; technologies that can help us heal our planet and heal ourselves.

For many of you this all may sound strange (to put it mildly) but I have been studying this material for well over 20 years. The evidence out there on the Internet is overwhelming.

The website of David Wilcock, called www.divinecosmos.com, is an example of one that Honza and I have been following for a long time, and we’ve read all his books. He’s a brilliant researcher, lecturer and author, and the reincarnation of Edgar Cayce, the sleeping prophet.

Another website of interest is www.spherebeingalliance.com, where you can find more information on the Secret Space Programs and the Sphere Beings that have visited Honza earlier this year.

For people who are relatively new to all this matter there is an excellent video that takes you through the rabbit hole from the start in a visually very clear way.

This planet and humanity is going through a very difficult time. But realise that we are part of the solution. And the 1st step towards a peaceful world is knowing the truth. The truth about who you are, where you came from and why you are here. Give yourself some time to inform yourselves. Please.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

CHANGES, CHANGES AND MORE CHANGES

The biggest change in our lives was the visit of Honza’s 2 sons; Marnix aged 19 and Floris aged 17.

Marnix (right) & Floris (left)

When Honza and I rekindled our love 8 years ago we had spent a wonderful summer in Prague and in Honza’s summer house, his chalupa, where I met his 2 sons.

Floris (left) and Marnix (right) aged 9 and 11.

Immediately they fell in love with my Mexican dog Guapo.

Water biking on the Moldau with Guapo in the background.

Enjoying lunch  in Prague along the Moldau. (check the light spot above Honza’s head)

Father and Son.

Father and Son.

We got along pretty good.

The following year we spent another beautiful summer in the Czech mountains.

Floris (left) and Marnix (right) 1 year later.

Preparing the nightly bonfire in front of our chalupa.

Hours and hours we talked staring into the flames and towards the stars.

Resting on a bench at the village of Vrchlabi. (Marnix calling  his mom and Guapo came along again the 2nd year)

Father and Son.

Father and Son.

We always had so much fun!

Honza & Paula happy.

The Boys happy.

This summer we simply picked  things up where we had left them, nearly 7 years ago.

At the family table of El Jardin.

We truly had a  wonderful time getting to know each other again.

At Isla Mujeres enjoying a beer in crystal clear Caribean waters.

At WahWah’s after a long day at sea swimming with whale sharks.

At El Jardin seeing dad at work during a Noche de Divas.

At Rick’s birthday party at beach club Zenzi where the kids got a little drunk (including Paula) , but dad got us home safely.

In other words… we had a incredible time, and they’ll be back next year!

Good Times!

Better Times!

Another change was the decision of our Cuban soprano to choose a future that did not involve the family of El Jardin. A week after this photoshoot she decided not to return.

When this door closed, many new doors opened. Every week we offer more variety and more singers at the stage of El Jardin, and my dear old friend Ted Rhodes and newly discovered soprano Victoria Carpio perform with me every single week. We even offer an open mic after the 1st set and so far we’ve been surprised by a very lovely Argentinian soprano.

Ted Rhodes and in the background Victoria Carpio singing a duet.

Magic.

Proud of the singers on our stage.

Singing.

Performing.

Another change involved our chef.

We had appeared in another great food blog from Buy Playa.

Nevertheless, his uncontrolled alcohol consumption was affecting our business, so we had to let him go.

Within a week we had found another Mayan chef; young, talented and creative. His steady boyfriend of 3 years doesn’t drink, so chances are little we’ll encounter the same issues.

We also found the waitress we had been looking for all this time; a young woman with no experience, but a natural in this line of work. Together with our faithful Marce our team is complete to receive the high season.

Our new waitress Ana, with Marce in the background. 

The last and maybe most important change is that we’ve found a new home. After 18 months moving from one noisy condo to another we’ve found a house in a quiet neighbourhood at the outskirts of Playa del Carmen called Bella Vista.

Bamboo trees rustling in front of our bedroom window.

I’m sure that, with a large private rooftop, we’ll do some star gazing and maybe… we’ll receive another visit from the Sphere Beings that Honza recently experienced. Hundreds of them. Here’s more information on this subject. 

Honza said they look a little bit like this:

Oh, and 1 more change: Honza will be celebrating his 65th birthday this coming Wednesday, August the 26th, at El Jardin.

No way! 65 Already?

Lots of yoga and lots of sex with Paula will do the trick…

Anyway, you know we like our parties early, so we’re starting at 4pm at El Jardin with our well known DJ Greco for some sweet dance tunes. Chef Emiliano will prepare a generous Mexican buffet, and the bar will serve all beers for $20,- Pesos, and all wine and tequila for $40.- Pesos.

Can’t miss it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HOW A CUBAN SOPRANO BECAME THE STAR OF EL JARDIN

Faithful followers of my blogs may have noticed that the month of April went without a written report on our adventures. The reason is simple: starting a restaurant is a challenging and time-consuming business.

So, what are the latest developments at El Jardin?

We’ve been receiving raving reviews in EverythingPlayaDelCarmen (http://everythingplayadelcarmen.com/el-jardin-restaurant)

And in The Playa Times (http://theplayatimes.com/2015/05/15/el-jardin-community-center-and-restaurant-paradise-found/

And in The Foodies Guide to Playa del Carmen (http://theplayatimes.com/2015/05/15/el-jardin-community-center-and-restaurant-paradise-found/

In other words, we’re doing well and our guests are happy and keep coming back.

People are also coming back for the Noche de Divas. The 1st night was great fun and the place was packed.

We even have a little recording singing Hit The Road Jack.

Instead of a monthly event we decided to turn it into a weekly concert with a more classical theme, allowing our Cuban soprano Mayret Rosa Alvarez to shine and sing her classical repertoire like Puccini’s ‘O mio Babinno Caro’. If you are not familiar with this world famous aria, here’s a taste.

And now I could explore the classical repertoire I had been studying for many years myself. One of those arias was turned into a duet, and now Mayret Rosa and I sing together. Here’s an impression of that song.

Many people have asked me how I’ve found this lovely and talented Cuban soprano. The truth is; she found me.

But let’s first go back in history, the time when Mayret Rosa was born on the 9th of November 1987 in a small town called Media Luna in the South West coastal region of Cuba.

Media Luna

Media Luna Bay

Mayret began her musical career at the age of 7 when she started with guitar classes and eventually added piano classes as well.

Mayret at 3 years already showing her talent to entertain.

 

 

Mayret with her parents.

At the age of 18 she graduated from the Conservatorio de Musica Jose White with a degree in guitar.

It wasn’t until she had finished 3 years obligatory social services, where she worked as a teacher in musical history, that she started to study voice. After 5 years attending the ‘Instituto Superior de Artes’ in Holguin she graduated at the age of 26.

During those 5 years she first worked with ‘Ojare’, a group of musicians who presented traditional music of Cuba, then with the ‘Teatro Lyrico de Rodrigro Prats’ and eventually with a band called ‘Grupo Velas al Viento’, with whom she traveled to Playa del Carmen.

Then one night Mayret Rosa found herself at Le Lotus Rouge with her band, ready to play the keyboard after the performance of a lady she had never heard of before.

Natasha, the lovely and eccentric owner of the international restaurant and art school Le Lotus Rouge, had asked me to perform for the 3rd anniversary of her place, which fell on Valentine’s Day. I had prepared a beautiful romantic repertoire for her audience, and right after my show this little Cuban girl walks up to me and almost desperately asks, “Donde se puede cantar lyrico?” (Where can I sing classical). I smiled and answered, “Well, with me at El Jardin! But how do you know that I study classical voice?” She quickly replied, “I can hear from your singing technique.” The following week we met at El Jardin and talked about how we could study and work together. That’s when she told me about her personal living situation. The band with whom she had traveled to Playa had changed name and leader and from then on Mayret’s career went downhill. She got paid the equivalent of $60.- USD a month, no matter how many nights she played. She slept in a room with 2 men, not allowing her any privacy. But worst of all, they had taken her passport. You can all imagine my reaction when she told me all this, resulting in that Mayret opened her mouth demanding her passport back. The Cuban mafia, as Mayret called them, didn’t like a smart girl who starts talking and asking question, so she was basically kicked out.

Before we realised it she had found herself a small room and friends had already donated a table, 2 chairs and a few kitchen utensils. When I shared Mayret’s account with our audience they felt so touched by her story that more donations from our fans started pouring in: a bicycle, a refrigerator and even financial help. A week later she got married to a Mexican friend and her biggest fans were her witnesses. In other words; we kind of adopted her.

Since this wedding picture Mayret calls Honza a giant ET.

Admiring Mayret’s wedding pictures.

Having fun & feeling home.

For 2 months now we’ve offered the Noche de Divas to our Playa community and every week we receive a nice group of people who enjoy listening to opera, boleros, chanson and jazz. Some faithful fans never miss a concert.

We even bought a long gown for Mayret, the standard dress size when singing classical, because all her long dresses are still in Cuba. Since I’m studying Habanera from Bizet’s opera Carmen, I thought that this red one was a good match with Mayret’s coral.

We even sang Schubert’s Ave Maria as a duet on a special Mother’s Day Champagne Brunch at El Jardin. That was a dream come true. Glowing after our performance…

Mayret and I have also been pretty busy with our various voice students. Young girls, women my age, men in their sixties, we have students from all ages and all walks of life. We try to inspire and prepare them to join us on our stage.

 

And soon a few of our voice students will join us on our stage, so stay tuned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

LOVE, SPIRIT, AND SINGING DIVAS

Yes! We finally received our liquor license. And that event called for a party. Honza had calculated that on March 16 we were to celebrate the fact that we rekindled our love 7 years, 7 months, 7 weeks and 7 days ago. So, that’s the day we choose to officially celebrate the Grand Opening of El Jardin.

Happy but tired

Needless to say El Jardin was absolutely packed.

With a liquor license come a few goodies like a few nice umbrellas.

And a new Sol sign.

We have updated our logo with Comida YucaCheca, which is a combination of the traditional Yucatecan food from this región and a few touches from our famous Czech Honza, in Spanish a ‘checo’. Hence YucaCheca!

And we have updated our flyer with our new openings hours and a daily menú for $80.- Pesos.

So every morning I write the daily menú choices on the sandwich board.

And place it outside in front of the bike rack we had made.

We’ve received many friends already at El Jardin, and it’s very promising to see that they all keep returning.

 

The owner of the property, Karen, honored us with a visit.

We’ve also met a few new friends and these 2 lovely ladies had a ball as you can see.

Doing what we’re good at… entertaining guests

We’ve also received a professional photo shoot of the house and here are a few impressions.

Here is a link to the rest of the photos posted on Airbnb

We’ve also worked on the área that we now call the Gallery, anex office space.

This what it looked like before

This is how it looks now

The work of the ‘Wedding at Cana’ is a massive oil painting by the late-Renaissance or Mannerist Italian painter Paolo Veronese. It is on display in the Musée du Louvre in Paris, where it is the largest painting in that museum’s collection. At El Jardin you can take a close look at this copy, where Jesus turned water into wine.

We only wished…

The last thing I want to share with you is that I’m finally able to make one of my (many) dreams come true and that is starting a choir. The Cuban soprano Mayret approached me after my performance at the 3rd anniversary of Le Lotus Rouge and asked me where she could sing classical repertoire. I answered: “At El Jardin with me!” We’ve started preparing a classical repertoire for weddings and special events at El Jardin, and she assists me  when I teach my students. Within a few weeks we had gathered a sweet group of girls, beautifully singing in harmony.

Tomorrow evening we’ll present our 1st concert, including 9 talented singers, an event we plan to offer once a month at El Jardin.

See you all tomorrow evening!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IS EL JARDIN REALLY OPENING ITS DOORS?

It certainly looks like it, but let’s go back to where we left off and share with you what we’ve been up to.

Before we could throw a good party we needed to create a dance floor. We had found a few Mayan workers who copied Paula’s design and creatively finished this sun.

Hours before the party started the tables and chairs that we had made by our carpenter were delivered.

Paula’s 50th birthday party was the biggest party we’ve thrown so far. It’s good to know that for future events we can easily host 100 people. Here are a few shots taken at the party.

Here’s a link to more pictures.

With the birthday party our filmmaker Martin was able to shoot the last shot in order to finish the promotion video and here is the result. (The party starts at 2.10)

Needless to say that the day after we were finally able to rest and enjoy, and that’s what we did with quite a few mimosa’s, which we plan to offer at El Jardin.

But soon after we continued with the renovations of the kitchen.

The old floor went out.

A truck with construction materials was driven into our kitchen

The new floor is in and a new part of the bar is constructed

A new sink is being constructed

And there is our new ‘cocinita’.

Except renovating the kitchen we also had  a solid floor placed where there used to be gravel.

And we had a waterfall with a little river constructed.

Then it was time to go shopping for a stove and pots and pans.

And before you know you have a fully equipped kitchen

Remember how we started?

And this is what we have now.

Now what’s a restaurant without a good chef? And where do you find one? As a true siren Paula had lured one in with her voice when she was practicing her Mexican boleros. Back in November last year chef Miguel stopped to listen to Paula’s songs and had asked if we needed a cook. Paula had answered, “Maybe in January we will need somebody.” Guess what? By the end of January he came back! But the best news is that Miguel turned out to be an excellent chef, more than we could have hoped for. Here we are checking out a new color ‘filipino’.

We also found a truly lovely waitress. Karla had been our yoga student for a few weeks, and one morning we asked her if she was looking for work. Guess what? Not only was she looking for work, she also had some experience.

For a week we practiced with a breakfast menu, which we serve all day, and next week we’ll add a lunch menu.

So, El Jardin is really opening it’s doors from Monday to Friday from 8.00 am to 4.00 pm for breakfast and lunch. What kind of food do we serve? Comida YucaCheca! What’s that? It’s the famous Yucateca kitchen from the peninsula Yucatan with a twist from our Czech chef Honza, hence YucaCheca.

So for breakfast you can expect typical plates like Enchilladas and Chilaquiles with all the sauces. Of course we serve organic coffee from Chiapas with organic milk, freshly squeezed orange juice and fresh coconut water. But we also have fresh fruit with organic granola or a variety of German breads with organic jam, and of course any style organic eggs.

For lunch we offer a typical Mayan plate called Tikinchic, which is fresh grouper served in a banana leaf.

Of course we serve a real Mexican chocolate mole made from scratch by our chef Miguel, and we have a vegetarian dish with eggplant, nuts and seeds.

Honza will take care of the daily menu, offering you a variety of his well-known dishes like the Czech goulash called ‘Segediner’, or his famous pork roast with red cabbage.

Unfortunately the liquor license is taking it’s Mexican time, and we keep hearing, “Mañana.”

We hope to welcome you soon at El Jardin!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PAULA’S 5Oth BIRTHDAY INVITATION

It’s no secret that 2014 has been a rather interesting year for us. We gave up our home and business to bring Amarte Maroma  back to life, only to be kicked out after 3 successful months.

Oh well, c’est la vie.

For the next 3 months we were homeless, our belongings stored at too many different locations and bodega’s, trying to make sense of it all. Finally, at the end of the summer we found a new home for ourselves and shortly after a new business opportunity presented itself: El Jardin.

The Universe works in mysterious ways. As you may remember, we had made a New Years wish; asking the Universe to help us find a bigger place and one a bit closer to the sea. The Universe gave us a little detour, because if it wasn’t for the experience in Amarte we never would have seen the value of El Jardin, and at this moment in our life that’s where we need to be.

Then sometimes these lyrics from Bob Marley pop into my head:

“Don’t worry about a thing.

Cause everything little thing gonna be alright.”

So what’s happening at El Jardin?

We’ve moved the weekly local market to the Saturday afternoon, offering people an opportunity to do their local shopping in the weekend. And we moved the monthly Bazar to every 1st Sunday of the month. The atmosphere is always great, old and new friends meet and I sing a few songs. Here’s an impression of those afternoons.

Taking pictures with a tablet

We’ve renovated the existing construction that held the pump, gas and water tanks that took up a lot of space, and moved the equipment up, creating an area for sinks and storage space. I know it looks scary when you suddenly find an enormous pile of construction material in the middle of your beautiful garden, so Honza was happy to only see the end result and that was shocking enough for him.

A big pile of construction material

Starting to mount the walls

Last finishing touches.

We’ve improved the stage even more and had the existing wood treated and the result is marvelous.

The existing wood removed for treatment.

The treated tropical hardwood starting to be replaced.

Don Jorge’s son learning the trade from his father.

The floor is finished and we are tired and dusty, but happy!

The same talented carpenter created a beautiful addition to our existing table, so we could fit more than 10 people on our table.

The reason why we needed to expand the table is because we were booked for an event, and that is one of the core businesses of El Jardin. A group of 13 French people had booked the table for a sit down dinner to welcome the New Year. They were familiar with Honza’s cooking skills and my French repertoire, and they were not disappointed.

Our carpenter created a seamless addition.

Paula singing to her French speaking guests.

The only eventful situation that presented itself that night was a power outage in the neighborhood, but within a minute the lights went back on. Except in the house, which we have promoted as a vacation rental. Our guests would return to a dark house with no running water. The next morning I assessed the situation. Nothing a seasoned property manager couldn’t handle. Except when it’s the 1st of January. I was so tired from working 2 months straight getting our place ready for guests, and the previous day having worked from 7 in the morning till 2 at night, I just broke down in tears. Oh well, shit happens. We gave them back their money and they left with a smile.

Another event we hosted was the yearly Christmas dinner for our company Star Condos.

Instead of choosing a fancy restaurant Honza insisted on cooking for our Mexican family and they were thrilled, cause Honza’s typical cuisine is well known with our team.

Honza’s famous caserolas

And Paula sang a few Mexican Boleros.

The last event we hosted was one for the charity organization Good Intentions

They teach English to Mexican children and offer them possibilities to develop themselves creatively and spiritually by giving art and yoga classes. Of course Honza cooked up a storm for 50 children. Giving back to the community feels good. Here’s an impression of that afternoon.

On their way to El Jardin – community center.

Receiving instructions for the art class.

A beautiful drawing.

And another one.

Yoga class.

Honza ready to serve the buffet.

My fellow yoga teacher.

Soaked from a tropical shower.

So what’s planned for the near future? Since we’re still in the process of obtaining our licenses to legally open our doors, we can’t tell you when we’ll be able to serve you your 1st glass of wine. But we can tell you that Wednesday the 21st of January we’ll open our doors to celebrate Paula’s 50th birthday. We’ll be using the formula that has always worked in the past: Honza cooks an enormous buffet and you bring your favorite beverage of choice. Of course you can count on our famous DJ Greco to heat up the dance floor. And you know we like to start early, like 4 in the afternoon.

I had an idea for a picture for my 50th birthday invitation, but so far I’ll share with you the one that our friend Gary Wendt created for me 10 years ago.

The famous original from 10 years ago.

Sometimes Honza and I feel overwhelmed by the idea that we’re opening a restaurant, as we both know from experience what that entails. But then I think:

“Don’t worry about a thing.

Cause everything little thing gonna be alright.”

We’re back in business.