Walking With Dinosaurs

Walking with Dinosaurs starts this Friday night at the Dodge Arena. It's a real blast from the past! Good for kids and adults- don't miss it! Tickets at the box office and at www.ticketmaster.com.

Thursday Lunch

Last Thursday, Nancy Millar and I decided to "do" lunch. We have a few favorite places, but are always up to trying someplace new. This time, we headed up 10th street and found ourselves at the Korea Garden restaurant (3424 N. 10th). I think we were the only customers there for lunch. The menu is definitely not your typical Valley fare. I don't know that I could pronounce any of the names of any of the dishes, but the descriptions are in English and are numbered. Nancy chose a vegetarian variety of one of the dishes and I chose N1, a dish composed of noodles, vegetables and shrimp. When our order came out, it was accompanied by three small side dishes: green beans in a spicy sauce, bean sprouts, and Kim-chi ( a Korean cabbage dish). All were good and not too hot for my taste buds. Nancy said she had had the dish she ordered at another restaurant and this was definitely better.

When we left there, we still had room for dessert, so we headed further up 10th street and stopped at Euro Gelato ( corner of 10th & Violet). For those of you unfamiliar with gelato, it is the Italian version of ice cream. It contains most of the same ingredients of regular ice cream, except there are no eggs, and it is processed with less air, so it is denser and to my palate, smoother. They have quite a variety of flavors and you can get different size dishes ( based on the number of scoops) We decided not to be too decadent and went for the 3-dipper. You can either do all one flavor or mix and match, which is what I did. I choose a pumpkin pie flavor, then topped it with a bourbon vanilla and finally, a cappuccino flavor. It ended up tasting like a piece of pie with whipped cream and a coffee all in one dish.

I had not been to either of these restaurants before, but they have both been added to my "Do-over" list. If anybody is looking for a good Korean food, or a tasty dessert, check out either place.

The McAllen Chamber is getting ready to welcome a group of engineers from Ductos de Mexico a company that supplies Pemex. The group will be in McAllen for a workshop and after the workshop is over they are planning to go shopping in La Plaza Mall and other shopping areas of McAllen. We a having more groups coming to McAllen from different parts of Mexico. We welcome these groups and wish them good luck.

Thank you,

McAllen Weather

The weather this time of year is perfect! I love the coolness of the evenings, just right for a walk or even just sitting outside on the patio and enjoying a good conversation with a glass of wine. I think it must be getting down into the 60's in the evenings, which, for those of us who live in this climate, means it's sweater weather. We can break out those warm clothes we hardly ever get to use!
The days are sunny and bright, with clear skies and temperatures in the low 80's. The palm trees still wave, the Mexican Poincianas, Esperanzas and other colorful trees are blooming- still or again- it's all a daily reminder of how lucky we are to be surrounded by all this natural beauty!

Be A Part of The Rio Grande Valley’s Only Marathon! - December 12, 2009

The Rio Grande Valley’s Only Marathon!

McAllen, Texas

Health & Fitness Expo: Saturday

•Saturday, December 12, 2009

Race Day:
•Sunday, December 13, 2009
2006 Race Demographics: 500
2007 Race Demographics: 1,051
2008 Race Demographics: 1,250

Fiesta Marathon History

In December 2006 at the first annual Fiesta Marathon & Relay Marathon, held at the Dodge Arena in Hidalgo, Texas featured a health and fitness expo, 5K run/walk, 1-mile kids’ race and a Winter Texan Marathon. The event was an overwhelming success, with 500 runners crossing the finish line. All proceeds totaling $5,000 benefited McAllen charities.

In December 2007, the Fiesta Marathon & Relay Marathon continued it’s success and reached it’s record goal with 1,051 participants crossing the finish line. The events were held at the McAllen Convention Center in McAllen, Texas raising more than 9,000 to benefit local charities

In December 2008, the 3rd Annual Event success out did last year by bringing 1,250 participants on race day. A total of $12,000 were rasied to benefit Palmer Drug Abuse Program.


Running For A Mission!
The Fiesta Marathon & Relay Marathon strives to promote and produce health and fitness activities
for people of all ages and to make a difference by supporting local charities in our community. All proceeds in the past three years have benefited Mcallen Track and Field Association, The RGV Junior Volleyball Olympic Team, School Based physical education programs, The International Interact Rotary Organization, The Vannie Cook Foundation, Upward Basketball Program, Palmer Drug Abuse Program, The Comfort House Services and The Junior league of McAllen.

The 2008 Races!
26.2 Mile Marathon – Start Time 6:30 A.M.- Sunday, December 13, 2009
5-Man Team Relay Marathon - Start Time 6:30 A.M. – Sunday, December 13, 2009
Half Marathon – Start Time 6:30 A.M. – Sunday, December 13, 2009
5K Fiesta Run and Walk – Start Time 7:30 A.M.- Sunday, December 13, 2009
1Mile Kids’ Race – Start Time 9:00 A.M.- Saturday, December 13, 2009

Major Race Sponsors!
TXU Energy, South Texas Vo-Tech, Little Caesars

Be a part of OUR team!
Race Incentives:
o The Fiesta Marathon is a Boston Marathon Qualifier!
o Race Results posted immediately!
o Online registration available.
o Finisher photos available to all participants.
o Schools can compete for 1st., 2nd, and 3rd place trophies.
o Items will be raffled off to race participants

Holidays are Here

What an interesting time it is to live in McAllen and the Rio Grande Valley. Along with the cooler weather comes the Holidays, Artwalk and Music After Hours. All of these lead up to Candlelight Posada, our own unique celebration of Christmas. In it's 27th year, this year's Candlelight Posada is shaping up to be another huge family oriented event with parades, entertainment, fun, games and food. This years event will take place on Friday, December 4th and Saturday, December 5th. We hope to see all of you there with your family and friends

Heart of the Valley Health & Wellness Fair 2009

On November 22, 2009 (Sunday) at the McAllen Convention Center from 8 A.M. to 1:30 P.M. the McAllen Chamber of Commerce will be having it's Annual Heart of the Valley Health & Wellness Fair. For more information: http://www.mcallen.org/Chamber-News/1005678
There will be various booths providing useful health information and screenings such as: Choloesterol, Diabetes, Blood Pressure, etc.

If you are a health care business and may be interested in taking part of these event contact the McAllen Chamber of Commerce and ask fordetails on how to purchase a booth space. Spaces are limited so call now at: 956-682-2871. It will be a good way to promote your health business and give a little bit to the McAllen community.