The Lakeside Guide is provided as a free public service to benefit local shopkeepers, artisans and artists, while educating & informing the foreign community living at Lake Chapala, Mexico.

It was created by Dane Strom -- I'm a professional web designer, developer, photographer. After seven years as an editorial assistant for The Denver Post, I quit my job in 2010 at age 27 and moved to Ajijic, Mexico. Nearly all of the business owners, artists and other people featured on this website are my friends, neighbors and acquaintances, people I run into on a daily basis. Most everyone in Ajijic knows who I am by now, either by sight or my nickname, Shaggy. That's why, at this point, the guide is still mainly focused on Ajijic and not yet on the surrounding towns. And until there are more businesses included, I've also intentionally avoided some of the shops and restaurants the foreign community already frequents and finds popular. None of the businesses have paid me to appear here, so you can be assured that I've selected them because I think they are worthy of your business and you should know about them. This site originally launched in 2011 but was offline for a while. It came back in 2018 with improved design and usability, plus some new businesses which have popped up over the last few years.