You know you are going to enjoy a beautiful bed and breakfast from the minute you see the front wall of La Estrellita's B&B, a new addition to Ajijic's growing number of businesses. The color outside says volumes about the personality and artistry of the establishment inside, and about the new owner, Lorraine Pasini, who moved here seven years ago. It's painted a luscious periwinkle blue, unusual and inviting. The new sign with an E in flowing script is perched between two black wrought iron lanterns. Gone are the plaster swan and sign of the old Swan Inn, and now Estrellita's, meaning "little star," is attracting new visitors and delighting the returning ones.

The gorgeous color outside is a hint for other possibilities inside. One step inside the door the visitor is quickly assured that they will not be disappointed. The colors meld into warm ocher and deep reds, sunny yellows and more of that impossibly tempting blue. If the colors, the wealth of beautifully displayed Mexican folk art, and the warmth of the Guatemalan fabrics covering the living room chairs suggest to you an artist at home, you would be right.

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