Croft's Mexico

Misc. Ramblings

2012-01-30T08:00:00.001-08:00

Our satellite dish weighted down with concrete blocks and a water bottle. Wind, do your best! I will try to design a better mount this summer.

My friend Contessa’s Blog was hijacked the other day. This is what I saw when I opened it. Her expert back in Canada fixed it for her.

A wedding dress for sale for $6,990 pesos ($542 CA) in a window in Merida. Tons of them on sale for three to ten thousand pesos. It does not cost an arm and a leg to get married down here (at least for the dress).

The repaired dolly fender that shook apart on the rough toll road the other day. If it makes it home I will cut out something to reinforce it and glue it all together. It still needs a weld inside as well.

Here Today…

2012-01-29T19:22:00.001-08:00

Gone Tomorrow. We are pulling out in the morning heading towards Cancun where the weather has settled down a little. We may drive all the way or we might stop in Chichen Itza where there is a pottery salesman we like.

Caravan

2012-01-29T19:13:00.001-08:00

We have so far managed to avoid caravans. This one we knew was coming because I have been following the Blog of one of the members. I have dubbed it the “Bad Luck Caravan” because they have had a couple of problems. First they were held up by banditos soon after crossing into Mexico from Texas. The leader had to pay $2000 pesos or lose his car. The rest got through. Second, one of their rigs was rear ended along the way, possibly because of the extremely slow speeds they travel at.

The most recent problem was when Carol Ann, the wife of the Blog writer above was involved in a collision at a glorieta near the RV park here. It was a short drive yesterday and they had decided that she would follow rather than hook the car up to their motorhome. She was involved in a collision when a Mexican driver enforced his right of way. Their car is no longer towable and has to be repaired here in Merida. It will be ready in a week and Robert will get a ride back from Paa Mul or Chetumal to retrieve it.

They arrived after noon and soon a sightseeing bus arrived to take them on a “tour of Merida”. They got home and soon a car pool was being arranged to take everyone to a local restaurant for dinner. We got to have a chat with Robert and Carol Ann from Texas and another couple from Canada, the only Canadians on the caravan. They all went to bed early as they were up and getting ready to leave at about 7:00 this morning. I have said this before but this kind of travel is not for us! It is way too expensive and way too hurried.

Robert was not all that impressed with Mexico. He spent his work life as a pharmacist and was used to everything being exact, precise and planned with no surprises. There was little room for “winging it” in his world and he was going through the attitude adjustment required to adapt to life in Mexico. I advised them to return when they could visit on their own schedule and spend a week or two in every location to stop and smell the bougainvilleas. I hope they do, their nice new 40’ diesel pusher and tow car have a few battle scars so another trip through Mexico will not hurt it any more.

The Green Angel escort. I had a quick chat with these guys as they were leaving. I wished them luck with their charges and congratulated them on their patience. They told me this was a dream assignment for them. They got wages and expenses paid to tour Mexico, something they would never be able to do on their own. One of them spoke excellent English.

Progreso

2012-01-29T07:48:00.001-08:00

We took a drive out to the nearby seaside (Gulf of Mexico) town of Progreso for an early dinner. It is 25 KM each way on a nice road that goes right past our RV park. It was a nice diversion. They have done a lot of improvements to the malecon since we were there last. They have narrowed the road, removing parking and widened the sidewalk. A few new restaurants have opened. We had a nice dinner of pescado Veracruzana (me) and breaded fried fish (Norma), with a plate of guacamole to share. It was nice. We sat inside as it was a little cool on the water.

The malecon. You can see the 6.5 KM (4 mile) long pier where cruise ships dock. The pier is closed to sightseers. Only commercial vehicles, taxis and buses allowed.

As has become my normal practice, I snap a photo of the street signs where I park the car. That way, no matter where we wander, we can always find the car. In a pinch, I can show the photo to a taxi driver and be returned. One more anxiety gone! Even numbered streets run one way and odd numbered run the other. A great system.

Earth in High Definition

2012-01-27T21:12:00.000-08:00

NASA has released a super-high resolution image of the Earth.

Circus Act

2012-01-27T11:24:00.000-08:00

There was a circus in town last weekend and on Monday a new neighbor moved in. It was a young couple in a newish pickup pulling an oldish 5th wheel trailer. It had Mexico plates and on the door of the truck was the emblem from the Portugal Circus.

Yesterday morning they were outside struggling with the awning which had been left down during the rain and windstorm. They were both quite short in stature and obviously having trouble so we went over to help. They spoke no English except "thank you" but it was obvious what they needed. We finally got the awning rolled up (the spring was very weak) and stowed. They were happy!

He is a trapeze artist with the circus and they looked to be doing pretty well. Norma says he has the body of a figure skater so she had pretty much guessed what he did. Their truck was almost new and the 5th wheel is older but neat and nicely furnished. They had a satellite system and a flat screen TV. They are from Sonora and their next stop is Playa del Carmen next weekend. A very nice couple.

Storm!

2012-01-26T17:03:00.000-08:00

The clouds were forming off to the west and soon they took on a menacing look. I checked the weather on the internet and saw there was a 60% chance of thunderstorms. We gathered up everything that could get wet outside and closed the windows. Very soon it really hit us! The rain started and then got really heavy. Thunder and lightening was happening right over us. We lost the satellite signal because of the heavy rain and then the wind hit with a vengeance!

The motorhome rocked and rolled and I looked out the window to see the Starchoice dish had blown off the cement pad it was on and was upside down about six feet from where it had started. Thankfully it did not appear to be broken!

When things settled down we set the dish back up and pointed it in the general direction Mimi had set it when she helped me set it up. There was no signal but that was not unexpected. I swung it around a little and saw the bar gauge on the TV jump. This was a good thing and I soon had a bit of a signal. I raised the back of the mount and there it was! I jammed a stick under the back of the mount and we had an excellent signal. I did not even have to call Mimi for help this time, although I know she would have come. Just in case of more wind I found some construction blocks and put them on the mount, something I should have done before.

We decided to spend a couple more days here as the weather is going to be very wet in Cancun but much better here. We will take a drive out to the beach at Progresso tomorrow for lunch and a look-see. Life is Good. We are in Mexico!

Baluarte Bridge

2012-01-26T11:34:00.000-08:00

As the long awaited highway between Mazatlan and Durango nears completion, here are some great photos of the Baluarte Bridge along that route. At 1,321 feet high and 1,706 feet long, it is the world's highest suspension bridge.

Click here to go to site (with more photos)

More Cenote Photos

2012-01-26T08:22:00.001-08:00

Here are some more of Whit’s cenote photos. I was really impressed with these cenotes and will try to seek out more on the Yucatan.

Gianni Fish & Chips

2012-01-25T09:06:00.001-08:00

I was reading Paul’s Hammockman Blog and noticed he had tried out Gianni’s, a new fish and chip place in Merida. It is only a few blocks away so we decided to give it a try for a late lunch / early dinner yesterday.

What a treat! A very generous portion of fish and chips served in a paper cone accompanied by several salsas and including a pop or bottled water. He also had malt vinegar! A real treat in Mexico.

The owner, Giancarlo, is a young, energetic man who speaks excellent English and is very proud of his business. He took the time to describe all his homemade salsas and described everything on the menu.

We ordered two orders of fish & chips, bottled water and an order of calamari to share. It was very good, we left full and the total cost was about $140 pesos ($10.75) for the two of us! Thanks for the recommendation Paul, It was a great meal!

Photos from Gianni’s Facebook Page.

This photo of Giancarlo is from Paul’s Blog.

Football Night

2012-01-24T08:06:00.001-08:00

Jan is a football fan and has been TV deprived since they left home in California. Sunday was the big playoff day for the NFL and we watched the first game at Jonna and Mimi’s house. When we got back to the RV park we all crowded into our place for a potluck dinner and the second game. The wrong teams won but it was a fun evening anyway.

Whit, Sue, Tobey and Jan:

Haircut

2012-01-24T07:55:00.001-08:00

Jan and Whit had to do a major grocery shopping trip before they headed out so I offered to drive them. I used the time to (unsuccessfully) look for a place to get a haircut. On the way home Jan said, “If you just want a cut like Whit’s with no styling, I have my clippers”. Well, now Whit and I could pass for twins and I no longer have to look for my comb in the morning!

Norma And Mimi

2012-01-24T07:47:00.001-08:00

The only holdout smokers of our group so they usually stick together for mutual support ;)

Merida Market

2012-01-24T07:43:00.001-08:00

Random shots

Starchoice Improvement

2012-01-23T07:09:00.001-08:00

I had been unable to get the Starchoice working here in Merida. We struggled for a couple of hours without success and finally gave up.

The night before last Jonna and Mimi were over for happy hour and Mimi happens to be a local expert on Starchoice. She moved the dish and fine tuned the angles and very soon we had a great signal! It is great to have smart friends!

I was correct in my thinking that the skew angles I had been given by the Dishpointer site were wrong and this was preventing me from getting the HD channels as well as a couple of the SD channels. With the skew reset at 134 degrees all channels are booming in.

Cenotes!

2012-01-21T10:54:00.001-08:00

Yesterday morning Whit, Jan and I were discussing what might be fun to do. Whit asked if I had ever swam in a cenote and I said, “No, but I have wanted to for years”! Well, that is what we will do! We checked the map and found an interesting cenote about 40 KM away. Norma wanted to walk to the mall to buy a bathing suit and is not into caves anyway so the three brave adventures set off in the Mazda.

We set the GPS for the small town of Cuzama, where the cenote was. We ran into a small problem as the GPS did not know about a new road that was just put in and we were lead in and out of several small towns along the way but that was all part of the adventure and after about an hour and a half, we were in Cuzama. There was a sign that indicated we should continue along the road and a few minutes later we arrived in the small Mayan town of Homun “Ho moon”. On the main road just past the center of town was the “Restaurante Cenote”. This looked promising!

We pulled into the parking lot where we were greeted by Victor, a young Mayan who explained that there was one cenote right there that we could visit but if we wanted the full experience, we should hire him as our guide and he would take us to five cenotes! The cost would be ten pesos (seventy five cents) per person to visit and swim in each cenote and that money goes to the landowner or caretaker of each cenote. Jan, who speaks Spanish, asked him how much he would charge for his services and he gave the standard Mayan answer of, “After we are done, you pay me whatever you think my services were worth”. After a quick conference we had a guide, which as it turned out, was very smart. He took us to places we could never have found on our own! We first had a quick look at the first cenote beside the restaurant. It was spectacular and inviting but we decided to save our swim for the next one.

Victor piled all three of us into and onto his tiny motorcycle tricycle and off we went. Well, for a couple of blocks anyway when we all realized it was not going to carry the combined weight of all four of us! He stopped at a friends where he borrowed a larger motorcycle and we tried again until it ran out of gas and developed clutch problems. He stopped a friend and asked him to take us to the next cenote and to wait there for him. He arrived right behind us on his own small motorcycle. They decided that I would ride on one while Whit and Jan would ride on the second. We now had a guide and a driver!

The photos are all courtesy of Whit.

Broken down!

Happy Croft in his own tricycle! You can see why he was having clutch problems with three of us in it!

It’s a long way down and that ladder is steeper than it looks!

This cenote was great for swimming. The water was crystal clear and up to 15 meters deep. It was a great experience! Jan, Croft and Victor, our guide.

One of the cenotes was a series of caves. To get into the last one, we had to swim/float through a tiny opening in the wall. I am a little larger than the average person and at least twice the size of our guide so I had a very good look at the opening before I decided to try it. Victor went first, followed by Whit. He made it with no problem so Jan was next. She did the “face down” transit with her nose forced pretty close to the water! It was now my turn and I did the “face up / float through on back” method. I got through!

Whit was first:

Then Jan:

Finally Croft! (With Whit saying, “If you get stuck and plug the hole, I will kill you”!)

It was worth the squeeze! The water looks shallow because it is so clear but it is actually over four meters deep!

Our day was over far too soon and It was time to head home. We had a quick conference and decided to pay Victor $400 pesos. This is a generous amount but out of that he had to pay his friend for driving us. He told us we should eat in the “Restaurante Cenote” and that they had really good Mayan food. We explained that Norma was waiting for us in Merida and she would be worried as it was getting dark. We shook hands and Victor asked us to tell our friends about the cenotes in Homun as they are trying to attract more tourists. His pride in and knowledge of his area was very obvious throughout our visit. We then (mostly) followed the GPS back to Merida where Norma had dinner ready for us. It was one of the best days I have had in Mexico! I have stories to tell! Thanks Whit and Jan!

From Wikipedia:

A cenote (English: /s ɨ ˈ n oʊ t iː / or /s ɛ ˈ n oʊ t eɪ /; Spanish: [seˈnote] or [θeˈnote]; plural: cenotes; from Yucatec Maya dzonot or ts'onot,^[1] "well"^[2]) is a deep natural pit, or sinkhole, characteristic of Mexico and Central America, resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwaterunderneath. Especially associated with the Yucatán Peninsula, and some nearby Caribbean islands, cenotes were sometimes used by the ancientMaya for sacrificial offerings. The term derives from a word used by the low-land Yucatec Maya, to mean any location with accessible groundwater.

We Are In Merida!

2012-01-18T21:06:00.001-08:00

We made it to the Yucatan! It was an easy three hours or so today and we made it to the RV park in Merida. We parked close to Whit and Jan because that is where the shade was. They were not home but soon appeared with Jonna and Mimi. We had hugs all around and then relaxed with a refreshment or two.

Whit brought over a bottle of his newly collected Mescal for me to try and it was wonderful! A subtle smoke flavour not unlike some fine single malts. We shall explore his collection a little deeper in the next couple of days.

Jonna is still not up to par and Mimi pulled her away from the party to go to her latest doctor’s appointment. There are two forms of Denague Fever, the bad kind and the really bad kind. It turns out she only had the bad kind! She will recover!

It is going to be a busy couple of days.

Oh yes, my Banda Ancha works well here and is on the faster UMTS system. However, when I turned the computer on when we arrived a really strong, unsecured WIFI signal appeared. I logged onto it and it worked great. I told Jan about it and she said it was not there when she checked in. I just checked again and it is gone now.

High Definition Debacle

2012-01-17T08:38:00.001-08:00

I may have discovered the problem I have been having with not getting the HD channels on our StarChoice. The website I have been using to help me aim the dish was recommending “Skew” settings that are totally different from the reference document I have used in previous years. For instance, here in Campeche I set the skew at 115 degrees. When I compared this with the old document, I found the old document recommends 134 degrees!

The skew setting ensures the dish is able to receive data from both satellites. Having the skew this far off may mean I am only “seeing” one satellite and all the HD channels are on the other one! I am not going to temp fate by trying to rotate the dish today but when I set it up in Merida tomorrow I will use the readings from the second document.

Here are a couple of shots of the RV Park here at Club Nautico where it is currently 81F at 10:30 AM. Another pool day.

Company

2012-01-16T16:44:00.001-08:00

Yesterday Tobey and Sue commented that they were catching up to us. Today they pulled into the RV park! They are a young retired couple from Colorado on their first venture into Mexico. They joined us at the pool and then came over for “Happy Hour” before heading into town on their scooter. It was great meeting them and I am sure our paths will cross again.

We may spend another day here as we have not heard from Whit and Jan and Jonna is still getting over her bout of Dengue Fever. It is much nicer here than in the RV park in Merida where we share a 20 amp breaker with two other spaces.

And, for fear of forgetting, Happy Martin Luther King Day! I will never forget my visit to his Martin Luther King’s Center for Human Rights in Memphis. It was very moving!

While we remember MLK today, let’s also remember the reason for his execution. Dr. King was opposed to the Vietnam War and had the backing and support to force the USA to withdraw from Vietnam. He was planning a massive demonstration in Washington to force them to do just that. This was unacceptable to the war profiteering establishment and they had to stop him. MLK was also planning a run for President Of the United States and there was a better than good chance he would have succeeded. This was the second strike against him and as a result, Doctor King was in many crosshairs that day and he was not leaving Memphis alive.

Waiting for Merida

2012-01-16T09:55:00.001-08:00

We are spending at least one more night here at Campeche. Our American friends Whit and Jan are heading for Merida and we want to meet up with them but we have not heard from them in a few days. We would rather wait here in Campeche where there is 30 amp power, a pool and great showers. The alternative is the RV park in Merida with poor sewer lines and very poor electricity. No creature comforts there!

We have also not heard from our friends Jonna and Mimi in Merida for a while. The last we heard from Jonna, she was under the weather and we want her to be in good shape when we are there.

So here we sit. Tap, tap…. Is this thing on?

WOW! I went to pay for another night and the price has gone up! We paid $250 pesos for each of the first three nights and today it is $350. There was a sign on the wall and everything! I argued but did not win. Oh well, the average cost is still pretty reasonable.

Rainy Days and Sundays

2012-01-15T09:03:00.001-08:00

I awoke in the middle of the night to an almost forgotten pitter – patter of rain on the roof. It only lasted a couple of minutes but then started up again near dawn for another few minutes. As we were thinking about getting up, it started again. There was not enough to dampen the ground but the windshields are spotted with water marks.

It will be a lazy day today. Norma has a couple of cleaning projects she wants to do and then there is some awards show that she wants to watch tonight. Myself, I will do nothing except walking over to the clubhouse to send this Blog.

Yesterday we drove downtown to do a little shopping and then came home. We both had showers in the beautiful shower rooms and Norma had a sauna. For me it is a little too warm for saunas but she perseveres. Today I am going to try out the infinity pool, rain or not. Even though there is a little rain, it is still 75F.

A Swiss couple pulled in the night before last and we talked to them for a moment yesterday but they pulled out to get some muffler repairs around noon. They said they would be back in time for happy hour but never showed up and are still missing this morning. Their Swiss motorhome has a flexible exhaust pipe and this is what he needed replaced. I am pretty sure he would have trouble finding one in Mexico. I can envision them parked overnight in front of a muffler shop while parts are brought in from Mexico City. Hopefully they will be back by happy hour this afternoon.

Isla Aguada to Campeche

2012-01-14T08:38:00.001-08:00

This morning I felt much more ready to travel than I did yesterday. We hit the road at 10:00 and followed the Gulf of Mexico to Campeche’s Club Nautico RV park. It was about three hours of slow paced driving on narrow secondary roads. We made one little unplanned detour through a small beach front fishing village but ran into no problem. We found a great little seaside restaurant where they were happy to pull out the breakfast menus even though it was actually lunch time. This is very common in Mexico, unlike in the States where you cannot order breakfast at 11:02 AM.

Club Nautico is a private tennis club with a beautiful infinity swimming pool and beach. There is a gate and guardhouse at the entrance where we paid for three nights. We parked in the same space we parked in two years ago and set up the dish. It took a while but we have all the standard definition channels but no high definition channels. I would be curious to hear if anyone is getting the HD channels at these latitudes (even with the larger dish).

We drove the ten KM or so into Campeche for dinner and stopped at the group of six or seven palapa roofed restaurants at the far east end of the malacon. The waiters are very aggressive in trying to get you into their place but we resisted until we found the right combination of white tablecloths, live music and menu. Norma ordered Paella Mariscos and I had Pescado Veracruzana. It was probably the best meal I have had so far in Mexico this year! Norma really enjoyed hers as well and actually ate 3/4 of it. It was that good and for only $280 pesos with beer and wine. It was dark when we got home. The end of a great day.

Lost Day

2012-01-14T08:26:00.001-08:00

Wednesday night was supposed to be our last night at Isla Aguada. After getting things ready to leave in the morning we went over to the restaurant for dinner. Another couple staying in the RV park walked over at the same time so we all sat together. They are from France and have been RV’ing in Mexico for two winters now. They are going around Mexico in the opposite direction than us. Luckily their English is much better than our French but on a few occasions we had to fall back on Spanish. It was a fun meal and after we ate we invited them back for a nightcap. Well, that was the beginning of the end!

I poured some wine and then we got into the single malt. Andre went over to his motorhome for a bottle of Ricard, a licorice flavored liqueur from France that turns cloudy with water added and really tasted good to me. Too good! It was well after midnight when we finally went to bed and when I woke up Thursday morning, I was not all that anxious to face the open road. Norma walked over to pay Thelma for one more night. We spent most of the day laying around watching recorded TV programs.

One great subject came up! They have a house in the south of France and asked if we would consider trading houses and a car for a month or so in the summer! I know this goes on but have never given it much thought but they have done it a couple of times and it has worked out well for them.

That reminds me, we have not had StarChoice here on the Isla. The RV park has a canopy of trees that prevents any chance of getting a shot at the satellite. When we were here two years ago I set the dish up on the beach outside the chain link fence where there is a pretty good view to the west. It worked last year but was a pain because the cable went across the sidewalk where someone could trip and the beach is very public with kids playing. The dish would be vulnerable or people could get hurt so we just did not bother. We had several hours of recorded programs so that sufficed.

Anyway, we spent our lost day watching TV and snacking. By Friday morning I felt much better! Here are the two who got us in so much trouble:

Here is Thelma:

Random Shots From Isla Aguada

2012-01-14T08:23:00.001-08:00

Walking around town:

RV Wash

2012-01-14T08:18:00.001-08:00

Norma went over and asked Thelma if she knew of anyone who would come over to wash and hand wax the motorhome. She suggested the kitchen staff might want to do it to earn a little extra money so that is what happened. At various times there were as many as four energetic young people washing, scrubbing and waxing the motorhome. Over several hours the job was done, and a fine job it was! The front cap that was dulled by thousands of miles of wind and sand is shiny once again.

And what was Norma doing while all this work was going on?

BTW: We finally have access to good WIFI so I am posting a couple of posts I had saved on the computer. Read them below.

To Glass Or Not To Glass, That Is The Question

2012-01-11T10:48:00.000-08:00

I don't know, maybe it is just me but I like real, old fashioned, solid glass wine glasses. The kind with the long stem and large size bowl on top. Wine just tastes better from it. Others sacrifice this luxury while on the road and use the plastic variety. Not me! I will accept the odd (or not so odd) breakage and cleanup to be able to savor my wine the way it was intended to be savored, from real, crystal clear glass! Price is no object, I have my standards! A wine glass must be made of glass or it is not a wine glass. It is a "plastic" glass.

I have recently been experimenting with the newly popular "stemless" wine glasses and find them a reasonably acceptable substitute. They do not break too easily in the cupboard after hitting a tope at too high a speed and they are not as quick to do a belly flop out of the cupboard when opening it after a day of driving. I drink red wine so the transfer of heat from my fingers to the wine is not at all bothersome to me, in fact it may be an advantage, I bought four of these stemless variety from Walmart when we got to Mexico and after seven weeks actually have three left. An acceptable casualty rate as they say in the army. Of our four long stemmed wine glasses, only one remains, a solitary orphan. The last man standing. Warm up the bugle for Taps.

One More Day

2012-01-11T10:13:00.000-08:00

We decided to stay one more day on Isla Aguada. Yesterday the guys from the kitchen came over to wash the motorhome and today I think they are coming back to wax it. It has not had a "real" wax job for over a year and it is starting to show it. I have three bottles of wax, two from the USA and one from Mexico. I will get them to put at least two coats on the front cap and the back which seems to get the most exposure to grit and grime.

We awoke to the smell of waffles from the kitchen so we went over for breakfast. The waffles were huge and delicious. It was good they only brought me one instead of the two I ordered. Thelma was in there as usual and it is always great to talk to her. She was telling us about a European man who arrived at the park with a real estate agent. He told her he wanted to buy the place and for her to name her price. She insisted it was not for sale but he did not want to give up. She finally convinced him. She was telling us the park was the only thing keeping her going after Bill died and she is not yet ready to quite work.

Today is cloudy and very humid. Very tropical! We are moving on to Campeche tomorrow for four or five days and then on to Merida to meet up with Whit and Jan who are on their way north from Chetumal. Whit has mescal to sample. I need say no more.

My Banda Ancha is still having problems working from here. It is very slow and drops out at the most inopportune times. It is very frustrating to compose an email and then to be unable to save or send it. Life is tough.

Shoutbox, Part 2

2012-01-10T17:27:00.001-08:00

I got rid of the Shoutbox. One of my prized regular readers got a virus warning that named this particular Shoutbox as a source of viruses. Better safe than sorry, so I deleted the product altogether.

Please use the comment section or send me an email. Perhaps one day a good substitute will appear.

Here is the warning he got:

Warning: Something's Not Right Here!
croftsmexico.blogspot.com contains content from free-shoutbox.net, a site known to distribute malware. Your computer might catch a virus if you visit this site.
Google has found malicious software may be installed onto your computer if you proceed. If you've visited this site in the past or you trust this site, it's possible that it has just recently been compromised by a hacker. You should not proceed, and perhaps try again tomorrow or go somewhere else.
We have already notified free-shoutbox.net that we found malware on the site. For more about the problems found on free-shoutbox.net, visit the Google Safe Browsing diagnostic page.

Sorry everyone. It may be a false alarm but better safe than sorry!

Internet Problems!

2012-01-09T06:32:00.001-08:00

My internet is driving me nuts! It stays connected for only a minute or two before dropping off. This lets me read an email but drops off before I can respond.

Tioga George was having similar problems and when he went into the Telcel office, was told the Banda Ancha service had been having problems. It appears to be all over Mexico right now and when things like this go wrong down here there is not the same urgency to fix it that you find in the USA and Canada. Maybe it will be fixed soon or maybe it won’t be. No problema!

At least I can compose my posts in Windows Live Writer, go on line and quickly post them. Photos are a problem as the system will not stay up long enough to finish sending a photo.

Isla Aguada

2012-01-08T18:13:00.000-08:00

We got off to a fairly early start yesterday, partly due to some strange activity in the Pemex parking lot. A large truck of the type used to transport produce pulled in about three AM. By about four there were three or four stake sided pickups encircling it and about five guys climbed into the back of the large truck and started to throw whatever was in there into the pickups. I thought it was corn or cabbage from the sound of it landing but Norma was convinced it was drugs and if they knew we were watching, they would shoot us... or something. This went on until about six when everyone left, leaving us unshot. I walked over to see if any of whatever it was got left behind but there was nothing. Who knows?

We were wide awake anyway so we decided to head out. We gassed up and decided to head for the Gulf of Mexico instead of spending a night or two in Villahermosa. There is a periferico road around Villahermosa that trucks are supposed to take. We have ignored this rule in the past but the route of this road looked interesting on the map so we took it. It was fine, busy but recently paved and it soon got us onto Mex 180 heading north. We have been on this road a couple of times coming in the opposite direction. After it begins to parallel the Gulf, it gets very narrow and dotted with topes (speed bumps). We positioned ourselves behind a large truck from a grocery chain who was driving nice and slow and stayed with him. This worked out fine because the speed demons behind me could hardly blame me for the slow pace and they kept their horn blowing and daredevil passing tactics to a minimum.

As the road got close to the water a few seafood restaurants started to appear. We stopped at one and went in. The menu was verbal as opposed to written. I hate this because my Spanish reading skills far surpass my listening comprehension level. Anyway, one of the things we did catch was "Ensalada Camerones" or shrimp salad! Sounds good so we both ordered it. They were delicious and the portions huge! One order would have easily sufficed for the two of us and the bill was only $200 pesos including two bottles of water. We walked out with a large container of leftovers!

We arrived in the city of Cuidad del Carmen just as the 4:00 rush hour started. This is always a bad idea but the GPS got us through except for one small problem where I went against a traffic cop's instructions. He was standing in the middle of the intersection directing traffic. His back was to me and he was frantically waving oncoming traffic through the intersection. The cross traffic was stopped and I assumed it would be alright for me to proceed. I was wrong! He turned, blew his whistle at me and motioned for me to stop. I leaned out and said. "Sorry, stupid Canadian"! He laughed, told me to take it easy and waved us on.

We got to Isla Aguada and Freedom Shores, the beautiful waterfront motel, restaurant and RV park at about five. We went into the office and Thelma, the Mexican wife of Bill (the owner) recognized us immediately. As we were checking in she told us of Bill's recent passing. He was a paraplegic as a result of a training accident in the US Marines. He had been in a wheelchair for fifty years but still ran the RV park after retiring as a school teacher in the USA. He spent so much time in his chair that he developed terrible bed sores that required skin grafts to treat. While this was going on they discovered he had major blocked arteries to his heart that required open heart surgery. As if this was not enough, they then discovered advanced pancreatic cancer. Bill made the decision to refuse chemo treatment and died shortly after. He was a young, energetic seventy years. Thelma is keeping the place going and has many plans for the property. It has a reputation as a destination all inclusive resort for handicapped travelers. Everything is wheelchair accessible, including the local guided fishing boats. Some of the hotel rooms even have a hoist over the bed. Personal Care assistants are available for an additional very small charge. It is beautiful and peaceful here and the restaurant is fantastic and reasonable. Today was Sunday and the beach was crowded with local families enjoying picnic lunches in the hot sunshine.

Bill had a fully wheelchair adapted, hand controlled diesel pusher motorhome that Thelma would like to sell. It is located and registered in Texas. I told her to send me the details and we would do what we could to help her sell it. Our friend Paul in Florida still has his hand in the RV sales game and will be helping her out as well. I will post the information when I get it.

No photos because although my Banda Ancha works here, it is on the old, slow "Edge" system. We will be here another two nights. The front of the motorhome is twenty feet from the ocean!

Federali Checkpoint

2012-01-06T19:26:00.000-08:00

When we pulled out of a toll booth yesterday there was a Federal Police checkpoint set up. There were a dozen or so heavily armed police waving most vehicles through as they exited the toll booth. When he saw us, he waved me over to the side. He walked up to the window, greeted me in Spanish and shook my hand. He was very polite as he asked for our documentation. I handed him our passports and he checked the photos and entry stamps very carefully.

He then politely asked if he would be permitted to look inside. I said "Si, no problema" and Norma opened the side door. He cleaned his boots and came in. First he stomped heavily on the floor in a couple of places and then he hit the ceiling hard with his fist listening for hollow sounds. Satisfied he thanked us, shook our hands again and told us we were free to go.

He was very professional and very thorough. We were very near the State border of Veracruz where they are having a lot of drug cartel activity as one cartel tries to take the area from another. There was a recent case where an American couple had their motorhome tip over on a flat section of highway. When police investigated, they found two metric tonnes of drugs in a false ceiling in the motorhome. We have these idiots to thank for the extra attention us RVers are getting! Anyway, it is no problem and we enjoy meeting the young men and women who work so hard to keep us safe in Mexico.

Well......

2012-01-06T17:19:00.000-08:00

The 270 KM drive turned out to be 400 as I read the GPS wrong. The road was so rough and bumpy (they still charged $65 CAN in tolls) that it shook one of the dolly fenders to bits! We stopped at a roadside mechanico and four hours and $1200 pesos later ($400 materials and $800 labor) we were on the road again. The repairs look good but driving the next few hundred KM will tell the tale. I have photos but am too damn tired to take them out of the camera. I promise to post them.

We are in a Pemex about 40 KM from Villahermosa for the night. It was dark when we parked. It has been a long, frustrating day!

A Beautiful Day

2012-01-06T06:40:00.000-08:00

We woke up at 7:30 this morning to the sound of thousands of birds chirping in the bush beside us. It is now 8:30 and a very sunny 70F outside. It is nice to be back at sea level! One more cup of coffee and then off on the 270 KM drive to Villahermosa. The restaurant WIFI is working great this morning.

Arco Norte and Further

2012-01-05T14:37:00.000-08:00

We did not make it all the way to Puebla yesterday, We said our goodbyes to the very friendly staff at Queretaro's Hotel Flamingo Inn at about 11:00, found propane (butane) and headed down Mex 57. We stopped at San Pedro, the Pemex, restaurant complex about 100 KM before the exit for the Arco Norte where we topped off the gas tank and had breakfast. Norma then spent an hour or so shopping in the store attached to the restaurant complex and bought a nice Mexican blanket for the bed. Most blankets are far too short for me, making me decide if I want my neck warm or my feet. This one is almost seven feet long and actually covers me!

We took the well marked turnoff to the Arco Norte and pulled our electronic card out of the dispenser. When you exit, this card tells the attendant how far you drove and how much to charge you.

We made it as far as the Pemex near the far end of the Arco Norte where we nestled in with the trucks for the night. It was safe but noisy with trucks coming and going all night. There was no reception on my Banda Ancha stick so no Internet! We had a small accident with the water when norma turned on the pump from the bathroom without realizing the kitchen tap had been turned on when we pulled the coffee maker out of the sink, where it travels. The tap had swung out over the counter so when the water started flowing, it landed on the counter, found it's way down between the counter and the wall and out the bottom. Before she realized what was happening, the 40 gallon fresh water tank was just about drained! We sopped up water, removed drawers and dried outside storage bins for an hour and finally got the job done! We then watched some TV programs we had recorded on the PVR until we fell asleep.

This morning we filled the water tank from a spigot on the Pemex station and hit the road. We got to the toll booth, handed them the card and then handed them $630 pesos or $47 CAN! Ouch, expensive but well worth it. The alternative would have been to drive through Mexico City or take hours picking our own bypass route via country roads around the capital. It was money well spent!

Today we stayed on the cuota (toll) roads and forked over an additional $920 pesos on tolls! That makes the day's total $126 CAN. Ouch! And to add insult to injury, the road after Puebla (except one very nice concrete section) was terrible! There was only a little construction and the rest of the road was ruts and potholes! It would be nice if they spent the tolls they collect on fixing the roads! Rant over.

This afternoon we stopped at a quiet Pemex on Mex 145D and parked on the side opposite the truck parking. There was an armed guard walking around who we asked if we could park where we were. He said "si" and we gave him $40 pesos to watch over us. There is a restaurant as well as a Red Hat Coffee shop which is providing me with a weak WIFI signal. Despite being under a tower, the Banda Ancha is dropping out too often.

It will be 260 KM to Villahermosa tomorrow where we will spend the night at a real RV park with a nice pool. Life is good!

Safe and sound:

Off to Puebla

2012-01-04T07:25:00.000-08:00

We are off on a four hour drive to Puebla this morning. It will be a short visit as it is at over 7000 feet altitude and night time temperatures have been around 0C!

Plans Are Made To Be Changed!

2012-01-03T10:20:00.001-08:00

We have been emailing our American friends Whit and Jan who are now in Chetumal, but will be leaving before we get there. This would be sad because it would leave a lot of Whit’s tequila and mescal un-sampled! Therefore we have decided to reverse our “normal” counter clockwise tour of the Yucatan and to do it in the opposite direction this year. This will put us in Merida around January 18, the same time as Whit and Jan. Jonna and Mimi, get ready!

Getting Cold in Queretaro!

2012-01-02T10:01:00.000-08:00

After all my gloating about the beautiful weather here in Queretaro, it has turned. Not cold by Canadian standards, but definitely chilly for my thinned out blood! It is a cool 57F outside right now and the locals have pulled out their down jackets. I have put aside my shorts and am wearing jeans. No swimming pool today!

We have decided to head out for warmer climes. Today we have a list of chores including finding the Telcel Customer Service Center to renew our Internet subscription that expired on December 30. We will soon be needing it again. Tomorrow we will empty the sewer, top off the water and get the inside organised for travel and then on Wednesday morning we will head South on Mex 57 to the Arco Norte bypass of Mexico City (DF) and on to Puebla. The GPS says it is a four hour drive. We will spend a few nights there and then head cross country through Palanque to Chetumal where we will hopefully run into our American friends Whitney and Jan Baines. These two are tequila affectionados and have several samples that they have collected waiting for some critical tasting, a job I am always happy to help them with.

Chatbox Change

2012-01-01T19:08:00.000-08:00

The provider of my old Shoutbox decided to cease offering the free version of his product. I am testing a new one. Type your message in the lower box and hit "enter". The old one attracted tons of spam, let's see if this one is any better..

Try it and let me know if you like it or not.

I did not like the way it made users sign in using Face Book and prompting users to give up their contacts. Lets give this Cbox a try, although I suspect it may be a spam magnet like the original one.

I got one spam message last night and this box does not allow me to delete individual messages, The old Shoutbox had me deleting 5 - 10 spam messages every day.

So, How Was 2011?

2012-01-01T15:55:00.000-08:00

For me it was not the best, not the worst... We have certainly seen better. We lost Roger Stanyer, an old friend and Norma's boss at Forest Renewal to that damn cancer on December 29. A real solid guy and always fun to be around! Gone way too soon! I had a health scare of my own last summer which, although it turned out to be a false alarm, got me thinking about my own mortality. Not a subject I want to dwell on.

Financially we took a medium size hit on the investment side of about $11K thanks to a "correction" in the price of gold. Not a big deal as profits or losses here stay in the fund. We do not use it or need it for everyday living as our various pensions take care of that very nicely. Quicken however, includes it as income so it makes a difference in our bottom line. More of a mental than a financial crisis. I made a paper profit of over $30K in the same portfolio in 2010 and much prefer that.

We did not get around to doing all we wanted to do to the house but that was a good thing considering we probably would have had to take some of the aforementioned cash out of our investments to pay for it and I hate selling dollar bills for 90 cents. It will wait another year. We never left Campbell River all summer and should correct that this year.

All in all it was a year I am happy to see disappear into the trash can of history along with the torn off calendar pages. 2012 will be better provided the world does not end. But who believes that stuff anyway?

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T12:07:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to everyone! Have a nice safe New Years, call or hug your family and watch as the New Year comes in.

We are heading down to Queretaro's main Plaza later to find a bite to eat and will then head back "home" to watch the festivities on TV. We were hoping that at least one other RV might pull in so we could share some snacks but no luck. We have been here by ourselves since we checked in two weeks ago.

It is a well known fact that fireworks scare away demons here in Mexico so we expect to hear lots of them tonight. I have my earplugs handy if I need them!

Here is a list of Mexican New Years Traditions:

New Years is our chance to get rid of the negative in our lives to make room for the positive. New Years Traditions abound here in Mexico and include:

1) Make a list of all the negative things of the past year and just before midnight, throw the list into the fire. This will rid them from your life forever.

2) Wear red underwear if you want love and yellow if you want money.

3) Eat one grape and make one wish with each of the twelve strokes of the clock as it counts out midnight.

4) Sweep out your house before midnight. This rids the house of the negative forces that have accumulated over the past year.

5) Bringing your luggage outside at New Years will ensure you will travel in the upcoming year.

6) Make an effigy of a hated politician, stuff it with fireworks and set fire to it at midnight.

7) Visualize a huge cloud crossing the sky at midnight. People who are lucky enough to have a glimpse of the cloud are believed to experience good luck in the New Year.

Marriage Equality Comes To Quintana Roo!

2011-12-30T12:00:00.000-08:00

Legal same-sex marriages are about to commence in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, home to popular vacation destinations like Cancun.

Cancun and other resort areas on the Mexican Caribbean will have a new attraction for gay and lesbian couples from the United States, Canada and Europe, allowing them to legalize their unions thanks to a quirk in the local civil code, activist Patricia Novelo told Efe. “This market niche ... is very attractive for European, Canadian and American (homosexual) couples,” said the spokesperson for Colectivo Diversidad. Novelo said that in January the first same-sex group wedding will be held in the resort area as part of local support for the human rights of the gay community. She said that already several couples have expressed their wish to formalize their unions at the ceremony. She said gay and lesbian marriages are possible in Quintana Roo, “thanks to a legal gap in the Civil Code,” which only makes mention of “people interested in getting married,” without specifying their gender.

Same-sex marriage is already legal in Mexico City and unions performed there are recognized throughout the nation. Hotels, airlines, and tour companies are already working to launch same-sex marriage packages to Cancun, Cozumel, and other beach towns in Quintana Roo.

And Here We Go Again!

2011-12-30T08:38:00.000-08:00

Well, now Norma has the crud! I have just gotten back to feeling sort of normal and Norma is down. We have put our trip to Bernal off for about a week now and were going to go today but now that is in question.

Tomorrow is New Years Eve and the plan is to cab down to the Plaza de Armas, have dinner, people watch and then come home to watch the festivities around the world on TV.

That is the plan! We shall see if Norma's stomach allows it...

It Could Be Worse!

2011-12-28T16:59:00.001-08:00

Our son Brooks and Linda spent Christmas with Linda's parents in Canmore, Alberta. They had a great time and headed home very early on the 27th expecting to make it all the way home to Vancouver Island. Well, they made it as far as Golden, BC where at 8:00 AM the road was blocked by an avalanche! They waited all day and finally had to get a hotel. They hope to be on their way tomorrow morning.

At least they have a nice view of the snow.

Laundry Day

2011-12-28T10:49:00.000-08:00

We have not done laundry for a month and it was piling up in the shower! We have been watching for a lavanderia as we drove and walked around Queretaro but did not find one. We would not let the hotel laundry here do it because of the cost. The South African we met the other day told us his hotel charged him $250 pesos to wash a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. That is more than they cost to buy!

Yesterday one of the desk workers came over to see the motorhome and to practice her English so we asked her if she knew of one. Today a truck arrived to haul away out three garbage bags full of laundry to be washed, folded and bagged for $26 pesos ($1.90) per kilo. He could not weigh them here but I will let you know how much it costs. I suspect it will be much less than the number of quarters we would have had to put into a laundromat in the USA!

We were thinking of a drive to Bernal today but it is already 1:00 PM so we will have to see.

UPDATE

It came back at 5:00 and cost $480 pesos or $35. There were two very large shrink wrapped bundles and everything is spotless! It cost a little more than I expected but Norma figured that if she had done that much in Cocopah resort where we did our last big load, it would have cost at least $30 in the laundromat. Here, it was picked up, delivered, washed & dried, folded and bagged better than we would have done it. To top it off, she did not have to sit in a hot laundromat for hours! This was a bargain and we are happy!

The "Dump"!

2011-12-27T12:52:00.000-08:00

It is amazing how something so simple can become so complicated! It was our friend Chris who told us about this place and told us there was a place to dump when we needed to. Well, today we needed to! We have been collecting sewage for over a week and although the tank was not full, it was odoriferous if you get my meaning.

When we parked we spoke to one of the grounds guys who told us he would help us dump. We found him but he told us he was now told that RV's were not allowed to dump because that dump was connected to the hotel recycled water system that uses recycled water to water the lawns. He told us to talk to the people at the desk.

We went to the desk but were unable to explain what we wanted. They thought we wanted to rent a room so we could use the toilet in it. Then they thought we wanted to move to a different space but admitted none of the spaces had a dump site. She then thought we had made a mess in the motorhome and needed a maid to clean it up. She finally arranged to have her and the grounds manager meet us at the rig which we did. He had been told our toilet was broken and we needed repairs. I finally took both of them to the sewer bay, showed them the sewer hose and managed to explain what we needed. No problem! He told us to dump into the same place the first guy told us we could not. Without being too graphic we explained there was more in there than gray water but they said it was connected to the sewer system and did not matter.

The grounds manager guided me back and held the hose while I pulled the lever. I warned him as best I could to be careful and that it was going to stink, which it did. He just laughed and helped me put the hose away. He earned his $20 peso tip!

In the end it turned out the woman at the desk did not understand RV's but had seen the movie "RV" and thought we had one of "those" accidents and needed help. I would pity the poor maid assigned THAT task if that had indeed been the case. I doubt if $20 pesos would have made THAT problem go away!

When you RV in Mexico, there is never a dull moment! Life is good!

A Visitor!

2011-12-26T19:45:00.000-08:00

We had a visit from our friend Les today. He is spending the winter in nearby San Miguel de Allende where he supports two little Mexican girls. This is a busy time for him but he caught a bus down here to Queretaro and spent a few pleasant hours with us. Norma made a great lunch and then Les and I spent an hour in the pool speaking of manly things. There is a lot of "between the lines" stuff on Les' Blog and I pried as much as I could out of him. Thanks for coming down Les. It was great to see you!

He left at about 4:30, we cleaned up, Skyped both grand daughters and Norma's brother, had dinner and now I am watching the Canucks. A great day!

A Mexican "The Night Before Christmas"

2011-12-25T10:49:00.000-08:00

From My Friend Les' Blog:

Twas the night before Christmas, and all through la casa,
Not a creature was stirring, I wondered, que pasa?
I was hanging the stockings with mucho cuidado,
In hopes that old Santa would feel obligado,
To bring all the children, both buenos y malos,
A nice batch of dulces and other regalos.
My brothers and I went to sleep in our camas,
Some in long underwear, and some in piyamas.
When out in the yard there arose such a grito,
That I jumped to my feet like a frightened cabrito.
I ran to the window and looked afuera.
And who in the world do you think quien era?
St. Nick in a sleigh and a big sombrero
Came dashing along like a little bombero.
And pulling his sleigh instead of venados,
Were eight little burros, approaching volados.
I watched as they came, and this fat little hombre
Was shouting and whistling, and calling by nombre:
Ay Pancho, ay Pepe, ay Cuca, ay Beto!
Ay Chata, ay Chopo, Maruca y Nieto!
Then standing erect, with his hands on his pecho,
He flew to the top of our very own techo.
With his round little belly like a bowl of jalea,
He struggled to squeeze down our old chimenea.
Then huffing and puffing, a little cansado,
He picked up a bag that looked muy pesado.
He filled all the stockings with lovely regalos.
Then chuckling aloud, seeming very contento,
He turned like a flash and was gone like the viento.
And I heard him exclaim, and this is verdad:
Merry Christmas a todos ... feliz navidad!

Christmas Eve In Queretaro

2011-12-25T09:16:00.000-08:00

The streets were filled with thousands of happy families! We wandered, talked to people, shopped, ate... You get the idea! Here is Restaurante Bar 1810 where I found "authentic" Pescado Veracruzana. It was worth the two year wait!

Merry Christmas y Feliz Navidad from Mexico!

2011-12-24T20:15:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone and Feliz Navidad a todos nuestros amigos Mexicanos!

Norma and I went to the Plaza de Armas here in Queretaro tonight and mixed with thousands of happy Mexican families. We had a great meal and met Ashley, a single traveler from South Africa. It was a wonderful evening.

The following is lifted from our Mexican friends Chris and Juan's Blog. I couldn't agree with them more!

This is my favorite Christmas song. Thanks so much to John Lennon and Yoko Ono for doing this, the message brings home the true meaning of what Christmas is for me. Let's hope the new year brings this war to an end here in Mexico.

HAPPY CHRISTMAS YOKO,
HAPPY CHRISTMAS JULIAN

SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS,
AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE
ANOTHER YEAR OVER,
AND A NEW ONE JUST BEGUN.
AND SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS,
I HOPE YOU HAVE FUN,
THE NEAR AND THE DEAR ONE,
THE OLD ONE AND THE YOUNG.

(CHORUS)
AND A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS
AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR
LET´S HOPE IT´S A GOOD ONE
WITHOUT ANY FEAR.

AND SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS,
FOR WEAK AND FOR STRONG,
FOR RICH AND THE POOR ONES,
THE WORLD IS SO WRONG.

AND SO HAPPY CHRISTMAS
FOR BLACK AND FOR WHITE,
FOR YELLOW AND RED ONES,
LET´S STOP ALL THE FIGHT.

(CHORUS)

WAR IS OVER,
IF YOU WANT IT
WAR IS OVER NOW.

I Survived!

2011-12-24T07:29:00.000-08:00

I am feeling much better today and am ready to experiment with living again! Maybe a trip to nearby Bernal or a taxi ride to the Centro Histoico later on in the day. A nice meal out would be nice. We will make that huge decision over breakfast.

More Than You Wanted To Know!

2011-12-23T07:50:00.000-08:00

They say, "The bigger they are, the harder they fall" and that is true with me. For three days any toilet activity was just wishful thinking and yesterday I started the opposite problem! I spent yesterday mostly laying on the bed watching TV and today does not look much more promising!

We had planned a road trip to the nearby "Pueblo Magico" of Bernal but it just might be on hold for a day or two. As bad as it is, it could be worse!

1825 Meters = 5990 Feet

2011-12-21T10:26:00.000-08:00

That is the altitude of Queretaro! This is what gives us the cool nights that make it so east to sleep. Temperatures for this week will be +/- 25C (77F) in the daytime and +/- 10C (50F) at night. Perfect weather and similar to our summers at home.

You do notice this altitude when walking. I thought it was my age but I think it is the rarefied oxygen at this altitude. I am getting used to it now but I found myself slightly out of breath after a long walk or serious activity when we first arrived. Now, I am actually quite comfortable living at this altitude and I am sure it is good for me.

It is also noticeable when drinking coffee. Water boils at a lower temperature up here so coffee is not as hot as it is at sea level and cools down quickly. For someone who loves hot coffee this is a great inconvenience :).

Norma’s Day

2011-12-20T17:38:00.001-08:00

Today Norma wanted to hang around our end of the city and get her nails and feet done. She talked to one of the women at the desk who recommended a close by place so we set off walking. Norma lucked out by finding a great place (hands $150 pesos and feet $120 pesos) and Croft lucked out by making friends with the enchanting daughter of the owner! We spent a good hour drawing, Play-Doh’ing and teaching each other words for colors in Spanish and English. What a charmer she was! Every time Norma looked over to watch us the little girl (Danica or “Dana” for short) yelled “No Peeka”, which I am sure meant just as it sounded, “No Peeking”.

La Corregidora

2011-12-19T21:09:00.001-08:00

Queretaro was one of the Cradles of the 1810 Mexican War of Independence. It was the site of much of the preliminary planning and many of the conspirators lived or visited here. One of these insurgents was María Josefa Cresencia Ortiz y Girón,popularly known as Doña Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez or La Corregidora (April 19, 1773 – March 2, 1829). She was the wife of the Spanish appointed Magistrate of Queretaro and lived with her husband in the white casa below. She was very sympathetic to the plight of the aboriginal people of Mexico who were being very badly treated by the Spanish. She began to hold “Literary Study Group” meetings in her house where books and documents banned by the Catholic Church were studied and discussed. These meetings soon turned to discussions of revolution. Present at many of these meetings were the Catholic Priest Miguel Hidalgo and the Spanish Capt. Ignatio Allende.

Her activities eventually drew the attention of the local Spanish commander and she came under suspicion. Placed under house arrest and confined to her quarters, she still overheard a meeting in her house where she learned of the imminent arrest of Father Hidalgo. She is said to have passed the information to a fellow conspirator on a rolled up piece of paper passed through the keyhole of her house. The information was quickly taken to Father Hidalgo in Dolores (now Dolores Hidalgo) and Capt. Allende in nearby San Miguel (now San Miguel de Allende), Hidalgo issued his Grito “Cry for Independence” and the eleven year long Revolution began a few days earlier than was planned.

Dona Josefa was jailed for several years for her part in the conspiracy until she was released under an oath that she would refrain from supporting the rebellion, a promise she never kept. She is recognized as one of the Heroes Of The Revolution.

Plaza de Armas, Queretaro

2011-12-19T09:06:00.001-08:00

Yesterday we took a $35 peso taxi ride to the centro. It was good we did not try to drive because it is very congested and confusing in the historical center of town. Taxis are the way to go in Mexican towns. They are generally very cheap but research must be done beforehand. In this case I asked the hotel desk how much they should charge and was told “no more than $40 pesos”. The actual charge was less but I added a $5 peso tip. We were dropped off right at the popular Plaza de Armas and spent the day enjoying the sights, smells, food, coffee and most important, the people!

We walked for an hour or two and then stopped in a streetside restaurant for a brunch of crepes. It was very good and just enough to keep us going. Later in the day we passed Maria y Su Bici “Maria And Her Bicycle”, an interesting looking restaurant specializing in Oaxaquena cuisine. Not being ready for dinner, we opted for a margarita. It was unlike anything we have ever seen! It was blue colored and served in a pottery bowl. It was made with mescal and was served with an extra shot of mescal on the side. The very personable maître de came to explain the process to us. We were to make a “wish” or “prayer” while he picked up the shot glass and repeated a chant while touching four sides of the bowl. He then asked us to tip our heads back while he poured the shot of mescal into our mouth. Lots of fun! He invited us back on the 24th when they will be serving a traditional Oaxacan Christmas dinner.

Hotel Flamingo Inn – Queretaro

2011-12-17T07:11:00.001-08:00

Here is our home for the rest of the year. There is room for three or four RV’s to park alongside the lawn and swimming pool area. There is good 15 amp power at a fairly steady 120 volts for each unit and water through a very long green hose is available to fill your fresh water tank. There is a dump about fifty feet behind the motorhome that I can back up to when I need to dump. There are immaculate washrooms and showers available by the pool so I hope to make the waste tanks last for at least a week or ten days. There was a conference in the hotel today but normally there are few cars parked along this road inside the gated hotel grounds.

The WIFI is excellent and requires a code that they gave me at the desk. There is a gym that we were offered a key for but turned down. The pool is very clean and warm although shaded most of the day by trees and buildings. When I went for my shower the desk gave me huge towels to use. All the reception staff and many of the grounds workers speak English. This is a great place! The cost is $250 pesos ($18.60) per night.

Norma noticed two of the workers washing a car yesterday and arranged for them to come over after their shift today to wash the motorhome and car for $350 pesos ($26). They will be here any minute and I will have to caution them against bumping into the StarChoice dish as it was a pain to set up this time.

Well, that was the best wash job we have ever had done! They were at it for over two hours, washing, drying and doing all the windows. They only got the motorhome done tonight before it got dark and will return tomorrow to do the car. Life is good.

Celaya Cheese Factory

2011-12-16T08:42:00.001-08:00

Two years ago we found this great queso factory on Mex 45D as it approaches Celaya. I have been thinking of it ever since and yesterday I had my chance to revisit it! They have a large selection and are happy to hand out generous sized samples of everything. Norma found a couple of “chico” (small, 500 gram) sized rounds she liked and I added two portions of my favorite heavily smoked cheese! We walked out with almost five pounds of quesos for under $170 pesos. This, along with the Tillamook cheddar and pepper jack cheese (thanks Kelsi) we bought in Washington, will keep us going for some time.

Safe And Sound In Queretaro

2011-12-15T18:04:00.000-08:00

It was a short drive today to Queretaro and the Hotel Flamingo Inn. When we got within ten KM of the hotel we stopped at a Pemex and asked if we could park there for two hours while we checked out the access to the hotel as it is actually in the city. There was no problem so we tipped the two pump guys to watch the motorhome while we unloaded the car and drove the route. The entrance to the hotel parking lot is on the "wrong" side of the street so we had to go around several blocks to approach it from the right direction and it looked like there was no problem for us getting in. The church's book warns against rigs over 25 feet long but we pulled in with the car and dolly attached, making us an even 49 feet. It was a little tight but nothing like our unplanned trip through that #$@&*% town yesterday!

Back we went for the motorhome and duplicated our route to the hotel. The hotel has a central lawn area with lamp posts. Each lamp post has a 15 amp electrical outlet and we parked between two bushes with our slide out over the lawn. There is room for three or four RV's to park. The friendly staff told us they would give us a hose whenever we wanted our water tank filled and there is a dump station at the end of the driveway. We booked for two weeks and that will take us to December 29. We will probably add a few more days on the end because who wants to drive on New Years Eve? The cost is $250 pesos ($18.60) per night. Pretty reasonable and is (a long) walk to the centro.

We set up the Starchoice but could not get a good enough signal for the HD channels. Maybe it is the surrounding buildings causing some multipath, I don't know. It is not a big deal and I may try again tomorrow with the dish in a different place. Not a big deal as we get all the SD channels.

We had dinner in the hotel restaurant. Norma enjoyed her pepper beef medallions but I found nothing on the menu for a vegetarian (pescaterian) to eat. There was no fish of any description on the menu so I was happy with Quesadillas and cesar salad. The bill was $445 pesos after a glass of wine each. A little steep but it is a hotel restaurant after all.

We will rest up tomorrow and then do a little exploring. I will post photos of the hotel grounds. You will be impressed!

Villa Corona to ?

2011-12-14T15:04:00.000-08:00

Well, this was a day I am not anxious to repeat!

We left Villa Corona at about 10:30 and headed for Guadalajara and the highway to Queretaro. Ms. Garmin wanted us to drive through the center of the second largest city in Mexico but lucky for me mom didn't raise any dumb kids so I turned onto the periferico and ignored all her pleas to turn around. she finally caught on and directed us to take Mex 15D. Norma was looking at the maps and thought we should be on Mex 90 but Ms. Garmin had our destination locked in and both highways headed east so we let her do her thing. Bad decision!

After a hundred KM or so she told us to turn left onto a narrow secondary road that connects with Mex 90. This road went through a small town on the way. When I say through, I mean through! The road got narrow and by the time I passed the "No Trucks Allowed" sign I was committed! We were on a very busy, narrow street with cars double parked and trucks unloading. Cars and buses were trying to pass me on the right but there was no room so they just beeped their horns. Ms Garmin then told me to turn left onto an impossibly narrow street and I had no choice but to ignore her. She objected loudly and then told me to turn right onto an almost as narrow street heading steeply downhill. The street ahead was getting even more congested as it got closer to the center of town so I turned down the hill. Luckily there was little traffic coming towards me as I took up 2/3 of the street and I could see a divided avenue at the bottom. Sure enough she now told me to turn onto that thankfully much wider street. We crawled along behind dozens of trucks for a good hour until we got on the road headed to Mex 90. We arrived at a 24 hour Pemex that has lots of parking and stopped for the night. I have no idea where we are. It looks like we will be safe here and I will walk over th the gas bar when the night shift starts and give them some pesos to watch out for us.

It is 91F outside and 81F inside.

I know your day was better than ours! Good night!

Market Day!

2011-12-13T16:47:00.001-08:00

Tuesday is Market Day in Villa Corona! We did some wandering, a little shopping and I found some fresh squeezed orange juice for $18 pesos ($1.40) per liter, poured into my own bottle.

Norma got her hair cut and eyebrows done for $80 pesos ($6) total. She says to tell you they use tweezers, not wax. I guess that is better. Labour is undervalued in Mexico.

Lazy Days

2011-12-13T07:13:00.000-08:00

The weather is so perfect here that we have decided to stay one more day! Tuesday is Market Day in the Puebla of Villa Corona so we will go and have a look at that. Then we will have a swim and showers. I will post photos of the market.

I just checked Weather Underground and the weather in our next stop, Queretaro, is about the same as here. It is averaging 25-26C in the day and 10-12C at night. Pretty perfect weather if you ask me!

Norma Insisted

2011-12-11T16:37:00.001-08:00

Norma insisted that I jump up on an absolutely gorgeous Mexican woman’s bed. Well, what could I say? For a half an hour she could not keep her hands off me! It took me back to the old days! I love Mexico!

There IS a bathing suit under the blanket! She pulled it down a little so she could get at more of me!

Villa Corona, The Town

2011-12-11T16:36:00.001-08:00

By Mexican standards, Villa Corona is a fairly small place. It has everything you need, a bank, a bakery and several small stores although no big grocery stores. For that you have to drive the twenty kilometers or so to Walmart or Mega on the highway to Guadalajara. There is a well-worn church and a popular square or jardine in the center of town. There are a couple of decent restaurants if you search them out.

Villa Corona, The Park

2011-12-11T16:34:00.001-08:00

The RV park here is quite nice. Power is good at just over 120 volts, the water pressure is good for Mexico although it smells slightly of sulphur from the thermal springs. The hot springs are huge and actually supplies the town with free hot water through a separate water line and tap. There are four pools that are open on different days and at different times of the day. One is very hot and has hydro massage jets that you stand in front of. The park becomes very busy on weekends when families from Guadalajara drive or bus down for the day. They bring food which they cook in the dozens of barbeques in the picnic area. There is free WIFI which you have to walk over to the office to get. Many people spend the entire winter here but for us is is a convenient stopover.

Saturday Is Not A Good Day To Drive!

2011-12-10T17:57:00.001-08:00

The Guadalajara traffic was brutal! I thought Saturday might be a better day than a weekday but it was not. As soon as we got past the Periferico Sur ring road the traffic on all streets leading into the centro stopped pretty much dead. It took us almost three hours to make the 44 KM drive into town and over two hours to get back.

We found a pay parking lot about two blocks from the unique downtown where many streets are pedestrian only. It is a very beautiful city and families were out strolling! I have said this many times, but I love Mexican children! They are always smiling and happy and never cause problems for mom and dad.

We stopped in a restaurant that we remembered from previous trips and ordered what we thought would be a light lunch. We ordered a salad, a guacamole dip with chips and a Grande Coctil Camerone to share. All portions were huge and we ended up leaving some on the table! The bill, including a limonada for me and a bottle of water for Norma was $230 pesos. Considering where we were and the quantities involved, this was a great deal.

Here are some more shots from our stroll:

“Hey mom! There are free pesos in the water!”

This clown is selling boots:

Inside the restaurant:

The street with no cars:

This human statue came to life when Norma dropped some pesos in his dish!

Vegetating in Villa Corona

2011-12-10T07:03:00.000-08:00

We have not been doing anything blogable (if that is a word). We went swimming yesterday in the beautiful pools here. Our payment for the RV park includes entrance fees to the hot springs complex plus there is an extra pool for the exclusive use of the RV park and casitas. This pool is filled at 6:00 pm when the other pools are emptied for the night. The pools are not heated so they are quite hot when they are filled and then gradually cool down during the day. This process repeats itself the next day.

We are going to have breakfast and then are thinking of a drive into Guadalajara for the day. We have always taken the bus into town since getting very lost the first time we took the car but now with the MX maps in the GPS I feel more confident!

Talk to you later!

Tepic to Villa Corona

2011-12-08T19:07:00.000-08:00

We made it safe and sound to the Villa Corona hot springs and booked for four nights. I will post tomorrow with photos! It was in the high 80's today! Not that I like to brag.....

Mazatlan to Tepic

2011-12-07T16:40:00.000-08:00

After saying goodby to our friends we got a bit of a late start today. We drove the quota (toll) road from Mazatlan to Tepic, about 170 miles away. As we left Mazatlan, I noticed I had about 3/4 of a tank of gas, maybe a little less, plenty for the trip (I thought). This is a great highway but the only things that break the monotony are toll booths, not gas stations. the road started going uphill as we got about 75 km from Tepic and with 40 km to go, my gas warning light came on! Like I said the road was uphill and the Ford engine was gearing down to keep us moving. I tried to keep my speed up to avoid dropping down another gear but at many points the traffic did not co-operate. By the time we pulled into Tepic we were running on fumes!

We are now parked in the same toll booth on the Tepic - Guadalajara highway that we parked in two years ago. There are more trucks here this time and no other RV's. One truck pulled in for a good half hour and sat idling with his cab and reefer unit right beside our window. He did it on purpose as there was lots of other parking available. He was just trying to make some point or other. Anyway, he is gone now and we can breathe again. We will make a light dinner and watch some of the shows we recorded on Starchoice. I love the fact we can store about a hundred hours of programing and then watch them without having the dish hooked up.

We have about a three and a half hour drive tomorrow and we will be in Villa Corona where all the hot springs are. Not that we really need them, the temperature hut 88 on the road today. Great signal on my Telcel Banda Ancha (Wide Band) here. Life is Good.

Life Is A Beach!

2011-12-06T15:42:00.000-08:00

Here is a better shot of Contessa, Norma and I having lunch on Stone Island yesterday. It was taken by Colin who is a professional photographer. Reprinted with his permission. Thanks.

Drug Store Trip And The Weather

2011-12-06T13:48:00.000-08:00

I came down to Mexico a little short on my prescription drugs. We stopped at Mega today and I went to their pharmacia to buy 60 days worth of Metformin (generic) for $140 pesos and 120 days of Lipitor (brand name) for $1100 pesos. These are both a little more expensive than back in Canada but still very manageable. I like the Mexican way of letting people buy their drugs responsibly without a prescription.

I was checking the Weather Underground site and see those of you who are back in the southern States are rather chilly! Yuma is 15/2 Celcius day/night while Casa Grande is 11/-4C, Tucson is 11/-2C and Brownsville, TX is 11/1C. Even Northern Mexico is suffering the chills. Our friend Chris is in Chihuahua and complaining about -5C! On the other hand, our friends Joanna and Mimi are snug as bugs in Merida, MX at 30/20C. Here in Mazatlan we are very comfortable at 25/15C. We have yet to see an actual bandito or a bodyless head rolling down the street.

Our friend Don in Pahrump, NV had his bird bath freeze last night and it is a chilly 7C there today.

I love Mexico (specially the southern parts)!

One More Day

2011-12-06T08:11:00.000-08:00

We decided to stay in Mazatlan one more day. Norma did not sleep well last night so we will take it easy, head down to the Panama Bakery for breakfast and to pick up some of their great bread and deserts.

The park WIFI is good here and is still free, at least for overnighters. I have only had to use my Telcel stick once when the WIFI went off. This device has connected every time I have turned it on. I don't know how we managed without it in the past. It gives Internet for just over $1 per day.

The wash guys failed to show up so we gave the MH a quick wash ourselves to get the cow crap we ran over along the way cleaned off. Our travelling home smells a lot better now! That inspired us to wash the car. The local water leaves spots so everything has to be dried after washing.

Well, off to town. It just might turn nice and sunny today! Life is Good!

Great Day!

2011-12-05T17:27:00.000-08:00

Contessa and Colin are fun! We caught the panga ($25 pesos each return) and rode the five minutes or so across the bay. We got off and saw our hosts walking towards us way down the beach. I phoned them to make sure it was them and we met in the middle of the beach. Contessa recommended a restaurant on the beach and we stopped there. I had ceveche de camerone and Norma had tacos pescados. Very good! the beer and margarita I washed it down with were also excellent!

We then walked down the beach to their RV space right on the beach for a glass of wine for Norma and a Pacifico for me (well, two). It was a great visit with great people and too soon we walked back along the beach to the small dock and the ride back. What a great day!

Croft, Norma, Colin & Contessa

Croft & Norma:

The beach. RV park at far end:

Their Rig. Great spot right on the beach!

Adventure Day

2011-12-05T08:51:00.001-08:00

It is bright and sunny for a change so we are going over to Stone Island to meet fellow Blogger Contessa. Her and Colin are from Kelowna, BC and winter on Stone Island which is not really an island but rather a peninsula accessible either by "bad" road from the airport or by panga from downtown. We will take the panga and hopefully get some photos to post!

Down Day

2011-12-04T08:07:00.000-08:00

Very little got accomplished yesterday! We slept in a little, had breakfast and I drove to town to get cash and some groceries while Norma changed the bed and tidied up. She found the wash crew and made an appointment to have the motorhome washed today.

Downtown was a madhouse as usual. I think it was even more chaotic than I remember. Lots of traffic, including the little cabs darting in and out of lanes, taxis and buses tying up the curb lane and masses of people!

I went to the Mega store and wandered around for a while. I was reminded how much more reasonable food is in Mexico. I walked away with five bags for less than $250 pesos or about $18 US. As I passed the produce area a charming young woman handed me a large stick loaded with fresh fruit to sample. It was very good!

When I got home Norma was finished her chores and we flopped down to watch TV for a bit and next thing we knew it was dinnertime! A real down day! We have only two more days here and we have still done none of the things we wanted to do! There is a couple out on Stone Island who we want to meet but have not even contacted yet. Oh well, this is Mexico!

Mazatlan!

2011-12-02T18:27:00.000-08:00

We were awakened a couple of times last night by trucks coming and going but then managed to sleep until 8:30 or so. We had breakfast at the Pemex restaurant and hit the road by 10:00. The roads were much better today and we actually had one nice stretch of brand new, wide shouldered concrete highway! The final stretch of autopista into Mazatlan is the same as always, straight, wide and fairly well maintained. Lots of toll booths along the way though! From the border to Mazatlan we have forked over $109 in tolls. It will actually get worse as we go. Gas has gone up in price to $9.6 pesos per liter. This works out to $.72 CAN per liter or about half what we pay at home. I don't know what it would cost to fill the tank as I always order $1000 pesos of gas and have the cash in my hand where he can see it. When he finishes, I hand him the cash and add a small five or ten peso tip. I have found this works best for me and avoids the hassle of me not having the exact change and him claiming to have no change.

Today I bought gas near Mazatlan and tried to use my credit card. I have never had much success with this and today was no exception. I was told they only take Mexican credit cards. My friend Chris tells me he never has a problem using his credit card and I sure would like to have him with me to show me how it is done!

We arrived in Mazatlan, checked into Las Jaibas and parked next to Eric and Kathy, our friends from Terrace. Filipe, the park owner, charges in US dollars. Thirty per night for short term. If you insist on paying in pesos, he will make the conversion which will probably not be in your favor. We got the Starchoice working, had a beer with Eric and Kathy and now Norma is making a salad and I am Blogging! It is warm but slightly overcast today and the sand fleas are out in force.

We are paid up for four nights as we have a list of chores to do and some people to meet! The time will go quickly!

Starchoice Note To Ray and Los Mochis

2011-12-01T19:29:00.000-08:00

Ray, I think it was you who asked about using the new PVR to aim the dish. We tried it tonight and it worked fine. I got the information from DishPointer, aimed in that general direction and fine tuned it using the Installation screen on the PVR, all this in the dark while being eaten alive by sand fleas! I deserve a medal at least!

We are in Los Mochis in back of Pemex #4925. There is a secure, fenced compound with a gate and 24 hour security. The guard checked us in, wrote down our plate number and had me fill in my name and address. There is no charge but we tipped him $50 pesos. We were the only RV this night and shared the lot with maybe ten trucks. There is a restaurant attached to the station where we had fish tacos for me and beef medallions for Norma.

The drive from San Carlos was a nail biter. There is a lot of construction which had us driving on very narrow roads with sharp drop-offs between 6 and 18 inches high, sometimes higher. There is nothing like being passed by a huge bus while driving with your right tires three inches from a two foot sheer drop!

As you have noticed, the Telcel Internet stick works from here although I have to sit in just the right place in the RV or it looses the signal. Life was a little trying today, but good!

Carlos Slim Is A-OK Again!

2011-11-30T13:47:00.000-08:00

I have my Telcel problems fixed! We were having breakfast and asked the English speaking waitress if there was a Telcel Service Center nearby and she directed us to the nearby city of Guaymas. We drove over there and found the building. I asked the receptionist if anyone spoke English and she took me to a teller station where she served me herself. Indeed, both SIM's and their corresponding numbers had expired and I had to buy new ones at a cost of about $150 pesos each. I then paid $500 pesos for a month of broadband and was told there was a promotion and I would receive 6GB of data instead of 3GB. I do not know if this is for the whole winter or just for this month.

The phone was the same problem. It was expired. She assigned me a new number and I bought $100 pesos of time. We are communicating!

And even better..... Skype works perfectly on the Telcel stick! I just tested it!

Telcel

2011-11-29T19:34:00.000-08:00

Telcel is the Mexican telephone company and it is owned by Carlos Slim, arguably the richest man in the world. He usually does a pretty good job but I am having problems with him right now.

We have both a Telcel pay as you go cell phone and a Telcel pay as you go Broadband Internet stick. Neither has had any money added to it for about 18 months. I think this means the accounts have expired and I will have to buy new SIM's and purchase new time. Yesterday Edgar from the RV park took me to the Santa Anna Telcel store to take care of both these problems. The first store the woman claimed her computer was not working properly and she could do nothing for me. She sent us to another store. Back in the truck, Edgar told me she thought I was a Gringo (American) and made up an excuse to not help me. The woman in the second store knew how to help me but was out of SIM's. She sent us to the third store. There the woman asked me where I had bought the stick and I told her Playa del Carman. She then told me I would have to go back to Playa del Carman to buy more time. It is on the other side of Mexico. Her solution was to throw my stick away, buy another identical one from her for $700 pesos and then, for $500 more pesos for a SIM and time, she could get me Internet. I passed and she sent us to an OXXO store where the clerk told me it was not possible to buy time for Internet, only cell phones. I told her my phone had expired and she did not know how to deal with it.

There is a Telcel store here in San Carlos and I hear the guy there speaks English. This will make things easier so I will go there tomorrow!

The Crossing

2011-11-29T14:59:00.000-08:00

Everything went smoothly at the border. We were the only RV in the parking lot so we had the attention of two ladies to process us. All our papers were in order and they collected the $20 USA each for our visas and then made an error on the deposit for the car. Vehicles pre year 2000 are supposed to be $200 USA and they charged us $300, the deposit amount for slightly newer vehicles. It does not matter as we will get it back when we leave the country.

We pulled into Edgar and Anna's Punta Vista RV park in Santa Anna at about 3:00 PM. It is always nice to chat with these two. Edgar is a Mexican and Anna in an ex-pat American. They told us they were having a much better year this year as the RV'ers are coming back to Mexico. Last year they had to sell off part of their property to make ends meet so they are very happy to see us all! Last night there were about eight rigs in, most of them in a caravan heading for La Penita RV Park. It was being lead by Carol, the owner of the park, from Cortez Island near Campbell River. I kept my thoughts on caravans to myself...

Up bright and early today as everyone was pulling out. They had us boxed in so it was nice to see the parking lot emptying at about 9:00. We bought gas, had breakfast and headed south towards San Carlos. We found the Hermosillo bypass easily and then made our way onto the construction detour thanks to Kathy's description. It was a pretty rough detour and somewhere along the way we ran over some cow manure so the undercarriage smells pretty ripe. Norma is threatening to climb underneath with soap and a scrub brush. She is only saying that to shame me into doing it but it will not work!

The restaurant across the street is having an all you can eat fish and chips night for $100 pesos ($8) and the Totonaka RV park gave us a coupon for a free margarita each at the same place so that is where we are headed soon.

We parked next to a rig from Alberta with his Starchoice dish set up so I asked him if I might use it. He did not seem too anxious and was worried that it might degrade his signal. I assured him it would not and told him if it did to just disconnect us. He said he would do that. I will have to take him a cold cercesa for his trouble!

It is 81 outside and 78 inside. Life is Good!

Lions Roar!

2011-11-28T06:33:00.000-08:00

It was a great Grey Cup game yesterday! It was pretty much all BC but Winnipeg got close enough a couple of times to keep it very exciting. It was great to see the home team win though!

We are up early today (7:30) to get ready for the border crossing. We will be in Santa Anna tonight and may be able to pick up the WIFI from the hotel down the street. If so, I will post a report. Stay tuned!

Ajo, Arizona

2011-11-27T14:27:00.000-08:00

We are parked in the Shadow Ridge RV Park in Ajo. It is the location of one of the largest copper mines in Arizona and scene of a major, sometimes violent, strike by the United Mine Workers after Phelps-Dodge fired all the Union miners and brought in scabs and armed security. The strike lasted several years until the mine shut down due to declining world copper prices and the costs of the strike. The abandoned mine site sits idle right next to the town which is now populated mostly by Border Patrol agents and retirees from all over. Not many businesses are operating in Ajo these days. Most gas stations and restaurants are shut down and the Mexican style square downtown is almost deserted. The temperature today is a pleasant 77F.

The RV park. Nice showers, great WIFI and $60 for three nights after my Passport America Discount.

Black Friday

2011-11-26T08:07:00.000-08:00

As we were leaving Yuma yesterday I decided to make one more try to find a new pair of sandals for myself. My old pair were wearing thin and it is very difficult to find any kind of size 13 shoes in Mexico. We drove past a Big 5 sporting goods store and decided to stop in. It was about noon and the store had been open since midnight when the Black Friday sale had begun.

I did not expect to find much left but was surprised. I guess the economy has dampened people's spending habits but the store was almost empty of shoppers and I got a salesman almost immediately. It is always funny in Arizona when you ask for something associated with summer wear. Although it is 70+ outside, it is still "winter" to them and "summer" goods are put away. There are lots of winter jackets on the racks but no bathing suits or sandals! The salesman said he saw some in the back and would see if there were any size 13's. He came back with the one and only pair which were very similar to my worn out pair which I bought at Costco a couple of years ago for $29. There was no price on them but when I took them to the till I was happy to see them ring up for $15 as the "Black Friday" 50% off shoe sale was still in effect!

I am all set to hike the Mexican plazas and jardines! Life is good!

Storm At Home

2011-11-25T20:28:00.000-08:00

This photo posted in the local newspaper was taken in Campbell River on November 25 during a storm warning. It was taken right at the end of our driveway looking out towards Quadra Island. That "Big Rock" is about 20 feet tall and is normally high and dry on the shore! I hope someone is picking the driftwood off our driveway!

Here is what Jason, our housesitter, had to say about the storm:

"There were logs and debris surging over the high tide mark, and onto the highway. Waves crashing almost OVER the big rock, I put my rain gear on and walked down to the water and realized that there were full sized logs being tossed around like toothpicks, and so I retreated back across the highway and up the driveway at a safe distance to watch the chaos......."

There is another storm scheduled for tonight!
City of Campbell River issues a public warning for the storm expected to roll in Friday evening

Leaving Yuma

2011-11-25T08:53:00.000-08:00

We leave Yuma today and head for the thriving metropolis of Ajo, Arizona. There we will park for a night. or maybe two if I decide to watch the Gray Cup game from there. Then it is on to Lukeville and the border crossing! Stay tuned!

Algodones, Mexico

2011-11-22T09:41:00.000-08:00

We got up early yesterday, dressed and headed out to Brownees Restaurant for breakfast. It is an old 40's or 50's looking restaurant on 4th Avenue that looks like it has been operating continuously for many decades. It is always full at breakfast time, the prices are great and the quantities large!

We then headed for the huge parking lot on the USA side of the border and walked into Algodones. We were immediately inundated with calls for us to come and look at some wares or other but we are used to this and headed straight for Algodones Optical, a short block from the crossing. We were there early and were sent in for our exams right away. I had forgotten to get a new prescription written before we left Canada but over the years I have grown to trust the local doctor. He examined my existing glasses and then tested my eyes using the existing prescription as a baseline. He told me that my left eye had not changed over the last two years but my right side needed a very slight adjustment. He then tested the pressure and declared my glaucoma under control.

I was getting new lenses for the glasses I bought in Nuevo Laredo last year which were never right. The prescription on the right was fine but the left was way off. Wearing them gave me a headache so they went into the drawer. Norma was also getting new lenses for a pair she bought last year. She had taken them into an optical shop in Canada to be tightened up and they succeeded in breaking both lenses! We were told to come back for the new glasses in four hours. Mine would be ready in three hours but Norma's would take longer because they required an additional process.

We wandered around town noticing all the improvements that had been made in the last year. New plazas, storefronts and sidewalks were noticeable. It is very nice but the hawkers are just as loud and annoying, employing their old tricks like putting things into your hand and then refusing to take them back while trying to engage you in negotiating a price. I have been around too long to fall for this and simply refuse to take anything from them. These tactics disappear as soon as we get a couple of hundred miles below the border. We stopped for some fish tacos in a favorite spot and they were as good as ever. We then found a seat on a plaza and people watched until the four hours were up. We arrived back at the optometrist to find my glasses ready but Norma's not. A call to the lab told them they would be a little longer so we sat in the office until they got there. Mine cost $160 and Norma's $240. All were progressive focus and transition as well as scratch coated. Prices are going up a little for glasses and our friends Muff and val have been recommending a different store. We stayed with Algodones Optical because we have been going there for well over ten years and have always had good service.

Today we are having a communal dinner here at our spot here in Cocopah. Norma is out grocery shopping and my job is to hook the barbecue up to the RV propane tank. It 10:30 and is 70 degrees out. It will get warmer by dinnertime. Life is Good!

What About Those BC Lions!!

2011-11-20T15:14:00.000-08:00

What a game! 26 to 3 over Edmonton and the game is only half over! It looks like BC vs. Winnipeg in the Grey Cup Game next Sunday. It is warm and a little overcast today in Yuma. Tomorrow we will walk across the border into Algodones, MX for new glasses.

Yesterday we drove across town to visit with Kathy and Eric, some old friends from Terrace, BC. They are on their way to Mexico as well and we will see them down there as well. Football, good friends, new glasses, sunshine and Happy Hours! In Yuma, Arizona, Life is Good!

Not Much Happening

2011-11-17T06:55:00.000-08:00

not much happening here in Cocopah. We are catching up with friends we have made here over the years including Muff and Val from Vernon, BC. I met and worked with Muff almost from the day I started working for the telephone company way back in 1966. We have remained friends even though we only see each other once a year or two. Some friendships are just like that. Dave and Sharon came over last night for Happy Hour. They parked beside us for the three years we spent extended time here. They have since bought a park model in another park but we always manage to see each other. Gena and Carl from across the street and Perry and Sharron from up the road were here as well. We are a fun bunch!

I set up the Starchoice yesterday (I still refer to it by that name and not Shaw Direct. I resist change). We got a really good signal in just a few minutes using the DishPointer site. The BC Lions play in the Western Semi-finals on Sunday and I do not want to miss that game. The new receiver with the DVR works well in the bedroom. It will be nice to be able to record our favorite programs and watch them at a more convenient time. The downside is I now requite three of the four antenna outputs which makes sharing a dish hard to do. This is a normal practice in Mexico where a signal is sometimes a little harder to find.

Maybe I will try out the pool today. It is in the high 70's during the day and cools down nicely at night for sleeping.

We will rest up and stock up here for a few more days. I promise to get the camera out and post some photos.

The Big News

2011-11-15T22:04:00.001-08:00

The big news here in Yuma is that my Virgin Broadband works here this year! Last year there was no coverage and now there is. Thanks Virgin!

Yuma!

2011-11-15T18:47:00.000-08:00

We stopped in Parker yesterday afternoon and found the place Contessa and Colin got their AC fixed. Randy dug into the workings and announced there was no freon in the system! He said the first thing to do was to fill it and add dye so they could see the leak if there was one, He put in two pounds of freon and turned the AC on. Ice cold air poured out! It was working! He told us to monitor it for a few days and if it quit working to bring it back to him for further repairs. We loaded the car on the dolly and drove to Walmart for the night.

This morning I fired up the Mazda and turned on the AC. It blasted me with cold air. It was still working! If it fails in Yuma I can drive back to Parker for repairs. We headed south.

Two hours later we pulled into Yuma, bought a few groceries we needed and checked into Cocopah Golf and RV Resort for ten days. Perry and Sharon, our friends from Spokane, WA met us and invited us for happy hour. Life is Good!

Crescent Moon

2011-11-14T08:52:00.000-08:00

As you will recall, I installed a 120 volt fridge in the overhead area of the motorhome. This is intended to carry non-perishable items like water, juice and in the case of yesterday, a 20 ounce can of Bud and Clamato mix. As I turned a corner in Bakersfield, CA, the child proof door lock on the fridge door failed and everything came tumbling out, most of it hitting me on the right shoulder. The one exception was the 20 ounce can of Bud and Clamato which whacked me right on the bald spot leaving me with a bloody, crescent moon shaped dent in my skull! It was only my head so there was no serious harm done but this morning as I was combing my hair I was reminded of the dent, which has now morphed into a bump.

I also noticed in Bakersfield as we turned off the highway that one lone gas station was trying to pull a fast one. Gas has been $3.65 to $3.89 all through California. This is about 10 or 20 cents per gallon higher that WA and OR but CA has always done it's own thing and is currently trying to pay off a huge debt. Anyway, this lone Chevron gas station was trying to flog gas for $4.79 per gallon! A full dollar a gallon higher that it's neighbors! The surprising thing was, there were cars at the pumps! Perhaps there are Americans (the 1% we hear about) who do not mind paying an extra dollar a gallon when all they have to do to avoid it is drive a block or three up the street but I am not one of them. A dollar a gallon means about $60 a tank for me and I held on until I found gas for $3.69.

Well, now for breakfast at Denny's which in my case will be a $5.29 build your own Grand Slam (poached eggs, hash browns, pancakes and for the fourth item, two extra eggs). That will do me for breakfast and lunch! We will then pay $10 to dump and fill with water and will soon be on the road to Parker, AZ and hopefully some AC repairs on the Mazda. Temperatures hit 80 on the road yesterday but cooled down quite a bit overnight. That is the way it is in the desert. Despite the bump on my head, Life is Good!

We Are In The Desert!

2011-11-13T18:10:00.000-08:00

We are parked in the Flying J gas station overnight RV parking area in Barstow, CA. We stopped here because there is a Denny's and Norma wanted a turkey dinner. We ended up in a long RV parking spot and it is very quiet here as the trucks have another lot to park in. We will just stay right here tonight. We get a couple of channels of TV and my Virgin Broadband works.

Tomorrow we will head to Parker, Arizona where my Blogging friend Contessa had the air conditioning on their motorhome repaired. They were happy with the work so we will let the same place have a go at Norma's Mazda. We are still a few hours away so we will call them in the morning to see if they can take us.

Still Moving!

2011-11-12T22:03:00.000-08:00

We are in a HUGE truck stop on I-5 about fifty miles south of Sacramento. As can be expected, it is full of trucks with a couple of RV's off in a corner. We walked next door to a Carl Jr's where I had one of their excellent fish burgers and Norma had the taco salad. The Virgin Broadband is working well and we are getting two channels on the TV.

We stopped at the Olive Pit in Corning and stocked up with $65 worth of various olives, Garlic stuffed, bleu cheese stuffed, anchovy stuffed, pimento stuffed and one or two I can't remember. They are on the front seat of the car with the $230 worth of booze we bought yesterday at our favorite roadside liquor store just over the California State line on I-5 (on the right, you can't miss it). It is a friendly place with "best in California" prices so we bought about eight 1.75 liter bottles of the normal variety of imbibments. I finished off today by buying a $50 bottle of single malt for yours truly at a small liquor store across from the Olive Pit! It will be a busy six months!

While we were getting the oil changed in the motorhome today, I was browsing through the liquor section of Walmart to see how much we saved (quite a bit!) when I noticed that the Walmart "Oak Leaf" house brand of wine had been "rolled back" to $1.97 per bottle of merlot and cab. It is actually pretty good wine so I bought a few. "Happy Hours" await! Life is Good!

Anderson, CA

2011-11-12T16:19:00.001-08:00

We are parked for the night in the Walmart Superstore in Anderson, California. This has become a regular stop for us as we have always had the vehicles serviced here. They have bulk synthetic oil and their prices are usually lower than anywhere else. It was 6:30 when I backed the car off and walked over to the service center. I asked them if they had time to do the Mazda tonight and they said, “Bring it over”! It was finished before their closing time of 7:00 and cost me under $50 for a full synthetic oil change and “safety check”. I thought it might need a new battery but it load tested just fine. We will take the motorhome in tomorrow morning.

I have no Virgin Broadband here so I am saving this post to be sent tomorrow from the road. Norma is getting two networks of digital TV so she is happy. Life is Good!

Well, darn! I probably could have had Internet last night. I just noticed my Internet stick had rattled loose from it's perch in the Cradlepoint. I pulled it out and pushed it back in and it is working...

In Case You Were Wondering...

2011-11-10T21:41:00.001-08:00

In a survey of 200000 ostriches over 80 years, not one tried to bury its head in the sand.

A Little Light At The End Of The Tunnel

2011-11-10T20:11:00.000-08:00

Finally, some positive news!

The Real News November 10, 2011

Ohio Referendum Repeals Republican Anti-Union Bill

Controversial bill backed by Governor John Kasich and state Republicans that would have eliminated collective bargaining rights for public employees repealed

http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=7574

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To ...

2011-11-10T19:31:00.000-08:00

We crossed into Oregon at about noon today and stopped at Camping World. We had a purchase from last year to return and one of our Fantastic Fans had quit. We got our money back from the return and went over to the service desk. She told us that Fantastic Fans are guaranteed for life and she would call them for us. They told her to trouble shoot the fan and if it needed repairs or replacement to go ahead and do that. One of the guys came into the rig and confirmed all the tests I had done. There was power, the fuse was good, the fan would not run, etc.

He then climbed up on the roof, took off the cover, fiddled around, sprayed some WD40 and suddenly the fan started working. I felt pretty stupid but the service woman cut the basic charge in half so it only cost me $30 instead of $60. I don't think she should have charged me anything but they did go out of their way to accommodate us. We still walked out of the store money ahead.

We then crossed the highway to the Les Schwab Tire dealership where we had bought six new Toyo motorhome tires two years ago. They told us that we could stop any time we drove past and they would inspect the tires for us. He checked the tire pressure and every tire was 10 - 15 pounds low! He topped them off and I asked him to check the car and dolly as well. Those tires were also low! I don't know why. The motorhome sure handles better now!

The funny Part:

We stopped for a very late breakfast at a little mom and pop restaurant in Oregon. It was very good. Norma only made it half way through her plate of ham and eggs and I just barely finished my plate of eggs and hash browns. Huge portions!

The bill was $18.50. I pulled out a brand new, fresh from the ATM American twenty and put it with the bill. I realized there was not enough change left for a tip there so I reached into my pocket and came up with $1.75 in Canadian coins which I put on top of the twenty. That amounted to a $3.25 tip for an $18.50 tab. Not bad I thought.

We got up to leave and the waitress came over. She pulled out the bill and the $20 and then started moving the coins around with her finger while looking at them as if they were Martian money or something. She looked up at me and said, "Don't you have any American change"? I said, "Look, the USA $20 covers the bill and the rest is a tip. If you don't want it, don't take it! Put it in a can and someday you will have enough to visit Canada!"

We then drove on and realized that with all the stops we could not make it to the Seven Feathers Casino in Canyonville, OR before dark. I searched for Walmarts on the GPS and Norma called the first one to ask if we could stay there. They said, "normally yes, but right now most of the parking lot is being repaired so we have no room.' We drove to the next and they told us there was a city ordinance against overnight RV parking but directed us to the Eugene Walmart Superstore. There were also "No Overnight Parking" signs there but we were told that everyone parks on the adjoining street and no one is ever bothered. So that is where we are tonight. Tomorrow we will find out if there is snow on the Siscuse Pass between OR and CA.

Back In The USA

2011-11-09T18:35:00.000-08:00

We had an uneventful drive down to Victoria and arrived at the Black Ball Ferry just in time to pull into their parking lot for the night. About twenty minutes later brooks called to say that they were in a pub just up the street so we walked to there. A few minutes later Linda's parents arrived and we went for dinner at Santiago's. We all walked back to the motorhome for a few more glasses of wine. Brooks and Linda had a meeting in Victoria this morning so they had booked a hotel room that they could justify their company paying for so that meant they did not have to drive all the way home to Shawinigan Lake. Linda's parents live nearby so everyone made it home safe if not entirely sober....

At 8:00 we walked over to buy our $252 ferry ticket and waited to be pre-screened by USA customs. The ferry did not leave until 10:30 but after customs there was no time to go for breakfast so we had a bite on the ferry. One thing BC ferries has Washington ferries beat on is food! Norma had chili and I had a lukewarm bowl of clam chowder. At least it filled the void.

We stopped in Port Angeles long enough for me to buy a month of pay as you go Virgin Broadband for $40 and then a tank of gas with our Safeway discount card for $3.61 per gallon, the cheapest we saw all afternoon. We are now parked in the RV friendly Walmart in Chahalis, WA. Dinner will be microwaved frozen dinners. We are happy here in Walmart and Walmart is happy that we spent $190! Life is Good!

We Are On Our Way

2011-11-08T10:20:00.000-08:00

We will be pulling out in about two hours! Tonight we will be at the ferry dock in Victoria and tomorrow at the Centralia, Washington Walmart. I may have my Virgin Broadband working by then. I will post when I can!

Smokin' Joe Frazier, Dead At 67

2011-11-08T00:11:00.000-08:00

Smokin' Joe Frazier died tonight of liver cancer. He was best known for his long time rivalry with Muhammad Ali. Frazier won the undisputed heavyweight title with a 15-round decision over Ali at Madison Square Garden in March 1971, in an extravaganza known as the "Fight of the Century". However, Ali scored a 12-round decision over Frazier at the Garden in a non-title bout in January 1974. Then came the "Thrilla in Manila" championship bout in October 1975, regarded as one of the greatest fights in boxing history. It ended when a battered Frazier, one eye swollen shut, did not come out to face Ali for the 15th round.

Frazier was known as a "Blue Collar" fighter who just waded in and whaled on his opponent with a series of jabs, setting him up for to his notorious bone crushing left hook, the single blow that ended many fights in Joe's favor!

Frazier walks away with Ali struggling on the canvas in 1971:

Thanks for the memories, Champ!

I Am Hiding

2011-11-07T16:25:00.000-08:00

Norma and her friend Nancy are loading the motorhome and I am hiding in the TV room. She is trying to stuff all the food from the pantry, kitchen and fridge into the motorhome. I dare not tell her it will not fit, she will find that out in due course. Then they will try to fit everything in our 20 cu. ft. freezer into the 2 cu. ft. RV freezer. She has two whole frozen Sockeye salmon and a half a frozen halibut she wants to take to Mexico for Christmas dinner. There are also a few pounds of frozen smoked salmon she wants for happy hours. I heard Nancy suggest taking a cooler and keeping it filled with dry ice for a month and a half. It is not going to happen. I am hiding!

Jason, our housesitter, and I drove the motorhome into town earlier today to fill up the propane tank. We had left the fridge running on propane when we got home in April and it emptied the propane tank. I was afraid there might be air in the system and I might have trouble with it but the fridge fired right up. The RV is running fine except for the square tires it developed over the summer. By the time we got home, it was smooth.

I will get a lube and oil change in both the motorhome and Mazda somewhere in the USA and we will be set to go. It will be a long afternoon! But I am hiding in the TV room!

This morning I went to the Royal Bank to buy some pesos to put in the safe. All they had were 1150 pesos for which they charged me $97 CAN. That is WAY over the exchange rate which says I should have been charged less than $87 CAN. At least we have a few pesos to get to Santa Ana in case the ATM in Sonoita is not working.