Month: January 2016

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Coffee Run

Work is funny sometimes. I can have days like yesterday that I think are going to be quick, but instead run super late, and days like today that I think are going to be very full, but instead finish early.

As I signed off at 2:30, I realised that I had just enough time to run up to Rico’s for coffee beans, have a late taco lunch, and be home before dark without having to rush.

By the time I got to the bus stop at the Fishermen’s Monument, it was already 3:20 since the lancha ride was a a slow one. Traffic on Avenida del mar was at a standstill and I debated whether to go ahead with my plan or not. But a bus pulled up quickly, so I decided to get on and see how bad the ride up to the Golden Zone would be.

To my surprise, traffic felt a lot smoother in a vehicle than it did staring at the long line up of cars. I had a window seat, air conditioning, and my phone, so the ride felt like it took no time at all. I got off in front of the Santander bank and walked the half block or so to Rico’s.

I was a little disappointed when I saw that the Veracruz dark roast dispenser was empty, but I asked for confirmation that they were out and they weren’t! Someone was sent to the store room for my beans. When she came back out and started pouring them into the dispenser, the most wonderful aroma filled the air. I don’t even need to drink coffee for it to make me happy. 🙂

Next stop was tacos. I always go to Ta’Loco and decided to try another place just to have a point of comparison. Well, it wasn’t a mistake per se since even mediocre tacos are good, but I won’t be doing that again. The menu in badly translated English should have been my first clue that walking out would be a good idea. The salsas were watery and the meat had almost no seasoning and was over cooked. I’m making it sound really dismal, but it wasn’t terrible, just bland, not something I ever thought I’d say about tacos. So Ta’Loco it will be from now on.

I then popped into Thrifty’s for an ice cream (choco brownie, please) and walked towards the Rafael Buelna roundabout debating how I was going to get home. It was only 4:28 by this point! I really didn’t need to go to Mega, after which I would have taken a pulmonía, so grabbing a bus that would get me close-ish to the embarcadero sounded like my best option. And as I made my decision, I spotted the tourist bus (Sábalo-Centro) a block away.

Instead of getting off at the Fishermen’s Monument, I decided to stay on a bit longer and get off at the corner of Aquiles Serdán and Zaragoza so I could walk up Zaragoza, something I don’t think I’ve done yet this winter. There’s nothing special there, but it would be a welcome change of scenery.

I did a double take as I watched the TV on the bus and realised that the show was taking place in Montreal after noticing “à louer” (for rent) signs starting with the 514 area code! I did some research and learned it was “Les gags,” a “Candid Camera”-style show for which I guess no translation is needed!

Here’s my route. The red marker is the embarcadero, the green one is the Fishermen’s monument, the green line is the bus route past the monument, and the blue lines are my walks in each direction.

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I do save a little walking time with the Zaragoza route and could actually go that way to catch the bus at Benito Juárez, but all I’m saving are a few steps, not time to get up to the Golden Zone.

I passed the beach blanket vendor as I reached the end of Zaragoza, so we had a bit of a catch up during which I assured him that I wasn’t sick or dying, just not spending much time on the beach. Business has been so-so for him. It was neat running into someone I know while off my regular route.

The lancha ride home was much faster than the ride over and I got in as the sun was starting to set, reflecting brightly off the harbour, a beautiful end to the day.

It’s amazing how much ground I can cover in Maz in three hours using just my two legs and a couple of buses!

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Compromises

I had a reminder pop up today to have my landlady’s husband check my propane levels, based on last year’s usage. Instead of going over there empty-handed, I figured that I might as well bring the February rent at the same time. So I Skyped Scotiabank this morning to have them increase my withdrawal limit for just today so I could make a larger withdrawal and then headed into town.

It took several tries before I could make the withdrawal and I couldn’t even come close to the 10,000MXN I was hoping to take out, had enough for in CAD, and was still within my temporary withdrawal limit. The machine let me take out 6,000MXN and then a further 2,000MXN even though I had well over another 2,000MXN in the account. Anyway, no big deal since I have plenty of cash on hand. The larger withdrawal was more about reducing the amount of time I spend in line at the teller to change bills than actually needing the cash.

Thankfully, the lineup was short today. I asked for $100s and $200s. The teller held up a huge stack of $100s and said that giving me 70 of those would be easiest for her, which was fine by me. She counted a few bills out of her stack, then put the remainder in the money counting machine, which confirmed there were 70 bills. It was insanely quick. Those money counting machines are amazing.

I then headed down to the big Ley to get a few things, stopping at the Chinese restaurant for lunch. I did a huge shop at the beginning of January and only needed a few things, but they were quite heavy like almond milk, yoghurt (my favourite kind was on sale!), and hummus (they only had two containers left!). The shopping wasn’t quite enough to justify taking a pulmonía back to the embarcadero, but enough that I wasn’t relishing the 3KM walk there, plus the walk on this side.

My compromise was to walk to Ejército Mexicano and grab the first bus that would take me to the corner of Juan Carrasco and Gutiérrez-Nájera, cutting my walk fully in half. I waited all of 30 seconds for such a bus to show up and even with the fare having gone up a whopping 50 centavos (0.04CAD), I got my money’s worth out of my $7.50! I had the driver drop me after we crossed Gutiérrez-Nájera so I wouldn’t have to do so on foot, which meant going nearly an extra block before he could pull over. He double checked that I was where I wanted/needed to be before letting me off.

I shifted items around after a couple of minutes of walking, putting a few things in my purse so that I would be better balanced, and then it was then a pretty quick walk up to the embarcadero and then home.

I would need another winter here to really master the buses, but I’m pleased with how much more I’m using them this year. I love riding in a pulmonía and they are really rather inexpensive, but walking and taking the bus is healthier. Even with my bus ride today, I managed a more than 5KM walk, which, when you sit at a computer all day, is as good for the soul as it is for the body. I just notice things more when I’m walking then when I’m in a moving vehicle, plus you get all the smells. That dang churros vendor is going to ensnare me one day, I’m sure!

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A Beer Slushie

My weekend work was going well today and I decided to quit at about noonish so I could go have lunch in town. I thought of going to a well rated restaurant near the Plazuela Machado that my riding friends love, Delirium, but that didn’t work out. I was guided to a table, given a menu, and promptly forgotten about even after I tried to wave down the server to put in my drink order. The menu was extensive and complicated, so I took my time with it and sat there for nearly 30 minutes while everyone else got service before concluding that they weren’t interested in my business. Once again, I refuse to beg to give a business my money, so I walked out. Good luck getting me in the door again.

I headed to the Malecón and decided to have lunch at La fonda de Chalio, a place I went to with Dale a few times last year. They were quick bringing me my beer, salsa mexicana, totopos, and menu, but I waited so long to be able to put in an order for a meal (yes, I signaled that I was ready and, no, they weren’t busy either) that I came very close to considering the chips and salsa my (very inexpensive) lunch.

My beer was a Pacifico Light, which has a low alcohol content, so when I poured it into a very cold mug, this happened:

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Yep, it froze! I’ve never seen that happen before! I have had my non-alcoholic beer back home freeze in my too cold fridge, but a beer with actual alcohol in it freezing in a mug on a hot day?! Wow!

When I was finally able to put in an order for food, I went with the chicken tacos, requesting them soft rather than fried. Chicken tacos are interesting in that they are a Mexican version of Tex-Mex food because they usually come with a fried shell, lettuce, cheese, and sour cream, as well as refried beans, other veggies, and various salsas. I always request soft shells because I don’t need the extra calories and, in the case of La fonda de Chalio, I got chips so I really didn’t need any more fried stuff! They came with a very thin tomato sauce that tasted like tomato juice with kick and really brightened up the heavy meat and bean filling, and I also added heaps of their salsa mexicana.

By the way, if you haven’t been following me on Facebook, you haven’t learned my latest revelation. The stuff I and countless other people call pico de gallo is actually salsa mexicana and pico de gallo is a fruit salad! My veggie guy told me this and it was confirmed at a couple of restaurants. Restaurants here know what the Gringos want but if you listen to them talk amongst themselves, sure enough, the tomato/onion/pepper/cilantro sauce is salsa mexicana. Wow!

I love sitting at the restaurants on Olas Altas and people watching. Today, there were two older Gringo gentlemen apparently trying to hit every bar along the stretch to determine a favourite spot (must try this myself!). There was one Gringo couple walking by with the wife holding onto her purse for dear life with one hand, her husband with the other, and being adamant that they weren’t going to eat anywhere along that stretch (rather hilarious, because this part of Maz is Gringoland South). There was a Mexican group that must have known the owners because they kept getting things that I’m pretty sure weren’t on the menu (like gorditas). There was a rude man who decided to stand by my table to make a call that involved a lot of yelling and curse words (I’m starting to recognise Mexican bad language!). And, of course, there were lots of vendors, including two who tried to get me to buy a really ginormous cake.

Lunch done, I meandered my way back to the embarcadero by way of my favourite nieve vendor (where I once again got an extra scoop of prune!, as well as mandarin and lemon) for a palate cleansing treat. My outing cost me all of 13.67CAD, including public transportation. Not bad, huh?!

I stopped at the City Deli for beer when I got back to this side. I like getting four cans of Pacifico at a time since they cost an even $50 and four cans isn’t heavy to carry.

Hard to believe we’re already halfway through January and that my winter here is truly half over!

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On Mexico Time

My headphones crapped out on me last week so finding time to search for a replacement was high on my list. I made do with my Sony earbuds, which I use to listen to music on my mobile devices, but my ears ached after a day of transcription with them and I could still feel them in my ears after they were out. But where to find a decent selection of headphones in Mazatlán? Back home, I’d head to Amazon…

I pondered this problem, searched for headphones (auriculares and audífonos) in Maz (thinking there might be an electronics store like Best Buy), and, based on my search results, decided to start with Office Depot.

Getting there today was a bit of a drag. Holy smokes. I didn’t head out until about 1PM because I wanted to make good inroads on my day’s transcription, which was difficult. I figured that I’d be at Office Depot within an hour. Well…

I waited and I waited and I waited for a bus to take me there at the corner of Juan Carrasco and Gutíerrez-Najera, to no avail. This was something like my fourth (and LAST) time doing this. I know that the buses I want pass there, but they are obviously very irregular and I’ve never caught one at this corner. So I schlepped down to Paseo Claussen to grab the tourist bus that goes up the Malecón. As I did so, a bus that could have taken me right by Mega (nearer to Office Depot than the tourist bus) whipped by so fast that I didn’t have time to flag it down. Augh!

The tourist bus took forever to come. By the time I got settled in one of the last seats, I’d already been gone more than an hour. Traffic down Avenida del Mar was, of course, terrible and so the ride was slow. I hate to sound so negative, but I have no idea how anyone can rely on the bus service here to get anywhere since there are no schedules and the routes change so frequently…

I got off just past the Rafael Buelna roundabout so I wouldn’t have to cross the busy road on foot, then I headed right for the bank. The exchange rate is just getting worse and I couldn’t even take out $4,600, settling for $4,200. I went into the bank to get my $500s broken up and this time asked for $200 worth of change. I had written it as “$200 of $1, $2, $5, and $10, doesn’t matter how many of each,” and that seemed very clear because the teller just started counting out change.

Unlike in Canada and the U.S., Mexico doesn’t seem to have “rolls” of coins, like 10CAD worth of quarters, for example. Instead, she made a pile of $100 worth of $5 and $10 coins then held up a large baggie marked “$100” and asked if that was okay. Inside were $1 and $0.50 coins, which was perfect. If you’re paying attention, you’ll notice that I didn’t get any $2 coins and instead got $0.50 coins, but that was absolutely fine and fulfilled my objective of having small change. I’ve been getting by just fine with my stack of $20s, but having exact change gets me out of restaurants faster.

I was shaking by the time I got out of the bank, having failed to get some lunch first since all the restaurants along the stretch I’d walked were closed. I decided to try the Sole Mar café next to Scotiabank since I’d heard they make great coffee and a midafternoon espresso sounded wonderful. I ordered it “con panna,” which I vaguely remember meant it’d have whipped cream, which was correct.

 

espresso

It was rather decadent (and broke my rule of not having sugar in my coffee), but really lovely. 🙂 For lunch, I took a chance and ordered the enchiladas mole, knowing full well they’d likely be some fast foody microwaved disappointment. I was half right in that they were fast foody, but, dang, they were tasty! The chicken was well seasoned and the sauce had a bit of kick. I didn’t mind the $75 I paid for them at all even if I knew I didn’t get much value for my meal (no veg with it, for example). I think the espresso was $30 or $35, very good value. There are a few Sole Mars in Maz, including one near the cathedral, so now I finally know where to get a coffee in town!

Then, I hit Office Depot, where they had a good selection of headphones in several brands and quite a price range. I knew I’d find what I needed there. I pulled out my phone and started researching the various brands, narrowing down my choices thanks to Amazon reviews. I don’t buy super expensive noise canceling headphones no matter how much my clients tout them. I’ve tried them and they are over rated. I buy midrange headphones, never spending over 50CAD, and get a new pair every couple of years. My budget for today was hopefully no more than $600. One pair by Sony was only $349 (29CAD), well rated on Amazon (including by two transcriptionists who swore by them!), and a better price than if I’d bought directly from Amazon. Sold!

I like shopping at Office Depot because I tend to be left alone until I express a need for help. After about a half hour of going through the headphones and looking up reviews, I was ready for help because the pair I wanted were locked to the shelf. I just had to look up and around and, boom, there was a clerk ready to assist me. He unlocked them and took them to an available cashier who checked me out smoothly. I then had to show the security guard my receipt and I was out of there.

Since I was right by Soriana, it made sense to get a few groceries and paper goods. I had a laugh with the bagger at checkout when I told him to be sure to put my cold stuff in my insulated bag because the last time I bought butter there without having the bag, I had a mess when I got home!  Thankfully, there were taxis waiting outside, so I was able to get back to the embarcadero quickly. I didn’t need a taxi on this side.

I can’t believe it’s already 6PM. I still have another hour or so of transcription to do and I’m just about ready for dinner. My errand took way long than it should have and was a good example of an afternoon where I would have been much better off springing for the pulmonía in both directions.

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Finding the Shortcut

Lazy Saturday here in Maz.

I had the first massage of my life yesterday and between that and a giant glass of wine, I got to bed early and slept almost ten straight hours! The massage was fantastic, with the guy obviously knowing what he was doing because he applied just enough pressure to loosen the muscles without causing me pain. I was warned that I’d be sore today but other than feeling it a little in the neck, I just feel better today. I’ve had a bad kink in my back for ages and he got rid of it. Needless to say, I’ve booked him again! I like that he comes to your house with everything he needs, including a fresh set of sheets for each of his clients that day. My riding pals recommended him and now I know why.

It was very cold by tropical standards this morning, only +10C, so I wasn’t in any hurry to get up and only did so when the call of coffee was too loud to ignore. My house was like an igloo, so I bundled up before getting the water on. I love these cooler mornings because they are super quiet. I didn’t even hear the water guys, but I know they passed since there was a new bottle waiting for me at the curb. I don’t bother waiting for them like I did last year, instead putting my $10 on the bottle and setting both on the curb before going to bed. The other day, I only had a $20 bill so I taped it to the bottle and when I went to get my new one the next morning, there were two $5 coins sitting by it. I love that the honour system works here.

After coffee, I got dressed (including a cardigan even though it was already starting to warm up!) and went to the bakery to get a breakfast treat. I got in and promptly made another coffee to go with the pastries! Chris, Juan, and Mike got me some Veracruz coffee beans when they were here and I started on those since I was running low on my Rico beans (I would have done a run for those today had I not had this extra half pound the guys got me!). I normally buy the dark roast Veracruz and these were a lighter roast, but they still had tons of flavour and made a really good cup of coffee!

I spent some time doing bookkeeping and other online tasks, then decided to go for a walk in Maz since I haven’t been across in a week. There was absolutely no purpose to the trip other than to get exercise, so I decided that I would try to find the shortcut from Gutiérrez Nájera to Ejército Mexicano and then continue on to the aquarium to check out something in that area.

The shortcut isn’t spectacular, but it would save me ten minutes roundtrip when I go to Scotiabank and there are days when I need those ten minutes. Plus, the shortcut is through a quiet residential area rather than super busy avenues. I’ve tried to find it before, but none of the streets are marked, so I missed my turnoff. I still got to Ejército Mexicano, but through a more meandering route. The first turnoff, that from Gutiérrez Nájera was easy (it’s right across from the Red Cross (Cruz roja) building), but the first left wasn’t. On Google Maps, it really looked like turn left just before the street I’m on takes a sharp right.

So when I got to that corner, I looked around for landmarks before reaching for my phone when a lady asked me what I was looking for. I replied that it was a street called Josefa (it actually has a much longer name, but that was the first part of it). She told me it was a little further ahead. I continued another block or so and came to another fairy large cross street, so I figured I was there. Nope, the lady was behind me and said one more! There wound up being a little mercado on the corner, so I’ve got a good landmark. That brought me exactly where I expected to be, on Ejército Mexicano at the Instituto Mexicano de Gastronomía (Mexico culinary institute), so I’ve got a good landmark for the trip back.

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I crossed Ejército Mexico and continued on Ángela Peralta, which terminates at Avenida Rotarismo. I crossed that road and was then on Calle Rio Baluarte, which would take me all the way to the aquarium while paralleling Avenida del Mar. I’ve done this route many, many, many times in taxis!

So here’s a map of what would end up being my 10KM walk:

map

I went around the block at the aquarium to check out the Bosque de la ciudad (city forest), known as the lung of Mazatlán. It butts up against a lagoon and there are major development plans for the area. It boasts kilometres of walking trails but, really, right now there isn’t much there.

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Many things are forbidden, including walking your pets:

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It’s a good thing I read the papers here or I would have wondered what these guys were doing with that Christmas tree!

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As it turns out, this is where Maz residents drop off their trees after the holidays. They are turned into mulch!

The lagoon is rather pretty:

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Lots of trees, sand, and children’s play structures.

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I read an article in the paper the other day about how there is a jaguar living in the Bosque de la ciudad. I didn’t see it and am glad of it since the article made mention of how its living conditions are ‘not ideal’, although it is treated with dignity and provided with care and adequate food.

After a bit of poking around, I headed out to Avenida del Mar in search of lunch. It was my third time looking for food before 1PM in that part of town and my third time having a very hard time of it. I turned towards the Golden Zone and walked for a bit before giving up and deciding to walk back towards Centro until it got to 1:15 (it was 12:50 when I turned around) and then get on a bus for a part of town where I knew I could get a meal at that hour.

I had no sooner passed Avenida de los deportes (on which is located the aquarium), when I found an open restaurant… which just happened to serve sushi! I think the walking gods were looking out for me. 😀 I can’t remember the last time I had sushi!

They were doing a brisk takeout business, so I knew I was in a good spot. I ordered iced tea, which had an unusual and delicious flavour (and came American-style with free refills), and sat to peruse the very huge and intimidating menu.

I started with an order of two octopus nigiri. They were only $35, so I knew I wasn’t going to get much octopus on them. They wound up being a giant ball of rice with cream cheese (what is it with Mexicans and putting cream cheese on everything?!) and very thin slices of super tender and fresh octopus. Perfectly adequate for the price, but, like all sushi restaurants in Maz that I’ve been to, I could have done with some real soy sauce to dip them in. I don’t know why sushi restaurants don’t have real soy sauce when it’s such a common and easily obtainable ingredient.

As my main, I decided to forgo any attempt at finding an authentic Japanese item and went with the ‘Miami roll.’ The eel sauce (not made from eels, but meant to be served on an eel roll!) that came drizzled over top was a disappointing flavourless syrup, but the rest of the roll was fantastic. The centre was cream cheese (LOL), avocado, cucumber, and real crab (not that fake crab-stick crap), and the outside had mango slices and both dark and light sesame seeds. Again, I could have done with a little real soy sauce to cut the sweetness (or at least some pickled ginger), but it was still very yummy!

Total for lunch with a tip was a very reasonable $150. I’d go to this place again, but with a bottle of soy sauce stuck in my purse! Get this, though, I didn’t make a note of the name and I can’t find it online! Thankfully, I know it’s just a little ‘south’ of Avenida de los deportes, so I’ll be able to locate it again.

I then headed home, going back to Rio de Baluarte and retracing my steps from there to firmly cement the shortcut (pitiful as it is) in my mind.

My favourite part of living on Isla is the lancha ride. I always enjoy it. Sometimes, I find the bit from the embarcadero in Maz to wherever I’m going is a bit of a drag and wish it had better bus options, but I never mind the boat part of the commute.

So that was my Saturday. Hope you had a good one as well!