Month: April 2016

by

Last Lunch on the Beach

Of course, work has popped up in these last few days, as it alway does, so I’m squeezing in typing with packing. But I absolutely had to fit in one last lunch on the beach! I headed to Rudy’s around 1:30 and refused a menu, saying I knew what I wanted — a coco and coconut shrimp! 🙂

The jewelry vendors descended on me like vultures, of course. For a gal who never used to wear much jewelry, I’m getting quite a collection now. Of course, it’s all cheap stuff.

The first guy got me with this tiny gecko pendant:

IMG_1066

I love the octopus I got from the same vendor, but it’s not something I can just wear 24/7 because the chain gets caught in the legs. This little guy can stay around my neck as long as he wants.

And then another vendor came up and had this:

IMG_1069

It’s still more massive than what I want in a snake ring, but a little less than the one I got last year. He left me with his jewelry case when he went off somewhere to get my size. I must look honest. 🙂

My coco was the biggest and heaviest one I have ever seen!

IMG_1061

Here’s lunch, with the sweet salsa visible at the top left and a spicer one out of shot. Good meal! Rudy has the least expensive coconut shrimp of the beachfront restaurants I frequent, but they also have the least amount of coconut. However, the portion seems a lot more generous!

IMG_1062

Here’s his menu showing that what we call pico de gallo really is “salsa mexicana.” But $70 for chips and salsa?! Have his guacamole instead. 🙂

IMG_1063

Another guy came up while I was eating collecting $20 donations for a group home in Maz that does drug prevention work. He had official ID confirming this. I checked out the information flyer and it looked like a good cause, so I donated… and got four little bags of chocolate covered cranberries. Seems like the universe felt I deserved dessert?! 😀

I didn’t eat alone! Francisco the blanket vendor plopped himself down and started chatting. I didn’t mind at all. We had a good conversation and I learned a little more about him. He had a tablecloth I really wanted, but I showed amazing restraint. 🙂

It seems like I’m doing a lot of splurges in these last few days in Mexico, and you’re absolutely right. But I’m going to have to be very frugal the second I get across the border on Sunday. With the current exchange rate, I won’t be able to do nearly as many restaurant meals while in the U.S. as I have in the past and it won’t be worth doing much shopping. So I might as well enjoy the inexpensive good life while it’s here and support Isla’s hardworking vendors.

by

An Excuse For a Final Trip to the Mercado

I’ve started packing in earnest and have discovered something surprising. I’m going hiking next week and, guess, what? While I do have suitable footwear, I not only do not have any clothes for the occasion, but I don’t have my leather backpack that I use on day hikes! I guess I was so focussed on the cannonball run south that I never got as far as thinking that, hey, I might have time to go hiking on the trip north!

So I made a mental note to pop into a Walmart or, preferably, a thrift store when I get across the border to pick up a cheap backpack when I had a thought. Every single time I’ve been to the Mercado, and this includes last year, I’ve wished for an excuse to pick up a cute woven backpack… Well, this was the time to go see how much those cost! And yay for an excuse to do one last trip to the mercado!

I enjoyed my second to last lancha trip over, especially since we got a show:

IMG_1018

IMG_1019

Rather looks like a pirate ship from this angle, no?

IMG_1020

There is a brand new “no fumar” notice on the steps. Particularly funny when there’s a jerry can above it!

IMG_1021

Here we are at dock. Nothing fancy. The captain gets off first and holds the lancha tightly against the dock so people can get off. He also offers a hand for those who are unsteady or wrangling very full skirts. *whistles innocently*

IMG_1022

Looking down to the dock. The ticket booth is in the centre (taquilla). To the right is space for vendors on the weekends and holidays. The doughnut lady was set up right in front of that guy with the blue shirt, in the shade. Usually, she’s on the street corner.

IMG_1023

This is behind me in the last picture. It’s much busier on weekends, holidays, and some evenings, with fish vendors, more produce sellers, food stalls, and more.

IMG_1024

Coming out onto Emilio BarragĂĄn I either turn right towards the gas station in the distance if going to the Fisherman’s Monument for a bus or to the bank/big Ley/big Waldo’s.

IMG_1025

But today, I turned left towards Centro.

IMG_1026

When I come home from the little Ley or am just going there, I cut through the alley next to the fishing supply store.

IMG_1027

See the grey tower in the background? That’s the Pacifico brewery. I walk along the far side of it (calle Miguel Hidalgo) to go to little Ley.

IMG_1028

I cross here to take Leandro Valle to get to the mercado. The perspective on this shot is a little off. The yellow building on the left has the white wall with green writing and is on one corner of Leandro Valle. Across from that, the pulmonía is parked at the other corner. So I cross here (good place to cross because there are topes and so traffic stops) then continue on down Leandro Valle.

IMG_1029

Here’s the first, flat, section of it. I love this little community. There’s always something going on and people sitting on porches. Everyone is friendly and says hello.

IMG_1030

The upper green sign made me laugh. She’s selling shaved ice, raspados, and didn’t have quite enough room to spell out the word. 2=dos. See what she did there? 🙂

IMG_1032

The mix of houses on Leandro Valle is interesting. You have this run down place…

IMG_1033

Next to this rather posh place.

IMG_1034

These folks make ice. A truck backs right up to the opening. There are “steps” carved into the wall for getting up and down.

IMG_1035

This water seller on a bike is probably in great shape. He gets those bottles to the top of the very long and very steep Leandro Valle hill! It’s very slow going. No, he does not pedal up, but rather pushes.

IMG_1036

This is one of the nicest houses on Leandro Valle and is owned by an expat lady.

IMG_1037

The house has many levels. I like the exterior because it respects the neighbourhood. It’s neat and well maintained, but doesn’t stick out. It’s what I want to do in MĂ©rida, get an older (ie. affordable) place in a more rundown neighbourhood that I can spruce up without changing the character of the neighbourhood/gentrifying. When I spoke with folks from MĂ©rida about my plans to move and my wanting to avoid the expat neighbourhoods, many spoke with derision of this gentrifying effect many expats have, buying super inexpensive homes and turning them into luxury compounds, driving up prices in the neighbourhood. That’s not the kind of expat I want to be.

IMG_1038

I don’t think I’ve ever passed this house when this dog wasn’t napping on the steps!

IMG_1039

The house is in a great location because it’s just blocks from the mercado. However, it’s right at the top of the hill (so uphill all the way home). I bet being at the top of the hill lowers the value on the house somewhat.

And right next to it is another house that has seen better days.

IMG_1041

These folks repainted their house this year. Nothing shows pride of ownership more than a fresh coat of paint! I love the bright colours houses are painted here.

IMG_1042

I survived the climb. Now, downhill all the way to the mercado!

IMG_1044

Pretty flowers growing out of a foundation.

IMG_1045

Nice house next to a ruin. I’m not sure if these façades are salvageable. There is no roof or floor behind that wall.

IMG_1046

Looking from the corner of whatever street (no signage!) to the little Ley on Melchor Ocampo.

IMG_1047

I love, love, love the yellow paint matching the tiles on this house. Notice there’s not only a house number, but…

IMG_1049

An apartment number specifying “downstairs”!

IMG_1051

A couple of busy corners later and here I am at the corner of Leandro Valle and Aquiles SerdĂĄn.

IMG_1052

 

Shops along Leandro Valle across from the Mercado (heading towards Benito JuĂĄrez). Tony’s Burgers is the first door into the Mercado.

IMG_1054

Tony’s is where I was going for lunch, but I wanted to do my shopping first. So I headed down, knowing that about two thirds of the way to Benito JuĂĄrez is a shop with the backpacks I wanted.

IMG_1055

They only had one on display and it was hideous, so I asked if they had more. A sales lady led me inside and showed me a stack. I was surprised that the bags come in shades other than beige or bright red, green, and yellow. I immediately zeroed in on this pink and purple one and asked her if I could examine it more closely. It didn’t have “MazatlĂĄn” written anywhere on it, which a lot of otherwise nice bags have (I don’t like my clothes and accessories to advertise where I’ve been), so that was an immediate plus. I was immediately struck by the quality. The seams were solid and there were lots of little details I hadn’t expected.

IMG_1056

Like the flap for the pouch in front opening to reveal a zipper!

IMG_1057

The top flap opening to reveal a draw string:

IMG_1058

The straps on the back being sewn in such a way that you can easily hang the bag from a hook:

IMG_1059

And the very copious storage space:

IMG_1060

I asked how much and was shocked that the answer was only $130! I felt cheap trying to bargain that down, but replied with $110. She countered after a long second with $120 being her absolute best price. Wow! Only 9.24CAD!

She asked if I needed anything else and I said that I got what I came in for. She laughed and said that was very obvious and that it was a pleasure doing business with me. Another great mercado shopping experience. I wish they were all like that. The pushy vendors are so unpleasant.

My business done, I retraced my steps to have a shrimp burger at Tony’s. I haven’t really been in the mood for that kind of thing since I got back from MĂ©rida (no tortas, no burgers, and barely any tacos!), but it seemed appealing today. I could have done with half the bread (so I left half of it) and no crema, but the fresh grilled shrimp, veggies, guacamole, and stringy cheese (plus the addition of chiles curtidos) really hit the spot!

I finished my last trip to the mercado by going to my favourite aqua fresca vendor, who is inside the mercado off of Aquiles SerdĂĄn, and got a whole litre of guava water! It was so hot that I drank the whole thing by the time I’d retraced my steps to the embarcadero!

I know I won’t have time to go back into town again, so thus end my MazatlĂĄn adventures. It’s been fun! I can’t believe I’ve spent nearly a full year of my life here!

by

Feeling Like a VIF (Very Important Foreigner)

Today’s most urgent task was to get to the bank and take out what I hope will be enough pesos to get me to the border. I underestimated badly last year and hope I didn’t overestimate this year…

I headed out just after noon and stopped in at Kim Express on Juan Carrasco for lunch. It’s tiny hole in the wall type Chinese place that I would have never noticed were it not for their sign on the sidewalk announcing their specials. I’ve been there a few times now and am never disappointed. $44 gets me a decent egg roll, a too large portion of fried rice (if I’m really hungry, I might get through half!), an icy cold tea, and a choice of main. I always go for the beef and broccoli with carrots as it seems like a healthier option than the gooey fried stuff like orange chicken. The restaurant has AC, which is most welcome, and if I go at lunch, I catch the news on their TV (was shocked to hear about the flooding in Houston!). The food is always fresh, too, and never seems like it’s been sitting there for ages. Glad I found them.

Next stop was Scotiabank. There was just one person ahead of me for the ATM, but the line up inside was looooong. So I felt a tad obnoxious cutting to the head of the queue to be next for the teller who changes my money, but did it anyway. I did hear some murmurs behind me and the teller said something quite loudly that I didn’t understand. I handed her my Post-It with what I wanted written on it. I’d added a note saying, “Thanks for your help. This is the last time,” with a smiley face. She laughed at that and asked why it’s the last time and I told her.

Banking done, I headed down to Ley to get a few things and then decided to treat myself to a pulmonĂ­a as it could very well be my last time for that. 🙁 When I got to this side and started walking under the crushing humidity, my bags felt twice as heavy as they were and I was really glad I hadn’t walked from Ley to the embarcadero. Thank goodness it’s much cooler by the water. But I’m not complaining! 🙂

Four days left… But I’m buoyed by the fact that this time next week, I’ll be heading into Utah and looking forward to four days of hiking in Arches National Park. In this life by design, the end of an adventure is always the start of a new one!

by

Last Lunch on the MalecĂłn

I hadn’t planned to go out today, but work for the next and a half dropping in made me acutely aware that I only have five full days left here, of which at least one needs to be full on dedicated to packing and cleaning. If I wanted a final relaxed lunch on the MalecĂłn, today was the day to have it!

It’d been a relaxed day so far. I’d picked up a cinnamon roll at the bakery yesterday to enjoy this morning and I was really happy with how fresh and cinnamony it was without being insanely sweet and gooey. After savouring it with a coffee and enjoying the quiet of an Isla Sunday morning where all you hear at the birds, I went for a long way down the beach. There were lots of herons out and I also saw what I believe to be a hawk as well as a vulture. The vulture was eating a pelican and at one point, a heron came up to them. It really looked like the vulture and the heron were having a chat around the proverbial water cooler. After a few minutes, the heron took off. What an incredible wing span!

I came in not sure what to do with the rest of my day. I’ve been sidelined by “something” since Wednesday and the coughing has kept me up at night, so I’ve been very lethargic because of lack of sleep. It’s really strange — I’m congested and coughing up a lung, but otherwise, I feel fine (except for the lack of sleep, of course). I have a normal appetite and am still enjoying my beer at the end of the day. So I’m not sure I want to say that I’m “sick,” but I definitely don’t have much energy. So I was rather glad for the kick in the butt to go to town!

I headed out around 2:00 (okay, so it would be linner more than lunch) and was slightly concerned that the Copa de Leche wouldn’t be open since so much is closed on Sunday afternoons. I was really craving their enchiladas mole, but was certain I’d find something else suitable along the water if they were closed.

From Emilio BarragĂĄn, I took 21 de marzo to Centro rather than Leandro Valle to avoid the big hill and rather than ConstituciĂłn to avoid construction. 21 de marzo isn’t great for strolling since the sidewalks are lacking and the buses are numerous, but it’s fine on a Sunday and it takes you right to the cathedral. Then, I meandered my way to the water. I’m always surprised by how far the restaurants on the MalecĂłn are from the embarcadero when I walk straight there. Normally, I make stops along the way.

Thankfully, the Copa de Leche had a few customers. Since I have tons of Tecate and Pacifico in the fridge, I “splurged” on a XX (dos equis), which was $5 more and the price that you pay for a beer on the beach here on Isla. It’s the one in the green bottle. Shame there was a truck blocking my view…

IMG_1013

Here’s my plate of enchiladas. Buried under all that delicious sauce are three corn tortillas wrapped around a filling of chicken and veggies.

IMG_1014

The sauce is so good that I asked for some tortillas so I could mop it up. Tortillas are always free, so if your meal isn’t quite enough, they’re an inexpensive way to stretch out your food a tad. But in this case, it was pure indulgence 🙂 The tortillas came out with a different server and I watched in amusement as he presented the basket to two of the three Mexican tables before I was able to catch his attention. The tortillas were warm and lovely and soft, but with crispy charred edges, just the way I like them best.

The bill was a bit of a shock. I hadn’t paid attention to the enchilada prices and expected them to be $120.

IMG_1017

Even with the tip, I came in at under 10CAD for my meal!

I walked along the water for a bit after lunch and then headed back towards the embarcadero, stopping to see if my favourite nieve vendor was working. Yes! My last one of those was prune, strawberry, and lemon. Mmm.

Unfortunately, the mercado is closed on Sunday afternoons, so I wasn’t able to pop in there one last time. I did go to the little Ley for a few sundries.

Tomorrow, I need to go back into town to make a withdrawal of enough pesos to get me to the border. Just in fuel and tolls, I’ll need around $3,000 (230CAD), plus I’ll want enough for a hotel and am willing to pay up to $700 for a bed (54CAD) for a bed. Shame that hotel prices in Mexico aren’t much better than those north of the border. Of course, Totonaka is well under that, but I really don’t want to go there.

Even though departure day is looming, it doesn’t feel real yet. And yet, I am steadily saying my goodbyes.

by

Little Moments of Joy

April is turning into a distressingly slow month for work. I’m doing what comes in and working leads. Thank goodness I have really good reserves, although I’m not looking forward having to tap into them very soon! Anyway, these things ebb and flow. I’m learning not to freak out over the quiet moments since they never last.

Today, I did a small job then spent a few hours refreshing my professional site and also creating a Facebook page for my transcription and proofreading services. Around 3:30, I shut down and headed to the beach for a walk.

Well, I had no sooner reached the RV park that there was a dog running up to me and dropping his ball at my feet! I doggy sat him, Cody, a few weeks back and I must have made an impression. Cody’s dad confirmed that I could take him out so off Cody and I went to the water’s edge so I could throw the ball into the ocean and Cody would swim out to get it. He’s a really good dog and listens well, a real joy to play with, and I couldn’t help but laugh with joy at just how happy Cody was to play. After some time, he let me know he’d had enough by grabbing his ball and heading back to the RV park. There, I hosed him off and then accepted a beer from his dad before sitting to chat for a bit. What a way to spend an hour!

I came in and did some chores before going out for dinner. I have had “yardmates” for a few weeks now living in the little suite next to mine, M&S. They’re a young American couple and absolutely lovely. Sharing the yard and laundry with them has not been a hardship like it was sharing with the crazy woman last year. They’d asked me to go to dinner tonight, so we headed to Che’s around 6:30. There, we had a fantastic, and funny, meal since our saucey shrimp came with the heads on them and we had a lot of work to (and mess to clean up) to get to our food! They’re trying to figure out their lives and partook of some of my “being there, did the questioning, here was my solution” experience.

The beach was very dark as we walked home. It’s really peaceful at that time of night, especially with the sound of the surf. I’ve never had any concerns walking when I can barely see a few inches in front of me.

We came in our respective doors and, unbeknownst to me, M was putting together a surprise for me as I was putting out my water bottle. She showed up at my door with a huge slice of “guava pie,” which is basically a cheesecake (complete with Graham cracker crust) with chopped guava over top and caramel. I was rather craving something sweet after all that garlic so it’s hitting the spot! Not bad neighbours, huh?

Days like today are numbered and I’m savouring them!