Mazatlan

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Glorious Ajonjolí

Back home, I started to make my own hummus for many reasons:

-tastier

-more natural

-much cheaper

-could customize to taste

To make hummus this winter in Mexico, I would have had to bring down lemon juice since you can’t get lemons here and also tahini (sesame butter), something I haven’t been able to make on my own successfully. I decided to just do without this winter and have avocados instead for breakfast.

Well, I saw hummus at Soriana the other day and decided that, yes, it was going to be disappointing, but I still had to have it. Lo and behold, Big Ley had the exact same product in its cheese case today, for a whopping 35 pesos, and I brought it home. Waitaminute. 35 pesos is still much less than I pay for commercial hummus back home!

Lunch was super filling, so I skipped supper and was due for a late evening snack. You would think I would have been eager to get at the hummus, but I wasn’t. I can buy a lot of cheese for 35 pesos. What was I thinking?

I opened the container and smelled it. That was my first clue that something unexpected was going to happen. I took a tiny taste and did a double take. Off I ran to Google Translate to get confirmation of what my nose and taste buds already knew: ajonjoli is Spanish for sesame.

The commercial hummus I’ve bought in Canada and the US has always been very strong on the garlic flavour and light on the sesame if it even includes it at all (read the labels, people!).  This Mexican hummus is all about the hummus and the tahini, and gloriously thick.

If I could get this back home, I’d probably stop making my own and just drizzle this one with fresh lemon juice and olive oil, it’s that good!

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*put down the spoon, Rae, and back away from the hummus*

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Much Bigger Spender

I did a good morning of work and then headed to Maz to hit a bank, the big Waldo, and the big Ley, all on Ejercito Mexicano, a road I’ve now taken a few times by motorized transport, but never on foot.

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Swabbing the deck.

Swabbing the deck.

My world was so picturesque today.

My world was so picturesque today.

Still not tired of the view.

Still not tired of the view.

I felt a little thrill as I turned onto Juan Carrasco, which becomes Ejercito Mexicano. A new area to explore! I walked for a bit, taking in all the marvelous commotion of vehicles and music and people walking, inhaled the rich smell of tacos, churros, and other goodies being cooked right on the street, and felt absolutely right with the world.

Noroeste building (major newspaper)

Noroeste building (major local newspaper)

Contessa had asked me to pick her up some croissants, so my first stop was the Panamá bakery, where they only had one left. The following conversation ensued:

Me: (pointing to croissants) Do you have more of these?

Clerk: That’s it.

Me: No more today?

Clerk (points to oven, in which I can see croissants)

Me: How long?

Clerk: Eight minutes.

NOW we’re getting somewhere! I told her I would wait and could I use the bathroom? Getting directions there was much easier to extract out of her!

When I came out, I had a bit of a wait and checked out all the wares, talking myself out of bringing anything home! Soon, the clerk was sliding the croissants out of the oven and asked me how many I wanted. I told her and she called to another clerk to ring up four croissants for me. Minutes later, I was presented with a greasy bag that smelled marvelous. Let’s just say that I added one croissant to Contessa’s order for myself and enjoyed it immediately. 🙂 There’s nothing like a fresh croissant!

Next, the bank. I played a live game of Frogger to get to the Santander, only to find that its ATMs were down. Darn! I went back across the street (the words with which to convey this death defying feat escape me) to try my luck at the HSBC. Success! Fees were comparable to Santander and I got a few small bills. I had hoped to only make one withdrawal this month to save on bank fees, but forget about my daily withdrawal limit, so I’ll take out more money later this month.

Then, I came to the Waldo’s, which is much bigger than the one in Centro. I went through and got a few things on my list, plus a little splurge for myself. Instead of looking for a manicure place today, I bought bottles of nail polish, polish remover, polish hardener, and a crystal nail file since I somehow managed to forget to bring one here and have been suffering along with emery boards that have gotten soggy in this humid climate. I haven’t done my own nails in a while, so it’ll be a fun way to relax one evening while watching a movie.

Biggish Waldo's

Biggish Waldo’s

Then, I used the impressive pedestrian overpass to cross the street and go to Ley.

Quite the climb up to this pedestrian crossing! The Ley is tucked way in the back of the parking lot.

Quite the climb up to this pedestrian crossing! The Ley is tucked way in the back of the parking lot.

As I landed on the other side, I saw a sign that said Chinese food and sushi. I knew the sushi would be terrifying (which it was), but non-Mexican food sounded very appealing. I checked out the food and combos and decided to eat there after I was given a couple of samples and they were all delicious!

The following conversation ensued.

Clerk: What can I get you?

Me: Hong Kong, please. (spring roll, rice, one dish, agua fresca)

Clerk: Bla bla bla chicken bla bla shrimp costs extra.

(Pause to let my computer process that and that this is about the spring rolls.)

Me: Oh, uh, chicken!

Clerk: Main?

Me: Mango chicken, please.

I then got foisted onto another clerk.

Clerk: Agua fresca bla bla bla bla bla hibiscus.

(Pause to decide if I want her to repeat flavours. Nah, I’ve been curious about hibiscus).

Me: Hibiscus.

Clerk: Bla bla ice?

Me: A little bit.

And then, I got passed onto the clerk and that was easy because I don’t have any trouble with numbers.

I find it hilarious how Mexicans just talk Spanish to us Gringos at full speed with no consideration whatsoever for our language skills or lack thereof! Once again, I wonder how I’d get by if I didn’t have the level of skill that I do.

Mexican Chinese food looks like American Chinese food: unappealing. It was tasty, though!

Mexican Chinese food looks like American Chinese food: unappealing. It was tasty, though!

The food was, I’m almost ashamed to say, really yummy. 🙂 The chicken wasn’t nearly as sweet as I expected and it had a bit of kick. The carrots were crispy and really good. The rice wasn’t mushy and had just enough soy sauce. The spring roll tasted strongly of cabbage and other veggies, very fresh.

hibiscus (jamaica) agua fresca (flavoured sweet water)

hibiscus (jamaica) agua fresca (flavoured sweet water)

Hibiscus water wasn’t particularly memorable, though. I expected quite a strong floral flavour and this was pretty bland. The beverage was also a lot less sweet than I expected and so I drank the whole thing.

I then hit the Ley. It is like a small Soriana or Walmart with household and personal goods in addition to groceries, but that was the only special thing about it. Otherwise, it had all the same food I can get at the smaller Ley or the City Deli, so I was rather disappointed and didn’t come out with much. I’ll definitely need to go back to Soriana! I did come home with a tub of hummus and look forward to seeing how it tastes.

Back outside, I repacked my bags and schlepped the block to Ejercito Mexicano, where I quickly flagged down a pulmonía. I was quoted a fair 40 pesos to get to the embarcadero. What a treat the drive was! I was quite tired and my shopping was heavy.

Yes, that's a motorcycle on a panga.

Yes, that’s a motorcycle on a panga.

My bags weren’t heavy enough to justify a pulmonía on this side, so I walked home, stashed the cold stuff, and went to Contessa’s to deliver her slightly smooshed croissants. She gave me some reading material for my trip to Durango next month (thank you!), so I have some reading to do in the next few days.

For the curious, today’s expenditures were about 500 pesos. 200ish at Waldo’s, 200ish at Ley, 60ish for lunch, and 40 for the drive home. So yeah, bigger spender than yesterday, but by Canadian standards, just peanuts. 🙂

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Not So Big Spender

I got an email from Dale this morning asking me to meet her at the Mercado noonish. I hadn’t planned to go out, but I had time, so why not?! She had also invited Janet, so Janet and I met up at the police station here on Isla and made our way to Waldo’s together, where we met up with Dale, who had taken the bus for the first time.

I was down to my last 150 pesos (putting 8 aside for the panga ride tomorrow or Wednesday to hit the bank), so you would think I just went for the conversation. Ha ha ha. I love Mexico.

We hit Waldo’s and a craft store for Dale first, then went upstairs above the Mercado to find a restaurant where Janet could eat. She’s normally vegan, but will sometimes have cheese. I found a restaurant that would make her a cheese quesadilla, so that’s where we went. The menu was small, very ‘Mexican’, and the most expensive thing on it was 50 pesos…

I had literally the best enchiladas of my life, for 30 pesos, plus 6 pesos for a bottle of water (forgot to bring my own), plus a small tip.

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The sauce was light and zippy, but not actually spicy. It was very flavourful. The chicken filling was moist and a dollop of crema brought everything together. I now have a go-to spot for lunch in that part of town!

Next, I went to go to Panamá’s where I spent a whopping 30 pesos on a ham, cheese, and jalapeño sandwich for tonight, a savoury cheese and jalapeño bun thing for lunch tomorrow, and an almond croissant for breakfast.

So I’ve now spent 70 pesos, covered four meals, and have 72 pesos left (remember, I spent 8 pesos to get to Maz!). We stopped at an ice cream stand for gelato, leaving me with 52 pesos.

We walked around the area for a bit, then split up with Dale because I needed to get home. Janet asked to stop in at Ley. I wasn’t going to get anything, but my favourite yoghurt was on mega sale and they had one left of my preferred flavor, so I snagged it. After the tip for the bagging lady, I had 22 pesos left.

And then, I took the panga home, leaving me with a whole 14 pesos.

Gas one way to Assiniboia from home costs roughly 150 pesos…

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Living la vida sencilla

It’s that time of the month where I invoice clients and tweak the new month’s budget while looking ahead to the next few months. This is getting more and more critical as May is already looming and I need to make sure I’m well buffered for the drive home since I don’t know how much, or even if, I’ll be able to work on the way back. I did take a special extension on my health coverage to the end of May that I don’t want to waste, so I am thinking of getting a couple of weekly rentals at various places in the States.

But I digress. Despite its frighteningly slow start, January ended with a bang. I worked my tail off, but was also paid a bonus amount for the project. So not only did I end up exceeding my minimum earning goals for the month… I just met my ideal target. I just about never make that amount, but it’s something to shoot for. That ideal target would cover bills, allow me to live comfortably for a month, and also leave a generous amount for my buffer/emergency fund. So I am in good financial shape for the first time since I left home and February is off to a busy start! The tide is turning!

One thing that helps is just how simple my life here is in Mexico. Really, what do I have to spend money on? About 95% of my budget goes to food (groceries and dining out), 2% to beer (both at home and at bars), 1% to public transportation, and 1% to household and miscellaneous small outings. I feel like I have a fantastic quality of life and that I am well stimulated. Much as I miss home, I know that my budget is going to balloon there when I have a property to maintain again. 🙁

Doing this math made me feel a lot less troubled by how my dining out habit has increased in the last few weeks. I have to eat anyway, so why not enjoy the local culture that way? Yes, I could slash my budget by eating only at home with a very simple diet, but, seriously, how frugal does one person have to be before it’s enough?! 🙂

One comment I get from people is that I have to watch the dining out because it will mean weight gain. Well, I guess it depends on what you eat and I tend to make sensible choices. I’m very happy to say that I haven’t gained a pound since I got here, but I lost two inches around my waist, which means that I’m building muscle from all that walking and losing fat. So my simple Mexican life is working well for me!!

 

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Out and About In Mazatlán

I covered a lot of ground today!

Even though I had work to do today, I took the afternoon off to visit my friend Dale who has moved to the Mar Rosa trailer park in the Golden Zone. I left around 11:45, took the panga, and walked to the Malecón to catch a bus.

En route, I passed a licuado (milkshake) bar that also did fresh juices, so I stopped and bought a ‘small’ grapefruit juice. I think it had the juice of four whole grapefruits in it! It was really hot, I’d been walking for more than a mile, and the water I’d brought wasn’t cutting it. The juice did the trick!

A bus zoomed by me just as I arrived at Camarón Sabalo, the boulevard that parallels the Malecón, so I walked a few blocks to the first dedicated bus stop with shade and a bench to wait for the next one. It was a very long wait, more than 15 minutes, which surprised me.

After that, it was stop and go all the way to the RV park. I thought it was further past my cousin’s hotel than it was, so I would have missed it had a bunch of people not gotten off there, too. Not that it would have been a huge deal to miss it since I did see the sign for it as we passed, so I could have had the driver stop as soon as it was safe to do so and doubled back on foot.

Mar Rosa is a pretty nice RV park with a good location. It has high walls, so it’s not as noisy as you’d expect. The caveat is that it is super tight to navigate. It’s really a small rig park, although some bigger rigs wiggle their way in.

Dale's full-time home!

Dale’s full-time home!

What a gorgeous rig!

What a gorgeous rig!

This is the kind of RV I'm thinking of moving to, a rugged camper van that could handle rough roads.

This is the kind of RV I’m thinking of moving to, a rugged camper van that could handle rough roads.

Dale wanted to have lunch and suggested a nearby restaurant with cheap, basic, good food, which sounded fine to me. I am not going to name the restaurant because I want to share something funny and don’t want to get them into trouble. You see, they served us beer, but billed us for chocolate milks, which tells me they were not licensed…

And this what they served us for 30 pesos each:

This cup held TWO 355mL beers.

This cup held TWO 355mL beers.

It’s a good thing Pacific is a fairly low alcohol content beer or we would have fallen asleep!

I ordered their 30 peso hamburger and was served a cheeseburger (not complaining). That burger was SO GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I like hamburgers with seasoning in the patty and this one had plenty of flavour. The bun was also good and there was no pickle relish, but there were sweet pickles, and they had mustard. The Golden Zone still isn’t a place I’d want to stay, but it’s getting more and more worthy of a visit. 🙂

Meh fries and a burger worth going all the way to the Golden Zone for!!!

Meh fries and a burger worth going all the way to the Golden Zone for!!! I’ll skip the fries next time.

After lunch, we walked down to Rico’s Cafe so I could get coffee. I never did get used to the Looney Bean stuff, finding it too weak for my tastes. I bought a full pound of Rico’s Veracruz beans, coarse ground, for an absurd 128 pesos. I used to pay almost $20 per HALF pound of beans when I lived in Gatineau.

Then, Dale and I went back to Mar Rosa so I could see the beach. It is quite different from our Isla beach, especially in the sand. I think the difference is that we’re rather sheltered and this is more open ocean.

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The sand was black. Very curious.

The sand was black. Very curious.

I got in plenty of cuddle time with her Boys:

Chester, who is about seven, and very affectionate. He's always glad to see me. I just called his name and he posed for me.

Chester, who is about seven, and very affectionate. He’s always glad to see me. I just called his name and he posed for me.

Beamer (as in the car) is about twelve. He also turned his head when I called him.

Beamer (as in the car) is about twelve. He also turned his head when I called him.

Chester found shade under my legs, LOL. He's licking my ankles in this shot!

Chester found shade under my dress, LOL! He’s licking my ankles in this shot!

Dale offered to drive me back to the panga! Wow, what a treat! She’s been driving around and is comfortable going to certain places. I told her I wanted to hit the Ley and she said that was fine or she could take me to Mega or Walmart if I preferred. I accepted that offer and we headed off to Soriana. I’ve never been to a Mega, but I know that Soriana’s prices are better, and I prefer to support a Mexican company. Getting to Soriana was very easy since it’s on Rafael Buelna, which terminates at Camarón Sabalo, and more of a detour than Mega, but on the way to Walmart.

I didn’t have much money for groceries and hadn’t brought cloth bags or ice packs, so I wasn’t tempted to get a ton of stuff, but I did look at the offerings, marveling at seeing things like HUMMUS. Dale found my shock at the low prices hilarious. For example, 18 pesos for a giant box of peppermint tea?! I came home with it!

Navigating a Mexican grocery store now comes more naturally than the first time I tried it seven years ago in Tijuana. I remember being in the Gigante, famished, and wanting to buy some pan dulce, but not understanding how the process worked and being too overwhelmed to ask.

To buy baked goods in Mexico, you need to grab a tray and tongs. You then select what you want and bring the tray to a weigh station where it will be bagged and priced. Baked goods are so cheap that you will be tempted to get one of everything, but remember that they don’t use preservatives, so your goodies will only be good for a few days!

All I bought today were four rolls, but it was hard not to walk out with some pan chocolate (chocolate croissants)! 🙂

When we had come into the store, I took the sales flier, just like I would get in a CDN or US grocery store, and saw that the big Lala yoghurts were half price. So I headed to the dairy section next and got the last mango one!

I picked up a few more things, including Post-It notes from their office supply section because I way under packed my office! Unfortunately, they were out of paper clips. Dale was amused that I completely blanked out on the English word for those. I have no idea of the Spanish word either. I just knew I wanted trombones…

I came out of there loaded down with toilet paper, cheese, yoghurt, bacon, fresh bread, butter, and a few other goodies for 274 pesos. I continue to find prices here absurd. 🙂

And speaking of butter, I really do think I’ve solved the Mexican butter issue. As long as you buy it ‘sin sal’ (no salt), you will get butter like back home, not the movie popcorn tasting stuff!

Now comes a good example of what makes Dale and me such a strong team. I knew what road to take to get to the embarcadero, but not how to get to the road. Dale knew how to get to this road, but did not know it would take us to the embarcadero! So between the two of us, we made it to the panga easily. It’s wonderful to know my way around now!

My bags were awkward for the walk home when I arrived on Isla and I was really glad to get in. I really do want to do a big Soriana trip next week and while I had planned on a pulmonía ride to the panga on the Maz side, I think I will add one on this side, too. Yes, I could take my truck to the embarcadero, but getting it out of this yard is such a pain that I’d rather pay the 30 or so pesos instead!

Well, I’d better get to work. Going to be another late night, but I then I can sleep in tomorrow. I have work through the weekend, but they won’t be long days. I put in a lot of extra hours this week because I was paid bonus money, which really made taking the workload worth my time!