Holy moly am I knackered. Travelling to and from the UK doesn’t take this long!

I landed at Pearson at 2AM local time. Of course, everything was shut down tight. I couldn’t even recheck my bags so I wouldn’t have to worry about them. So much for any real sleep, then. I wandered around a bit until I found an almost quiet spot with, unbelievably, a soft horizontal surface. I made a fort with my belongings, slipped off my shoes, slid on an eye mask, and dozed for about two hours, getting up at 4:40, exactly four hours before my flight was due to take off.

I tidied myself as best I could and went off in search of check-in. At the domestic check-in, I found a very agitated Mexican man trying to get help from very dismissive Air Canada staff. Even when they finally found him someone who spoke Spanish, they weren’t doing much for him. I finally understood that security had sent him to check a bag with too many liquids. I had him follow me to the internationals departures and, since we were on the same flight, I went up to the check-in desk with him to make sure they understood what he wanted. Once he was sorted, he stuck around to load my heavy bags onto the conveyor belt for me!

Next stop was Starbucks for a ginormous coffee, going with an Americano ($$$) rather than a regular drip coffee ($$). I actually found their prices very reasonable — what I’d expect to pay outside of the airport! I was allowed to add my own almondmilk, too, so I got a really perfect cup of joe to trick me that it really was morning and not the middle of the night. I was very annoyed that I could not get the airport WiFi to work so I could do online stuff while I drank. Pearson is such an appalling airport.

I then wandered around looking at food options. I really wanted a sit down treat breakfast, but could only find bacon and egg type deals. I finally found a bar that had a kid’s menu with exactly what I wanted — half a waffle and two sausage links, for only $6! The kind staff let me order that and I added a café cortado, my order of choice in Spain, so that I’d be over the voucher limit (normal coffee would have put me at exactly $10, the voucher limit) and have to put some money on my debit card, letting me add a tip. Unfortunately, that plan failed — the way they process the vouchers, there was no tip option on the debit machine. I felt bad, but the staff went out of their way to make it clear that just the intention meant a lot.

My breakfast was unbelievably good and immense value.  I’m very grateful to Air Canada for starting my day off on the right foot like that. It was a kid’s portion and it lasted me all day — I just needed my snacks after!

We took off for Mexico City on time and I managed to get in some sleep since the flight was bare and I had tons of room to spread out. We actually got two beverages on this trip and I went for tea the first time and apple juice the second. We arrived about 20 minutes early. I only had a two-hour layover to planned boarding time, so every minute was appreciated. Little did I know what awaited me…

I got off the plane and followed the signs to the first stop, immigration. The line was long, but moved very quickly — the complete opposite of the chaos at Pearson last week. When I got to the head of the queue, a man looked at my documents so that he could funnel me to the right desk and warmly said, “Welcome home!”

The actual immigration interview itself was a non-event. She just stamped everything and also welcomed me back warmly.

Next stop was baggage pickup so that luggage could clear customs. I had no sooner found a luggage cart that a uniformed man was commandeering it and asking me what were my bags. He collected them and off we went to customs, where I was waved off!!!! I really did have nothing to declare, but that was unexpected. The man then transited my bags for me by putting them on a conveyor belt. So my fear of having to make my way from terminal one to two with them did not materialise, meaning that I could travel on the overground train I used last week. Otherwise, I would have had to take a ground shuttle. The man deposited a very shocked me inside terminal one and pointed in the direction I had to go. I only had check-in and security left to do after the train!

I didn’t even have to look hard for the train this time — another uniformed man spotted what I assume was a confused looked on my face and came to my rescue, grabbing my carry on items and taking me right to the train platform. There, he explained what I had to do at the next terminal. Sure, both men were helping me to get a tip, but even so, what service!

At terminal two, I followed the instructions to the check-in desk and then to security, which I again got through quickly. That was it — I was at an hour to departure and maybe 40 minutes to boarding! I had to ride a bus to the plane. What a journey!

The trip to Mérida was very quick, just enough time for a brief snooze and a drink (I went with a very hydrating coconut water and kept the peanuts — yes, Aeromexico gives a snack! — for later). We arrived right on time, into crushing humidity. Yaaaay. 🙂

Luggage wasn’t coming in yet when I got to the baggage claim area, so I had time to reserve myself a strong man to deal with my bags. 🙂 He got them to the taxi stand for me and loaded them while I paid a whopping $270 for the trip home (the taxi mafia still has firm control over airport departures, although it has lost the war for the city and Uber is finally legal and offering quality taxi services).

I explained to my driver how to get home and he suggested an alternative route, which I knew was just as good so I told him to go ahead. We had a nice chat and as we got close to home, he tried to pick out some landmarks for me. I laughed and said I knew exactly where I was — we were coming up to an Oxxo where we’d do a jiggedy-jig and then shoot straight up to Calle 21, from which we’d be three or four blocks from home.

Soon as I was out of the car, Ms. B started calling for me so I dropped everything to greet her. She then, just barely, let me get the luggage in the house. A massive cuddle-thon ensued before she’d let me put in an order for tacos. I started to unpack as I waited for dinner. Everything appears to have gotten here (someone even zip-tied my bags shut), but I think they broke my new suitcase — I can’t get the telescoping handle to work. 🙁 Small loss, in the grand scheme of the bags’ big adventure!

The last week has been positively surreal. I have tomorrow to recover and then it’s back to the grindstone on Monday. The big difference now is that I’m finally caught up on the big expenses. I have some work to do on the truck and I want to start saving for a new computer, but neither is super pressing and if I want to priortise things for the house or toys or just working fewer hours for a bit and keep delaying those, I can. I’m starting this second year in the house with a fresh slate and my mind truly here and no longer split between Mexico and Saskatchewan. Much as I love Haven and will always consider it home, both Canada and Mexico have made it very clear to me this week where I truly belong and which country feels I have anything to offer it, making it Home.

via IFTTT

via IFTTT

I pay TelCel 200 pesos a month (about 15CAD) for the Sin Frontera plan that, in theory, claims I can use it in Canada and the US for up to 30 days to talk, text, and surf as though I was in Mexico. I was in Canada and the US for longer than that last year, so I only used my Sin Frontera plan when I really needed to, trying to rely on other people’s phones, internet connections, and public WiFi.

This last trip was just for a week, so I knew it would be a good one to really test the plan.

The short of it is that I had NO problems using my Sin Frontera plan in Canada to make calls, send texts, and access the internet. Incredible!

I had the best connection on Rogers, surprisingly enough. Bell and Telus were both a bit moody, especially in Saskatchewan, where they run on SaskTel’s network.

I never managed to connect to SaskTel at all, so they clearly are not part of a roaming agreement with TelCel. It was a bit frustrating to not have service sometimes when my friends on SaskTel were getting good service, but I was really grateful for what I did have. I mean, it would have cost me literally hundreds of dollars to buy for a week a Canadian SIM card and pay for all the services I get through my 200-peso a month plan in Mexico. So the odd bit of downtime was really not worth complaining about!

Thank you so, so much TelCel for helping me keep one foot in the 21st century this past week!

I’m at the airport in Regina, past security, and waiting on my very delayed first leg of the journey home. It’s been a very fully week! Here are just some of the highlights.

Friday, September 7th (travel day)

-I am super amused that my cabbie showed up a whole 20 minutes early and charged me for making him wait two minutes! I remembered from when I flew back to Mazatlán to have coffee pre-security — pricy, but yum. I killed the time before the flight talking to a lovely Mexican-American couple heading home to Houston.

-Mérida to CDMX was a non-event. Aeromexico, like Volaris, has arm and leg room! They also serve very good quality apple juice!

-due to a complete lack of signage, CDMX was a nightmare. It took me 45 minutes just to get from terminal two to one, and then I had long lines at check-in (couldn’t do it online because I needed to do immigration paperwork), security, and immigration. Had a 2.75-hour layover and needed every minute of it. The GastroPub by my gate deserves a shout-out for getting me in and out with a hot meal in just over 20 minutes.

-I passed out on the flight from CDMX to Toronto. No other way to put it. LOL I’ve never slept that hard on a plane! Air Canada gave all the “real” food to the first-class people on the flight, so thankfully I was not one of the very hangry masses stuck with just overpriced chocolate bars and chips! They only had lukewarm drinks (no ice!).

-immigration at Lester Pearson was complete chaos and out of control — the kind of welcome I’d expect at a “third world” airport. I was not made to feel welcomed back into my own country and that’s all I have to say about that. A longish-layover was again just barely enough and I had to do fast food for dinner. I have to give a shoutout to the gate attendant who took one look at me and moved mountains to change my ticket for a window seat.

-Toronto to Regina was like flying in a sardine can. I dozed. The very large (as in muscly) Greek man sitting next to me was so kind and helped with my luggage.

-my friends Charles and Caroline were waiting for me when I arrived on time. We made a very Canadian stop in Moose Jaw at Tim Horton’s in Moose Jaw before arriving home at about 1AM or so. We pulled into Haven so I could see it was okay, but the entrance was completely overgrown with (mowed) weeds. A hot shower, and then I passed out in the extremely cosy and warm nest Caroline made up for me in my room.

Saturday, September 8th

-despite passing out at 2AM, I was up at 8:30. I lounged to 9:30 and then went to hang out with the cats for a few hours. As expected, Charles had left half a pot of coffee for me (as he would every day!). <3

-Caroline and I went to the thrift store and a garage sale in Willow Bunch. Charles had noticed a suitcase for sale so I bought it for $10 and there was a carry-on and personal-sized item inside.

-I then went to check out Haven. My “cabin” was filthy and inhabited by bats who said hello. Miranda was in fair shape and showed signs of a roof leak. I decided to make the break and put her up for sale rather than let her rot.

-dinner was venison stew — a clear sign that I was home!

Sunday, September 9th

-I had my coffee and breakfast and then went straight to Haven, where I put in a hard day of work. I mucked out the cabin, gathered some trash, and then started to make my “going to Mexico” pile, filling my new large suitcase with the most pressing items.

-neighbours K&T came for dinner and Caroline made a turkey with all the trimmings — so spoiled!

Monday, September 10th

-back to Haven I went to make a second take to Mexico pile, clean up, sort out more trash, and put together a giant pile for the thrift store.

-Caroline found me another suitcase, but I determined it was way too big — I needed one bigger than the one I’d bought but smaller than hers.

-I successfully replaced the battery in my laptop — a huge stress off my shoulders. I can’t believe how well my computer is working again!

Tuesday, September 11th

-Caroline and I headed to Moose Jaw. There, I found at Walmart an ugly suitcase in the in-between size I needed. It was $60, but very good quality so it didn’t hurt to get it. Walmart also had, on sale, all the food items I wanted.

-I treated Caroline to lunch and was thrilled she picked my favourite chain restaurant, Montana’s! We both had ribs. Yum!

-I managed to find a few treasures at Dollar Tree, including a small rug for my kitchen — imagine that!

-I picked up a new nose stud at my  piercer’s, but she wasn’t available to put it in. I somehow managed it easily when we got home — I seem to have mastered the “twist.” It’s nice to see that bright blue when I look down as I was getting sick of the emerald green!

-for dinner, I tried a goose burger! Very tasty!

Wednesday, September 12th

-my final day at Haven. I emptied Miranda of anything that can’t be sold with her, putting the last bit of my “treasures” in weather-proof bins in the cabin. Anything left at the property that can be plugged in or could “spoil” is for sale or has been given away, but I’m keeping things like hand tools, my ladder, my wheelbarrow, etc. as they are all in a weather-proof building.

-dinner was again from the land I love so much — garlic elk sausage and spicy Italian goose sausage. Caroline feeds us so well! I haven’t even shared all the yummy things she fed me!

Thursday, September 13th

-this was my “vacation” day. I slept in very late and went to the thrift store with Caroline and T to drop off a few things and came home with a few small treasures. They’d “shopped” in my pile, so I was comfortable with Caroline shelling out the $4 for my things since I’d avoided taking out cash for my trip and this was the only place that doesn’t take debit!

Friday, September 14th (first travel leg home)

-we didn’t have to leave until early afternoon, so I had another lazy morning as I was facing a nearly 30-hour trip home.

-I packed. I’d done a few dry runs and got 99% of what I wanted to bring home into two largeish suitcases, a carry-on suitcase, and a carry-on bag. Might as well take advantage of my luggage allowance!

-fortified by Caroline’s chicken noodle soup for the second time this week (not a hardship!), I braved the COLD and loaded up the car with Charles, then off Caroline and I went around 1:30.

-we stopped in Moose Jaw to drop off my dead computer battery at Staples for recycling (shout-out to Caroline for making several calls to find out where I could bring it!).

-Caroline then had the brilliant idea that I should go to the Bulk Barn next door for airplane snacks!

-we continued on to Cabela’s in Regina, which is just before the airport, where I picked up two packages of seasoning to make sausage (one sweet Italian, one breakfast). Caroline suggested I do something I’d been thinking about — make “sausage” from just ground pork and spices and then shape it into patties. The Cabela’s spice mixes will be much easier than trying to source the ingredients in Mérida.

-we got to the airport at about four, where I learned that my flight was delayed about 1.5 hours! That pretty much guaranteed I won’t sleep tonight as I won’t have as long in Toronto, but the Regina airport is really not a bad place to be delayed — it’s quiet and there’s very good WiFi and outlets.

-Caroline stayed during the check-in process to make sure all was okay with my luggage. Despite having weighed it all with a scale that has never failed me, I was a bit overweight, but the attendant didn’t care. I’d been quoted $80 plus tax for my bags but only had to pay $60. Wow!

-the only food option for dinner was very pricey — $25 for a club sandwich, beer, and onion rings, with a tip! — but there was beer, it was cold, and the onion rings were worth a detour!

-security was a non-issue.

So that brings us to now, 7:45, my original departure time, and I’m post-security and reflecting on the last week. It all boils down to I made my emotional break with Miranda and hope to never see her again, but my grip on Haven is as firm as ever. It continues to be a spring of energy from which I can draw. I will always have a home there.

I  definitely timed my trip perfectly — it’s going to be an early winter. It got colder as the week progressed. I’m glad to be heading back to the tropics! I wound up having the right amount of layers and didn’t freeze-freeze, but I did accept a new polar fleece sweater from Caroline that looks like a Haven sunset and I was grateful that “my” cosy robe was hanging in my bedroom so I could (literally) chill in my PJs in the morning!

There was a new dog at C&C’s and she was SO sweet. I fell in love with her the second we met (I mean, she came up to me like she’d known me all her life and promptly cuddled!). She made my missing B a little more bearable. I did get lots of B updates over the week and am pretty sure she never had time to miss me!

I think I’ve managed to capture the bulk of the week. I hope you enjoyed the few pictures I managed to post of my beloved Prairies. I made sure to get tons and hopefully one will be magical enough to be worth printing and framing to hang in my home in Mérida.

And with that, I’m now expecting a boarding call very shortly. Let’s hope the trip goes smoothly, especially the likely too short transit time I have in Mexico City, and that I’m in my hammock by this time tomorrow night!