Accommodation

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Off to Durango At Last!

I’m really glad that my trip to Durango last spring got postponed. I just know that I would not have had as good a time as I did this past weekend back last March, when the budget was so tight and I was only starting to get comfortable in Mexico. But I just finished crunching the numbers for the past weekend and the result is rather funny….

Last spring, I had a fairly strict 300CAD or 3,700MXN budget for the trip. To be honest, I didn’t have a budget for the past weekend. I was overdue for a holiday, Mexico is inexpensive, and as long as I didn’t do a ton of shopping, I wasn’t going to worry about how much I was spending. Well, the trip, including tolls, fuel, and lodging, cost me a grand total of 388CAD or 4,750MXN! I could have afforded this trip last March!

From now on, all prices are in MXN.

Like this past spring, I started by looking for accommodation. Not knowing then that the rest of the trip would be so inexpensive, I had a paltry accommodation budget and could only look at places outside of Centro. This time, I was willing to pay up to $1,000 a night to stay somewhere decent in Centro. Turns out that I didn’t need to spend nearly that much. The Hotel Posada San Agustin, rated four-stars by TripAdvisor reviewers, was right in the heart of Centro and a basic room was a mere $600 a night! Now, I knew I was getting a two-star room in a four-star hotel, but that was perfect for me. I wasn’t going to spend that much time in my room anyway! This hotel also offered free parking, which was very important! I will have pictures in due time. 🙂

That out of the way, I took advantage of not having a proofing shift on Thursday to head out for three nights. The plan was to drive the new toll road to Durango and the old libre back. I decided to do it in this order for a number of reasons, including that the libre takes several hours to drive and you ‘gain’ an hour on the trip back to Maz due to a time zone change, while ‘losing’ one on the way to Durango. I also preferred to do a narrow twisty road that would take who knows how long with home at the other end and I also preferred to coast downhill than burn a ton of gas climbing the switchbacks.

So with all that bla bla bla out of the way, let’s head to Durango!

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A Day Full of Treasures

I decided to split up the work due tomorrow so that I could take this afternoon and tomorrow morning off. I wanted to go to town to try a restaurant, the reviews for which I stumbled upon on Trip Advisor, and also go to the bank and the grocery store. Tomorrow is riding, of course. 🙂

I wound covering a lot of ground today! Here’s a bird’s eye view (click to embiggen).

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I started by walking from the embaracadero to Parisina in Centro (red line at the bottom). Parisina is a chain of fabric stores. I wanted something to cover the surfaces in the office because, surprise, a plastic table cloth was unsuitable to cover a desk in a hot humid climate! I forgot just how inexpensive fabric is in Mexico and realised as I browsed that I didn’t have to get something that would to have have another purpose later because I would be paying so little.

I wound up with some super cheap cotton in colours that sort of match the bedspreads on the twin beds in the office:

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I love the purple flowers and that’s quite probably my favourite shade of blue. It was only $40 (3.25CAD or 2.50USD) for two metres! Aesthetics were the only reason to cover the tables. This house is like a prison, with its neutral colours and the bars on the windows, so it’s proven very difficult to make it cozy and homey. This year, I’m adding colour where I can and that is making a huge difference to how happy I am in the house.

I then crossed the street (Benito Juárez) to catch the bus to the Golden Zone. The Sábalo-Cocos ‘local’ bus passed before the ‘tourist’ bus that goes up Avenida del Mar and that was my sign that it was finally time to figure out this bus route because it’s the one that goes by the big Waldo and passes Soriana (multiple ones, I was to learn), Home Depot, and Mega. The ‘local’ buses are super uncomfortable, with hard plastic seats that are so close to the ones in front that my knees are bruised from the ride, but the cost is only $7 versus the $10 for the tourist bus.

Go back up to the map to see the ride I got taken on (blue)! It was a long one, but very educational. What really impressed me is that I knew where I was at all times and was able to correctly guess when we were about to turn onto Rafael Buelna. Now, I know that I can catch this bus at the big Ley or Waldo, or even Soriana or Mega, and take it back down to Juan Carrasco/Gutiérrez Najera if I have only a bit of shopping and don’t mind walking from the intersection to the embarcadero. But the route is way too long to make it worth taking it back from Soriana or Mega with a ton of groceries.

Once we hit Camarón Sábalo, I knew to get off in the vicinity of Panamá so I could head to Playa Gaviotas.

I’ve seen the ads for this guy a few times. I doubt his name is truly Dr. Backman, but, then again, I once knew an electrician named Yvan Laprise (literally sounds like the French for “he sells the electrical outlet”), so who knows!

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The restaurant didn’t open till 1:00 and it was about 12:30, so I wandered around in super touristy Mazatlán, saying “No gracias” a lot to vendors.

Being so early, I decided to check out the “Seashell Museum” (Museo de Conchas), which is really a store full of tchotchkes, with some tiny exhibits upstairs. But you HAVE to go there because of the fountain! I think I stared at it for a full 10 minutes and I’m very annoyed I only had my crappy iPhone camera to capture it!

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That fountain is a Work of Art. I couldn’t find an inch of it that didn’t absolutely delight me. If I were ever to buy a home by the sea, I would commission an artist to build something like this with seashells for me, perhaps a bathroom counter.

Then, I wandered around in the general area looking for the restaurant, Zab Thai. The address and the claim that it is near the Seashell Museum helped me narrow things down a bit, but it was extremely hard to find. I asked a few people, but no one could be bothered to help if I wasn’t a customer. I finally had the bright idea of putting other businesses into Google so I could essentially triangulate the location I needed and found Zab Thai at the end of a very lonely looking alley:

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An alley that leads to a beach:

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An alley that holds another business named “Lucky Bastard”!

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I went into the restaurant, which had an English menu but a server who was quite happy to serve me in Spanish. They had just opened and I was the only one there. They apparently do more takeout than eat-in business. The reviews I’d read claimed that Zab Thai is the place to go for authentic Thai in Maz.

I just ordered the chicken Pad Thai, but asked for two stars of spiciness out of three (!) and, for the first time, requested no egg. Pad Thai is something that I crave all the time, but which I haven’t had much luck finding to my taste in quite a while. I can’t articulate what it is about Pad Thai that makes it to my taste or not, I just know what I like.

When the meal arrived, it was alarmingly red:

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(I can’t believe I’m still traumatized by that ketchupy Pad Thai I had on Jarvis Street in Toronto 15 years ago! :D)

I took a tentative bite and almost fell out of my seat. This Pad Thai was perfect. The flavours were just right and I think the red might have come from Sriracha, with the spice level being just right for me. When it was a bit too much, I nibbled on some of the cabbage. I do have to say the chicken was a bit bland, but that’s just being nitpicky. I can’t believe I found this meal in Mexico. I’m pretty sure this Pad Thai is the third best I’ve ever had, after the ones at Siam or Bangkok Palace in Ottawa, Ontario, and the one at the Starfire in Skagway, Alaska! Pad Thai with chicken or pork was just $95! I think with shrimp or a mix was $115. Either price is a bargain for such a great Pad Thai. I find it interesting that two of the best I’ve ever had have been in such tourist trappy-type destinations.

Then, it was time to go to the bank (red route at the top). On the way, I passed this place that has never been open before and so I’ve never noticed it:

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That’s a drive-thru beer pickup place, folks. And I thought ‘Muricans are ridiculous (and terrifying) for having drive-thru liquor stores…

I cut across the McDonald’s parking lot and came across this RV from France!

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I actually waited a few minutes, hoping to catch the drivers, but gave up.

The walk-in ATM at Scotiabank was down, but, thankfully, their drive-thru one worked. My landlady is going to be so happy to get her December rent early. I don’t think I paid December rent till the 15th or even 20th last year (which I had told her on the day I moved in and she was okay with).

Look at what Soriana had: LEMONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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But check out the price compared to the little round limes:

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The Persian limes that look like green lemons were $14 a kilo, still a much better deal. That picture was worse than the one above. I have no idea how people take lovely pictures with their iPhones…

I decided to take a chance and buy some meat (went with hamburger) and saw this in the freezer. I don’t think I’ve ever seen rabbit sold at the grocery store before!

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One of the things on my list was chocolate almond milk for a recipe, but they didn’t have any on the shelf, which surprised me since the little Ley has it and Soriana had every iteration of the plain. A store clerk tapped me on the shoulder, had me turn around, pointed to a pallet in the centre of the aisle, and told me they were having a two-for-one sale on almond milk, one plain bundled with one chocolate!!! $44 for two containers was a steal! I started stocking almond milk last summer for cereal and am glad it’s so inexpensive, even here in Mexico, since I’ll be able to use it to make fruit smoothies!

From Soriana, I took a taxi (green) back to the embaradero. I decided to walk home on this side, sorely underestimating how heavy my shopping was (thanks to the beer I bought in town, which I’ve never done, because I knew the City Deli would be closed, and the almond milk). But there was a ton of traffic (possible funeral procession), so I actually wound up getting home faster than I would have in a taxi, even with all my rest stops!

It’s been a rich, full day!

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My First Torta

This week is the way life is supposed to be when you’re not retired, I think, with enough work to fill the coffers but not completely crush your soul with tedium, and plenty of time to stop and enjoy your ‘island’ paradise.

Amazingly, every single one of my clients has me on deck this week, even a couple of one-offs that I never expected to hear from again. It’s long days, but since I’m not doing the same thing hour after hour and a lot of work can be done from my armchair, it’s not hard the way my old transcription marathons were.

After finishing my eight-hour proofing shift, I went for a long beach walk, enjoying how quiet it is before the tourists come. Then, I came home to start on some graphic design-type work when an email came in asking if anyone from proofing could do a job right that minute. I knew that this writer’s copy is very clean and it wouldn’t be super tedious, so I claimed it… and may have had a beer while working on it. That done, I did a bit of work on the other project, but since I have to work on the PC and I’d already put in nearly 10 hours, I didn’t have enough patience to do much more than lay out the work to do. But at least I got started on it and have an idea of how long the job will take.

It was then time to put my feet up for a bit and read. I’ve been reading a lot since I got back to Isla and I know that chair has something to do with it! I really missed having a cozy chair and living room to retire to last winter since the sofa was so useless. I really didn’t use the house to its full potential. I’m much happier in it this year. My landlady also put something in my bedroom that she told me might be useful in my office, and she was right:

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What an amazing unit for my office! I love having a drawer for my office supplies and the printer higher up than when it was on the night table I was using last year! Some may say that she should have put a desk in here for me, too, but I don’t need one. The plastic table I was using last year is exactly the right height and size.

But I digress. By now, I’m sure you’re curious about the dang torta I mentioned in my post title… I vaguely remember reading about tortas last year, but didn’t think much of them. Maybe it’s because I’ve mastered the taco, but I seem to be seeing tortas everywhere this month and so I started to get curious. They really don’t sound like anything special, just a sandwich with a lot of stuff in it, but they’re quintessential Mexican food, so I decided to try one.

My riding friend Joan told me about a Miguel-ish restaurant at the other end of Isla, near the village embarcadero, called Estanquillo Osuna (not to be confused with the Osuna restaurant on the beach), that is open most evenings. I decided to check it out tonight.

Joan likes their papas locas (crazy potatoes), but that doesn’t appeal much to me since I’m not much of a potato fan unless they are fried Quebec style. The first thing on Osuna’s menu is tortas so I decided that I would try one. My choices were ham, carne asada (steak), pierna (similar to pulled pork, I’m told), and especial. I asked the server what the latter entailed and she slowly recited that it meant ham, steak, cheese, veggies, crema, and chiles. Sign me up!

I don’t know why, but I was expecting a cold sandwich. What arrived had been pressed on a grill, like a panino. The bread was delicate and buttery and one side had a slice of yellow (American/processed cheese). The meat had also seen the grill, with the ham reminding me of the fried baloney my dad used to serve when I was a kid (and that’s not a criticism!). On top of that were bite-sized pieces of steak, some of which were bonded with browned Chihuahua cheese (mmmmmmm), but most of which were loose and reminded me of one of Roseanne Connor’s loose meat sandwiches. There was also lettuce, onions, tomatoes, crema, and chiles, and I may have added a few extra of the chiles (and I had serranos in my lunch; I really am developing a Mexican palate!).

The whole thing was ridiculously messy, way too calorific, and incredibly delicious. Tortas are apparently a lunch food, meant to satisfy the appetite of a hard worker, not be dinner for someone who sits on her butt all day. So they’re a treat I will reserve for days when I’ve done a lot of walking. I’m told there’s a restaurant at the Mercado that does amazing pierna tortas, so I’ll plan to do that one day after a long Malecón walk!

Mexican food tends to combine a lot of different things together, and some combinations seem really odd, but I’m learning to have faith that they’ll work. I just have to avoid the mayo if at all possible. Asking for no mayo never works, even at Miguel’s, so I was really glad that the torta came with crema instead. Next thing I want to try is tostilocos!

I enjoyed eating at Osuna. It was a lot quieter than at Miguel’s (but there were still several customers), and I liked watching the lights of Maz. The price for dinner was $55 with water. A bottle of water at a restaurant is normally an outrageous $12 to $15, so I’d say the torta was probably about $40. So the prices are in line with Miguel’s, too, and it’ll be good to have that other option for a sit down restaurant now that Patty is gone (No, I’m not over it. Patty was wonderful!).

Yikes, look at the time! 7:30 is shutdown time for me since I like to be up by 4:30, 5:00 so I can hit the beach before work. You all feel sorry for me, don’t you. 😉 😉 😉

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Costs For the Trip Down to Mexico

I’m glad no one asked me in a comment about how I was handling the exchange rate in the US while I was traveling down last week because I didn’t want to talk about that until I was landed in Mexico. You see, the exchange rate wasn’t an issue for me because I was traveling with way more (USD) cash than I feel comfortable traveling with… One of my clients pays me through wire transfer into a USD account. For whatever reason, I’m not allowed to access that account from outside Canada.

So I crunched some numbers and made a large withdrawal that would cover all my fuel, hotel, food, and miscellaneous costs (like sandals), and leave me enough to pay cash for my vehicle deposit so that that amount, plus a little extra, would mean that I at least had fuel money in USD cash to get me back home in the spring.

So how did I handle the exchange rate? I refused to think about it. If I had, I wouldn’t have had nearly as good a time! I always plan my budget as though USD and CAD are at par and the currency difference, at least at this time, is ‘bonus’ money. So I didn’t get my ‘bonus’ for October, but I at least didn’t have to think about how much that $20 meal (or whatever) was ‘really’ costing me!

My fuel costs to come south were:

In the US: 244.35USD (about 330CAD)

In MX: 2,000MXN (about 170CAD)

Total: 500CAD. This is exactly what it cost me to go north in the spring!

My hotel costs were:

In the US: 463.35USD/66.19USD per night (about 610CAD/87.14CAD per night)

In MX: 1,200MXN/600MXN per night (about 102CAD/51CAD per night)

Total: 712CAD or 79CAD per night

My tolls in MX were:

About 445MXN, or about 38CAD.

Total in CAD to travel south: 1,250CAD

(I don’t count in food because I have to eat regardless of where I am so I don’t separate meals out from groceries.)

Of course, if I had less of a gas guzzler, the fuel costs could be reduced substantially. But my beloved gas guzzler will not be replaced until I know whether or not I’m moving permanently to Mexico. Anyway, she pays for her gluttony by being such a comfortable and reliable ride!

A flight to Maz round trip is about the same cost, but considering the hassle to get to the airport in Regina, the lost night of sleep because of the super short layover in Calgary, not being able to bring everything I need, and the fact that I love driving and took this as being a bit of a vacation, I am super glad that I don’t make decisions based strictly on my bottom line.

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Shopping Trip to Maz

I ended up going into Maz after all today, starved as I am for a little social stimulation. It didn’t matter how hot it was, the sun completely booted my batteries and I was happy to walk from the embarcadero to the Fisherman’s Monument. Of course, I stopped for a cold fresh pressed grapefruit juice on the way!

I failed at flagging the first bus that came by down Avenida del Mar, probably because the bus stop was just ahead and he didn’t want to stop twice (you can flag a bus down anywhere and they’ll stop if they can, not just at official bus stops). Thankfully, the second one came quickly and I rode it into the Golden Zone, getting off just past the Rafael Buelna roundabout. It was then just about a block to Taco Loco for tacos al pastor!

They were as good as last year, as were their various salsas. The server told me to try the one I call ‘pimento’ and I told him it’s my favourite… even if it burns off my taste buds! I like it on cucumbers. Their pico de gallo is perfect, there’s another spicy tomatoey sauce, and, of course, there’s avocado sauce, which is brilliant on radishes.

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Not being in need of coffee yet, I didn’t hike down to Rico’s for beans (in fact, I would be more likely to ride the bus there and then walk back). I did grab an ice cream at Thrifty’s for the walk to Soriana’s. It wound up being much quicker than I had expected. Mega might be nearly right off the bus, but, truly, it’s not that much more trouble to walk a little further to Soriana.

There, I found most of the stuff I wanted for the house. I was hoping to find a cheap shelving unit for food, but didn’t and realised that a set of plastic drawers on wheels would actually serve me better, and be something I could use back at Haven.

I spent some time looking at tablecloths, wanting one for my six-foot table and one for the dining table as it is glass with a lot of edges where food gets stuck. I easily found one for the long table that I liked, even if it matches nothing else in the house, and made a compromise for the dining table that wound up working perfectly. The dining chair seats have a bit of red in their dark browness and the tablecloth is just dark brown, but they look decent together. Folded in half, the table cloth is just the right size for the odd shaped table.

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I also needed something in which to put smaller utensils and realised while shopping for said something that the pink bucket I picked up at the Willow Bunch Thrift Store would be perfect for that! My dad’s cookie jar is still my larger utensil crock. 🙂

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And here are my new kitchen curtains. I love the purple gingham and the sunflowers, even if the material is cheap and the edges are unfinished.

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I came out of Soriana and a taxi driver promptly accosted me. I’ve never ridden in a taxi in Maz, just in the pulmonías and aurigas. I would have preferred a pulmonía but there were none in sight and the driver quoted me the same price, so I accepted his offer. He loaded the car for me and then took me on a dizzying ride through some familiar, and some completely unknown, parts of Maz. What fun! I told him that I liked having a different route than I was used to and he asked how I would have normally gone from Soriana (Ejercito Mexicano). He frowned and said, “Too much traffic!”

The package carrier guy at the embarcadero came right over and took all my bags and drawer unit. He was loaded down and gasped, “Boat?” in heavily accepted English. I said yes and he promptly ran down to square my things away while I bought my ticket. Let me tell you, I wouldn’t have trusted that process NOB!

On the other side, a teenage boy helped me get my things into the back of the pickup taxi that looks just like my Moya and refused a tip! The truck driver wasn’t too sure where I lived even though the instructions I gave him have been perfectly clear to other taxi drivers. He at least knew where my street was and then I told him, “a little further, on the right, with a truck like yours in the yard.” That last bit helped him more than the house description! He brought everything to my front door. Home!

Let me tell you, I wouldn’t schlep home on public transportation with that much stuff NOB. But a few pesos in Mexico buys a lot of help and it’s not unusual to see someone lugging home a ton of stuff on the lanchas, whether it be a ton of shopping, a fridge, or an ATV!

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There was a casualty to my adventure… My butter got totally squished and quite melted! For some reason, I chose to buy two sticks and I was able to just barely salvage one, so it’s not a total loss. Good thing butter (and all dairy, actually) is so cheap in Mexico!

I actually didn’t come home with much in the way of groceries, but I should be able to get through most of the week. It’s not like Ley is that far away if I need anything I can’t find at the City Deli!

One sad note to close off with: Patty’s restaurant, which had the great burger and fries, is closed. 🙁 🙁 🙁 I’ll have to find another place open for lunch that isn’t a beach restaurant.