Accommodation

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Conversation With the Veggie Guy

I had a nice conversation with the veggie guy today that I wanted to discuss in a separate post. I’m noticing that my conversational Spanish is most definitely improving!

The conversation started with my asking him how to say broccoli in Spanish. He gave me a bemused smile and said brócoli. Well, that one’s easy!

I said that I love that veggie, but my favourite is green beans (ejotes). He asked how I cook them and I said I usually have them raw as a snack. I didn’t have that word, so said between lunch and dinner and he understood. If I cook them, I might use some lime juice or garlic to give them kick, but usually have them plain. He showed me how fresh his beans are by snapping them.

This was a good place to praise him for the quality of his veggies and he said that he gets fresh ones every day, except for bananas, because Isla residents like them super ripe. He gets not so ripe ones for the Gringos. I said that I take the super ripe ones and put them in the freezer and he laughed, saying that folks on Isla do that, cover them in chocolate (‘chocobananas’) and sell them for a lot (¡muy caro!).

He then asked me how long I’m staying and I said till the end of April and I’d like to see him more often. 😀

We then moved onto where am I from, yes it’s cold there right now, yes I love the heat and sun here!

He asked if I’m enjoying Isla and Maz and I said yes. Isla is a little noisy, but I live in a tiny village, so being able to walk to a bar and grocery store is great, plus Maz is so close by.

I told him about going to listen to music last Friday and that I’m going again tomorrow night and that it’s great that everything is so close by.

He asked how I got there and I said that I walked there, but took a pulmonía back to the panga. He said that’s the right thing to do, very safe to walk around the Plaza Machado, but not such a great idea to go from there to the panga on foot, even as a group, after eight or so.

We covered a lot, didn’t we?! All in Spanish! Sure, my verb tenses were all over the place and I sometimes had to talk around words (‘the thing that makes ice’ for the freezer, for example), but we understood each other perfectly!

I really need to find a conversational teacher, someone with whom I could discuss the news one week, cooking another, Mexican culture another, etc. I’ll have to ask around and see if I can get any recommendations. I need someone not just to talk to, but to correct my verb tenses, grammar, and help me build my vocabulary and learn idiomatic phrases and whatnot. I’m making giant steps on my own, but I definitely need some help to improve! I really want to find out the nuances between gustaría, quisiera, and quiero for ‘I would like X, please’, for one!

One thing I am making an effort on is talking to people at stores if they seem even remotely inclined to be chatty, especially here on Isla. The gal at the City Deli is always busy, but usually finds time to ask me how I’m doing and such. It’s not much, but it’s more than when I first got here!

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You Don’t Need a Car in Mazatlán

I had a Skype call with my mother the other day and one of the things that came up was the cost of driving here versus my savings over the winter (which will merit a post of its own at some point).

One of the things I said was that I’m looking into flying here next year rather than driving to save some time, but that it’s a little more expensive than driving straight here and taking a hotel a couple of nights.

She was surprised by this, wondering if I really want to be here without a vehicle. The short answer is yes.

The only advantage of having a vehicle here is to go on day drips and explore the environs. But getting to Isla by The Road is such a pain that leaving that way isn’t very enticing, so day trips are pretty much out of the question. Besides, there is so much to do in Maz itself that it would take years to fully unravel the mysteries of the city. And you definitely don’t want to drive in Maz unless you have to!

What surprised my mother is just how accessible Maz is to me from Isla, that between a walk and a panga ride, I can be back from a proper grocery store in less than an hour, something I can’t do back home! There is an incredible amount I can walk to once I get to Maz and things that are too far away are easily accessible with very inexpensive and expansive public transportation. I’ll be exploring the buses very soon!

Much as I love driving, I prefer public transportation in a large city when the public transportation is inexpensive and easy to use. When I lived in Gatineau my last year in Quebec, I could take an Ottawa bus two blocks from my house. $1.50 allowed me to take a round trip to just about anywhere in the city. I’d frequently take a bus to a particular area and then walk to where I needed to go before getting on a bus home. I didn’t have to deal with parking and traffic and could make all the stops I wanted as long as I was on my last bus before the time limit for return expired.

Ottawa has, I believe, the absolute best public transportation system in all of Canada and I made heavy use of it when I could. Even when I lived in the country, I knew where to drop my car cheaply so I could grab a bus instead.

Mazatlán is offering the same vibe as my favourite Canadian city. Walkability and public transportation make it so accessible that I would not feel handicapped being here without a vehicle. I just have to decide if I could bring everything I need in a couple of suitcases!

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My Isla Kitchen, Revisited

I’m someone who needs to cogitate a problem before finding a solution. My Isla kitchen wasn’t working for me and I’d identified a lot of the issues in my post about it, but what to do about them? I thought long and hard about my kitchen in Miranda and what it’s taken to make it just about perfect for me. What lessons there could I apply to the kitchen here?

The first one was a huge duh: PURGE. There was tons of stuff in the cabinets that I don’t use. But I can’t throw anything away… No. But there’s a huge empty space under the sink and I have a couple of empty Rubbermaid totes…

After writing my last post about my day in Maz, I went back to the kitchen and emptied everything that I don’t use, right down to the toaster, into a single tote, which I tucked out of sight. I then arranged everything I do use into the cabinets and, low and behold, there was room for food!

I was able to clear off the top of the microwave and move my food processor to a more logical location. The end result is so much more functional for me and all it took was five minutes! I’m glad I didn’t throw money at the problem, although I will now spend a little to get an extra shelf for the far cabinet (to double the space in it) as well as a basket of some sort for the spices.

I know it's not ideal to store spices and such next to the stove, but this works. I will pick up a nice bucket at Waldo's at some point to store them in to make clean up easier.

I know it’s not ideal to store spices and such next to the stove, but this works. I will pick up a nice basket at Waldo’s at some point to store them in to make clean up easier.

Look at that!

Look at that! Middle bottom shelf, you can see on the far left my big box of powdered milk for the coffee and right next to it is my jar of yummy Isla honey. And then, lots o’ coffee. 🙂

The kitchen looks so much less crowded and cleaner now. I do need to get rid of the duck between the stove and crock (it holds matches).

The kitchen looks so much less crowded and cleaner now. I do need to get rid of the duck between the stove and utensil bucket (it holds matches).

My crock is full of not just the large cooking utensils, but also the eating ones, my can opener (glad I brought one!), and my BBQ lighter. During the purge, I found a large chopping knife that looks pretty sharp.

My utensil bucket is full of not just the large cooking utensils, but also the eating ones, my can opener (glad I brought one!), and my BBQ lighter. During the purge, I found a large chopping knife that looks pretty sharp that should be better than the steak knives for chopping veggies. One thing I forgot to pick up today is a couple of butter knives for spreading things like cream cheese. I can’t believe there isn’t a single one in this kitchen!

One thing I miss is my tiny strainer for collecting the pits from limes and lemons. This set was overkill, but at just 150 pesos, it was worth it just to never have to bit down into another lime pit again this winter! They should be good for jalapeño seeds, too!

One thing I miss from home is my tiny strainer for collecting the pits from limes and lemons. This set was overkill, but at just 15 pesos, it was worth it just to never have to bite down into another lime pit again this winter! They will be good for jalapeño seeds, too, as well as rinsing rice and lentils! I use both a colander and two sizes of strainers at Haven, so these will bring some sense of normalcy to my kitchen. 🙂

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Live Music at Macaws in Mazatlán

Dale drove down to Maz with a musician friend who plays at a bunch of venues around Maz. She’s been wanting to go hear him play since she got here, but was leery of going out alone after dark. Now that we’re both comfortable going from the panga to the historical district, going out after dark didn’t feel like a big issue.

She swung by my place at 5:00 and we headed out to the panga at around 5:15, already dusk, with a huge moon hanging over Isla. It was getting on dark when we landed. We had decided to walk to the venue, a B&B/restaurant called Macaws, but take a pulmonía back.

We walked down Emilio Barragán to Constitución, which took us to the Plaza Machado. It was so different from the plaza during the day, lined with restaurant tables and full of vendors and live music!

At the end of it, we had to turn left, then immediately right, and then walked more or less straight down to Macaws, which is right in front of the art museum.

Dale wasn’t hungry, but I decided to order dinner. Being tired of Mexican food (*sheepish grin*), I was very happy to order a burger, 60 pesos for a basic one with fries, but I added a whopping (*tongue firmly in cheek*) 30 pesos worth of pepper jack cheese, sautéed onions, and bacon. It was a really good burger, missing only a bit of mustard and relish, but otherwise as good as anything I could get back home.

The music tonight was jazz and absolutely lovely, providing atmosphere, but not so much volume that we couldn’t talk. My favourite song was their rendition of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’, played very slow and melancholy. I said to Dale that I think I live over the rainbow and she clinked my beer bottle in agreement!

Dale is a slow drinker and had just one beer. I like mine cold, so I easily made my way through two. 🙂

At one point, an older gentleman sat with us because the place was quite full and he and I had a nice chat while Dale and her friend headed out to see another friend during a break in the music. He’s from Vancouver, is sailing, and is anchored in Maz.

Macaws makes homemade ice cream and Dale had decided when I ordered my burger that she was going to order their Butterfinger ice cream near the end of the evening. I asked if they had chocolate, yes, so I caved and got some too. OMG. Dale and I are pretty sure it was the best ice cream we have had in our lives! I couldn’t have had a full dish of the delicious Butterfinger (I have trouble now with ice cream that has a lot of extra stuff in it like caramel), but the chocolate was perfect with me and I had no trouble with the bitter chunks of dark chocolate that studded the ice cream.

It wasn’t a cheap night for me in pesos, almost 300 after the tips to the waiter and band, but such good value!

We left Macaws at about nine after the music was done and Dale could say goodbye to her friend. We then walked back to Plaza Machado. We had a look at all the wares and no one was pushy, to my immense surprise.

I somehow managed to come here without a notebook or much paper and have been scrambling to take notes, so I’ve had a notebook on my shopping list. Before going to Macaws, I had seen some beautiful notebooks made of recycled paper, the covers of which featured artwork that could later be framed. One struck me in particular and I was still thinking about it as we headed home.

On the first pass around the plaza, I saw that it was still there and as we walked around, I thought about how much I would be willing to pay, settling on 50 pesos. I stopped a third time in front of the table and asked how much. 50 pesos! I offered 35 and the guy said absolutely not, no less than 40. Sold!

We then headed to where all the pulmonías stop and I asked how much to get to the panga. How much were we willing to pay? Dale said no more than 40. The guy said, ha, no less than 50. Dale said that we would walk. The guy said fine, 45. We both found that pricey for the short distance that we were going, but fine split two ways. It really makes me realise that my trip yesterday from the Golden Zone was a good deal!

The panga runs at the regular price until midnight, when it jumps to a whopping 60 pesos each way. It was only 9:40 when we got to the dock, so we paid just 8 pesos each.

Dale doesn’t wear her reading glasses and relies heavily on me to sort out her currency when we’re together. I said drily to the rather morose cashier that Dale needed her glasses and the cashier burst out laughing, which was very rewarding. Dale said that ‘gafas’ is her word of the day.

The panga arrived after about five minutes, the first time I’ve had to wait for one. After that, home was only about 10 minutes away and I made it home at just about bang on 10:00.

We’re both so glad that we went out tonight. I would feel perfectly comfortable going out like that on my own, with the pulmonía ride back. The area around Plaza Machado was hopping and the ambiance was warm and welcoming. But Dale is eager to go try out another venue her friend plays at, so I doubt I’ll have much need to go out alone!

The singer. Notice the light above her is shaped like a firefly!

The singer. Notice the light above her is shaped like a firefly!

The best chocolate ice cream I have ever had in my life, even better than the best gelato.

The best chocolate ice cream I have ever had in my life, even better than the best gelato.

Butterfinger has peanut butter in it.

Butterfinger has peanut butter in it.

The lights of home.

The lights of home.

Ship in the harbour on the Maz side.

Ship in the harbour on the Maz side.

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My Kitchen On Isla

My kitchen on Isla is proving to be just adequate. I know that I’m spoiled by my just about perfect for me kitchen in Miranda so my standards are high, but there are serious issues with this kitchen. I’m not a fussy cook who needs a ton of equipment, but if I’m going to be living somewhere for a few months, I’m a little more particular.

First, the good stuff about this kitchen. The fridge is huge, newish, and runs cold. The stove has four burners and an oven and, most importantly, runs on gas. The microwave is super powerful and may actually get me hooked on making some things in the microwave. There’s more counter space than I’m used to having. There are some nice pots and pans and all the absolute basics, like plates, cups, utensils, and serving bowls.

But… considering the size of this house, the amount of storage in the kitchen is absolutely ridiculous and inadequate (and, yes, I know that it apparently has more storage than the average Mexican home). Unfortunately, the unit between the fridge and stove was left out in the damp and smells absolutely mildewy. I would not feel comfortable storing anything in it.

So much potential for storage, but the smell is terrible. :(

So much potential for storage, but the smell is terrible. 🙁

Same thing with the cavernous under sink storage area. I’m fine with storing empty totes and my water bottle there, but forget using it for food storage.

The cabinet above the counter is adequate for storing food prep items, but there’s a serious lack of pantry space.

I've filled this cabinet to the brim!

I’ve filled this cabinet to the brim!

The pots and pans are nice (I LOVE the wok-type pan), but there’s no lids for the smaller pots. The plates and bowls are plastic, which is already staining. I am going to pick up a single setting in china because there’s no way I’m going to make it through the winter without ruining those plates. I also need a decent sized mixing bowl and I’d like something other than my cast iron pan as ovenware.

I also dislike that there’s only a single bowl sink, but at least it’s big and deep.

But my biggest complaint is that the kitchen is so far from the water heater that I can let the water run for a half hour and it never gets hotter than tepid. I’ve been heating a bowl of water in the microwave to do my dishes. It’s a pain when I’m washing up a lot of things, like I did tonight.

When I was packing back home, I made the decision to bring quite a bit of kitchen stuff, including my beloved cast iron pan, a lot of my cooking utensils like tongs and serving spoons (the ones here are plastic, which I dislike, so good call!), and my food processor.

I wish I had known to bring a colander (bought one), a cheese grater (for shredding veggies), a chopping knife, china place settings, a mixing bowl, a Pyrex dish for oven cooking, and my pots.

A pantry would make the single biggest difference to this kitchen. I am thinking of suggesting to the landlady that I could pick up a pantry cabinet at Walmart or Home Depot and seeing if she’d be willing to take that off my rent. There’s plenty of room for one.

Even though this kitchen is far from ideal, I’m making it work! I took advantage of being able to cook again by making quite a spread for dinner.

Haven't had to use the four burners yet. I rarely use all three burners at home; not enough space on my stove! :)

Haven’t had to use the four burners at the same time yet. I rarely use three burners at home; not enough space on my stove for that many pots and pans! 🙂

The veggies are carrots, chayote, and white onion, with some spices. There’s also rice cooked in chicken broth. Finally, there’s the chicken that I purchased today. I cubed it with my kitchen shears (which I brought!) and marinated it in soy sauce, lime juice, a bit of sugar, and a roughly chopped red onion, adding a bit more soy sauce at the end.

Fun fact about chicken in Mexico: it’s corn fed, so the meat is kind of pale orangey and the fat is bright yellow! I’m glad I knew that or I would have been quite concerned about my chicken today! At any rate, it was very flavourful and moist!

Yummy dinner. I was getting a little tired of 'Mexicany' flavours.

Yummy dinner. I was getting a little tired of ‘Mexicany’ flavours.

All whining aside, I’m really glad to have a kitchen I can use here, remembering all too clearly the dingy kitchen in the apartment I rented in Lethbridge for the ’11 to ’12 winter. I can tell that this place wasn’t designed or set up for someone who does a lot of cooking. I’ll make do this year and if I come back, I’ll know what to pack!