We have been here for two months now, and have learned a lot of the ropes of living here. Mind you, we are sure there will be many more lessons to be learned, but we thought we would chronicle them as we come across them.
One of the first lessons we learned was patience when dealing with people who you want to hire for various projects. Innumerable times we have heard that we would be called "tomorrow" or that someone would come to give an estimate, and several weeks later it may happen, or in one case it never did happen. This particular instance had us laughing. We wanted some wrought iron curtain rods, and went to a local fellow who was having a grand opening of a new shop. Let's call him R. R took Nancy's phone number and said he would call the next day. We heard nothing for a week. So Nancy called, and made an appointment for R to come out on "Monday at 3:15". He never came. We went to his store and spoke with him again. He wrote down what we were looking for , and the measurements, and said he would call the next day to give a price. He asked Nancy for her phone number. Nancy spotted her number on a list on his desk and said, "Use that number right there". So he laughed, and said he would, and we have not heard from him yet! The next day we went to a local ironworks and ordered the rods, and got them in two days. Probably the same place R would have gone to.
We had new awnings made to shield both sun and wind on our terrace. After taking measurements, the lady called to make sure she had the right phone number. So we asked when she would be coming up to install. She said, "next week". Four weeks later they came up and installed them! No phone call, they were just suddenly there. (the awnings are beautiful, tho)
Mind you, not all contractors are time-challenged like that. But we are learning that either no one comes, or everyone comes at the same time. Friday we had painters, concrete layers, the maid, and our friends the Almanzas, all at once!
There are a couple of things of note. The craftsmanship is absolutely of top quality. Many of the trades that you can get here are no longer available in the US or only at a very high cost. Because many of the conveniences available in the US are not available here, the craftsmen have talents that are essentially lost, or too costly in the US. For example, painters that can mix paint by eye and match precisely what you are looking for without the aid of a computerized machine. Or how about highly skilled masons and bricklayers, who mix their own cement, cut the stones to size or make a domed ceiling of brick? We have noticed that each trade is typical of many years ago in the US, where you have the master, the journeyman and the apprentice. For example, we had a concrete terrace installed and the apprentice graded the area with a shovel, the journeyman laid the concrete, using a cement mixer, and the master put in the stone steps and gave early morning instructions. It definitely is like the 1950's, and we love it.
Also when you have contractors come in, they give you an estimate and then request a deposit that essentially covers purchase of any materials. Then, they WILL NOT take final payment until the job is complete and you are satisfied. Since this is a cash society, you give them their payment in pesos and invariably they never count it, trusting that you gave the correct amount. They work 8:30 to 5:30 Monday through Friday and then 8:30 until 2:00 pm on Saturday. They are very hard working and very considerate. We are very happy with the work that has been done so far.
The painters finally arrived this last week and have begun cleaning up the walls and painting. The prepping of the walls is messy and time consuming, as they scrape, and dig out and fill any areas they think are not up to par. (Our walls are not sheet rock, they are brick and concrete) These guys are real artists, and our challenge is to keep up with their suggestions for colors. They can view a color, put a large sample on the wall to give you an idea of what it will look like all over. They don't mind doing it over and over. In one case they have given us six samples on the wall for us to decide. Oh, and when we say sample, we mean a swatch about six or more feet wide and ceiling to floor. It isn't just a little chip on the wall. So you can get a good handle on whether you can live with what you thought you wanted. But now we have to decide, and it definitely is not easy. Many of the final decisions we will leave with them because they are true "maestros".
Speaking of a cash society, we enjoy it because our visa account is generally around zero and there never are any checks outstanding to forget about when checking your bank account. The only problem is leaving the house with sufficient cash. Today we went to Walmart and we thought we had plenty of money with us, but when we got to the case register we realized we had barely enough. And it is the rare store that takes credit cards.
Now for the major thing we learned. Utility bills, electric and telephone, are your your responsibility to pay, whether you get the bill or not. Typically the bill is delivered to your house, or in our case, to the front gate. If you don't get your bill on time and are late in paying, they cut your power or telephone off without notice. No grace period. And it will usually cost you a penalty to get it turned back on. Last week we received our first electric bill on a Tuesday, and the power was turned off two days later, and it took five days and many phone calls by different people to get it turned back on. It turns out, when we received the bill, it was already overdue. But we didn't know that. And they didn't care. Now we know that our next bill "should" be here mid-August. Whether we see it or not, we are going down to pay the bill before the end of August. Being without power is not fun!! Oh yeah, you don't ever pay your bills by mail, you go somewhere (maybe a little booth set up in a paint store for a week) to pay it. But many things that we would have paid monthly can be paid annually here, so there are really only a couple of bills to remember.
The other significant thing we have learned is that a large portion of the people we deal with do not speak English. You can get by without Spanish but you are really limiting yourself and what you can get done. And you will never be part of the culture. So we have begun taking Spanish classes with a language school for missionaries. It is three hours a day four or five days a week. There is homework and there are exams!! It is difficult getting back into doing homework again after all these years. However, we anticipate, because of the accelerated rate of this program, that by the end of this calendar year we should be quite fluent in Spanish, at least that is the hope. After being in class for only two weeks we already have been successful in negotiating with various contractors what we wanted done. Our gardener is grateful that we are willing to learn Spanish and has taken it upon himself to help us by expanding our vocabulary as well as perfecting our pronunciation. We find that most people are like that here.
A fascinating and comforting lesson for us is the weather this far South. People generally believe that when you are only 20 degrees North latitude of the equator, that the weather at this time of year would be intolerably hot. We looked at the weather forecast for Lake Camanche in California, where right now they are setting up Survival Camp. It looks like the temperature there will be in the low 100's. In comparison, on our way home from church today around 12:30 pm, the outside temperature was 62 degrees and we are almost 2,000 miles closer to the equator! Go figure. We see another value of cobblestone streets - they focus the water (rivers of it) when it rains.
To give you another glimpse of things going on and views of the area, here are some more pictures for your entertainment.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Friday, July 6, 2007
We are getting there
We just wanted to make sure everyone knew we were not still living with boxes all over the place! The only things remaining in boxes are books, videos, DVD's and office supplies, as bookcases, entertainment center and a desk are in the process of being built. We actually are having the desk/secretary made by a local furniture maker. It will be seven feet tall and five feet wide, made out of SOLID wood and hand carved trim around bookcase, drawers and doors. You would not believe the price tag!! Also we have a carpenter coming in to build an entertainment center with shelving for our "video store" as well as a bookcase in our music room. Until those are done, we still have some boxes.
You can see what the house looks like in the places where the boxes don't exist in the attached set of photos. We also threw a couple of special interest photos in, so you can better see how life is down here. One thing we have found true, it only rains at night. Had another big storm last night. It sure keeps the days fresh and cool.
We found a wonderful Mexican church with about 60 adults and a large number of children and teenagers. Fortunately someone always sits by us to translate the sermon since it is all in Spanish. The good news is that it will force us to learn Spanish more rapidly. The Mexican people sure know how to sing and they mean what they are singing. We are enjoying it very much.
As far as the Bible Study that we have talked about before, it looks like we will begin sometime mid-August. Finishing decorating our house, learning Spanish and preparing for the Bible Study are the three highest priority items at this point. So it is keeping us very busy. The hot tub feels good at the end of each taxing day. (OK, this is a joke. We spend a lot of time puttering and exploring. But that is taxing, too, right?)
Painting and carpentry work should be complete by the end of July so we will post pictures of the whole house when that is all done so you can get a better idea of how we are doing with our house. It was a beautiful house before, and it will be even more beautiful when we're done!
You can see what the house looks like in the places where the boxes don't exist in the attached set of photos. We also threw a couple of special interest photos in, so you can better see how life is down here. One thing we have found true, it only rains at night. Had another big storm last night. It sure keeps the days fresh and cool.
We found a wonderful Mexican church with about 60 adults and a large number of children and teenagers. Fortunately someone always sits by us to translate the sermon since it is all in Spanish. The good news is that it will force us to learn Spanish more rapidly. The Mexican people sure know how to sing and they mean what they are singing. We are enjoying it very much.
As far as the Bible Study that we have talked about before, it looks like we will begin sometime mid-August. Finishing decorating our house, learning Spanish and preparing for the Bible Study are the three highest priority items at this point. So it is keeping us very busy. The hot tub feels good at the end of each taxing day. (OK, this is a joke. We spend a lot of time puttering and exploring. But that is taxing, too, right?)
Painting and carpentry work should be complete by the end of July so we will post pictures of the whole house when that is all done so you can get a better idea of how we are doing with our house. It was a beautiful house before, and it will be even more beautiful when we're done!
Sunday, June 24, 2007
The Cat Came Back
Ever since our friend Julie moved into a new place, she has been trying to give us a cat (evidently it came with her house). I have been saying "No, I don't want an unknown, unseen cat". But the other night Julie had a party for us and I saw the cat. Beautiful long hair, black and white, yellow eyes, and very friendly. I said, "When Andrew goes home (he's allergic), we'll come get the cat."
After Andrew left, we picked up the cat, now named Jackson, and took it right to the vet. We find out she's a girl, fixed (very unusual here!) very healthy, no parasites, about 4 years old, she only needs her shots and her teeth cleaned. The vet charged $60, and that included shots and 3 months of flea protection) So we took her home, and she ran under the couch and spent the next hour throwing up. Then she goes outside and she doesn't come back. All night. And the next day. Ok, I guess she didn't really want to move.
So late last night, she came back. She stayed in all night, slept with us, knows how to use a litter box. We have a cat. Meet Jackson.
After Andrew left, we picked up the cat, now named Jackson, and took it right to the vet. We find out she's a girl, fixed (very unusual here!) very healthy, no parasites, about 4 years old, she only needs her shots and her teeth cleaned. The vet charged $60, and that included shots and 3 months of flea protection) So we took her home, and she ran under the couch and spent the next hour throwing up. Then she goes outside and she doesn't come back. All night. And the next day. Ok, I guess she didn't really want to move.
So late last night, she came back. She stayed in all night, slept with us, knows how to use a litter box. We have a cat. Meet Jackson.
Saturday, June 23, 2007
3 Weeks Later
I can't believe that 3 weeks have gone by! Here's a quick update:
We got here on June 2, and had to get along with the things we had brought in the truck for a few days. We shared the house with a lot of Daddy-Long-Legs, because the screens were out being replaced. On June 4th, the screens came back, Thursday June 7th the movers brought our stuff (there had been a delay because one of the 7 crates had not arrived in Laredo with the rest, and they had to wait till they were all there to cross the border). On June 9 we got Internet (!!!), which also meant we once again had a US phone, and on the 11th our Dishnet was hooked up. One of the moving guys was stung by a scorpion while collecting empty boxes, and we saw a couple more than I am comfortable with (which is none), so we had the place fumigated. The only good scorpion is a dead one. We haven't had any more problems with them, but we are careful about walking around barefooted.
Walt didn't feel good, and thought he might have an infection, and now we know the quality of Mexican health care. So far we have only good things to say! He got an appointment an hour after he called, and for $230 each US, we can have unlimited visits with all the Drs at the clinic for a year, (housecalls included ) and discounts on other services. Lab tests were $35, a prescription was $15. He loved how the Dr really listened to him, and next week we are both going in with our medical records, just to chat. Walt is much better, too, by the way.
For my part, I have a certain frustration with how slow it is to get things started...For those of you who are old enough, the Cat Stevens song, "Father and Son" keeps running through my head, the son always in a hurry and the father telling him to relax. But I would love to get the rest of my books and videos out of the boxes, which requires shelving to be built, and I'd like to hang up all the art, but the walls aren't painted yet, and I want to have some window treatments made and a chair recovered. (Today I found someone to do that, so I feel a little more relaxed. ) We have a wonderful maid who comes in 3 afternoons a week, and a great gardener who has loved our garden for the last 6 years, and will continue to do so. But you can't just run to the mall or find someone in the yellow pages here, it takes word of mouth to get things done. And not everyone has a phone, or speaks English. We have got to get cracking on our Spanish lessons!
We had a great time with Andrew here; he met a lot of our friends, wrote some music, painted, took a ton of photos, and just fell in love with this area. He did a lot of translating for us,too. I know he'll be back often.
One thing that is absolutely wonderful about this area is the food. I have cooked twice since we've been here. There are just so many excellent restaurants, and all nationalities, and reasonably priced. We already had our favorites, but now we have some new ones.
Tomorrow we're going to visit a little home-church in Ixtlahuacan with our friends Sara and Enrique (if we can find it!). Next week Enrique will be coming to help me choose paint colors, someone is coming to measure for shades and to pick up the chair, and we are going to Guadalajara to sign up for IMSS ( insurance program for major medical issues). Hopefully the next update will not take 3 weeks.
The rain season began about a week ago with a couple of tremendous storms. The lightening and thunder were awesome to see and hear. We have get used to shutting windows when the winds hit.
Here are a few glimpses of our first few weeks.
We got here on June 2, and had to get along with the things we had brought in the truck for a few days. We shared the house with a lot of Daddy-Long-Legs, because the screens were out being replaced. On June 4th, the screens came back, Thursday June 7th the movers brought our stuff (there had been a delay because one of the 7 crates had not arrived in Laredo with the rest, and they had to wait till they were all there to cross the border). On June 9 we got Internet (!!!), which also meant we once again had a US phone, and on the 11th our Dishnet was hooked up. One of the moving guys was stung by a scorpion while collecting empty boxes, and we saw a couple more than I am comfortable with (which is none), so we had the place fumigated. The only good scorpion is a dead one. We haven't had any more problems with them, but we are careful about walking around barefooted.
Walt didn't feel good, and thought he might have an infection, and now we know the quality of Mexican health care. So far we have only good things to say! He got an appointment an hour after he called, and for $230 each US, we can have unlimited visits with all the Drs at the clinic for a year, (housecalls included ) and discounts on other services. Lab tests were $35, a prescription was $15. He loved how the Dr really listened to him, and next week we are both going in with our medical records, just to chat. Walt is much better, too, by the way.
For my part, I have a certain frustration with how slow it is to get things started...For those of you who are old enough, the Cat Stevens song, "Father and Son" keeps running through my head, the son always in a hurry and the father telling him to relax. But I would love to get the rest of my books and videos out of the boxes, which requires shelving to be built, and I'd like to hang up all the art, but the walls aren't painted yet, and I want to have some window treatments made and a chair recovered. (Today I found someone to do that, so I feel a little more relaxed. ) We have a wonderful maid who comes in 3 afternoons a week, and a great gardener who has loved our garden for the last 6 years, and will continue to do so. But you can't just run to the mall or find someone in the yellow pages here, it takes word of mouth to get things done. And not everyone has a phone, or speaks English. We have got to get cracking on our Spanish lessons!
We had a great time with Andrew here; he met a lot of our friends, wrote some music, painted, took a ton of photos, and just fell in love with this area. He did a lot of translating for us,too. I know he'll be back often.
One thing that is absolutely wonderful about this area is the food. I have cooked twice since we've been here. There are just so many excellent restaurants, and all nationalities, and reasonably priced. We already had our favorites, but now we have some new ones.
Tomorrow we're going to visit a little home-church in Ixtlahuacan with our friends Sara and Enrique (if we can find it!). Next week Enrique will be coming to help me choose paint colors, someone is coming to measure for shades and to pick up the chair, and we are going to Guadalajara to sign up for IMSS ( insurance program for major medical issues). Hopefully the next update will not take 3 weeks.
The rain season began about a week ago with a couple of tremendous storms. The lightening and thunder were awesome to see and hear. We have get used to shutting windows when the winds hit.
Here are a few glimpses of our first few weeks.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Our Third Day in Mexico
This day would be the second longest of our drives. We expected six hours from Mazatlan to Ajijic. We wanted to get to our house early in the afternoon so left Mazatlan about 8:00 am. There was a MacDonalds right down the way from the hotel so we decided to get a good old American breakfast there. Turns out McMexico is a bit different than CA, but still good. Mazatlan was interesting to get out of. Fortunately the streets were pretty clearly marked and we didn’t get lost. However, traffic was a little bit heavier than other places. As we left the city limits, the toll road all of a sudden became a two lane highway. It was rather narrow for just a bit but then had large shoulders that trucks would use to pull over so you could pass them. This part of the toll road was very new and enjoyable to drive along. Again, there was very little traffic on the toll road, so we could keep up a reasonable pace. Perhaps not the speed we're used to on a California Interstate, but considering Federales, topes and toll booths, quite acceptable indeed.
We thought there would be good cruising between Mazatlan and Guadalajara since they are both major cities. However, as we approached a rather large town called Tepic, we were faced with a detour. Mexico has always been a reminder of how life was in the 50’s. The detour was like the detours Walt remembers in the 50’s – narrow, rough and tricky. An older gentleman stopped us just to make sure we didn't head the wrong way. So we had a few miles to cover on this detour-a challenge with our big Ford F150. Once the detour was over we came to the best road of the entire trip. This lasted all the way into Guadalajara. The road was four lanes wide with very wide shoulders and smooth. Again, very little traffic. It's the off season.
Once we got to Guadalajara, we were on the portion of the road that we drove on last March, so we were in familiar territory – it felt good. It was Saturday afternoon so traffic was heavier than the last time we saw it. The reason we were along this road in March was to check out Costco, Sam's and the large modern shopping center – not really a challenge to a Westfield Shopping Center, but nonetheless Nancy assures me that she can get MAC cosmetics there. By the way, there are Home Depots, Walmarts, Outback and Chili's in Guadalajara. No Macy's.
We finally ended up in Ajijic at 3:15. No, it didn’t take seven hours, we forgot about the time change. So we had a little more than six hour drive but then lost an hour. Since we had not stopped for lunch we decided we would stop for dinner at one of our favorite places, Tony's, and we got up to the house around 4:30. Andrew took movies as we drove the last few miles along the carretera and then up the street to our house and right up to the front door. Since this is the first house that we have ever purchased together, I carried Nancy across the threshold – that was fun.
Again, a small collection of photos. Actually the best is the six minute movie Andrew took from our arrival into Ajijic to driving right into our carport.
We thought there would be good cruising between Mazatlan and Guadalajara since they are both major cities. However, as we approached a rather large town called Tepic, we were faced with a detour. Mexico has always been a reminder of how life was in the 50’s. The detour was like the detours Walt remembers in the 50’s – narrow, rough and tricky. An older gentleman stopped us just to make sure we didn't head the wrong way. So we had a few miles to cover on this detour-a challenge with our big Ford F150. Once the detour was over we came to the best road of the entire trip. This lasted all the way into Guadalajara. The road was four lanes wide with very wide shoulders and smooth. Again, very little traffic. It's the off season.
Once we got to Guadalajara, we were on the portion of the road that we drove on last March, so we were in familiar territory – it felt good. It was Saturday afternoon so traffic was heavier than the last time we saw it. The reason we were along this road in March was to check out Costco, Sam's and the large modern shopping center – not really a challenge to a Westfield Shopping Center, but nonetheless Nancy assures me that she can get MAC cosmetics there. By the way, there are Home Depots, Walmarts, Outback and Chili's in Guadalajara. No Macy's.
We finally ended up in Ajijic at 3:15. No, it didn’t take seven hours, we forgot about the time change. So we had a little more than six hour drive but then lost an hour. Since we had not stopped for lunch we decided we would stop for dinner at one of our favorite places, Tony's, and we got up to the house around 4:30. Andrew took movies as we drove the last few miles along the carretera and then up the street to our house and right up to the front door. Since this is the first house that we have ever purchased together, I carried Nancy across the threshold – that was fun.
Again, a small collection of photos. Actually the best is the six minute movie Andrew took from our arrival into Ajijic to driving right into our carport.
Our Second Day in Mexico
We had a good rest in the hotel that we chose in Guasave. We woke up around 7 in the morning with a plan to leave around 8:00 am. We were hoping to get breakfast somewhere along the way, a donut shop, a MacDonalds, actually anything. As we were driving through Guasave there were vendors at various stop lights with orange juice, baked goods and even burritos. So we had our answer to breakfast – stop for a red light and have car side service with breakfast! Such a cool deal. We will never gripe about those "Tope" vendors again!
We knew that the day would be a short one, as we were only going to try to get to Mazatlan - we figured we owed it to ourselves to at least have one day at one of Mexico’s resorts. So we began heading down the Mexico 15 toll road, or cuoto in Spanish. We actually had shoulders on the highway now and it was wide open. Very little traffic to be seen any where.
We figured on being in Mazatlan around noon and actually made it there slightly before noon. So we headed towards the hotels and the beach. As soon as we came alongside the ocean the first hotel we spotted on the beach looked very attractive. We thought it would be extremely expensive. It turns out it was low season, so there were very few if any tourists. The impact? – lower hotel prices. We were on the sixth floor in a grand suite with two bedrooms and two bathrooms overlooking the ocean. Andrew spent the afternoon wandering around the area and Nancy and Walt ate pizza, walked along the beach for a bit and then looked at some of the shops surrounding the hotel. We ate dinner at an excellent BBQ place then walked along the beach and watched the sunset. Back to the hotel, and a movie on HBO. This really is the life.
We knew the next day of our drive was going to be a long one, so we wanted to get a good sleep. Also, we thought that maybe this would be the last time we would have internet for a while, so did a quick check of e-mails.
A small subset of the photos that we collected. Andrew was also taking movies, which have been interesting for us to see after the fact.
We knew that the day would be a short one, as we were only going to try to get to Mazatlan - we figured we owed it to ourselves to at least have one day at one of Mexico’s resorts. So we began heading down the Mexico 15 toll road, or cuoto in Spanish. We actually had shoulders on the highway now and it was wide open. Very little traffic to be seen any where.
We figured on being in Mazatlan around noon and actually made it there slightly before noon. So we headed towards the hotels and the beach. As soon as we came alongside the ocean the first hotel we spotted on the beach looked very attractive. We thought it would be extremely expensive. It turns out it was low season, so there were very few if any tourists. The impact? – lower hotel prices. We were on the sixth floor in a grand suite with two bedrooms and two bathrooms overlooking the ocean. Andrew spent the afternoon wandering around the area and Nancy and Walt ate pizza, walked along the beach for a bit and then looked at some of the shops surrounding the hotel. We ate dinner at an excellent BBQ place then walked along the beach and watched the sunset. Back to the hotel, and a movie on HBO. This really is the life.
We knew the next day of our drive was going to be a long one, so we wanted to get a good sleep. Also, we thought that maybe this would be the last time we would have internet for a while, so did a quick check of e-mails.
A small subset of the photos that we collected. Andrew was also taking movies, which have been interesting for us to see after the fact.
Our First Day in Mexico
We got to the Mexican border at 9:00 am not knowing what to expect. We drove through the two narrow lanes designated for passage. As we drove through, we saw the proverbial green (or red) light. Thankfully we got the green “Pase” light and continued to drive. No one was around or asked for papers. This concerned us a little bit, but we kept on driving. Almost 12 miles later we saw the “Aduano” where we would get our visas stamped, and register our car. Now this was more like what we expected at the border....clearly cdesigned for long lines. Fortunately we were only third in line to have our visas checked and the car registration area had a large number of windows, so we went directly to register. The process was very smooth.
Going back to when we crossed the border, Andrew made the comment that the moment we crossed the border, we saw what the rest of the world was like. The change is instantaneous. Driving itself was actually no different than in the States but the environment clearly was different.
As we continued on our way, we became fascinated by the many differences – differences from what we're used to in the US, but very similar to Ajijic, which was still 1,700 miles away. Obviously everything was in Spanish and we were challenged to try to understand the signs in Spanish, and not translate first – a difficult habit to overcome.
As we had planned our route, we were to drive primarily on the toll roads, or cuoto. They are actually very decent highways, sometimes 2 lanes, and sometimes four lanes with a median strip in between. The biggest challenge is that in the state of Sonora there are no shoulders and there is a significant drop off on either side. Not a problem until attempting to pass a semi-trailer! The traffic is slowed in each little village by "topes" (big speed bumps). Not sure if the purpose is more to slow traffic, or to give the villagers a chance to sell stuff, but both happen at the topes.
We had been warned that gas stations are far and few between and that we should never drive with less than half a tank. We found that the largest separation between gas stations (the state run Pemex stations) was like 30 miles The stations are very clean and have an OXXO market at each, which is like the 7/11’s that we are accustomed to.
At the first Pemex station we stopped at for gas, we wanted to eat lunch. Rather than getting something familiar at OXXO, we saw a little stand with tables next to it serving “Mariscos” or sea food. We had the most delicious cold shell fish soup we have ever eaten. It had shrimp, octopus and conch in it. Yes, as in the conch shell. We are not sure what else was in it, but it really hit the spot.
As we were driving, Andrew was taking pictures and ended up taking more than 200. We have included a small sample of these pictures so that you can see what the countryside is like. Obviously it starts out looking like Southern Arizona, and goes through different types of desert, with the greatest variation being in the vegetation. (In one section it seemed that the vegetation was ROCKS) It was interesting to observe how that changed as we progressed. We looked for the subtle beauty of the desert as small shrubs and manzanita turned to Seguaro, palms and jacaranda.
One of the most interesting things was the Federales stopping trucks every once in a while to check on shipment of contraband. We saw maybe three places where trucks were stopped going North. The line of trucks easily exceeded two or three miles as they thoroughly inspected each truck. In fact, at one stop we saw a guy having to unload his entire truck! Fortunately going South with US plates, we were never delayed.
We wanted to get as far as possible the first day, so we put in over 500 miles. We ended up in a beach town called Guasave that was a couple of miles off the main highway. We are pretty sure we were the only gringos in this town. The adventure now was to find a hotel. We drove up and down trying to follow directions we were given, and seeing nothing that looked like a hotel. Having the road suddenly end didn't help either. We went back to where we started from, and finally we saw one as we were passing close to the center of town. From the pictures you can see the hotel we chose. It was actually a nice hotel by "small Mexican town" standards, and the manager/owner was very nice. There was locked parking for our car across the street. After checking in we wanted to get something to eat. Nancy didn’t feel well and just wanted to go to bed, so Andrew and Walt went out looking. It turns out that all the restaurants were closed already and it was only 8:00 pm. However, right across the street from the hotel was a friendly couple with a grill and two tables on the sidewalk. Turns out it was a taco stand. These were the most incredible tacos we have ever eaten. They were absolutely wonderful. When we were paying we offered the lady a tip and at first she refused saying that she hadn't actually served us. We love this country already!!
Now, we are sure some may wonder why we would pick a hotel like we did and just eat from small stands at the side of the road. We are sure that some people worry about becoming ill from local food. Of course we are careful, but we are determined to feel the true vibe of Mexico and what better way to do it than get totally immersed. We knew from the beginning that God has a plan for us and wants us in Mexico. He has already revealed some of that plan in the form of a Bible study we will be leading as soon as we get settled, teaching such subjects as “What does the Bible really say” and “Who is this Jesus anyway”. We are excited about those opportunities. As we are obedient to God’s plan for our lives, we know He will take care of us because He has promised to. So we move forward knowing that we are in His Hands. Including our stomachs.
As Andrew said at the end of the day, “we have accomplished the most difficult tasks the first day into Mexico – getting across the border, getting the car registered, traveling the furthest distance, and finding our first Mexican hotel”. What an adventure, and we are looking forward to even more!
Here is a small collection of the many pictures Andrew took.
Going back to when we crossed the border, Andrew made the comment that the moment we crossed the border, we saw what the rest of the world was like. The change is instantaneous. Driving itself was actually no different than in the States but the environment clearly was different.
As we continued on our way, we became fascinated by the many differences – differences from what we're used to in the US, but very similar to Ajijic, which was still 1,700 miles away. Obviously everything was in Spanish and we were challenged to try to understand the signs in Spanish, and not translate first – a difficult habit to overcome.
As we had planned our route, we were to drive primarily on the toll roads, or cuoto. They are actually very decent highways, sometimes 2 lanes, and sometimes four lanes with a median strip in between. The biggest challenge is that in the state of Sonora there are no shoulders and there is a significant drop off on either side. Not a problem until attempting to pass a semi-trailer! The traffic is slowed in each little village by "topes" (big speed bumps). Not sure if the purpose is more to slow traffic, or to give the villagers a chance to sell stuff, but both happen at the topes.
We had been warned that gas stations are far and few between and that we should never drive with less than half a tank. We found that the largest separation between gas stations (the state run Pemex stations) was like 30 miles The stations are very clean and have an OXXO market at each, which is like the 7/11’s that we are accustomed to.
At the first Pemex station we stopped at for gas, we wanted to eat lunch. Rather than getting something familiar at OXXO, we saw a little stand with tables next to it serving “Mariscos” or sea food. We had the most delicious cold shell fish soup we have ever eaten. It had shrimp, octopus and conch in it. Yes, as in the conch shell. We are not sure what else was in it, but it really hit the spot.
As we were driving, Andrew was taking pictures and ended up taking more than 200. We have included a small sample of these pictures so that you can see what the countryside is like. Obviously it starts out looking like Southern Arizona, and goes through different types of desert, with the greatest variation being in the vegetation. (In one section it seemed that the vegetation was ROCKS) It was interesting to observe how that changed as we progressed. We looked for the subtle beauty of the desert as small shrubs and manzanita turned to Seguaro, palms and jacaranda.
One of the most interesting things was the Federales stopping trucks every once in a while to check on shipment of contraband. We saw maybe three places where trucks were stopped going North. The line of trucks easily exceeded two or three miles as they thoroughly inspected each truck. In fact, at one stop we saw a guy having to unload his entire truck! Fortunately going South with US plates, we were never delayed.
We wanted to get as far as possible the first day, so we put in over 500 miles. We ended up in a beach town called Guasave that was a couple of miles off the main highway. We are pretty sure we were the only gringos in this town. The adventure now was to find a hotel. We drove up and down trying to follow directions we were given, and seeing nothing that looked like a hotel. Having the road suddenly end didn't help either. We went back to where we started from, and finally we saw one as we were passing close to the center of town. From the pictures you can see the hotel we chose. It was actually a nice hotel by "small Mexican town" standards, and the manager/owner was very nice. There was locked parking for our car across the street. After checking in we wanted to get something to eat. Nancy didn’t feel well and just wanted to go to bed, so Andrew and Walt went out looking. It turns out that all the restaurants were closed already and it was only 8:00 pm. However, right across the street from the hotel was a friendly couple with a grill and two tables on the sidewalk. Turns out it was a taco stand. These were the most incredible tacos we have ever eaten. They were absolutely wonderful. When we were paying we offered the lady a tip and at first she refused saying that she hadn't actually served us. We love this country already!!
Now, we are sure some may wonder why we would pick a hotel like we did and just eat from small stands at the side of the road. We are sure that some people worry about becoming ill from local food. Of course we are careful, but we are determined to feel the true vibe of Mexico and what better way to do it than get totally immersed. We knew from the beginning that God has a plan for us and wants us in Mexico. He has already revealed some of that plan in the form of a Bible study we will be leading as soon as we get settled, teaching such subjects as “What does the Bible really say” and “Who is this Jesus anyway”. We are excited about those opportunities. As we are obedient to God’s plan for our lives, we know He will take care of us because He has promised to. So we move forward knowing that we are in His Hands. Including our stomachs.
As Andrew said at the end of the day, “we have accomplished the most difficult tasks the first day into Mexico – getting across the border, getting the car registered, traveling the furthest distance, and finding our first Mexican hotel”. What an adventure, and we are looking forward to even more!
Here is a small collection of the many pictures Andrew took.
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