Month: March 2021

‘Ruidoso’ is Spanish for noisy.

A trip to Cihuatlán was planned for today because I had broken one of the wall sconces putting up the shade cloth for the car.

We had tried to buy one in the market but the guy wanted 600 pesos and we weren’t willing to pay tourist prices. Raquel had been over to introduce us to a possible new neighbour for next year. When I told her my sad story, her attitude was “So what? Just buy a new one.” She and the prospective neighbour told us that we could get one for 17 pesos at the 17-peso store in Cihuatlán so that’s why we went.

Just before we left, Omar came and told us that he was going to cut the grass and his lawn tractor is very ‘ruidoso.’ We were happy to leave him to it for an hour or so.

Not knowing where the 17-peso store was, I decided to start at one end of town and drive through the main Street until Rosalie shouted “Stop.” We found several other stores but only found the 17-peso store as we were about to leave. Alas, no luck with the wall sconce but we managed to buy other stuff that we hadn’t been looking for.

It had been a hot and fruitless day so we thought that we had earned a margarita on the beach. (If you need an excuse for a margarita on the beach, come and see us we have hundreds.) Changing things up, we went to a place we hadn’t been for a while but soon realized that we missed our usual haunts. There was a table of Quebecois who were being very ruidoso. So off to a quiet glass of wine and a margarita at Bugambilias. This was the peaceful scene we encountered.

Tony and the rest of the staff seemed a bit pissed off with the whole thing. The band had been there three days running for an hour each day. I think that when they had played three tunes they played them all again backwards and no one noticed. When we arrived they had already been going for an hour and continued for another twenty minutes. Apparently it was a wedding and the beach band was part of the celebrations. Although it was ruidoso it was very Mexican and we still enjoyed ourselves.

Our parrota tree has struck again. Besides dropping millions of tiny leaves all over the place, the seed pods are about to start falling and we expect to be hit on the noggin by a few. Worse than that, it’s been sapping on the car.

I’ve noticed that driving at night has been a bit more hazardous, being hard to see. I couldn’t figure it out until I took a closer look at the windshield and found what looked like tiny water spots. Sap!

I tried soap and water, nail polish remover, even WD 40; nothing worked. I also tried scraping it with a sharp blade. Nope! Finally, I got a small piece of sandpaper and for the first time got some results. But I was worried that it might scratch the glass. Back to the think tank.

Ah! A light bulb moment. I had bought some copper cleaner which is a mild abrasive and decided to try that. Bingo! With a lot of elbow grease, it seemed to be working. I needed a hose to wash it down with but the city decided to turn off the water just to annoy me.

It’s 32 c right now. Jalisco is in the green for Covid. Some good news a least.

Our escape plan or as I call it, breaking into prison.

If the government in its infinite stupidity decided to extend the mandatory three-day incarceration for air passengers, what do we do?

We’ve heard of people defying the order and just going home. However they get hit with big fines, so that’s not an option for us.

Some others are flying to the border and crossing by land as there is no three-day requirement just the regular 14-day quarantine. This is the option we are looking at.

Firstly we thought of flying to Seattle and then getting a ferry to Victoria and getting a one-way rental car to Nanaimo. That idea went out the window when we found that all those ferry services have been canceled.

So, the plan so far: Get our antigen covid test here in Melaque, fly Manzanillo to LAX, get the PCR test there, fly to Seattle, then fly and overnight in Bellingham where, by then, we will have received our test results. Next day, take a taxi to the Peace Arch border…..and then what. I’ve looked into one-way car rentals but there isn’t one near enough to the border to make that work. Walking’s not an option as I would complain all the way.

What we came up with is: From the border take a taxi to the Richmond Harbour Air terminal and fly to Nanaimo where we can blackmail somebody to take us home. Or, take a taxi to a one-way car rental place and come home by ferry. We’ll still need a ride home but in the meantime, we can pick up our car insurance.

If crossing the border is a problem, we plan to either tunnel or take some people we know from here, who know people, who have heard about some disused drug smuggling tunnels. Either way, we will get across.

Living on an island does have its drawbacks. For one thing the tunnels tend to get a bit damp.

On a lighter note, we went to the beach again and parked the car a few blocks away so we could get a little exercise. On the way back I noticed an ‘al pastor’ taco stand opposite the bus station. We had wanted to try one since last year so we ordered and sat down. Somehow, Rosalie got tangled up in the translation and instead of getting one each, we ended up with five tacos each! We managed to wade our way through them and only one survived.

Our waitress was a cute Mexican girl with a great smile so I had to get a picture.

It was a truly Mexican moment: Sitting in the street breathing in the fumes from the Primera Plus bus across the way; listening to loud Mexican music and enjoying good food and a can of Estrella.

It was Wednesday so Rubii was here to clean the place. Usually, at this time we take off for breakfast somewhere. As we stepped out the door a lady across the street asked if she could look for her chicken. They hadn’t seen it for a while and her husband kept asking “Dónde está mi pollo?” We knew we had it somewhere so we let her in and the fun began.

First, we had to find the thing. That didn’t take too long so she started trying to herd it toward the big double doors we use to get the car out. It didn’t want to go so we decided to join in the fun. Several times it was surrounded, even Rubii came out to help. Even so, it constantly managed to slip by us. Only one door was open so Rosalie had the idea to open the other one and that finally did the trick.

The neighbour herded it across the road scolding it all the way. It obviously knew where to go as it went straight home. All this time we all were laughing like a bunch of kids. It was great fun but I didn’t want to be woken by that beast at 5 am again so was happy to see the back of it. Also it was a rooster and didn’t lay eggs; that and the fact that it would be really tough if we BBQed it.

I forgot this in the previous blog.

Rosalie and I went on our merry way still chuckling. First to Barra to pick up our fresh bread. Every time we go there, there is a lady standing at the side of the road selling what looks like deep-fried styrofoam. We had passed her several times and always wound down the window to say “Hi!” I always felt bad for her as nobody seemed to buy any from her. So this day we stopped and bought a bag for five pesos. Later when we tried them I liked them but Rosalie didn’t; so now they’re all mine.

On to Melaque where there is a restaurant that we hadn’t been to in a while so we parked the car and went in. The proprietor didn’t speak any English but was quite the guy. Rosalie asked his name and he said Luis, followed by about fifteen other names. We settled for Luis.

He then asked our names. Rosalie told him hers and he said her name was Rose Lee so she must be either Japanese or Chinese. Eventually he settled on Bruce Lee. So that’s what we call her now.

On the way back from the baño, Rosalie spotted some stuff on a table and asked him what it was. He said”Guamúchiles.” I said “Huh?” He showed us that it was a seed pod and inside are little balls of styrofoam with a seed inside. We tried them and found them delicious. The thing was, you don’t eat the seed but the styrofoam. I found they were a bit dry but very tasty.

The funny thing is that Rafael had been telling us about these things only a few days ago.

Next, margarita time. We found that when we go to the beach we talk to each other a lot more than at home. We make a lot of decisions there, aided of course by the alcohol. Rosalie also stocks up on useless touristy crap from the beach vendors; again aided by alcohol.

The chiminea has been used a lot this winter. However it was making a mess of the patio roof. So, after conferring with Omar I decided to move it to a better, more open space. After emptying out the old ashes I carried it to it’s new home. It’s quite heavy so I had to make a stop halfway. When it got to the new location, I let it down with a gentle thump, whereupon it fell into several pieces. Oh well! Out to the garbage with it and start looking for a new one.

Later that day, Omar was cleaning up his mess from the banana tree with a few of his friends. He was hot and sticky so I asked if he wanted a cervasa. “Si” said he “quarto.” So we parted with four beers for him and his buds. We mentioned the chiminea and he may want to take it for himself. He has contacts to get it repaired. So, good for him.

If you remember the MASH TV series there was a North Korean plane that flew over every day and I think they called it 9 o’clock Charlie. Well, we have our own version. We call him 8 o’clock Oscar as he comes roaring over us at 8 am. I think he’s spraying the mango fields. Anyway, he’s very loud. Fortunately he only comes about once a week.

21st March was the one year anniversary of us moving into El Rancho. It’s also start of skinny dipping season. It’s Sunday so we know Omar won’t be around. The water is still a bit cool but getting better by the day. This place is so private that we could run around naked all day, but we’re too modest for that. I do have to watch Rosalie though, as after a couple of margaritas she tends to get a little crazy.

A while back we were invaded by a neighbourhood chicken. It’s happened again. I think the local kids like to throw them over the wall to annoy us. It didn’t bother us until 5 am when the stupid thing started to crow. It brought back nightmares of our last location, so I shot out of bed and closed all the windows. That shut him up.

There are lots of tomato stands at the side of the road offering 3 kilos for 25 pesos or $1.52 CDN. If we could smuggle some home we would make a fortune.

Lunch at Playa de Coco is always a great idea. We drove out to Palmera Negra but there was a sign saying Reservations only. Pablo, Maria’s son, was close by so we asked if it was true. He said “I’ll go and ask my Mom. A few minutes later he came back and said it was fine, we could eat there. Pablo is about thirteen and speaks perfect English, as does his Mum.

After a really nice ‘Fajita con camaron’ we asked if we needed to make a reservation in the future. Maria, the owner of the place said that the only reason they had to make a reservation today was because the cook had taken ill and she, Maria, had to do the cooking. I suggested that she fire the cook and do the cooking herself as the food was delicious.

Rosalie had only had one margarita which was nowhere near enough so we had to go to Papa Gallo’s to top her up. This being a holiday and there being lots of Mexican Nationals in town, we had to park a block away and walk. What’s with that?

The beach was crowded with Mexican tourists. ( A complaint will be made.) I have never seen so many bikini-clad chiquitas. It’s amazing what those girls can do with a little dental floss. Rosalie was no help as she kept pointing them out to me. I thought, “Is she not afraid that I may run off with one of these skimpily clad ladies?” Then I remembered that they are mostly teenagers and I’m a senior. Crash! There goes another of my fantasies. She sure knows not to upset me. I wouldn’t have noticed them if it wasn’t for Rafael and Rosalie pointing them out. (Rosalie “oh, sure!”)

We returned the next day and the beach was practically deserted. Rafael was a bit disappointed as he enjoys see the Chiquitas himself.

Sorry guys, no photos.

Before you do anything in Mexico you need an electric bill. Getting a Temporal Visa, car insurance, vaccination, bank account, change of address all need an electric bill. I guess that’s a sure way to verify an address. I’m going to carry a copy from now on in case we need it to use the baño.

If there was an Olympic sport for lining up, Mexicans would win gold every time. It’s almost a way of life as well as a social event. I first noticed how patient they were when lining up at the Banamex to use the ATM. Everyone chats to a neighbour, some have umbrellas to keep off the sun and everyone is happy. I took one look at the line and went home to return later.

We had to line up for almost four hours to get our first vaccination shot. If nothing else it taught us patience. Nobody complained, we didn’t hear any arguing about who was in front of whom, well there was a little, but that was soon sorted out.

Our diet is still going well. I have lost eight-pounds and Rosalie six pounds. That’s if our new scale is correct. Love this diet, it’s so easy.

A few days ago, I went to the fridge and took out the wine, and poured it into my coffee. A classic senior moment. Being the fool that I am and not wanting to waste good wine, (well, not a bad wine) I took a sip. Advice to all: do not do this as it tasted gross. Darn near put some on my cereal this morning. I think there’s a message there somewhere but I’m ignoring it.

As I mentioned previously, our parrota tree is shedding and our car gets covered in the tiny leaves. I have the shade cloth from last year so decided to use it to make a shelter. I’ve been meaning to do this for a while but saw some problems with tying it down. Anyhow, it has seemed to work out okay so far. I just hope we don’t get any high winds.

Rope was needed for the shelter so we went to the hardware store in Jaluco. The difficulty was that they sell it by the kilo and we wanted it by the metre. They had a small spool of it so we took the lot. I didn’t think it would be enough but it worked out perfectly. It was odd seeing the guy put in on a scale. I did notice though, that we also paid for the weight of the spool. That probably cost us one or two pesos.

After threatening to thrash Omar for all his indiscretions I decided against it when I saw him using his machete to demolish one of the banana trees. I don’t want to get in the way of one of those things. Also, he and his friend Daniel, came by later and made us some coco locos. He supplies the coconuts and we supply the rest.

As opposed to a gray day or a gay day.

With nothing to do we decided to go to Cihuatlán for a drive to get a few things. When we got home we had forgotten some of what we went for. So, we decided to go to the beach for a glass of wine to calm our nerves.

Sitting there enjoying the conversation, Rafael, one of our favourite waiters pointed out to the ocean where there were a lot of manta rays jumping out of the water just generally having fun. They made quite a noise when they landed with the crack as they hit the water sounding quite loud.

They came back again later and this time someone was swimming in their vicinity. It looked as though they wanted to play with him but he had other ideas doing a lot of splashing before heading for shore. We had been in Barra a few days before where I could see them in the distance from there. At the time we didn’t know what was making all the splashing.

Rosalie likes to support the beach people so we added another gem to our collection. If anyone knows what it is please enlighten us.

Speaking to Rafael, he mentioned there are more and more people arriving, mostly Norteños. He was happy that business is picking up a bit.

It was such a fun day and we were getting a little pie-eyed so we stayed for dinner. There was no point in going home early as the WiFi has been really bad again. We watched a movie I had saved on the computer. It was great but it must have been one I got at the market as it stopped about ten minutes from the end. Oh, the things we have to suffer through.