Day 8 - July 31, 2013
My phone and my computer both popped up with messages this morning - "Last day to be out of house". Hard to believe we were out of it a week ago and have traveled 1400 miles or so in that time. We still have at least 5 or 6 days ahead of us - and this will be the hardest.....at least the anticipation is.
We're familiar with Mexico - so even though we haven't driven in these parts, there has been a certain comfortable-ness (is that a word?) about driving in Mexico. Tomorrow that all changes.
I have been pouring over the internet to find what I can about crossing into Guatemala - places to stay when we get to the other side, what roads to take, which to avoid, what to expect at the border. I haven't found as much as I'd like, but I keep searching...and searching. Surely there is a record of this somewhere! I can't even find out when the border opens.....but I did find out that we have to back track just a bit to turn in our car papers and get our $400.00 refund.
One of my favorite verses is getting a giant work-out on this trip. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." I'm not even exactly sure where this verse is in the Bible - maybe Philippians? But this verse is so good for me.
Don't worry about anything...trying, really, I am
But take everything to God in prayer...oh yeah, I'm ON that one
With thanksgiving...OK, so I'm not so good at that one all the time, either
Then, His peace, which is beyond ANYTHING I can imagine...yep - there you have it
Will guard my heart and mind in Him....oh, so very grateful
It seems as if when I get to the end of that verse, it just covers me - and I'm needing a lot of covering lately. Funny, my niece mentioned that same verse just today on Facebook. It is just a really-good-cover-the-bases verse. There have been times when I have been so scared or overwhelmed (like driving in the mountains the other day??) that I just said that verse over and over again - so quickly that I could barely get the words out without stumbling over them - maybe trying to convince myself - speak truth into my life. I know the words are true - I've seen Him just flip things around and give me peace. Maybe you'd like to hang on to this one, too.
SO....I may or may not have the thing with Telcel taken care of - can't access my account online so I can pay it, even though they fixed it so I could. The insurance papers, while we've paid for the coverage (over $650. for basically 5 days), still haven't shown up in our email. The great map that I bought of Central America is missing...somewhere.
Still, I will remind myself of that verse. It's helped me through so many other tough times and/or struggles before and it is as if He Himself speaks to me in a still small voice, "Becki, don't worry, I've got it."
And He does.
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
The Highs and Lows Of It
Days 5 and 6 - July 29 and 30, 2013
Every day as we are driving, I see things and think, "Oh, I want to share this with my friends!", "Sure wish Mom could see this." or "Wouldn't __________love this!?!" However, Mr Carlos Slim (owner of Telcel and one of, if not THE richest guy in the world) doesn't seem to have as much of Mexico covered as he claims to have - or else, we're just in those remote spots, but I have had trouble even posting bits from my phone. But then - by the end of the day - and in this case, 2 days - I've forgotten a good part of it.
So, I'll try to remember the good stuff and perhaps whine a bit to you with the not so fun. (Don't worry, Mom - nothing too bad.) Remember - yes - I'm a whimp! And frankly, I don't do all that well with "adventure". I am a little bit free spirited - as long as there's a plan :), but Bob doesn't do "plans". Hmmmm...anyone besides me see a problem there? Let's just say...Bob is God's way of keeping me in prayer.
Actually, on Monday - after a pretty good night's rest- in spite of the hard beds, alarms going off, street noise and Bandido thinking it was play time - we actually had a pretty good day. The roads all day were amazing - well, at least we paid for them to be - and most of the time they were. But really - they were flat (hold on to that thought), straight, gorgeous. The toll booths are almost works of art - the bathrooms, really beautiful. Remember, this is coming from someone who has lived and traveled in Mexico for the past 14 years. I KNOW Mexican bathrooms - and these were just nice!
The scenery throughout the day was breathtaking. We kept seeing places that reminded us of other places we'd been - tall mountains, deep valleys. Lush green in shades from lime to forrest. Rushing rivers, fields of crops, lovely.
We are Auto, not Moto
2 lanes but wide shoulders
Giant sized lakes
Looks like California restaurants
Lots of little booths on the roads selling peaches, strawberries, bananas, pineapple and home made pots and such.
Home made Cinder Block
A little casa
Slow traffic
Canopied roadways
Watching the world go by
Pretty turq. sidewalks in Mtn Village
A wee bit crowded here
This little thing next to the road? There were lots of these - just the small shack, precariously perched on the edge. But what a million dollar view they had!
One of many interesting signs we saw. First, NVO Sonora, then Nogales, Buenos Aires and more.
Every day as we are driving, I see things and think, "Oh, I want to share this with my friends!", "Sure wish Mom could see this." or "Wouldn't __________love this!?!" However, Mr Carlos Slim (owner of Telcel and one of, if not THE richest guy in the world) doesn't seem to have as much of Mexico covered as he claims to have - or else, we're just in those remote spots, but I have had trouble even posting bits from my phone. But then - by the end of the day - and in this case, 2 days - I've forgotten a good part of it.
So, I'll try to remember the good stuff and perhaps whine a bit to you with the not so fun. (Don't worry, Mom - nothing too bad.) Remember - yes - I'm a whimp! And frankly, I don't do all that well with "adventure". I am a little bit free spirited - as long as there's a plan :), but Bob doesn't do "plans". Hmmmm...anyone besides me see a problem there? Let's just say...Bob is God's way of keeping me in prayer.
Actually, on Monday - after a pretty good night's rest- in spite of the hard beds, alarms going off, street noise and Bandido thinking it was play time - we actually had a pretty good day. The roads all day were amazing - well, at least we paid for them to be - and most of the time they were. But really - they were flat (hold on to that thought), straight, gorgeous. The toll booths are almost works of art - the bathrooms, really beautiful. Remember, this is coming from someone who has lived and traveled in Mexico for the past 14 years. I KNOW Mexican bathrooms - and these were just nice!
The scenery throughout the day was breathtaking. We kept seeing places that reminded us of other places we'd been - tall mountains, deep valleys. Lush green in shades from lime to forrest. Rushing rivers, fields of crops, lovely.
We are Auto, not Moto
2 lanes but wide shoulders
Giant sized lakes
It is so difficult to capture the height and grandeur of the mountains we have seen - they also look more distant in the camera - but they really were huge and majestic...all the way to Tuxtla Gutierrez.
And then there was the "let's try and find a room tonight" game that seems to come after us every evening. Once again, we looked and looked - went into one hotel after another - and - after I once again asked my FB peeps to pray, we got a hotel - this one especially modern and included a separate room with a jacuzzi tub. Sure felt good on these bones!
Today is a new story. We left at 8 a.m. and only had 241 miles to go, so figured we would be into Tapachula by noon or so, be able to get some laundry done and take care of some last minute business, then be on our way to Guatemala the next morning. Well...I forgot to look at the thing on my phone that tells how many hours it will take to drive those 241 miles. It. took. ten. TEN! We didn't have to pay very many tolls today - nope. We did get to see some blow me away scenery - each day, getting more and more beautiful! Today we wound through the mountains, sun shining through the canopy of trees that covered the roadways, little quaint villages with people dressed as if they were from the early 1900's. It was almost as if we'd gone back 90 years in time, but they built a highway for us to drive on for the tour. We even saw tropical flowers - like the ones you'd pay 10 bucks a stem for. I couldn't even find pics of them, it was so cool. Wild, on the side of the road. I wanted to get out and climb amongst them!
Looks like California restaurants
Lots of little booths on the roads selling peaches, strawberries, bananas, pineapple and home made pots and such.
Home made Cinder Block
A little casa
Slow traffic
Canopied roadways
Watching the world go by
Pretty turq. sidewalks in Mtn Village
A wee bit crowded here
Things we have been noticing here in the state of Chiapas - Short people (but very friendly), clean roadsides, homes, etc....Lots of the little taxi's (that red thing), and houses hanging off the side of the mountains - little tiny houses. The colorful sidewalks ran through several of the towns high in the mountains - turquoise, pink, red - all with white curbs.
Did I say high in the mountains? Well, yes, I did. We wound and wound and wound through the mountains today- or should I say UP - often going no faster than 25 miles per hour - narrow roads, with a mountain on one side of us and a sheer cliff on the other (unless, of course, they had their house hanging off the edge of that particular cliff. I was always grateful for those.) I did pretty well with it, though could rarely bring myself to look over the edge at what was below - until - we got so high that a cloud decided to sit itself right on top of that particular mountain that we were driving. Talk about praying! I was scared to death - and would have rathered pull off to the side in one of those great little towns and waited until the clouds passed. Oh, and did I say it was raining? And we were in the lane on the OUTSIDE of the road, staring down the cliff? Oh, and that other cars and trucks were passing on this narrow 2 lane road on the corners??????? Come on, people! NOT good! Before we made it back down to the bottom, I was doing one of those, I-just-want-out-of-this-car things. Have to say though - even though I'm not thrilled with doing that, we saw some pretty incredible stuff today.
This little thing next to the road? There were lots of these - just the small shack, precariously perched on the edge. But what a million dollar view they had!
One of many interesting signs we saw. First, NVO Sonora, then Nogales, Buenos Aires and more. 
This shows just a glimpse of how they grew their crops on the side of very steep hills. We could see open spaces planted with corn, mostly - and they MUST have planted it by hand and have to tend to it, etc. I honestly don't know how they do it. The hills would be extremely dificult just to climb, they were so steep.
And one last thing - news flash!! We now know where the tope (toh-pay, Mexican Speed Bump) was invented. Right here in the state of Chiapas, Mexico. It MUST be so - because they certainly had a LOT of practice. Today was a day where just when you thought you might be able to speed up - you know, to like 40 - another tope would be there threatening to tear your car apart. Many times they were only 50-70 feet apart. There were big wide topes, tall sharp topes, worn down topes, half topes, painted topes, unmarked topes, topes of dirt, topes of concrete, topes of old tire tread, topes of rope, vibrador topes and on and on it goes. My personal favorite was the just-painted-on-the-road-but-nothing-is-really-there tope....we'd juuuust be getting on some speed, and we'd see something in the road - smart enough to slow waaaaaay down...maybe even screech our brakes a bit because it snuck up on us...and then everyone who lives in the area would drive right around us...and we would just laugh.
Good night all. Tomorrow is another day. We are spending the night in Tapachula, right on the border of Guatemala - 2 nights worth - and then will head to Guatemala. We have to do some laundry and are still waiting on our insurance papers for South America, so are hoping to get that all done tomorrow.
I have no idea when I'll get any internet again. We may buy a sim card for each country we go through, so that we can perhaps at least send a post to Facebook, so you'll know we are still with it.
We really aren't worried about the people - everyone we have come in contact with has been so nice. Please know that if anything were to happen (although I wasn't real thrilled with the possibility of flying off a cliff), we know who our Redeemer is, and know that He lives, and as long as we are in His arms, we are safe. Maybe not on this earth - but for eternity, yes.
"How precious are My children who are awed by nature’s beauty; this opens them up to My holy Presence." -Jesus Calling by Sarah Young
This has been our privilege for the past several days.......
Good night
Monday, July 29, 2013
The Princess and The Pea
July 29, 2013
I have always had a difficult time sleeping - always. Light, noise, the comfort of the bed - all of it comes in to play. I just don't sleep well. I jokingly tell my friends that I'm like the princess and the pea. I toss and turn all night, hoping to get a few hours of sleep. Everything has to be just right.
This morning, I woke up laughing...didn't really wake up - I'd been awake - a good part of the night.
You see, this darling hotel sits right on a corner in the middle of town. People walking by our window could be heard as if they were inside the room with us. A bit un-nerving. It also had a light in the bathroom, that, even though it was off, kept flashing like a strobe all night. We closed the door most of the way - so that didn't bother us - too much.
Secondly, the beds were, well, HARD. Just not real sure why they like them this way in Mexico - but it's almost a given. Every hotel has hard beds. Hurts to lay on the right - or my back - or the left - or my stomach. Get the picture? Flip-flopping all night.
But here's the good one. ALL during the night, there was a car nearby that had a car alarm going off - all night. Well, it would stop periodically for a few minutes and then JUST when you'd think you were just about back to sleep - off it'd go again. wowowowowowowowowowow
So yeah - couldn't help but laugh this morning. We decided that by the time we get to Panama, we're going to be able to sleep in ANY conditions. We're in training!
Now, where's my coffee?
I have always had a difficult time sleeping - always. Light, noise, the comfort of the bed - all of it comes in to play. I just don't sleep well. I jokingly tell my friends that I'm like the princess and the pea. I toss and turn all night, hoping to get a few hours of sleep. Everything has to be just right.
This morning, I woke up laughing...didn't really wake up - I'd been awake - a good part of the night.
You see, this darling hotel sits right on a corner in the middle of town. People walking by our window could be heard as if they were inside the room with us. A bit un-nerving. It also had a light in the bathroom, that, even though it was off, kept flashing like a strobe all night. We closed the door most of the way - so that didn't bother us - too much.
Secondly, the beds were, well, HARD. Just not real sure why they like them this way in Mexico - but it's almost a given. Every hotel has hard beds. Hurts to lay on the right - or my back - or the left - or my stomach. Get the picture? Flip-flopping all night.
But here's the good one. ALL during the night, there was a car nearby that had a car alarm going off - all night. Well, it would stop periodically for a few minutes and then JUST when you'd think you were just about back to sleep - off it'd go again. wowowowowowowowowowow
So yeah - couldn't help but laugh this morning. We decided that by the time we get to Panama, we're going to be able to sleep in ANY conditions. We're in training!
Now, where's my coffee?
One of those wanting-to-give-up Days
Day 4 - July 28,2013 - So there you have it. I was ready to throw in the towel, call my nephew and have him jet in from some undisclosed place around the world and jet me outta here! I figured I could just trade places with him and he and Bob could handle the rest of the pressure like guys do - hoo-yah!
Well, then we headed further east - and then after a couple of hours or more of searching for a hotel room, we found one...and I smiled and just took it all in. Yep - I'm a whimp. I told you I'm not exactly the adventurous type....and you'd think Bob would learn that when I'm tired AND hungry - well, it's just not a good combination. Eating once a day (Day 2) or twice a day (today - and only because I MADE him stop) just doesn't work. Maybe we can learn from this?
So - today began with loud and boisterous thunderstorms during the night, which got the cat a little upset, thus keeping me awake as I listened to the soft snoring of my man. We got up, one of us rested, loaded up and headed out of town. Vendors were already up and setting up for the Sunday Tianguis - but I didn't really miss going. Just was happy I got to be there one more time. We got on to the highway - rather familiar because of our mess-up on day 2 - and headed east. Stopped at the Subway along the highway and got 2 cups of coffee and a sandwich each and headed out. We immediately drove into some rather heavy fog - but after just a few minutes, we were out of it. It sure was pretty the way it silhouetted the mountains surrounding us. We got into gorgeous areas of green - mountainous - lush vegetation, fields of green, green crops framed by darker green trees and then into places where there were quaint little villages nestled into the valleys. Stately rock formations edged in green. Tall mountains. Deep crevices. Some places looked like KS and others looked like Europe or Colorado or South Dakota. So.VERY.Pretty. As we got closer to Mexico City, we were surprised to see fields and fields of cacti and mountains covered with yucca trees. It was all still very green, but much more desert like.
All the highways have been incredible - even the toll booths are gorgeous! Oh - funny story. We pulled up to a toll booth quite a ways from Guadalajara that would circle around the northern edge of Mexico City. There was no one there - just a machine. Bob spoke to it - nothing happened. He got out of the car and noticed a card there that looked like a credit card - thought someone else had left it there. Suddenly a guy comes over and waves us on and the gate rises to let us through. Oooooo-kay. When we went to get off the toll road to go get gas, they asked us for the card. We told them we didn't know what it was - etc..etc.. A manager came out and said they had Bob on camera (?!?!?) getting out of the car - and then corroborated our story - told us what the charges would be and then told us to be sure and get the card next time! Yes, sir!
We had planned to spend the night in Puebla, but the GPS on my phone took us to a really yucky area - I guess it was the center spot of the entire town - because it sure wasn't El Centro! We got lost, ended up on some precarious streets...narrow, really rough...and then when we finally found our way out of it, we got stopped because we turned left on a green left turn light but somehow didn't turn into the correct lane - yeah, right. 500 pesos later, the cop left us alone, and we decided to head to the next town. Kinda glad we did. He'll have a good dinner out with his familia...won't he?
A about 5ish I got Bob to pull off the Highway at Italian Coffee so we could get something to eat - each having a croissant with ham and cheese and a coffee and we headed for Orizaba....
Once again, my cell phone GPS took us - or tried to - to the very center point of town. We resisted - after we got to the train tracks - and found the main part of town. FYI - In looking up info about it later, it says that it is tone of the cheapest places to live in Mexico - it is in the mountains - has clean air, and a bountiful water supply. Anyway - we started looking for hotels that would take the pets and were getting pretty frustrated. Personally, I was pretty down, over- done and to my breaking point. We'd driven for miles - cheap places, expensive places - places that I said, "No way!" from one end of this town and several others. Then I asked my FB friend to pray - and BAM! next hotel we stopped at was a yes! Thank YOU, God!
It's a very old hotel from the 1900's. The room we got was very basic right off the interior courtyard where the dining room is set up. Talavera ties run up the walls around the entire thing, columns rise to the arched porticos on the second floor. LOVELY!
So, it was a little bit of a tough day for me - but the dogs and the cat and my man did fine through it all. I'll do better tomorrow. Yep.
Well, then we headed further east - and then after a couple of hours or more of searching for a hotel room, we found one...and I smiled and just took it all in. Yep - I'm a whimp. I told you I'm not exactly the adventurous type....and you'd think Bob would learn that when I'm tired AND hungry - well, it's just not a good combination. Eating once a day (Day 2) or twice a day (today - and only because I MADE him stop) just doesn't work. Maybe we can learn from this?
So - today began with loud and boisterous thunderstorms during the night, which got the cat a little upset, thus keeping me awake as I listened to the soft snoring of my man. We got up, one of us rested, loaded up and headed out of town. Vendors were already up and setting up for the Sunday Tianguis - but I didn't really miss going. Just was happy I got to be there one more time. We got on to the highway - rather familiar because of our mess-up on day 2 - and headed east. Stopped at the Subway along the highway and got 2 cups of coffee and a sandwich each and headed out. We immediately drove into some rather heavy fog - but after just a few minutes, we were out of it. It sure was pretty the way it silhouetted the mountains surrounding us. We got into gorgeous areas of green - mountainous - lush vegetation, fields of green, green crops framed by darker green trees and then into places where there were quaint little villages nestled into the valleys. Stately rock formations edged in green. Tall mountains. Deep crevices. Some places looked like KS and others looked like Europe or Colorado or South Dakota. So.VERY.Pretty. As we got closer to Mexico City, we were surprised to see fields and fields of cacti and mountains covered with yucca trees. It was all still very green, but much more desert like.
All the highways have been incredible - even the toll booths are gorgeous! Oh - funny story. We pulled up to a toll booth quite a ways from Guadalajara that would circle around the northern edge of Mexico City. There was no one there - just a machine. Bob spoke to it - nothing happened. He got out of the car and noticed a card there that looked like a credit card - thought someone else had left it there. Suddenly a guy comes over and waves us on and the gate rises to let us through. Oooooo-kay. When we went to get off the toll road to go get gas, they asked us for the card. We told them we didn't know what it was - etc..etc.. A manager came out and said they had Bob on camera (?!?!?) getting out of the car - and then corroborated our story - told us what the charges would be and then told us to be sure and get the card next time! Yes, sir!
We had planned to spend the night in Puebla, but the GPS on my phone took us to a really yucky area - I guess it was the center spot of the entire town - because it sure wasn't El Centro! We got lost, ended up on some precarious streets...narrow, really rough...and then when we finally found our way out of it, we got stopped because we turned left on a green left turn light but somehow didn't turn into the correct lane - yeah, right. 500 pesos later, the cop left us alone, and we decided to head to the next town. Kinda glad we did. He'll have a good dinner out with his familia...won't he?
A about 5ish I got Bob to pull off the Highway at Italian Coffee so we could get something to eat - each having a croissant with ham and cheese and a coffee and we headed for Orizaba....
Once again, my cell phone GPS took us - or tried to - to the very center point of town. We resisted - after we got to the train tracks - and found the main part of town. FYI - In looking up info about it later, it says that it is tone of the cheapest places to live in Mexico - it is in the mountains - has clean air, and a bountiful water supply. Anyway - we started looking for hotels that would take the pets and were getting pretty frustrated. Personally, I was pretty down, over- done and to my breaking point. We'd driven for miles - cheap places, expensive places - places that I said, "No way!" from one end of this town and several others. Then I asked my FB friend to pray - and BAM! next hotel we stopped at was a yes! Thank YOU, God!
So, it was a little bit of a tough day for me - but the dogs and the cat and my man did fine through it all. I'll do better tomorrow. Yep.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Tonala Time
June 27, 2013
< Our Hotel
< Our Hotel
So here it is, day 3 of our journey and it's been a pretty good day. Started out this morning driving to one of my favorite restaurants here. El Rincon del Sol. It's been here for years - always has good food and is a lovely atmosphere. It's only 2 blocks from our hotel, so we normally walk - but today, loaded up the animals and parked right in front of the restaurant.
It's a quaint place, filled with equipale tables and chairs, covered with colorful woven tablecloths. It has an almost outdoor feel to it, even though it is under roof - well, roofs....when it rains, it rains inside as well. Didn't have that problem today - it was lovely out. Our breakfasts were served with fresh squeezed orange juice and delicious coffee. Only about 1 year and a half ago, I had my very first cup of coffee right here in this restaurant!! Yes, really.
We left there and headed to the "tianguis" area of Tonala (kinda like a flea market, but everything is new) where vendors have booths upon booths upon booths selling their wares. The main tianguis is on Thursday and Sunday - literally hundreds and hundreds of vendors set up in the streets on Tonala. You can get some really good prices on decor items, clothing, purses, artwork, etc...etc... These guys today were just filling out the rest of the week. We found a place to park and Bob went over and talked to a guy about some baskets for our courtyard lights while I guarded the car and those babies. We decided to buy the lights, but had to make a trip to find a shipper first. We talked to one guy - he said 600 (@50 bucks) pesos to ship to San Carlos. So...we went and bought the light baskets. Came back and the shipping had gone up to 1300 pesos (@ 110 bucks)- MORE than we paid for the baskets. Before we were done, they wanted 2600 pesos!?!?!?! I don't think so. Bob found his way over to Castores - another truck line that come to our little town and they agreed to ship them for 511 pesos. Now THAT's more like it!!!
Bob and I came back, and because it was already kind of late in the day, we decided to stay another night. SO... I headed to the Internet store to check some of our routes and print some stuff out.
Thank you God, for this little stop along the way. You are so very good to me!
Saw some interesting stuff today - a midget coke truck delivering coke to our hotel while we were eating lunch - it was darling - baby sized! Also, Bob saw (and I heard) a big truck go around the corner by the hotel and he ht a bar that was standing up at the corner of the sidewalk. He blew out 2 of his tires - boom! boom!....bet he wasn't a happy camper.
Heading towards Puebla tomorrow morning! See you on the way!
Friday, July 26, 2013
Enjoying the greeeeeen
Well, here we are in our hotel room in Tonala/Guadalajara - MUCH nicer place to be at than the one last night. :) It seems only fitting that as we leave Mexico that we should go through one of my favorite places in the world - Guadalajara! This is my 11th trip here, and even though it is a big city, I just love the areas of Tonala, Tlaquepaque and downtown Guadalajara. Of course, again, we are limited by the animals, but I already went out as soon as we got here and walked through Tonala enjoying the items that the many artisans have for sale and remembering many great times here with friends and clients who became friends.
So.... today started by looking for coffee (should have somehow packed that coffee pot!), getting fueled up and hitting the road. We are listening to books on @audible.com and are currently listening to a Joel Rosenberg book that Bob's daughter got her for Father's Day. Fast action, suspense and intrigue! It tends to make the drive go faster (and sometimes the driver as well), but at the same time, I find myself pleasantly distracted by all that goes by us. We noticed the scenery getting greener and greener...and then it started getting steeper as well - lots of beautiful greeeeen mountains, curving roadways - and again, LOTS more tolls! 747 pesos or $59.00! A lot of the way was 2 lane roads because they were working on them, so passing was treacherous and often the 2 lanes became 3. Fortunately, the shoulders were plenty wide to accommodate us all. One tidbit of info: If you are on a toll road in Mexico and something happens to your car - broken window or a breakdown caused by something on the road - you show them your receipt and they will pay for repairs to your vehicle. Sweet!
Along the highway - in several places - we saw these little "tents" of sorts. 4 poles connected to 4 poles on top and a cloth covering. Almost every one of them - sometimes 10 in a row - we selling Camarones Seco (Dried Shrimp) 8x100. Have no idea what the 8 stands for - 8 bags? 8 kilos? - but there was a LOT of it for sale! They almost always had mangoes stacked there for sale as well. I have pics on my phone, but no connector right now.
We also passed through the area of Tequila - fields and fields of the bluish green agave plant cover the hillsides along the roads contrasting with the black basalt rock that surrounds them...really quite dramatic. Definitely big business!
Really happy here in the room - this time the bed actually has a top mattress on it. Last time I slept on box springs!?!?! I guess they thought it was a great deal when they got 2 mattresses for the price of one?
So...goodnight all.
Oops! Forgot about our arrival to Guadalajara. Oh yeah - don't wanna miss this. Took an early Tonala exit - it wasn't right, so got back on the freeway (like driving in LA!), then missed the next exit and ended up not being able to get off the freeway to turn around. Good news, we got fuel and stopped at a subway for lunch/dinner. Bad news - no where to turn around. Good news - found a place, finally - literally a tunnel underneath the ground, under the highway that took us back the other way. Bad news - it didn't put us back on the highway. Good news - we got close to where we needed to be on surface streets. Bad news - The roads were like a war zone - when we got closer, roads were blocked off for some fiesta, and a guy sent us to the left and we ended up at a dead end and could barely turn around. More bad news - had to back track the entire way (several blocks) going the wrong way down a one way street. Good news - finally made it to the hotel. More good news - couldn't help but laugh through the entire ordeal.
So.... today started by looking for coffee (should have somehow packed that coffee pot!), getting fueled up and hitting the road. We are listening to books on @audible.com and are currently listening to a Joel Rosenberg book that Bob's daughter got her for Father's Day. Fast action, suspense and intrigue! It tends to make the drive go faster (and sometimes the driver as well), but at the same time, I find myself pleasantly distracted by all that goes by us. We noticed the scenery getting greener and greener...and then it started getting steeper as well - lots of beautiful greeeeen mountains, curving roadways - and again, LOTS more tolls! 747 pesos or $59.00! A lot of the way was 2 lane roads because they were working on them, so passing was treacherous and often the 2 lanes became 3. Fortunately, the shoulders were plenty wide to accommodate us all. One tidbit of info: If you are on a toll road in Mexico and something happens to your car - broken window or a breakdown caused by something on the road - you show them your receipt and they will pay for repairs to your vehicle. Sweet!
Along the highway - in several places - we saw these little "tents" of sorts. 4 poles connected to 4 poles on top and a cloth covering. Almost every one of them - sometimes 10 in a row - we selling Camarones Seco (Dried Shrimp) 8x100. Have no idea what the 8 stands for - 8 bags? 8 kilos? - but there was a LOT of it for sale! They almost always had mangoes stacked there for sale as well. I have pics on my phone, but no connector right now.
We also passed through the area of Tequila - fields and fields of the bluish green agave plant cover the hillsides along the roads contrasting with the black basalt rock that surrounds them...really quite dramatic. Definitely big business!
Really happy here in the room - this time the bed actually has a top mattress on it. Last time I slept on box springs!?!?! I guess they thought it was a great deal when they got 2 mattresses for the price of one?
So...goodnight all.
Oops! Forgot about our arrival to Guadalajara. Oh yeah - don't wanna miss this. Took an early Tonala exit - it wasn't right, so got back on the freeway (like driving in LA!), then missed the next exit and ended up not being able to get off the freeway to turn around. Good news, we got fuel and stopped at a subway for lunch/dinner. Bad news - no where to turn around. Good news - found a place, finally - literally a tunnel underneath the ground, under the highway that took us back the other way. Bad news - it didn't put us back on the highway. Good news - we got close to where we needed to be on surface streets. Bad news - The roads were like a war zone - when we got closer, roads were blocked off for some fiesta, and a guy sent us to the left and we ended up at a dead end and could barely turn around. More bad news - had to back track the entire way (several blocks) going the wrong way down a one way street. Good news - finally made it to the hotel. More good news - couldn't help but laugh through the entire ordeal.
Day 1 - Andale!
July
25, 2013
We
said good-bye to our home and San Carlos this morning at 5:50 a.m. – not quite
as early as Bob wanted, but still early enough to watch the gorgeous sunrise as
we drove away. We leave good friends, a
great church and years of memories behind as we head for a new adventure.
It
seemed as if the road looked the same almost all the way to Mazatlan, though in
one area, it sure looked like Kansas farm land.
Large combines, central pivot irrigation and lots of fields! The trip was pretty uneventful. Because we have the animals – Brisa, Bahia
and Bandido, it makes it difficult for us to stop, so…..we found a McDonald’s
for breakfast, and we found another for lunch.
Bandido made it real clear that he wanted nothing to do with getting out of the car - he stayed on the floor at my feet the entire day.
Tolls have been crazy - We paid 665 pesos ($52.50)for the first day - just from San Carlos to Mazatlan. Have to say though, that the roads are gorgeous, many of them concrete. We did see a tanker truck that had rolled into the median - but it looked like it was carrying something non-flammable, like milk, and everyone appeared to be fine.
Just
before we got to Mazatlan, which was our planned destination for today, we
crossed into the tropics. The scenery
changed dramatically!
Much.more.green.
Now
here’s the good part – not. In Mexico,
they have an abundance of these hotels meant for romantic trysts (SMH - Shaking My Head)– I mean
everywhere! They are usually very nice
and clean (However, you don’t want to watch TV!!), and they charge by the 12
hour stay – but (!!) the neat thing about them is that they have private
garages for each room – connected to the room.
This works really well for us right now because the car is loaded to the
max and this is more secure. Kinda
creepy, but it works. Have to say, I
looked around for hidden cameras! Everything was done in marble and granite - shower, floors, walls - they had piped in music you could play, all in English - like "Take me Home, Country Roads"...but there was not an electrial outlet to be found! Bandido found a spot under the sink counter, but finally got comfortable and explored a bit.
Because we don't want to leave the dogs, I took a trip out in the car and found a Pollo Feliz, purchased a good dinner with salad and all and brought it back to the room for a picnic. It was great to have a more balanced meal. Barbecued chicken, baked potato, green salad, guacamole, salsa and corn tortillas. It was great!
It’s
not exactly how to spend a lovely evening in Mazatlan, but with the animals, we
really don’t have another choice. Been
here before, anyway. Let’s see what
tomorrow brings!
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