31 December 2012 As much as the rain poured down yesterday, today everything is soaked in the sunshine pouring down. Perfect day to go beach. Before we came here, I checked the typical Baja weather patterns, then of course the forecasts on weather.com. Supposed to be about 80 degrees and sunny... Boy has that been wrong. Then just yesterday the forecast was for three solid days of rain. We'll see. The puddles of water from yesterday are slowly soaking in, no clouds on the horizon... we'll cross our fingers. And so far our luck is holding today, sun, calm. While this trip has been fun so far, and it is always interesting to see a new place, I think the take-away lesson I have learned here is that, for a winter beach trip, I need to be sure to look at places no further north than say, Cancun. Sweeping is almost a kind of national past time here, it seems. Lots of meticulous sweeping of sidewalks. Lest you think that is some sort of a denigrating statement, I would add that it is much more pleasant than our own, US obsession with blowing. At least the sweeping is quiet, and the trash, leaves and dirt are thrown into trash cans. Much better than my old neighbor who used to simply blow his leaves over onto my driveway. Anyway, we got hot rock massages in the morning, an hour for about $25 (USD). I thought it was OK, Gail thought it was pretty good. The massage lady is an ex-pat Canadian, been here three years. Rent for her modern, two bedroom condo on the beach (with pool & hot tub & view) is $1000 (US) a month, gas is $50 every two months, electric the same. She has no medical (does not pay into the system) but a doctor visit is under $5, with prescription perhaps $20 at most, and with stitches under $40. She has heard that some people are not happy with the system, but she herself thinks it is great. Affordable out of pocket health care. Nice. I am thinking: if the US raised my taxes 15% to pay for universal health care (which it wouldn't - none of the other countries' systems are that expensive) I would STILL be money ahead. Crazy. So, it turns out that today it is staying sunny, over 80 degrees and calm, so we head up to the beach after our massage. It is windy there, but warm in the sun. We are in front of Palapa Azul drinking special margaritas (with a little cactus juice in them... they are really really tasty and I am about to order a second) eating bbq shrimps (yummy! great spice!) and our usual guacamole. Now this is what we expected and came here for. Isla Espiritu Santo rides high across the water, I am totally entertained watching the pelicans swoop and dive, Gail is reading, I am writing... Now THIS is how you spend a winter break. A couple hours later I get my second margarita, Gail a piña colada, and I order a couple fish and shrimp tacos. The pelicans dive, my book is good, the margarita and piña colada great, and the tacos superb. This afternoon could just drag on forever. Up the beach are a bunch of campers, maybe twenty. Snowbirds from the US and Canada. In the Azul bar, some younger ex-pats are drinking and playing pool. Not a bad lifestyle. So I am thinking... (Uh-oh) This is great. Retirement, trailer, beach, great drinks, good food, but. BUT... But still, we prefer Europe. The wines, and the variety of food; the deep history and varied things in such short travel-spans. Mexico has been, and is really nice, but our trips to Europe have been amazing. Here it is more one dimensional, not as varied in food and drink. But for the here and now: once again the shrimp trumps the fish, no contest. I have to keep sober enough to remember to order shrimp, not fish, from now on. Well, somewhere after 6:00 we managed to make it home. A little rest and we head back out for New Years Eve. Lots of fireworks, a very loud, chest thumping, out of tune band yelling American pop tunes, after every song, "Thank you Mexicoooo!" Then switching over to Mexican songs; a light show, strobes, huge screen TV with a screen saver pattern swirling weirdly out of sync, big brass section, audience singing along, drunk guy next to us yelling something at me in rapid, slurred Spanish (but it is so loud I can barely even hear him, so I nod and smile; he sits back satisfied) crowds pressing in, tamales and drinks for sale everywhere. Now the band stops, the lead singer is talking and says "chee-wah-wah!" High pitched, and everyone laughs, so now he milks this one phrase and for the next five songs everything is "cheeeee whaaaaa whaaaaa" ( slow & low) and "chiwawa" fast and high and on and on... Somewhere in all this cacophony the new year arrives, and we walk home, exhausted. Prospero ano nuevo, 2013! 30 December 2012 This morning at breakfast we met the new people. Guess what happened to them at the airport? Can you say, "class action suit" against Hertz? We decided to take a cab over to Todos Santos. It is $600P ($46USD) for the day. Yes, the day. The bus over is $165P each, more than half the cost and double the inconvenience, so that pretty well settled it for us. At 10:00 our driver, Sergio, which we found out means, "man of few words" showed up. So here we are in sunny Mexico and it is raining. As in sprinkling at breakfast, steady drip on our way to Todos Santos, and heavy rain in town. But, we drove a couple KM out this dirt road to watch the Pacific surf pound in, roller on roller, once even a tube inside a tube, all colors of green and blue, veined by the golden sand and white foam. We were hoping to see whales, but they must have not wanted to get wet as they stayed home, out of the rain. Playa la Poza was the beach, beautiful in the rain, I bet it is heartbreaking in the sun. We walked around Todos Santos, which was cute and very small. Not being big art collectors put us at a disadvantage, but we had fun looking. As the rain got harder, everything shut down. We got tacos and beer at a little local place, sitting under a leaky palapa. By the time we left we were doubly soaked, but the fish tacos were totally worth it. Quick glance in the church: Neustra Señora del Pilar, 1700 something. OK that's nice, let's go. Oh, look, the "original" Hotel California. That's nice, let's go. And so it went. We are soaked. That's nice, let's go. On the drive home the roads were flooded in places (Cool! Flood! OK, let's go!) and our little B&B is like an island in a lake. We are trying to decide whether to sail or swim to dinner. So we walked and waded the flooded streets to a Mexican-Italian place. It was warm and dry. The menu was in Spanish, and between our basic Spanish and its similarity to Italian we had no problem except for the ravioli. What is in the ravioli? I got the blanco sauce, but this other word... haven't seen that before. So I ask. "Duck." Duck? I am incredulous. Duck ravioli? So I ask what any "el stupido" would ask: "Duck? Quack quack?" It's out there before I can pull it back in. "Yes, quack quack duck" he relies straight faced, though I am sure this will be a good story for him to tell for the next year. To clarify, I didn't say "quack." I made the noise, kweechk but how do you spell that? Well, I will tell you, Italian quack quack duck ravioli, on a rainy night in La Paz, christmas lights all around, is pretty good. So, Baja Mexico today: 61 degrees and rain. Ahhhh, the good life? 29 December, 2012 Up to a windy, cool morning. The usual leisurely breakfast, then we walked into the bus station to catch a ride up to Balandra Bay. Two round trip set us back $40P and soon we are dropped off at the beautiful bay, ringed by six white sand beaches. Each beach is separated by a rocky point, undercut by the waves to make a kind of covered walkway. The first beach is beautiful, the second spectacular, the third sublime. We see the famous "Mushroom Rock." White sand, aqua blue water, warm sun... the day passes. The undercut cliffs were fun to explore, and once as I was photographing a cactus, careful not to step into it, instead I backed into one of those saw palms, with the spike tips... Right above my ear. Damn! That hurt. We catch the bus back to town, and wander slowly down two blocks to Calypso, and the best food yet. It is an artsy looking place, great ambiance and right on the water, but the food is above everything we have had so far. Stuffed, batter dipped peppers, really great chunky guacamole and real coconut shrimp. (Last time I had those was nine years ago in Playa del Carmen - once you have tasted the real deal, crap like Outback is just plain... Crap.) We limited ourselves to two margaritas each, but it was really really REALLY hard. We walk different streets this evening, just over a few blocks from where we were yesterday, and suddenly we stumble into the "authentic" center of town. There are collectivos (small size school buses, painted different colors, which go to different parts of town) normal clothing and food stores and tons of people. They are selling fireworks on the corner, and a store of just piñatas and the stuff you stuff in them is doing brisk business in anticipation of the new year. Weird thing here: lots of Chinese and sushi places. And so, another day slowly passes, and we are just flowing with it. 28 December 2012 Something nice about La Paz: No beggars, rose salesmen or mariachi bands coming around while you eat, or zealous salesmen hitting you up as you pass by on the sidewalk. Touristy here? Yes, but in a relaxed, laid back kind of way. We had the most beautiful breakfast today (the cook, she is a wonder!) blue corn tortillas stuffed with red-orange potatoes and chorizo, topped by green avocado and white sauce and cheese. Beautiful. Even better, Gail was not hungry so I got double! Long, slow breakfast chatting with the other guests, all of whom seem to be leaving today. Our hosts are very gracious as well, and it is a beautiful, but cool morning. We headed out walking the town, as it is a windy, cool day (thus, not beach weather. Bummer.) to visit the old town area, cathedral, and finish walking the malecon. We have our books to spend some time in a cafe people watching. There are a lot of gaudy Christmas decorations all over, lights on the lamp posts, Santa Claus, and so on. Yesterday, we had an interesting discussion, where Benjamin's disgust about Santa Claus became really evident. He does not approve of such blatant consumerism being imported and taking over, when Mexico has such wonderful and varied traditions of its own. That is the conversation in a very very small nutshell. He had a good point. However, as an American, I have to agree with the posts circulating on the internet, and officially state for the record that I resent, RESENT I tell you, the liberal- socialist- commie- hoppy war on Christmas! Keep the CONSUMERISM in CHRISTmas I say! Buying is the reason for the season! We set out, up the street. The first cathedral, the new one in town, is tucked into the typical residential neighborhood on Revolucion Ave. simple homes, weed strewn yards, exposed wires and plumbing to cause code enforcement headaches, graffiti... And then, behind the concrete wall with the green-eyed Jesus and alien-green skinned Virgin rises the new copper dome. The church is obviously under construction, exposed rebar, bare concrete vaulted ceiling, rough pews; not at all like a European cathedral. We stop by the local Hertz office. No help. Damn them. We wander slowly back down to the Malecon where a stiff breeze blows in, and stop at Perla for two Margaritas Especial, guacamole (chunky with cilantro leaves and onions chopped in) pico de gallo and chips. We are right on the waterfront, not sitting in the sand, but not in the cool wind either... like Goldilocks, we are "Juuust riiiight!" Something nice about Mexico: the cheerful, bright colors. Something that gives me headaches in Mexico: the clashing, gaudy colors. Same coin, two sides, I am looking at the edge. So while we eat, watch, read and write, we are thinking about how to deal with the rest of this trip as far as transportation. Option one: just bite it big time and rent the cheapest car currently available, for about $1000P ($80 USD) a day. Option two: Gloria can get us a private cab and driver for $600P for a day, and we can fill in travel days with local bus transportation and walking on the non-exploring days. Option three: sit in the room and cry like a baby. We are thinking option two will work best, though not the most convenient, certainly the best compromise. Damn Hertz. So, we are going to have to plan out our week. We slap down the pesos and make it one block before Gail is sidetracked into Lolo's Yogurt. We are entertained by disco-ized American pop-rock tunes. Something fun about Mexico: the music options. Something headache inducing about Mexico: the loud LOUD volume at which all music is pumped out. No subtlety here. Edge of the coin. We walked up the street to the old cathedral, which was smaller, built around 1860 so it is completed, and laid out in the traditional cross shape. Jesus and the Virgin Mary were surrounded by golden christmas trees and blinking white lights. There it is again: taking the "X" out of X-mas. The attached church store, like the cathedral stores in Europe, was filled with religious trinkets including a new one: green plastic, glow in the dark crucifixes. We are walking down the street when a guy about three store fronts ahead of us steps out of the doorway and focuses on Gail. We walk up, he eyes her, smiles, and in his smoothest voice says to my vegetarian wife, "We have hamburgers!" "Ewww, poor dead cows!" says she, obviously turned on by his proposal. Nice thing about Mexico: the over zealous municipal police who actually stand at heavily used intersections, blowing their whistles to stop traffic so we can cross the street. Bad thing about Mexico: the over zealous municipal police who cruise the streets all evening with their emergency lights going, for no reason but to show off and induce panic. The coin. Sitting on the edge of the Malecon; it is raised about ten feet above the beach, so we are dangling our feet watching a blue boat stuck in the mud flats, blue grey sky growing dark. The one person we know in La Paz, "Stroke Man" from the bus, comes up to say hi. Small town, this. Speaking of Stroke Man, I asked Richard about health care, and sure enough there is the $250 option, but that is one option and, while it works, it is the wait in line type care. There are other options, which he briefly outlined. Did you know if you move to Mexico to retire and take up their health care, you lose Medicare? Me neither. Did you know Medicare does not cover you in foreign countries? You need to get special supplementary care. Huh. Seems much easier and cheaper overall under the European system. One last note for now. The stop signs, "ALTO" they say, but no one is listening. They don't even slow down. Today at a 4-way ALTO the guy in the lead slowed down... not stopped, just SLOWED DOWN in heavy traffic and the next two cars behind him just got in the opposing lane and PASSED him. In the fricking intersection! At a four way ALTO. The coin. I see the edge. Happy Holidays to everyone! |
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