Olive Ridley Turtle; Turtle Egg Thieves; Storm Damage; Bats and . . . August 23, 2008, a very interesting day for me, one of those rare memorable days. As with most days, I started my morning around 7:30 am, and as usual I went outside to greet and feed the dogs. They always are happy to see me in the mornings. Today there was a promise of rain with an overcast sky and a light breeze blowing in from the southwest. We haven't had rain in five days, so rain would bring welcome relief from the heat. The dogs fed, I started to do some chores when barking dogs drew my attention. I walked outside to see what disturbed the dogs and down by the rocks I could see two men walking up the beach. At first, this was not surprising because tourists in Tenacatita often take short walks on the beach, but even from this distance I could tell that these guys were not tourists. I got my binoculars and checked them out and sure enough it was dos hombres deTenacatita. This was strange because I've never before seen these guys walk the beach, and the way they were walking back and forth across the sand seemed as they were looking for something. I thought it all innocent and lost interest and got back to my chores when a few minutes later the dogs started barking again. I walked outside and the two guys were by my gate looking at something on the ground. I walked out to them to see what was going on and they pointed out a turtle nest right by the gate that had been partially dug out, and lying on the sand all around the nest were about a dozen empty turtle egg shells. It was obvious the dogs had done this damage. At that moment, I remembered hearing them barking during the night, but I just assumed it was raccoons, or other dogs they were barking at; now, it is obvious it was a turtle. I should mention that yo conozco (I know) these guys from Tenacatita, having seen them in town and having spoken to one of them several times. Anyway, one of the guys knells down by the nest and begins to excavate it. He digs down a short ways and I see many more eggs down in the hole and I am relieved the dogs didn't eat all of them. I was glowing in this good news, when el hombre pulls out a half dozen eggs, sets them aside and fills in the turtle nest; he then gets up, folds up his shirt, and in go the turtle eggs. I am dumbfounded; I thought these two guys were truly interested in saving turtles and that's why they were out walking the beach this morning, but they were up to no good – thieving Olive Ridley turtle eggs, and endangered species. Before I could formulate any simple Spanish sentence to protest, they said adios and started walking up the beach. Since they weren't headed back towards Tenacatita, I knew they were looking for more nests. I stayed out by the gate and watched them and sure enough they found two more nests, which they excavated and took eggs from each nest. As they walked quickly back towards Tenacatita, I could see they each had a shirt full of eggs. I was shocked, I was pissed, I felt outrage at them; and I felt angry at myself for saying nothing to them. I felt helpless to do anything about this. As a foreigner in a foreign country, in a small pueblo, I didn't know what to do; I was concerned about reprisals if I was to report them to the police, so I ended up doing nothing. Maybe my concerns were unfounded? I only hope that my watching los malditos while they were on the beach reduced the number of eggs they took, but I don't know this to be true. Olive RidleyTurtle It was now about 10:00 am and the weather was quickly changing. A hard southwest wind began to blow and a heavy rain began to fall. Within 30 minutes the wind was howling and blowing a heavy rain in horizontal sheets. This was not just a rain shower; this was a real storm. Again, I hear dogs barking, but when I walk outside I find my dogs huddled on the patio staying dry. I checkout the beach with the binoculars and I see four local beach dogs, the black labs, standing over and barking at something large on the beach. From my earlier experience with the turtle thieves, I guessed it to be a turtle. I quickly grab the camera, throw on my hat and run as fast as I can through the blowing rain and sand. As I got close to the dogs, I holler and wave my arms and the dogs run off frightened (they've never seen me run, which must have freaked them out!). I got to the turtle, but it was not moving; in fact, its head was stuck in the sand, but it didn't look hurt. After a few seconds of no dogs barking the turtle lifted its head, but when it saw me, it once again stuck its head in the sand. I quickly moved away and behind the turtle where it could not see me and immediately the turtle started to laboriously walk up the beach. It was a slow, difficult task and she had to rest several times during the short trip. The turtle crawled until it was a ways above the high tide-line and then she began to excavate a nest, again a very laborious task. Nest excavation began with the turtle alternately sweeping its front flippers forward and its rear flippers backwards, and with each movement the flippers would scoop out sand from around the turtle. It was humorous to watch the turtle push her head into the sand to hold herself in place as she excavated. This process lasted about 10-15 minutes and ended with the turtle sitting in a rear-sloping depression in the sand about the depth of the turtle. It may have been longer than 15 minutes, it was hard to tell because the turtle took several rest breaks and time disappeared for me as I was mesmerized by what I was observing while being buffeted by the rain and wind. After a rest, the turtle began to dig out an egg-cavity. This time she used her rear flippers to alternately reach down and scoop out sand to form a hole in the sand approximately 12" in diameter. I was amazed at the flexibility and agility of the turtle's flippers; she would extend each flipper straight down into the hole and then bend it into the shape of a shovel to scoop out sand and throw it off to the side. As the egg-cavity got deeper, she would lean further back and continue to excavate. When she could not reach more sand, she leaned her rear-end into the egg-cavity and within a matter of few seconds the eggs were laid. The egg-cavity must have been about 1.5' deep and taken about 10 minutes to excavate, which also included several short rest breaks. A reverse process was used to fill in and cover the nest. First, the turtle filled in the egg-cavity by using her rear flippers to scrape sand into the hole. When this task was completed, she used all four flippers to pull sand into the nest. Several times the turtle repositioned herself to be sure the entire nest was filled with sand. Her final actions were to rock back and forth and side to side to pack the sand down into the nest. The nest does not refill completely with sand, so there is always a telltale depression that gives the nest away. Also, each turtle leaves a well defined trail from the ocean to the nest, so nests are very easy to find if you know what to look for. By now, totally soaked, I was ready to head for cover, right after the turtle made it back into the ocean. But to my amazement, she headed further up the sand and began to excavate another nest! I decided to go dry up and come back after a while to see her go back into the ocean; and as I started back to the house a car with two Mexican couples arrived. They all jumped out and as we passed, I mentioned the Tortuga, but this was not news to them; it seemed that everyone knew that the turtles had landed. The two couples walked out to the excavating turtle and stayed out there in the wind and rain for over an hour buscando As the day wore on, the wind and rain increased. This was a big storm, reminiscent of the tropical storm Sharon and I went through a couple of months earlier. I was sitting in the screened room watching the storm and the ocean when all of a sudden one of our large screens partially blows off and is flapping in the wind! I rush over and try to put it back in place, but the wind and rain are to strong, it's like fighting a full sail. It eventual blows off and the frame is all twisted, but still in one piece, so I set it inside for another days task. I walk back into the (partially) screened room and just as I get there another screen is flapping in the wind. It went inside with the first one. This was a bummer. We waited six months for these screens and after only three weeks two of them are down (The two screens on the south side). The problem was that ½ inch screws were used to secure them, which were much too short. Of course, I replaced all the screws with longer ones. At sunset, I went to close the kitchen door because with no screens there is no insect protection. I was standing in the 'screened' room watching the sunset when a bat flew in. I immediately closed the kitchen door to keep the bat out of the house. I've experienced bats in my houses several times through the years, so I knew if left the bat alone it would eventually find its way out. I should mention that the screened room also has security fencing around it with openings smaller than the bats wingspan, so I knew it would be a little tricky for the bat to work its way out. After flying around the room, swooping by my head several times it finally banged into the metal fencing and fell on to the low wall, and crawled through the fence and flew off. The Stranger August 24; a stranger comes up wanting to know if I'm interested in selling my pickup, camioneta. He is disappointed when I tell him I already have a buyer, but we chat. I mention the turtle egg incident and he knows the two guys I saw taking eggs and tells me their names, Chester and Shorty. Chester has been in jail several times for stealing eggs, but is now law abiding and left alone by the police because he keeps and hatches turtle eggs and releases the baby turtles into the ocean, although everyone knows he also sells eggs under the table. I've been told that releasing baby turtles directly into the ocean increases their survival versus their having to make the trip from the nest across the beach to the ocean. The stranger didn't know if Shorty had ever been in jail, but he knew that the cops were aware of his activities. The stranger also mentioned Bicycle Man, a well know local turtle egg thief. (Names were omitted and changed to protect the innocent?). I should mention that the stranger spoke excellent English, but lives with his family in a nearby pueblo. Olive Ridley Turtles (continued) September 8; today is day three of an off-shore storm bringing us rain, wind, and big waves. During a break in the rain, I walked up the beach, which is always exciting during a storm. Today, there are giant waves, reaching 20 feet or higher into the air, and that come crashing down in thunderous piles of water, suds and foam that runs all the way up to the vegetation. Now I know how the beach debris gets so far up the beach! During my 45 minute walk (one way), I came across seven turtle nests that had been excavated and only partially refilled. I refilled each one. I assume eggs were stolen from each nest. On my walk, I followed bicycle tire tracks that lead to each excavated turtle nest; the tire tracks stretched far up the beach beyond where I turned around. On the walk the dogs also attempted to dig up a couple of nests. I also found five nests that showed signs of baby turtles digging themselves out of the nest. It is no wonder turtle populations are so low considering the heavy predation they endure on their nesting grounds. September September has come in like a lion, with one storm after another and each bigger than the previous. Everyone has been telling me that September is the rainiest month and so far it has lived up to its reputation. Today, September 11, is only the second sunny day so far this month. The vegetation is responding with a burst of lush green growth and many plants are just now beginning to bloom. White and yellow butterflies fill the air sharing the blossoms with hummingbirds and a multitude of insects. The young of many species are now out on their own, making their own journeys, like the baby turtle digging their way through nests of sand, running down to the deep Pacific and an uncertain future. September has been a very quite month with virtually no tourists here in Tenacatita. We are between seasons, with the summer Mexican tourist's home at jobs and at school, and the Americans and Canadians still up north planning their mass arrival in January. These days, no one walks the beach, except me and the occasional local. No one drives up the driveway, except the local kid on his motorcycle; he likes to check out the ocean for a few minutes and then he zooms off. I drove through Tenacatita yesterday and it is empty except for the restaurant owners and their employees busily cleaning and repairing and preparing. I'll be going north to Oregon in a week, and I'm expecting culture shock, after being here in Tenacatita for three months. It's been an awesome experience for me and, hopefully, a time of personal growth – only time will show. I have been through many challenges and had lots of laughs; I was treated kindly by the fun, warm people of the local communities; and, the Pacific Ocean, this beautiful beach, and all the shore life have been inspirational and given me a tranquility I have never before experienced. As Arnold said "I will be back".
la tortuga (watching the turtle); and, they did not take a single egg.
The storm builds, screens blow off, and a bat comes in . . .
Friday, September 12, 2008
Friday, August 22, 2008
Life in Paradise?
Recently in an email, Sharon wrote, “So how does it feel to have your house in paradise”. She was referring to our bungalow here in Tenacatita. Also recently, a friend Sylvia published a piece in her blog (http://admiralfox.blogspot.com) titled Country Living is Not for Wimps. Sharon’s statement and Sylvia’s blog got me thinking about what paradise is and if I really live in paradise, as Sharon alluded. I’ll begin by describing my version of paradise, how it looks and feels to me. My paradise has lots of open spaces with nature dominating; forests and meadows everywhere; beautiful beaches and rivers abound; wild animals roam freely, and the sky is filled with colorful singing birds. Rain falls from a beautiful cloud-filled sky, which has a daytime bright sun and a nighttime moon and stars. So far it sounds like earth, but here is where I diverge from reality, because in my paradise nature is benevolent and there never are wild storms, droughts, or biting, stinging creatures.
On a more personal level, my paradise includes my lover, and together we explore the depths and heights of our relationship. We have True Love since we practice the four elements of love: loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and freedom*. My family and friends are close by and we visit often, love among us brings us comfort and we find joy in each other’s company; and conversation among is of high priority because it helps us gain understanding. My Lover, my family and my friends bring me peace and love.
That is a simple version of my paradise. Now to the question, “Do I live in paradise?” Obviously, from my description of paradise, it is clear I do not. Sure I have a house on the beach in a beautiful setting; a very tropical, beautiful place. However, I have unbearable heat and humidity; the storms and rains come as they please and at whatever intensity suit them. Here on this beautiful beach nature does not feel benevolent, rather there is a toughness and rawness to her. If you make a mistake in this paradise you may be swept away by an ocean undercurrent, heat exhaustion is very real possibility, maybe a scorpion bite awaits; or at the least mosquitoes will bite you, repeatedly. Certainly during the winter months Tenacatita feels more like a tropical paradise because up north it is raining, snowing and freezing cold; but even then, as Sylvia states “. . . it sure comes with a creepy, crawly, stingy, windy reminder that there is probably no such thing as paradise”.
Again at a personal level, I could not call this paradise. I am happy here, it is peaceful and I have nature close by and all around; there is a consistency and simplicity to life, punctuated by the ocean waves and tides, and the sunrise and sunset, which set my daily rhythms; everyday is the same, but new and different at the same time, there is always something new to learn. But I am alone here and loneliness is my constant companion; no lover, no family, and few friends. Conversations in English are far and few between and my Spanish conversations are generally no more than a few paragraphs in length and even then there may not be total comprehension. A couple of Mexican guys do come and visit and spend an hour or so with me in Spanish conversation, and I’m glad of this; and, let’s not forget I have three dogs that are real companions and sticky by me no matter what, even after three injections.
I am realistic, and I know, as do most adults, that there is no paradise here on earth; we humans, or at least most of us are not capable of finding paradise here on earth. There is too much hurt, anguish and pain in all our lives for us to ever feel like we live in paradise, regardless of our surroundings. After all, paradise is more than a place that provides comfort and beauty. It is much more! It is having paradise within us; love and peace must flourish within us to live in paradise. There is a saying, ‘that wherever you go there you are’, so our hurt and pain comes with us wherever we go.
I guess my response to Sharon’s question, would be . . . No this place is not paradise. It is only a place, special in its own magical ways, as are so many places all over the world. No, cariño, I’m not in paradise.
*From the book, True Love A Practice for Awakening the Heart, by Thich Nhat Hanh
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Internet Problems Continue
Sorry, but I could not get a single photo to upload. Again here in Miguel Hidalgo the internet is slow, slow, slow.
Betty is Sick Betty has always been skinny, but when I returned after being away for a week, I realized she was very skinny. Since she is still a puppy, about 9 months, she has always been full of energy and loved to chase crabs, lizards and birds off the beach. Now she watches the lizards run by and her head can hardly get keep up with them, and when we go for a beach walk she now is always way behind and we catch up with her on our way back. So today I took her to the vets in Miguel Hidelgo and got her some medication. The medication consisted of two pills given to her in the morning with her food; no problem for me, easy to do. The remainder of the medication was in a vial which had to be injected into the inside of her leg muscle for three days running. Man, this is a beach dogs not accustomed to getting injections; and, I'm not experienced at giving injections to a beach dog. The first morning I decided I needed help so I loaded Betty into the cab of the pickup and we drove to the vets where he very easily gave her the shot. The second and third mornings I nervously and awkwardly gave Betty the injections. Now we wait. Summer Vacation Ends Sunday, August 18, was the end of summer vacation for students here in Mexico and they are back to school, parents are back to work, and what a difference this has made here in Tenacatita. The beach and restaurants are empty, there is very little vehicle traffic, and the place is quieter, not that it is ever noisy. Tenacatita will stay this empty with only the locals here until November when the Americano and Canadiense snowbirds come down for the winter months.
American Stork Across the road from Casa Liria is a mangrove swamp and immediately adjacent to the road is a shallow marsh. There are always birds feeding in the marsh or perched in the surrounding trees. The other day, I observed a dozen or more Wood Storks along with groups of Snowy and Great Egrets feeding in the marsh. As you can see in the picture, these large wading birds are mostly white, but what you can't see is their black under-tail and outer wing feathers. The Wood Stork with its large wingspan of 5.5 feet is impressive in flight with their black and white contrasting colors. They also have long black legs ideally suited for wading, with featherless dark gray scaly heads and necks. Storks have extremely large beaks which they use for probing in mud and muck for food, such as crustaceans, snakes, lizards, amphibians and other small creatures. They build nests of stick platforms high in trees and generally nest in large groups of hundreds of pairs. The Wood Stork gets part of its name from inhabiting freshwater, brackish, and salt marshes that often are wooded, as is the marsh across the road from me. If you read my last species account of the Black Vulture, you will remember that the Wood Stork and the Black Vulture are closely related. They also have the noises they make in common which are grunts, croaks and hisses. 
Monday, August 18, 2008
Internet Access a Challenge
For me, accessing the internet is a big chore. I drove to the internet site 2-times before I found it open. I drive to the internet site in Miguel Hidalgo, a 15 minute drive, becasue it is open most of the time and they have good computers, and they have the fastest intenest around. Also, I can use my laptop. That's not to say it is very fast, becasue it is not. The internet service in Melaque is much faster, but it is a much longer ride there just to use the internet. One day here in Miguel Hidalgo the machines were on fire and I was able to go through all my emails, respond to them, post my blogs and upload pictures. It was a magical day. Today, unfortunately, it is the opposite, when i could only open a couple of my emails, and I could not respond to a single one. As for the blog, as you can tell I was able to post, but I could not get a single picture to upload.
Betty hiding during thunder storm!The storm
A large, intense storm rolled over this afternoon. It came from the south, the direction from which our storms come. It was quiet, no distant rumbling to warn me, I heard only the sound of the surf on the beach. I was absorbed in my work, mindless of the approaching storm from the south. Suddenly I notice it is dark. I raise my head look around, turn south to see a sky-full of clouds; black, dense, ominous clouds quietly and quickly rolling in from behind the sea rocks. Before I could move there came a bright flash and loud boom that startled me into a run, and instantly I am inside the screened-room. The storm comes alive, throwing down lightning bolts all around me. I see a strike in the ocean close to shore and right in front of me; the lightning sizzles and crackles as it splits a path through the atmosphere, and instantly, the thunder boom comes which explodes and rolls loudly through the sky. The intensity of the sounds shakes the house violently and everything inside rattles. I want to run and hide, but I am thrilled by the incredible display of nature; the raw power of the lightning shooting all around me. The lightning and thunder comes frequently, is close and all around. I know the risk sitting here in this open room, and every time there is a strike and boom close by my body tenses, I feel my chest and throat tighten, and I have a strong desire to run inside. Yet, I sit frozen in place and watch and listen with my entire being.
Jiggle Key to the Rescue
Are any of you familiar with what a jiggle key is? I first learned about jiggle keys during a 30-day stint on a grand jury in Portland, Oregon. Jiggle keys are used by car thieves to break into cars. A jiggle key is any old key of the same make as the car you want to break into. Often the key is slightly filed down to round-off the edges, so it more easily fits into the lock and gives you some room to "jiggle" the key. Old Nissans and Toyotas were the easiest to break into with a jiggle key (I learned this on the grand jury not during my youth in NY). Anyway, during my stay in Vallarta I meet Joe Santana for a morning walk around the soccer field; well, I don't know what I was thinking, but I set the truck keys in the ashtray and thought to myself, 'they will be safe here'; jumped out and locked the door! Once I realized what I had done, I mumbled a few words under my breath, but decided to walk off the frustration with Joe. After the walk Joe and I walked to a breakfast place and passed two locksmith shops within a block of each other. Wow! So after breakfast we drive in Joe's truck to the locksmith, pick him up and take him to my truck. The locksmith comes with a helper and a large bag full of tools, enough to take off my door, which I hope he doesn't have to do. We get to my truck and the locksmith gets out and walks to my locked pickup; he reaches in his pocket pulls out a bunch of old keys, picks one out and sticks it in the lock and jiggles it a few times and unlocks the door. It took less than 1-minute and cost $200 pesos! Expensive, but the cost of a good maestro is priceless.
David and Lindi, our first renters!
This past week, we rented Casa Liria to friends of my daughters, Dave and Lindi. They got married on a Saturday and the following Sunday afternoon they landed in Puerto Vallarta for a 6-day honeymoon. They were a sweet, young couple and I wish them all the luck in the world in their marriage and future endeavors; and thanks for staying in our bungalow! I drove to PV and meet them at the airport and took them to get their rental car and shopping at Wal-Mart. I then guided them out of town, because it can be confusing, and sent them on their way to Tenacatita. They arrived rather late, 1100-1130 pm, because they spent some time lost in Tenacatita. They asked for Mario's house, but I don't think anyone was able to help them. They finally looked carefully at the map I had given them and they found their way, which was a short 2-minute drive from Tenacatita. Casa Liria is easy to find during the day, but at night is hard to spot even though it is right off the road.
Baby Crabs
Today I was amazed by one of God's creatures, the land crab, I wrote about them in an earlier blog. I am still being amazed by these small, alien-looking creatures. While cleaning up some sacks of trash that were sitting in the screened room, I noticed a lot of tiny spider looking creatures all over the garbage bags and on the wall. I thought this odd; spiders don't typically hang around in large groups unless it is a hatch when a web can be filled with hundreds of baby spiders. This was not the case here, there was no web. I got my reading glasses so I could get a better view and realized they were not spiders at all, but baby crabs. They were no larger than a pinhead, but I could see their tiny beady eyes and miniature claws, and they scurried around sideways, like crabs do.
Beach Bum (part 3)
Living here on the beach I get to feel and experience the continuity of life that I feel when I spend time outdoors. I do spend lots of time outdoors here in Tenacatita with the vast, never-ending ocean and the beach that stretches forever. Behind me is the dense mangrove swamp with the river that feeds it, and a panoramic sky filled with fast moving clouds is the umbrella for all this splendor. There are times when I experience the 'eternal moment', and all seems right and perfect. Here on the beach, I sit still long enough to allow my mind to think thoughts of love, life and death; about the continuity of nature and life. I experience the knowledge that today and tomorrow and the days after that, that the wind will continue to blow, the storms will come with rain, lightning, and thunder; the waves will crash on the beach, wash the sands away and re-deposit them somewhere new and in a different configuration; and all the earth's creatures will continue to march forward in our individual, species specific dance.
Dump Dogs
The other day I went to the dump and while unloading the truck a female with two pups walked up and laid down right under the truck. The dump is on a south facing hillside and there is little to no shade on the road and the female dog was panting heavily with the squealing, hungry pups at her heels. I found a container and emptied my drinking water into it for them; all three drank thirstily. The female dog looked pretty hungry and I figured she would get food from the garbage all around, but as soon as I drove off dozens of Black Vultures flew over to the garbage I dumped, so there was no way the dog was going to out-compete all those large scavengers. Mexico is a tough place for dogs!
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Blog Changes name!
I feel silly, but the url, or web page address, I used had a grammatical error. Since Casa is a femine word in Spanish, the following word also has to be feminine; thus, Liro had to change to Liria. Goes to show my limited Spanish, eventhough this was an easy one to spot. I was speaking to a Mexican man and he repeated the name of the house correctly Casa Liria, then it clicked that my blog name was incorrect. Therefore, I made a change so the new address, which is now: http://www.casaliria.blogspot.com/ I hope you can find me again!
The Shoreline In an earlier blog I wrote about the beach re-healing after a large storm. I described how the beach was pounded by giant waves that came in with the storm and how these waves flattened and widened the beach. Over the following weeks the beach was slowly re-shaped by the waves to it's 'regular' shape a contoured beach with a steep drop-off. Not long after the first storm, we were hit by another large storm, which repeated the process. Now that I have spent some time here I have seen the beach change and re-change; I watch the beach sands get washed out by giant waves; and then they are re-deposited by smaller waves. I realize that the beach is in a dynamic stability, with a wide range of variability, which simply means, the beach is in constant change and the change is very great. The shore never looks the same, the dunes come and go, washed away here by waves, and deposited somewhere else by other same waves; change from one day to the next.
Rent Casa Liria Azul Bungalow Features Bedroom: AC, Over-head Fan, King Bed, Closet, Dresser, French Doors with Ocean View. Kitchen: Gas Stove, Refrigerator, Toaster, Blender, Water Dispenser, and Cooking Utensils. Eating Area: Table, Chairs, Over-head Fan. Bathrooms/Showers: Inside and Outside Bathroom, Outside Shower, includes bath towels. Water: 1200 Gallon in Ground Tank; Solar Hot Water (water is hot day, night, and on cloudy days). Drinking Water: Purchased at Local Store in 5 Gallon Containers Outdoor Room: Screening Keeps Bugs Out, But Allows You To Sit Outdoors and Enjoy the Views. Security: All Doors Lock Securely, Outside Lights and Motion Sensor Light in Parking Area. Tenacatita Beach: Fantastic Swimming Beach with Many Mexican Restaurants Only 5-Minute Walk. Additional Items: Places to Go: La Manzanilla, Melaque, Barra de Navidad, and Manzanillo, are Short Drives Golf:
TV/DVD with movies in Bedroom (no TV reception), Cell Phone Reception.
Isla Navidad, a 27-hole championship golf course rated Mexico's 5th-finest golf course. The course displays wide, emerald-colored fairways, long ocean frontage, including 8-holes that play along crashing surf. Enjoy a meal and a drink at the beautiful Spanish-style clubhouse; (45 min – 1-hour drive). For additional information and to reserve play: www.islanavidad.com.
for additional information: www.golfinmexico.net.
Where do I get my wash water? Water for washing, agua para lavar, is obtained from a local water supplier in Rebalisto. It costs $1 to fill a 125 gallon tinaco, or plastic water container that I empty into our large underground water tank, which stores about 1200 gallons. I can also have the water suppliers deliver a 250 gallon tank of water for $10, which I prefer to not do. The water is pumped up from a well that I think is about 40-50 feet deep which fills a 2" black pvc pipe hanging from a tree; I backup the truck and locate the hose right over the tank and fill it up; it only takes a few minutes. If you drill to deep then you hit saltwater and contaminate the well. The water supplier is a well known and respected family of Rebalisto, la familia Martinez; the patriarch, Martín has several sons, Fernando, Davíd, Jorge, and a couple of others whose names I can't remember; his wife and daughters I have yet to meet. Last February I attended the marriage of his older daughter. It was an evening wedding in a beautiful setting of colored lights hanging from palapas over nicely tables covered with colorful tablecloths and set with flowers and a bottle of tequila; beer was served by waiters dressed in white uniforms, so you never had an empty glass. Live Mexican music reverberated loudly through the air with many of the partiers singing along with the band. Dinner was Birria, goat meat, which is very tasty the way it's prepared in Mexico. It was a joyous occasion, especially for the Martinez family, whom appeared very pleased in front of their guests; and, they must have been happy their oldest daughter fell in love and got married. Love that pickup 
Sharon and I drove an old pickup down here, a 1990 Nissan. As basic a truck as you can get with no power steering, the AC doesn't work, and everything is manual. Here it gets more looks than Sharon did, and she got many because of being tall and blonde, and attractive. But the pickup is admired by every Mexican guy that gets to look at. It's not uncommon for these guys to walk around the truck, running their hand along the fenders, almost as in a caress, while asking me about it; invariably, they ask if I want to sell it. It reminds me of someone checking out a horse before they buy it. Right now I have at least 3-buyers that want it when I return to the US.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Life of a Beach Bum (Part 2)
In my beach bum fantasy, the cool (male) beach bum enjoys himself by playing in the ocean, hanging out with friends sipping Coronas, having a chick at times, and by idling his time people watching, and mesmerized by the ocean and its’ sea life. Idle time is what separates a beach bum from the average guy. The regular guy works a lot, only sees the beach during vacations, and has heaps of responsibilities (this pretty much describes me, at least who I was). On the other hand, for the beach bum, idle time is a necessary part of his existence, it defines him, it is the essence of his being; and, idle time allows him to engage in activities that others cannot, not because of a lack of desire, but because of mountains of responsibilities that comes with the regular lifestyle. You may ask, “What good is idle time? There is so much to be done, idleness is such a waste of time!” The kind of questions that little voice in my head wants to repeat over and over, like a mantra. Like many of you, my upbringing didn’t allow for idleness, nor did my work and family life. Idleness was, and for many still is, synonymous with being lazy, inactive, and unoccupied; strong words that should put-off any reasonable person from being idle.
I am not put-off. In fact, I get to explore idleness because of my situation - alone in a foreign country; Mexico during the summer months with no English speaking people around can be lonely. Oh, I don’t have to be idle, for there are many tasks around the house that could be done and keep me mind busy, so as not to think too much, but I chose to not let the chores run my life. Also, I really don’t have to stay here; I could go back to Portland, but I stay to practice aloneness. I am not equating aloneness with idleness, but in my situation one very easily brings on the other. So back to idleness, which for me does not mean inactivity nor unoccupied time; on the contrary, for me it is an active time, a time for introspection; a time for quietly observing nature and looking for something new and amazing each day; it is a time to enjoy moments of quiet solitude; and a time to work at bringing all this together in a practice of self-acceptance, and acceptance of what is.
Time alone is giving me a chance to find and learn new ways to express and process my feelings. Right now, for me, a new process I am using is to write down my feelings in an abstract form, so here is a poem I wrote that helped me cope with the loneliness I feel when Sharon leaves.
Loneliness
It’s a palpable sensation, but I don’t see anything.
The thick tropical air and ocean winds are themselves the same;
yet, they carry something new, but as old as time.
A new sensation, rolling, roiling waves, soundless crashing waves,
rises and falls in me, like the steady, constant ocean tide.
Things have changed.
Clouds still drift overhead, wind propelled, blown apart.
As they are, so am I, transformed into fragments, wisps of my former self.
The summer rains fall, the jungle greens, vines grow and cover all.
Creeping, unseen, in an insidious way, this change seeps into me;
through my skin, into my veins, settling in my chest, in my heart, in me.
Things are different.
Pelicans continue to glide over the ocean surface, and egrets still skillfully catch fish in the surf.
They are unconcerned, uncaring of the change that has come to our shared place.
Jacks, roosterfish, needlefish still stream through the waves, rejoicing their lives.
Swimming, eating, playing, and maybe loving;
Unlike them, I am chained by the change; unlike them, rejoicing is lost.
Paradise transformed.
Beach comers arrive, unaware, the change unseen, the new sensation unfelt.
They play on the beach, washed by the waves, warmed by the sun.
They are safe; they do not feel, see any changes; all appears normal.
Children play, adults eat and drink, all seems right, as it should be;
Yet, all this pains me, threatens to drown me in tidal waves of unwanted feelings.
A new sensation flows here.
I watch their gaiety, hear their laughter, and see their flirtations.
Lovers, young and old, walk the beach, sharing a need for each other.
Seeking each other’s touch, their fingers intertwine in loving caresses.
Desiring eyes gaze at each other, wanting, needing . . .
Their happiness is not contagious, it does not enter me, nor does it soothe me, as I had hoped;
The change has come.
Routine provides no comfort, my chores are burdens, a deep dullness hangs over all.
Hunger has left me; food is tasteless and provides little nourishment.
All that was good is gone, leaving behind dry, stale crumbs.
My eyes still see, but do not observe; my ears hear, but all is noise.
My brain moves on in a slow, laborious march through dense, blinding grayness.
A distorted place is left behind.
My body of lead, with paralyzed limbs, moves in slow motion through this new place.
Strength has faded, gracefulness has left me, lightness is gone.
Futility swirls around me, like a deadly, dense, black smoke;
falling from the heavens, settling in me.
Sunlight shoots down, each photon heavy, cold, penetrating deep.
The sunlight’s coldness burns me, scars me; it provides no warmth, it does not heal.
All is changed.
Crabs, Getting Stuck, and Near Drowning
How may crabs around this plant?
In Nature there is an abundance of creatures that tunnel into and live underground. We are all familiar with some of these creatures, such as the gopher, mole, and of course worms. These creatures and many other soil organisms have important jobs in the soils in which they live. One of their most important jobs is to burrow, burrow, and burrow; those of you trying to keep a nice lawn or garden are probably familiar with this behavior of these little creatures. But in their natural settings, away from manicured lawns, they have important environmental jobs. All the burrowing brings soil from deep-down, back up to the surface. These deep soils have many nutrients that are beneficial to plant growth. The burrows allow air to travel down underground where oxygen mixes with the soil and becomes available to plants for their growth. Also, these burrows increase water absorption by the soils, which is, as you might guess, also beneficial to plant growth. And for those of you that don’t like gophers and moles, remember, they are eaten by owls, foxes, snakes, and many other creatures.
Here in Tenacatita, and many other coastal areas, land crabs have the same jobs as gophers and moles. Land crabs live underground and are excellent excavators not only in sand, but also in dense soils. They are everywhere, and you can’t walk around without stirring-up numerous crabs that go scurrying away holding their pinchers straight up in their funny little defense postures. The other morning, I came up from walking the beach to find dozens and dozens of crabs all around the house; I was being invaded. I got to the house and turned a corner to find a line of 20 crabs along a low rock wall of the house; all equally spaced, holding their pinchers up towards me; running in unison along the wall, over the steps, and into the garden – it was hilarious!
Near Drowning
On a recent hot afternoon, I went to Tenacatita beach to cool off with some boogie boarding; I’m not good at it, but I have fun. This day the water was unusually rough, with large crashing waves coming in one after another, and there was a strong under tow. I decided not to use my board, instead, I went in up to my waist and got beat up and pushed around by the large surges of water that came in with every wave. Of course there were those strong swimmers that were way out riding the waves before they crashed. I got out, sat at Fiesta Mexicana had a beer and did some people watching. It was Sunday, so it was busy with lots of people up and down the beach in front of all the restaurants. I was enjoying the views when suddenly three men came running as fast as they could up the beach yelling for a barca (fishing boat). Right behind the men came running several women, hollering something unintelligible, and waving their arms wildly. I looked down the beach in the direction they had come and I saw a large group of agitated people standing at the water’s edge, staring and pointing out into the ocean. I looked in the direction they pointed and I could see out beyond the breakers a head bobbing in the ocean. I was freaked out!
Suddenly, from among the large group of people down the beach, like superman, an over-weight, middle-aged man ran through the throng of people with his boogie board under his arm and crashed through the giant surf, jumped on his board and paddled furiously towards the drowning man. Middle-aged man was strong; he had powerful strokes as he rode his boogie board across the top of the waves, never once wavering in his determination to rescue the man that was steadily being carried further up the beach and further out by the strong current. As I continued to watch this drama, mesmerized by the danger, a young slender, but muscular man close to my end of the beach ran into the water with his boogie board and repeatedly tried to crash his way through the waves, but was repeatedly washed back by the giant surf; he quickly gave up exhausted and defeated. I continued to watch as my fear increased for the drowning man who by now had traveled at least 200-300 yards up the beach from where he had been washed out. He was now nearly in front of me moving fast to the north and further out with the current, but I could see he was floating on his back and seemed to be calm. As I watched, his rescuer, middle-aged man, continued to paddle strongly and did not seem at all tired and though he was still a ways off from the helpless man, he was getting closer.
Loud voices distracted my attention to the beach where the three men were now running back the other way, but this time carrying a kayak; the women were right behind. The guys put the kayak in the water and one of the men jumped in and did an incredibly skillful launch to get through the surf and waves, and was soon on his way towards the drowning man that continued to drift with the current. It was not long after that middle-aged guy reached the floating man who immediately grabbed the boogie board and was held there by his savior. A few minutes later the kayak reached them and the hapless man was hoisted onto the kayak and taken back to shore. They had to maneuver to the far north end of the beach in order to pull out of the water; in the crowds of people, I never did see the saved man. Meanwhile, middle-aged man rode his boogie board through the big waves back to shore where he was greeted to a chorus of cheers and claps. Obviously, the guy who nearly drowned knew what to do to stay alive until he was rescued. I am totally amazed at the bravery of the people that risk their lives to save someone else, even someone they don’t know. This will always be a mystery of life to me. Oh, let’s also chalk one up for the middle-aged guy!
Stuck Again
Once again visitors to this beach tried to drive on the sand and got stuck, even with their 4-wheel drive vehicle. One of the ladies walked into Tenacatita for help and came back with a guy in a 2-wheel drive Toyota, which also got stuck, surprise!? Finally a big 4x4 came along and pulled them both out of the sand. Meanwhile, the rest of the family enjoyed the day on the beach; I provided the ladies with the chairs, and a shovel for the guys. I’ve seen this happen here several times and each time amazingly everyone takes it in stride; wives don’t get upset, children just hang out and play, teenagers listen to their I-pods and play with their cell phones; and of course the buys are busy digging out the car. Hay no problema aqui, there’s no problem here, it’s just a family outing where we decided to get our car stuck in the sand.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Thunderstorm!
Last night there was the most intense thunderstorm I've been through. It started an hour before sunset with dense dark thunderheads rolling slowly towards the house from the south. i sat outside in the screened room to watch the lightning, and it was a spectacular show with lightning bolts shooting into the ocean and lighting the entire sky. However, at one point a bolt of lightning struck the ground somewhere between Michael and Sylvia's property and our house. I jumped high, ran inside and shut the door, and proceeded to watch the show from the safety of my bed! It lasted for hours and there were several additional strikes very close to the house. I finally fell asleep and woke up to a clear, humid day. It looks more are coming this evening.
Long overdue posts . . .
Calm has settled on us. After the two days of Tropical Storm Douglas, the ocean is still pushing in big waves, but the ocean height has receded to near normal and the offshore rocks are once again visible above the ocean. It is bright day with scattered large clouds; an unusually beautiful day, with a blue tinge to everything (check out the photos). The air is sparkling clear, glistening with the blueness of the sky and ocean reflected all through the atmosphere. As I look around, everything is not the same; it is clear that the beach has taken the brunt of the storm: What was once a rolling, undulating beach, with four distinct levels, is changed. The constant pounding of the big waves, combined with the high water, washed away the undulating portion of the beach and the flat area above it, creating a long, wide, flat beach. Unbelievable!
The vegetation seems unchanged, but trees were knocked down and snags (dead trees) were also felled. The animals seem to have fared well; we did not find dead birds, or washed up fish or other sea life. The sea life and other wildlife all seem to have their own unique way of coping with the storm. The rain did a great deal of good, except where it flooded in pueblos and cities, recharging the dry, rock-hard soils, which were so dry that the rivers hardly rose after the many inches of rain that fell. Most of the rain soaked into the ground.
July 4, 2008
Moyos start their journey in the adjacent forested hill, making a long and dangerous trek to the ocean. As you can imagine, crossing roads is their most difficult part of their trip. After mating, the female spends four months in her burrow in gestation. When conditions are right, heavy rain and the highest tide of the month, they emerge out of their burrows and begin their journey. They need the high tide, with a long wash of water up the beach, so they can lay their eggs in the water without getting washed out. They come out by the millions all along the coast of Jalisco, and they were all over our beach, by the hundreds, crawling everywhere, in groups of 5, 10, 20, all walking away from the ocean towards the laguna (lagoon).
July 11, 2008
Beach slowly re-heals
The beach is beginning to heal after the pounding of Tropical Storm Douglas. No longer is it a long, flat beach, but now the waves have created a step drop-off where they crash, as existed before the storm. The steep drop-off has started the reformation of the undulating dunes that was a major characteristic of our beach.
Not long after writing the above note, we were pounded for two days with giant waves from hurricane Bertha. At the closest it was 260 miles west of Manzanillo. Once again the beach is wide and flat. During the summer, this beach is evidently very dynamic, changing constantly under the battering from off-shore storms. I would hate to see one of these storms come on shore!
July 14, 2008
Summer Rains
Spring is here in Tenacatita. It may feel like summer but the trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants are just now starting to green up. The rains from the big storm and several other thunderstorms have produced a flush of life, with plants coming to life creating a lush green carpet covering the mountains, hillsides, and pastures. It seems to have happened overnight, hillsides that were dry brush and leafless trees have changed to dense green, impenetrable jungle. Many trees and other plants are blooming, which delightfully brings out many beautiful, multi-sized and –colored butterflies. Summer, with its life giving rain, so quickly created on our hillsides a natural garden of blossoming plants, filled with an array of colorful breeding birds and insect life.
The summer rains brought us the march of the Moyos , a serendipitous, totally fascinating experience. Now we excitedly (or fearfully) wait for the march of the tarantulas, which we are told will happen this summer. The summer rains are a constant here in Tenacatita, and it is a joyful event as is seen in the attitudes of the local people who do not let the rain stop their daily routines, and by the myriad adaptations of plants and animals to the cycles of the rain. The winter months here in Tenacatita are beautiful, with mild warm weather, but the intensity and diversity of life found in this place is only fully expressed with the summer rains.
July 15, 2008
Summer is a Poor Fishing Season
Fishing has been very, very slow. Water conditions seem fine to me, but I have seen few baitfish or swarming schools of feeding fish, nor diving water birds. I caught one needlefish, lost two others, and caught a small 1.5 lb jack. Needlefish seem to be the most common fish biting now. Yesterday, I saw a boil of bait fish and as I watched them a four foot needlefish came shooting 4 feet out of the water with a fish in its long, toothed snout! What a sight! A friend, Joe, tells me that soon the roosterfish should be showing up along the shore, so I keep an eye on the water anxious for some action. But most locals say that fishing will not improve until September when the boca del laguna (mouth of the lagoon) breaks open from the rains (it is blocked by wave created sand dunes) and lets loose lots of fish, especially snook. Snook grow up in mangrove swamps, the laguna, and this type habitat is essential breeding and rearing habitat. Very likely, summer is breeding season for local game fish, and they won’t show up until the breeding season ends (September?).
July 17, 2008
Joe was correct; the roosterfish are coming close to shore. Today I landed a 10 lb roosterfish (gallo in Spanish). I had three strikes, where I wasn’t able to set the hook, when suddenly I got a sold hit from this beautiful roosterfish. It gave a good fight for 15 minutes, making short runs, but mostly staying in the surf, where it was hard for me to land her (sex determined during cleaning).
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Sharon Leaves
Sad news for me! Sharon left today for Los Estados Unidos, the US. She wasn´t very happy down here in the heat and humidity and spent much of her time in the air conditioned bedroom. We did go in the ocean and boogie board, and a few other things, but the heat was stifling.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Tropical Storm Douglas
Only the most hardy and adaptable can survive in a region so mutable, yet the area between the tide lines is crowded with plants and animals. In this difficult world of the shore, life displays its enormous toughness and vitality by occupying almost every conceivable niche. Visibly, it carpets the intertidal rocks; or half hidden, it descends into fissures and crevices, or hides under boulders, or lurks in the wet gloom of sea caves. Invisibly, where the casual observer would say there is no life, it lies deep in the sand, in burrows and tubes and passageways. It tunnels into solid rock and bores into peat and clay. It encrusts weeds or drifting spars or the hard, chitinous shell of a lobster. It exist minutely, as the film of bacteria that spreads over a rock surface or a wharf piling; as spheres of protozoa, small as pinpricks, sparkling at the surface of the seas; and as Lilliputain beings swimming through dark pools that lie between the grains of sand.
June 30, 2008
On Being a Beach Bum
Living the life of a beach bum: spending all my time on the seashore, chasing hot California girls, fishing and eating my catch - a romantic life! Growing up in New York I thought living in California and hanging on the beach would be a fun exciting life, and one that I had hoped to experience. In my young mind I envisioned all night beach parties with bonfires, music, drinking, and of course lots of attractive California girls. Days were spent recuperating and enjoying the hot sunny beaches and staying cool in the shade of a coconut tree and swimming in the ocean. I‘m not sure where the money was suppose to come from but for some reason I never imagined working. Of course, these were the ideals of a younger person growing up in what I thought was boring New York and being raised by strict Italian parents. Now that I am nearly 60 and live part-time on the Pacific seashore of central Mexico, I do not miss the imagined bonfires with loud music and fun parties; but I do take tequila and beer in moderation, and lucky for me, my wife just happens to be a hot California girl.
I find coastal living to be so much more than I envisioned as a young man. Living on the beach today, without the preoccupations of a young person to always be doing, going, and chasing; having an abundance of energy and exuberance that needs to be spent on youthful endeavors, I enjoy my quiet time when I can. I contemplate, observe, smell, and touch my new environment. Living only 100 yards or so, depending on the tide, from the waters edge, I am continually awed by the incredible, raw power of and variety of life in the Pacific Ocean. The constant waves crashing thunderously on the beach are both soothing and a source of constant awareness of the closeness and power of the ocean. At nighttime lying quietly in bed, I can feel the house vibrate when an exceptionally large wave crashes; in my half-sleep, I wonder how close the wave is to the house? Is there a bigger one behind it? The winds are also a constant on our beach with a light offshore breeze starting at daybreak and then swinging to the northwest and increasing as the day progresses. By afternoon we have a strong wind that often creates white caps; and by dusk it is quiet again. We also get south/southwest winds, which are generally associated with storms and rain.
In my mind, a beach bum leads a simple, carefree life, while living on the beach and eating out of the ocean. So how am I doing in living this life style . . .
On being a beach bum’s wife (a response from Sharon)
The truth is: The beach bum does chase his one attractive California girl, more than he watches the waves or the beach creatures. And he does drink beer and tequila. He may have waited till he was 60 but now he is making up for lost time. (This paragraph was added by Sharon).
July 3, 2008
Tropical Storm Douglas
In the late afternoon of July 1 the beginning of Tropical Storm Douglas began here in Tenacatita. It started as a stiff wind and dark clouds rolling in from the south/southwest. Within the hour, the winds increased and the rains began. Over the next few hours, as dark set in, the winds increased to a point were they were making an eerie howling sound. During the night we could hear the wind and rain beating against the house, and while lying huddled quietly together in bed, we could hear numerous thudding sounds outside, but we didn’t know what it was. At one point, a five gallon bucket left on the roof by the workers started rolling around making loud thudding sounds on the roof until finally it blew off and landed with a loud crash in the garden next to the bedroom. This spooked us! And then there was the ocean, with it’s loud crashing waves, glowing white and foamy in the darkness. We both slept fitfully that night.
Clean-up of Tenacatita BeachWe awoke to the same sounds that we went to sleep with: howling, shrieking winds, rain beating against the house, and thunderous crashing waves. We dressed and went outside under our ramada to experience the storm we slept through and was still ongoing. It was an incredible experience of sight and sound: the wind strength was such that all the branches on every palm tree for as far as you could see were bent straight out, waving wildly, and facing in the same direction. We could see giant palm branches sailing through the air and the sound of coconuts falling to the ground all around. Beach litter, plastic bottles, large chunks of Styrofoam, tangled pieces of rope and fishing nets, where flying up the beach faster than a person could run. The rains fell in torrents, blowing sideways in dense, gray sheets, reducing visibility to tens of feet. Rivulets of water started flowing from the top of the sand dune, and coalesced into small streams running down our driveway and forming a small lake at the bottom next to the main road. We walked the beach at high tide, keeping a respectable distance from the breakers, and were awed by how much higher the ocean was from normal; there was an obvious ocean surge that was intense and scary. The ocean was a wild mess, with breakers crashing one after another, with no space between them; they were violent, churning and tossing themselves into a giant roiling, foaming surf that rushed far up the beach, ending as huge piles of suds that were caught by the winds and hurled down the beach along with the litter.
The storm never hit land here, staying out at sea. Yet it was a powerful, dangerous storm, and caused us much worry. Here on our beach, which is open ocean, at high tide the rushing waves reached to the bottom of the vegetation on the dune that our house sits on, but never was our house threatened by ocean waves. We did however find two small water leaks in our roof, and for the most part our house is strongly constructed. Not everyone fared as well as us: in Tenacatita there was considerable damage go Palapa roofs which were blown away or ripped to pieces. There was also water damage from the ocean surge that washed away tables and chairs from the restaurant, and in all the beach restaurants the water washed away sand, or deposited sand where unwanted. Of course, everyone had something blown away never to be seen again, and every leak in a roof or wall was revealed! The storm caused much flooding in La Manzanilla and in Melaque, which you can read about and see pictures off in Sharon‘s blog page: http://www.keepupwithsharon.blogspot.com. For those of us from Tenacatita to Emiliano Zapata, the storm caused a 34 hour power outage. It was a storm to remember.
“That the sea, with its multiform and mysterious hosts, its savage and senseless rages,” comfortably serves as a divine metaphor. Modified from the short story, Lifeguard, by John Updike.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Our first week at home in Tenacatita
A friend, Tia, recently asked in an email how the beach dogs are doing now that it’s three months since being spayed. Of course I’ve seen the dogs, they showed up the evening we arrived. Pup ran up first followed by Scarlet and Shy (the female that lost her 10 pups). The dogs look healthy and spry, and seem happy, although they are skinny with their ribs showing through. Sadly missing from the group is Barky, the dog with the top half of both ears cut off., which doesn’t mean she isn’t around,, after all we’ve only been here 5 days, and she is somewhat of a loner. We will wait and see. I never knew Shy, as she was feeding pups over in Tenacatita so she didn’t come over to our beach. But now that she’s hanging with Pup and Scarlet she takes part in breakfast, dinner and treats here at our house.
We didn’t have food for them when we first arrived, but we drove to Melaque on Monday and bought some dog food. When we feed them regularly, they stay around all day sleeping in the shade, and barking at anyone and anything that comes to close to their new territory, our house and yard. I’m sure after three months of two good meals a day from us and whatever they can scrounge they will be healthier and happier. After we leave, Mike, will soon be down and will take over feeding them. He has being caring for the dogs for a long time and this probably attributes to their being alive.
Our first week has been largely spent on organizing our house, which meant opening and emptying all our boxes. I can’t believe how much stuff we have already accumulated. We have kitchen stuff to stock a commercial kitchen; bathroom stuff to last a lifetime; and enough towels to dry an army; and books, books, and more books! We also needed to shop in Manzanillo, which is a 1.5 hrs drive, to find some shelving for the various rooms, and very importantly to find a cell phone and plan so we can economically call the States. On the drive back we stopped at some colorful fruit stands along the highway and bought a bunch of coconuts for 40 pesos each (40 cents). We also bought a machete to cut them open; I’ve gotten pretty good at cutting cocos with the machete.
For us shopping can be easy or difficult depending on several factors. If we need just one or two items like eggs, avocados, limes, beer, etc., they can be bought in Tenacatita, which is only a 2 min. drive or a 10 min. walk. Even in the heat of the day this is no problem. So this is easy shopping. Then there is moderately difficult shopping which involves driving 40 minis to Melaque and then spending 2-4 hours there shopping, eating lunch, and accessing the internet. In the heat of the day this can get quite tiring. Then there is the most difficult of shopping, which is the long 75 min drive to Manzanillo, where we deal with phone services, shop at Wal-Mart, and eat out. This makes for a long, hot day of shopping.
The weather is hot (85 F) and humid, with some days worse than others. This time of year the sun is high in the sky, so daytimes are scorching; and except for outdoor laborers, few people are out during the heat of day. People generally sit in groups, in shady areas talking among themselves; or they siesta, which is particularly common among the older men, which can be seen in the afternoons sitting asleep in hammocks or chairs. Getting older, I can relate and soon will be joining them in afternoon siestas. Most stores are open from 10 am to 2:00 pm, and in the evening after 6:00 pm, but between 2 pm and 6 pm most places shut down. This is not the case in the winter when the tourists are in town, when staying open all day means more business. Many stores make the bulk of their revenue in the winter months from tourists. For Mexicans the evening is the time for shopping, eating out, and general partying. It’s amazing the number of people that come out in the evenings and parade around in their fancy clothes and socialize in the Jardin (town square). Young people are out in large numbers laughing, running, eating, and of course flirting, which is a favorite pastime in Mexico. Grocery shopping besides being utilitarian, for Mexicans seems to also provides opportunities for meeting and talking with friends new and old. In the evening after work is the only time for young families with their young children do much of their shopping.
For us here on the beach, we have a wonderful breeze or wind that keeps us cool. It‘s a northwest wind that starts in the morning as a soft offshore breeze and picks up in the afternoon to a strength to create whitecaps. We also have an air conditioner in the bedroom which keeps us cool at night as well as on those hot afternoons when we want to siesta. Arturo insulated our house, so the bedroom cools quickly and stays cool. We haven’t gone in the ocean water yet. This is mostly because of being busy here at the house each day with organizing and hosting workers, friends, and their families. We are planning on boogie boarding soon. We are trying to be relaxed about everything, not rushing, and practicing letting go. Letting go is work for us Westerners, we don’t practice it much in the US, but here with the relaxed nature of the place it gets easier each day. The layers of worry and stress are melted by the sunshine and salt air and washed away by the sea breeze.
This part of Mexico during the summer lacks tourists, so one hears only Spanish spoken, which helps improve our Spanish skills. Also, the highways are less crowded, as are the restaurants and stores; and prices are lower, which happens as soon as the Americans and Canadians leave for the summer. However, many stores are closed as Mexican families take off for summer vacations. Driving through Cihuatlan today (Wednesday) we saw more closed stores than open ones. Mexicans love their holidays and vacations and love to go to the beach during these times, for example, Mother’s Day and Easter are two traditional beach days for many. School is now ending in Mexico and we will see more vacationers here in Tenacatita; often arriving in tour buses from as far away as Guadalajara for a day at the beach.
Work for Mexicans, such as building, is also slow during the summer, so it is easier to get hired help and professionals, maestros, such as plumbers and electricians. Our long distance from cities with maestros adds an extra burden for us in Tenacatita in trying to get professional help. If you find someone good, get his card and keep it handy. However, the language barrier has been somewhat of a problem in getting things done, but with some simple Spanish and sign language we have gotten understanding and things accomplished. When Sharon and I work as a team our understanding of Spanish increases a lot. But when we are really stumped we get one of our few English speaking Mexican friends to interpret.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Puerto Vallarta
It was a stressful drive from Mazatlan to Puerto Vallarta taking about 8 hrs. The first half of the drive was on straight roads through agricultural lands, but the second half was tough. From Tepic to Puerto Vallarta the drive is not long, but it is on a slow downhill, curvy road that drops out of the Sierra Madres on to the plains of Puerto Vallarta. The drive took us through steep mountainous terrain covered in grasslands, and dense shrub covered hillsides. Just as we were getting tired, we rounded a curve and instantly we were dropped into a large verdant valley covered in palm trees and pastures. To the west we see La Bahia de Banderas (Bay of Flags) with it’s water glistening in the late afternoon sun, and in the distance, tucked away in the southern part of the valley right up against the mountains, is the famous city of Puerto Vallarta. As we reach Bucerias the traffic increases and so does the exhaust fumes, so that by time we reach Vallarta Sharon is breathing through her handkerchief. Unfortunately, the over-bearing exhaust fumes is the worst part of Vallarta. The offshore winds keep the exhaust fumes from the beach and the resorts, so these places are great, but walk the Malecon, or shop the markets and the fumes become overpowering.
We spent most of our time at our resort, Canto del Sol, sleeping in, reading, and playing in the pool. The weather has been sunny and hot, with moderate humidity, but every afternoon thunder clouds build over the surrounding mountains and spill over the valley, cooling things off.. It won’t be long before the summer rains begin. I hope they hold out until we get to Tenacatita, it’s hard driving in heavy rains with thunder and lightning.
While in Vallarta we accomplished a bunch of other necessary things that can only be done in the larger cities of Mexico. In Vallarta there is a Costco, Home Depot, Walmart, and government offices. We had to update our FM3s, Mexican Passports, which is always an ordeal. To smooth out the process this year we hired a lawyer, which cost us $300. In this way we didn’t have to go to the government office, the lawyer will do it all and send our passports down to Tenacatita later on when he is all done. We decided to do it our self next year now that we understand the process. The passports are the process we use to get our Mexican citizenship, which comes after 10 years (it used to be 5 years) when we will have dual citizenship. In this way we can own our Mexican property outright without having to use a presta nombre (borrowed name), which is a very unusual process that I won’t get into here.
We also did our laundry, which is a small ordeal: We use unscented detergent and no dryer sheets, but in Mexico they use only scented products, so all their washing machines and dryers have an intense toxic smell to them. So whenever we wash our clothes in their machines they come back smelling awful. Lucky for us, we found a self-service Laundromat 20 minutes drive from Vallarta in a small shopping center at Paradise Village in Nuevo Vallarta. Interestingly, self-service Laundromats are uncommon in Mexico because most Laundromats are family run businesses where you bring your clothes in for washing.
I spoke with Arturo, our builder, and he seems to believe the house will be done when we get there, although it sounds like nothing was done since leaving in March. No surprise! No less, we look forward to and are excited about getting to Tenacatita and moving into our house.
Oro Valley to Mazatlan
Today, June 9, we crossed. We went from a comfortable, knowing place (the US) to a strange world called Mexico. Today we crossed over to the uncertain. Mexico can be easy when relaxing in the sun along the beach or a pool; and it can be exasperating for instance when waiting endlessly in some government office, after having been there several times already. The crossing was very easy. We were not asked for ID, questioned, or searched. It was a slight maze of roads getting through but soon enough we were on Mexico highway 15 headed south through the Mexican state of Sonora. Sonora is applied named because it lies within the Sonoran Desert, the biologically most diversity desert in North America. I believe it has something to do with the greater amount of rainfall it receives . The area is dominated by numerous cactus species, saguaro, jumping cholla, prickly pear, and an abundance of shrub species.
San Carlos is a colorful, quiet village located at the end of the road on the Gulf of California. San Carlos caters to Americans and Canadians that winter down here, so it was very quiet this time of year. It seems to be a great place for fishing charters to catch marlin, dorado, tuna and other sport fishes. It was so relaxing at the Creston that we decided to spend an extra day, and make the long drive to Mazatlan in one day. It was a day well spent staying cool by the pool, because the next days drive was a long 11 hours.
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