HAPPY NEW YEAR

December 24 to 30, 2023 ; Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

Christmas Eve ; Sunny, very hot, very humid. As Christmas Eve should be ! HA HA HA !

Today I remember my father, who died on this date … a long time ago.

At noon we went out for our morning exercise walk to nowhere. It was less distance, and at a slower pace than usual due to the heat and humidity.

Joanne prepared her traditional Christmas Eve dinner of tourtière, but it required a lot of “adaptation”. It was wonderful, albeit a bit different than usual. Thank you, my dear.

Just before having dinner we had a Christmas family get together with Joanne’s family via Zoom. Thanks to her sister Lorraine for arranging that.

After dinner we watched a couple of animated children’s Christmas shows on CBC Gem. We ended our Christmas Eve by watching the CBC National news.

Christmas ; Feliz Navidad / Merry Christmas / Joyeux Noel

Thin overcast, very hot, very humid.

The apartment’s resident manager / cleaning lady just showed up (at 1 PM) to clean our apartment. How unusual. We thought she would simply defer our bi-weekly cleaning until tomorrow. <shrug> We also thought it odd when the garbage truck came down our street mid-morning, picking up all the neighbourhood garbages. We also thought it somewhat odd … and annoying ... that they spilled more garbage onto the street … and left it there … than seemed to be going into the truck due to overfilled bags breaking as they shuttled them from the curb to the truck.

There are a few Mexican “cultural” concepts that have always been difficult for me to accept, enormous amounts of litter in the streets / along the curbs being right up at the top of the list. Until this morning I didn’t realize that the garbage pickup men contribute so much to that. Only in front of the residences with OCD abuelas are the streets, sidewalks, and curbs kept clean. YOU ROCK, GRAMMA !

Santa brought me a new travel size water flosser (WaterPik). WOO-HOO ! I tried it this afternoon. It was wonderful. My teeth and especially my gums have missed my WaterPik which died shortly after arriving in Mexico two months ago.

Santa brought Joanne a four month stay (December 1 to March 31) at Royal Scot Hotel & Suites in downtown Victoria, BC, Canada next winter. She is pleased ! We will drive there and have the use of our car all winter. WOO-HOO … road trip !

At 5 PM we went for an exercise walk, and to refill our water jug, expecting that the day would have cooled somewhat by then. It hadn’t ! I was waving and wishing “Feliz Navidad” to everyone we passed. I learned how “foreign” my Spanish sounds. The response every time to my cheerful “Feliz Navidad”, carefully enunciated, was something along the lines of … “Nuvdad”. No “Feliz”, just a mumbled, quick “Nuvdad”.

My contribution to Christmas Dinner was to make the mashed potatoes. Christmas Dinner (garden salad, roast chicken with dressing / stuffing, sauteed squash, mashed potatoes with crema and cilantro, raisin pie home made by Joanne with fresh plump raisins bought at the local mercado) was excellent, as always / as usual. Thank you, my dear.

After supper we watched the first two (of three) episodes of the CBC drama series “Blackberry”. I was just going to watch a few minutes of the first episode to see what it was about, but … now we’re hooked !

Boxing Day ; Sunny, very hot, very humid. Temperature when we went out at noon ; 84°F / 29°C / “feels like” 93°F / 34°C.

Yes, at noon we went out for an exercise walk and to take our dirty laundry to the lavanderia and refill our water jug. As we unlocked the gate to our apartment building upon our return I was mistaken for the landlord by a new guest checking in. Despite the fact that we were both speaking English, we both had difficulty understanding each other. He was an Asian from Belize, who spoke English with a heavy Asian accent. And he had difficulty understanding my Canadian accented English.

It always surprises me when English speakers have difficulty understanding my Canadian accented English. Every culture, every accent believes “I don’t have an accent … THEY have an accent”. HA HA HA ! The very first time I encountered English speakers who had difficulty understanding me was in … wait for it … Florida ! HA HA HA !

In the afternoon Joanne did online research of restaurants in Oaxaca. I did online research of dentists and optometrists in Oaxaca. At 6 PM we went for a walk to Panaderia Alicia to replenish sandwich buns and cookies. After supper of Christmas leftovers … tourtière, roast chicken, dressing, mashed potatoes, etc. … we watched the third and final episode of the CBC drama series Blackberry.

What a fascinating Canadian story of rags to riches to rags.

Wednesday ; Sunny, very hot, very humid.

Consequently, our morning walk was slow, and not far. We walked to OXXO and bought a package of tortillas harina so that I could make tortilla chips to accompany Joanne’s wonderful guacomole as tonight’s “amuse-bouche”. Our 6 PM walk was further, as the air cooled as soon as the sun had set. We walked in an area we had not explored before, and found a restaurant / barbecue take-out place that looked interesting. They had just closed at 6 PM. We will return tomorrow to check them out.

This morning I phoned Good Sam Emergency Roadside Service, (a US based service provider of emergency roadside assistance for RV’s) trying … and mostly succeeding … in stifling my anger at them. My three year term membership of RV emergency roadside assistance expires in a month. I have a note in my calendar, placed three years ago, to contact the Good Sam RV Club in two weeks from now to cancel before the expiry date to ensure that they don’t just automatically charge my credit card for renewal. I HATE that “must cancel or we will charge” bullshit ! Good Sam has been the only service provider that I (very reluctantly) agreed to do business with on those terms.

Well … <sputter> … a few days ago, fully a month before my membership term ends, the assholes billed my credit card. <taking a deep breath> I resolved that “problem” this morning. And did so politely and patiently, which is NOT my usual style ! ! ! Well … there was one tiny exception. The agent serving me wanted to know my reason for cancelling my membership. I DON’T NEED A REASON, ASSHOLE ! <taking another deep breath> I thought that, but didn’t say that. What I did say was … “that’s irrelevant to this process !”

I have a ZOOM meeting tomorrow with the volunteer co-ordinator at the Winnipeg Humane Society to discuss my recent application to be a volunteer with their organization, maybe in the shelter as a dog walker, maybe a short term foster care provider.

After supper we watched two episodes of a CBC “true crime” drama called Farm Crime. “Only In Canada, you say ?” HA HA HA ! (to my non-Canadian readers ; that’s a Canadian television commercial inside joke)

Thursday ; Sunny, very hot, very humid.

This morning our walk took us to Cabeza Negra (Black Head) barbecue restaurant where we checked out their offerings and made a decision about what we want to buy there for supper a day or two before we leave. As usual, Joanne has done an excellent job of managing our food / grocery supplies so that we should run out of food about two days before we depart. Easier said than done, believe me. But she has years of practice ; in the fall before we would leave Canada heading to Arizona, in the spring before we would leave Arizona heading back to Canada, etc.

Late this afternoon we had a ZOOM meeting / interview with the volunteer co-ordinator at the Winnipeg Humane Society. It went well, and we are looking forward to getting involved with short term foster care in our Dugald condo, and in-shelter volunteer work like dog walking / cat cuddling, etc., as we did for a dozen winters or so in Yuma, Arizona.

Our afternoon walk took us to OXXO to buy some milk and bread, to Panaderia Alicia to buy some bolillo buns, to the lavanderia to pick up our laundered clothes, and the aqua purificado machine to refill our water jug.

We are following with interest the current controversy back home in Manitoba revolving around the outgoing PC government’s attempted interference in the Sio Silica sand mining (in our neighbourhood !) “approvals” process in the days following their loss in the election on October 3 and the swearing in of the new NDP government fifteen days later.

Joanne concocted a wonderful dinner using ground beef, vegetable pasta, mixed vegetables, and … mole (molay), a Mexican cooking sauce with “roots” of chocolate. We named it … Mole Helper. HA HA HA ! By the way … Oaxaca, our next destination, is famous for its “seven moles”. Joanne’s birthday dinner will probably be a “degustación de siete moles” / seven moles tasting dinner.

After supper we watched the Winnipeg Humane Society’s 45 minute orientation video for new volunteers, followed by a quiz. Got 100 % on the quiz ! There are many training videos to be watched and quizzes to be completed for new volunteers. They seem very well organized.

Friday ; Overcast, mild, light drizzle … while we were walking to the mercado !

Yesterday I received a notification from Delta Airlines that our three flights home on April 3 were rescheduled. The result was a 23 ½ hour overnight layover in Mexico City. I was certain that only a computer algorithm would produce that terrible a schedule. I was right. This morning I contacted Delta through their website’s online chat function, and a live agent quickly rescheduled us much more efficiently. Thank you Delta agent Amber for your prompt and efficient assistance.

Late this morning we walked all the way to the Mercado Nueva … yes, yes, it began to drizzle moments after we left our apartment … to buy fruits and vegetables. Then to Expendio Fud (deli/meat market) for luncheon meat, and across the street to Carnicerias El Jarochita (another deli/meat market) for cheeses.

In the afternoon I completed another Winnipeg Humane Society training module for new volunteers. At 6:30 PM we went for another walk, a bit later than usual, dark already.

As you may have noticed, we have somewhat run out of tourist “things to do / sights to see” here in Chetumal. <shrug> Oh, well … we were looking for someplace to have a “quiet” Christmas and New Year’s.

So … after supper we completed two more Winnipeg Humane Society new volunteer training modules. So far … we are VERY impressed with the Winnipeg Humane Society.

Saturday ; Heavy rain overnight. Overcast and cool today. Downright cold by Mexico standards ; temperature mid-60’s °F / high teens °C.

We slept late, then had a lazy day, partially due to the “chilly” weather. In the afternoon I did a bit of year end accounting and investment analysis. Much more to do in the next few days. Late in the afternoon we went for a walk to replenish Diet Coke and milk at OXXO, buns and cookies at Panaderia Alicia, and to refill our water jug.

In the evening we completed two more Winnipeg Humane Society training modules for new volunteers.

DSK

December 17 to 23, 2023 ; Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico

 Sunday ; Mix of sun and clouds, very warm, light breeze.

This morning we went for a walk to the mercado, not because we needed frutas y verduras yet, but because we wanted to buy barbacoa borrego (barbecued, shredded lamb) at La Barbacha, the restaurant across the street from the mercado that is open only on Sundays, serving only barbacoa borrego. By the time we arrived there between noon and 1 PM … <sigh> … they had none left. Strange business model ; offer only one product, offer it only one day per week, sell out before 1 PM ! At nearby Super Willy’s we bought some items Joanne needs for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinner preparations.

Shortly after arriving back at home … my phone rang. The incoming call indicated a Mexican phone number. HUH ? Only two people have our Mexico phone number, and they’re both back in Canada. It was a very difficult conversation with a woman who spoke no English. But … she was patient and persistent. Good thing ! She was the Amazon delivery driver delivering Santa’s gift to me ! HA HA HA ! The gate into our apartment building’s grounds is locked. She was outside the gate trying to deliver Santa’s package to me. Muchas gracias, señorita.

While Joanne was preparing supper I was playing around on the bedroom’s TV trying to find something in English to watch. Slim pickings ! I found an English language Christmas movie” entitled “Perro de Navidad” / Christmas Dog. It may very well be the worst movie we have ever seen. Most of the actors were ten year old children. The few adults that were in it (parents, FBI agents) were without a doubt all wannabe or failed porn stars. We watched the movie after having supper. I hope I redeemed myself at bedtime by VPN’ing into Toronto and setting up for us to lie in bed and watch last night’s episode of SNL.

Monday ; Sunny, warm, light breeze … a perfect “June 18” kind of day.

This morning we went for a combination exercise and errands walk. First we dropped off a load of dirty laundry at the lavanderia. Next was OXXO to buy a few items needed to prepare the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinners Joanne has planned. Then across the street to Carne Mart to buy a whole chicken for Christmas dinner, and some ground beef for Christmas Eve’s tourtière dinner. Christmas Eve tourtière dinner will be the larger challenge. We were unable to buy prepared pie crust / plan A. We were unable to buy frozen pastry dough / plan B. We lack some of the kitchen equipment to make pie dough / crust from scratch, but … will have to do the best we can. Joanne is (stubbornly) determined ! We refilled our water jug on the way home.

Late in the afternoon we went for another walk, this time to replenish buns and pastries, and to find a nearby Belizean restaurant Joanne is interested in trying. We found it, she’s game to try it, I’m skeptical / pessimistic about the place.

In the evening, after supper, we watched the final episode of The Amazing Race. On and off throughout the day we researched / explored options for next winter.

Tuesday ; Sunny and warm.

After an early lunch we walked all the way to Mercado Nuevo, the New Market, to replenish vegetables and fruits. On the way back home we stopped at Super Willy’s to replenish a few needed grocery items, then stopped again at Carnes Chetumal, our favourite neighbourhood deli (and butcher) to purchase luncheon meat and cheeses. They were very busy today, with many women purchasing huge quantities of meats. Holy Mackerel … how many people are each of these women expecting for Christmas dinner ? ! ?

Once again we spent (too much) time today researching our accommodation options for next winter.

Just before dusk we went out again, this time to pick up our laundered clothing at the lavanderia, and refill our water jug at the aqua purificado machine.

Supper was a joint effort. Joanne prepared and I cooked. WOO-HOO … I “invented” / created a wonderful new recipe.

Also … Joanne researched … where I should buy her a birthday gift in Oaxaca. HA HA HA ! You kind of have to admire that level of confidence and optimism, n’est-ce pas ?

Wednesday ; Overcast and mild. Occasional rain, sometimes heavy. By Mexico standards … cold winter weather ! All the local dogs are wearing sweaters. Our apartment building’s resident manager is wearing a toque ! HA HA HA ! Even I wore long legged pants for the first time since arriving in Mexico almost two months ago.

Before lunch we went for a walk for exercising, exploring, and to buy some crema de arnica for Joanne at Farmacia YZA (eeza). She has developed a swollen and extremely bruised middle finger on her right hand. Maybe from carrying the full water jug with its little plastic handle ? More likely from carrying a heavy bag (we each had one) filled with fruits and vegetables and cheeses and luncheon meats all the way home from yesterday’s mercado shopping trip. When she “flips the bird” it’s really ugly. HA HA HA <SNORT> HA HA.

After lunch and a nap I worked on next year’s budget planning. HMMM … perhaps it’s time to “loosen the purse strings” a little ?

After supper I VPN’ed into Toronto and we watched three Christmas shows on CBC Gem, then watched The National. HMPH … slow news day in Canada today !

Thursday ; Sunny and warm, a bit humid in the afternoon.

Our toilet flusher arm broke this morning. Our landlord (Carlos) and landlady (his wife Lucero) are very responsive to our notifications of maintenance issues, most of which seem to be plumbing related, as was also the case in Playa del Carmen. Around 5 PM Carlos showed up, Tweedledum in tow, don’t know where Tweedledee was, don’t know why Tweedledum needed to be chauffeured here by Carlos. It took Tweedledum about half an hour to replace the broken toilet flusher arm. Seems to me that’s about a five minute job, especially since I had already lifted off the tank cover and removed the broken flusher arm, so … job half done before his arrival, but HEY … I’m not a “professional” plumber !

Around 4 PM we went out for an exercise walk and to run some simple errands. For the third time this week we walked to the location of a local Belizean restaurant, confirmed by the signage on the building’s gate. Each time all we see inside the gate is an old abuela sitting in her living room, and a barking pit bull trying to get through the gate and kill us ! Carlos later confirmed for us that the restaurant has been closed for a long time. It’s very common … and extremely irritating to this OCD gringo … that here in Mexico redundant signage is simply left in place. FFS … how much trouble is it to remove plastic signage attached to your gate by plastic cable ties, years after your restaurant has closed, or since you bought the property from the previous owners who operated a restaurant. HEY … GRAMMA … I have my Swiss army knife in my pocket. You want me to remove that signage for you ? ? ? ! ! ! It will take me about trente ****ing momentitos !

<taking deep breath>

We walked to restaurant “plan B” to check out their menu, and will return in a couple of hours (it’s currently 5:45 PM). We bought milk and Diet Coke at OXXO, buns, muffins, and cookies at Panaderia Alicia, and refilled our water jug before returning home.

Just before 7 PM we left to have dinner at Diaz Grill Taquerias. It was wonderful ! With quick and efficient service from both waiter and kitchen. I had a costra cecina de rez. Joanne had a gringa al pastor con piña. We shared a papas con champiñones. Their “side dish” of roasted onions was superb. We were back home shortly after 8 PM.

Joanne thinks maybe we should go out for dinner more frequently. Sure … why not ? !

Friday ; Mostly overcast, very warm, a bit humid.

Ever since my father died on Christmas Eve … 28 years ago … at age 70, I have endured an overwhelming battle with depression (including fatigue and extreme negativity … BAH, HUMBUG) every year in the days leading to Christmas. I can intellectualize it, but can’t seem to be able to defeat it. It’s perplexing that it has persisted for so many years.

This morning we went out for an exercise walk to nowhere in particular. This afternoon we went out for another exercise walk, this one leading to the three nearby delis where we have previously bought luncheon meats and cheeses. Choice #1 was already closed (at 5 PM) so we checked out choice #3 next door, then crossed the street to buy luncheon meat and cheeses at choice #2.

I puttered around on the computer, selecting photos to make into Christmas cards, and preparing them to be sent or posted to my blog, etc. I prepared a “coupon” Christmas gift for Joanne. Slim pickings under our Mickey Mouse (literally) Christmas tree this year.

After supper we watched the lengthy season finale of Survivor, including “aftershow”.

HMPH ! Amazing Race is finished, Survivor is finished … what are we going to regularly watch on TV now ?

Saturday ; Sunny, hot, a bit humid.

Late this morning we walked all the way to Mercado Nuevo to stock up on vegetables required for the next few days’ special meals. The market was extremely crowded / busy today. Following is my conversation with the middle aged man running the vegetable stand where we bought most of our required vegetables, after he weighed and priced our selections ;

JEFE ; Seisente (60) pesos, por favor

ME ; (paying)

JEFE ; Americanos ?

ME ; No … somos Canadienses

JEFE (in perfect English) ; OH … God bless you !

HA HA HA !

Buying meats for Christmas dinner here is VERY different than back home in Canada. Here women shoppers are wandering around the market carrying their Christmas dinner turkeys. All are freshly slaughtered … the turkeys, not the women … hanging down below the women’s hands, most of the turkeys plucked, but not all of them, some still with feathers, women carrying the turkeys by the necks as if they themselves wrung the turkeys’ necks moments before ! The turkeys still have their legs and feet attached. No styrofoam trays, plastic cling wrap, or vacuum shrink wrapping here ! BTW … turkeys here are scrawny ! No growth hormones or “Butterballing” I guess.

Parked at the market are pickup trucks with one or two dead pigs in the bed of the truck.

YO … Feliz Navidad ! HA HA HA !

At 6 PM we set off for another evening at Villa Navideña at Chetumal Malecon. We walked a couple of blocks to the nearest busy street and hailed a taxi. As expected, the fare was trente pesos. The taxi dropped us off as near to the Christmas Village as practical, and as we walked the last few hundred feet … uh-oh … muchos emergency vehicle lights. HA HA HA … perfect timing. We were approaching the start of the Santa Claus parade. We stood on the median of the street and watched children freaking out over the appearance of Santa Claus, and a variety of law enforcement types throwing candies out their cruiser (and fire truck and ambulance) windows. HA HA HA … sort of Santa Claus meets Mardi Gras !

Standing in front of us on the landscaped median was a mother with two young children, a boy and a girl. They were scrambling around in the grass collecting candies thrown by Santa when the little girl looked up in amazement and shouted … as another float with another Santa approached … MIRAR ! UNO OTRO SANTA ! ! ! (LOOK ! ANOTHER SANTA ! ! !) HA HA HA HA HA … she was overdosing on adrenaline !

We wandered around for a couple of hours, grazing on street food, including a very nice slice of tres leches cake decorated with Christmas icing on top. The Christmas Village was not as busy as two weeks ago. I guess what we saw at the mercado earlier today was an indication that tonight many families would be at home starting their Christmas dinner preparations.

After a couple of hours we wandered away from Christmas Village and a few blocks later hailed a taxi to take us home.

DSK

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2023

December 10 to 16, 2023 ; Chetumal, capital city of state of Quintana Roo, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico (at border with Belize)

 Sunday ; Mix of sun and clouds, occasional brief light rain.

By design we had a slow day mostly at home. We knew the weather would be a bit less than ideal, and we were tired from yesterday evening’s walking. I had many videos and photos to download and process, and then upload to my weekly blog entry. Both of us continued to research next winter’s accommodations. I think we have it narrowed down to a few attractive options.

At 6 PM we went out for an exercise walk, just meandering around the neighbourhood, going nowhere in particular. We picked up milk and cooking oil at a nearby OXXO on the way back home. We worked together on making supper. Once again I made whole wheat tortilla chips to accompany Joanne’s guacamole, as our dinner appetizer. At bedtime, I VPN’ed into Toronto, hooked up the laptop to the apartment TV, and we watched yesterday’s episode of SNL on Global while in bed.

Monday ; Cloudy, warm (a lot cooler and more pleasant), light wind.

Around noon we went out for an exercise walk, and to run some grocery replenishment errands. We stopped at a “meat & deli” store and bought some turkey ham luncheon meat, then went to their competitor next door and bought three different cheeses, including queso fresco. First time we’ve found queso fresco here in Chetumal. While “queso fresco” translates literally as “fresh cheese”, it is also the name of a particular type of fresh cheese, as in “cheddar” or “gouda” for example.

This afternoon I worked on financial matters, paying bills, moving money around, etc.

At 6 PM we went out for another exercise walk, and to run more errands. As we approached a local OXXO store we saw a carniceria (meat market / butcher) we had not noticed before. We went in to look around. It was impressive, and will be our local butcher shop of choice. Today I bought a package of Oaxacan cheese there. Joanne planned some Christmas Eve and Christmas dinner menu item purchases. We replenished a few other items at the OXXO across the street, then replenished buns and pastries at Panaderia Alicia. On the way back home we refilled our water jug at the aqua purificado machine.

Using the VPN to “be” in Toronto, we watched last Wednesday’s episode of Amazing Race on CTV while having supper.

Tuesday ; Cloudy, warm, occasional light rain.

HMPH ! I just broke (beyond my ability to repair) the computer mouse I bought a year ago in Portugal.

Mostly because of the weather we had another lazy day. Might be a few more of these lazy weather days ahead. At 1 PM I had a ZOOM meeting with our financial advisor in Penticton, BC to discuss some upcoming financial plans for 2024.

Wednesday ; HOLY MACKEREL ! We have just returned (1:20 PM) from picking up our laundered clothing from the nearby lavanderia and refilling our water jug at the aqua purificado machine across the street from the lavanderia, and … about 30 seconds after we returned home, the skies opened up and a torrential downpour began ! What lucky timing !

We got a late start to the day. Joanne slept very late. I made pancakes for brunch. Then spent the rest of the morning and into the afternoon jumping through AirBnB hoops trying … and succeeding … making a reservation for next winter’s travels. GREAT ! WOO-HOO ! Dates locked in, price locked in !

WELL ! F*** ! ! ! Within a couple of hours of making the AirBnB reservation I received a message from the apartment owner, who intends to sell their apartment in the spring, and therefore cannot accept our reservation for next winter !

At 5:45 PM we left for an early supper at a nearby (mostly) seafood restaurant that Joanne was interested in. Early supper for us because they close at 7 PM. Many of their reviews comment on how wonderful their food is, and how the staff rush them at the end of their meals to finish and get out. YUP … they certainly do ! And yes, the food was quite good. I had the especial de día / daily special, camarones fiesta / shrimp party. Joanne had quesos fundido / a cheese fondue sort of thing. Their “hurry up and leave” attitude affected the tip, and precludes our returning.

Thursday ; Overcast, warm, a bit humid, occasional heavy rain.

Mostly due to the weather we had a pretty lazy, quiet, uneventful day. I puttered around on my laptop for much of the day. Joanne puttered around on the i-Phone for much of the day. Around 6 PM we went for a short walk to the local panaderia to buy some cookies for bedtime and a muffin for breakfast. At bedtime we watched yesterday’s episode of Survivor.

Friday ; Overcast, very warm, a but humid, occasional rain.

Around noon we set off for an afternoon of Wal-Martin’. We walked a couple of blocks to Calzada Veracruz, the nearest busy street, and stood on the median, flagging taxis heading in either direction. It seemed to take quite awhile until an empty taxi stopped for us. Once at Wal-Mart we went to the nearby Cuban restaurant Joanne had chosen for lunch. They had six items on their menu, and three of the items were unavailable. HMPH ! Gracias … adios ! In the small mall fronting Wal-Mart we went to a creperia and each had a savoury crepe for lunch.

We spent at least a couple of hours shopping. Maybe more ! Our Wal-Mart bill was even higher than last week. Perhaps because I bought a wireless mouse, and enough antihistamine medication to last me the rest of the winter. We were third in line at Wal-Mart’s taxi stand and again waited quite awhile for a taxi. I think we have purchased enough “basics” to last until after Christmas. We hope ! Tomorrow we will go to the local butcher shop for meats and other supper items.

While we were out shopping a pair of plumbers came in (for the second time this week) to repair the small leak in the drain pipe underneath our apartment’s kitchen sink. They replaced the sink strainer basket. Great … now the leak, in the drain pipe trap connection, is worse than before ! ! ! Vive Mexico ! I sent a message to the landlord who advised that he will have the plumbers return (again) tomorrow.

WOO-HOO … my new wireless mouse works well.

Saturday ; Mostly sunny, hot, humid.

This morning we walked over to the nearby OXXO store where I “recharged” (top-up) my Movistar cell phone service, then crossed the street to Carne ("carnay" ... meat) Mart to buy some butcher shop items. Joanne wanted to buy a whole chicken to cook for Christmas dinner, but they were out of stock today, maybe tomorrow. I bought a package of eight arracherra flavoured beef burger patties, a package of “buffalo style” chicken wings, and a package of frozen fries. On the way back home we refilled our water jug.

We arrived back home around noon, just in time to meet Tweedledum & Tweedledee, the two plumbers returning to our apartment for the third time in three days to attempt once again to resolve the kitchen sink drain leak. My goodness, if I had some tools I would have fixed it myself three days ago. It was about a ten minute plumbing repair job ! ! ! Hopefully … third time’s the charm, so they say. So far (7 PM) it seems to finally be fixed !

At 4 PM we set off for the long walk to the Chetumal malecon (waterfront walkway) centro / “downtown” / centre of town. After visiting it last Saturday evening, Joanne wanted a return visit during daylight hours. It was as interesting in daylight as it was in the evening, although a bit less of a “happening” kind of place in daylight. All the food vendors and children’s entertainers, etc. were setting up shop for the evening. We walked out onto the long ferry dock. A ferry had just arrived from Belize, and the last of the ferry passengers were disembarking. A young gringa with a backpack heading towards us correctly assumed, based on our skin colour, that we could speak English, and asked us for assistance.

She was from New Zealand, and was just arriving in Mexico from Belize. She was headed to the nearby town of Bacalar and wanted advice regarding catching a taxi in Chetumal. No problema … there’s a taxi stand at the end/beginning of the ferry dock, a few hundred feet further behind us.

We wandered up and down the ferry dock, then around the main malecon area for awhile. When we got tired we began heading back in the direction of our apartment. We walked a few blocks, I bought a Coca-Cola Light at an abarrote, and we flagged down a taxi. We were puzzled that the taxi already had a passenger in the front seat. It took us a few blocks to understand the situation, since neither the driver nor the front seat passenger spoke English.

Apparently the driver had just picked up this “fare” … a very drunk fellow. Whether or not he could pay the fare was questionable. The driver was looking for an excuse / opportunity to get rid of the drunk. He drove a few blocks in the direction the drunk wanted to go, which was not the direction we wanted to go, then pulled over and told him that was “the end of the line” and kicked the drunk out. Since most Mexican taxis do not have meters, it did not matter to us that we were treated to the “scenic route” to get to our apartment. It seems that in Chetumal, the basic fare for a flagged taxi, from any point A to any point B is trente (30) pesos / CA$2.40, whereas the fare for a taxi from a taxi stand, such as at Wal-Mart, is viente-cinco (25) pesos / CA$2. We arrived back home at 6:30 PM, at dusk.

While Joanne made cole slaw I cooked chicken wings for me, a smoked pork chop for her, and fries. Supper was good ! After supper I VPN’ed into Toronto, signed into CBC Gem, hooked up the laptop to the apartment’s TV, and we spent the rest of the evening watching a schmaltzy Hallmark style “Christmas movie”.

DSK

December 3 to 9, 2023 ; Playa del Carmen to Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico

 Sunday ; Sunny, hot, humid.

I was still feeling a bit “fragile” today, not sick, but certainly a bit weak, and … a teensy bit queasy when exposed to odours.

Most of our day seemed a bit “out of schedule”. Firstly we slept later than usual. Then we took longer with breakfast than usual. I made pancakes. Partially because we had half a small bottle of syrup we wanted to use before leaving on Tuesday. After breakfast I showered, and as Joanne was preparing to shower around noon our Belgian friend Helene dropped in for a visit.

When Helene left around 2 PM Joanne went to shower and I took our dirty laundry to the Cuban lady’s lavanderia on the corner, so we will leave here on Tuesday with clean laundry. Joanne had a late, light lunch, I did not feel like eating. In the afternoon I did some work on my laptop, we did our regular “morning exercises” (a few hours later than usual), then went to Willy’s to purchase a few grocery items.

At 6 PM we headed out for a walk to the beach. I was hoping that I could find the strength to walk to Playa 88, then walk along the beach from Playa 88 to Playa Punta Esmeralda at dusk, then walk home. We walked slowly, I rested occasionally, it was a beautiful beach walk at dusk. We were back home around 7:30 PM.

At 8 PM we walked over to the nearby Taqueria La Benedicion de Dios to buy our supper. We had asked the owner yesterday afternoon as we walked by if tonight was going to be one of the nights when their pasta dishes were available. HEY … it’s Mexico … not everything is on the menu each night <rolling eyes>. He assured us he would have pasta dishes available for us tonight. And he did ! And despite it being considerably more expensive than we had expected … our two pasta dishes were exquisite !

The only pasta available tonight was spaghetti. The only sauce available tonight was alfredo. Joanne had spaghetti alfredo with arracherra meat added. I had spaghetti alfredo with arracherra meat and camarones (cammaROnays) / shrimps added. While our meals were being prepared I went to their condiment bar and filled eight baggies with assorted “condiments”. Joanne watched our spaghetti alfredo being made. The “chef” / owner’s son poured a huge serving of cooked spaghetti into a skillet, placed the skillet on a gas burner, poured a lot of cream over it, lit it on fire (HUH ?) then poured a huge amount of grated parmesan cheese over it, and stirred like crazy while it heated over the gas burner. I’m not certain that’s the traditional way to make alfredo sauce, but … <shrug>.

Our pasta meals were too heavy to be carried home on their take out plates, so they served them to us on porcelain dinner plates and asked us to return their plates tomorrow. OK … thank you. A bit pricey at MXN$500 / CA$40. But … OHHHHH, so good ! ! !

We each were able to eat only half of our servings, so … same for dinner tomorrow night ! Since tonight’s meal order will serve us for two evenings, I suppose forty bucks isn’t unreasonable.

Monday ; Sunny, hot, humid.

Well ! This morning I was completely healthy, and … <sigh> … Joanne became ill again. Both of us are frustrated and worn out by this sickness yo-yo !

We got drugs … lot of drugs … into her as early in the day as possible, hoping to reverse the downward spiral leading to puking. Seems to have worked.

I went for an early walk by myself. I returned the porcelain dishes to the taqueria around the corner. Back at home we had a light lunch. After lunch Joanne made guacamole to use up our remaining avocado, onion, and tomatoes. I made tortilla chips to use up my remaining tortillas harina. We picked up our clean laundry and as we returned to our apartment Helene was returning from running some errands. She came into our apartment and visited for awhile. I served her some of our home made guacamole and tortilla chips. She particularly liked my wheat flour tortilla chips. Me too. Joanne too.

Around 5:30 PM we walked to Avenida 30 and headed south until we came to the place that makes empanadas. We decided the first time we saw it a few weeks ago that their vegetarian empanadas were suitable for us to bring for lunch on tomorrow’s long bus journey to Chetumal. We bought a mushroom and cheese empanada for me, and a spinach and cheese empanada for Joanne. On the way home we stopped at a panaderia to buy a muffin for breakfast, and some cookies for the bus ride.

Recently we witnessed a gruesome looking accident in our neighbourhood, when a man fell about ten feet off scaffolding, landing on his back on a pail of mortar cement. Tonight as we walked home he was up on a rickety ladder, wearing flip flop sandals, painting / whitewashing the stucco repairs he was doing when he fell off the scaffolding. Seems as if he’s okay !

We have only one Ciprofloxacin tablet left. I only brought ten. I have close to 200 more back home in Canada. DARN … who knew that we would be consuming Cipro like candies ? ! We stopped at a farmacia to buy a bottle of Cipro tablets, but … things have changed over the years. The pharmacist would not sell Ciprofloxacin without a doctor’s prescription. HMPH ! We can thank the good ole US of A for that ! After 9/11, they put pressure on the Government of Mexico to “regulate” the sale of Ciprofloxacin, based on their theory that since Cipro is the “antidote” to Anthrax, a type of “biological warfare” agent, only terrorists would want to buy Cipro without a prescription.

F*** ! ! ! How about elderly Canadians with severe cramping, diarrhea and puking from Mexican food (or water) poisoning ? ! ? ! ? I’ll bet there are a hell of a lot more sick, old Canadians here in Mexico than there are terrorists out to wreak havoc on America using biological warfare. <mumbling> Merkin morons !

We watched last week’s episode of Amazing Race while we ate our dinners, a tomato and cucumber salad to use up the last of our fresh vegetables, a hodgepodge of leftovers for me, and fresh egg salad tacos for Joanne. In the evening we packed and prepared for tomorrow morning’s departure, then did some dreaming / planning / research for next winter’s travel adventures.

I had thought our friendly calico cat would have given birth before our departure, but … not yet. Poor girl, she seems so uncomfortable in this heat and humidity with her belly full of kittens. During the day she just lies in the shade and looks miserable. After the sun sets she paces around, moaning.

Tuesday ; Playa del Carmen to Chetumal

Sunny, hot, humid in both Playa del Carmen in the morning and Chetumal in the evening.

We were up earlier than usual to be ready for departure at 11 AM. We were both healthy. Hallelujah ! We were both more than ready to leave Playa del Carmen and start a new chapter / adventure in Chetumal. Hopefully … a healthier one !

Our neighbour / new friend Helene dropped by to bid us adieu. We were out of our room and waiting for our taxi outside the apartment building’s front gate by 11 AM. A few weeks ago I had downloaded the Playa del Carmen taxi company app onto our i-Phone and had struggled through the complicated (to me) process of making a taxi reservation for this morning at 11 AM. At 11 AM I received a message that our taxi was on its way. HMPH ! At 11:08 AM I flagged down a passing taxi, the driver spoke English … vamos / let’s go !

I asked him to stop briefly at the HSBC Bank between Mega Soriana and Super Aki to allow me to withdraw some cash from the ATM. I was almost out of cash. The 6500 pesos I had brought from Canada were almost gone ! But as he approached downtown I saw a ScotiaBank and asked asked him to stop there. I thought perhaps that the service fees might be less since it is a Canadian bank. But … NO ! I withdrew cash and the taxi had us at the bus terminal at 11:25 AM, fifteen minutes before our scheduled bus departure.

I had purchased our tickets a couple of weeks ago. The bus left Playa del Carmen on time. The ADO bus had Wi-Fi, air conditioning, and comfortable seats. It was an “Express” making only a couple of stops, once at Tulum and again at Bacalar. We ate our empanadas lunch after leaving Tulum. The bus arrived in Chetumal on time at 5:10 PM. We were in a taxi by 5:30 PM and checking into our AirBnB apartment by 6 PM.

What a relief ! NOT a dump ! WOO-HOO ! Already decorated for Christmas !

We got settled in, and rested. We went out at 8 PM to buy something for breakfast, and to have supper. We bought some buns for sandwiches and muffins for breakfast at Panaderia Alicia. We bought milk and margarine at OXXO. We went for supper at La Terrasa de Tito. It was a very nice restaurant, nicely decorated for Christmas, air conditioned dining room, English speaking waitress, and interesting menu items, reasonably priced. Joanne had a taco Arrabe / Arab style taco … <shrug>, I had a sort of a stuffed baked potato thingy ; baked potato mashed with cheese and cream, filled with sauteed mushrooms, onions, cilantro, (hold the Poblano peppers, por favor), wrapped in foil, baked again. Very tasty “comfort food”.

Chetumal is in the furthest southeast corner of Mexico, on the Yucatan Peninsula. The southern edge of the city is the Mexican border with Belize, the eastern edge of the city is the Caribbean Sea.

Wednesday ; Overcast, hot, humid. A few minutes of light drizzle as we walked (and walked and walked and walked …) this morning to Wal-Mart.

As always upon arrival at a new location, our first day’s priority was grocery shopping. This morning we set off for Wal-Mart Insurgentes, about 2.5 km. from our apartment. We made many stops along the way, for a variety of reasons, some planned, some on impulse.

First stop was a cell phone accessories store I noticed. I purchased a new protective case for our i-Phone. The old one contains an auxiliary battery that has died. Because the new one does not have an auxiliary battery, it is much lighter and thinner, making the phone easier to handle. Next stop was the municipal market, where we wandered around checking out the fruits and vegetables vendors. We will return tomorrow to buy fresh fruits and vegetables. I stopped at a pharmacy to attempt to buy Ciprofloxacin. They would not sell any without a prescription, same as in Playa del Carmen. But … persistent as I am, when I saw a combination farmacia and medical clinic I went in and asked for Ciprofloxacin. BINGO … no problema ! Bought a box of fourteen tablets at a reasonable price (the cost of a pharmacy dispensing fee in Canada). It’s a relief for both of us to have replenished Cipro, reducing our anxiety about future gastro-intestinal distress issues.

When we finally reached Wal-Mart it was time for lunch. Joanne had pre-selected a “comida economica” restaurant behind Wal-Mart. Comida economica / “budget food” restaurants are small, usually Mom & Pop places with very limited offerings, changing daily, based on what Pop bought at the mercado and/or what Mom feels like cooking today. Their pricing is “prix fixe” and cheap ! Today’s restaurant was called “Doña Eva Cocina Economica” / “elderly Mrs. Eva’s Budget Kitchen”. It was an abuela y abuelo / grandmother and grandfather aged “Mom & Pop” running the place. We ordered a bowl of today’s stew to share. It was a huge bowl of chicken and vegetables and rice soup/stew, with about half a chicken in it ! It included a bebida / drink. I ordered a second bebida. Today’s special, including drink, and an additional drink, cost MXN$125 / CA$10.

We spent a long time at Wal-Mart, buying basics to last a month, and enough supper meal idea items to last a week or so. As usual for a first shopping trip, the bill was large, over MXN$1500 / CA$120. When we were done we walked outside with our two extremely overloaded shopping bags and got into the lone cab waiting for a customer. As is customary / necessary in Mexico, I asked the driver BEFORE he began the journey how much it would cost. <blink blink> Viente-cinco pesos ? ! ? Two bucks Canadian ? ! ? We walked two and a half kilometres … in drizzle … when we could have taken a taxi to come here from our apartment for TWO BUCKS ? ? ?

Oh, well ! <shrug> At least that ended up in us getting a new cell phone case AND Ciprofloxacin !

Thursday ; Sunny and very hot.

Our priority today was to walk to the Mercado Lazaro Cardenas and adjacent Mercado Nuevo (New) and stock up on about a week’s worth of fruits and vegetables. Here in Chetumal we don’t have as easy and convenient access to stores and markets as we did in Playa del Carmen. That is easily offset by how much nicer our apartment and neighbourhood are.

We walked to the market slowly because of the heat, then meandered all through and around the market area checking out fruit and vegetable stalls. We bought a lot of fruits and vegetables, then trudged slowly back home with two bags that seemed to get heavier and heavier as we walked. Once back home we had a late lunch then a long afternoon nap for both of us.

In the afternoon we planned meals for the next ten days or so, both meals at home and restaurants we want to try. At suppertime (8 PM for us, as always) we worked together to make a wonderful home cooked dinner. Well … Joanne did about 80% of the work to my 20%. In the evening we did research on next winter’s plans.

Friday ; Sunny and very hot.

Around noon we went out to buy some pan dulce at Panaderia Alicia, and refill our water jug at a nearby aqua purificado machine. The bakery hours are 7 AM to 9 PM, but … when we arrived they were closed ! HMPH ! We failed to take into account “siesta” time. Here in Mexico many businesses close sometime early in the afternoon for one to three hours to have lunch and a nap. Very civilized, but … somewhat inconvenient for customers. We refilled our water jug and returned home. As we entered our apartment’s front gate we met our new neighbours, a couple that arrived yesterday afternoon. They are from Germany, and are here for just a few days. They brought their two motorcycles over from Germany, and are travelling for two months, from Mexico to … <blink blink> … Chile, halfway down the coast of South America. That seems like a very long way to travel by motorcycle, but … so says the guy who travelled 40,000 km. per year for ten years in a large RV.

Our afternoon was slightly disrupted by having a “cable guy” in our apartment for a couple of hours, replacing the internet TV & Wi-Fi router equipment. Installing new wiring required that small holes needed to be drilled though the wall from outside to inside, a task made more difficult in Mexico because … walls are constructed of cement cinder blocks. I was surprised to see that when he was finished, there was also a new phone mounted on our bedroom wall underneath the router equipment. His final task was to obtain the approval of the apartment building’s resident manager. She came in and obviously told him that the wall phone in the bedroom was to be removed.

He puttered around for a few more minutes then left. The phone was gone. But … still on and in the wall were two large concrete nails he used to mount the phone. With the nicely parge coated and painted wall severely cracked around the nails. AND … HA HA HA … the phone cord was still hanging down from the router box mounted high on the wall. He couldn’t reach high enough to disconnect it from the router without going out to his truck again to retrieve his step ladder, so … a phone cord will hang down on our bedroom wall for eternity ! Ending between two big nails surrounded by cracks ! HA HA HA ! VIVE Mexico !

Shortly after 5 PM we went out for a planned walk to the malecon / waterfront walkway. Unfortunately … we had a misunderstanding. I thought we agreed that we were heading east to the malecon, to the Parque de la Virgen de la Bahia / Park of the Virgin of the Bay (rolling my eyes). Joanne thought we were heading south to the Malecon de Chetumal, the downtown waterfront park area. Since I was leading the way … we went to the Virgin Park. When we arrived, Joanne said … “WTF, where are we ?”

OOOPS … my bad ! HA HA HA !

Our walk was about 2 km. each way, some of it downhill / uphill. We were pretty tired by the time we returned home.

Joanne prepared supper while I successfully attempted to connect my laptop to the apartment’s TV, then after supper I used the VPN to “be” in Toronto, then streamed this week’s episode of Survivor to the apartment’s TV via the laptop. Not bad for an old man !

Guess I’m better at “technology” than “listening to where your wife wants to go” HA HA HA <SNORT> HA HA !

Saturday ; Sunny, very hot, very humid.

This morning we walked over to Panaderia Alicia before noon, to get there before their “siesta” closure. HMPH … they were closed. No hours posted. I inquired next door at the pollo asado (barbecued chicken) place what time the bakery is open. Answer ; 3 PM. OK … gracias. It was way too hot and humid to wander around exploring, so we returned home.

We had to delay our lunch briefly while our apartment’s cleaning lady did her job. After she left we had lunch … I made jamon de pavo y queso quesadillas / turkey ham and cheese quesadillas … then I napped while Joanne continued our seemingly endless quest for next winter’s ideal accommodations. At 4 PM we returned (again) to Panaderia Alicia and bought some pan dulce for breakfasts and desserts, and a baguette type small loaf of bread.

At 6 PM we set off for the long walk (over 2 km.) south to Malecon de Chetumal, this city’s main waterfront walking area. When we arrived we were thrilled to find it converted into “Christmas Village” filled with a lot of people, and entertainment stages, and food vendors and … a Teflon skating rink with Mexicans of all ages trying their hand at “ice skating”. HA HA HA ! There was a “photo op” Santa Claus in full Santa regalia sitting there in the blistering heat and humidity, trying to smile for the cameras, but looking more like he was undergoing some sort of medieval torture in that Santa suit. Poor guy !

We wandered around for a couple of hours, enjoying the atmosphere and entertainment. Joanne finally succumbed to the food vendors’ temptations and ordered a chica gringa de bistec de rez / small “white woman” style of taco with beef steak. A “gringa” style taco is served on a tortilla harina instead of the traditional tortilla de maiz. No, I don’t know why it’s called a gringa (white woman). Maybe because tortillas harina are white and tortillas maiz are yellowish ?

Well … once she had the gringa she was on a roll. After finishing off the gringa she left me sitting on a park bench while she went to another vendor and bought a large bag of freshly made potato chips. You know, like Old Dutch, but … made in front of your face while you wait. HA HA HA !

Well … now she was thirsty. Next stop was the machacado vendor. I’m not even sure how to describe the machacado. See picture below. A machacado is like … a milkshake, with edible candy straws, and marshmallows on top, with a frozen slab of flavoured crushed ice that as it melts slowly turns your milkshake into a slurpee. And to top it all off … small “fingers” of chocolate bars (like Kit Kat) are sticking up out of the top of the drink, along with the edible candy straws. One picks the flavour of the milkshake (of course Joanne chose chocolate) and her chocolate bar finger choice was Carlos V (Carlos cinco), her favourite brand of Mexican chocolate milk powder (like Nestle Quick).

After we returned home (after 9 PM) she said she didn’t want to be an old widow living in Dugald Place (assisted living residence soon to be built adjacent to our current seniors’ condo) bemoaning the fact that she once had an opportunity to have a machacado, and did not do so. HA HA HA ! That’s my girl !  Carpe diem !

We began to slowly wander back towards home, trying to flag down a taxi. There were many taxis, but even more passengers than available taxis. HEY … Saturday evening ! Eventually, after a few blocks of slow walking we got a taxi. The fare home was cuarenta (40) pesos / CA$3.20. Taxi fares are slightly higher during night hours than during daylight hours.

DSK