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
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