Showing posts with label Mexico. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mexico. Show all posts

Friday, May 13, 2016

*Baja~ Getting ready to move on

It's March 1st, so we've been on El Mogote for about three and a half weeks now and are ready for some change. We have loved our time here and could definitely stay here the remainder of our trip but there is still so much we haven't seen or experienced that we have to get on with it or before you know it, our time will be up and we'll be back in Arizona (pouting).
The past couple of days I have been prepping the van for take-off since we have been living in soft sand for the last 24 days, there is sand everywhere. And when I say everywhere...I mean EVERYWHERE!!! It will take months to get all of the sand out of this van, actually it'll take longer than that, it just keeps reappearing.
Yesterday, I took everything I could out of the van and vacuumed every little nook & cranny...about 5 times. The van looks so beautiful but I knew it wouldn't last long and today it took Savannah about 3 minutes before that reality took place! Brat! 


The entire time we're here, she barely got out of the van but she got mad at me for cutting her nails, so she got wet and then rolled in the sand until she was covered nose to tail...so she got a nice dip in the ocean, then a rinse off under the shower, then patted down until she was as dry as I could get her...then got put in her room so she wouldn't roll again. She's seriously like having a toddler in her terrible two's...for 6 years now! 



A good reason why you must cut the plastic on these soda rings...if you're not careful you might just catch another one of those brats!!

I caught one!!

And since I have nothing else for you right now...here are some pictures of a cool Marlin, the seagulls were fighting over this morning.




I was interested to see the spine is a bluish-green.
A beautiful creature.


PEACE

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Monday, May 9, 2016

*Baja~ A Day in La Paz Centro

February 25, 2016
 
Sitting on the beach for the past couple of weeks has been pretty nice and relaxing. When Jamie goes into town to do errands he usually goes alone due to it being easier for him on the sand; with the weight of groceries, water, propane, etc. he doesn't need another 100+ lbs. to deal with and with me staying back I can watch the van and be with the girls.
Today, though, I needed to get off the beach and be around activity. It was an overcast day not getting higher than about 70-72*, with the nice breeze coming off of the ocean and the clouds, it was a good day to put the girls in their room and go to town. We decided to first go put more data on our TelCel usb devices, then grab a few small things at the store and grab a "real" bite to eat downtown. 


The TelCel we went to seemed kind of like a headquarters, it's a pretty big store and reminded me of an Apple store of sorts, more with phones than computers but big and full of technology. This particular TelCel store is so easy to add more data to your device. We walk in, walk to the far left to the ladies behind the glass, ask for 300 pesos worth (which is 1 gig), they ask for your phone number associated with the device, charge it, ask you to sign the paper saying it's right and you're done. We tried doing this in Mulege and it was the most difficult process, it took a lot of time and we don't even think it was processed right. We were thankful to find this store, it's in town (La Paz) right next to a big Burger King and the same parking lot as the City Club & Sears. I believe it's the only Sears in La Paz, but it's pretty big, you can't miss it.

The parking lot

You can't miss it!

From TelCel we went to the strip (that's what I call it) to see what was happening, get some footage and find some local food to munch on. We drove the strip looking at all of the different restaurants and shops, seeing which one looked like the most fun. We took a couple of laps, easy to do on the bike and decided on a place that had the most people at it. We saw some really awesome places that we would have liked to have gone to, but they either looked like they hadn't opened yet or no one was there so we chose the one with the most atmosphere happening at that moment.

We pulled into a parking spot that was curbside to the table we sat at. A waiter motioned for us to sit down and he'd be right there, this place seemed to be slamming, a ton of activity & people (locals & tourists) along with tv's and music blaring, plus a nice breeze and view of the water.


As we were looking over the menus, we figured out that we had picked a Lobster House to eat at. Luckily, they have a Taco menu that is a bit cheaper than the regular menu and since that was what we were coming to town for anyway, it worked out well. 

Prices in Pesos

Our waiters name was Oscar and we asked him what he preferred and what he would order if he wanted Tacos. He pointed to a few items on the menu, so that's what we ordered; 6 Tacos~ 2 Pescado (fish), 2 Camaron (Shrimp) 2 Marlin (Marlin) along with a couple of Tecate Lights. Oscar brought us some homemade tortilla chips with a slightly spicy fish salsa, that was to die for and some salt & the juiciest limes...they bring limes with pretty much everything here. The food came out really fast and looked amazing, I think I could get used to this!



The Tacos come with what you ordered (fish, shrimp, etc) and the tortilla, another plate is brought out with fixin's; coleslaw, a light green sauce almost cucumberish to taste, spicy salsa, pico de galo, and juicy limes for you to dress the taco up however you want. We put everything on them, well sans the spicy salsa for this gal but everything else...even the coleslaw (I've never eaten coleslaw in my life, but this was not like "American slaw"). We ate like we had never seen food in our lives, I'm sure it was quite a sight...it was just so good though, everywhere we turned there was food!! 


After eating, we sat back and digested our awesome meal a bit, had another beer and looked over the other menu. The prices didn't seem too bad for the upscale feel and it being a Lobster House. The name of the restaurant is Bismark-cito.


The pictures below will show you the different menus and prices along with our bill (in pesos). The food was great with good service from Oscar and an all around pleasant atmosphere, we would definitely come back here!



That is about $15 U.S. Dollars

 On our way home, we stopped by the Walmart and grabbed a few things and spent some time walking around. The Walmart here is so interesting. It has things for sale, inside the store, that you just don't see in the States. As we walked in, I saw a salesman showing a full-sized refrigerator to a family! I'm totally in love with their clothing and shoe options too, everything is colorful and beautiful, it's almost like the items are made better, too. I'm so on board with Mexican Walmart! haha

ATV's & Scooters for sale inside Walmart

Come get your motorcycle at Wally World!

One of many aisles of Mexican beer

Oh and the Bakery (Panaderia)....Oh.My.Goodness!! I could spend all day here trying all the different cakes, breads, muffins, rolls, things I've never seen or heard of. I'd probably gain a good 60 lbs. if I lived here due to the Panaderia, everything is made fresh daily and it smells sooooo good. The Bakery works a little differently as well. You walk into the Bakery area and pick up a big circular silver tray and a pair of tongs, go pick out what you want setting it on the tray. When you are done, you bring the tray over to the counter where one of the Baker's takes your tray and puts your items one by one in a brown paper sack, they punch the items into a computer and put a sticker on the bag. I didn't know what everything was so the first time around I got a couple of croissants (yum), a couple of jalapeno cheesy breads and a couple of pieces of bread that look like garlic bread slices (but aren't) with butter and sugar (I learned later) on-top. Everything was delicious, we made sandwiches out of the croissants and cheesy jalapeno bread and I cooked up the sugar, butter bread on the stove later and had them for dessert...mighty tasty!

The Bakery is about 5 of these deep!

On our way back to the van, we saw a couple of guys stuck in the sand, so Jamie dropped me off at the van, strapped the shovel to the bike and went to go help dig them out. Once he got back, about 15 minutes later, the guys drove by honking and giving a thumbs up.


It was nice to get out of camp today and do something different.  The Sunset was a beautiful way to end a great day.
Here's to being able to live this way for now. It may end at any moment but at least we have today!




PEACE

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Tuesday, April 19, 2016

*Baja~ Connecting with "Lady Luck" & the Locals

Feb. 17, 2016
I have been waking up & getting out of the van exceptionally early these days, which to me is about 6 a.m. I am loving the time to myself, Jamie is still sleeping and the dogs don't want to get out of the warm covers that early so it's just me, the water and the Sunrise...it's awesome. I have always felt that I was meant to live on the water, either by house or by boat. Growing up in Florida, I lived close to the ocean and was there every chance I got, also being a surfer, swimmer & water polo player I was always in some sort of water. It's my happy place!



The early morning provides some grounding and centering time for me and my mind which I've needed for some time now and it's just so peaceful out here, I wish I could bottle this up and have it with me forever. At this time of the morning I will either do Yin Yoga, read or write and I'm always taking in my surroundings; the birds flying in the air or diving for fish in the water, the waves or (today) small ripples coming into shore, the peacefulness of no motors on the sand or in the water, the crabs scurrying across the sand trying not to be eaten by the hunting birds, the butterflies suckling the ice plant leaves....it really just doesn't get any better than this on these early mornings.


It's a little strange, I call it Divine, others would say it's ironic or coincidence...whatever you believe, but lately I've been talking to the Universe a lot more than usual and asking for some kind of change. It's a long story. I know this life, all life, is always ever-changing but right now I need a big change, something so totally new and different. As soon as I even start to think this, on this certain morning I was walking down the beach by myself, talking to myself, in less than 20 minutes I saw 6 Butterflies, 4 of them different than the one before. I know from past experiences and research that seeing Butterflies are a reminder that there is always change in the world and seeing them in 'flocks', many at one time or many different ones in a (small) moment in time means that a big change is upon you. I'm always one for looking at signs...especially when I was just talking to the Universe about it! 


Once everyone was up and the bed was made and put up, I was sitting in the van with my legs propped up, just chillin'. I was thinking of what was going on this morning; mind, body, spirit-wise and something caught my eye. What I saw was so small I was surprised that it even caught my eye. I looked at it from my viewpoint, then looked at it outside of the van...it was a Peach Ladybug on the weatherstripping of my door jam. Obviously, Ladybugs are a sign of luck but they are also a sign of change, a sure sign of bringing blessings of abundance, and a symbol of taking action of your dreams.

Even looks like a little heart on it's right wing!!

I take signs seriously and was pretty stoked that I had not only seen one small sign, say one Butterfly or something of the sort, but I had seen 6 Butterflies (most of them different) and now this Ladybug that wasn't even the color of Red and Black, like I'm used to seeing! I know something big and maybe even scary is on the way but when you ask for change, change is what you're going to get!
 
Moving on....

Every morning around 6:45 I see a man coming to the only trash can on the beach, he spends about 25 minutes here and then leaves. It seems he either works for the condos or lives there and picks up trash on his way to the trash can, then takes whatever trash is in the can and takes it with him back to the condos (I'm guessing). 95% of the time he is on foot, but sometimes I see him on an ATV, that makes me think he may work there. 


I did however meet the guard that tends the gate at the soft, sandy road we came in on. A day or so ago, I was sitting outside doing one thing or another and a man rode down the soft sandy road on an ATV, drove over to the van, (he was dressed in a security guard type uniform), so in my thought process I was thinking he might ask us to leave. The man approached the van with a big smile on his face, he asked me if I spoke Spanish, I told him very little. We had a conversation in broken English and broken Spanish, laughing with each other that some words we just couldn't grasp. The man is the security guard at the gate for the condos, his name is Luis and is such a nice guy. Our conversation ended up going like this: After seeing how little or how much Spanish I spoke and providing names, he asked if we were camping here... I said that we were and waited for him to say something. He said he was the security guard for the barrios (neighborhood/condos) down the road and he had no problem with us camping here for as long as we wanted, for, to him, we were more eyes-on & security of the beach and the people in the condos, as well as anything else that seemed suspicious. I thanked him and he took my hand in his, put his other hand over the top of my hand, looked at me and said, "Now, we are friends." I said, "Si, si Amigo!" I can't help but just love it here. Everyone we meet is just like this and see us as help more than a problem...can't beat that!
Now, every day I see Luis on his ATV about 3 times a day, we wave and smile, it's pretty much like being neighbors...it's kind of cool!


I have yet to ask him what this trap type thing is by the trash can. I thought maybe for crabs but it's just so random and odd...if anyone wants to leave a comment on what you think or know it is PLEASE leave a comment...I'm dying to know what it is! 



PEACE

Please watch, like and subscribe to our videos on our Youtube channel. We love new subscribers!!
 Enigmatic Nomadics 


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Monday, April 4, 2016

Day 6 ~ Baja* Vendors. Driving. Traffic. Tecolote

 February 9, 2016
Today, we would be driving... a lot, so I made sure to wake up early to catch Jesus and his awesome Tamales, I actually set an alarm! You can see my sleepy eyes below, haha
As I got out of the van, he was just leaving the rig next to us so I waved him down to get some of his goods. I never would have thought I would eat Tamales for brekkie but now that we've done it for the past 3 days, I could eat these things every single day and be happy as pie! I bought 6 Tamales from him, 2 for brekkie 1 for lunch for each of us, and asked if I could take a picture with him, he was ecstatic that I asked for that! 


And wouldn't you know that it was thee most beautiful, sunny day ever, too! Of course, the day we're leaving it's hot and sunny with not a cloud in the sky but that's how it goes! 

Great start to a great day


Around 8:30, we had another vendor, Adolfo, come by with blankets, shirts, hats, etc. and since we had talked about getting a colorful rug or blanket to put in the van over the black one, we let him go on with his business. We talked to him for a little bit and told him what we were looking for, he pulled out every single blanket he had, helping us decide what would be right for our space. We finally selected one and bargained with him from about $40 (American) down to $17-18.  We love it and all of us were happy!

Almost free today! What color?

Joon got some color


Right as we were making sure the van was buttoned up, a couple had oared into shore and anchored their dingy right next to where the van was parked. We started talking to them about traveling, sailing and everything else and made a couple of good friends, Jim & Jeannine. The couple have been cruising on their boat, Charann,  

http://www.sailblogs.com/member/theredboat/ 
for about 12 years. After about an hour long conversation, we swapped email addresses and were down the road while they set out down the beach looking for Tamales!

Joon in the Bay of Conception (Bahia Concepcion)

Charann (the red boat in the distance) and Joon van taking in her view of Santispac

The entire rest of the day was driving. We wanted to make it to the La Paz area (at least) by Sunset, so we had a lot of miles to get under our belts if we were going to make that happen. 



We drove for about an hour and a half before we stopped for a little stretch and to buy a soda. We walked around this little tiny village area for about 10 minutes while we drank a cold soda, then, it was back in the van and back on the road.


The temperature was noticeably different and much hotter than
Mulegé. We had the windows down most of the ride but it was still burning pretty hot on the inside of the van. The dogs were trying to get comfortable and out of the Sun that was coming through the front window. Savannah is a little smarter than my Moonie and went to the back where there's no Sun, with a view.



I don't think Chili put it together, although I put her in the back several times, she would just come, get back under her blankets, panting, looking at me like...Why!? 


Once we arrived in
Ciudad Constitución, we decided to stop to get some drinks for the fridge at the Ley store. Jamie pulled under a nice shady tree and went inside, I stayed out with the girls and took them to go potty. The temperatures are a lot hotter inland, than by the ocean! Even in the shade it was about 100*+...in February!


I'm not sure how these people live here during the Summer, but I guess they make it work or they wouldn't be here.We had about another two hours, from Ciudad Constitución, until we got to La Paz. 

Ciudad Constitucion

Ciudad Consitucion, inland Baja

We then would have to figure out where we wanted to camp or at least sleep for the night. I had a place or two written down that I had gotten from www.freecampsites.net, so we would fall back on those if we couldn't find something we liked better first. 


We arrived in La Paz around 4:30 or so in the afternoon. I was driving so I don't have any pictures of the town but it's a big one. It reminds me of L.A. almost... a lot of people and a lot of traffic, although the drivers are much nicer! We decided to drive toward the water and go from there. 

First look at La Paz

Little did we know that they were on the last day of 5, celebrating Fat Tuesday and we had just driven into downtown traffic for parking to go watch the parade. The road we were trying to get on was the road they had the parade on, so there were blockades everywhere, people everywhere, cars everywhere and lots and lots of police. We thought we would just find parking and go join in the celebration but after an hour of pretty much sitting still or going in circles around the same block and trying to find a good road that wasn't jam-packed, we decided against it and kept on down the road...once we found a road we could drive down!

We finally averted the traffic scene and started driving toward one of the spots I had written down, Playa Tecolote. It was a free camp spot on the water, so we thought we would try it for one night and if we liked it we would stay, if not we'd find another place tomorrow.We drove through winding mountain roads for about 25 minutes, seeing beautiful vistas & inlets here and there that you couldn't drive down into due to the marshy mud or no way to enter, that we could see.





 By the time we got to the beach of Tecolote, the sun was setting, this seems to be our new thing! I don't even remember if we ate dinner, but we walked the dogs and sat down on the sand to have a Sunset Brew as well as breathe another sigh of relief that we are sitting still again and out of all that traffic!

We'll have to see how the vibe is when we wake up tomorrow but as I'm writing this, the wind is very strong and could become a problem if we want to stay here for any extended period of time.

Until tomorrow....

PEACE