Carnaval Parade

The "Fat Tuesday" parade down the malecon was a ramped down version of the previous Saturday's evening parade - lighter crowds and a touch less craziness. The participants looked a little worn out, but when our camera was aimed in their direction, we usually got a smile and a wave. There were beauties of all ages; costumes and dancing; horses and floats sponsored by local businesses and pulled by tractors.
I've been able to upoad the picture of one Sinaloa beauty. More to follow!

The candy vendors were out in force - wheelbarrows loaded to the brim with nuts and candies. Some sweets looked tempting but were unfamiliar. We didn't bother to ask what they were since our Spanish is not yet good enough to understand the response.
Most of our recently added Spanish vocabulary is more in line with cleaning products and tile and plumbing and hardware!
We're making progress! The main room furniture MAY arrive this week, if we're lucky - couch, chairs, dining table. Next project - interior painting.

Carnaval fireworks

We bussed down to the malecon, the large boulevard that parallels the ocean front, where Carnaval activities occur. Friends Rick and Cranda, our Mazatlan social directors, arranged for dinner on the beach below the malecon, where we enjoyed good food and the nightly fireworks display. The malecon was closed off to vehicular traffic, so the evening walk to the restaurant in the sand was nice! Though this was not the BIG "land-sea battle" extravaganza of two nights ago, the crowds were a little lighter and not so rowdy.

An Adventure in Fine Dining

The "Sixth Floor Social Club" heads for "Old Town", where the Changeras (Shrimp Ladies) line the street. Big tubs of shrimp on ice are offered by maybe twenty-five vendors, each one urging us to buy from THEM! The price runs from 80 to 120 pesos (about $8 to $12 US) for a kilogram (about 2.2 pounds) of shrimp, depending of the size......
We make one vendor VERY happy with our purchase of enough shrimp and scallops to feed seven very hungry people (with eyes WAY bigger than their tummies, it turns out). Then we walk around the corner to a restaurant where we entrust our seafood to the staff for cooking. Meanwhile, a bucket of cerveza (beer) arrives at our table. Marian buys a leather wallet, Bonnie buys a DVD, Eddie gets his shoes shined - all without leaving the table!
The tuba, trombone and trumpet blare out some Mexican tunes and Moy sings along!
The food arrives, along with another bucket of beer . . . and we dive in!

Feathering the Nest

Pictures are: 1) sunset from the back deck; 2) the view from our bedroom; 3)the kitchen; 4) cheap labor; 5)relaxing in the reading rocker!
The living - dining room area still has the ambiance of an operating room, what with no furniture and a couple of can lights in the ceiling, but the bed is comfortable and appliances have been delivered. Ahhhh! Ice cubes for the Mojitos! Thank you Arthur, Shannon and Flash for sharing the pleasures of that refreshing drink! Water filtration system is being installed as I write this, so Larry won't have to lug the 5 gallon "garafon" jugs up to the condo! Drinking water right out of the kitchen tap! FIVE separate filters! A filter was installed yesterday that filters our entire water supply as it enters the condo, so we're set! WATER - the NEXT world-wide treasure and commodity!
We are zeroing in on furniture now . . .ordered a round glass-topped dining table and four chairs, 3 bar stools, 2 deck chairs and a wonderful oversized rocking chair for the deck just for ME! Sofa and chair for the living room are also ordered - ....delivery takes about 1-2 weeks, so we should have the basic furnishings before we depart.
We are now doing the post-construction detail work - like scrubbing floor on hands and knees, preparing walls for painting, etc.

Also taking time to "play". Carnaval is going to be in full swing for the next few weeks - I guess it's on a par with Rio de Janiero and New Orleans Mardi Gras. I'm not sure how I feel about being jostled by the crowds to watch the parades - but we've arranged to join friends Rick, Cranda, Kathy and Lonnie for dinner at a restaurant on February 4th to watch the fireworks. It gets pretty wild and crazy here!

We are awaiting word on the Kirk Road sale status. One way or the other, we're happy! If the sale closes, we'll scramble home and pack up. If not, we'll stay in Mazatlan until April and move ahead with furniture purchases, painting, deck tile work and interior decorating.

Though we're maintaining a busy pace still, the "knots" are loosening and we're adjusting to the Mexican way of life. We're continuing to meet some great people!

Nest Building in Mazatlan

Wow - this is kind of like giving birth!
Paperwork, legal documents, keys and finally possession!
We enter into an empty space with plain white walls and immediately begin to visualize our winter home in Mexico.
We are welcomed by neighbors who share their knowledge and experience and make the settling in process a lot easier.
First, the mundane stuff - utilities that give us lights, hot showers and food preparation capabilities.
Then the bed and appliances - ahhh! It's easy to take for granted a comfortable bed and clean clothes when you don't have them!
No window coverings up yet, so it's sort of like living in a fish bowl.
Ah! Someone is out on his deck across in the other tower looking our way! We wave.

Across the Border!

Tired of freeway and railroad noise that's so often part of the "charm" of RV parks conveniently located close to heavily-traveled routes, we chose to take a few days of R and R at a campground west of Tucson about 10 miles, the Desert Trails RV Park, positioned next to the Sajuaro Wildlife Refuge. Owls hooted back and forth at twilight and daybreak to clearly identify their territory and hunting turf. Saturday morning, we were greeted by a pastel sunrise as we rose at dawn to beat the weekend crowds to the USA/Mexican border. The lines looked ominous as we approached the crossing, but we were able to wade through the paperwork and queues in just over an hour. Next, we held our breath as we approached the critical and unpredictable customs checkpoint. As the light randomly flashed green, the signal to proceed without inspection, we exhaled a sigh of relief and headed down the road...the camper groaning under the weight of ALL the items for the Maz condo packed tight into every nook and cranny.
The day was spent motoring down through the state of SONORA (one of the thirty-one states of Mexico) to the coastal resort town of San Carlos, near Guaymas. Road construction on the periferico (bypass road) around the state capitol of Hermosillo had been completed, so our city driving was relatively painless....not always the case!
Road-weary, we gladly settled in at Totonaka RV Park in San Carlos, sipped some red wine and looked forward to a restful night's sleep. Alas, we forgot that it was Saturday night in Mexico! The "bump-bump" tunes began at the nearby watering hole about the time we were ready for bed, and continued non-stop until the early morning hours. At 2:45 AM, this "of-a-certain-age" gringa was plotting some very specific, not-so-nice acts of vengeance from her pillow, against the young, nocturnal participants in the rites common to resort life in Mexico.

The next day, we moved on to a much more peaceful site just 45 miles north of Mazatlan, inhabited by an enclave of like-minded baby-boomers . Our arrival at the Celestino RV Park was just in time for "Happy Hour"....another Mexican rite reserved for those of us who have survived the unbridled experiences of youth and have mellowed just a bit over time. We shared some wine and good travel talk with a very friendly gathering of folks from all points of the US and Canada from the patio above the surf that provided a panoramic view of a glorious Pacific Ocean sunset.

Reconnecting with Friends

We had great visits with Jim and Joyce Weathers during our stay in Yuma - over dinner the evening of January 2, and then at breakfast the next morning! Lots of fun reminiscing and catching up took place between the three Independence Central High School alums and Bonnie learned a LOT! We look forward to a future visit to the Weathers' Idaho home! After breakfast, we set out on Interstate 8, bound for Tucson....our last stop before heading over the USA/Mexico border.