5C's Que Pasa

I was so disappointed to wake up today still coughing and blowing my nose.  I haven’t walked the beach since last Sunday 🙁   Colin and I had an intimate table for two booked right on the dance floor next to our very favorite band playing tonight at Gaia on the Plazuela Machado.  We had to cancel 😥

When I am sick I stay away from people.  There are others here in the park with a similar cold to mine.  I have heard that there were at least four sick people at the St. Patrick’s Day party.  I know of three people including me who have become sick since the party.  👿  Not how I anticipated ending my last few weeks here on the Isla.

The large French caravan left several days ago.  Today two of their group who decided to leave the caravan and stay here longer also left this morning.  They are newbies to Mexico but love it very much.  We have another caravan led by Kevin and Ruth arriving on Tuesday but the parks won’t be as full, as there are several heading North tomorrow.

Another day of puttering around.  I am officially done with research for our trip until early May.  Instead I spent the day sourcing our route North and going over my to do’s including meal plans so I have the right ingredients on hand.  Because of Semana Santa we won’t see a store after Thursday the 29th until we get to the US on April 6th so some pre planning was required.  Colin did a few chores and repairs.  We certainly aren’t into pack up mode yet.  However we did have Eric come by yesterday and check all of our RV tires and he ended up adding air to each of them.  Good safety measure.

Yesterday’s sunset.

FYI the Durango bridge did open yesterday as scheduled.  You can read the article here.  Basically it will be only be one lane each direction traveling at 20 kilometers per hour.  But at least it is open which is great news for Mazatlan’s economy as well as the Isla.

I want to start this post with a very special thank you to a blog reader couple who just made a generous donation to the care of the three puppies at the shelter where they will be moved to on Monday ( fingers crossed ).  With their help along with other blog readers, these pups are assured of a good future.  Hmmm I just had a thought 💡  Ann has no computer nor internet but she does have a landline with free calls to Canada and the USA so I can get her to call me with updates on how the puppies are doing as she will be here for another four weeks after I leave.

The first ‘c’ refers to credit cards.  I noticed in early January that Colin’s credit card had been compromised.  Someone had been renting cars in Calgary, Alberta the end of December.  The last time the card had been used was at KM21 in November as we crossed into Mexico.  It really is important to check the details of your monthly statement even if you are not using your card.  His card was with CIBC Visa and they pretty much put us through the hoops and then the second degree over the situation.  They did not offer to make good on the unauthorized charges and only said they would look into it.  Meanwhile they cancelled the card and mailed a new card to our home in Kelowna.  That does us no good here in Mexico but we still had my credit card.  So as requested I called back 30 days later and once again we were put through the ropes and made to feel like criminals.  It took close to 20 minutes for then to very reluctantly tell us that the fraudulent charges had been cancelled.

As we don’t use credit but cash while in Mexico we had no problems.  Of course we will need a credit card as we travel through the USA and we did have my Mastercard.  A few weeks ago in early March I started to use my credit card to book a few tours here and there in Europe as well as three train trips and an airline flight.  For some reason I just decided to go online and check my statement to see how all these foreign charges were going through.  Compromised.  However Royal Bank Mastercard had stopped the charges from three US gas stations in Virgina in their tracks.  My card had already been cancelled.  I didn’t know that until I called about what I had discovered.  First thing they told me was to not worry as they would be sending me out a new card.  I explained that I was on a beach in Mexico.  No worries, it would get to me within 7 days  😯   I was speechless as someone else here had to wait two months for their replacement credit card, due to being compromised, to reach them here on the Isla ( it was mailed ).  So I gave them the business address and name of the owner of the RV Park and decided to wait and see what would happen.  There was nothing but kindness and compassion from this credit card company.  So very helpful.  Guess which card we will be cancelling and replacing once we get home?  So glad that we each have a separate card as well as a business credit card that we could have used in an emergency.

I called about the card late afternoon on Friday March 16th.  It was shipped from Canada on Monday the 19th and arrived in Mexico on the 20th and specifically was in Mazatlan on Wednesday the 21st.  The card was delivered early that afternoon to the business office and brought over by boat to the RV Park before sunset.  Amazing.

Not only that, the label did not have the business name on it.  But it got to me in three business days.

This is the second ‘c’.

Colin wanted to move the car under the palapa to wax it.  We ended up having to bring the bedroom slide in to get it around the corner.

The car was finally positioned to his satisfaction.

Colin then got to work waxing which was much easier being away from the sun.

He waxed the car by hand and then buffed it out.  Took a good part of the day.  The next day he detailed the inside.  It looks brand new again, that is until we drive it out of the RV park.  So much dust here.

Meanwhile I continued to stay inside and work on our trip.  I am still trying to get over my cold, it is not going as fast as I had hoped.  I finally did get to the end of my research tonight which is why I am only writing this post at 10:30PM and eating my dinner at the same time.  I realized that I have not been perfectly consistent in how I tackled each of the five cities which means I will have to take yet another day to review everything but that can wait until early May after I have completed all the taxes for the company and for us.  However that does not mean I am free to enjoy our last nine days.  It is now time to start planning our trek home as well as start packing up.  There will be some down time each day and I am sure to get one or two books read before we head out.  I am relieved to have the heavy mental work done.  Planning, packing up, unloading once home and doing the taxes are all things that I can do easily.

Our sunset last evening.  Today those wooden structures were covered with palm branches.  Semena Santa is about to begin.

We woke up to a new view.  These pieces of wood are being put into place to create shade for folks coming to the Isla during Semena Santa.  This is common but this is the first time though that I have seen it done on such a commerical scale.  Usually it is just a few kids or families creating these to rent out each day and make some extra income.

We had several errands in town so yesterday was the day. First stop was the bakery we go to just a block away from the mercardo for Colin’s muffins.  He needs a muffin with peanut butter to start his day.  We were totally blown away with the detail of this wall art.  Must have been done over the past few weeks.

Another surprise. The construction in front of the mercado is finally completed.  Love the look of the new road and of course the fresh paint on the building itself.  The road is not yet open to traffic but it won’t be long.

This particular eatery in the mercado is very popular. The other two next to it had no patrons at all.  When we went past about 90 minutes later it was still fully occupied.

Then we got to introduce Sandy and Rex, long time blog readers, to their first Tony shrimp burger.  Both couples split a burger and added a few fries.   Just as delicious as always.  We have been fortunate this year to see them a few times, the last two while we were in Rincon de Guayabitos.  Rex and Sandy were fortunate that I happened to have my smart phone with me and we were able to call Eric, our RV tech who was willing to go to their RV later in the afternoon to check about their RV problem.  Of course Eric fixed it :).  Tony himself took this photo.  I really like that I asked him to take it in this direction.

As we walked to Tippy Toes to get my bangs trimmed Colin spied this unusual palm tree.  Yes the leaves are that interesting color.  I also love the shape of the branches but alas no more room in my garden.

As we walked I saw this poor tree growing on the side of a wall attached to a drain pipe. Perhaps that is where it gets its water from.  That tree is determined to survive.

We then went to El Recreo where there was a 90 minute travelogue presentation on Paris, Spain and Lisbon.  It was interesting but we really did not learn anything.  Gosh I wish we had more free time.  We could put together some fabulous presentations from our various trips over the years.  We did one once on our trips to India and it was well received.  Excellent photos not taken with an iPhone or iPad make a huge difference in the quality of the photos especially when put up on a large screen.

Afterwards we headed to what used to be called the Beach Burger ( our first time this year ) for a fish burger.  I always order a margarita when out and then usually switch to wine while Colin orders a limonda natural.  Can you imagine my surprise when they brought me two?  Happy hour, of course 🙂

I was longing to get back to the peace of the Isla.

But for the first time in the nine years that we have been here, there was no lancha tied up at the dock.

Meanwhile we observed the fisherman getting ready to head out 30 km to the open sea in their tiny boats.  We saw extra fuel brought on board as well as large blocks of ice to keep the fish cold.  They were heading out at 5PM and would not return until about 8AM.  For all the time and energy expended, there is no guarantee that they would even catch any fish.  A difficult life indeed.  Those are shrimp boats in the background, now in dock for the season.

Yeah, two lanchas heading our way.

So good to be back home on the Isla.

Colin spent Tuesday morning replacing the rest of the hinges on all our doors within the RV.  I concentrated on getting over my cold and of course got more research done.

The gold colored ones were getting rather corroded from the salt air and it was time to do the big change over.  This was day two of a project he started a few months ago.  I think that we are good for another 15 years.

When I complained that I needed more desk space, Colin had the brilliant idea of using our high low coffee table as an extension to our dining table.  Lots of space now.  Yes it is chaos but it is organized.

We went for a walk midday, my first in a few days.  I just had to see how the puppies were doing.  Ann is doing a great job with them.  She is holding the middle one who was not doing so well and has no name.  I have Bandit in my right hand and Peewee in my left as temporarily named by Ann.

They all loved Colin and wanted to be near him. Peewee kept trying to climb up his leg, that is the one between Colin’s shoes.

Bandit is the largest and used to be the pack leader but has turned into a wimp who wants to be held all the time.

The middle one who has no name is doing much better and no longer needs to be bottle fed.  It is eating kibble as well as drinking milk and is doing some playing.  It still needs more sleep than the others and its eyesight seems normal.

Peewee despite being the tiniest gives as good as she gets from the others while at play and aggressively demands to be picked up and held and loved.

It was nice to see that they are all thriving and doing well.  Unfortunately the shelter was unable to take these three in this week but claim that next Monday is the day that they will have a spot for them.  I have to thank Ann who is a blog reader for taking the pups in.  I don’t think I mentioned it but briefly in November that she was here on the Isla.  Ann or Anne, she goes by both, claims that she left Saskatchewan, Canada solely based on reading my blog.  My descriptions and photos  of the Isla brought her here.  She never let me know that she was coming and made her own accommodation search and final arrangements.  She has been here since early November and is not leaving until April 28th!  Ann has no TV, no radio or CD player other that what was lent to her for a few months.  She did not bring a computer but she has no internet anyway.  She does have a telephone landline that allows her to call back to Canada at no charge.  Sadly her knees do not allow her to walk very far so she has pretty much been staying here on the Isla.  She is seriously looking for another place to stay here again next season that is in a better location.  Ann has been so very generous with her time in helping with these three very very young puppies.

When you bring an animal to the shelter it is expected that you make a donation.  I raised funds for Princesca and her six pups.  Then I was asked to please raise funds for the pregnant dog Pepper who had her pups at the shelter.  So when it came to these three, four week old pups, who were left at my door step so to speak, I once again had to come up with money for the shelter donation.  I had pretty much tapped out everyone I knew here on the Isla.  But I just happened to have some blog readers here in Mazatlan.  So thanks to all of my blog readers who had traveled to the Mazatlan area, I was able to raise enough to cover the expected donation to the shelter when one brings in an animal, in this case three animals.  I have yet to just bring in the one dog :).  Actually I think that I am up to 22 dog lives saved with these three interventions.  But I will always think of these three pups as a blog reader project.  Thanks to all those who were here and able to help.  J + G, thanks for helping not once but twice.  I am so very fortunate to have all of you blog readers in my life.  Thank you for all your comments and support, it means so very much to me.

My many nights out and some of them very late finally caught up with me.  Just before we went out Sunday night I knew that I was in the very first stages of a cold.  Fortunately I am able to rid my body of a cold very quickly.  I had a rough night but was much better Monday.

So much activity on the beach.  One car got stuck three times!  He obviously was not a good driver. The blue truck was set up for a picnic on the beach but the tractors keep pulling the people movers so close to them over and over.  I guess they did not mind.

So by Monday happy hour I was ready to welcome Alison ( a blog reader ) and Craig.  They had arrived here in RV1 mid afternoon Friday but we were going out to the St. Patrick’s party and we were tired on Saturday and then we went out again Sunday.  We had been chatting back and forth but Monday was our official get together :). They have been traveling Mexico for many years.

They have enjoyed their time here on the Isla.  In the past they have stayed in Mazatlan as they travel through this area.  But that might change.  There was definitely lots of beach activity for them to see over the long weekend.  The Princess ship departure was just another part of the experience.

Then there was the sunset.

Always sad to say adios to special new friends.  Safe travels back to Vancouver Island.