5C's Que Pasa

With September comes a new beginning. Not just the kids going back to school, not just the beginning of fall but a time for the Snowbirds to head South.  The leaves are changing color, the annuals are fading and there is a chill in the air.  The geese are preparing for their long flight south and so are the Rvers.  It is both a sad time and a happy time.  Sad that we are leaving our summer home, saying goodbye to friends and to Canada. But also happy because we will be feeling the heat of the sun soon, meeting old and new friends and probably doing different activities.  It is as if we Rvers lead two lives.  Five to six months abroad during the winter months and the rest of the time back home where ever that is. If you think about it we have two sets of friends, one here and one there, we even eat differently, often focusing on local fruit, produce and seafood.  You won't find Freestone peaches in Mexico nor would you find those sweet baby bananas we seem to devour while there. The flowers and trees are different, the language is foreign, even the breeze smells different. It is always sad to leave home, sometimes we think we should stay here with friends and family.  Yet once we arrive at our winter destination we quickly become a part of the local community.  Once March/April comes around, we become sad again, not wanting to leave our winter friends, many of whom we won't see for 6 months.  Muy triste.  It is a cycle special to winter Rvers often called Snowbirds.  Right now the most often asked question is 'when are you leaving?', soon it will be 'how long are you staying?' And then the cycle repeats itself.  Change!

Colin and I are already counting the sleeps to departure day.  We leave 4 weeks today and in 5 weeks and one day we will all be dipping our toes into the warm Pacific.

As long as we have travelled to Mexico we have brought 2 doxies with us.  In fact we lost our first dog at Mr. Moro's in Playa Los Glorias years ago.  We had been visiting a Mexican friend at his home and the dogs were wondering about his fenced yard off leash.  He had assured us it was quite safe but moments later he took off at a trot to the back area and quickly came back stating everything was okay.  About 5 hours later Cloii woke up screaming and convulsing and within 20 minutes she died.  I still cry for her.  Was it rat poison?  The Mexican said no but we suspect it was.  It was a tough lesson to learn.  Now we are super watchful on the beach.

Acapulco was the source of much excitement.  Caeli decided to kiss one the huge toads that hung around and often swam in our pool.  The day she kissed the frog she began foaming at the mouth, we threw her into the pool and washed her mouth out.  Colin ran to borrow a cell phone to call our vet here in Kelowna who said to just keep syringing out her mouth to get the poison out.  After an hour or so we stopped but could see that the one side of her mouth was burnt.  Lesson learned to keep the frogs away.  She was very good at hunting them under the vegetation so she was only allowed out under supervision.  The next year Caeli decided to taste a tarantula. Fortunately I heard her yelp and saw her become almost paralyzed before my eyes and her respiratory system shut down.  I screamed for Colin and we headed to the local vet in the tiny hamlet.  He injected her with stimulate to get her heart going again. It was a filthy place but he did save her life.  Did you know that tarantulas live in small holes at the base of palm trees?  Now you do.

It is difficult to prepare for all emergencies while on the road but I do bring a first aid basket just for the dogs.  That way when something happens i can just call our vet and she will diagnose & prescribe over the phone.  Actually I am getting pretty good at it myself.  Did you know that if your pet gets bitten by a spider and has a reaction, ie eye swelling shut just give them a 24 hour Claritin.  If the swelling it still there in 20-30 minutes then its time to head to a vet.

Here in Kelowna we don't have our dogs on any flea or tick medication but we do while on the road.  Fortunately we are able to order these meds online and pick them up in the US saving ourselves a huge amount of money.  After much research we decided to put the girls on K9advantix which is similar to Frontline or Revolution and is a liquid applied to the base of the neck monthly. I actually called the lab and spoke to a Dr. who steered us towards the K9advantix as it covered more types of ticks then the other brands. It also works against mosquitoes & biting flies.  Our vet also has the girls on Interceptor, a small tablet, also taken monthly as a broad spectrum parasiticide.  A six month supply of both medications for one dog is approximately 93.00USD.  You can often find sales and free shipping.

The last thing we do is have the vet see them the last week before we leave for their annual physical and any shots due and she fills out this huge International Travel Form.  We are good to go.

Yesterday while working on the never ending Mexico to do list I was surprised by a visit from Carol, Lola & Rio.  Bill was setting up their RV.  They are here for a few days.  Hopefully we will get some quality time with them.  They are anxious to head south to their home in Mazatlan.

Great models but a poor photographer

Just about dinner time the doorbell rang and it was dessert delivered by our neighbors.  Ron says that this is the first time he has known Rachelle to make pie so indeed a special treat for us.

Homemade fresh apple (local of course) pie!

I have spent many days researching alternatives to paying $1000.00 for the two of us.  As mentioned previously this is a 50% increase.  I honestly have to say that of the 20 companies I called they all are within dollars of each other.  So I decided to try and think outside of the box and came up with a solution that will work for us, at least for this year.

The vehicle insurance we get from San Xavier Mexico Insurance includes a $5000.00USD medical expense clause for each of us for both the RV and again for the car.

Medical Services Plan of BC does cover out of country claims, paying the same amount they would if you were here in BC.  This would not work in the USA where medical procedures, even a visit to a hospital for a minor procedure costs a great deal.  In Mexico the cost of health care is very low…even at a top facility.  I went online and printed out the Out-Of-Country Claim Form to be sure I would collect all the required information if I had use this service.

That left us with the transit of the US itself and the need for coverage.  I thought why can’t we just get insurance for 11 days going from here to Mazatlan and again for 12 days returning end of March.  Within Mexico would be covered by the above two solutions.  I was surprised at the number of insurance companies that just said no, can’t be done, you have to be insured the entire 166 days you will be away.  One offered to do the here to there part but not the return in March.  Thanks to one of my readers, it was suggested I contact http://www.sandersontravelinsurance.com/travelinsurance/ .  What a wonderful company!  They are truly helpful and caring. They tried many different options to bring my overall insurance down and they did get it $150.00 less than the other companies.  The agent even came up with the idea of all inclusive insurance with only so many days in the US.  I think it is call a non US policy.  A better price but still not for us. Then I asked her about the insurance for just the 11 days and again the 12 days on the return.  She wasn’t sure but got back to me with good news.  We could do it for $100.00 for the two of us plus because we were booking specific return dates we could always call and change those return dates or even extend them for a top up fee.  Sold!!

Everyone has to chose what is best for their situation.  Interestingly enough I received an email from a friend who suggested we try the going & coming part being insured in the US.  I wish she had emailed me sooner as it would have saved some brain cells.  But I do have the pleasure of having figured it out myself.

I also found a location in Mexico that does sell medical insurance for up to two years, but it is expensive.  The same site also offers an emergency air evacuation for a mere $125.00/couple for six months.  Lots of options out there.

https://www.imglobal.com/travelinsurance/index.cfm?hideproducer=0&IMGAC=219737&app_method=1&show=PATAI,PATII,PATPI,PATPA

Yes I have been busy, busy and beyond busy..

I have been creating my to do list and have managed to check a few things off of it.

~our Mexican Pesos have been ordered..this is something you may want to think about….have a look at Mazatlan Mary’s blog today re the new USD rules in Mexico..

http://www.marykayray.com/

~another area to check out the USD/Pesos situation…

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/24405504.cfm

~still waiting for the CAD to USD ratio to get a wee bit better before getting our USD cash

~our Mexican Insurance for the RV and tow vehicle have been ordered…more on that tomorrow

~my shopping lists have been made for all I have to purchase prior to departure for places like Walmart Canada, Michaels, Costco,  Dollar Store, Safeway ( but waiting for the 10% discount on a Tuesday in early October), the Health Product Store, etc.  Actually I even have my Walmart USA list ready as well as my first Mexico store….stuff like queso, vodka, and……

..about half the do buy lists....

~my online list is ready to order….are you ready Libby?  I will wait till Oct. 15 to order…si??  Needless to say this will include some anti no-see-um  stuff mentioned in an earlier blog

~special recipes have been reviewed with the unable to purchase in Mexico ingredients added to the lists

~the RV went in today for a few touch ups, the most important being a replacement for the transfer switch which had begun to buzz big time!!!!!

Next stop...Mazatlan!

~we finally purchased an external backup system for the laptop time machine….not yet installed though!

~planning to head to the Dollar Store tomorrow…need to get toys & other stuff for the children on the Isla for Christmas!

~HELP>>>HELP!!!!!…does anyone know if canned coconut milk is available in Mazatlan?  Do I have to cart all those cans?