We had a lovely day. We got a few to dos done including some relaxation. Then we headed out for a coconut shrimp dinner with Genie, Joe and Amy to Chivos Restaurant.
Lovely sunset.
Our small group grew to eight.
Wonderful friends and great food, life is good.
…… this is the time of year to donate to helping the less fortunate here on Isla de la Piedra so that they may have a Christmas / Christmas Eve dinner. I have collected for this group for many many years since 2010 and over Covid helped keep the community fed.
The following is from Rocio and Dallas……
Every year becomes more and more difficult for each of us. Any amount that you can spare will bring joy to those who often live in cardboard homes. Anything you can donate is appreciated more than you will ever know.
Time moves quicker than we often are aware of.
Oh wait. I am already doing that. So very thankful!
Ciela getting a mini massage also known as a get rid of that excess hair.
Guess who arrived yesterday? Our compound is now complete with Genie and Joe here. They are working at getting set up for the many months to come. Linda and Russell who live in the apartment upstairs to our right ( facing the ocean ) arrived today. Looking forward to giving them hugs in the morning. Our wee community is filling up.
Just this past Thursday we had our neighbor ( to the right ) Umberto and his wife and five year old daughter over for a visit. I was concerned about conversation but it all worked out, either we know more Spanish than we think or it just worked out perfectly. Mom and daughter do not speak any English. Lots of laughs and a friendship was further strengthened. We were all shocked at the end when the daughter who never speaks English said very clearly ” thank you so very much”. They kept our plants alive while we were back in Canada.
Today, locals hunting for oysters just below us.
Going through 30 years of old recipes – keep or discard? I might be at this well into the new year.
Happy days…..thanks for sharing the photo Fred.
The best is yet to come.
It truly is.
….like wine and friends like you all.
Started this post Monday afternoon…..
Much better to be here than back in Canada where the snow has begun fall. So glad the birds will have food this winter.
I have been trying to write a post for at least five days but life just keeps happening.
Ciela has figured out how to chew her way out of the yard. Colin had to reinforce the fence with bricks.
Thank you all for your many many comments. They were much appreciated. Gene, overjoyed to know you are still hanging in. Hey you know my life is always full of drama so stick around as it won’t be boring. I might even do a synopsis on what happened to the Rexhall generator a few years back 😉 I did promise you…..
My bougainvillea that I planted on the street side of the fence survived despite being attached by looper caterpillars, the leaves will come back.
Planted two more bougainvillea near the entrance to our fenced yard. Going to put hibiscus in the other two pots. Yellow maybe???
Shirley you were one of my first readers back in 2010. And here we are 14 years later. Moving back to Tsawwassen, eh! Good luck with that. But having family near is also important.
It took two pulmonia trucks ( King Kong on the left and Umberto on the right ) to bring it all here from our bodega. Then just two days ago, our new and very special friend Edward, delivered the last of 7 large bins to us from Kelowna ( we had no room in the U Haul ). He also has a home here in Mazatlan. So we are still busy unpacking and putting things away.
Special thanks to those who explained how to sign up for each of my new blog posts – directly deposited to your inbox. No muss nor fuss, not having to check back day after day.
I ordered the wine racks while in Vegas and Colin has since put them up. It is really nice to have a place to put the bits special china and glassware that we brought with us.
Perfect location in the kitchen.
We did get out a week ago to pick up some flower plants to replenish those that died over the summer. We went to two nurseries but potted hibiscus plants are in short supply. I have a friend here on the Isla who loves flowers and between us I have an order for ten hibiscus of varying colors including double and single incoming by weeks end. That will certainly complete my flowers for this season.
I have exactly ten empty medium size pots.
I had my third – most wonderful massage by Katia last Thursday. She has really helped thaw my tense body nerve by nerve, muscle by muscle, poco a poco. My pain levels have begun to decrease. A few days ago I thought I would surprise Colin and the girls and meet them on the beach on their hour long walk. Somehow something always interrupted me – usually computer related. Well today I actually met them on the beach. I walked on my own all the way to El Velero before I caught up to them on their way back. Very slowly and carefully of course because of my eyesight. It felt liberating. And not too much pain. I actually ( with Colin’s help dragging the hose for me ) watered all the flowers and then did a load of laundry and hung it myself. And here I am now working on blog post. Colin is making dinner for us. Oh and yesterday I made ( always with Colins help doing the chopping ) a huge pot of Thai curry fish chowder. It was yummy 😎
My desk remains a work in progress. Edward ( the friend who delivered our last bins from Canada ) had purchased my roll top desk last September. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that he has brought my – well now his desk, here to Mazatlan. Hopefully I can visit it one day.
I am working the best I can with my eyesight. Trying to decrease my computer time and to increase just sitting and looking out at the vista and the Isla beach and trying to discern details. Some days my eye are sore using the readers with the computer. I am hoping that means I need less eyeglass help. At this point I have decided to wait till mid January before going to have my yes rechecked. We had some special friends over the other day and she mentioned that it took her a full year before she could see in one of her operated eyes.
…stopped for dinner and to reorganize the kitchen for the third time. Each time it had helped make it better to work in.
….resuming this post about noonish Tuesday the 26th. Had a busy morning, Colin went into Mazatlan to pick up a few items at the bakery and some veggies and of course my must have Chihuahua ‘Santa Rita’ cheese – cut fresh off the big wheel. Meanwhile I yelled at the girls a few times who were barking at the feral cats and also got a few loads of laundry done and hung outside in the sunshine.
We have had folks over about 3 times, just one couple at a time for some low key visiting. I am not ready for social events right now. I even did a home delivery of a shrimp dinner special being offered last Friday. Great food and so much of it for 80 MXN each. Just read that a local restaurant ( local as in less than four blocks from here ) is offering a dinner special of coconut shrimp for 150 MXN. We just might do that tomorrow.
My biggest accomplishment was walking down to the beach the other morning. It did not happen today but hopefully tomorrow.
Mazatlan on the top half and Isla De La Piedra below with the shipping channel running along the middle. The black line on the bottom left shows where our compound is. The black dot to the right (above and in the water ) is the Playa Sur Embarcadero from which small boats ferry people back and forth. Our beach is 13 miles long.
Certainly a different view than here.
During the last week I received the following comment on my last blog post. That post along with the many comments can be found here. On November 12th I received this comment……..
I started following Contessas blog 4-5 years ago and have found it quite interesting, reading about their nomad life in MX and their Canadian Summers in BC.
Unfortunately it appears that she is in the process of shutting the site down. She can”t be oblivious to the fact that people are not going to log in every day; because they care and are interested, only not to see one word. Quite disrespectful. Recently there was a long time follower who was checking in and then advised he will be unsubscribing. That got an immediate response from Contessa, so we know she’s logging in herself!
I realize she does not owe us a daily blog but a lot of us may travel vicariously through her and Colin’s adventures and enjoy her adventures and respect the time it takes to do a proper blog…..perhaps a short blurb rather than a book??? She needs to decide if she’s a blogger …. Or not!
I was appalled. Thank you to my readers who added their own thoughts to this offensive comment. I can honestly say Paul, that I appreciate that you have followed me for 4 -5 years, yet to call me disrespectful is shattering. I have been blogging since May of 2010. For most of that time I did write daily however our lives changed over the past year. Previously there had been a change in format in October of 2022 due to technical blog issues. It was a huge learning step for me but I kept on.
Last January we made a decision to change our path in life. Hence the past eleven months have been in preparation for that. Long story short my body could not quite keep up. But I kept pushing myself. Colin did the brunt of the physical work but I was the one who was constantly sitting at the computer researching, sending out emails, exploring possibilities and it never seemed to stop not to mention the constant marketplace selling and garage sales. We returned from Mexico April 30th and on May 1st began preparing to move out of our home. And neither of us stopped. The house did not sell so we sold the RV and rented a U Haul to transport what was left of our life ( stored in bins and boxes and plastic bags ) to California where we purchased a new to us RV – our home for the foreseeable future.
Towing the U-Haul was not quite as much fun as we thought it would be. Certainly not like the Beverly Hillbillies! Plus the roads were more mountainous than expected while the motels were lesser than expected especially at the prices we were paying. But on the plus side we were able to plug in the freezers overnight and park outside our room. On the last night we ordered a pizza for delivery, $56.00USD!! We ate and went to bed. The sheets and bed were clean but the rest of the place was best looked at with little to no lighting.
Over the past six weeks we left our home country of Canada and crossed not one but two international borders. We worked at fitting our “stuff” into an RV and some unhappy decisions were made. I already regret a few things given away in the US but we have no extra space. Then learning the ins and outs and of course unexpected breakdowns from day 1 ( just 4 hours away from the dealership ). No guarantees with a used RV 🙁 But we do have insurance for the next 5 years on major RV parts which of course was an unforeseen expense. The RV now has Montana plates which decreased the amount of taxes we had to pay. But we did have to hire a lawyer and an accountant for our LLC and an insurance agent to cover us for full-time travel in the RV. Health insurance was covered from Canada to the end of October. We are now on our own as in pay as you go in that department.
There were a myriad of todo’s such as closing down our incorporated company. switching banks, closing down the house in Kelowna for the next while. Finding out that the owner of our compound here on there Isla died a few weeks before we left Canada. How long could we continue to stay here? We still are not certain. I could go on and on. Many nights I went to bed without dinner as I was too busy.
I came back the end of April 2024 with a worn out body. My fall in July ( broken nose ) was literally a pain. Then with less than a week to leaving Canada I had a major fall in the bathtub and could not walk for three days. I was beyond drained. Of course my “unsuccessful” eye surgery was debilitating. I consider myself unable to walk on my own and certainly I will never drive again. Every step is in slow motion so I don’t fall but simply not seeing cleary is crushing. Not seeing the ocean and the beach distinctly is well……think about it – if it was you.
It is only in the past few days that my physical pain ( thanks to my masseuse Katia ) is starting to diminish. I have been sleeping 10 – 12 hours per night with one or two naps per day. One of the few highlights in my life has been writing my blog for the past 14 years. It hurts me more than you when I don’t publish but I finally realized I had to choose myself as the most important thing in order to keep living. Living a good and happy life that is. I am number one 😎 La première 😀 El primero 😉
Paul I apologize for upsetting your reading and enjoyment of my blog. But I am simply a human who has experienced copious adjustments in the past six weeks 😥 Personally that fact that my body energy is ever so slowly returning as the physical pain level decreases delights me. What you don’t know is that in the past 12 months I have not been on a walk more than 24 times – never mind an honest to goodness beach walk.
Right now my priority is to get out there and be happy with no pain nor anguish. Sorry this is a “book” but that is how I roll these days. Taking photos and editing them and fitting them into a post takes energy that I simply do not have. I have taken photos and am eager to share them but please give me time.
Some may recall that the reason I started to blog was that I wanted certain photos in my emails re our travels. That will come back but if it takes too long for you Paul, I wish you good reading elsewhere.
In real life today, we planted some new flowers here in the compound. I am going to make pizza from scratch for dinner. Life is good, we are a happy team with some wonderful ( if only they would stop barking at feral cats ) doxies. Our future lies ahead whatever direction down the road we choose.
Fred took this last ? November.
We are so enjoying our new home ( at least while I am awake ). We each have our own toilet 😆 So far we have no complaints except for the various breakdowns ( mostly because the RV has sat for many years with little use – it only had 23,000 miles on it so basically is like new ) Have to say that the macerator breaking down was a huge issue/problem! But having windows that have never been opened ( clean screens ) nor a stovetop that has ever been used are huge plusses. The enormous residential fridge and washer/dryer are wonderful bonus items. And then there is the king bed. The girls are now officially sleeping full-time in our bed. Well we are full-timers.
Most difficult thing is trying to find where I put everything such as the pizza dough for dinner………
A very quick update. On Monday we got our Visa extended for the next 3 years and the TIP for the car to match it. Tuesday it only took 30 minutes to carefully drive here and park in our compound. The driving part included cutting tree branches that could scratch the RV ( that had been done the day prior ) or put a hole in the roof and the parking part took over two hours and involved some machete cutting and saw cutting and rock pounding ( Mexicans are so creative ). Not to mention tall fellows standing on ladders to hold up both the electrical and the internet wires. Miraculously we pretty much fit next to the palapa we built last season. Details to follow. Also had some RV work done and we are good for now.
I had a massage today, a long shower and enjoyed homemade fresh shrimp burritos for lunch with a lovely glass of Australian Sauvignon Blanc. Followed by a bit of reading time and a long nap outside. It was way too hot to sit outside at Tres Amigos but the breeze is perfect here and of course no bugs 😎 My main goal is to decrease my pain and increase my energy level. The rest of the yard set up and unloading can wait. As far as I know we are here for at least 6 months. We had planned to go out and about for the Day of the Dead ceremonies and parade starting tomorrow but this year we are just going to sit tight.
Just love the sunflowers and the butterflies.
It was a great travel day, we were driving by 6:03AM and arrived on the Isla itself by 12:40PM. It was a stressless drive. In fact we wondered if this cartel war was for real. We saw neither bad guys nor good guys ( police/military, etc ) no one was being pulled over every so often as we have been the past two past days. No military presence whatsoever. The roads were busy with mostly trucks. Never saw another RV since we left the US border. It was an easy non stressful drive.
Until we got to the Isla that is 🙄
We disconnected as usual but Colin decided to take the Jeep for a quick preview of the condition of the road and the low hanging trees. He was gone almost 90 minutes 😯 Finally he came back with dismal news. Our site was full of weeds and our gravel had not been delivered and the gate was rusted shut! But worst of all there were so many low hanging tree branches that needed to be cut so we could drive to our site. It would take hours.
I made an executive decision and called David, manger of Tres Amigos and he graciously offered us to stay in which ever site we want to in RV1. It truly felt like coming home. Our site for years and years was number one but we stopped in site number two. Not sure we would fit in our old site with the new to us RV. But it was really wonderful, pulling in here. Even the girls knew where they were.
So tomorrow is tree cutting and gravel delivery day. I am staying here with the girls. Nothing is planned for certain but we wonder if it might be best for us to relax here for a few days and get our INM Visa business completed and then move to the compound Tuesday or later. Here it will be like a vacation just sitting and relaxing. Moving involves starting a permanent set up. I vote to stay and relax 😎 We already had visitors earlier this afternoon which was very pleasant. Happy Birthday Jeannie, sorry but we really needed to set up the RV. Hope your dinner was extra special.
I feel asleep watching the ocean waves and then it was sunset. Perfection.
First Isla sunset this season. It feels so great to be back.
This was to have been posted Wednesday PM but I could not internet to work. So now I am post ing at noon today, Thursday. So read the following as if you were reading this last night.
It feels like the first day to the rest of our life.
We have spent the past 9 or so days ( I no longer recall details ). All our boxes have been unloaded, most items found a home in the RV, a few others hit the dust bin. We purchased some necessary groceries. We now have a residential fridge that holds more that expected. Bonus.
The alternator was replaced a few days ago and works great. Colin noticed that the the RV tires seemed more flat than round on the bottom. He called in a semi truck repair vehicle. The tires were at 90 and were properly inflated to 130. So we were good to go.
Today we travelled from Las Vegas to Quartzite and are dry camping to test out how it all works out with our new home re keeping the fridge cold via the inverter and so on and so on. We are running our quiet generator to charge things before shutting it down about 8PM. Yes we parked all away from other rvers.
Set up is quick with a self levelling system, no jacks 😎 Four slide outs deployed within in a few moments, push buttons and there you have it all ready.
Today was the second day that I have not had to take pain meds so that is big plus. Today was also our dry run for our first few nights in Mexico. Speaking of Mexico things are not going so well right now on 15D. In fact there are now cartel wars in at least six areas of Mexico. I have heard that the new president of Mexico does no plan on initiating any activity against the cartels until October 29th? Why?? Is she waiting for the weekend celebrations of the Day of the Dead to invite more killings?
As you know our personal issue is the renewal of our Temporal Visa. Legally it must be done at an INM office – actually the same one we started this journey with last year. We would prefer to not have to travel to Mazatlan at this time. So my plan is to ask at KM21 for mercy due to the cartel situation and ask the INM there to grant us a few weeks extension. Then we would stay in San Carlos or Playa Los Glorious in Gusave. If we are not granted an extension then we will have to make a major decision on Wednesday evening.
Many have emailed or commented about us flying into Mazatlan. First of all it is not a fly and fly out the same day. It can take up to 3 days of back and forth to INM. That means hotels, etc. Secondly we would have to leave the girls alone in an RV they are not very familiar with and with strangers to feed and walk them. That just is not going to work plus it is rather expensive.
I have photos to share but not the time right now. I thought that you might prefer this update. Gene don’t you dare leave me after all of these years. We are not settling into one location but will be traveling all around Mexico, the US and maybe back to Canada. I know I owe that generator repair post…..have not forgotten.
