Yesterday I finally got onto the beach for a long walk. From zero to 7000 steps. Yeah me.

I loved it, the girls loved having me with them.

Finally I got over my driving down aches and pains and setting up our new site physical issues. I took some, only to be found in Mexico, heavy duty anti inflammatories. So my toes are totally back to normal. Sorry but previous readers have banned me from posting any further toe photos 😳

Loved being on the beach. We did it again today. The water is so warm. Thank you El Nino. Quite possibly we may have a beach day before lunch tomorrow. I want to run into the waves and swim with our girls.

Colin took this past Thursday morning.

The sun was coming through our huge front window creating a good deal of heat. We did not want the palapa to block our view so Colin did a Robinson Crusoe and created this screen.

Colin cut a piece off of our dust screen ( used at Tres Amigos ). It works perfectly to stop the heat from the rising sun to penetrate our window.

So very creative. We only need to use it for an hour every morning.

We also set up our Shaw dish today.  Look at those numbers! We are able to get each channel that we are subscribed to. Well for now, it all might disappear on February 1st.

Colin went into Mazatlan to get veggies and on the way back he got this photo from the launcha, that is us, two over from the yellow house ( left ).

Working on the palapa in the dark!

We are still waiting for the final supports for our palapa to be installed. Of course we paid in full so we are at the mercy of the builder. We did delay him a few days as we were worn out and just needed quiet time. He never showed up today 😯  Possibly manãna. It will happen when it does. We have really enjoyed our last few quiet days. The last six months have been an unsettling time and we are here to rebuild.

The girls are ever so happy. They have a variety of sunny or shady locations to relax in. Usually each photo I take is cropped so that various parts are enlarged. Right now I am only taking photos with my iPhone and what you see is all there is. I have no time at the moment to do any more, I think you would rather have some photos than none.

Colin purchased an outdoor security camera. It works very well. Nice to have.

Monday I woke up with lots of energy and was eager to head to the beach. Ouch! Did I break my toe? It really hurts. Haven’t walked for a few days but can hobble and today I think that it has begun to slowly heal. I can move it just a tiny bit.

OUCH!! Sorry for the yucky looking toes.

So much bruising and swelling.

Early yesterday morning Ciela alerted me to an oyster diver just below us. How fun.

It was cooler last night with much lower humidity. For the first time since we got here we shut off the air conditioners. So nice to sleep with the windows open and no electrical noise.

Over an hour this morning, the sky became dark with clouds and we heard loud thunder. Then the rain began.

Id did not take long for the open area to get muddy. Thank goodness we got pea gravel.

Cruise ship last night. Unless I look up the cruise ship schedule we have no idea if there will be a ship.They glide into and out of port ever so quietly. I have to add that they are simply stunning up close.

Good morning sunshine.

Colin on the beach with the girls a few days ago. Carlie loves swimming in the big waves.

This was a Mexican long weekend, Revolution Day. Many visitors to the Isla. This photo would look 100% better cropped.

We woke up this morning to a coolish breeze and left the windows open all day.

Later this afternoon three sets of strangers dropped in. All very interested in renting an RV site. Only one person was serious but she wanted to build a container home. I explained that we are only leasing year by year – but likely for 3-4 years at this point.

I finally had my massage yesterday. Wow, I had no idea how badly I needed it.

So as to the the TWIST ❗  ❗  I have heard ( first hand I might add ) that the people who were to take over our site at Tres Amigos RV Park, yes the ones for whom we were asked to vacate our site for one year, have been a no show 😥  So we were asked to leave for no shows 😳  We have only been here for two weeks. We were not asked if we would like to return, despite being there since 2009. No one in the second, third or fourth row sites in either park, were asked if they wanted a front row site – as has been the norm for many years due to seniority requests. Instead our site was offered to first timers ( never been here before ) who just happened to drive into the RV park 😮  What can I say? Thank goodness this new site was made available to us. So much peace, quiet and tranquility. No stress. We truly love it here.

Thank goodness Colin’s restaurant allows substitutions. However I love broccoli as well as asparagus.

A smaller more intimate Disney ship tonight. They actually played ” When you wish Upon a Star” as they passed us.

Interesting cargo.

The autopista is being repaired.

Everyday we do a bit more. Looking forward to a day ( perhaps next week ) when there will be nothing left t do.  Yesterday I sat in the shade of the palapa after we had been sorting furniture and carpet placements. I fell asleep within a few minutes. It is so very peaceful and quiet. Last thing I remember is listening to the gentle waves and the sound a a new to me bird call. I had no idea where I was when I woke up. Our palapa is almost complete.

The sun was setting behind us. A view of Cordon Island that we have never seen before.

We have had a few people drop by to say hola. We always stop for a few moments to chat. Two days ago Ishmael from Tres Amigos RV park, he was the handyman, doer of all things, came by for a visit and gave us huge hugs. He is most impressed with all that we have accomplished and the high standard of everything here. We did find out that our old palapa is in very bad shape, the the roof is rather holey.  Had we returned to the RV park, it probably would have cost us as much to repair as to build our new palapa. I wonder what will happen when the “special” renters show up, that is the renters for whom we were asked to vacate our beautiful lot.

Sunrise two days ago.

Let me know when you get tired of cruise photos.

El Faro in the background.

As seen from my bed.

Had a very enjoyable visit with Katia, my masseuse, yesterday afternoon. So happy for her and the many changes coming to her life. She is the perfect example of applying your mind to a task. Last year she could barely have a conversation in English. She used Duo Lingo since we left in March and I would say she is now very fluent in English. So wonderful to see. Fingers crossed that there are no major issues coming up later today as I do believe I am about to get my first massage of the season 🙂

Trying to use my plants for mutual privacy.

Our neighbours are Mexican. Umberto can speak a bit of English but not his wife nor four year old daughter. I’m sure that is must a be difficult adjustment for them to suddenly have someone living next door. All their years in their home, this site has been an empty lot. We are getting along fabulously and I am very aware of their privacy. I have positioned my taller plants to help block each other views of our homes. As RVers we are used to having someone close by, surly they are not used to that. We had two other neighbours drop by to introduce themselves. We are going to love living here. Ahhh, so sweet, Umberto just dropped by to remind us that there is no water today. The Isla water flows from Mazatlan under the shipping channel. Two days per week the water source is shut off. Right now that is every Thursday and Friday. Between our large RV water tank and our new tinaco we will never run out of water.

The best news since my last post is that Colin and I now are official residents of Mexico 😀  A year from now we will exchange that document for a three year residency card. After that the next step is to become a permanent resident. Good thing that is five years away as we still have no idea about our future plans. Poco a poco.

Getting our paperwork in perfect order for immigration, using Holga, the fixer. The entire process was pretty easier and rather quick.

We are so enjoying this new sunset vista.

Colin up on the berm.

A few bonus photos from the RV roof. The view of the shipping channel behind us and our back yard. That is the Baja Ferry in port. The Chivos Road behind us n the process of getting graded hence all the dirt/rock piles.

We arrived on Monday the 6th of November with no problems on the road. Even the bad Isla roads ( huge pot holes ) worked out for us. We did not have to have anyone move their vehicle for us as we lumbered the heavy RV down roads .Our final day on the road in Mexico had us driving only 195 miles but it seemed to take forever. We were so very anxious to arrive.

November 6th. We are parked in the middle site allowing access to our site to be levelled, etc.

They worked and worked and worked till dark. It was at least 35C and 88% humidity.

From our home in Kelowna until our arrival here we have driven 2654 miles. The girls seemed to be tired of traveling as well as us. Once we started down the road from Estrella del Mar they knew where we were. Their tiny noses never stopped. However they were confused when we pulled into our new compound at 12:45PM. Where were we? If you have any specific questions re the road conditions or anything else make a comment, send me an email. I apologize to those following, but we have not yet had the time to set up our Shaw TV System. Hopefully within the next 5 days or so. I have read in a few places that Shaw will no longer be functional in Mexico come February.

Erik and Gustavo installing our water system.  Good thing Colin had our portable generator to provide electricity for the drill.

The guy in white is the electrician and the other is his helper. And that is the 50AMP plug that we brought here from the USA.

We have electricity, connected to the very old meter to the left of the post.

Tuesday morning working out how much length we need to reach the main pipe. All of that distance was dug by a pick and shovel. It took about 10 hours.

We could not drive into our site, as a wire was hanging about mid level from the front RV window. Colin reached out to the manager who showed up an hour or so later. He simply cut the wire. Turns out it was someone’s internet/TV fiber optic which was broken anyways. Glad we did not do it.

A full truck load of small pea gravel was delivered at 8AM Tuesday. We only ordered it Monday afternoon. The black area is the landscape cloth we put down to control the weeds. 3000 MXN for the gravel. A few times during the day some of the workers stopped to help Colin get the gravel moved.

First thing that Colin did was to brick in the chosen circumference of our site. I say chosen because we could have much more land behind us but for now we have enough. Maybe we should build a guest cottage?? So happy that we did the pea gravel.

Next we had to park in order to show the manager where the services had to come to. It was a challenge moving the bus back and forth trying to find the perfect position for a set up which would be permanent. I did not have time to take photos and was exhausted. Just 48 hours earlier Colin was told that the site was ready for us except for power and water. It wasn’t what we expected. Weeds/grass needed to be removed. There were some rocky areas. We wanted the site to be as level as possible re our set up plus avoiding any tripping hazards for me. It is a new RV Park and a new concept to the manager here. There was some concrete in an area where they had mixed the cement to build the fence last April. It did not appear to be too difficult to remove it. He thought the site was ready while we did not.

Breaking up and removing the lumps of hardened cement.

Monday, I went to bed very early with no dinner. I was too tired to eat. The next several days all began at 6AM, most usual for me. And never ended before 7PM. We were often in bed by 9PM. Because of the heat and humidity we have had to run air conditioning 24/7, either the front or the back and sometimes both.

Our very first sunset in our new Isla home.

About two hours later Erik arrived ( at least a month ago we gave him our our arrival time and date ). We could not believe our eyes, Erik and Gustavo had arrived 😀 They even had our water tinaco and pump which they proceeded to install. Suddenly we had over ten people working for us 😛 An electrician just showed up, no idea who he was. It was magical. They hooked up the 50AMP plug that our special friend Colin ( yes same name ) had purchased for us the day prior to our leaving Arizona.” we can’t thank you enough, notre ami especial” and shrugged their shoulders as if to say okay.  Our 50AMP electricity is running. It is even being metered. Incredible!

As you can see they started delivering the palm branches for the palapa almost right away.

So by dark that very first night, we were able to pull into a reasonably level rv site. We had electric and we had water. I can’t say anything other than that it was a TRUE miracle. Thinking back I was pretty sure I would’ve not made it that first night dealing with the heat/humidity and no electricity.

Our power on the left and the very well made septic system.

The next day more area around and behind us was cleared. Two days later the entire three sites had been cleared.

The water project complete with the tiny house house Colin built for it including a rain roof for the engine. We had moved all of our bricks here last March.

It really appears to us to be a miracle to have a clean and level site, 50 AMP  power and water. Tuesday they actually connected our site to the septic system, using much physical labour to connect up to that main line. It has been a fascinating three days watching how these so very skilled labourers work all day with the extreme high humidity readings. It was obvious to us that we needed to be onsite for them to measure the electrical hook up, where the water should be linked to our RV plus where to connect the sewer to the exceptional septic system. We can attest to the fact that it all works perfectly.

Our set up the second evening.

Such a perfect first night.  Since then many activities have been happening. Colin and I have been involved whenever we could to help including the provisions of liquids and comida, carrying bricks, raking gravel, etc.

The girls were happy to have a fenced in yard to run around in. Colin has taken them to the beach I think 3 times and will again today. I can barely get in and out for the RV. I ache everywhere. But is so very worth it. We are in love with this place. We are constantly looking out the window or at the vista when outside.

Alex, the master palapa builder, and his crew are outstanding, they never walk when they run. More on the palapa next post.

Our local temps remain high with extremely prominent humidity readings all day. Looks like El Nino is going to control the weather pattern this winter.

Each day has been a challenge from the delivery of our pea gravel early Tuesday morning to spreading of it out over the next few days. Wednesday, Colin along with King Kong (truck taxi driver we have used in the past ) to pick up our plants and stored belongings.  Two back and forth runs and to pick up our fabulous looking plants ( they were so well looked after this past winter ), plus another two runs from storage with all of our “stuff”. I spent a few hours that day on the phone arranging for our internet to be set up. I had arranged that once with someone back in September but he backed out a few days before we arrived saying that Total Play would not install in an RV. I didn’t believe that and arranged for someone on the Isla to handle the installation. They were a no show Tuesday. So after a few hours on the phone Wednesday I had a crew coming to do the job on Thursday.

The palapa construction started with hole digging on Wednesday and something has happened everyday since. It was a good thing that I had planned a weeks worth of meals as we still have not had a moment to get out to purchase any food. At then end of everyday we sit with a glass of wine and look at each other and say ” we sure did a lot today, didn’t we “. We are constantly astounded at our daily accomplishments.

We have officially had 4 sets of visitors including Sonny from back home. A very short but lovely visit. These huge cargo ships cruise just behind us. Fascinating. Taken from inside the RV.

We have been busy setting up our site, a bit here and there. Of course once the palapa construction started that all had to be moved away from the side of the RV. Because of so much outdoor activity by others, we kept the girls inside with us and took two days to organize things. So nice to not be stepping over things. Once the palapa is complete then more things will go outside. I have no idea where Colin gets the energy to keep on going and going. Hopefully towards the end of next week we can take a few days off and just sit and enjoy the moment.

The photos I have included have come from our 2 iPhones and my camera. Neither of us have been taking a lot of photos, too busy working. So what is here is a mix of everything. Beauty shots and beach shots and sunrises and sunsets will be coming in the weeks and months to come.

Our very first sunrise, this taken Tuesday morning. I think that we are going to be very happy here.

We have been without internet for so long ( a full week I think ) that I became used to not having. It took a bit if a push to write this and to sort out the  photos. Mind you I did get to sit down to do it 😎

We will be on the Isla tomorrow. We have been dealing with roads with holes in them today. It could’ve been worse. But because it takes two of us to drive we are worn out. Then I had another Issues I needed to deal with. All I can say is that I am doing the best I can but I only have so much energy. My solar plexus is almost empty. I have lots to share and some photos but it will have to wait.

Today  has been extremely hot and humid. Colin set up the portable generator. Now at 9PM we have to shut it off as we can’t run it all night. Of course the humidly has shot up to 72%.  Colin is having a few issues with the generator situation and he is being bitten over and over.

We still have not had dinner so I am doing to make something really quick. Collins says he will just go to bed.  I disagree, he needs protein to covert into energy for tomorrow.

So you my dear readers are the ones left out tonight. We are all well ( not to mention stressed )  and the RV is functioning 100%.

Hopefully next time you hear from me, I will be on the Isla.

We arrived  early enough, here at De Anza Resort in Amado,  to get two loads of laundry done, have our showers, dump the tanks and fill the water tank to the brim. We know we likely will have no electric nor water.  We are good with the water situation. Something is happening that requires us to be there no matter the circumstances. Otherwise we will never get our services set up.

We are driving in less than 7 hours from now. We likely will  have no internet tomorrow. Just wanted to let you know.

Lots of stories and photos to come.

Next post will be from Mexico.

So ends our time here at Picacho Peak State Park.

Our last few days here have been rather busy with lots of good fun as well. We continue to have had a few set backs with the new site. One is water but we can live with that situation for a while. What I can’t handle is the lack of electricity. We found out late Wednesday evening that the owner of the site has yet to sign a contract with the electric company allowing electricity to be provided to us on the site. However Jesus said ( all in Spanish of course ) not to worry as we could run a cord to the house next door. 15AMP!!  That will work to boil the kettle but not run A/C within the RV. We require 30 amps minimum.

A few people had decorated their units for the occasion.

Fortunately we had friends who were coming to visit today who were able to find us a 50AMP receptacle that we can use to get us up and running. But that might be more that a week. We have several options that we are working on. More on that another day.

Unique idea to create shade for the twins.

Colin changed the fuse holder in the RV kitchen fantastic fan. We are going to need everything we can to stay cool in the days to come.

Lovely nap with Ciela Wednesday afternoon.

Our special friends Genie & Joe came up for a visit yesterday as well as lunch. We had a great time. So much to talk about. We will soon be seeing them on the Isla.

Colin took the girls for a sunset stroll and this is just one of the hundred or so photos he took.

Our long time  Canadian friends Jannose and Colin came for visit this afternoon. It became too hot in front of the RV so we moved to the back and found shade.

We visited for many hours and enjoyed the sunset together. The are off on a trip to Morocco next week and yet another trip/cruise in December.

Tiny little icky bugs came out as the sun set. Apparently they like wine. Look closely to see them.

Jannose and Colin surprised us with a sushi dinner. Perfect end to our visit. Thank you again so very very much. Nice to not have to cook tonight.

Today November 1st is called Day of the Dead in Mexico. Click here to read a short explanation of the celebration. Both on the Isla and in Mazatlan there will be many dressed up as Catrinas tonight walking the streets. And a bit more from PBS.

I am sad to miss this celebration of death because of delay re the hurricane, but it is what it is. Here are some photos I have collected over the past few days. My purpose in sharing this blog with you is to make those of you who know little or nothing about Dias de los Muertos aware of the celebration. I wish I had more time to go into detail but Google is your friend.

“day of the dead

weep not when we die don’t let your life go awry for the time was nigh attributes were diminished the mortal course now finished words were all written no longer need to fit in worry what’s twitten opinions will not long last as all existence shall pass never born-again but a human with a pen human among men back to whence everything came no more demons left to tame now no need for shame care who or what is to blame life ends all the same good, bad, rich, poor, or wiser death, the great equalizer don’t feel bad for me what I was, has been set free beyond slights or fees through eternity we schlep in evolution’s next step”

 

As expected Colin has a spooky movie all set up for night. I promised that I would watch one with him every Halloween and I always hope that he will forget. He never does.

Colin’s full moon shot this past Friday in Quartzite.

It was a very cool Sunday morning in Quartzite @ 51F.  The girls only went out to do what they had to do.

Yesterday morning the 30th we were on the road at 8:15AM. Beautiful coolish day to do the drive and lo wind. We could just enjoy the passing scenery and clear blue sky. The night prior we had reviewed Google maps and had screen shots and written directions. But we left a bit earlier just in case.

Well just in case came in handy. Stupid, stupid error on both of our parts. Once we got off I8 onto Hwy 84 then we were to hang a left on Hwy 387.  Colin said there is the turn and off we went. It was only Hwy 347. Much much too soon. Needless say we got lost, very lost. We had driven north from I 8 to within one block of  I10. So our precious extra 50 minutes were used back tracking and getting to where we were supposed to be at the repair shop. Fortunately we were only a few minutes late. We were taking the RV in to get the dash A/C checked at Rich’s Auto Repair. He came highly recommenced by friends K & J who had the same problem a week earlier. dd

Our view from site B19.

First thing Rich said, was that our Freon was rather low and we had a leak in the hose. He drained our system ( dash air system ) and 90 minutes later and $250.00US later we were ready to leave. We needed four additional pounds of Freon. However the leak in the hose was exactly where the hose attached to the valve. He tried repeadefly to take the valve off but it was impossible. After six attempts he gave up. Colin asked about changing the 40′ hose. We were told that that was a full two day job, because the hose ran from the dash area all the way back to the engine in the back of the bus. He explained that he fixed it as best as he could and that it should last a long time.

By the time we re hooked the Jeep to the RV it was getting to be late afternoon. I made as quick as I could stops at Fry’s and Walmart. I have been looking for a solid week for veggie burgers, any kind. None to be found. Most strange.

That is Picacho Peak and its state park. We are almost there.

We got to our site at Picacho Peak just as the sun slid below the horizon. So much colour and beauty. It is because of Hurricane Norma that we are here for four nights. Colin loves it here.

How fortunate we are to enjoy this view for four nights.

We had a wonderful evening and good sleep. That is until the girls woke us at 7:30AM.  The insisted on a walk, They were so happy to be here. They could not stop kissing me once they got back to the RV.

Such happy doxies.

Once again today we had internet issues. Over and over. I guess that’s why I never posted yesterday. I have my personal ATT hot spot device and it worked but it was extremely slow. Suddenly AireBeam WiFi popped up on the screen advertising the safe or wifi from 4.00 per day to 35.00 per month. RV park internet is usually awful – although last year we had great internet in Las Vegas. So we took the bait and paid $8.95 for 3 full days of service. Best thing we have ever done. Colin called the company to see how we were restricted. No cap at all and it was a fiber optic system 😀 Wonderful service and speed. I was happy about that as I had some unexpected banking to deal with.

Hey that’s me in the green.

Colin is working with the gilrs in keeping them close with just voice commands. So far today, only one escapee. Ciela just wanted to see what was on the other side of the road.

Just a lovely day here. I have never seen the park so empty but perhaps todays date has something do with it.

Thanks for sharing Carol. We hope to see it one day as well.

Happy Halloween from the chocolates. This is our October 2023 calendar photo. It was taken a year ago.

Our last few days in Lake Havasu were quiet. We got everything we need for our trip way south.

I may or may not have ( likely not ) mentioned that we discovered that we had left our rice behind and several packages of pasta. Cindy, my friend, who is looking after our home took photo a photo of my pasta drawer. Looks like someone left it behind.

I vaguely recall that I went to pack this stuff and then found that all of my packing baskets we full so closed the drawer to pack it later and there it remained.

Yesterday we drove from Las Vegas to Quartszite, a total of 210 miles. It was a perfect day for a drive. Not too hot considering we had to keep the windows open.

Once again we have seen reports of how bad the roads are between Los Mochis and Mazatlan. Of course now that I want to attach the screen capture, I can’t find it. I think it is on my desk top and I am using the laptop while here in Quartszite. We do have a few sets of friends on that road right now. We should know more in a few days.

We of course shared a large Silly Al’s pizza for dinner. We are staying in a new location for us called Holiday Palms Rv Resort. 

It really is a nice RV park at a reasonable rate and it is a short minute walk to Silly Al’s. It has a hot tub, a lovely pool and even two pickle ball courts.

Look at their library. Isn’t it fabulous.

We were put into a pull through site at the edge of the property. Hence an extremely weak wifi signal. Even my ATT hot spot device would not work nor our cell phones. Poor Colin he was dealing with the brunt of if. It still took a another few hours to sort that out. But we got through it and were able to work with it today. We had important issues that needed to be dealt with. I wonder if I should upgrade my ATT hot spot device. Its pretty old.

Lovely day today but windy, the girls had a few walks but preferred to sit inside with the sun coming through the windows.

I did do my exercises last nights so if I go do them right now that will make 3 nights in a row.

Oh, I almost forget. I booked my wifi installation for our new place back in September. Today the fellow said that he was unable to fulfill what he had promised. So a great deal of time today was spent trying to find where we can get wifi for the next next seven months. I have found unlimited monthly internet @ 300mg for $55.00 CAD per month. Much cheaper then Starlink but still pretty expensive in my opinion.The big problem is that I have to pay the first 12 months even if we are not there.  I will get it sorted out eventually.

Meanwhile we are on the road early morning enroute to Casa Grande to get our RV dash A/C repaired.

Off to do do those dreaded exercises  😉