Rainy season doesn't traditionally start until June, but we've had a taste of it twice in the last week or so. On both occasions there was plentiful thunder and lightning - and even a bit of hail the first time - but not a great deal of water fell from the heavens.
Some of the lightning looked rather theatrical - sharp and white - followed immediately by rolling peals of thunder, so I suppose that was because we're at a pretty high altitude here and it wasn't far away. It really did look like someone had a really bright light just down the street which they were flashing in our direction. I love thunder and lightning! We even got up and turned off the computers in case there were resulting power situations.
However, after nearly 90 minutes of rain, the quasi-official measurement was a total of 0.22 inches for the last two storms combined. Quasi-official because we don't have a local airport with weather instruments; the results are published on line by amateur weather stations run by local citizens who publish via the weatherunderground web site.
And since there are no unofficial weather stations in our part of town, one doesn't really know what the local, local measurement would have been. The two stations are on the south side of town (in the area to which we are moving) and out in the campo to the north of town. Rain tends to be spotty here in SMA - perhaps because of our proximity to the clouds? Or just because it can?
Either way, everyone seems happy and I won't need to go water our lawns at the new house today! Hope they got the rooftop terrace floor sealed yesterday....
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Gallop Apace You Fiery-Footed Steeds
Things are moving apace for our move to the new home. After a year here in Col. San Rafael we decided that as much as we like our home - once the band next door left - it was time to find a place with a yard. Now, to someone living in southern California this sounds like the simplest thing in the world, but here in Mexico many - if not most - homes do not have lawns. Planting beds and terraces, perhaps, but yards are a rarity. Houses tend to be built right up to the property lines and may have interior terraces and gardens, even, but not lawns. And dogs need yards. So we started looking. Of course our reason for requiring a yard was our dogs - which presented a different set of difficulties. Even homes with yards which had stood unrented for over a year were still sporting a 'no dogs' policy. Better to go unrented than to accept pets, I guess. (The owners must have had a really bad experience sometime!)
We eventually found and considered three properties and - with much drama - selected one, money changed hands, and a contract was signed. The house is ours as of today and the keys are being turned over to us this afternoon. [Followed by drinks with our agent and his partner and general rejoicing!] We do have an unofficial set of keys already and have kept an eye on the completion work as it progresses. Although of a traditional style, the house is new construction and is still being completed. The electrical work should be completed as of today. The lower kitchen cabinets should also be in place. The master bathroom is going to be finished in June, but there are two others which are finished already so we won't have to join the dogs in the yard!
The last electrical work included adding cable wiring to the house. How anyone could build a house nowadays and not include television wiring (not forgetting the internet) is anyone's guess, but we'll be paying extra for that work. It's so much nicer to have wiring within the walls rather than the tack-it-to-the-baseboards style the cable company uses - particularly when the walls and baseboards are concrete. We're hoping that the kitchen cabinets mentioned above should also be installed by now. We'll see what the landlord has put on. It will be interesting to see what's installed. We're praying for some drawers.... Counters and the cabinet structure are usually tiled concrete here in Mexico; only the shelving and doors/drawers need to be built and installed by a carpenter.
Pedro is stopping by the house this afternoon to see what business is in store for him. The tile floors need to be sealed; the walls need some painting treatments: sponging or ragging over the colors that are already in place - a bit bright - if not entirely new paint over the pale lime green walls (some are peach, some yellow); and we'll need to put up light fixtures and curtain rods as a beginning. Pedro also gets to figure out how to install ceiling fans on those lovely boveda ceilings. One of the charms of the new house is that every room has a boveda ceiling - even those on the first floor! [Domed ceilings on the first floor? How did they do that?] And each room features a large concrete cornice behind which the landlord has been installing switched halogen lights. But attached ceiling fans may be a challenge; chandeliers, not so much. Don't want the fans to fall on us, but without air conditioning, fans are sometimes a necessity.
We've found pre-made curtain rods to be rather expensive, even from Home Depot; it's cheaper to have them made for you. Pedro will also arrange an estimate on the kitchen wall cabinets for us. He's also going to handle the installation of the range (he doesn't know this yet). The gas supply line is encased in mortar! A fridge I can plug in. [A bonus: grounded plugs!]
Once the floors are sealed and dry, we can go appliance shopping. [You should see my Excel spreadsheet for all the models of appliances available, model numbers, capacity, measurements, features and prices.] Our previous house came furnished with a fridge, stove, and microwave; the new house has none of that. We do have a microwave of our own that has been on loan to a friends' restaurant. Turns out it uses too much power, so they haven't been using it. One less thing to purchase - although I had my eye on a mirror-faced model at Mega.
I will spend Monday at the house (doing my Spanish homework) while the cleaning service gives the house a top-to-bottom thorough cleaning before the floors can be sealed. As new construction, there's dust everywhere and mortar spills on the tiles that must be removed before sealing later this week.
And later this month (after we've moved clothes, TVs, pictures/mirrors, computers/phones and possibly the kitchen paraphernalia ourselves) the movers will transport our furniture and boxes that haven't yet been unpacked from the move SOB. That should leave us several days at the end of the month in which to clean up the San Rafael house and be out on time. Luckily, Margarita has agreed to follow us to La Lejona and we'll probably ask her to clean the San Rafael house one last time when it's empty - rather than hire it done by an outside agency.
Now, where did those steeds go? Did they take off with my list of questions for the landlord?
We eventually found and considered three properties and - with much drama - selected one, money changed hands, and a contract was signed. The house is ours as of today and the keys are being turned over to us this afternoon. [Followed by drinks with our agent and his partner and general rejoicing!] We do have an unofficial set of keys already and have kept an eye on the completion work as it progresses. Although of a traditional style, the house is new construction and is still being completed. The electrical work should be completed as of today. The lower kitchen cabinets should also be in place. The master bathroom is going to be finished in June, but there are two others which are finished already so we won't have to join the dogs in the yard!
The last electrical work included adding cable wiring to the house. How anyone could build a house nowadays and not include television wiring (not forgetting the internet) is anyone's guess, but we'll be paying extra for that work. It's so much nicer to have wiring within the walls rather than the tack-it-to-the-baseboards style the cable company uses - particularly when the walls and baseboards are concrete. We're hoping that the kitchen cabinets mentioned above should also be installed by now. We'll see what the landlord has put on. It will be interesting to see what's installed. We're praying for some drawers.... Counters and the cabinet structure are usually tiled concrete here in Mexico; only the shelving and doors/drawers need to be built and installed by a carpenter.
Pedro is stopping by the house this afternoon to see what business is in store for him. The tile floors need to be sealed; the walls need some painting treatments: sponging or ragging over the colors that are already in place - a bit bright - if not entirely new paint over the pale lime green walls (some are peach, some yellow); and we'll need to put up light fixtures and curtain rods as a beginning. Pedro also gets to figure out how to install ceiling fans on those lovely boveda ceilings. One of the charms of the new house is that every room has a boveda ceiling - even those on the first floor! [Domed ceilings on the first floor? How did they do that?] And each room features a large concrete cornice behind which the landlord has been installing switched halogen lights. But attached ceiling fans may be a challenge; chandeliers, not so much. Don't want the fans to fall on us, but without air conditioning, fans are sometimes a necessity.
We've found pre-made curtain rods to be rather expensive, even from Home Depot; it's cheaper to have them made for you. Pedro will also arrange an estimate on the kitchen wall cabinets for us. He's also going to handle the installation of the range (he doesn't know this yet). The gas supply line is encased in mortar! A fridge I can plug in. [A bonus: grounded plugs!]
Once the floors are sealed and dry, we can go appliance shopping. [You should see my Excel spreadsheet for all the models of appliances available, model numbers, capacity, measurements, features and prices.] Our previous house came furnished with a fridge, stove, and microwave; the new house has none of that. We do have a microwave of our own that has been on loan to a friends' restaurant. Turns out it uses too much power, so they haven't been using it. One less thing to purchase - although I had my eye on a mirror-faced model at Mega.
I will spend Monday at the house (doing my Spanish homework) while the cleaning service gives the house a top-to-bottom thorough cleaning before the floors can be sealed. As new construction, there's dust everywhere and mortar spills on the tiles that must be removed before sealing later this week.
And later this month (after we've moved clothes, TVs, pictures/mirrors, computers/phones and possibly the kitchen paraphernalia ourselves) the movers will transport our furniture and boxes that haven't yet been unpacked from the move SOB. That should leave us several days at the end of the month in which to clean up the San Rafael house and be out on time. Luckily, Margarita has agreed to follow us to La Lejona and we'll probably ask her to clean the San Rafael house one last time when it's empty - rather than hire it done by an outside agency.
Now, where did those steeds go? Did they take off with my list of questions for the landlord?
Sunday, April 17, 2011
The City of Fallen Women
San Miguel is sometimes called the City of Fallen Women because there are so many opportunities to trip on something: the narrow, uneven sidewalks; the cobblestone streets (which one sometimes walks in because of the narrow sidewalks); the multitude of protrusions from sidewalks; et cetera.
I have managed to not trip once in the 9+ months that we've lived here because I pay great attention to where I'm walking. I may not have seen much of SMA because I'm looking down most of the time, but I haven't slipped or tripped.
Last night my luck turned.
It had rained and hailed like the devil yesterday afternoon and we thought we'd better eat out once the rain let up (we're running low on propane and the delivery company can't show up until Monday; we'd prefer to have hot water - and it doesn't take much of an excuse to dine out).
So grabbing our umbrellas, out we went. There were still a few sprinkles but the air was clear, the temperature had dropped, and life was good. We headed towards Tacos Don Felix, just a short - though hilly - distance from home.
While walking on one of those narrow sidewalks we came to a driveway. Now, you must understand that there needs to be a short ramp up from street level, cutting through the sidewalk to a garage It's usually steep because the sidewalks are narrow and there isn't space for a gradual ramp. [I really need to learn how to post pictures on this blog for illustrative purposes.]
The first few driveways heading downhill were no problem. But when we reached one of the few level streets in town, the driveway in question was smoother with only light-weight figures incised in the cement for traction. Not enough traction in my opinion, as my streetside foot slid out from under me and I landed on my left knee.
Of course, being a guy, I sprang to my feet (hadn't dropped the umbrella, either), brushed off Michael's offer of assistance, insisted that I was fine- just sore, and we walked on down and up the hill to the restaurant.
Their margaritas helped the pain and it wasn't until this morning that I looked at the knee and saw the damage: bruised, skinned, and a slight cut. Sore is probably the predominant result - every time I move my leg.
Prescription - Los Milagros this afternoon for more margaritas!
I have managed to not trip once in the 9+ months that we've lived here because I pay great attention to where I'm walking. I may not have seen much of SMA because I'm looking down most of the time, but I haven't slipped or tripped.
Last night my luck turned.
It had rained and hailed like the devil yesterday afternoon and we thought we'd better eat out once the rain let up (we're running low on propane and the delivery company can't show up until Monday; we'd prefer to have hot water - and it doesn't take much of an excuse to dine out).
So grabbing our umbrellas, out we went. There were still a few sprinkles but the air was clear, the temperature had dropped, and life was good. We headed towards Tacos Don Felix, just a short - though hilly - distance from home.
While walking on one of those narrow sidewalks we came to a driveway. Now, you must understand that there needs to be a short ramp up from street level, cutting through the sidewalk to a garage It's usually steep because the sidewalks are narrow and there isn't space for a gradual ramp. [I really need to learn how to post pictures on this blog for illustrative purposes.]
The first few driveways heading downhill were no problem. But when we reached one of the few level streets in town, the driveway in question was smoother with only light-weight figures incised in the cement for traction. Not enough traction in my opinion, as my streetside foot slid out from under me and I landed on my left knee.
Of course, being a guy, I sprang to my feet (hadn't dropped the umbrella, either), brushed off Michael's offer of assistance, insisted that I was fine- just sore, and we walked on down and up the hill to the restaurant.
Their margaritas helped the pain and it wasn't until this morning that I looked at the knee and saw the damage: bruised, skinned, and a slight cut. Sore is probably the predominant result - every time I move my leg.
Prescription - Los Milagros this afternoon for more margaritas!
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Stormy, Stormy Afternoon
Wow - we just had about 20 minutes of torrential rain! Started with a lightning bolt very near by, a tremendous thunderclap, and then the downpour. It's fun living up on a hill, but we do tend to get lightning strikes nearby.
We scurried around the house closing windows and doors, taking down laundry from the line on the roof terrace (we don't waste gas drying doggie towels when the sun is shining; so they're a little rough...), and watching the rain and hail beat down on the first floor garden area and second floor terrace.
I think there was only a 30% chance of rain today - which usually means we don't get any precipitation - but it was a very impressive 30%. Still sounds as if there's storming somewhere near, but it could just be echoing off the mountains.
Don't know where we're having dinner tonight, but it won't be on a roof terrace!
PS - The dogs really behaved themselves during the storm - no running around, no extraneous barking, just went to their crates (and hid). Likewise, even with the nearby lightning strike, our power stayed on during the deluge. Glad it did, as I was working on the IRS tax return and really didn't want to re-enter all that information. I might have missed the deadline!
We scurried around the house closing windows and doors, taking down laundry from the line on the roof terrace (we don't waste gas drying doggie towels when the sun is shining; so they're a little rough...), and watching the rain and hail beat down on the first floor garden area and second floor terrace.
I think there was only a 30% chance of rain today - which usually means we don't get any precipitation - but it was a very impressive 30%. Still sounds as if there's storming somewhere near, but it could just be echoing off the mountains.
Don't know where we're having dinner tonight, but it won't be on a roof terrace!
PS - The dogs really behaved themselves during the storm - no running around, no extraneous barking, just went to their crates (and hid). Likewise, even with the nearby lightning strike, our power stayed on during the deluge. Glad it did, as I was working on the IRS tax return and really didn't want to re-enter all that information. I might have missed the deadline!
Monday, April 11, 2011
No Wonder He's Bald
You should meet Victor, our real estate agent. He was the result of a chance meeting in the Jardin while I was in San Diego helping with my father's last days. Michael loves to go sit in the Jardin, read his Kindle, and observe life going on around him. So when I returned to San Miguel, I met Victor, the agent he'd met.
Although we didn't have a lease for our current house, we had told our landlord that we would stay at least a year, if not longer. And although we didn't move to SMA until last July, the house was ours as of April 1st. Our Pedro worked on it during the intervening time, painting accent walls, painting the entire third floor, painting all the woodwork white instead of lime green, installing light fixtures, mirrors, et cetera. We had the broken rooftop skylight replaced, sealed the glass bricks set into the roof terrace floor when the rains came and they leaked into our office, installed light fixtures, chandeliers, sconces, new electrical switches, rheostats, added lights in the entry 'garden,' replaced the burnt-out exhaust fan and added a light to the masonry hood over the kitchen stove, and even installed a purified water system in the house.
I think I've written about the way rentals work here in Mexico, no? Light fixtures are non-existent; bare bulbs are the rule. If the previous tenants put up mirrors in the bathrooms, they took them with them when they left. Our previous tenant even took the curtain rods in our home, requiring new ones which had to be fabricated to size. We promised ourselves that we wouldn't completely strip the house when we left, but some things will be coming with us.
So a year had passed and we started looking around for new digs. We still like the house and we'd customized our household goods to the property, but there still wasn't much doggie-friendly area. True, there is a small garden area inside the front door, but it's very small and mainly supports a tree. No wonder the kids like to go to the Doggie B&B when we travel - it's out in the campo and there's a huge, fenced yard in which they are free to run to their hearts' content!
So we decided that it might be best to find a new home that had some semblance of a yard for the dogs.
And we looked at a ton of houses. Some rented out from under us while we considered them. Others changed from for-rentals to for-sales. Some were too grand; others to simple or didn't have any lawn - Why are we looking at this one? Victor searched for them; we referred additional leads to him; we looked at homes that came back on the market from last year. We went out looking with Victor regularly, becoming friends with Victor during our many house visits. We even asked on a local web forum how we might compensate him if we finally rented a home that came from our referrals and didn't have a commission attached. Those responses are another story....
At last we had narrowed the choices down to three: A stand-alone home in Los Frailes on the outskirts of town with a large back yard but little storage; a home in La Lejona on the edge of town (just down the street from our gym, as a matter of fact) with a reasonable backyard and lots of storage; and lastly a home in Guadalupe that was a reasonable, flattish walk to the Jardin at the center of town with a small garden and little storage, but a nice terrace.
After much hemming and hawing and two visits to the home, we decided to make an offer on the La Lejona house.
Curses!! Another party had just made an offer on the house which had been accepted. Then - when it was time to sign their contract - they tried to renegotiate the amount of the rent and the landlord nixed the deal! Relief!
At least we found out what the landlord's minimum acceptable amount of rent would be (they had been asking a lot at the beginning; weren't even sure why we were looking at the property). So we submitted an offer and sat around on pins and needles when we were told another party had submitted the same offer just before us. Which offer would the landlord choose? The gringos' or the nationals'?
Victor swung into action, convincing the landlord that we were the more responsible tenants. But by that time we had persuaded ourselves that the Los Frailes house was better and we called the deal for La Lejona off! [One should note that the house was new construction and not completely finished. The final work was to be done after we rented the house! We were not pleased....]
So another restless, sleepless night: Did we make the right decision; is there a way to guarantee that the work would be done (shades of our moving experience preyed on our minds); surely there's a house out there - some where - that would be right for us.
On my return from Saturday's Tianguis Organico market, we talked about an idea that I'd had to guarantee the prompt completion of the home. Thought we'd call Victor just in case they hadn't already rescheduled the other party to come in for the signing of the contract.
He had, of course, already informed the landlord's agent that we'd decided against the property, but Victor swung into action yet again, convincing the landlord and their agent that we would offer the acceptable rental amount, be ideal tenants [after all, we were gay, so we'd take the best care of the property, right?], and we'd work with them to make sure the completion work could be accomplished speedily. The landlord agreed to finish the electrical and complete the kitchen cabinetry before we moved in May 1st.
We quickly got on the internet and moved money down to our Mexican bank from our US bank, we collected the funds, and trotted off to meet with the agents and landlord. Money changed hands, agreements were struck (the landlord seems much more sincere than our mover proved to be), and the contracts will actually be signed tomorrow night. (They will provide us a contract translated into English, though the 'real' contract will be in Spanish. Victor will make sure they say the same thing.)
So we've been amusing ourselves by making scale drawings of the rooms, fitting our furniture into the rooms as best we may: there are two living rooms - one with fireplace, a dining room, kitchen, breakfast room, five bedrooms, a huge roof-top deck with laundry room/bathroom/wet-bar in addition to the backyard, front yard, and balconies running across the front and rear of the house. And there are provisions for adding two fountains, too. Not surprisingly, there's a need for some additional furniture (haven't yet told Michael this...), so the catalogs have come out, lists are being made, and a shopping trip to Texas included in the plans for driving to Kentucky in June.
Once everything is signed and sealed tomorrow night, we'll be able to breathe a sigh of relief and tell our current landlord that May will be our last month here in Colonia San Rafael. The overlap will make the move simpler for all concerned, I think. Besides, we go to Cabo during part of May, too.
Did I mention that the walk to Centro from La Lejona - though longer than that from San Rafael - is at least a predominately flat walk? (We all know there's no such thing as a truly flat walk living here in the mountains, right? Even if such a walk is frequently advertized.) Living on top of a hill in San Rafael provided great views, but walking up the hill every day encouraged the use of taxis or apoplexy.
Oh, yes - and Victor isn't really bald - he simply wears his hair cut very close to his head. But I wouldn't be surprised if there were fewer hairs after dealing with us!
Although we didn't have a lease for our current house, we had told our landlord that we would stay at least a year, if not longer. And although we didn't move to SMA until last July, the house was ours as of April 1st. Our Pedro worked on it during the intervening time, painting accent walls, painting the entire third floor, painting all the woodwork white instead of lime green, installing light fixtures, mirrors, et cetera. We had the broken rooftop skylight replaced, sealed the glass bricks set into the roof terrace floor when the rains came and they leaked into our office, installed light fixtures, chandeliers, sconces, new electrical switches, rheostats, added lights in the entry 'garden,' replaced the burnt-out exhaust fan and added a light to the masonry hood over the kitchen stove, and even installed a purified water system in the house.
I think I've written about the way rentals work here in Mexico, no? Light fixtures are non-existent; bare bulbs are the rule. If the previous tenants put up mirrors in the bathrooms, they took them with them when they left. Our previous tenant even took the curtain rods in our home, requiring new ones which had to be fabricated to size. We promised ourselves that we wouldn't completely strip the house when we left, but some things will be coming with us.
So a year had passed and we started looking around for new digs. We still like the house and we'd customized our household goods to the property, but there still wasn't much doggie-friendly area. True, there is a small garden area inside the front door, but it's very small and mainly supports a tree. No wonder the kids like to go to the Doggie B&B when we travel - it's out in the campo and there's a huge, fenced yard in which they are free to run to their hearts' content!
So we decided that it might be best to find a new home that had some semblance of a yard for the dogs.
And we looked at a ton of houses. Some rented out from under us while we considered them. Others changed from for-rentals to for-sales. Some were too grand; others to simple or didn't have any lawn - Why are we looking at this one? Victor searched for them; we referred additional leads to him; we looked at homes that came back on the market from last year. We went out looking with Victor regularly, becoming friends with Victor during our many house visits. We even asked on a local web forum how we might compensate him if we finally rented a home that came from our referrals and didn't have a commission attached. Those responses are another story....
At last we had narrowed the choices down to three: A stand-alone home in Los Frailes on the outskirts of town with a large back yard but little storage; a home in La Lejona on the edge of town (just down the street from our gym, as a matter of fact) with a reasonable backyard and lots of storage; and lastly a home in Guadalupe that was a reasonable, flattish walk to the Jardin at the center of town with a small garden and little storage, but a nice terrace.
After much hemming and hawing and two visits to the home, we decided to make an offer on the La Lejona house.
Curses!! Another party had just made an offer on the house which had been accepted. Then - when it was time to sign their contract - they tried to renegotiate the amount of the rent and the landlord nixed the deal! Relief!
At least we found out what the landlord's minimum acceptable amount of rent would be (they had been asking a lot at the beginning; weren't even sure why we were looking at the property). So we submitted an offer and sat around on pins and needles when we were told another party had submitted the same offer just before us. Which offer would the landlord choose? The gringos' or the nationals'?
Victor swung into action, convincing the landlord that we were the more responsible tenants. But by that time we had persuaded ourselves that the Los Frailes house was better and we called the deal for La Lejona off! [One should note that the house was new construction and not completely finished. The final work was to be done after we rented the house! We were not pleased....]
So another restless, sleepless night: Did we make the right decision; is there a way to guarantee that the work would be done (shades of our moving experience preyed on our minds); surely there's a house out there - some where - that would be right for us.
On my return from Saturday's Tianguis Organico market, we talked about an idea that I'd had to guarantee the prompt completion of the home. Thought we'd call Victor just in case they hadn't already rescheduled the other party to come in for the signing of the contract.
He had, of course, already informed the landlord's agent that we'd decided against the property, but Victor swung into action yet again, convincing the landlord and their agent that we would offer the acceptable rental amount, be ideal tenants [after all, we were gay, so we'd take the best care of the property, right?], and we'd work with them to make sure the completion work could be accomplished speedily. The landlord agreed to finish the electrical and complete the kitchen cabinetry before we moved in May 1st.
We quickly got on the internet and moved money down to our Mexican bank from our US bank, we collected the funds, and trotted off to meet with the agents and landlord. Money changed hands, agreements were struck (the landlord seems much more sincere than our mover proved to be), and the contracts will actually be signed tomorrow night. (They will provide us a contract translated into English, though the 'real' contract will be in Spanish. Victor will make sure they say the same thing.)
So we've been amusing ourselves by making scale drawings of the rooms, fitting our furniture into the rooms as best we may: there are two living rooms - one with fireplace, a dining room, kitchen, breakfast room, five bedrooms, a huge roof-top deck with laundry room/bathroom/wet-bar in addition to the backyard, front yard, and balconies running across the front and rear of the house. And there are provisions for adding two fountains, too. Not surprisingly, there's a need for some additional furniture (haven't yet told Michael this...), so the catalogs have come out, lists are being made, and a shopping trip to Texas included in the plans for driving to Kentucky in June.
Once everything is signed and sealed tomorrow night, we'll be able to breathe a sigh of relief and tell our current landlord that May will be our last month here in Colonia San Rafael. The overlap will make the move simpler for all concerned, I think. Besides, we go to Cabo during part of May, too.
Did I mention that the walk to Centro from La Lejona - though longer than that from San Rafael - is at least a predominately flat walk? (We all know there's no such thing as a truly flat walk living here in the mountains, right? Even if such a walk is frequently advertized.) Living on top of a hill in San Rafael provided great views, but walking up the hill every day encouraged the use of taxis or apoplexy.
Oh, yes - and Victor isn't really bald - he simply wears his hair cut very close to his head. But I wouldn't be surprised if there were fewer hairs after dealing with us!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Welcome to Sunny (?) California
We've just returned from a blitzkrieg visit to our old stomping grounds, Los Angeles. Arriving just past midnight on Friday, we had four days in which to cram everything before leaving in the early morning hours of Tuesday. And we did!
Getting there was half the fun, as they say. The bus trip to Guadalajara Airport was an adventure, of course. The bus ride is long (5 - 6 hours) and goes by way of Guanajuato, Leon, and Lagos de Moreno to the city of Guadalajara. I think we saw three movies on the trip. Luckily, we brought turkey-bacon sandwiches to supplement the apple/cookie/water provided by the bus line.
Once there we were getting into the taxi that would take us from the bus station to the airport when Michael realized that he had left his passport on the bus. A quick run back to the bus arrival spot had to be repeated when they wanted to see his ticket before letting him in (I had the tickets), then the bus had left the arrival section.
During this time I was trying to explain to the taxi driver in my fractured Spanish just why we couldn't leave yet. When Michael eventually returned to the taxi the second time, it was with an employee from the station in tow.
We had to follow the bus! A movie began playing in my head showing us following the bus back to SMA, honking to stop it all the way!
As it turned out, we only had to follow the bus to the cleaning location, a few blocks from the Estacion, and the passport was retrieved. Once we returned the employee to the main bus station, we were on our way to the airport, which was luckily closer than we had thought it to be. We made it to the airport in a timely fashion and generous tips all around.
Once we made it to Glendora (the shuttle took some doing to summon to the airport), our Friday included a few hours of sleep and visits to our favorite barber in Hollywood and the Burbank IKEA for a few necessities before heading to Pasadena for the retirement luncheon for my Director in the Superior Court's Training Division (my penultimate assignment with the court) which was the announced purpose of the whole weekend trip.
Afterwards we visited the new Target store in Azusa (no, we did not buy any toilet-tank workings) before picking up our hostess (who had kindly lent us the use of her car for the day) and driving to Silverlake for dinner at our old Friday night favorite, Casita del Campo.
Founded by one of the Jets dancers (Rudy del Campo) in the West Side Story movie in the 60s, it has been going strong ever since. It was great to see the host, Jay, again, as well as Fernando, the bartender, and Alex, our fave waiter. Probably had too much tequilla as I can remember everything except eating the meal itself.... (The drive home was a bit hazy, too - luckily I was a passenger, not the driver.)
Saturday began by lazing around the house and visiting a friend in the community in which we earlier lived until it was time to go to Costco for our eye exams in Canoga Park and then dinner at our midweek Mexican restaurant, Los Toros, in Chatsworth. (We covered a lot of ground on this trip, as you can tell, but didn't manage to see everyone.) Great margaritas! We ordered our Margaritas by name tequillas - Casa Noble and Pertida - labels which we have not yet found here in Mexico. Pity! They're awfully good....
Sunday we were off to Disneyland for dinner at the Club with our friend. We stayed at the Disney Paradise Pier hotel for the last couple of days so we had use of the room for changing before dinner - and it's a good thing we did: it rained Sunday and we needed dry clothes and the hair dryer.
We did manage to visit a few attractions that were 1) inside (Soarin' Over California, Midway Mania, and The Haunted Mansion) and 2) had fairly short wait times. The rain had begun Saturday, but we dodged most of the wetness that day. Sunday we took our umbrellas with us and slogged around the parks. There was tremendous storming during the night, including lightning around 4 am that awakened us.
For dinner, we all three chose the Chef's Choice which was a great deal like the Vintner's Dinner except with a few more courses laid on. We did this with the appropriate wine parings, of course, and Louis as our server.
Chef's Choice Menu: An Amuse Bouche; Chicken Breast au jus on a Fried Green Tomato; Lobster Newburg on Risotto with Mascarpone (I had Salmon Newburg); Watermelon Sorbet scooped into a mini-ice cream cone; Shortribs in a red-wine reduction and Broccoli Froth with Scalloped Potatoes and Baby Green Beans; a Cheese Platter of Gorgonzola and Camembert with Apricot Chutney; Dessert was a Creme Brulee, a Chocolate-mint pot de creme, a Chocolate Mousse Bombe, and Apple Brown Betty all served with creme Anglaise and whipped cream.
But Monday dawned bright and clear and we ventured into the parks before lunch at the Club without our umbrellas. Who wants to be burdened carrying umbrellas everywhere? We should have!
While visiting with our cast member friend who manages some of the food and wine locations in California Adventure it began raining again - in earnest. Michael headed back to the hotel to fetch the umbrellas while I zipped next door to see the Blue Sky preview house showing the plans for the redesigned CAdventure so as to stay dry.
I was eventually scooted out the exit door into the downpour and found the front door to the exhibit closed to re-entry, so went wandering - looking for a drier spot in which to wait for Michael's return.
Michael was delayed when he found there had been difficulties with the complimentary tickets for our friends joining us for lunch, so I decided to walk back to the hotel looking for him, but missed Michael in our travels. We eventually connected in the lobby of the Grand Californian hotel and things were back on track again.
A fun lunch - it's a buffet of salads, seafood, and desserts with a wonderful cream of potato soup that day with the entree ordered from the menu - was had by all and then back out into the park - this time a bit drier than earlier. During the afternoon, Michael went to the spa and I took a nap to recover some of the missing sleep. We were both refreshed! We had dinner at the Plaza Inn (great fried chicken) and returned to the hotel to pack and wait for the arrival of the Super Shuttle to the airport - a somewhat scary ride. Why don't they get newer vans with better suspension systems? Maybe we'll try Prime Time Shuttle on our next visit.
Once back in Guadalajara, a quick taxi trip delivered us to the Central Estacion de Autobuses on time. The timing had been questionable, but we didn't need to wait for the next bus on ETN (an additional 2-hour wait) and the long ride to San Miguel via Leon and Guanajuato began. At least we didn't stop in Lagos de Moreno, though we'd seen one of the movies previously.
We did make it home in time for dinner and to be reunited with our dogs, who seemed glad to see us (though we know they enjoy their pet B&B, too).
We enjoyed sleeping with all four dogs on the bed and with the door to the terrace open so as to enjoy the cool night air (even with a dive-bombing mosquito).
Getting there was half the fun, as they say. The bus trip to Guadalajara Airport was an adventure, of course. The bus ride is long (5 - 6 hours) and goes by way of Guanajuato, Leon, and Lagos de Moreno to the city of Guadalajara. I think we saw three movies on the trip. Luckily, we brought turkey-bacon sandwiches to supplement the apple/cookie/water provided by the bus line.
Once there we were getting into the taxi that would take us from the bus station to the airport when Michael realized that he had left his passport on the bus. A quick run back to the bus arrival spot had to be repeated when they wanted to see his ticket before letting him in (I had the tickets), then the bus had left the arrival section.
During this time I was trying to explain to the taxi driver in my fractured Spanish just why we couldn't leave yet. When Michael eventually returned to the taxi the second time, it was with an employee from the station in tow.
We had to follow the bus! A movie began playing in my head showing us following the bus back to SMA, honking to stop it all the way!
As it turned out, we only had to follow the bus to the cleaning location, a few blocks from the Estacion, and the passport was retrieved. Once we returned the employee to the main bus station, we were on our way to the airport, which was luckily closer than we had thought it to be. We made it to the airport in a timely fashion and generous tips all around.
Once we made it to Glendora (the shuttle took some doing to summon to the airport), our Friday included a few hours of sleep and visits to our favorite barber in Hollywood and the Burbank IKEA for a few necessities before heading to Pasadena for the retirement luncheon for my Director in the Superior Court's Training Division (my penultimate assignment with the court) which was the announced purpose of the whole weekend trip.
Afterwards we visited the new Target store in Azusa (no, we did not buy any toilet-tank workings) before picking up our hostess (who had kindly lent us the use of her car for the day) and driving to Silverlake for dinner at our old Friday night favorite, Casita del Campo.
Founded by one of the Jets dancers (Rudy del Campo) in the West Side Story movie in the 60s, it has been going strong ever since. It was great to see the host, Jay, again, as well as Fernando, the bartender, and Alex, our fave waiter. Probably had too much tequilla as I can remember everything except eating the meal itself.... (The drive home was a bit hazy, too - luckily I was a passenger, not the driver.)
Saturday began by lazing around the house and visiting a friend in the community in which we earlier lived until it was time to go to Costco for our eye exams in Canoga Park and then dinner at our midweek Mexican restaurant, Los Toros, in Chatsworth. (We covered a lot of ground on this trip, as you can tell, but didn't manage to see everyone.) Great margaritas! We ordered our Margaritas by name tequillas - Casa Noble and Pertida - labels which we have not yet found here in Mexico. Pity! They're awfully good....
Sunday we were off to Disneyland for dinner at the Club with our friend. We stayed at the Disney Paradise Pier hotel for the last couple of days so we had use of the room for changing before dinner - and it's a good thing we did: it rained Sunday and we needed dry clothes and the hair dryer.
We did manage to visit a few attractions that were 1) inside (Soarin' Over California, Midway Mania, and The Haunted Mansion) and 2) had fairly short wait times. The rain had begun Saturday, but we dodged most of the wetness that day. Sunday we took our umbrellas with us and slogged around the parks. There was tremendous storming during the night, including lightning around 4 am that awakened us.
For dinner, we all three chose the Chef's Choice which was a great deal like the Vintner's Dinner except with a few more courses laid on. We did this with the appropriate wine parings, of course, and Louis as our server.
Chef's Choice Menu: An Amuse Bouche; Chicken Breast au jus on a Fried Green Tomato; Lobster Newburg on Risotto with Mascarpone (I had Salmon Newburg); Watermelon Sorbet scooped into a mini-ice cream cone; Shortribs in a red-wine reduction and Broccoli Froth with Scalloped Potatoes and Baby Green Beans; a Cheese Platter of Gorgonzola and Camembert with Apricot Chutney; Dessert was a Creme Brulee, a Chocolate-mint pot de creme, a Chocolate Mousse Bombe, and Apple Brown Betty all served with creme Anglaise and whipped cream.
But Monday dawned bright and clear and we ventured into the parks before lunch at the Club without our umbrellas. Who wants to be burdened carrying umbrellas everywhere? We should have!
While visiting with our cast member friend who manages some of the food and wine locations in California Adventure it began raining again - in earnest. Michael headed back to the hotel to fetch the umbrellas while I zipped next door to see the Blue Sky preview house showing the plans for the redesigned CAdventure so as to stay dry.
I was eventually scooted out the exit door into the downpour and found the front door to the exhibit closed to re-entry, so went wandering - looking for a drier spot in which to wait for Michael's return.
Michael was delayed when he found there had been difficulties with the complimentary tickets for our friends joining us for lunch, so I decided to walk back to the hotel looking for him, but missed Michael in our travels. We eventually connected in the lobby of the Grand Californian hotel and things were back on track again.
A fun lunch - it's a buffet of salads, seafood, and desserts with a wonderful cream of potato soup that day with the entree ordered from the menu - was had by all and then back out into the park - this time a bit drier than earlier. During the afternoon, Michael went to the spa and I took a nap to recover some of the missing sleep. We were both refreshed! We had dinner at the Plaza Inn (great fried chicken) and returned to the hotel to pack and wait for the arrival of the Super Shuttle to the airport - a somewhat scary ride. Why don't they get newer vans with better suspension systems? Maybe we'll try Prime Time Shuttle on our next visit.
Once back in Guadalajara, a quick taxi trip delivered us to the Central Estacion de Autobuses on time. The timing had been questionable, but we didn't need to wait for the next bus on ETN (an additional 2-hour wait) and the long ride to San Miguel via Leon and Guanajuato began. At least we didn't stop in Lagos de Moreno, though we'd seen one of the movies previously.
We did make it home in time for dinner and to be reunited with our dogs, who seemed glad to see us (though we know they enjoy their pet B&B, too).
We enjoyed sleeping with all four dogs on the bed and with the door to the terrace open so as to enjoy the cool night air (even with a dive-bombing mosquito).
Friday, March 11, 2011
Taking Aim at a Target
Mexico takes some getting used to. Yes, I know it's a foreign country, even if it is just next door to the US. As Michael asks me when I'm complaining about something not working the way I think it should: "And what country do we live in?"
Take grocery shopping. Our kitchen is smallish so we can't always stock up on items - there's only so much storage available. And we know that shopping in Mexico is like shopping at Costco: If you see something you like, buy it now; it may be gone if you wait until your next shopping trip.
So this week I plan out a week's menus and make a grocery list for the items we need. Many bell peppers are required - mostly the red ones (more expensive than the usual green color). We drive to Mega on a Wednesday - Sale Day for fruits and vegetables. Right inside the door we walk into the produce section only to find that they have lots of bell peppers in three colors: red, orange, and green. And the red peppers are the least expensive. Bingo!
Later we walk through the canned goods aisles looking for the cans of tomatoes that are needed for the recipes. Four of the five recipes called for canned tomatoes in some incarnation: diced, diced with onions & garlic, stewed, whole, et cetera.
The aisle with the canned tomatoes has only tomato sauces and purees. You've never seen so many cans and boxes of sauces and purees. If nothing else, the grocery staff know how to fill empty shelves with what's available so that it looks plentious.
Luckily, we did have a couple of cans of diced tomatoes with garlic/onions at home so we were able to make the lentil soup, but scratch the rest of the week's menus. No curry, no chicken saute, no salsa, no Scandinavian veggie stew, no Cuban beans. Time to freeze all the chicken, I guess.
I guess that's what restaurants are for, eh?
Another thing that took some getting used to was the toilets down here. No, this isn't rural Italy in the 60s, when some hotels still had bathrooms with a hole in the floor and a roll of what passed as tissue. We have 'real' bathrooms with running water and everything. We even installed whole-house purified water so we could brush our teeth in any bathroom without worrying about catching a dreaded disease.
We live in a working class neighborhood (a colonia) but it's not in the historic center of town, so we don't have a small wastebasket next to each toilet to receive the used toilet tissue. Our drains are large enough to flush all that away.
It's the flushing that gets me. For some reason, Mexican toilets only flush when you hold the handle down. Now this seems obvious, but in the states you depress the handle and release it - walk away - the toilet follows through. Here, you depress the handle and must hold it until the toilet does its job. If you release it too soon, it stops flushing.
This took some getting used to, but it eventually became second nature. However, six months later when I was in San Diego for a while, the depress/release took me by surprise each time for the first few days. I suppose it's not the toilet itself, it's the flushing mechanism inside the tank that determines how it works, but that part of the design is missing here. Perhaps we'll buy some replacements for the innards and bring them back with us on our next visit. It will give Pedro something to do around the house.
I'm not even going to consider installing the pressurized tank toilets that our Home Depot carries. Just not sure we have the water pressure to fill them. We use tinacos and gravity for our water pressure here.
Of course, we could buy those toilet tank replacement kits at our nearby Target, if only we had one. One of my most keenly felt losses was Target. In the San Fernando Valley we lived surrounded by at least five Target stores. If one store was out of something you could find it nearby. Sunday mornings' routine involved drinking the morning cup of coffee while perusing the newest Target ad on the computer to see what the latest thing I didn't know I needed was. And while Costco, Sams Club, Sears, Home Depot, WalMart and other stores have made the transition across the border, Target remains firmly NOB. I'm hoping I live to see a Target store within 30 - 40 miles of SMA; then I could die happy.
Take grocery shopping. Our kitchen is smallish so we can't always stock up on items - there's only so much storage available. And we know that shopping in Mexico is like shopping at Costco: If you see something you like, buy it now; it may be gone if you wait until your next shopping trip.
So this week I plan out a week's menus and make a grocery list for the items we need. Many bell peppers are required - mostly the red ones (more expensive than the usual green color). We drive to Mega on a Wednesday - Sale Day for fruits and vegetables. Right inside the door we walk into the produce section only to find that they have lots of bell peppers in three colors: red, orange, and green. And the red peppers are the least expensive. Bingo!
Later we walk through the canned goods aisles looking for the cans of tomatoes that are needed for the recipes. Four of the five recipes called for canned tomatoes in some incarnation: diced, diced with onions & garlic, stewed, whole, et cetera.
The aisle with the canned tomatoes has only tomato sauces and purees. You've never seen so many cans and boxes of sauces and purees. If nothing else, the grocery staff know how to fill empty shelves with what's available so that it looks plentious.
Luckily, we did have a couple of cans of diced tomatoes with garlic/onions at home so we were able to make the lentil soup, but scratch the rest of the week's menus. No curry, no chicken saute, no salsa, no Scandinavian veggie stew, no Cuban beans. Time to freeze all the chicken, I guess.
I guess that's what restaurants are for, eh?
Another thing that took some getting used to was the toilets down here. No, this isn't rural Italy in the 60s, when some hotels still had bathrooms with a hole in the floor and a roll of what passed as tissue. We have 'real' bathrooms with running water and everything. We even installed whole-house purified water so we could brush our teeth in any bathroom without worrying about catching a dreaded disease.
We live in a working class neighborhood (a colonia) but it's not in the historic center of town, so we don't have a small wastebasket next to each toilet to receive the used toilet tissue. Our drains are large enough to flush all that away.
It's the flushing that gets me. For some reason, Mexican toilets only flush when you hold the handle down. Now this seems obvious, but in the states you depress the handle and release it - walk away - the toilet follows through. Here, you depress the handle and must hold it until the toilet does its job. If you release it too soon, it stops flushing.
This took some getting used to, but it eventually became second nature. However, six months later when I was in San Diego for a while, the depress/release took me by surprise each time for the first few days. I suppose it's not the toilet itself, it's the flushing mechanism inside the tank that determines how it works, but that part of the design is missing here. Perhaps we'll buy some replacements for the innards and bring them back with us on our next visit. It will give Pedro something to do around the house.
I'm not even going to consider installing the pressurized tank toilets that our Home Depot carries. Just not sure we have the water pressure to fill them. We use tinacos and gravity for our water pressure here.
Of course, we could buy those toilet tank replacement kits at our nearby Target, if only we had one. One of my most keenly felt losses was Target. In the San Fernando Valley we lived surrounded by at least five Target stores. If one store was out of something you could find it nearby. Sunday mornings' routine involved drinking the morning cup of coffee while perusing the newest Target ad on the computer to see what the latest thing I didn't know I needed was. And while Costco, Sams Club, Sears, Home Depot, WalMart and other stores have made the transition across the border, Target remains firmly NOB. I'm hoping I live to see a Target store within 30 - 40 miles of SMA; then I could die happy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)