Yes, it looks (and feels) like winter may be here!
We had a dry week with warm-to-hot sunshine, but it was followed by overcast skies and one heck of a storm that rained overnight and continued as drizzle the following day. Once our homes cool down, they stay that way unless it's sunny for several days running. Yesterday was warm, again, but today is cool and overcast - at least to begin.
So we decided to zip off to Don Pedro (a local chain of hardware stores in town) to see what they had in heaters. Two years ago we were in a different house that had a fireplace downstairs in which we placed a set of gas logs. No fireplace in the current house (at least yet!), so last year we got a propane freestanding heater that required an electrical connection (read extension cord) to ignite the burners and run the fan.
This year we picked up a slim heater that has the option of electrical heat with fan, but otherwise doesn't require any electrical connection. Michael just drove off to Don Pedro's again to get a second one for upstairs. At last we'll be warm again. We do have a heated mattress pad (which I seldom turn to more than LO, but one's shoulders get cold. The space heater will fix that! Bring on the weather, we dare you! [It's spitting a bit, even now. And it's spitting again this evening. The weather keeps us guessing....]
Michael just set up the second heater on the second floor. Can't tell you how spiffy it looks, just sitting there -- no electrical cords, no propane tank sitting alongside (they are inside the cabinet on these heaters). It's the little things that mean so much!
Guess we'll be selling the original heater since we don't need three. If we used the maid's room for its intended purpose instead of as a bodega, perhaps we'd keep it, but we don't! These new ones are just too cool!
The non-use of electricity is a good thing. Utilities here in Mexico are quite reasonable, but one gets used to that and large bills - even if smaller than those back NOB - can still cause you to catch your breath. Water and propane are okay; it's the CFE bill (electricity) that can be a bit daunting.
Water is billed monthly and a dry month runs between $140 - $200 pesos (@ $12.50mp/dollar). We refill our propane tank whenever it's empty - about $500 pesos per month. But the electricity is billed semi-monthly and has been running about $2000 pesos/bill. Electricity is subsidized here, but as your usage goes up, the subsidy falls. At this level, we're paying the full rate. And the latest billed month included a week when we were in Puerto Vallarta and we turned everything off while we were gone! We even sent the dogs out to the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm, so no one was here during that week to run up the electricity and/or water. Still didn't get the billing below $2000! Now, $2000 pesos = about $160 US, or $80 per month, so I suppose one shouldn't complain, but seeing four digits on the bill tucked beneath our door can be a shock.
This weekend is also Mexico's version of Black Friday. Since the country doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving (duh!), it's just the third weekend in November. We did go shopping the sale at our local Office Depot and picked up a larger TV for the bedroom and a 'wireless' Blu-Ray player. 'Wireless' is in quotes, because it requires a dongle - which no one has! Even the maker of the player (Philips) is back-ordered. Grrrr. Guess we'll have to wait to watch our Netflix and Vudu films in the living room until we can find one!
We were also looking at a two-drawer lateral file for the office so we could dispose of some file boxes of 'stuff' but the only one they had in stock had a few dings. Why pay full price for damaged goods? Perhaps the Celaya store has one in a box... It's only a half-an-hour away; nothing we'd think about if we were still in L.A. It's only here where we must drive through the countryside to reach Celaya where we think it's so far away! Spoiled!
And we decided not to drive to Celaya, but went back to our own Office Depot today and picked up a slightly different model. A major job putting it together (all that practice with IKEA paid off), but it looks quite nice, nearly matches the finish on our book cases, and should hold a whole bunch of 'stuff.' Tomorrow's task will be sorting out the 'stuff' and moving it into the new lateral filing system in some organized way.
Let's see -- what else? Oh, yes - remember when we went to Nuevo Laredo in October to have our van nationalized? Well, we're still working on it. It was nationalized while we were there, but the local registration process is taking a lot longer. They changed the process after we'd filed our paperwork, so it's really a bit complicated. It would go faster if our facilitator had waited a bit longer and simply filed online - but who knew until the new process was in place!
Thought we would pick up the plates last Wednesday when we took the van in to be inspected (mostly checking the VIN number), but we'll be going back next Wednesday morning - hopefully for the plates this time....
Then we'll immediately need to get an emission check - as well as the every-six-months check based on the plate number. There is a testing place very near the registration office that we've used before. We can stop on our way home! [Hmm - isn't there a McDonald's in the mall across the road from the inspection station ....?]
We're really hoping that we do get the plates this time because Michael is driving to Guadalajara that weekend for our friend Victor's family 'do' and we'll need to get a permit to take the van outside our state if the plates are not here (at $21 mp/day). That should be it, I think, until we figure out the renewal process. Maybe that will be done on line by the time we need to do it?
Saturday, November 16, 2013
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Nationalizing our Minivan
We started this process by deciding to nationalize our car this year (a year in advance) just to have it already done when we must have it nationalized next August. Because we thought that we were going to be in the 'must' situation this year, we had a bit of money set aside and figured that we'd just spend it on other things if we didn't go through with the process now.
We surveyed several people who would facilitate this process for us before settling on one person here in town whom we had used for a variety of projects since deciding to move to San Miguel. We gathered a whole bunch of documents deemed necessary (vehicle title from South Dakota; this year's registration from SD with license plate number; a picture of the van's VIN number; two photos of the entire outside of the car; our passports with copies; our Residente Temporal visas (with copies of both sides); a utility bill and copy which showed our names and address - and since we rent the house and thus the utlilities are in the landlord's name, the lease with a copy and a copy of the front and back of his IFE card (sort of a voter's ID card); and a copy of our Mexican Driver's Licenses.
Since we didn't yet have Mexican Driver's licenses - we had kept our California licenses current - we had to go through that process which required much of the same documentation plus a letter from the Presidencia (City Hall) attesting that we lived in San Miguel at our address. This letter included a photo - which meant we had to go get new photos taken with specific requirements: no jewelry or earrings (not a problem!), hair off the forehead (not a problem...), no facial hair (goodbye beard), no smiling. Once we had assembled everything we needed and turned it in at the Presidencia, it only took a day to pick up the finished letter but then we had to go to the Transito office which issued the driver's licenses with our physical report and blood/eye test results. Luckily we had retained our expired California licenses to turn in so we didn't have to take the driver's test in Spanish! (I suppose this shouldn't be a shock to anyone.) We paid for the 5-year license so we won't have to go through this process again very soon.
There was also the question of in whose name the car would be registered. While our car is currently register to us both, in Mexico the usual procedure is to register it in no more than one name. Guess they don't believe in the 'X or Y' option, as they would consider it always registered to us both and even if something happened to one of us, they would require proof of his death, et cetera. With only one name on the papers, even if the named party died, it would only require a forged signature and ID to release the car to the other one of us.
Getting a copy of our landlord's IFE card was also a bit of a bother requiring us to engage the services of a friend to communicate the need for a copy with a landlord who speaks only Spanish and lives in another town! But it happened.
After scanning and forwarding all our documents to our local facilitator (who, in turn, forwarded them to the nationalization broker), we were advised to take everything with us to the border. Of course, all the broker was interested in was the original of the title - could care less about any of the other documents we had brought with us. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
So Monday we woke up at 3:30 a.m. and left the house after making sure there was food for the dogs in the fridge (said friend looking after them), sandwiches for our trip were made, and an updated GPS map was downloaded, directions printed out, a list of tolls prepared, and we couldn't think of anything else to do. Drove to the Texas border towns of Laredo, Texas and Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. Crossed the border that afternoon (after the #$%^!@ Border Protection Officers ran us through inspections, X-rays, et cetera) and headed to the malls for shopping! Got most of the things on our wish list and headed back downtown to the hotel.
La Posada is a great hotel - older but well-kept up with two restaurants that are both among the top 50 in Texas, nicely furnished rooms, comfy beds, a nice pool with lounges for our Tuesday of waiting around, and on the Rio Bravo (that's the Rio Grande to those of you NOB) between the two bridges we would be using for our trips back and forth to Mexico for the nationalization.
So Tuesday morning we took the car back over to Nuevo Laredo via Bridge II, dropped it with the broker who would handle the process, and walked back across via Bridge I. Spent the day lounging by the aforementioned pool, listening to soft music and sipping aqua frescas. Then the broker called to say the car was ready and we walked back across Bridge I and waited in a small park for the car to arrive. Once we had it back (with a sticker 'MX' on the windshield and a pedimento in hand), we drove it back across Bridge I (more incredulity from the Border Patrol Agents as we tried to explain - without too much detail - why we lived in Mexico, came to Texas, took the car back to Mexico for the day, returned to Texas, and were leaving for Mexico the next day!). Of course, I wanted to blather on about the process (there were also questions of why we were from California and had plates from South Dakota without ever living there), but Michael cut me off: the less information, the fewer questions asked. Probably a good idea; I was set to educate the agent...who was kinda cute in his own way.
So on Wednesday we went to the restaurant for the breakfast buffet at 6:00 am (here the hotel started to let us down) that wasn't ready until 6:20; the hostess from whom we had ordered sandwiches for our return trip who told us she would arrive at 6:00 didn't show up until 6:30 - and there weren't any sandwiches to be had (a message she delegated to our server, although she was standing 20 feet from us) - and the bell man showed up at our room to take our luggage and presents to the valeted car without a cart.... They were doing so well up until then!
So, another long drive home to San Miguel with stops for gas and questionable, pre-packaged sandwiches. It was a long drive (Michael assured me that it was simply the first drive in reverse) with a huge traffic mess in Monterrey, a couple of missteps on our part (we were depending on the GPS as I hadn't printed out the reverse directions), and a tremendous, two-semi accident along the way.
But we made it home. We were to receive a factura (an invoice) in addition to the pedimento and window sticker, but it wasn't ready when the car was. We're still waiting for it to be emailed to us as we cannot begin the registration process without it. I did check the pedimento in Aduana's (Custom's) online database and it seems to be 'real' which is a good thing. (There were some pedimentos issued in another part of Mexico that were phonies and our first facilitator was duped by the broker he was using and we lost half our funds.)
So we sit and wait for the final bit of paperwork to arrive, then go off to the local office to register our pedimento and order actual Mexican license plates! We're almost there with a minimum of trouble. Nothing in Mexico is completely simple....
We surveyed several people who would facilitate this process for us before settling on one person here in town whom we had used for a variety of projects since deciding to move to San Miguel. We gathered a whole bunch of documents deemed necessary (vehicle title from South Dakota; this year's registration from SD with license plate number; a picture of the van's VIN number; two photos of the entire outside of the car; our passports with copies; our Residente Temporal visas (with copies of both sides); a utility bill and copy which showed our names and address - and since we rent the house and thus the utlilities are in the landlord's name, the lease with a copy and a copy of the front and back of his IFE card (sort of a voter's ID card); and a copy of our Mexican Driver's Licenses.
Since we didn't yet have Mexican Driver's licenses - we had kept our California licenses current - we had to go through that process which required much of the same documentation plus a letter from the Presidencia (City Hall) attesting that we lived in San Miguel at our address. This letter included a photo - which meant we had to go get new photos taken with specific requirements: no jewelry or earrings (not a problem!), hair off the forehead (not a problem...), no facial hair (goodbye beard), no smiling. Once we had assembled everything we needed and turned it in at the Presidencia, it only took a day to pick up the finished letter but then we had to go to the Transito office which issued the driver's licenses with our physical report and blood/eye test results. Luckily we had retained our expired California licenses to turn in so we didn't have to take the driver's test in Spanish! (I suppose this shouldn't be a shock to anyone.) We paid for the 5-year license so we won't have to go through this process again very soon.
There was also the question of in whose name the car would be registered. While our car is currently register to us both, in Mexico the usual procedure is to register it in no more than one name. Guess they don't believe in the 'X or Y' option, as they would consider it always registered to us both and even if something happened to one of us, they would require proof of his death, et cetera. With only one name on the papers, even if the named party died, it would only require a forged signature and ID to release the car to the other one of us.
Getting a copy of our landlord's IFE card was also a bit of a bother requiring us to engage the services of a friend to communicate the need for a copy with a landlord who speaks only Spanish and lives in another town! But it happened.
After scanning and forwarding all our documents to our local facilitator (who, in turn, forwarded them to the nationalization broker), we were advised to take everything with us to the border. Of course, all the broker was interested in was the original of the title - could care less about any of the other documents we had brought with us. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
So Monday we woke up at 3:30 a.m. and left the house after making sure there was food for the dogs in the fridge (said friend looking after them), sandwiches for our trip were made, and an updated GPS map was downloaded, directions printed out, a list of tolls prepared, and we couldn't think of anything else to do. Drove to the Texas border towns of Laredo, Texas and Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. Crossed the border that afternoon (after the #$%^!@ Border Protection Officers ran us through inspections, X-rays, et cetera) and headed to the malls for shopping! Got most of the things on our wish list and headed back downtown to the hotel.
La Posada is a great hotel - older but well-kept up with two restaurants that are both among the top 50 in Texas, nicely furnished rooms, comfy beds, a nice pool with lounges for our Tuesday of waiting around, and on the Rio Bravo (that's the Rio Grande to those of you NOB) between the two bridges we would be using for our trips back and forth to Mexico for the nationalization.
So Tuesday morning we took the car back over to Nuevo Laredo via Bridge II, dropped it with the broker who would handle the process, and walked back across via Bridge I. Spent the day lounging by the aforementioned pool, listening to soft music and sipping aqua frescas. Then the broker called to say the car was ready and we walked back across Bridge I and waited in a small park for the car to arrive. Once we had it back (with a sticker 'MX' on the windshield and a pedimento in hand), we drove it back across Bridge I (more incredulity from the Border Patrol Agents as we tried to explain - without too much detail - why we lived in Mexico, came to Texas, took the car back to Mexico for the day, returned to Texas, and were leaving for Mexico the next day!). Of course, I wanted to blather on about the process (there were also questions of why we were from California and had plates from South Dakota without ever living there), but Michael cut me off: the less information, the fewer questions asked. Probably a good idea; I was set to educate the agent...who was kinda cute in his own way.
So on Wednesday we went to the restaurant for the breakfast buffet at 6:00 am (here the hotel started to let us down) that wasn't ready until 6:20; the hostess from whom we had ordered sandwiches for our return trip who told us she would arrive at 6:00 didn't show up until 6:30 - and there weren't any sandwiches to be had (a message she delegated to our server, although she was standing 20 feet from us) - and the bell man showed up at our room to take our luggage and presents to the valeted car without a cart.... They were doing so well up until then!
So, another long drive home to San Miguel with stops for gas and questionable, pre-packaged sandwiches. It was a long drive (Michael assured me that it was simply the first drive in reverse) with a huge traffic mess in Monterrey, a couple of missteps on our part (we were depending on the GPS as I hadn't printed out the reverse directions), and a tremendous, two-semi accident along the way.
But we made it home. We were to receive a factura (an invoice) in addition to the pedimento and window sticker, but it wasn't ready when the car was. We're still waiting for it to be emailed to us as we cannot begin the registration process without it. I did check the pedimento in Aduana's (Custom's) online database and it seems to be 'real' which is a good thing. (There were some pedimentos issued in another part of Mexico that were phonies and our first facilitator was duped by the broker he was using and we lost half our funds.)
So we sit and wait for the final bit of paperwork to arrive, then go off to the local office to register our pedimento and order actual Mexican license plates! We're almost there with a minimum of trouble. Nothing in Mexico is completely simple....
Monday, September 30, 2013
Puerto Vallarta
So for those who didn't follow Michael's daily postings on FaceBook, here's a recap of our trip to P.V.
We broke the drive down into two days each way with a stop in Guadalajara each way. Our friend's mother (who lives there) had been in San Miguel for a spell, so we were also taking her back and a cat - who meowed constantly for the first hour of the trip before subsiding into occasional vocalizations.
The first night of vacation we spent at Mom's condo in Guadalajara. For dinner we opted for the new mall (anchored by a Liverpool) and dinner at Casa Italianito. Pretty darn good Italian food and a free pizza appetizer to the waiting groups! (I could have made a dinner at the check-in desk....)
The next morning after breakfast we were off to P.V. There are two ways to PV: through the mountains on a good highway (a toll road) or skipping the mountains (and curves) on a lesser road (a local or 'free' road). We chose the mountain highway that passed by Tequila in the distance. Lovely landscape views from the cuota (toll road). You - well, I - wanted to just get off the road (can't be done) and stay there.
After a tedious passage down out of the mountains (road works on-and-off every few kilometers) to the beach, we arrived in Puerto Vallarta and found our way to the condo Michael had reserved for us.
The condo was lovely: recently bought and redecorated for our landlord's parents-in-law (who had yet to stay there), it had been enlarged a bit and updated. The balcony had been made a part of the living area, new fittings and furnishings, et cetera. We really quite enjoyed ourselves there.
Although there were some disappointments (the restaurant for the last night in town was closed for two weeks; our favorite beach restaurant - where we planned on hanging out during beach days - was closed; our last night in town garnered a tremendous storm) we had a great time. The beach was only a three-block walk from the condo - what could be wrong?
It rained nearly every day, but the rain was usually early in the morning or during the night, so nothing stopped us from being beach bums every day. I'm sure we supported the restaurants that featured beach service quite well during our time there! "Joven, tres margaritas más, por favor!"
After four days of sunning, eating, and drinking, we gathered ourselves up and made our way northward, stopping in Guadalajara again. On the way to Guadalajara, another big storm hit us, making driving a bit of a chore through the mountains. We had slowed for an off-the-road accident with an ambulance in attendance when a dark Altima whipped past us and rounded the next curve at speed. As we picked up speed and rounded the next curve, there was the Altima - upside down and spread across most of the lanes of the highway. Even in the hard rain, we managed to miss the other car that had stopped to assist - right in front of the wreck, limiting the space for us to squeeze past, once we managed to stop without hitting them. The rest of the trip was a bit drier and calmer.
After a stop at Mom's condo, the New York-style deli, New York, New York, again provided a tasty breakfast and we were headed home with a stop in Léon to drop our friend's mother off at a cousin's for a birthday celebration.
Arrived back in San Miguel in time to be inundated with horseback riders returning from some of the weekend festivities downtown - and an evening storm that had some of the most powerful lightning and thunder that we'd yet experienced. The thunder set off car alarms and rattled windows throughout town.
But now we're back and it's almost like we never left. Puerto Vallarta is just a memory - and a dream as we plan our next escape to the beach! (Maybe Spring?) We get the dogs back on Tuesday from their vacation at the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm (Maria's Pet B&B). Hope they escaped the force of the storm which we found threatening, ourselves - they don't do well with thunder and lightning....
We broke the drive down into two days each way with a stop in Guadalajara each way. Our friend's mother (who lives there) had been in San Miguel for a spell, so we were also taking her back and a cat - who meowed constantly for the first hour of the trip before subsiding into occasional vocalizations.
The first night of vacation we spent at Mom's condo in Guadalajara. For dinner we opted for the new mall (anchored by a Liverpool) and dinner at Casa Italianito. Pretty darn good Italian food and a free pizza appetizer to the waiting groups! (I could have made a dinner at the check-in desk....)
The next morning after breakfast we were off to P.V. There are two ways to PV: through the mountains on a good highway (a toll road) or skipping the mountains (and curves) on a lesser road (a local or 'free' road). We chose the mountain highway that passed by Tequila in the distance. Lovely landscape views from the cuota (toll road). You - well, I - wanted to just get off the road (can't be done) and stay there.
After a tedious passage down out of the mountains (road works on-and-off every few kilometers) to the beach, we arrived in Puerto Vallarta and found our way to the condo Michael had reserved for us.
The condo was lovely: recently bought and redecorated for our landlord's parents-in-law (who had yet to stay there), it had been enlarged a bit and updated. The balcony had been made a part of the living area, new fittings and furnishings, et cetera. We really quite enjoyed ourselves there.
Although there were some disappointments (the restaurant for the last night in town was closed for two weeks; our favorite beach restaurant - where we planned on hanging out during beach days - was closed; our last night in town garnered a tremendous storm) we had a great time. The beach was only a three-block walk from the condo - what could be wrong?
It rained nearly every day, but the rain was usually early in the morning or during the night, so nothing stopped us from being beach bums every day. I'm sure we supported the restaurants that featured beach service quite well during our time there! "Joven, tres margaritas más, por favor!"
After four days of sunning, eating, and drinking, we gathered ourselves up and made our way northward, stopping in Guadalajara again. On the way to Guadalajara, another big storm hit us, making driving a bit of a chore through the mountains. We had slowed for an off-the-road accident with an ambulance in attendance when a dark Altima whipped past us and rounded the next curve at speed. As we picked up speed and rounded the next curve, there was the Altima - upside down and spread across most of the lanes of the highway. Even in the hard rain, we managed to miss the other car that had stopped to assist - right in front of the wreck, limiting the space for us to squeeze past, once we managed to stop without hitting them. The rest of the trip was a bit drier and calmer.
After a stop at Mom's condo, the New York-style deli, New York, New York, again provided a tasty breakfast and we were headed home with a stop in Léon to drop our friend's mother off at a cousin's for a birthday celebration.
Arrived back in San Miguel in time to be inundated with horseback riders returning from some of the weekend festivities downtown - and an evening storm that had some of the most powerful lightning and thunder that we'd yet experienced. The thunder set off car alarms and rattled windows throughout town.
But now we're back and it's almost like we never left. Puerto Vallarta is just a memory - and a dream as we plan our next escape to the beach! (Maybe Spring?) We get the dogs back on Tuesday from their vacation at the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm (Maria's Pet B&B). Hope they escaped the force of the storm which we found threatening, ourselves - they don't do well with thunder and lightning....
Friday, September 20, 2013
Nationalization II
We now have a place to stay in Laredo while our car is being nationalized in Nuevo Laredo! Rather than stay at our stand-by La Quinta Inn, we chose La Posada, just a few blocks north of the border. Our facilitator wanted a 2-day window for the paperwork, but I told her that we were only going to book 2 nights at the hotel, total. If something went slowly, we'd add a night. Booking the 3rd night in advance would require us to cancel the entire stay a couple of days in advance to avoid a penalty (we'd be paying for that 3rd night whether we stayed there or not!).
We even suggested that since check-out wasn't until noon, if things ran long, we could stay another half day. But that would mean we'd be driving back to San Miguel in the dark. Driving in Mexico in the dark isn't recommended!
On our initial drive to San Miguel, we stayed in a dump in Zacateros. We were so anxious to get out of there that we loaded up the van and began our trip early in the morning - before the sun came up. Won't do that again! There is no additional lighting on the roads and it was the first time we had driven that route. Scary!
The only other hitch in the get-along is the paperwork that's required. Aside from the question of whether they can list both of us as owners of the van (so common in the U.S.; not in Mexico), there is a question about how we document our address in San Miguel. For our Mexican driver's licenses we had the same situation: present a utility bill (only an owner can change the utilities to another name and must show that they now own the house) with our address on it and present a copy of the landlords IFE card (a government ID - proving voting rights, I think it is). For the driver's licenses, there was an alternative: a letter from the Mayor's office that we were who we said we were (requiring a birth certificate, passport, visa, the utility bill, etc). The Transito office kept the original of the letter, so if they decide to accept on for the car, we'd need a couple of days to procure another. But it's still simpler than telling our landlord he needs to let us copy his IFE card - as he speaks only Spanish and we speak English. Guess we'll have the answer to that once we get home from P.V. - where it's hot, steamy, and rainy for the next week! Did I mention that we're heading to P.V. for a week tomorrow?
Til then....
We even suggested that since check-out wasn't until noon, if things ran long, we could stay another half day. But that would mean we'd be driving back to San Miguel in the dark. Driving in Mexico in the dark isn't recommended!
On our initial drive to San Miguel, we stayed in a dump in Zacateros. We were so anxious to get out of there that we loaded up the van and began our trip early in the morning - before the sun came up. Won't do that again! There is no additional lighting on the roads and it was the first time we had driven that route. Scary!
The only other hitch in the get-along is the paperwork that's required. Aside from the question of whether they can list both of us as owners of the van (so common in the U.S.; not in Mexico), there is a question about how we document our address in San Miguel. For our Mexican driver's licenses we had the same situation: present a utility bill (only an owner can change the utilities to another name and must show that they now own the house) with our address on it and present a copy of the landlords IFE card (a government ID - proving voting rights, I think it is). For the driver's licenses, there was an alternative: a letter from the Mayor's office that we were who we said we were (requiring a birth certificate, passport, visa, the utility bill, etc). The Transito office kept the original of the letter, so if they decide to accept on for the car, we'd need a couple of days to procure another. But it's still simpler than telling our landlord he needs to let us copy his IFE card - as he speaks only Spanish and we speak English. Guess we'll have the answer to that once we get home from P.V. - where it's hot, steamy, and rainy for the next week! Did I mention that we're heading to P.V. for a week tomorrow?
Til then....
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Nationalization
No, not us; our minivan! Although we won't become a Residente Permanente until next fall, the folks who made the transition this year are scrambling and the feeling is catching. Under the new types of immigration status, Permanent residents aren't allowed to drive their US-plated cars under the terms of the TIP we all used to bring them SOB with us.
Seems that Aduana (Customs) takes the 'T' of the TIP (Temporary Import Permit) very seriously. If you're no longer a temporary resident, you need to drive a Mexican-plated vehicle. That leaves a choice between taking your car back to the States and selling it (there are repercussions to that, i.e., registering it in Texas, insuring it, et cetera) then buying something in Mexico, or going without a car. Costco would miss us, as we would miss them - and we're not going to travel there and back via a local bus with our arms full of supplies!
We had originally thought we'd go for the Permanente visa (I know it's not really a visa, but a different immigration status) this year, but decided - with our travel plans this year and next - that it would be simpler to remain a Temporal one last year on that level.
So we were sorta getting prepared to make the change over by nationalizing our minivan. It's old enough that it's not worth too much and while we had saved up some money for the nationalization process, the total wasn't enough to buy the type of vehicle that we would have wanted. And the van, with fold-into-the-floor seats, was just too handy - even if we no longer traveled to dog shows with all the paraphernalia involved.
We had managed to save up enough pesos to afford to nationalize the minivan using a facilitator who promises that both we and the van could stay in San Miguel and the change of status for the vehicle would occur without making the border trip. Sounded iffy and we were trying to verify that someone actually got his local plates for his car when we tried another facilitator who used the time-honored process of a trip to the border, but it was a shortened trip - one day to the border, one day with the broker, and another day to drive back to San Miguel. Presto-bingo!
The catch came when we discovered that the fee (about the same as the first one) was due in dollars, not pesos. Didn't want to lose money re-converting our pesos back to dollars, so have done some borrowing from our savings (and will do some mumbo-jumbo to make it work, paying our rent from the actual pesos while tucking the rent funds back into savings as dollars). On paper it looks like it will work, but it's more complicated than it sounds with loans between accounts and a pay-back schedule to follow to make sure the dollars are there when we need them!
The actual trip to the border will take place in October after we return from Puerto Vallarta. Look for reports of our adventure. The paperwork is another story.... Did you know that it's not common in Mexico to have two names on a car title???
Seems that Aduana (Customs) takes the 'T' of the TIP (Temporary Import Permit) very seriously. If you're no longer a temporary resident, you need to drive a Mexican-plated vehicle. That leaves a choice between taking your car back to the States and selling it (there are repercussions to that, i.e., registering it in Texas, insuring it, et cetera) then buying something in Mexico, or going without a car. Costco would miss us, as we would miss them - and we're not going to travel there and back via a local bus with our arms full of supplies!
We had originally thought we'd go for the Permanente visa (I know it's not really a visa, but a different immigration status) this year, but decided - with our travel plans this year and next - that it would be simpler to remain a Temporal one last year on that level.
So we were sorta getting prepared to make the change over by nationalizing our minivan. It's old enough that it's not worth too much and while we had saved up some money for the nationalization process, the total wasn't enough to buy the type of vehicle that we would have wanted. And the van, with fold-into-the-floor seats, was just too handy - even if we no longer traveled to dog shows with all the paraphernalia involved.
We had managed to save up enough pesos to afford to nationalize the minivan using a facilitator who promises that both we and the van could stay in San Miguel and the change of status for the vehicle would occur without making the border trip. Sounded iffy and we were trying to verify that someone actually got his local plates for his car when we tried another facilitator who used the time-honored process of a trip to the border, but it was a shortened trip - one day to the border, one day with the broker, and another day to drive back to San Miguel. Presto-bingo!
The catch came when we discovered that the fee (about the same as the first one) was due in dollars, not pesos. Didn't want to lose money re-converting our pesos back to dollars, so have done some borrowing from our savings (and will do some mumbo-jumbo to make it work, paying our rent from the actual pesos while tucking the rent funds back into savings as dollars). On paper it looks like it will work, but it's more complicated than it sounds with loans between accounts and a pay-back schedule to follow to make sure the dollars are there when we need them!
The actual trip to the border will take place in October after we return from Puerto Vallarta. Look for reports of our adventure. The paperwork is another story.... Did you know that it's not common in Mexico to have two names on a car title???
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Independence Day 2013
We noticed, walking into centro today, an inordinate number of vehicles proceeding down the main street into the Centro Historico section of town, including a few trucks with Federales in them. Why were there Federales in town? This weekend is the celebration of Mexican Independence Day, that's why.
The town square - as viewed from our table inside Starbucks - was not yet chock-a-block with citizens and tourists, but they will come, they will come.
Our Independence Day is celebrated on September 16th, the day Father Hildlgo gave a speech in Dolores (later renamed Dolores Hildalgo) whose text has been lost to time, but it included El Grito, his charge to the populace to secede from the Spanish Colonial powers. At his side were Ignacio Allende and his brother Juan Allende (both from San Miguel - later renamed San Miguel de Allende in their honor).
The War of Independence took nearly 10 years to accomplish their goals, but the festivities will be confined to the weekend. There will be a crush of visitors to the city, aerial bombs going off, church bells ringing, fireworks, and El Grito will be re-enacted by our dear Mayor from a balcony of the Allende mansion on the corner of the square in front of the Parrochia at midnight (the mansion is a museum now).
I think we'll be at home trying to soothe the dogs - who do not appreciate all the noise!
LATER
It was a soggy Independence Day this year. Rain, rain, rain. Wasn't going to stay up that late to watch on the webcam, but suspect that festivities were wet at best.
Several states in Mexico cancelled their Independence Day festivities because of rain and flooding. We only got the dregs of Ingrid (and perhaps Manuel), but it was enough to keep us home, safe and dry!
The weather even topped off Independence Day with a windly rain storm around 6 pm tonight. Glad we had an early dinner at Hecho en Mexico and were home before it began to pelt down!
The town square - as viewed from our table inside Starbucks - was not yet chock-a-block with citizens and tourists, but they will come, they will come.
Our Independence Day is celebrated on September 16th, the day Father Hildlgo gave a speech in Dolores (later renamed Dolores Hildalgo) whose text has been lost to time, but it included El Grito, his charge to the populace to secede from the Spanish Colonial powers. At his side were Ignacio Allende and his brother Juan Allende (both from San Miguel - later renamed San Miguel de Allende in their honor).
The War of Independence took nearly 10 years to accomplish their goals, but the festivities will be confined to the weekend. There will be a crush of visitors to the city, aerial bombs going off, church bells ringing, fireworks, and El Grito will be re-enacted by our dear Mayor from a balcony of the Allende mansion on the corner of the square in front of the Parrochia at midnight (the mansion is a museum now).
I think we'll be at home trying to soothe the dogs - who do not appreciate all the noise!
LATER
It was a soggy Independence Day this year. Rain, rain, rain. Wasn't going to stay up that late to watch on the webcam, but suspect that festivities were wet at best.
Several states in Mexico cancelled their Independence Day festivities because of rain and flooding. We only got the dregs of Ingrid (and perhaps Manuel), but it was enough to keep us home, safe and dry!
The weather even topped off Independence Day with a windly rain storm around 6 pm tonight. Glad we had an early dinner at Hecho en Mexico and were home before it began to pelt down!
Driver's Licenses
In preparation for nationalizing our minivan (more on that later), we are required to have Mexican driver's licenses. So we set off on that path with the assistance of a good Mexican friend to guide and translate for us. There's nothing quite like hoping to hear a word or two you can recognize and put together what you think they are telling you.
Obtaining a Mexican driver's license is not difficult but does require some hoops to be jumped through:
The second day we first picked up our letters from the Presidencia and presented them as part of our packet for our actual license. We skipped the testing (thank Heavens - rules of the road in Spanish!?!) by turning in our California drivers licenses. (Luckily, we had held on to our old, expired licenses so we didn't have to give up our current California licenses.) We also requested 5-year licenses (the per-year cost goes down on the longer licenses and you don't have to renew them as often).
Once reviewed and approved, we went to the computer operator who entered all our information into their on-line system and took our pictures. Surprise - this time we could smile!
Then they printed out an invoice and we drove off to the office a few blocks away at which we would pay for our licenses. Upon returning with the proof of our payments we were handed our licenses which had been created while we were gone.
Yippee! We were on our way; now we could go ahead with nationalizing our vehicle. And then it became complicated....
Obtaining a Mexican driver's license is not difficult but does require some hoops to be jumped through:
- Take a computerized driving test in Spanish;
- Prove your residence with a utility bill (water, gas, telephone - not cable, et cetera - see below) in your name; [Unlike in the US, a utility won't be turned on unless you are the property owner and can prove it, so renter's pay the bills in their landlord's name.]
- Present the results of a medical test including a basic eye test, height, weight, blood pressure, any health issues, and blood type (performed separately);
- Present your current visa and passport (with copies - everything requires copies in Mexico).
- There is also a fee to be paid determined by the length of your license: 2 years, 3 years, or 5 years.
- Birth Certificate;
- Passport;
- Visa;
- Two photographs of a certain size with certain requirements (size of head in photo, no jewelry, no hair on forehead - or facial hair (there went the beard and mustache!), no eyeglasses, no smiling;
- Proof of residence (a utility bill - for this purpose one in our landlord's name was okay);
- Pay a modest fee (about $4.50) for the letter which would be ready the next day.
The second day we first picked up our letters from the Presidencia and presented them as part of our packet for our actual license. We skipped the testing (thank Heavens - rules of the road in Spanish!?!) by turning in our California drivers licenses. (Luckily, we had held on to our old, expired licenses so we didn't have to give up our current California licenses.) We also requested 5-year licenses (the per-year cost goes down on the longer licenses and you don't have to renew them as often).
Once reviewed and approved, we went to the computer operator who entered all our information into their on-line system and took our pictures. Surprise - this time we could smile!
Then they printed out an invoice and we drove off to the office a few blocks away at which we would pay for our licenses. Upon returning with the proof of our payments we were handed our licenses which had been created while we were gone.
Yippee! We were on our way; now we could go ahead with nationalizing our vehicle. And then it became complicated....
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