Tuesday, 23 January 2018: Yucatan

Brian was a bit under the weather today so we postponed our plans to go to the river and see flamingoes.  Instead, with new license plates firmly affixed to our car, Kim and I headed to Merida.  When we were in town over the weekend, Kim found some pottery that we both liked.  The vendor told Kim the mugs were 100 pesos.  Unfortunately we had no room in the car but both Kim and I marked our calendar to come back later in the week.  Today was the day!  When we got to Casa Azul we learned that the mugs were 650 pesos each!  We were so disappointed. Aargh!  Kim did find three ceramic iguanas and we had a great lunch before heading to Sam's (Justin and I are now members) and then to the grocery store.  Most of the goods that were on the list are for the party we are hosting on Saturday night.  Justin has had a party on the last Saturday of January for years.  I call it his "not birthday party."  We've invited a few expats as well as a few locals and we'll see who shows up.  I am going to make chili verde and chocolate chip cookies -- in true Texan style.  

It was past time to go to salsa class by the time we got back to Celestun but thankfully Brian was feeling a bit better.  Justin, Kim and I headed to Nicte-ha for dinner and brought a quesadilla home for Brian.  We all headed to bed in hopes that he'll be better tomorrow.

Monday, 22 January 2018: Celestun

Sandra came over at 10am for salsa class.  What a hoot!  We all had a great time and it was a good workout.  We found ourselves counting out steps and practicing throughout the day.

 

We worked up an appetite so next we were on our way to Nichte-Ha for breakfast.  Kim and Brian got a taste of life in Celestun as we conducted shopping at first the Maxi Carne (local meat market), then the Mercado for vegetables and the panadaria (bread shop).  We also stopped by Claudia, the local everything store that includes mattresses, washing machines, dishes and fishing tackle.  We wanted to talk to Ishmael, the owner, about a boat trip to see flamingoes.  Yes, he handles that too.

Next, a trip to the beach and enjoying the lazy nature of the afternoon.  Justin and I prepared a steak salad for dinner as we rounded out a pretty perfect day.

Gemma was pretty tired too

after a day of salsa and the beach.

Sunday, 21 January 2018: Yucatan

We met Kim and Brian for breakfast and mimosas at Rosas and Xocolate on Paseao Montejo.  Yes, this is turning into one of our favorite places since the ambience is great, the location is convenient and, oh, the food is good too.  Later, a walk through the Grande Plaza ensured our Merida en Domingo experience was complete.  

Cheers to a beautiful sunshiny day in Merida! 

Kim and Brian have been with Justin and me in Japan, in Wisconsin, in Italy and now in Mexico.  Where next?

Justin enjoyed a more traditional dish while I opted for French toast!

We stopped by Kim and Brian's B&B to pick up their luggage.  They quite enjoyed their stay at Casa Del Maya.  Justin was once again a load master in fitting all the luggage and treasures into our car.

Our drive back to Celestun was uneventful and quite early for Justin and me thankfully. That drive at night is just not a good plan.  The road is just too narrow and too treacherous.  

Once back on home turf we pointed out the sights on our way to Casa Maria.  After a bit of "executive time" to get settled we walked down the beach to go to Los Pampanos for dinner.  Justin and I suggested that we all start with the crab stuffed avocado; certainly it is one of our favorites.  Later Kim said that she didn't think she'd even had the opportunity to say that she'd had too much lobster.  It was good that we still had the walk home in front of us.  

Yet another magnificent sunset over the Gulf.

Saturday, 20 January 2018: Merida

We started the day with a huge breakfast at Los Dos Toros before meeting Kim and Brian at the Grande Plaza.  Now admittedly, we didn't meet until noon so no one can say we were rushing matters.   

 

We roamed around the plaza for a while and ended up at Casa Azul.  Kim lusted after some of the pottery and she tried to figure out how to get it back to Florida.  We then headed to Lucas de Galvez Mercado, the mother of all Mexican market in Merida, perhaps even the Yucatan.  Justin and I had been there once before but we didn't know the name and we sure didn't know how to get back there.  It reminded us of the souks where the market just goes on forever.  We bought the hardware to make new leads for the dogs and a few other totally weird items before stopping for a midafternoon snack at Amaro.  I had forgotten that Justin and I stopped here for dessert on an earlier trip to Merida.  Today an adult beverage and guacamole was the perfect accompaniment to banter and conversation between great friends.

Later, we met for dinner tonight we had traditional Oaxacan fare at Apoala in Santa Lucia square. 

Justin enjoyed a fancy mojito to start his evening.

Apoala featured a tricked-out margarita that was blended with several non-traditional ingredients that included avocado, cilantro, and agave.  Brian seemed to enjoy his beverage!

We ended the evening with music in the park near the cathedral.  It took the band a while to get their sound system set before we were finally treated to some new-age techno rock.

Friday, 19 January 2018: Yucatan

The word of the day is "abogado" and his name is Alfonso Hernandez Castillo.  Justin and I had an appointment with the lawyer today to see about buying Casa Maria.  Yes, we are really going down this road.  The meeting went very well; what we want to do makes sense and it is legal.  We formulated a few questions for Bijon ("has your mom's will gone through probate?") as well as a list of questions for ourselves.  Because we will buy the corporation it looks like we might be able to close as early as Mid-May.  I needed a beverage!  We took the car to get it washed and walked down the street to a local dive bar before we headed to the centro in Merida to our hotel.  

Kim and Brian landed last night but no luggage.  Their routing, from Orlando through Atlanta to Merida left plenty of time for them to change airlines and go from domestic to international terminals but apparently not for their luggage to make the same flight.  Oh, the luxurious and glamorous lifestyle we lead!  When getting ready for this trip Kim asked if she could bring anything for us.  That was her first mistake.  I asked her to bring Creole seasoning since I'd promised to make jambalaya for Peter.  When Peter found out they were coming, he asked for two French coffee presses and an immersion blender.  Perhaps the most important item was our license plates.  I called the Kia dealership in Austin and relayed that our license plates had not arrived.  We asked that they be mailed to the Hotel Gutierrez.  They chose USPS as the carrier.  Big mistake.  Tracking revealed that the plates left Austin and arrived in Chicago on 26 November.  On 29 November they were on their way to Cedar Park (right outside of Austin), then nothing...no further updates on tracking.  I worked diligently and repeatedly with the good folks at Kia.  They got the state to issue duplicate plates.  This time I had our trusty on the ground delivery service, aka Dellene, pick them up and forward them to Kim in Florida.  Kim or Brian added those plates to their luggage which was not yet here in the Yucatán. So close and yet so far...

They explored around Merida a bit before their luggage finally did catch up with them and then we all met for dinner at Oliva Enoteca.  Yes it is true and not so surprisingly, Kim chose an Italian restaurant for dinner.  Dinner was fine but catching up was great.  The surfer girls might have been our first guests at Casa Maria but Kim and Brian are really the first company we are having here in the Yucatan.

Sunday, 14 January 2018: Merida

MLK weekend...where shall we go?  How nice it is to be retired!!!  I still do a happy dance on most Friday's but this three day weekend rather snuck up on me.  Am I getting jaded?  I don't think so.

We went to Merida for the playoffs. What was intended to be a one-night stay turned into two nights.  Oh, this flexibility is fabulous.  We found a great little hotel very near the zocolo in Merida, The Reforma Hotel.  The 18th century colonial style building is fabulous!  The fact that breakfast is included, parking is included and that they are pet friendly sealed the deal for us.  

An afternoon al fresco snack at The GranHotel set us up for more time to explore 

 We happened across an evening concert at the Central Cathedral in the zocolo.  The duo might have been from Morrocco or some equally ethnic locale.  The setting was fabulous and live music always fits the bill.

Dessert at Amaro was the perfect ending to a perfect day!

Sunday morning meant we headed to the Plaza Grande for Merida en Domingo.  The shops were all set up as were bands.  I picked up another little Mexican top (I am a sucker for little white tops and these Mexican ones are just too appealing!) while Justin checked out the bands of the day.

On Sunday evening we went to La Negrita Cantina.  The food wasn't much to write home about but the Mojitos and music were great and watching the dancing was inspirational.  It just made you want to get up and join in.  We need to get to salsa classes!

 

Thursday, 11 January 2018: Celestun

Annie, my favorite of the cats

These two have the original names of "black cat" and "calico cat"

Melissa, Abraham's niece is going to come work at our house once each week.  Today I had her start on the windows, ceilings and walls in the kitchen.  I've spent time the last few days taking every dish out of the cabinets and scrubbing inside and out.  There is plenty of scrubbing for both of us.  

Justin spent a good bit of the morning crafting a response to Bijon.  We are interested in buying but can we agree on a price?

Plumber guy came to repair the kitchen sink too.  We've been waiting a while for this.  Maybe it is an omen?

Wednesday, 10 January 2018: celestun

We went to Merida yesterday.  Our runs to Home Depot have slowed down a bit but now we are exploring the local hardware stores.  As it is to be expected, we are easily distracted by all the local sights, sounds, shops, restaurants, etc.  We want to see it all!  We are getting better at getting home before dark.  The last 30 miles or so of that little road is just too narrow for night time driving.  Carol came over for coffee this morning.  Her visit was not planned and not expected but that didn't mean not welcome.  Massages in the afternoon and then to Carol's for sunset and wine.  Her daughter and family just left but her sister-in-law and partner are here for about four more weeks.  Dinner at Nichte-ha...great fish tacos.

Justin, Deb, Carol and Lyndsey on Carol's front

porch for happy hour and sunset

Another magnificent sunset

Sunday, 7 January 2018: Celestun

Now that Paula (the Swiss-Italian lady) is gone from Casa Maria, (it was too stressful for her here -- puleez), Peter is coming on Sunday and Monday while Abraham has his day off.  He returns to his village of Tetiz to visit his mother, and take care of his garden.  It is fun for me to talk to Peter about food and cooking and of course there is lots of conversation about Casa Maria.

That part of my day might be new but I am still taking walks along the beach and enjoying the sights and sounds of Celestun.

Saturday, 6 January 2018: Celestun

 Justin has had the croup and that meant another trip back to the doctor. This time he got a boat load of antibiotics, an expectorant and a nebulizer.  

Perhaps as a response to the locals not having enough money, perhaps as a way of inventory control, or who knows what, but the pharmacia gives out only part of the prescription.  We were trying to make sense of the dosages of the meds when we finally realized we only had enough antibiotics for three days and only enough of the tincture for the nebulizer for three treatments.  So, back to the pharmacia to get ALL of the meds.

Today was Tres Reyes day.  Grelty, Karatina, Jonathan and a few others came over and invited Justin and I to share in the three kings cake and hot chocolate.  The cake is rather like a yeast fruit cake and the Mexican hot chocolate is beyond rich.  I remembered that the tradition is that a small baby Jesus is baked into the cake.  Whoever has the slice with the cake is the only who is supposed to host the party in early February when lent begins.  Looks like Jonathan will be our host later this winter.