So…let’s recap…no post since we left Navojoa and now we’ve been in Mazatlan for 8 days!

First off the trip from Navojoa to Mazatlan was as we expected, the roads in Sinaloa are crap and you get charged large tolls for driving on them.  At least we weren’t towing the RV and bashing it to death. 
We arrived in Mazatlan around 2pm on Thursday Nov. 7th.  Doug (the brother in law of the woman we bought the house from) was here to help along with Rueben the park worker.  First part of the story was that there had been a rat in the house.  Not all winter but long enough to make a big mess.  Rueben and the maid had done their best to clean the place up (which we paid them for) but of course there was still lots to deal with.  First off..the pump in the front patio was put back in  and then the pump on the roof along with the on demand hot water heater that is attached to the back of the house were both reinstalled.  They are taken out and put in the house for the summer because of all the rain and high humidity.    That night …I found enough sheets to make up our bed and then we went out for dinner just a 1/2 block away.  Next morning…the coffee shop 1/2 block away and then we started assessing what needed to be done.  Long story short…all the bedding and towels etc. needed to be washed as they’d been “ rattified!”  Nice big washer and dryer in the house so that sure helped.  I’ve done at least 20 loads over the week!
The past week was spent scrubbing out cupboards and shelves so we could store our stuff and then …a big wind storm covered the back patio in a ton of fine red dust from the construction sight next door.  Yesterday Eric spent the day sweeping the back patio.  What a mess!  He has also been doing maintenance that only a home owner would do.  The house has been lightly rented and is in good shape but there is lots of maintenance to catch up on. 
Today was a good day.  I met our maid.  She has been cleaning the house on a regular basis and after a short chat (she has some English) we left her to it and went off to shop for things for the house such as a ladder to get on the roof from the top patio, gas shocks for the kitchen cupboards etc. etc.  I’d told her to just ignore the back patio till next week and just do what she usually does.
When we returned at 12:45 after leaving at 9:30 am she was just finishing up.  She’d cleaned the whole house (two floors) and mopped the whole back patio as well as everything out there including the outdoor table and chairs which were all covered in dust.  I’ve never had a maid before and Eric and I were just amazed at what she’d accomplished in the short time she was here.  I’d given her all the accumulated toiletries left in the house as well as some kitchen stuff that I didn’t want.  The cost for cleaning was 300 pesos and I gave her another 50 pesos which she didn’t want to take.  She will come every Friday and I am just so greatful to have her.  I know this is good money for her in Mexico but for me it’s pretty darn cheap.  About $21.00 Canadian for 3 hours work. 
It’s been a busy week and although Eric has been out on his bicycle neither of us has been to the beach.  We’ve been shopping twice and I’ve been out for lunch with the ladies.
I also forgot to say we brought a full size portable dishwasher with us that we can’t hook up to the tap in the kitchen as the tap is too shallow and the connection pops off.  Bummer!  Eric researched the net to find parts that will hopefully make it work and they are being shipped to his brother Ian in Kelowna.  Ian and wife Linda will be coming to Mazatlan for December and January so they’ll bring the parts with them.  Till then….Eric is back doing dishes!
We still don’t have internet or TV but…that will come. 
It’s been a whirlwind of a week.