Bocce time again!

That’s Marion showing her form.

Max & Connie beat Marion and Laurie.

Dick says that’s a long way down there.

Frank & I beat Manny and Sandi.

Regina looks pretty intense.

Frank & Sandi measure.

At this point I’m losing track of who’s winning and who’s losing.

So who do you think is closer to the pea?

Let’s measure to be on the safe side!

Winners and losers.  Jeanette is the new Sandi stand in.  Sandi’s sick. 

Frank and Diane.  I didn’t get a picture of Frank and I (the losing team)  because I had to dash off to catch the vegetable and shrimp truck.  We are out of the tournament….boohoo!  Diane and Dick carry on.

Gunter throws.

Winners and losers. 

Dennis and Rita beat Anita and Boomer.  Dennis is very proud of his balls!

Max throws.  He said he was better at watching soccer than playing bocce.  Not really true as his is good player. 

Rita shows her form.  It gets harder and harder to make shots as the balls kick up rocks every time you throw.

Connie throws.  She is playing against Jeanette and her husband Manny. 

Manny was deadly in this game.

Connie and Max lose to Manny and Jeanette.  It’s a good thing Manny can cook! 

Go Dennis go!

Winners and losers. 

Sandi is outside today, feeling a bit better and keeping score. 

Ursula throws.  She and partner Ron beat Dick and Diane. 

Eric came over to see how things were going……he never plays.  He’s giving Ramona a pat.

Diane tries hard.

A hug for Ursula.

Dick and Diane lose to Ursula and Ron.

So this is the Bocce up to Saturday morning.  A day of rest and then Monday the remaining teams will finish it off.  Always fun!

The Nutcracker Ballet in Mazatlan

http://www.nutcrackerballet.net/html/nutcracker_story.html

Above is a hotlink to a very simple explanation of the Nutcracker.  I don’t really worry too much about the story I just love the whole ambiance of the ballet. 

Ursula, Connie,Rita, Betty, Marilyn, Marion, Regina and Kathy. All eight of us ready to get on the bus and head off downtown to the ballet.

Regina hands out our tickets in front of the Angela Peralta theatre.

Heading into the theatre.  We had great seats in the centre orchestra section.  Thanks to Regina and Ursula who went down on the bus ahead of time and bought them the tickets.  300 pesos, about $24 each.

The balcony where we sat last time and couldn’t see much.

The Nutcracker begins.  The costumes, colors and sets were beautiful.

The party scene.

As the lights change so do the colors of the pictures.  The mice arrive….they were so adorable and mouse like!

The Nutcracker prince and Clara.

Just beautiful!

The choir sings.  Sweet voices.

The colors are almost ethereal.

And then bright.

Uncle Drosselmeyer.

 

Arabian dancers….they were very good and the applause was loud.

Waltz of the flowers….I think.

 

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. 

 

Finale.  There are those cute mice again.

Thoroughly enjoyable and worth every penny….or peso!

In front of the theatre and Marion leads us off to the top a local hotel for a drink on the roof.  All of us up in an elevator and then down later on the spiral staircase. 

The church from the roof of the hotel.

All together with a cocktail.  Yummy!

Regina, Rita and Ursula.

Down the street to the Malacon to catch the bus home. 

Yesterday Dec. 12th was Our Lady of Guadalupe day, Mexico’s most important religious holiday.  The streets were filled with people and there was a very large police presence which seemed to be mostly to direct traffic. 

We waited for a bus for about twenty minutes and then Marion saw a green bus going the other way and waved at it.  At the same time a truck (Auriga or small truck with a canopy and seats in the back) pulled up and we decided to have it take us home.  20 pesos each instead of 10 but at this point we needed a ride home.  Just as we were getting on the bus came roaring up behind us.  He must have done a quick retourno and headed back to get us.  Crazy!  He followed us for a while and then passed….just to show us we should have travelled with him.  We would have preferred the bus as the truck’s exhaust is just deadly when you are riding in the back.

Ah Mexico!

Home in bed by 10pm.  A really nice evening.  

We’ve been here a week!

The weather has cooled down considerably and the wind has picked up.  I wish Canada would keep it’s icy winds to itself….doesn’t it know we are down here to escape the cold!

I played a game of Hand of Foot on Sunday and didn’t win again.  Boo hoo and I did whine a little.

We are settled in our new spot in the park.  A different view for Eric. 

More people at the front of the park than the back this year.  Why….perhaps the internet.  Mr.. Yagi works for us. 

Looking towards the back of the park.

Eric’s plantar fasciitis is much improved and these are the shoes that are helping.  They have a good arch support.

Eric finally gave up on our Jensen TV that came with the rig and is installing the new Samsung 32” one that we bought in Casa Grande before we left the states. 

A big hole where the TV used to be.

The Samsung sitting in the hole on it’s stand. 

Dismantling the cabinet.

A giant mess of wires. 

Not finished yet!

Yesterday (Monday) we were off to get water, groceries and beer. 

They do a really good job at the water shop when you have your jugs filled.  They sterilize each jug and instruct you to keep the jugs out of the sun so algae won’t grow.  Cost 9 pesos (about 76 cents) and Eric gives the guy 10 pesos. 

Eric went off to find parts for his TV installation while I got the groceries and beer at Soriana’s.  When it came time for me to pay and use my Visa there was a big “problemo.”  They did admit it was their fault but that meant I had to go to the interact machine and get pesos.  I prefer to use my Visa card and not carry pockets full of cash everywhere I go.  Plus I get air miles points on my card.  Frustrating. 

On our way home we stopped in at the new Wal Mart at our end of town.  Very nice and closer than Soriana’s.  I would prefer to give my money to Soriana’s but if my card won’t work there (it did last year except for an occasional time) I’ll go to Wal mart. 

Today Eric continues to work on the TV installation and I did three big loads of laundry….I’d been putting it off.  So if anyone wants to know what we do to occupy ourselves on a daily basis while we are away….there you have it.  Plus now that I’m feeling better I am listening to my Speed Spanish tapes when I walk in the morning.  That is give me “dolor de cabeza” headache but I am going to try to learn enough to make myself understood in a small way. 

Tomorrow I start Bocce and on Thursday it’s cards and then a trip to the Ballet in the evening.  It is the Nutcracker this year and it will be beautiful.  They dance in the Angela Peralta Theatre and it is a lovely theatre.  I went a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. 

Busy, busy, busy! 

The rest of the week.

Thursday to Saturday. 

Eric’s scent/chemical allergy has slightly eased off and his foot is marginally better.  We had everything that had a smell boxed up outside in a rubber maid tub and yesterday we managed to get a bar of soap back in the bathroom.  We think the original culprit in all of this was a bar of unscented Dove soap that I bought in Yuma.  It didn’t smell anything like the ones I buy in Canada so maybe it had a different formulation.  We have been able to use Aveen0 fragrance free baby wash and Head and Shoulders (which doesn’t bother Eric but I think stinks!)  He is wearing a pair of Columbia slides that he was wearing for rig slippers and they seem to provide better support for his feet and the plantar fasciitis.  Hope this all gets better for him and for me!  Quite a ride!

We have been to the beach the last couple of days although yesterday was a bit rough for an enjoyable swim.  Still great for sitting in a chair reading.  Eric is riding his bicycle to the beach as it doesn’t bother his feet at all.  It’s a good thing the bicycle is his thing.  I prefer to walk and don’t enjoy the bike at all. 

I am back to walking in the morning and did my last year’s walk (about 50 minutes) yesterday and today.  Feels good. 

Many of our friends have shown up in the last couple of days.  Fred and Marion from Saskatchewan, Connie and Manny from Oregon and Betty and Boomer from Ontario.  Nice to see everyone. 

I played cards (Hand & Foot) with the ladies on Thursday and it was nice to get back in the groove.  Jeanette and Regina whupped Ursula and I but it was a good game.  Regina is a good player and I bugged her unmercifully but she is a good sport and a really nice person.  Fun. 

Today (Saturday) is a bit cooler and windier so it is more pleasant.  I have spaghetti sauce in the crock pot, Eric has gone to get beer on his bicycle and then off to the beach.  I will post some pictures in a day or two. 

All is not well but it is getting better. 

We are in Mazatlan

We arrived in Mazatlan at the Las Jaibas RV park about 2:30 pm yesterday.  It is hot and steamy and we are both sweating like pigs! 

The last two days have been a bit of a nightmare for us as Eric has had a scent/chemical allergy that has kicked up big time.  It started in Guaymas and then really ramped up….very stressful.  All the soaps and shampoos etc. etc. that we had up in the bedroom area that were not a problem now were.  I know that heat activates scent so perhaps this is part of the problem.  For Eric it is the chemicals in the products regardless of whether they are scent free that cause a reaction.  He gets a headache, his throat closes up, can’t breathe, eyes burn, mouth burns and his heart races.  None of this affects me so I am at a loss to figure out what the culprit is.  Now if we were stationary and not on the move we could deal with it but we were moving and driving so it was a big issue. 

We left Guaymas on Monday morning and arrived in Los Mochis where we stay in Pemex 4925 just south of town.  The highway there is under repair just like it is everywhere else.  We were the only RV in the gated lot and there wasn’t a huge amount of trucks either.  We had a happy hour and relaxed after our pounding days journey over the Mexican roads and then had dinner in the fuel station restaurant.  Pescado empanizado (fried breaded fish) with rice, salad, tortillas and salsa  and it was very good.  Eric had to sleep on the couch because it was too fragrant in the bedroom.  Swell. 

On the road the next morning and we had to drive with windows open because the unscented Dove soap I had washed in was burning his eyes.  Swell.  The roads were horrible until Culiacan but better on the toll road from Culiacan to Mazatlan if we drove in the fast lane….with the windows open.  Swell. 

Lunch at the rest stop about 50 miles north of Mazatlan and then on the road and into the park. 

We had a quick hello hugs from friends when we arrived and then it was time to pick a site to set up.  We moved 7 or 8 sites back in the middle row and hooked up.  Beer, dinner and Eric sleeping on the couch again.  Swell. 

Checked the internet and it says there are more chemicals in unscented products than there are in scented ones.  They put them in to mask the scents.  Go figure. 

Sandi gave Eric her allergy pills and he took so many he couldn’t smell anything and then he had a huge headache!

Oh, I forgot his plantar fasciitis ramped up and he can hardly walk either.  Swell!

 

P.S. –  On a positive note the ocean is warm as a bathtub and both Eric and I got a swim.  First one for me since we started coming to Mazatlan as it was calm enough for me to get in.  

P.S.S. -  Eric says I am putting something scented under his pillow so I won’t have to sleep with him!

Hotel Playa de Cortes, Guaymas

We left Edgar and Ana’s Punta Vista RV park at about 9:30 am and arrived in Guaymas on Friday afternoon around 3pm.  It is not a long way but the highway construction really slows you down.  The highway was pretty good (by Mexican standards) until kilometer 69 (about 40 miles north of Hermisillo.)  At this point construction was pretty steady.  The roads are narrow and you have to keep diverting into the northbound lane where the pavement is actually better.

Redoing the southbound lanes.

Rebuilding the puentes (bridges.)

And now for some nasty seal coating.  At one point they allowed passing and the fast lane had loose gravel.  Another rock chip in the windshield. 

The lanes keep appearing and disappearing so that is always a challenge. 

At one point we had to pass a semi pulling a double (he was weaving and Eric had to give him the horn as it was very narrow) and when I looked up at the driver it was a kid. If he was 15 I’ll eat my sombrero, well if I actually had a sombrero!

No problem through Hermisillo as long as you stay right past the prison and manage to slide down under the overpass and turn left to Guaymas.

The road from Hermisillo to Guaymas is rough with lots of cold patch and potholes.  In the end the road is all rough, the drivers bad and the whole thing just tiring and hard on your rig and vehicle. 

Saturday was a quiet day. 

Today we made a trip through Miramar along the ocean road into San Carlos  for fuel, beer, lunch and then a trip for groceries to the Wal-Mart in Guaymas on the way home. 

Our first stop in San Carlos was the Totonaka RV park to see if anyone we knew was there.  No one and not many people in the park.  Pretty quiet.

We managed to get money out of the  Banamex bank and then went to have a walk around the San Carlos dock to look at sailboats.  A boat has long been a dream for Eric but now he’s not sure he has the energy for it. 

We took a drive up through the Ranchitos and had a look around.  When we spent a month in a condo in San Carlos back in 2008 and we used to go to Tony’s gym so we went to have a look at it as well.  A huge facility with a swimming pool out the back.  Still there, but closed on Sunday. 

When we picked up fuel Eric asked the attendant “donde esta mas bueno tacos en San Carlos?”  He said at Tacos Louis  just down the road across from the other Pemex across the road from the Banamex so that’s where we headed.  Two meat tacos (beef or lamb) each with all the fixings and for me a cocoa cola light and Eric a bottled water.  Delicious and enough to make four tacos each….cost with a tip 100 pesos or about $8.  All Mexicans eating and it was busy so you know the food is good.  

We picked up our first Pacifico and Pacifico light beer at the beer store and we are all stocked up and now for some limes to go with it.  So….

Off to the Wal-Mart for food.  As usual they had trouble running the credit card through and in the end it took three tries.  I’ll watch the bill to make sure there aren’t three charges!  I always keep my receipts!

It is now a pleasant afternoon, warm but cloudy and it’s almost time for happy hour. 

Tomorrow we well leave around 9 am and spend tomorrow night at our usual stop in the Pemex (#4925) just south of Los Mochis.  It is gated and has a restaurant and is a good stop. 

It was quiet last night after the rocking Friday night but now there a wedding.  The band is moving in all their gear….hopefully we get some sleep. 

Tuesday into Mazatlan.  It will be good to stop, set up and relax.