Life In Mexico

Living here in Mexico has been a great experience. The beach here at the RV Park is wide with soft sand. We gather on the seawall every evening with others from our group and watch the sun set.   Josie even got a massage on the beach one afternoon and had her nails done right at our site in the park.  We have eaten at some very good restaurants, with dishes ranging from an excellent Shrimp Scampi Pizza and powerful Margaritas to really good bacon wrapped hotdogs at a road side stand. They also have many oyster farms in the area and we have eaten our share of them, very salty and tasty.  We find it strange that we cannot find real orange juice, only stuff that tastes like tang, and we can't find flavored coffee creamer, only the plain powdered stuff. But having freshly made tortillas at the panaderia and shrimp and asparagus vendors right at our door step makes up for those small inconveniences. We visit the Fruteria every few days and pick up the makings for Guacamole. We purchased 2 avacados, 2 tomatoes, two limes, and a stack of fresh tortillas for $2.40.  We are particularity fond of one taco shop we have mentioned before, Combo Taco, we have eaten 5 lunches there during our stay. We meet there for lunch with other stay overs from the first tour. Their loaded shrimp and bacon with cheese tacos are to die for. It is odd that the highest rated restaurant in town is not Mexican as you might expect, but German. They are especially noted for their breakfast pancakes. Josie enjoyed her Chocolate Chip Pancakes with banana and whipped cream for the next three days

Having said all these great things about Puerto Penasco, I should also say that it is not a paradise. Away from the beach area it is a dusty unkempt place with many dogs wandering the many unpaved streets.  Most of the buildings and even beach front hotels and condos are unfinished and have not been worked on in years. The economic down turn of 2008 hit here even harder than in the states. We did drink the water, Josie more so than I. She didn't get sick but I had one evening of intestinal ills. Could have been one of the sauces I used on my taco.  In our eyes there is a lot of impoverished people but maybe to them they are well off. We did not ever feel threatened when driving and walking around town, even in the early evening.  The Mexican people are hard workers and do outstanding work. They also play hard and on the weekends there is music into the very wee hours of the morning. We have found the people to be very friendly and helpful when we have problems with the language. 

While we were here we gave the Coach and Jeep some TLC. We had the RV washed and waxed and had the wheels polished. We also had the interior detailed which included having the carpets cleaned. 

We have done our share of browsing for STUFF in both the Malecon (Fish Port) and the Dirt Mall, now called Rodeo Drive. It was called the Dirt Mall because the street used to be dirt but they paved it over a few years ago and gave it a classier name. Is is said to have a better class of merchandise than the Malecon, but not much better. The Malecon is right on Rocky Point and besides the many trinket vendors it has many restaurants and seafood vendors.  

​While out on the tidal flats one day taking bird pictures, I was able to see the local boat launchers take two boats out for launch. As you can see by the pictures below it is very interesting. I have been able to get many great bird pictures while wading the flats, while Josie looks for shells and sand dollars that we give away to folks who are unable to wade in the shallow water. In the dune area near the flats they race dune buggies on the weekends. They also have horseback rides in the same area. Not sure this is a safe place for riding a horse when they are racing. 

I was able to play all three of the golf courses here in Puerto Penasco. Two of them are Jack Nicklaus designs, one on them right on the Sea of Cortez and the other on Cholla Bay. All of them had lots of sand and water.  

This morning we pulled out of Puerto Penasco with 38 other Winnebagos and headed north for the border. 100 yards from the border we saw this sign. Guess it means now we are going to enter the US and get ready to be hassled. We are now back at Pueblo El Mirage for another month.