January 1997

<<< New Years Eve

Valerie attended a ceramic brooch-making class while George tidied up. After this, we spent some time exploring a Carrefour hypermarket which we believe is owned by a French company of the same name. The store is vast and is similar to Walmart but carries a larger range in some lines. At nine p.m. we went to the clubhouse for a party which was put on by campground owners, which included live music and free drinks. As it was our first new year’s eve abroad we were a little surprised as Auld Lang was only sung at our request, many of the Mexicans seem to be happy to sit throughout most of the evening.

New Years Day - sunny 73

We had a huge and enjoyable brunch with the Aztec Trails group, which was served outside in pleasant sunshine. After which it was another lazy day of reading and odd jobbing while recovering from the late night.

Thursday, 2 January 1997

Time will tell how long it will last but we have both decided that we will walk each day before breakfast, it sure gives one a bigger appetite. Valerie went line dancing and then brooch making while George started studying for the ham radio examination.

In readiness for the arrival of our first guests, we purchased a picnic table and chair combination unit while exploring yet another large shopping mall.

Topes (sleeping policemen) are everywhere and traffic has to almost come to a standstill which produces ideal conditions for the locals to either sell something or more likely collect for charity from passing motorists.

We are eating out fairly regularly and have come to enjoy many Mexican dishes. Millions of tacos and burritos must be eaten each day, filled with anything from meat and chicken to spicy morsels. Guacamole is avocado blended with garlic, tomatoes and peppers which is frequently served as a free dish to eat in a taco while consuming a pre-meal drink. Alternatively, small dishes containing spices and peppers in a variety of colours are served with tacos. While many dishes are spicy they tend not to be as hot as many Indian curries.

Friday, 3 January 1997

Tonala is located on the eastern edge of Guadalajara where we visited a glass-blowing and paper-mâché factory as well as ceramic pottery. The most impressive was the paper-mâché factory where they create the most magnificent life-like models of animals, birds and decorative items. The models as so good that it is impossible to tell that they are made totally from paper. The factory exports all over the world in particular to high-class hotels, restaurants and casinos.
In the evening most of the campground attended a presentation by Dr Ritota on the subject of fourth-generation medicines. It was a very thought-provoking talk which sent many of the audience off to the pharmacy the following day, to purchase some of the new wonder drugs.

Saturday, 4 January 1997

Each day the weather follows a pattern of cooling overnight to about 47F and then the sun rises into a cloudless sky at around 7.15 am, the air slowly warms up during the morning to around 70F. Occasionally some light cloud appears for a short while in the afternoon and then around 5 pm the temperature starts to slowly fall, but sitting outside is OK most evenings. Rain is not expected until June!

Howard Duff aged 73 is a radio ham who spent some of the mornings introducing George to packet radio. In return, George helped Howard fix several problems with his computer. In the meanwhile, Valerie was painting her brooches in readiness for firing in the kiln.

Sunday, 5 January 1997

Valerie collected her brooches which turned out very well, in the meanwhile George carried on studying. The Coon's and Kotte's organised lunch for all Aztec trail members, which was a very sociable occasion, eaten in pleasant sunshine. This form of collective eating has major advantages as each RV only needs to prepare one item and there is very little washing up but the choice of dishes is always enormous.

Monday, 6 - Tuesday, 7 January 1997

Three Kings days is when the Mexican's traditionally exchange presents. In the afternoon about thirty of us went to a local orphanage where some forty-five girls ranging in age from 2 to 11 are being brought up.
		It was a very emotional experience since the children are so friendly that they immediately start to hug visitors and held our hands as they showed us around the orphanage. Even though they could not speak any English and our Spanish is more than limited it was amazing how we found ways to communicate and have a very enjoyable time. Aztec Trails have been visiting the orphanage for six years and on this occasion cakes and orange juice, pens, books, toys, sweets and balloons were handed out. It was a pleasure watching the smiles on their faces.

Wednesday, 8 January 1997

By way of a change at the suggestion of Bill Medlyn, a group of us decided to travel into the centre of Guadalajara by bus and return via the underground. The £0.10, nearly one-hour bus ride was a real bone-shaking experience as it dodged in and out of the traffic. About halfway three musicians got on and played some enjoyable music despite the rocking and rolling of the bus, they were then followed by the sweet seller and then yet another musician.

We visited the Libertas which is a huge indoor market on three levels. Like many similar markets in Mexico, stalls selling similar items seem to group, so for example in one area there are dozens of shoe stalls and in yet another area numerous stalls selling blankets and yet in another area tools etc. In one area we seemed to be surrounded by millions of watches most of which cost less than £10. We did our part to help the Mexican economy by purchasing a £3 watch and two pairs of reading glasses for £2 and two blankets for £8!

The return journey was by an ultra-modern, fast and very clean underground train, which cost 1.5 Pesos (£0.10) for any journey duration.

Thursday, 9 January 1997

An earthquake under the Pacific ocean hit Mexico City during the afternoon causing some damage, at the time we were out shopping and we were surprised to hear upon our return to the campground that many had felt the shock. Today we have had what could be called a cool day as the temperature dropped to 39F overnight, for the first time since our arrival in Mexico. Late afternoon we went to a dinner and floor show at a local restaurant, which featured an excellent Mariachi group. This area is famous for Mariachi bands which normally consist of about eleven players, who are often hired to play at the table of a group of people out celebrating some special occasion. In the evening we were invited to visit the Casita (a small house) of an Englishman who has lived on the campground for several years having married a Mexican lady about six years ago. The house is no bigger than our garage but contains all the essential items for living reasonably comfortably. At £8,000 and £130 per month for rent and all services, in a country with pleasant weather all year round and a low cost of living it was easy to see how one could have an acceptable life on a low income.

Friday, 10 - Sunday, 12 January 1997

During the last few days, a blast of extremely cold weather from the arctic has frozen many parts of the US and has reduced our nighttime temperature to a low of about 37F, however, the sun continues to rise into a clear blue sky and temperatures quickly climb above 65F by ten o'clock, apparently, weather this cold is very unusual!

Mexico has many similarities to Spain not only in the language, culture, customs and traditions but also it seems that the patch and make-do approach is normal. A good example is the campground cable TV which is no more than miles of wire and connectors strung between trees and along the ground. The result is a picture of poor quality which regularly gets cut off. The same goes for the electric and water supplies which are also erratic. However, all this is made up for by the wonderful personality of the people and their eagerness to fix things and to help out with any problem.

Many of our fellow campers have either mechanical problems or dents in their RVs, which have all been repaired on the campground to a very high standard and at unbelievably low prices. The average garage appears to have very little in the way of tools or modern equipment, but the ingenuity of the Mexicans overcomes any such shortcomings

We spent a day visiting parts of Chapala, which is located on the edge of a huge lake and is famous for its Picante salsa, which we watched being bottled. On the way to Chapala we stopped to see a weaver making wall hangings and ponchos, the owner invited us to visit their small house, which was an eye-opener. Four people sleep in one bedroom and the kitchen was dark and poorly furnished, however, everything was very clean. The large garden was full of tropical fruits including papaya, limes and lemons as well as peppers. The primitive conditions are hardly surprising since it takes three days to make one wall hanging on the ancient wooden loom, which sells for N$150 which in turn means the weaver only gets £4 a day, out of which he has to buy the raw material. We also toured a clay artefact pottery where we watched the clay being mixed by a young man jumping on the mix with his bare feet.

During the past few days, we have had several meals in a range of different restaurants, on every occasion the food was excellent, good value and efficiently served by helpful waiters. We were invited to inspect the kitchen of one of the restaurants which were ultra modern with stainless steel everywhere and spotlessly clean. Little wine is drunk which may be partly due to the poor-tasting Mexican wine which we have tried, and imported wine is very expensive, however, Margaritas are extremely popular ranging from good to excellent…

Monday, 13 - Tuesday, 14 January 1997

Calvin and Loria from Louisiana love to cook, (Calvin's brother is a world-famous chief) they decided that they would cook everybody a seafood gumbo, made from Alaskan crab purchased from a high-class seafood restaurant and vegetables from the local market, it was delicious and not too spicy.

We spent a day in Tlaquepaque which is one of the original locations of Guadalajara and in its day must have been a very upmarket place to live. Even today it has numerous fine buildings but many have been developed into expensive tourist shops. Typical of the honesty and trust we have found in all the places we have visited, we found that inside the silversmith workshop we toured, there were hundreds of silver items lying on benches and trays and that none of the employees took any interest in items were inspected and admired.

Wednesday, 15 - Thursday, 16 January 1997

Tequila is a small town located about 40 miles to the south of Guadalajara where we toured both the research laboratory and the Sauza Tequila production facility. Good Tequila is made from one hundred per cent Agave cacti. Traditionally, the cactus takes eight or more years to grow to maturity, however with the huge increase in the popularity of Tequila, a shortage was developing.

The research laboratory demonstrated how they have reduced the time scale to about six years by planting cuttings instead of growing new Agave from seed. The mature cactus is about eight feet high but it's the centre which is used to make Tequila, which when stripped of the leaves looks very similar to a giant pineapple weighing about 10 kg. A local worker only gets N$75 (£6) a day for harvesting 700 of these giant cacti. The centre of the cacti is then transported to the factory where it is crushed, shredded and then baked in an autoclave to convert the sweet juice into a form suitable for fermentation. The pulp is pressed to extract the liquid which is then fermented for 36 hours, the pulp remains are sold as fertiliser, raw material for packing, carpet and furniture-making materials. After touring the distillation and storage area, we watched the bottling process which takes place on a modern and highly automated line, after which we went into the tasting room!

Friday, 17 January 1997

George took and passed the ham radio examination and should receive his call sign within a few days. Valerie is now worried about how much he will be spending on equipment when we return to the USA. On the way back from Chapala, an enormous flock of yellow-breasted black birds took off, there were so many that the sky was blacked out as they flew over the car. It was an impressive sight. We have decided not to return with the caravan to Mission, TX as it would add 650 miles to get to Quartzite, instead we plan to travel with four other rigs, leaving Guadalajara on Sunday and heading for the west coast of Mexico.

Dust is a way of life in Mexico, however, George decided to wash the RV, knowing full well that by the time we get to the coast on Sunday it would have been a waste of time. After we caught up with the Email, we went to a very enjoyable show put on by orphans who are being brought up by Salvation Army.

Saturday, 19 January 1997

We awoke to the very unusual sound of rain on the roof (washed the RV yesterday!), which however did not last for more than half an hour. Later talking to one of the locals we learnt that this is the first time it has rained at this time of year for several years. Most of the day was spent saying goodbye to people we had got to know very well during the past six weeks and preparing for a 7 am departure tomorrow.

Sunday, 20 January 1997

As it turned out our departure from San Jose Del Tajo was short-lived since within a few miles it became clear that we had a problem with the RV's transmission. A warning light was flashing and the only gears available were the second and third (top). With some sadness, we informed the four other RVs via CB that we would return to San Jose and hoped that we would be able to catch up with them within a few days.

During our stay at the campground we witnessed some excellent repairs being carried out by the local Mexicans, including engine repairs by Nacho who is a very capable engineer and amongst other accomplishments flies jet aircraft. Unfortunately, Nacho was fishing for the day, but we had a message that he would be able to come to the campground Monday morning.

Monday, 21 January 1997

Nacho arrived at about 10 am and turned out to be a very likeable and knowledgeable guy who could speak good English. Early on he informed us that our Ford engine is not due to be sold in Mexico until 1998, so even the main Ford dealers in Mexico do not have any experience with it and what is more worrying no spare parts are available anywhere in Mexico. Nacho arrived with a computerised tester which when plugged into the RV's EMS (engine management system) revealed several fault codes. By evening he had narrowed the problem down to either the EMS or an electromechanical module within the transmission which he took away to test at his workshop.

Tuesday, 22 January 1997

As a fallback plan, we decided to visit the main Ford dealer in Guadalajara to enquire about them repairing the RV. They were non-committal but willing to look at it, but stated that if they needed to get any replacement parts from the USA it normally takes two to three weeks! By mid-afternoon, it was clear that the problem was due to a faulty EMS and that we needed a replacement unit. Having heard many stories about problems with parts flown from the USA, which included wrong parts, parts sent to the wrong place or detained by customs for days as well as high import charges, we decided with some reluctance that it would be quicker and more reliable to collect the part ourselves.

Wednesday, 23 - Friday, 25 January 1997

At daybreak (07.00) we set off on the first leg of the 1,400-mile journey, arriving at Saltillo late afternoon after a drive of 510 miles. We treated ourselves by staying at the Holiday Inn Hotel and after an evening meal retired in readiness for another early start. It is not considered wise to drive at night in Mexico due to the very poor roads and resulting higher risk of an accident or hitting cattle, which move from the fields onto the warmer roads at night.

We departed again at 7 am and after three road checks by Mexican police, we were waved through the US border at 11 am. As luck would have it we almost immediately came upon the Ford dealer where we had pre-ordered the replacement EMS, which was waiting for us upon our arrival. Upon our departure from Guadalajara, we had been asked to buy several spare parts for a fellow camper, which we were able to obtain from AutoZone.

George then insisted on visiting Radio Shack, as he had developed withdrawal symptoms from a lack of new electronic gadgets to play with. Valerie could not resist a look around Walmart which was followed by a quick lunch and then we started the return journey, crossing back into Mexico at McAllen. We encountered three more road checks which were carried out by good-natured police. At one checkpoint we were asked if we had any pistols, cocaine or other drugs and then the car was given a very cursory search. The drive back to Saltillo took about three hours and again we spent the night at the Holiday Inn.

For much of the journey, we used the MX54 which is a two-lane road over 300 miles long but has hardly any traffic and virtually no gas stations. Much of the road is through large flat-bottomed valleys surrounded by high but extinct volcanic mountains. We saw mile after mile of cacti up to thirty feet tall making them look more like trees in a forest. Occasionally we came across a small village and wondered how the inhabitants could make a living.

We finally arrived back in Guadalajara at 5 pm Friday, desperately hoping that we had got the correct part and that it would solve the problem.

Saturday, 25 January 1997

Nacho arrived at 1 pm with his mechanic and after installing and resetting the EMS, it was time to carry out a test drive. As everything appeared to work perfectly a celebration beer was in order.

Sunday, 26 January 1997

Spent much of the day visiting Chapala with Barbara and Leo who have decided to stay in Guadalajara for another week or so, they then plan to spend some time on the west coast of Mexico. We found a lakeside restaurant which served the most marvellous prawns wrapped in bacon, accompanied by free margaritas.

Monday, 27 January 1997

By 7 am we were on our way to Mazatlan which is on the west coast some 310 miles northwest of Guadalajara, much to our relief the RV performed flawlessly. To save time and frustration we used toll roads where available, which are excellent but very expensive at £45 for about 100 miles, not surprisingly the toll roads are almost empty.

Tuesday, 28 January 1997

During yesterday's journey, we crossed into mountain time without realising it, which explained why everybody in the campground appeared to get up so late today. Spent part of the day on the very sandy beach watching the warmish Pacific waves rolling in and some time exploring Mazatlan and food shopping. Mazatlan is a relatively large town with a mixture of industrial and tourist activities, as well as a marina which was full of expensive boats. We found a beach location where several RV's were boondocking either directly on the beach or in the approach road, many of them appeared to be snowbirds who were staying some months until their winter back home was over. Everywhere we have travelled we have seen evidence that thousands of Americans either live full-time in Mexico or throughout the winter months.

Wednesday, 29 January 1997

The journey from Mazatlan to Los Mochis is 275 miles along the MX15 which follows the western coast, but unfortunately, the road is too far inland to see any of the coastlines. On this occasion, we took the libre road and found it nearly as quiet as the toll road. When we arrived at the La Fuenta trailer park which is located 10 miles north of Los Mochis, we were pleased to see the four RV's belonging to our Aztec Trail friends. The campground owner informed us that they had taken the train to visit the Copper Canyon and he expected them back late this evening.

Thursday, 30 January 1997

We quickly found out from the others that the eight-and-a-half-hour trip by train to the Copper Canyon was enjoyable but in their opinion (all Americans?) it did not compare to the beauty of the Grand Canyon. However, the train ride was impressive since it climbed some 9,000 feet through torturous passes and passing through 87 tunnels. With this information and since time was pressing as we wanted to be in Quartzite for the main events, we decided that we would leave with the other four RV's and continue the return journey up the west coast.

We arrived at Guaymas mid-afternoon and found the best campground we had seen anywhere in Mexico, indeed it was better than many we have stayed at in the USA. The campground is on the edge of a very large nearly enclosed bay, surrounded on almost four sides by high mountains. At 6 pm we gathered on the waterfront to watch the sun slip below the horizon and for the first time, we saw the green flash. The green flash occurs for about one second immediately after the sun goes below the horizon and the earth's atmosphere refracts the sun's light in a prism-like effect, giving a surprise ending to a sunset.

Friday, 31 January 1997

We decided to have a break from travelling and explored parts of Guaymas which turned out to be a large fishing port but it did not seem to have much to offer visitors. Had an excellent fish lunch in a waterfront restaurant. >>>