Driving Home Part 1

Last Tuesday the day finally arrived when I started my long drive back to Canada. Tony and Maureen were a little slow getting ready so it was almost 9am by the time we pulled out, me in the little corolla following Tony's big V8 super cab truck. I was itching to go but when I actually said goodbye to Gail and Lea the reality of what was ahead hit me. I was a little teary for the first ten minutes driving north but figured I had to get it together pronto.

It was actually not too bad. The worse part of the entire drive was the first couple of hours getting through the mountains to Tepic where the toll roads start. We made really good time, stopped briefly for a snack at one of the toll stations then on again. I was surprised by the number of times we were stopped for fruit checks. I'm glad I declined taking some of the fruit Gail wanted me to bring along.

We pulled into a little town called Guasave around 6pm. I parked the car, Tony parked the truck and in we went to the hotel. Maureen was delighted! "Oh, Tony, it's a CASINO!!" Once I got to my room I discovered that I had left my toiletries bag behind in Bucerias. Agghhh. I had to go for a walk and was relieved to find a dollar store where I found a toothbrush, toothpaste, hairbrush, deodorant etc. Tony and Maureen had to smuggle Poppy (their sweet little cat) into the room. We had a few snacks, went downstairs for a bite to eat then I hit the sack. Maureen hit the casino and Tony went for a walk.

Guasave is almost halfway to the USA border. The next morning we figured we would get as far as Hermosillo. However, we all just wanted to get through to Nogales though so even though it was tiring, we voted to keep driving. We made it through immigration and customs by 6pm and were in the motel on the other side by 6:30. I was frankly amazed that we did it so quickly.

Thursday, I only had to get to Phoenix to wait for Dale to join me for the remainder of the journey. The three of us went shopping in Nogales once the stores opened. I love to shop at Ross, especially for linens and household things. I found an awesome deal for the bedroom in Bucerias that I could not refuse . For $45.00 I got a King Size comforter, two pillow shams, bedskirt, neck roll and decorative pillow all packed in a matching ottoman. I love it! We also stopped in a super discount place just outside Tucson that Tony loves to explore. It didn't take long for me to start to fill the car again.

After that, I said goodbye to Tony and Maureen on the parking lot. I followed them for another 45 minutes or so, then waved so long till next year and carried on to Phoenix by myself. Once again "my dear" GPS kept me company until I found a hotel to pull in and wait for Dale.

Unfortunately, there was a terrific wind storm in southern Arizona on Thursday. It was actually hard at times to keep the car from swaying as I was driving. Dale's flight was supposed to arrive at 9:37 pm but on the internet it said there was an hour delay. Bummer- but at least there was a shuttle to the airport from the hotel. I left around 10pm to meet her and just when her flight was due, the arrivals board in the airport changed to announce it would be now arriving at 12:15. The airport had been closed most of the day because of the high winds. Dale's flight from San Francisco left an hour late and couldn't land so they were redirected to Las Vegas for refueling. Agghhh again. By the time she arrived, collected luggage, waited for the shuttle to come back and got to the room it was 1:30 in the morning. No matter, I was so happy to see her and still quite overwhelmed that she did this for me.

Off to bed for phase two of the journey Friday morning.

The Importance of Friends

Our final two weeks in Mexico have not been exactly as planned. I was busy with last minute board things and Gail was not feeling well. Wednesday night I was at a meeting until 12:30am. On Thursday the 12th she woke up really sick and was hallucinating. I knew I wasn't able to manage her at home so I ran over to Ann and Jack's place as he was sitting out after his early morning walk. Ann was in the shower but Marcelino-next door to them- heard the frantic tone of my voice and came outside right away. He called Kuka- another neighbour and board member, who lives just across the garden from me.

This is where a moment of serendipity occured. Kuka (Dr. Castro) is a physician and just happens to be chief of staff at the best hospital in Puerta Vallarta. She came over to check Gail. Her English is not great but I knew right away that she wanted Gail in hospital. Then everything kicked into high gear. By this time Ann, Marcelino and Silvia were in the house. Dan came over and carried Gail down the stairs and put her into Marcelino's van. Kuka followed us, got Gail into the ER immediately and had her in a private room within an hour.

Things went from bad to worse. I won't go into all the details but I spent five nights in the hospital with her. The care she received was incredible. I cannot imagine a better place for this to happen. The hospital was spotless (not like where my father spent weeks a couple of summers ago in St. John's where the public washrooms had no soap!!! In a hospital!!!) The nurses were fantastic and very compassionate. The food was HOMEMADE and Dr. Suarez, who looked after her, was in to see her between 5-7 times daily, including the middle of the night at 2 and 5 am.

While all this was going on, I was very concerned about getting Gail home as we had planned to drive back starting on the 24th. There was no way she could handle the drive. Our neighbour Marilyn found out how I could extend our tourist visa and got information for us about getting the car home. Others picked me up at the hospital every day to take me home for a shower and clean clothes and drove me back. (I found out three days into this that there is a free parking lot next to the hospital which is always half empty).

Then our angels and wonderful friends in Canada got involved. First of all Lea called Westjet, arranged to fly to PV on Friday the 20th and fly back to Kelowna with Gail on Tuesday the 24th. I was feeling optimistic at this point that she would be out of the hospital by then but still unable to travel via car. Our neigbours Tony and Maureen offered to stay a few extra days so I could drive behind them in the car. This was a huge relief as I did NOT want to drive through Mexico on my own. I told them if they just got me to Arizona I would be fine, not great but fine. They want to meander home slowly. Then my next angel appeared when Dale (McManus Dale not Liddicoat Dale) arranged to fly to Phoenix after work on Thursday and drive the rest of the way home with me. She is switching flex days on Friday and we are planning a marathon drive back to Vancouver. Ann (who is now back in Vancouver) is going to meet me at the border and take me to the airport. I have a flight from there to Kelowna on the 30th and will fly home to Victoria with Gail on April 4. Dale will drive the car back to Victoria.

Gail finally came home on St. Patrick's Day. She was very weak and came with a an arsenal of medications. On the way home I was pulled over for speeding -the first time in my life. I paid the cop on the spot so I could get going (mordida or the "bite" it's called.)

Lea arrived Friday and was an enormous help. She cooked, she cleaned, she looked after Gail and helped me pack up the house for the next seven months. I would not have been able to cope without her.

Yesterday morning I said goodbye to Lea and Gail and started my long drive north with Tony and Maureen. They are now in Calgary overnight and will get back to Kelowna in the morning. Once again our neighbours came to the rescue as we had offers from Monica and Rolf, plus Candace and her family to take Lea and Gail to the airport. Candace, her three kids, her Mom and stepdad were all taking the same flight back to Calgary. They had rides arranged and included Gail and Lea which was so kind. I am now wide awake at 3:30 am and am in a hotel about half way to the US border.

I cannot thank our friends and neighbours enough for coming to our aid. I have never been in a position where I needed so much and we are truly blessed to be so loved by so many. It's been two weeks that I will never forget.

Visitors from Austria

Our final house guests for this year have come and gone. We were so delighted to meet Walter and Maria at the airport a couple of weeks ago. We met them almost five years ago when we house exchanged with them in Vienna. It was delightful to see them again.

Walter and Maria are such experienced travelers. They actually put us to shame with their knowledge of Mexico- the people, the culture, the history etc. I am going to spend some time over the next year learning more about this wonderful country that we love so much.

Of course we did the usual tourist trip into Puerto Vallarta. This time I took along a little book I found somewhere which had the history behind every one of the sculptures along the malecon in it. We stopped at each one and read the story which made each of these unusual pieces of art so much more meaningful. Of course we also stopped at the Cheeky Monkey for a break and people watching, then on to a lovely walk to the southside.

We also went to the weekly market in La Penita, where I saw a beautiful Mexican tile decorated mirror that I knew would be just perfect for the guest bedroom. Before I knew what happened, they had bought it for us! We had quite a challenge fitting it into the trunk of the car. In fact, it didn't fit well enough to close the lid, so we had the young salesman find rope for us and tie it into the back. That ended our shopping trip and plans to stop in Sayulita on the way back. We just couldn't leave the car with the mirror hanging out the back.

It was a slow drive back to Bucerias as I had such delicate cargo in back. I am sure that the many vehicles behind me appreciated it when I pulled over to make sure that the mirror was still safe and securely tied in.

Walter and our neighbour Bud spent a a lot of time measuring and calculating the position on the wall. Because everything is concrete here, it's not just a matter of drilling a hole and making another if you make a mistake. Anyway, it is just perfect and we love it. THANK YOU WALTER AND MARIA!

We spent time on the beach and one day went to our favorite hideaway at Destilladaries. This has to be the most spectacular beach in our area but is a little remote so you definitely need a car to get there. The beach is wide and long and usually quite deserted. The day we were there was somewhat busy as I think it was one of the many holidays in Mexico. There were about 100 or so people- which considering the size of the beach was still far from crowded.

The night before Walter and Maria left for Guadalajara on the bus, we went to our favorite beach side restaurant. The portions are so large that we usually split our order. Then after, as it was Sunday night, we drove into PV for family night on the Malecon. They were delighted to witness the indigenous Papantla Flyers present one of their amazing “high flying” shows.

Now they are on to the next stage of their three month tour of Mexico. I know they will immerse themselves in every part of the places they visit. The last stop will be Mexico City where they will meet up with their lovely daughter Steffi, who is currently teaching German in the University there. Our only regret in seeing them was missing Steffi!

Philo's Kites and Drag Queens!

Thursday night we went to La Cruz with Sharon for gringas on the street, which you know we love. Afterwards, we went to Philo's for the Thursday night open mike and jam session. We love going to this great pizza joint/bar/dance place. Last week we were treated to a fabulous little boy, about six years old, playing the spoons like a little demon with the big boys in the band. He was so little, his feet were swinging from the chair while he whipped the spoons to some awesome music. Philo's has just about the best sax player I have ever heard, Oscar Fuentes. He also does a mean version of House of the Rising Sun that will just send chills up your spine.

Friday, Sharon was not feeling well, so we took it easy at home. No she wasn't feeling the effects of the night before, just too much heat and too little rest I think.
Saturday morning we spent on the beach and Gail took the kite that Dale and Michelle bought for her from one of the vendors when they were here. It was a perfect kite flying day- blue sky and just enough wind to keep the kite up and our umbrella planted in the sand.

Saturday night, eight of us went to Senor Iguana's for a dinner and drag queen show. It was fantastic! We all had a great time seeing these three guys perform Shania Twain, Bette Midler, Marilyn Monroe, Witney Huston, Tina Turner and more. It was a night of complete laughter. Gail the ham had to have her picture taken with the girls when we were leaving.

Yesterday, Sharon left to go back to Edmonton and today we are just about to head back to the airport to pick up our final guests for this season in Bucerias. Our friends Walter and Maria from Vienna are coming for a week. We haven't seen them since 2004 so are very much looking forward to their visit.