On the road, 7000+ miles

We departed Santa Fe, NM on November 23, 2015, headed for Nevada for Thanksgiving with family, enjoyed one of the days there on a large houseboat on Lake Mead, very low water level.  Then it was off to Grass Valley, CA where we picked up our "new" to us 2006 Dynamax 32 XL (Freightliner M2 chassis, Cat 300 ACERT and Allison 6 spd) Very low mileage and in excellent condition. Pic above. Registration a little complicated in CA so had to drive to Reno to get the right papers so title could be issued from Montana.  NM has to have a visual inspection of the VIN and that wasn't feasible.

Then to Pleasanton, CA (Fairgrounds) for a week while we both got sick with some kind of ugly sinus infection, treated at Urgent Care, prescribed antibiotics and took all ten days to mend.  Left our dog Dude, somewhat reluctantly, with one of our kids and their three kids while we headed south along the coast, stopping along the way in Paso Robles, Ventura and then east to AZ to cross at Lukeville.  Crossed easily, quickly and spent a couple of days with friends camped at Puerto Penasco.

Forgot to get our visas and stickers so had to detour back to Nogales, then on to Mazatlan and a minor crash with a parked car while I was trying to make a U-turn at the end of a dead end street, near the Cerritos campground at the north end of town if you know the area.  Settled with the poor guy for cash as his older model Nissan suffered some major damage all along the left side.  Then it was Mazatlan to Lo de Marcos, about an hour north of Puerto Vallarta.  Spent two months at La Parota, on the beach in a wonderful small, quiet town yet to be over developed and over priced compared to Sayulita and San Pancho.

Found a good Freightliner service at Jimenez Autocamiones in PV and they made two trips out to the park and we took the rig into town one day for some service and maintenance.  Very accommodating and reasonable.  Also had electric steps repaired in the park from local electrician who did a superb job.

Started back on Feb 23 and although going to CA to retrieve dog, decided to cross at Columbia Bridge near Nuevo Laredo in Texas.  Back to Mazatlan the first day and joined two other couples at La Jaimbas park, also on north end of town.  Then took the toll road from Mazatlan through and over the mountains to Durango and on to Torreon.  From there we made it to Columbia crossing and breezed through with no traffic, no inspections save for a check on the American side in the basements.  Did not turn in our visas.  Cashed in the car sticker but kept the RV sticker as it's good for 10 years.  Spent the night at Casa Blanca state park.

Then it was through and around Texas, to Van Horn, a very long way about 840 miles in one day. On to Pleasanton, CA via overnight in Banning, CA (adjacent to Palm Springs) had a couple of family gatherings including a birthday celebration and then headed back toward Santa Fe.  Great stop at Homolovi Ruins state park in AZ near Winslow and dinner at La Posada in The Turquoise Room, a must if you're traveling easy or west on I-40.  Arrived back on March 6 and began the job of unpacking, sorting, and getting ready for what's next.  All in all, a great trip!  Any questions or for more info, please inquire.

BEING IN MEXICO Part I

We have been coming to Mexico for the past 18 years, visiting often enough to have gained our own experience and impressions in different places and with other people, both Mexicans and other Norteamericanos.  There are as many Canadians here, maybe more in some places, than there are people from the United States.  An interesting fact is that all three countries, Canada, U.S. and Mexico are part of America in the sense of being part of North America.  Central America doesn't begin until below the Mexican border at Guatemala but few people would call Canadians or Mexicans Americans and usually reserve that label for people from the U.S.  Minor point, just interesting to me.

To put this in context, Warren Hardy has a fascinating lecture on the differing values between the U.S. and Mexico that are reflected in our different cultures. If you want to understand another person or another country, you need to understand and appreciate their culture.  You don't have to agree with what they do or how they do things but it helps enormously if you understand their history, their values and their language.   In fact, these days, you don't have to speak Spanish to get along well in Mexico although it is a tremendous benefit and facilitates more and better communication if you do.  You can find Warren's video lecture on his web site here:  http://warrenhardy.com/videos/culture

Our experience is that our neighbors here, south of the border, are gracious, friendly, helpful, welcoming and often eager to connect and communicate.  There are many who believe that Mexico is a dangerous place because of the press that highlights the problems with drugs, the cartels that fight with each other, the violence and the statistics about homicides and theft.  The biggest consumer of those drugs is the U.S. and without that demand, the drug business would not be so robust.  The recent El Chapo publicity accentuates some of the problems including corruption at every level.  While political corruption is part of the fabric here, it's understood as another way of doing business.  We have even participated by paying off a couple of policemen instead of going to the "office" to pay a traffic ticket, one for going the wrong way down a one-way street and the other for being in the wrong lane in a commercial zone.  Tourists are easy targets for the "policia" who want to make a "mordita" or take a "bite" out of our pockets.  And even they were friendly while doing it!  I can share the details in another post later on.

We are currently ensconced in a small, coastal village, Lo de Marcos, about 45 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta on the Pacific coast.   It's a quiet place except at holiday times when Mexican families come to celebrate and enjoy the beach.  And even then there's a wonderful atmosphere of sharing and mutual respect.  The other villages that we have experienced nearby include Bucerias, Sayulita and San Pancho, as well as La Penita and it''s open air market just to the north.  We have also traveled some in the interior and spent time in San Miguel Allende, an historical city that's full of ex-pats from north of the border.   What many people who winter here for several months have discovered is not only the terrific weather and rich culture but also an affordable place for those on a fixed income.  Some believe the U.S. actively discourages people from coming to Mexico because they bring their income here rather than spending it in the states.

Suffice to say here, for now, that we love Mexico and the people here, we appreciate the opportunity we have for being here, as guests in their country, and we find the people here like others all over the world.  These are kind and generous folks, caring and loving of their families, often working very hard to make a living, and in a beautiful place with mountains, farms, oceans and a long history of slavery and impoverishment.  You can make of it what you will and I will share some stories later that illustrate a few of our experiences that highlight our time and travel here.  We feel safe because we usually know where we're going, how to get there and where we are going to stay.  And if we do get lost, people seem eager to help a stranger in need. To me, that's a big mark on the positive side to help erase some of the negative impressions that others might have.  More later.....