Retire Early in Mexico

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Bruce and Mary have been so caught up with their Cupocity coupons which have taken them to some pretty nice restaurants that they have neglected the bread and butter of their typical hospitality experience in Mexico, and that is the comida economica, the juggernaut of the Mexican hospitality scene, where all the working class eat.

We’re settled into our usual table, at Fondo Flor, looking out on Calle Caranza. Tacaños that we are we bring our own waters when we come here for breakfast.

Mary’s Huevos Mexicanos come. She loves this quintessential Mexican breakfast staple of scrambled eggs with tons of chopped peppers, tomatoes and onions. It is a lot of tasty food and a good deal of it ends up being dessert for me.

And my Jamon y queso, ham and cheese, omelet. Man there are so many places to get a really good omelet in Old Town and you can definitely put Fondo Flor on that list. BTW, all the breakfast choices here at Fondo Flor are 40P, but unlike fancier restaurants, what you see is what you get, there is no unlimited coffee or juice included.

We’re here for a late lunch this day and all lunches include soup of the day and this day it is sopa de pasta. Oh, BTW: They don’t have a beer license here, so they tell you to go to the corner to Johanna’s place to buy your own beers. NP!

These are today’s choices.

It wasn’t on the menu but Mary was in the mood for a Quesadilla Sencilla (w/o carne) con cebolla, onion, and she gets this. Her eyes get pretty big.

And my Bistek en Salsa Pasilla comes. It looks great, but I must tell you that about a third of the meat is pretty grizzly (what is not, is very tasty however) but then, to be honest, we’ve known for a long time that res, beef, is always chancy in a comida economica.

But I gotta tell ya, this Salsa Pasilla is out of this world, I am scooping up the last drops of it.

We’re back again, and this time the soup is sopa de col y verduras, cabbage and vegetables. This gets the ole appetite fired up.

Mary’s Taquitos de Coliflor (sin carne) come and she is delighted. These huge cauliflower florets are dipped in batter, quickly fried then bathed in a simple but delicious tomato sauce. And believe it or not, she ate it all, no doggy bag this time!

My filete de pescado empanizado, breaded fish filet has come and all I can say is WOW! It is the largest and tastiest breaded fish fillet I have ever had. It is so juicy and flavorful, I ask que tipo pescado and am told, Basa.

The muy amable Miriam has been our mesera on every visit.

Miriam is a hard worker, now she is taking care of kitchen duties.

On our way out the door we bump into Johanna, friend and proprietor of our beer store, Licoreria Pinto, a few paces away on the corner of Caranza y Insurgentes. Johanna tells Mary that on some days, she takes her breakfast, lunch and dinner here at Fondo Flor. Who can blame her!?

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. Bruce and Mary welcome any and all stories of other PV comidas economicas. And of course comentarios of any nature are always most welcome. Hasta proximo Domingo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Please join Bruce and Mary as they check out the Old Town Puerto Vallarta hospitality scene once again. Buen provecho!

Mary is at the door of Magna, Magna (pronounced Manja, Manja, Italian for Eat, Eat!). Miel Fusion will be closing for the summer soon and in our hunt for another great Italian eatery we are lucky to come across this restaurante. For as we all know, one cannot survive for long without Italian fare in your diet. BTW: Magna, Magna is on the corner of Lázaro Cárdenas y Jacaranda.

Mary is at the top of the stairway to this fancifully decorated restaurant.

We’re looking down the length of the dining room from our street-side table. We love the ambiance.

Mary has just photo-bombed my shot of our view down Calle Cárdenas.The Magna, Magna Coat of Arms. And their mission statement is…

“Life is too short to eat and drink badly.”

Every meal starts with bread, chips and these wonderful salsas: A creamy parsley and caper concoction and some very spicy Cola de Rato chili sauce. The homemade bread (baked downstairs in a panaderia soon to be open to the public) is so dense and flavorful it is incredible on its own, add the salsas and you practically have a meal!

Next comes the bruschetta, part of the Cupocity coupon offering that brings us here initially. Naturally, Tacaño that I am, we’re splitting the meal. Mary opts for the bruschetta and starts purring right away. This features their extraordinary bread, toasted, rubbed with garlic and topped with very fresh chopped tomatoes with parsley and basil. Always a big fan of bruschetta, Mary once found a recipe in which the author described the elegant simplicity and sensual flavors of bruschetta by exclaiming “I could take off my clothes and make bruschetta!” Most sanitarians would frown on that.

Here is my Seafood Cannelloni, Mary has the salad to complement her bruscheta. I have never had Cannelloni before so I have no frame of reference, all I can tell you is that it is very cheesy and very tasty.

We don’t normally do dessert but in this case it is part of the coupon deal. Neither of us had ever heard of “chocolate salami“. We find it to be a very rich, dense chocolate taste sensation. A perfect finale to this awesome meal.

We’re back again, this time sin coupon, so we need to peruse the menu. Mary is going to try the Spinach and Parmesan soup. Hmm, I think I’ll go for the Chicken Scaloppini, Parmesan with Pesto and Tomatoes.

To drink? We’ll have our usual Pacificos and we are pleased to see that they are only 20P which, for a nice restaurante, is pretty cheap.

And for you wine lovers here are los precios por botellas.We  have been relaxing, enjoying the view and noshing on the bread and chips when our food arrives. The presentation is as awesome as the meal. This soup is a very creamy, thick explosion of spinach and Parmesan cheese. The drizzle of EVOO on top is the icing on this cake!

And this is my Chicken Scaloppini. The chicken is very tender and moist and all the seasoning is so fresh. Growing up in a large family, I have always been a very fast eater, often I am done when companions are half way through their salad. But this is so good it causes me to slow down to a normal speed and actually taste the food.

Our server and the proprietor of Manga, Magna, Luca. The muy amable Luca is the real deal, hailing from Torino, Italy. Bien hecho, Luca!

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. As you know,  Bruce and Mary love comentarios, regarding the PV hospitality scene, or any other subject for that matter. And a Happy Mother’s day to Mary, Margaret and Harriet and all deserving mothers out there, you know who you are! Hasta proximo Domingo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. As most of you know, beer is very close to the hearts of Bruce and Mary. So, they are compelled to bring you a beer update. Cheers!

That’s Mary yonder, standing in front of our new beer store, Licoreria Pinto, on the corner of  Calles Insurgentes y Caranza.

I’m about to go inside with my deposito for another case of our house beer, Pacifico. We had been happy with our old beer store,  Xuper Cosas (click on the hot link if you’d like a brief  overview of beer in Mexico) until one day we stopped there and found them clausurado, closed. According to the banner across the door, the city had shut them down. Well, faced with a beer emergency and scratching our heads, a passing local took pity on us and led us a block up the street to Licoreria Pinto. We must have walked by it a hundred times without noticing it. And we were pleased that not only had they not been shut down by the city sting (a lot of joints were) they were even cheaper!

Jaciel at the ready. Whenever we walk in the store, Jaciel, without a word, grabs a case of Pacifico, takes my deposito off my cart and helps me strap the fresh case in. BTW: A case of Pacifico, after a recent price increase, is 187P al tiempo, room temp, or 195 frio, from the cooler. They offer delivery for 20P anywhere in PV and even Mismaloya. If you order 5 cases or more the fee is waived and yes we  have actually seen Jaciel on the street with 5 cases of beer on his back. Que forte!

Their coolers, containing bebidas frias, ice cold beverages.

A litro of Pacifico is 24P, Corona is 26P.

On the opposite wall are video games and… would you believe it? A telephone booth!

And what beer store would be complete without an assortment of snacks?

And they have a selection of the hard stuff and smokes.

Mary is settling  up with Johanna, la dueña, the owner, and her right hand man Jaciel. BTW: Johana does speak English, but we enjoy practicing our Espanol with her, as she is muy amable.

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. Bruce and Mary think they have found the cheapest beer in Old Town but they could be wrong (and often are) so please feel free in setting them straight. And a Happy Cinco de Mayo to all! Hasta proxima Domingo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Please join Bruce and Mary as they satisfy their cravings for tacos. BTW: If you would like to view this post with a short video that will not embed on this site please go to Bruce and Mary’s original blog-site. Buen provecho!

Angel, the proprietor of the Tacos y Carnitas Los Tres Hermanos taco stand is hard at work. There are probably hundreds of taco stands in PV but this one, right around the corner from where we live, is ours and we love it. BTW, I am glad to see that he is keeping the tripa, tripe well away from the other meats on the grille. I’ve only eaten tripe once, and that was accidentally, yowser!

Here you can see Angel’s menu. Tacos here, as at most stands, are 10P each.My three tacos, hot off the grill. Today we’re going to dine here, ofttimes we order para llevar, to go, and enjoy our tacos on the deck at home.

I’m slathering on the hot sauce. This day I am having chorizo, adobada and asada tacos, yummm!

Mary, cheap date that she is, settles for one taco pollo, with fried onions on the side. Vegans can eat chicken, right?

Today, Angel’s ayudante, helper, is his hija, daughter, Atziri.

On another day hijo Alan is on duty, but his idea of work is a little different than Atziri’s… But it’s pretty entertaining. Here he is about to perform a  spinning top trick.

I’m enjoying my tacos with a 16oz Tecate that Mary bought at the Oxxo across the street. It’s funny, when we first got here we asked if it was ok to drink in public and Angel looked at us like we were crazy. What a contrast to Merida. With the exception of Carnaval, it is strictly prohibido and in reality almost never seen.

Mary says, “Cheers!”

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. As Bruce and Mary love to say, “Sometimes it’s the little things…” PV readers, please share stories of your favorite taco stands and of course comentarios on any and all subjects are much appreciated.  Hasta proximo Domingo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Please join Bruce and Mary as they visit their favorite vivero, greenhouse for yet some more flowering plants.

Viveros Shalom, our vivero, is situated at the corner of Avenidas Francisco Villa and De Los Tules. From Old Town, take pretty much any green bus and get off when you see Costco off to the left.  BTW: I did some googling and there are over 4 pages of viveros in PV. This just happens to be the one that we like.

Me? I’m just hanging out, this is Mary’s gig.

But I do find these pots and hangers interesting.

Mary among the ferns.

Now she’s checking out the flowering plants.

Name that flower!

On about our 4th or 5th visit we mentioned to Jaime that we would be blogging about his vivero. He instantly offered Mary a regalo, gift of her choice. She chose this. Muchas gracias, mi amigo!

Here’s Mary’s bright blue Plumbago, potted and on our deck.

Here’s Jaime’s gift, potted.

This is Mary’s absolute favorite, a Mandevilia, a climbing, flowering vine. Que bonita!

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. Bruce and Mary are really enjoying, for the first time in Mexico, making their residence their home and flowering the patio is one of the funnest parts of that quest. They would love to hear any and all comentarios regarding gardening or any other topic. Hasta proxima Donimgo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Please join Bruce and Mary as they continue to add to their book of service providers in their adopted home, Puerto Vallarta.

While sipping beers and  munching on botanas at Toños with our friends Phil and Di, I encountered that all too familiar sensation. A sensitive molar had calved. So I worked that chunk of tooth out of my mouth for display to all. Everyone was fairly impressed. But now I have to see my dentista Guillermo and here I am in front of his office on Calle A. Serdan, entre Constitucion y I. Vallarta. Guillermo came to be our dentista by way of the use of one simple criterion. When we came to PV last summer, overdue for teeth cleaning, he was by far the cheapest in Old Town. And we discovered that there are a number of dentistas who charge “gringo prices” to gringos, here. But not Guillermo, he cleans teeth for only 400P and now it’s time to check in with him for some serious work.

Speaking of cheap… braces anyone?

Upon examination Guillermo tells me that I do not need a corona, crown, that an incrustación, onlay will solve the problem. My mouth contains a small yacht worth of crowns and this is the first busted tooth that has not resulted in the need for another one.  Here, after a shot of Novocaine,  Guillermo is etching my busted tooth, prepping it for the onlay.

In our experience, there is little “four handed” dentistry down here. With no assistant manning that sucking drainage tube thingy (a.k.a. an aspirator, Mary tells me), I simply rinse and spit.

Guillermo is pressing the impression tray into place.

The finished impression.

Guillermo is mixing up a  paste which has the distinct odor of cloves (I am reminded of Marathon Man). He applies it to my busted tooth as a pain preventative. Most of it falls out later but enough remains to keep the tooth from being overly sensitive.

About a week and a half later I’m back in Guillermo’s oficina and now he is cleaning the tooth, readying it for the onlay.

Here is the onlay, cast from the impression.

Guillermo is mixing the glue and a minute later the onlay is in place. After a few days, when my mouth has settled down,  the onlay still feels un poco alto, a little high, so I stop back and after a little grinding, my mouth is totally back to normal.

And the total cost for all of this? 1000P, about $81USD. Gracias tan mucho, Dr. Guillermo! We quiz him a little more about his prices and he tells us that he would have done a metal crown for that same tooth for the same price. If I’d gone porcelain, it would have run 1500P, but you all know by now what a tacaño I am.  Asking further about crowns, he says they range from 1000P to 3000P depending on metal or porcelain, which tooth and its condition. Loyal reader, maybe it’s time for a little dental tourism, eh?

Thanks for visiting gentle reader.  Bruce and Mary have lived in Mexico for over 5 years and they are still astounded regularly by the values of services down here. If you have any similar stories please share, comentarios are always most welcome. Hasta proximo Domingo!

Bienvenido loyal reader. Please join Bruce and Mary as they once again explore Puerto Vallarta’s vast hospitality scene. Buen provecho!

I am relaxing at a patio table fronting La Cabaña Azul. Once again we are guided to a gastronomic adventure by Cupocity.

Right away I am compelled to tell co-owner Claudia that the google map on the coupon puts her restaurante east of Av Francisco Villa when in actuality it is west, about a block and a half beyond Costco. She is aware of that and I find that if I had read the directional instructions on the coupon, we wouldn’t have gotten in such a good walk.

Owners Claudia and Carlos. Claudia is a Peruvian native and Carlos is from DF (Mexico City) with relatives here in PV. Ironically they met when both lived in NYC.

The chefs: Yadira, who is the chicken expert, and Bruno, also from Peru, is the master of the seafood. Claudia explains to us that the chicken is marinated for 24 hours in special spices and vegetables, then slowly roasted on a rotisserie over a charcoal and wood fueled fire.

For your perusal, here is the menu.

While we are waiting for our chicken dinners we are drawn to this awesome photo of Machu Picchu.

Our food, 1/4 chicks with salad and fries, has arrived. The three wonderful salsas are: aji amarillo, made with a Peruvian yellow pepper, a dressing for our salads and a sauce with a hint of huacatay, a popular Peruvian black mint that is commonly served with rotisserie chicken. La Cabaña Azul has a wide array of soft drink choices but for us beer drinkers there are only ponies of  Corona for 25P each.

I can honestly say that this is the best chicken I have ever had! The meat falls off the bones, the sweet marinade is delightful and the skin which I normally discard, is like crispy candy, hmmmm.

But wait there’s more! Just as we’re leaving, an order of chicken brochetas and mollejitas de pollo, chicken gizzards comes out of the kitchen so I just have to take this pic, I mean who doesn’t love chicken gizzards, eh?

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. The thing that Bruce and Mary really love about Cupocity is that it takes them to places that they have never heard of and would never have visited but for the coupons. Keep up the good work, Cupocity! Hasta proximo Domingo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Please come along as Bruce and Mary join in with the revelers for a Semana Santa, Easter Week, beach day.

It is the Saturday before Easter and this is Playa de Los Muertos stretching south from the Pier. It is sombrilla a sombrilla, umbrella to umbrella as far as you can see.

And it’s the same story north of the pier. We see very few gringos, we suspect most of them are in the Hotel Zone way yonder.

We are in luck, there is a little gap between sombrillas right in our usual spot and we set up camp. Mary says, “Cheers!”

Inspired by reader Barb, Mary snaps this “Where’s Bruce?” pic.

This is the family to our right, chowing down on tostadas loaded with ceviche brought from home.

This is the family to our left. They are enjoying homemade pasta salad con salchicha, with hotdog slices, on tostadas, of course.  One constant throughout Mexico seems to be the love affair with hotdogs.

For those of us who didn’t haul coolers of food from home, there are plenty of food vendors. This gentleman is selling watermelon and mangos on a stick along with other goodies. Note the bottles of hot sauce, believe it or not, they do go great with mangos and watermelons.

For your sweet tooth here is a dona, donut vendor.

This ice cream treats vendor has hit the mother lode.

This is the only way to do papitas, potato chips: A liberal dose of lime juice with plenty of hot sauce.

And that’s the only way to do palomitas, popcorn as well. I only help out a little as I’ve already treated myself to fish on a stick, but I can tell you that this popcorn is, and I wanted to say, “nose-running hot” but Mary won’t let me!

There are even beach toy vendors.

And speaking of vendors, along comes our friend Poncho. We are relaxing beneath one of his sombrillas.

The beach is hopping and there is a lot of activity out in the water, too. I guess someone forgot to tell this chico that jumping off the pier abutments is strictly verboten.

After floating over the bay this para-sailer comes in for a landing. These operators are being kept busy non-stop.

This is one of many sailboats in the bay.

And here’s a million dollar yacht. They’re probably not wondering what the poor people are doing right now.

We’ve finished our beers and are about to pack up when we see this, a man and son doing what is done on every beach in the world, digging a hole.

We’re marching home on Calle F. Rodriguez and leaving the pier behind.

Looking back we see the locals have employed a first in, last out parking strategy. This is not the first time we celebrate not owning a car. We continue walking home “on the flat” taking the long way back down Olas Altas and Basilio Badillo instead of dealing with the hill between our end of F. Rodriguez and the pier. The streets are fairly deserted but they sure won’t be when the sun sets and the masses leave the beach. I’m glad we’ll be snoring by then.

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. As usual any and all commentary is most welcome. Hasta proximo Domingo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Please join Bruce and Mary as they celebrate good times with good friends!

After a direct flight from Seattle (wonder what those are like) Phil and Di meet us at the Sea Monkey, right on the beach, here in Old Town, Puerto Vallarta. Phil and Di laugh at us as we feel a little chilled by the sea breeze. Maybe we have gone native.

The next day we welcome our good friends Reg and Larry. They are fresh in from DF and spending a week before heading back to their home in Progreso, Yucatan. We’d also invited our PV friends Pablo and Scott to this little happy hour as tomorrow they are leaving their beautiful casa across the street and journeying back to their home in VA.

Mary set out some appetizers: crudites,  guacamole, chips, salsa, chicharo and garbanzo bean mix and cheese, crackers and polenta with guacamole.

Here are some of the beautiful plants and flowers that Pablo and Scott donated to us before their departure. And yes, those are orchids on the left.

Here we are at Miel Fusion. Phil and Di have insisted that they treat me to a belated BD dinner. You know me, my arm can be twisted.

My Pollo Miel is absolutely sumptuous.

Phil is quite pleased with this succulent Ribeye.

The Carbonara absolutely lives up to Di’s high Italian standards.

Mary’s Pasta el Pesto. Mary loves all the pasta dishes here. BTW: Reg and Larry fell in love with this place.After our meals at Miel Fusion we are relaxing with cocktails on our deck. I think you can tell that I just got busted for a tall one.

We’re busing our way to La Caipirinha near Pitillal and Reg and Larry are telling us of their day trip into Mismaloya yesterday. These wild and crazy guys, on the spur of the moment, did a zip line tour taking them over 100m above the jungle floor!

We’re at La Caipirinha and we’d invited Phil and Di to join us. Coincidentally they are staying at Hotel Posada Roger in a room adjacent to Reg and Larry. They all soon become good friends.

Mary and Larry are playing with his new Samsung smart phone. Their pic is on FB before our food arrives. Larry tells us that he used to be critical of people who are always fiddling with their smart phones but now, he says, “I’m one of them!”

Our Ribeyes have come, done perfectly, as usual. Phil and Di are going to check out the all you can eat buffet.

Starting with a huge plate of sides, this Brazilian buffet continues with skewer after skewer of meat, chicken, and sausage until you say, “No mas!” Which takes a while as Di has one of those metabolisms that allows her to pack it away and still remain very slender. I wish I had one of those.

Once again Oscar has been our wonderful server.

On our way back to the bus stop we come across this sterilization clinic at Los Mangos, the English Library in PV. BTW: Reg was spotted on the street here in PV by someone who recognized him from his Merida English Library Admin days. Small world, Reg, eh?

We’re gathered at Cafe Bohemio, it is Reg and Larry’s getaway night and we won’t let them leave without experiencing this wonderfully eclectic Bistro.

Our food arrives, this is Di’s Huachinango, Red Snapper.  It is as good as it looks.

On my recommendation Phil orders the Paella. He is not disappointed.

Larry is impressed not only with the preparation of these mussels but also the sheer number of them.

This is Mary’s veggie chile accompanied by a monster salad. She never tires of this dish and who can blame her?

Reg has the Liver and Onions. He offers me a sample and man, it is as good as mom used to make!

After completing our meals we linger getting up to speed with all the latest in Merida and Progreso. Then we all walk the few blocks back to Hotel Posada Roger to say goodbye to our good friends. Thanks for visiting Reg and Larry, it was great getting caught up with you guys!

We are in pueblo Mismaloya. In the future Phil and Di are going to start splitting their time between Seattle and Mexico. They have checked out Merida and we have convinced them that their due diligence of PV would not be complete without checking out the southern portion of the Bay of Banderas. BTW: These kids insisted upon being in a pic and then demanded to be paid for it! But they are so cute Mary anted up a peso apiece.

Now we’re on the beach. I have just taken a dip and the water is warming up!

And this? Well this is just a cute pic of Mary and Di on the beach.

We’ve had a wonderful time exchanging stories on the beach and now it is time to head out. We’re at the bus stop and Mary is trying to save us bus fare.

We want to have one last meal with Phil and Di before they fly back to Seattle and it appears that Cafe Bohemio is our default for such occasions  and really, why not?

Di’s meatloaf arrives and not only is it tasty the portion is huge! But don’t worry, Di makes short work of it.

Phil is a Mole fan and this Pollo Mole hits the spot.

Mary has the Penne Marinara and cheap date that she is, I get to finish it. It is delicious.

We were hoping for a Sol sighting but alas, owner Sol is avoiding Semana Santa in PV at his Palm Springs home but no problem, our favorite server Skinny Alex is providing plenty of entertainment.

We have finished our meals and we are lingering, wanting to extend our time with our good friends when Di surprises us with a gift package of Tajin. When we were at Toños, Di had laughed when Mary dug a Tajin shaker out of her purse to season our botanas. Di wants to make sure Mary never runs out. Also, more directed at me, they got us a bunch of cigars from our man Rogelio, only these are a definite upgrade from the cheap ones I usually buy. Thanks a lot Phil and Di!

We settle our bills and leisurely walk Olas Altas back to Hotel Posada Roger (and on the way we see, at a sidewalk cafe, a small Pug standing on a table eating off a plate next to his owners’, I really don’t know what to say about that!) and finally we part with hugs and kisses and hopes that they will decide on PV for their Mx part-time home. Cheers!

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. If you’re curious, it was this blog that helped influence Phil and Di to visit Merida where we first met them and instantly bonded and also why they decided to check out PV. Bruce and Mary have found that one of the unexpected joys of writing this blog is the opportunity to make such good friends with such fine people. Hasta proxima Domingo!

Bienvenido, loyal reader. Please join Bruce and Mary as they deal with a surprising cultural difference between Yucatan and Jalisco.

Here we are relaxing in our hamaca matrimonial in our Merida casa. When we packed to move to Puerto Vallarta we gave away and threw away a lot of stuff and we deliberated donating our hamaca to the house, but luckily we did not. Because, after a little research, Mary discovered that what we had taken for granted is unique to Yucatan. It is the Hammock capital of the world, or at least Mexico.

Here’s Mary checking out yet another hammock at our Merida hammock store. Including ours, I think we have bought about a half dozen or so, here. They make great gifts for Stateside rellies and friends. BTW: This is what I call a hammock store.

When we moved to PV we experienced hamaca culture shock when looking for an apartment. The ubiquitous (in Merida) hamaqueros,  hammock hooks, were nowhere to be found. In Merida, nearly every room in the city has at least one pair and for many Meridanos a hamaca is their bed. Let’s fast-forward, we’ve been in our little flat long enough to start taking ownership of it and the one thing that will really make this place feel like home is a nice siesta in our hamaca, hecho en Yucatan. So we set off on our quest.

These are the two most common hamaqueros in Merida. A steel “S” hook is used to attach the hamaca to the hamaquero. The forked end is embedded in concrete when the house is built or if it’s a retrofit, an albañil, mason will cut, hammer and chisel into the wall and cement these bad boys in. Next stop, our hardware store.

We’re at our hardware store, on Calle Constitucion, Madero y Serdan. We call it the Hardware Store of Orneriness. That’s a little inside joke – our hardware store in Merida was named Tlaperia la Tristesa, Hardware Store of Tears, and since they just don’t seem to like me much here, the name fits.

But Angel seems to finally be warming up to me, but… he has never heard of hamaqueros. I explain that we want to hang a hamaca so he sells me a 1/2″ broca, drill bit and…

A pair of these. They seem a little light but I figured Angel should know what he’s talking about. So I go to work. I drill the holes, hammer in the anchors, screw in the hooks, hang the hamaca and then we test it.

I think you can tell from pix in this blog that Mary is pretty tiny. This is the result of putting about half her weight on the hamaca. If she had put all her weight into the test, there would have been an anchor shaped missile flying by.

It’s time to get some professional help. For hamaqueros, that is. We have no clue who to talk to, so one day as we were walking by the Comex store on Basilio Badillo just east of Insurgentes, we decide to pop in and Francisco, the store mgr, is happy to give us the name and number of a reputable albañil, Ramon. We called him the next day and he came over immediately for an estimate and commenced work the following day. Here is Ramon at work:

The polvo is flying!

Now it’s good ole fashion hammer and chisel work.

Not able to secure a proper hamaquero Ramon is actually wiring this much heavier anchor to exposed re-rod.

A closer look.

Now, Ramon is about to mix a combination of marmolina and concreto blanco, which I have never heard of. If I hadn’t thought it before, I am thinking it now: I would have been a complete fool to have tackled this myself.

He’s troweling the mix in and…

Doing the finishing work.

And of course no job is done until the work-site is clean. Ramon leaves our back deck/laundry room muy limpio. Tomorrow morning, after the concrete has set, he will do the painting.

The painting is about done and now it is time for el gran prueba, the big test…

You could have a party in this hamaca!!

Of course we think it is only fitting that Ramon should enjoy the fruits of his labor.

We’ve just settled up for the exact amount of the quote – 600P and while doing so we find that not only is Ramon an albañil capable of any and all concrete work including new construction, he is an artisan. He actually weaves hamacas himself which vendors sell on the beach and in several stores. Who knew? BTW: Ramon Mendez cell number is 322-157-6602. Give him a call for any sort of concrete work.

Thanks for visiting, gentle reader. Now that they have their hamaca up, Bruce and Mary report that all is well in their world. Happy St. Paddy’s day and Hasta proxima Domingo!