Early January in San Miguel

—Blogpost written by Bob 

In this blogpost, we continue our 6-month winter excursion in Mexico.  We arrived by car on October 15 in San Miguel de Allende, traveling from near Annapolis, Maryland where we live on our sailboat.  This blogpost describes four early days of 2022 in San Miguel de Allende.  (At the end of January we will be moving to Bucerias near Puerto Vallarta, on the coast, for our last two months in Mexico.)

Tuesday, January 4

It was very cold in the apartment this morning!  I got up, fed the cats, had some coffee and a light breakfast and then I went back to lay in bed under the blankets for a while.

With full bellies, both cats cuddled up
to me in bed at mid-morning.

I communicated with Maggie this morning via text message and she seems to be slowly improving, fortunately.  (We talked later in the day by phone and she definitely sounded better, though still exhausted.)

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Again, I tried to finalize our AirBnB arrangements for an apartment in Bucerias (just north of Puerto Vallarta), after losing out on one of them a couple days ago.  The host of the AirBnB unit, Miryam, only speaks Spanish and my Spanish is not so good.  However, after using Google Translate, our housing arrangements were firmed up for the last two months of our winter getaway.

An image from AirBnB of the terrace connected to
our new apartment in Bucerias.  (We went
overboard on outside space and
windows this time around.)

Our new apartment was located about six blocks from the beach.  With our housing in Bucerias confirmed, I took and nice hot shower and went about my day.  My goal for the day was to get a haircut and go out for lunch afterward.

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My haircut cost 350 Mexican pesos (about 18 USD), including trimming my eyebrows (really needed at my age).  It was as good as any haircut in the U.S., at probably half the price. 

The barber shop in San Miguel de
Allende was state of the art.

The young Mexican barber spoke (broken) English but it was much better than my (very broken) Spanish.

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My lunch at Cafe Santa Ana made up for my spotty intake of veggies so far this week.  I had a very large and delicious Cobb salad (and a muffin for dessert).

My Cobb salad for lunch today.

Today, I walked to the barber shop, then to Cafe Santa Ana, and back to our very humble abode, a total distance of about one mile (as later estimated on Google maps).  This was the longest distance I have walked in one day since we were in the Exumas in the spring of 2020.  (I think I am finally getting somewhat back to normal.  My recovery from prostate cancer has been very frustrating to say the least.)

A colorful mural on the side of a
brick wall along Aurora.

So far, my goal of teaching our cats simple tricks has gone nowhere, mostly because I don't have enough patience for the task.

Wednesday, January 5

I understand (from our landlord) that the cool mornings we have been experiencing end by about the middle of January (shortly before we leave for Bucerias).  However, this morning was still very cold outside.  Fortunately, it is nice and warm outside in the afternoons.

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I spent the morning leisurely hanging around inside our (cold) apartment, catching up on the news, some YouTube videos, and talking with Maggie on my cell phone.  Maggie was still isolating (due to COVID) in her hotel room in New Mexico.  (She expects to catch a flight from Dallas back to Mexico City and then take the long bus ride back to San Miguel, all on next Tuesday.)

Notes on electrical wiring in Mexico

The electrical wiring that is typical here in Mexico would make anyone familiar with electrical wiring in the U.S. cringe.  This is not a knock on the country but an illustration of the different cultures.

For example, there are four overhead lights in our apartment in San Miguel de Allende—the weight of each of the four light fixtures are hanging only by their connecting wires.

All four overhead light fixtures in this apartment are
supported by the connected electrical wiring.  
(Also note that the inlet wiring has no
color code on the wires.)

I haven’t found a circuit breaker or fuse block (as used in old homes) anywhere on this property.  Wiring is embedded in the concrete walls and ceilings.  As far as I can tell there was no conduit to protect the wiring used in these areas.

There is not a single GFCI used anywhere in our apartment.  You would think there would be at least one in the bathroom but that not the case.  (Imagine what would happen if someone accidentally dropped an electrical shaver or a hair dryer into a bathroom sink full of water.)

There are a few three-prong sockets used in our apartment but I understand that a dedicated ground is not used in Mexico—so, they are simply for ease of connecting common U.S. made appliances with 3-prong plugs.

Fortunately, there is very little wood or other flammable materials used in home construction in Mexico.  So, fire prevention is not a driving force in making good electrical wiring like it is in the U.S.  Also, Mexico is completely lacking in liability regulations.  So, if a light fixture electrocuted someone it would be treated as “an act of God.”

Fortunately, we don't have what is called a "suicide shower" in this apartment, even though they are common throughout Mexico and the rest of Latin America.  (By the way, "suicide showers" are the second leading cause of death in Costa Rica.)

I heated up a couple of (turkey) hotdogs for lunch,
wrapping them into a flour tortilla with
mustard and relish.

After lunch, I walked to La Tienda de Gil, a little neighborhood market, to pick up a few things. I purchased milk, bananas, a couple very tasty muffins, etc.  It was nice and warm outside (75 degrees F) and I took along my camera with my 20mm f2.8 wide angle lens attached.

The outside appearance of
La Tienda de Gil.

Thursday, January 6

Today is Three Kings Day and the fireworks used in the celebration kept me awake a good part of last night and early this morning.  I spent the morning rather leisurely, not even eating breakfast--just my regular (decaf) tea.  Of course, I fed the cats early or they would have driven me crazy

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At lunchtime, I drove to Pizza Guy Restaurant to have lunch out and afterward continue driving a short distance to La Comer (the supermarket).

Prime seating at Pizza Guy is a view of the main
road into San Miguel de Allende.

For lunch, my pizza contained pepperoni, black
olives, and bell peppers.  I took home
what I couldn't eat there.

At La Comer, besides lots of cat food, I bought fresh fruit in addition to some odds and ends I needed.  Through Google. I found out that Mexico is a big producer of the bananas I eat almost everyday--they are produced in Mexico's southern states.  I stocked up on delicious (Mexican-grown) watermelon too.

While at La Comer, one of the outside attendants washed our car.  (It cost 100 Mexican pesos, about $5 U.S., a great deal!  Our car gets extremely dirty just sitting along the street in front of our apartment.)

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I got home (to our apartment) just before 3 PM.  (It seems like no matter what I do or where I go, I automatically return home around 3 PM.)

Friday, January 7

Fortunately the mornings here have not been quite as cold lately--this morning's low temperature was 42 degrees F.

I started a new routine this morning--a shot of Rum Chata in my morning coffee.  It really seems to set the mood right for the start of the day.  (I bought Rum Chata yesterday, thinking that it was produced in Mexico but its not--it was produced in Wisconsin.  Supposedly it is made using Caribbean rum and dairy cream.  I highly recommend it for use in coffee!)

A tree painted on the side of a building in
the Guadeloupe neighborhood of
San Miguel de Allende.

I had no agenda for today and as the old saying goes "no plan results in nothing done."

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I warmed up some pizza (from yesterday) for today's lunch and had a beer (a Pacifico brewed in Mazatlan to be exact) with lunch.  After lunch I just had to have another coffee with Rum Chata.

Rum Chata in coffee--a great way to
start the day or finish it!

Maggie seems to be steadily improving from her bout with COVID in Texas--she expected to arrive back in San Miguel late next Tuesday evening.  I can't wait for her return...

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