Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to everyone!  Best wishes for 2016!

 

I had plans for New Year's Eve - places to go with music and special dinners, but Mother Nature had other plans for me.  Somewhere, somehow, I picked up a cold germ and it caught me!   I am in self-imposed isolation to protect the community, and to recover. 

 

So, I've been sitting here thinking about this past year and all the great places I visited and the people I've met along the way.  There was a reunion of a group of other solo women RVers, all of us knew each other, but this was the first time we had all gotten together as a group - good time.  I saw some amazing scenery this past year and did some wonderful hiking and exploring. 

 

 

 

I have been here in San Carlos about 7 weeks and have really enjoyed it so far.  It's beautiful and the people are so friendly, locals and visitors alike.  Of course, with Arizona and New Mexico having such cold weather lately, I'm so glad I'm much warmer here!  A couple of friends encouraged me to make the trip down here, thanks to both of them.  And one of them found a spot for me in a great neighborhood!

 

No, this next photo is not where I'm living - but it has the setting for some of the most wonderful sunsets I've ever seen.

 

 

I'm hoping that everyone I know has a great 2016! 

 

 



Bingo! San Carlos Style!

All right!  Check out what I'm looking forward to after the first of the year!  Bingo!

 



This is most likely going to be a well-attended affair, so I better get my ticket now - after all, they're only printing 1000!  Bingo is always fun and as many times as I've won the lottery - I can imagine I'll win one of the three plops that are winners!

This is a fun little community and I'm sure this is going to be a great together.  After all - they have music and food!  As well as cow plops!

Stay tuned for the full report after January 10th next year!!

Christmas Eve in San Carlos, Mexico

Just a few photos to show how I spent Christmas Eve.

 

 

We have dog-friendly, open-air restaurants here.  And music for entertainment!

 

Boat parade, going too fast to get decent shots.

Merry Christmas to all!

Merry Christmas from San Carlos, Mexico!

 

 

Merry Christmas to all!  To celebrate the season, some of us got together and made a sandy Santa.  As you can see by the photo below, the weather didn't look promising, but it only sprinkled a little a few hours after we finished.

 

  

Santa was not good this year, by the time we finished, there was an empty bottle of tequila and a few beer cans as evidence.  Now we know why he was lying down.......

 

 

Boat Names - San Carlos, Mexico

 

Because I like boats and wandering around marinas, I found a few boats with unique (or just interesting) names and I thought I'd share them with you.  The people who own the one above apparently live in theirs.

 

This next guy is confused if he thinks any boat is low maintenance.  Of course, it's lower maintenance than some of his neighbors.

 

 

This next name reflects what happens when you maintain a boat.  After all, BOAT means "bring out another thousand" - as in dollars!

 

 

 

This boat has a fun-loving crew living the crazy life.

Two dreams.....  Pretty paint job.

I'd be leary of name a boat like this - afraid it would act that way!

I'm assuming this boat's owner was a fan of the book War and Peace.  Maybe.

Some boats are slower than others.........

 

This is obviously a "reel" fishing boat!

 



 Watch out for this crew - it's Wild!

 

How people usually feel about their boats.

I have absolutely no idea......

And this was sunset the other night.....

 

Everyday Life in San Carlos, Mexico

 

Coming into San Carlos is a four lane road with medians - one very large median had two of these iguanas covered in mosaic tile.  They must be about 20 feet long, not including the long tail.

 

 

This sign is VERY important - it means that there is a very large speed bump coming up.  Sometimes they have a sign saying "Tope", signs sometimes are also painted on the road, sometimes signs are non-existent.  Speed bumps are large enough that you need to come to an almost complete stop and coast over them.  The worst ones have lots of grooves on the tops of them, evidence that vehicles going too fast have bounced and scraped on them.  Most of these are marked, but there have been some surprises!

 

 

Don't drink the water in Mexico - yes, it's true.  Everyone has a 5 gallon bottle of water with a serving spout on it.  It costs 10 pesos to refill, about $.60 - reasonable, considering the consequences.  Also reasonable since a gallon purchased in the states is more than that.

  

This is a local taxi in a town 10 miles away, Guaymas.  The Spanish word is still taxi, but I love their creativeness on the door.

Although there aren't any traffic lights in San Carlos, they are in nearby towns and with some.  When you have a green arrow to make a turn, it starts blinking just before it turns red again - great warning sign. 

I took a drive out to Cañon del Nacapule one day, the area was closed off and the gate locked.  I wanted to see if there was a hike I could do into the canyon.  This is some of the scenery in that neighborhood.

Some residents have high walls surrounding their property.  This wall was at least 8' tall, but to be sure no one would climb over, they topped it with broken bottles.  I've seen this done in other places also, great way to recycle.

And speaking of recycling, this man does it best.  Every day he sits at the bus stop reading a book.  People bring him cans and when the bus comes, it crushes the cans so that they will take up less space.  I brought him some cans today for his collection and asked him if he traded them in for pesos.  He nodded and grinned at me and said "it's money!".  This was early in the day but I've seen him with a large collection of cans in the afternoon.

 



Rescate Christmas Boutique, San Carlos, Mexico

 

 

Mexico is full of vivid colors, as seen in the above photo of plates and bowls that were offered for sale at the annual sale to benefit Rescate, the ambulance service/emergency clinic that serves the San Carlos area.  This non-profit organization relies on donations and fund-raising events to provide funds to provide these services.  Donations are actually tax deductible in both the United States as well as Mexico.

 

 

I couldn't resist taking this photo of a cat enjoying the warm sunshine.  The sun was so bright today that it was difficult to get decent photographs.  The photo below shows most of this display. 

 

The mirror frames in the following photo were made from local shells and corrugated cardboard, beautifully put together.

 

There were many more items for sale, such as cookies, candies, Christmas decorations, jewelry, art work and other items.  One of the more unique items was the honey.  This shows the vendor's cart with a vat of honey and one section of honeycomb.  I had already gotten a large jar of honey and it is great.  It also costs a fraction of the cost that one would pay in the States. 

 

 

Also on hand were a group of students who were playing steel pans, and somehow, I didn't get a chance to get a picture of them playing.

 

If you're interested in more information on Rescate - check out their website - http://rescatesc.com/

 

 

Around San Carlos, Mexico

 

 

I think this gnarled tree is really cool, even though graffiti has been carved into the limbs.  It's on a rocky beach in a small cove not far from town.  Below is a scene taken near the tree, I love that clear sea water.

 

 

I think this is a bit humorous.



This must be the San Carlos answer to Taco Bell!

  

This storage yard is not too far from my place, and it looks like they store almost everything, but I guess they draw the line on aliens. 

 

 

My neighborhood has multiple streets and homes that look like mansions or tiny cottages.  This person decided that his old boat would be a great idea for his residence.  I especially like the steps that are covered with palm fronds.

 

 

 

It was quite windy today close to sunset, the kite surfers were out this evening.  It seems to be windy in this beach area, even though where I'm living is quite calm at the same time.

 

 

This was tonight's sunset.