Xpu Ha Beach in Playa del Carmen

This past Wednesday we flew to Cancun via Interjet, From Cancun, we rented a car and drove down highway 307 to Riviera Maya.

On the way, we stopped at Xpu Ha Beach in Playa del Carmen. We were a bit unprepared for the beach, having come straight from the airport.

But, Xpu Ha was great. There's a restaurant and shop, where you can rent beach towels. The towels were $60 pesos or $5 USD, plus another $60 pesos deposit per towel, which you get back upon towel return. We gave the worker $400 pesos. She said she didn't have change, but would get change and give it back to us...upon towel return. Needless to say, I think she says that regularly...and short changes people, as she did not "remember" when we returned our towels...nor did she give Mike the correct change after he brought it up. But, Mike said the change he received was "close enough", so we let it go.

But, while we had our towels, we took full advantage of them at the beach! There are plenty of lounge chairs and tables on the beach. If you eat at the restaurant, there is no charge for using the lounge chairs. So, that worked out fine. The food was alright - what you would expect from a beach restaurant. Tacos, quesadillas, burgers, etc.

The sand was GREAT, as was the water. There were some boats around, picking up and dropping off scuba divers. But, that didn't interfere with our swimming.

In Cabo, Annabelle was TERRIFIED of the ocean. She clung to me whenever she got within 15 feet of the water. At Xpu Ha, she quickly warmed up to the water and ended up having a great time splashing, swimming and giggling in the waves! She also enjoyed throwing sand on the beach!

In total, we spent about 90 minutes at Xpu Ha. We could have stayed longer, but it was just meant to be a quick spot on the way to Riviera Maya.

We would definitely go back again...but would bring our own towels...or exact change!

Washing Machine Update

After 11 days and six repairman visits, our lavadora (washing machine) was finally fixed. It needed a new pump!

True to his word last Wednesday evening, the fifth repairman came back on Thursday evening "despues cinco" (after 5) and installed the pump!

I wish I knew more words in Spanish to show the handyman my appreciation of his work!

Now...if we could just get our car back from Honda...it has been in the shop since April 25th, due to the flooding of our parking garage. Apparently, the CRV needs new carpeting and Honda has not been able to get it in stock.

Up until last Friday afternoon, Mike's work lent him a Toyota Yaris...that has fuel pump issues - meaning it is fine to drive, but once you stop, it won't turn back on for awhile...which makes it hard to drive to the grocery store, gas station or run small errands. He had to turn that back in on Friday, as someone else needed it (good luck to him or her!) The new replacement car he was supposed to get on Friday had just come back from the shop...and was deemed unfit to drive. So, it was then sent back.

For the time being, Mike is taking cabs to and from work, which could end up being a bit costly if it continues beyond next week! Good thing he'll be on vacation the rest of this week!

In the meantime, we'll just enjoy our vacation and be glad that we can use our lavadora!

Haircuts in Mexico City

My brother is getting married in Riviera Maya in three days!

So, last Friday afternoon, Mike, Annie and I set out to find a place to get haircuts. Annie hadn't had a haircut since early March and she kept pulling out the barretts that I pulled her bangs back with about two seconds after I walked away. Needless to say, we were overdue for a haircut.

Luckily, Mike has an excellent memory and remembered walking past "Mia and George" on Homero in Polanco the previous weekend.

We arrived there and were lucky enough to be helped by several people that spoke English. That helped tremendously when telling them what we wanted done with Annie's hair... and Mike's. We got right in and, with Annie sitting on my lap, were out the door 30 minutes later!

A successful first haircut in Mexico for Annie!

Before:

After:

DHL to Mexico - Package Received

Late last week, Annabelle's birthday present arrived! After agreeing to let DHL "mark" (paint) the toys, they emailed back saying an outfit was made in China and it would have to be "mutilated" (cut).

After receiving a blog comment from someone that lives in Polanco and has been thru the same process, I followed his advice and also asked DHL about the taxes I would have to pay, if I went through Cofepris and got the proper documentation. DHL said it would be $900 pesos (about $80 USD) for the toys, plus more for the outfit. $900 pesos is more than my mother and father in law paid for the toys!

Finally, I agreed to the marking and mutilation and the package was delivered two days later.

The toys looked much better than expected. They were marked with a yellow spray paint that you can see thru. The toys just needed to be aired out for a day, as they still smelled like paint.

Here are a few photos of some items...

Thomas the Trains

Track with yellow paint here and there

Yellow paint on the puzzles

Two+ inch cut in the back of Annie's new dress

DHL - U.S. to Mexico

For Annabelle's birthday, my mother in law sent Annabelle a package via DHL. She said it was very frustrating from her end, as the package had to be re-packed to make it less costly and she was told it would probably be opened at least three times.

She sent me the tracking number, so I saw that it was in Mexico City on June 3rd. From there, the daily updates have read "clearance delay".

Late last week, I got a phone call from DHL, stating that Mike (as the package is addressed to him) had to fill out a document and get an additional document from Cofepris, before DHL would release the package.

When the DHL man emailed the document, I emailed back asking "what's Cofepris?". He gave me their website. And told me that if the Cofepris process is too difficult, we can either have the toys "destroyed OR marked/painted and released as samples".

Apparently, Cofepris is a Mexican government agency. www.cofepris.gob.mx

Their English portion of their website states:

"The Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risk (COFEPRIS) is a decentralized organ of the Department of Health with technical, administrative and operational autonomy, whose mission is to protect the population against sanitary risks, through sanitary regulation, control and promotion under a single command, which provides unity and homogeneity to the policies which are determined."

So, after getting no where with Cofepris' website, I called them, spoke to someone in English and was directed to a 16 page document. From there, he told me to go to page 12, section 3 and follow the instructions.

These are the instructions:

3. IMPORTACIÓN:

HOMOCLAVE COFEPRIS-01-006

NOMBRE, MODALIDAD Y GUÍA RÁPIDA DE LLENADO

Aviso Sanitario de Importación de Productos

(Bebidas no alcohólicas, cerámica y loza vidriada, juguetes y artículos escolares).

CAMPOS: 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 14 y para juguetes, 1 2 3 4 artículos escolares, cerámica y loza vidriada 8

además 21 y 22

REQUISITOS DOCUMENTALES

␣ Para juguetes, cerámica destinada a contener alimentos; y artículos escolares: Constancia Sanitaria o Certificado de Libre Venta o Análisis de laboratorio.

␣ Para el resto de los productos: Constancia Sanitaria o Certificado de Libre Venta. Para todos los productos el trámite deberá presentarse anualmente y será válido para todos los embarques dentro de esté período.

The above instructions make no sense to me. But, he told me to follow them, then bring my document into Cofepris, for their approval.

At this point, I have emailed DHL back to ask them if I agree to allow them to paint/mark the toys, will they be released TO ME. Their previous email just said "released as samples".

So, if they agree to release the painted toys to me...I can only imagine what color Thomas the Train will be!

"Did you ever think I would hand wash your underwear?"

I never thought my husband would say "did you ever think I would hand wash your underwear?" ...Nor did I ever think he would.

However, after 8 days of having a broken washing machine, Mike broke down and hand washed some clothing.

I had offered to do it earlier in the week, but I don't think Mike was confident in my hand washing abilities...which was just fine with me!

So, while I was on baby-wrangling duty, Mike broke out the buckets.

Last Sunday, our washing machine stopped draining. I emailed our building manager Ruth, who replied Monday morning, saying she would tell the other building manager. I emailed Ruth (who is the only one that speaks English) again on Tuesday. Again, she replied. She told me that she manages the building on the outside. She doesn't manage the individual units, but that she would pass along my information.

On Thursday, the "individual units" manager Betty was in the lobby. I flagged her down and tried to tell her that my washing machine was broken. She told me someone would come to look at it "manana". However, a few hours later the maintenance man stopped by. He came to fix something...but it wasn't the washing machine. I think he thought he was supposed to look at my dishwasher. But, he looked at the washer, determined he couldn't do anything, and indicated (in Spanish) that he would talk to Betty.

On Saturday, my maid showed up. She looked at the huge piles of laundry and headed straight to the washer...as if I left mounds of laundry for her to do! With my Spanglish, I told her that the washer (lavadora) was broken (no trabaje) and that I wasn't happy (no me gusto!).

Minutes later, she had Betty's phone number in hand and was asking how to work my home phone. A moment later Betty was on the phone and Patricia was on her case!! (Have I mentioned that I adore my maid Patricia?!?!)

After hanging up with Betty, Patricia indicated that Betty wasn't going to do anything and we needed the manual. I pulled out the manual...that was actually written in English...but did not solve our problem, as the hose was not kinked. It is a GE washer and the manual gave us a number for GE...but it was an 800 number.

In Mexico, you cannot dial 1-800 numbers! If you pull out your credit card, on the back, it will give you an international number to call when outside the U.S.

The manual gave us no such number.

But, Betty called back a minute later and said she would send someone out to look at the washer...again. A few hours later, a man showed up and Patricia told him what the problem was. The guy stayed about five minutes and then left.

Patricia indicated that he (or someone) would be back on Monday.

At this point, I am not holding my breath that the washer will be fixed in the next week. But, I am grateful that Patricia will be back next Saturday, in order to get on Betty's case again.

I am also grateful to Mike for his new skill - hand washing laundry!

And, I have realized what a great landlord I am! My tenants get quick responses and repairs! Apparently, the same is not expected or required in Mexico City!

Visiting Annabelle's School

Yesterday was Annabelle's second birthday! So, I emailed last week with the director's of Annabelle's school and coordinated bringing in cookies to her class.

School starts at nine am. I was told to bring the cookies in at 11:20 am.

When I arrived, I went upstairs and saw three separate little classrooms, with about 6-10 kids in each class. In all three classrooms, the kids were sitting at little tables, eating their lunch!

Shockingly, Annabelle was one of these well behaved kids! I couldn't believe it!! As soon as I entered, she started talking, saying "MOMMY! Mommy's here." It was a nice welcome! She's not embarrassed of me yet!!

I was given my own little chair and sat behind Annabelle while the kids ate their food.

Each kid had a place mat that indicated where their plate, fork, spoon and tiny cup were to be placed.

To my amazement, Annabelle picked up her cup, which did NOT have a lid, drank it, and said "mas agua". Then, put her cup back in its' correct spot!

My amazement continued as the kids all continued eating their carrots, watermelon, and their main dish, which has a name, but I cannot recall it. The dish consisted of a piece of french bread, topped with refried beans, then layered with cheese. Annie ate the entire thing...which, again, shocked me, because normally the only thing she eats in full are sweets (a chip off the old block!)

Once the kids were done eating, the teacher instructed them individually to take their plate, cup, utensils, placemat and leftover food to the "dish section", where each kid had to put everything away in it's proper spot.

I think my jaw hit the floor as Annabelle followed her teacher's instructions and took three trips from the table to the dish section, putting everything away!

Next, it was time for Annabelle's cookies! Since moving to Polanco, we have become big fans of Le Pain, a local bakery. They have GIANT chocolate chip cookies that are very thin and taste amazing! So, we got enough giant cookies for each kid to have one. But, it worked out best to split up two amongst the whole class, then send each kid home with a full cookie! Before the kids were allowed to grab a piece of cookie, they sang "Las Manitas" to Annabelle. She smiled and clapped at the end! Then, the kids got their cookie pieces! It was pretty silent in the room as the kids devoured the cookies! Lots of "mmmmm" sounds coming from the kiddos, but that was about it!

The kids then walked up three steps to the bathroom area, where the assistant washed their hands, gave them their toothbrushes, and helped clean everyone up! After seeing Annie's class eat, I now fully understand why each kid is supposed to have a denim smock! I'll be purchasing one of those very soon!

After cleanup, I was invited to stay and go outside for playtime/recess. All the kids were out there.

Annabelle held my hand and the railing as we walked downstairs. With each step she took, she yelled out "Be careful E-A". (E-A is what she calls herself, as for awhile she had a hard time saying "Annie"!). So, the whole way down, I laughed as she kept telling herself to be careful! Once we reached the end of the stairs, she let go of my hand and started running towards the backyard, saying "I play with kids". She went straight to the gardening table, then moved on to the Little Tikes slide and log cabin. She was not concerned with me...which was good because that is when the older kids attacked me!

There were two girls and one boy, around the age of six, that would not leave me alone. They were trying to stuff plant leaves and nuts in the pockets of my jeans, in addition to trying to steal my iPhone out of my back pocket!! I must have said "NO. No mas. No gracias. Estas mal" about twenty times. A teacher came over and yelled at them a few times, but they were persistent. They kept after me! Then, I had about ten younger kids randomly coming up to me, speaking to me in Spanish, asking me my name...among other things that I couldn't understand!

Towards the end of recess, Annie found a soccer ball and started kicking it around the yard, yelling "I play soccer. I kick the ball". So, that was very cute to watch.

And, periodically she would look up and yell "I see my teacher", give her a big smile, and then continue playing!

I can certainly see why she comes home exhausted every afternoon! And, she seems to be very vocal, comfortable speaking English when everyone around her is speaking Spanish, for the most part. So, that was nice to see!

It was very nice to be able to spend over an hour with Annabelle at school today! She seems to be doing very well there!

More Information on Club Mundet in Polanco

A month or two ago, I met a woman that belongs to Club Mundet. I told her that we had looked into joining but couldn't get past the expensive joining fee.

When I quoted her the price...she was shocked.

She told me that she had looked into the price for friends the previous summer...and the joining fee was only about $500 USD. AND she told me that at various times, Club Mundet has had specials where they waive the joining fee for expats.

I was quoted a joining fee of $17,000 pesos or approximately $1,415 USD. When I told her the monthly fee was quoted to be about $330, she said that was what she pays.

But, this new joining fee information may be something to keep in mind in the future...and to consistently check back with Club Mundet, if you are considering joining.

She said her daughters LOVE Club Mundet and that they go everyday, whether it is to swim, to play tennis, to walk, or to partake in the many kids classes!

SKY Satellite Service in Mexico

A few weeks ago, our satellite service was installed! After having some time to figure out programming...I am still utterly confused by it!

Almost all shows can be changed from Spanish to English, which is great! Apparently it depends on where the program comes from. I really should have Mike write about this, as he pays much more attention to these details.

For example, we watch a decent amount of kids' programs for Annabelle. Go Diego, Go (on Nickelodeon) comes in with the ability to change it to English. Same with Handy Manny. However, Dora the Explorer cannot be changed to English...and to top it off, she has a different voice in the Spanish versions...a much more annoying voice. And, in the US, Dora speaks both English and Spanish in each episode. In the Spanish version, she is only speaking Spanish.

I tend to tune out most of the episodes, so I don't know if we are getting any new episodes or just repeating old episodes.

With the adult programming, I pay a little more attention. For the American Idol finally the other week, it was actually on live! Same with sporting events.

However, all episodes of Blue Bloods, NCIS, Hawaii Five-O, etc are all repeats that are a few months old. And the same episode will be repeated on back to back nights.

We get HBO, but it is hard to look at the TV guide and determine which show you want to watch, without flipping to each channel, because the names of all the shows are in Spanish...and they don't always have an exact translation.

But, regardless, we have the ability to watch television in English and are enjoying a break from the movies that we brought to Mexico!

Walmart in Mexico

Thus far, I have been to three Walmart's in Mexico.

By a mile, the nicest Walmart has been in Cabo San Lucas. It was the cleanest and best stocked. And, it felt like we were back in the U.S... which is a pretty rare feeling!

The second nicest Walmart was the one I went to yesterday. I have no idea where in Mexico City it is located. I asked my playgroup friend/neighbor which colony we were in. She then asked her driver, who said a name that I had never heard before, and subsequently forgot.

However, it was pretty nice. A super Walmart with groceries...a large selection of produce and meat! They had a nice toy section, where I found some birthday gifts for Annabelle. They also had a large personal care selection...lots of shampoos, conditioners, razors, etc. You may be thinking "why is that a big deal?" Trust me, in Mexico, it is!! A large selection of anything is extremely rare.

For Annabelle's school, I need to get a 14 liter tupperware container. At Walmart, I came close, finding 12 L and 19 L containers. I bought one of each and need to email the director of Annabelle's school to find out which she would prefer I bring in.

At Soriana and Superama, the local grocery stores, I did not come anywhere close to a 14 L container.

So, if I can find out where I was yesterday, and figure out how to get back, I'll be taking Mike and Annabelle with me to Walmart again soon!

It may be time to invest in a GPS...

Grocery Shopping in Mexico...The Scarcity Model

In Polanco, the closest thing we have to a Whole Foods is a VERY small store called "The Green Corner".

We went there last Sunday and bought two packages of turkey burgers (hamburgesas de pavo). The turkey burgers were EXCELLENT!!! The two packages (4 burgers in each package) cost a total of $14 USD.

So, I walked back today, hoping to stock up on more turkey burgers. Unfortunately, The Green Corner was out of all pavo products. The store clerk told me to come back on "Lunes o Martes", as they might have some then.

Can you imagine going to a US grocery store and them being sold out of ALL turkey products?!?!

In Mexico, this happens all the time.

My new favorite drink is Vitamin Water. For some reason right now...there is NO Vitamin Water at 7-11, Superama OR the Walmart I went to yesterday!!

Mike is addicted to the blue can of Monster energy drinks. In the US, we bought them by the case at Costco. In Mexico, there are no Monster cases at Sam's Club. So, Mike is frequently looking for them at the various 7-11's, Oxxo's and Circle K's near us. The 7-11 sells out VERY quick. If my Spanish were better, I would ask them to order an extra case each month and I will buy the whole case...but, my Spanish is poor...worse than poor... so, we'll continue the seemingly daily hunt for the blue can... As well as for my coveted Ponche de Frute Vitamin Water!

It seems as though Mexico operates on the scarcity model. Supply is low and demand is high!

When I walk into the Superama on Horacio, in Polanco, there is a table filled with "US items". Snyders pretzel, various special cases of Coca-Cola products (but NEVER Cherry Coke...can't find that anywhere!), and chocolate covered pretzels. But this table is also subject to change each day. If you don't stock up on those chocolate covered pretzels, or even regular pretzels...you may never see them again.

Rachel's Thoughts on Mexico City...

My sister-in-law Rachel came to visit last weekend. We thought we would start asking our visitors to write a blog entry at the end of their visit. So, here are Rachel's thoughts...

I'm looking out the window somewhere between Dallas and Indianapolis as I write this entry. The point where the light pollution meets the starry sky has captured my interest. I just left Mexico City after visiting Mike, Jill, Annie, and Molly. It was my first trip abroad and the first time I'd had them all to myself for years.

I was nervous about going through customs, but it was easier than navigating through airport security. The travel was quick and painless.

Mexico City was as I had imagined. When I first left the airport, I was a bit shocked by some of the poverty around me. It was similar to the less fortunate areas of Miami or even downtown Middletown, Ohio.

As we entered Polanco, however, I felt instantly at home. I had found Miami, minus the water.

Polanco was filled with complexes with ornate walls and gates, cafes spilling onto the sidewalks, and people walking everywhere. The temperature hovered in the upper 90s for my trip, but even with no climate control system it was comfortable to be inside or out.

We walked all over the city (or at least it felt like it). I loved all the exercise because it made up for all the excellent food! Villa Maria comes highly recommended even by this vegetarian. I had Queso fresco de san juan del rio. It was a block of soft cheese drizzled with verde salsa and covered in fresh cilantro. It came with soft corn tortillas, and I haven't stopped thinking about it since I came home. Another favorite was Yogurtland. Very glad there isn't one in Dayton, OH!

My first day, I met Jill and Annie at the house and Jill showed my around until Mike got home. Annie was a bit shy for the first hour, but we were best friends for the rest of the weekend.

Jill and I had made plans to go to the zoo Friday afternoon, but we spent the morning walking around the city while Annie was in school. We went to the Soumaya Museum and did a quick walk through. We saw everything, but didn't gaze longinly at the pieces on display. Just my style. After some research, it turns out the sculptures that looked like Dali were Dali. Maybe I know more about art than I would have supposed.

The zoo had a good layout and a good variety of animals, but it was hot and we were all tired so we cut it short. They had all the usual animals, but I got to see my first wolf and some Mexican rabbits. They had raccoons on display, which was odd. Here, the only raccoons in zoos are digging through the trash cans.

Mexico City was a perfect vacation spot for a relaxing weekend. Grab a cerveza, take a walk, and enjoy everything the senses can absorb (especially the tastes).

Thank you so much Mike, Jill, Annie, and Molly! I can't wait to come visit you again.