Welcome to our blog post that highlights from a local adventure!
Welcome to our latest posting… but before I continue could I ask a favour? I truly appreciate your comments and look forward to reading them all! However, frequently they appear as being written by my old friend “Anonymous”! If you’re willing, please add your name somewhere in your comment so I can be sure who has sent it! Thanks!
We interrupt this Blog Post to pass on a couple of important nuggets of wisdom… basically trivia about one of the most plentiful seabirds in the Yucatán, the Brown Pelican.
Vocalization: I’m sure we’ve all seen a brief, a pod, a pouch, a scoop, or a squadron of pelicans silently gathering by a fishing boat hoping for a handout and not squawking like a squabble of seagulls!
According to “All About Birds” from the Cornell Labs, the Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis), unlike the Great-tailed Grackle (Screechimus maximus), adults are silent except during wing-jerking displays, which force air from their lungs and produce a low, hoarse sound. Nestlings use a shrill, rasping squawk to beg for food. Thanks to Val & George for bringing this to our attention!
Brown PelicanGreat-tailed Grackle
Diving: The other day, while Raymond and I were standing on the beach, he asked if I had seen that when the Brown Pelican dives in for fish, they always turn their bodies to the left as they complete their dive! Of course, I hadn’t… so, being keen scientific observers, we spent a few minutes in observation. And in every case of a dive, all of them turned to the left!
Of course, we then wondered if the Brown Pelican of Australia (Pelecanus downunderis) would turn to the right!
In addition, we wondered how they didn’t actually kill themselves, as we would, when diving into the water from height! So courtesy of Audubon.org, and they should know, here’s the answer!
“Air sacs beneath the skin on their breasts act like cushions. Also, while diving, a pelican rotates its body ever so slightly to the left. This rotation helps avoid injury to the esophagus and trachea, which are located on the right side of the bird’s neck.”
We return you now to the originally scheduled Blog Post…
We had planned to have lunch with Val & George at the Picuda in Telchac Puerto for some time! And we finally did it!
We embarked on a short road trip East on the Costera …
Eastward on the Costera past Chabihau
… so off we went up to Telchac Puerto! So much new construction everywhere! Multiple new condo buildings between San Bruno and Telchac!
Onwards through San Crisanto and Chabihau until we found a nice place to stop at Playa Marmota (Groundhog Beach).
So nice to get out of the car and stretch our legs in such a pretty spot!Hard to see Ibis hiding in the bushes across the inletMore shorebirds on the other side of the lagoon too!Local families enjoying the sun, sand and warm gulf watersA storm drain allows access to the lagoon from the beach3 travelers checking it out!Brown Pelicans (see above) chillin’3 Masked Wanderers
After an enjoyable walkabout on Playa Marmota, we returned to San Crisanto via Chabihau and turned off the road to park by the square!
On the San Crisanto SquareThe Gazebo on the squareThe Church of San CrisantoMunicipal BuildingsPublic LibraryA beautiful mural with its guard dog!Families enjoying the San Crisanto beach
As the temperatures rose, we hankered after some shade and some lunch, so we continued homeward back to Telchac Puerto to our fav… La Picuda!
Cheers!Happy diners!Some had Camarones con Ajo (Garlic Shrimp)One did not… Pollo Asado (Grilled Chicken)Thanks for another great lunch, Jose!
After lunch, we couldn’t head for home without a walk on the pier!
Happy travelers at the Telchac sign on the pier…… and a close up!Dolpins and turtles, oh my!
Special thanks to George for suggesting the title to this blog and forgiveness for plagiarism from John Grisham!
Welcome to our blog post that highlights some goings-on in Uaymitun!
I appear to have been falling behind in my postings… so I’ll try to catch up in this one!
I’ve previously mentioned some of the recent changes in Chicxulub since our hasty departure in March of 2020, and here’s another!
A new sign out on the pierThey saved the old Chicxulub Meteorite sign!
One evening we received a knock on our door only to find Miguel and Maria delivering some “Comida Casera” (home cooking) for our enjoyment!
Homemade soup and panuchos! Yumm!
As the weather improved heading into February, we were able to enjoy evenings on the patio!
Warm, gentle breezes and a great view!
With better weather we can also enjoy our days outside…
Mango Margaritas on the patio…The occasional dip in the pool…… in the Gulf… shuffle, shuffle…and sitting on the beach taking in the view!For “Death in Paradise” TV show fans… meet Harry! Duck, Sharon! Duck! Oops, too late!A visit from MeowMeow NoName on the patio…… and again on the beach!
Val & George had heard from their valedor that there was going to be a Triathlon Race starting next door them and sure enough, there was!
Awaiting the starters pistol…Off they go…Instead of run, dive, swim it was run, wade, wade, wade, wade, swim!wade, wade, wade, swimpedal, pedal, pedal…
This year again, we were treated to a another visit by “The Rach”! She was down visiting Val & George from Jan 25th to Feb 9th! We felt sorry for her as the weather did NOT cooperate… very cool and blustery!
For our Anniversary dinners down here, we’ve been going with Val & George to Hacienda Xcanatun for several years. But due to recent ownership changes, we went to Humo Bistro instead.
So we picked a nice day and took in a late lunch/supper (aka Lupper) at Hacienda Xcanatun to try out the menu! Some old fav’s were gone (no Stickly Lemon Chicken or Pate), but some new fav’s were discovered!
Lupper on the patio
Great food, great ambiance… we’ll be back!
Some weather moments…
It’s hard not to try to capture some of the beautiful sunsets here on the beach! In January, the sun sets behind the big palapa house down the beach, but by the beginning of March it’s now setting out over the water!
However, the weather isn’t always so benevolent! We did have quite a storm in the middle of February!
It started getting darker out over the gulf……and darker……and darker, until…The downpour starts!The overflow from the roof floods the patio!Trying to keep the overflow from the living roomThat’s a lotta rain!!!!The driveway was a pond for quite awhile!
To close out this blog, here’s another episode of “Things you won’t find back home”! While not all of these items actually fit this mold, they were interesting finds in any case!
Orejas or as we call them Elephant Ears!Kirkland’s own microwave popcorn… the best by far!They’re not kidding when they say “Flamin’ Hot” potato chipsAs modelled by Hand & Foot Champ, Pamela, Paxe Taxo nibbles!Eggs are not to be found in the Dairy Cooler!Not to traumatize anyone, but a Paleta Payaso or “Clown Lolly” Licor 43 (actually you can get it at the LCBO) but hadn’t seen it here before!An unexpected find in Soriano in AltaBrisa Mall, Niagara VQA Eastdell Reisling!
Welcome to our blog post that highlights a few local adventures and indulges in a bit of nostalgia!
For those of us who have been here a few years, this winter, so far, has been one of the windiest, coolest and wettest in some time. So when the weather cooperates, it’s wonderful!
Beautiful sunrise… with no wind!Although one has to be aware of the occasional Bluebottle Jellyfish that wash ashore!We set up our beach chairs and enjoyed the view!A couple of happy campers!
The pandemic has changed a number of events down here over the past 2 years. The weekly Muelle Market in Chicxulub has been cancelled, so to get some of the special items that we used to pick up from there, we need to go farther afield. The Slow Food Market in Mérida is one, but we’ve not been going into the city except to go to Costco or other major grocery stores. The other is The Market at Natural Thangs, or more commonly called the Churburna Market. It’s open each Monday morning for food and stuff, while each Thursday for artisan crafts. So… off we went to the Chuburna Market…
the Chuburna MarketIt’s a great venue and they have good COVID protocolsLots of patrons parked on the Chelem-Churburna road
We were able to pick some good sausages from “The Sausage Lady” (and yes that’s her business name) as well as some new stuff to try from the “Paradise Bakery” like cabbage rolls and some Butter Chicken from another vendor whose name I can’t remember!
Bare with me as I include a bit of nostalgia…
One of our favourite restaurants over the years has been Elio al Mare, the Italian restaurant in Progreso.
Elio al Mare circa 2013
Back then, it was a palapa roofed restaurant… very local in ambiance but with fabulous Italian food. Elio, himself, was usually there to greet you… although sometimes in his house coat! We fell in love with their Chicken Parmesan!
Elio’s is near the end of Calle 23 in Progreso… for years that end of the street was unpaved and undeveloped except for the beach homes. Rumours were that the owners prevented the street upgrades to deter traffic! It was a bone rattling collection of potholes and pointy rocks!
20132021
I have delved through my library and here’s a gallery of pics of dining in Elio’s from 2013-2017 before it closed for renovations!
Elio’s was closed for most of 2 years but is now open for business in a new building on the same site. Elio has sold the restaurant and moved to Holbox, we hear, but the menu has lived on!
We went once in 2020 before we had to hurry home but this year it’s fully renovated!
A new sign out front!beautiful dining rooma new covered patioa hand-painted sign on the beach front
We booked a table on the patio and enjoyed great food with Val & George!
Cheers!A good time was had by all!
Val & I had a sister-brother outing into Chicxulub for us to both get our hair cuts at Gaby’s salon! It’s been fun collecting a pic from the very first haircut of the season with her over the years!
A tradition with Gaby continues!
Having said that… I went back and grabbed a pic from each year…
Welcome to our blog post that captures some of the changes going on here in Uaymitun!
As we travel around our local area, we are amazed by the amount of construction underway! Not only in town, but along the Costera as well. While we haven’t driven further East from here to Telchac Puerto or San Crisanto yet, others have told us of massive developments that way as well.
Within 2 kms of our house, there are at least 6 new houses or renovations under way!
Big happenings here at Uaymarima as well! Gaby’s next door neighbour has decided to build two small houses behind her house… one for her son and one for a dedicated valedor (caretaker). In doing so it will greatly reduce our ability to drive onto the property, so Gaby has decided to make a new entrance off the road and likely build a wall between the properties.
This gallery shows some pics of the construction!
Amongst all the changes, we are enjoying some familiar things as well!
Raymond & Pamela came out to the beach for a game of Hand & Foot and dinner at Loncheria La Carolina in the square in Chicxulub! We personally think they have the best Yucatecan food on the square!
The Winners and still Champions of Hand & Foot!Salbutes, Panuchos and Empenadas have arrived!Another view of Carolinas!Always an interesting person or two in the square!
After dinner, we had a nice walkabout the square in Chicxulub!
Pizza Leo was actually open… that’s a first!Just around the corner is the new Osteria 386… wood fired pizza! We have to try it soon!The Viejo Bar was open near the pierWelcome to the Chicxulub Pier at night!The old El Faro restaurant is now a renovated private residence!La Michoacana ice cream store… everyone should try Helado Elote once!
And last but not least on our wander around the square is one of the newest additions… the Chicxulub T-Rex!
The Chicxulub T-Rex
On the way home, we stopped at the intersection by the Pemex and grabbed a night photo of the Pemex Raptor!
The Pemex Raptor (as we call it!) First of 20 dinosaurs on the Sendero Jurasico!
Welcome to our blog post that captures typical life here in Uaymitun!
We love being in Uaymitun each winter because it’s such a beautiful place. But, I must admit, it’s also great way to avoid the ice, the snow and the cold!
In making the decision to return this winter, it wasn’t without worrying about the continuing pandemic! By minimizing the number of contacts we would have and following best COVID protocols when in public settings, we felt we could be as safe here as at home!
That does mean that our excursions will be few and far between! This blog will have more of that “stay-at-home” flavour.
Someone enjoying her 11’s Veggies!Some pool time!
We were invited over for dinner to Val & George’s to enjoy their Papaya Chicken dish!
The merry chefs!Ready for the oven!Ready to eat! Yumm!Papaya Chicken!
After a delightful dinner… including Chocolate Mousse, we retired to the patio to relax!
What a gorgeous sky that night!
One never knows from year to year if there might be local animals who decide to drop by… well we have one this year! Meow Meow NoName shows up for a day or so and then is gone for several!
Meow Meow NoName pays a visit!
Providing family and friends IT support is par for the course!
I work for cerveza!
In the past, we have made the 2 hour trip to the west coast of the Yucatán to visit Celestun and the flamingos! Nowadays, they’re in larger numbers in our area again!
Flamingos across the road from the Chicxulub Pemex station!
And a few more pics from Uaymarima…
The beach before…… and after!A gorgeous full moon!Beside the Costco Cenote on a shopping excursion!
Now switching gears… Given recent developments in the Progreso area, led by an “visionary” mayor (some would say), I’m including some of those highlights too!
First some background! The following is an excerpt from a blog post from 2016 about the Chicxulub Crater!
Apart from it being our closest and favourite little town, Chicxulub is famous for a major event in Earth’s history!
The Chicxulub crater is an impact crater buried underneath the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. Its center is located near the town of Chicxulub, after which the crater is named. The date of the Chicxulub impactor, which created it, coincides precisely with the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary (K–Pg boundary). The crater is more than 180 kilometers (110 miles) in diameter and 20 km (12 mi) in depth, making the feature the third of the largest confirmed impact structures on Earth; the impacting bolide that formed the crater was at least 10 km (6 mi) in diameter. So long dinosaurs!
the Chicxulub Anomaly
Not wanting to miss out on the rising interest in the Chicxulub Extinction Event, the local poobahs are mobilizing!
From a recent edition of the Diario de Yucatán from January 12th…
“PROGRESO.– A year and a half after it was announced, the City Council launched the construction of the Chicxulub Puerto Jurassic Trail, which will be installed south of the Progreso-Chicxulub bypass, near the estuary and the mangrove area.”
“A wide section of what remained of the first Progreso-Chicxulub bypass, located south of the bypass that leads to the neighboring police station, is where the Jurassic Trail will be and they have already placed the first dinosaur of the 20 that will be distributed in that direction from the east of the port.”
El Sendero Jurasico
“The City Council reported that the Jurassic Trail will have more than 20 attractions, dinosaurs of different species, fossil remains, nature, setting, lighting, souvenir shop, spaces for direct coexistence with nature, bathrooms and vehicle parking.”
And here’s some pics of the actual work across from the Pemex station at the intersection of the Coastera and the road between Chicxulub Puerto and Chicxulub Pueblo as it progresses!
El Sendero Juraciso signageOne of the buildings is now under construction
Welcome to the Pemex station guardian Raptor… first of many!
There’s more to see regarding Dinosaur-mania in Chicxulub… but that’s for a future blog!
Welcome to our blog post that captures highlights from our week of getting settled in Uaymitun!
First off, my apologies! There’s been a glitch in my MailPoet mailing system that failed to send the last 3 posts to all Subscribers! Hopefully, I’ve fixed that and you will all get this post. For those who didn’t receive the earlier posts, they can be accessed under the “Recent Posts” section in the top of the right most panel.
Gaby & Billy, the owners of Uaymarima, always leave some welcoming gifts for us! This time it was a gift basket with wine, chocolates and a selection of unique Yucatécan delicacies… as well as two items for the house!
Cochinita Pibil and Léchon en Relleno Negro
Cochinita Pibil: a traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from the Yucatán Peninsula. Preparation of traditional cochinita involves marinating the meat in strongly acidic citrus juice, adding annatto seed which imparts a vivid burnt orange color, and roasting the meat in a píib while it is wrapped in banana leaf.
Léchon en Relleno Negro: also a traditional dish from the region, a roast suckling pig with a black filling based on turkey, pork and mixed chili peppers.
When we have these, I’ll provide an update! 🙂
They provided a replacement for the old grill that was rusting away in the salt air…
Without…… and with the cover!Our new Weber grill!
… and a new addition to the household, an Air Fryer!!!
Our new Gourmia Air Fryer!
As per usual, there’s an open invitation for Sharon to come for a visit!
Sharon, your Sun Chair under the swaying Palm Tree is ready! 🙂
We made another trip into Mérida to drop off the rent and do some shopping at Walmart in City Center Mall.
Gaby & Elaine are kindred spirits over Snowmen!
On our way back home, we stopped by to see one of our favourite restaurants, Hermana República! We were happy to see that their outdoor patio was open! We enjoyed the Croquetas de Cochinita Pibil and Melted Cheese with Roasted Xcatik and Beer Chistorra!
Tuesday’s are special days in Progreso as Cocina Económia Doña Mary features Pechuga Parmesana! We met up with Raymond and Pamela at their condo across from Faces and enjoyed a Doña Mary takeaway lunch together!
Doña Mary’s menu
Unbeknownst to us, they had brought us a very special Anniversary gift!
What a wonderful moment!A Raymond masterpiece!
Miguel completed his repairs and replacements for lights and stuff, so we have the full effect of the new lights that night!
The tree lights are now working!
After a quiet day at home, the next day was an outing into Chicxulub!
On my way to rake the beach!Recovering from raking the beach!
After almost 2 years, it was nice to see Gaby the hairdresser again!
Estestica y Barberia de Gaby!A tradition continues! A pic with Gaby with our first haircut of the season!
In the 2 years we’ve been away, there are many changes in Chicxulub! One of the major ones is the redevelopment of the town square. All of the old loncheria buildings are been replaced with very new and modern structures. It’s somewhat sad to see them go… as well as some of the vendors too!
Many changes along the Calle 20 side of the square.The basketball court has been replaced with a new one!The old gazebo is gone!Loncherias la Trinidad and Los 3 Compadres are gone!Our Lavanderia Caremi is gone… replaced by another pharmacy!
However, a new laundry has opened as well a new pizzeria on Calle 19 just off the plaza! It turns out that Carmen from Caremi now works at the new one!
Splash II laundryOsteria 386 Pizzeria looks promising
Back home in Uaymarima that evening, we enjoyed another spectacular Uaymitun sunset!
A very interesting gazebo next door to Val & George’sDave and Jeanette from 2 doors down!Every way you look…… it’s breath taking!
In response to a comment from Steve Miller, who asked “One time, show us what’s in Costco and Chedraui. The unique to Mexico items in Costco would be especially interesting.” While these aren’t necessarily from Costco or Chedruai, here are some unique items that definitely would not show up on a Canadian or American grocery shelf!
El Sabor de Oaxaca “Sal de Chapulín” or Grasshopper SaltThis delicacy is sweet Puff Pastry with Ham and Cheese!It’s a brand name! We think it’s to allay fears as to what it really is!One of my personal favs!
I hope you enjoyed another glimpse of our Winter in Uaymitun 2022! Until next time…
Welcome to our blog post that captures highlights from our first week back in Uaymitun!
On the Thursday after our arrival, we made a grocery run into Mérida to Costco and Chedraui! We found it a bit stressful as it was our first foray into a large city in many a moon! However, we found that everyone was masked and kept their distance… and the stores were really not all that busy!
Here’s some evening pics from the house and beach!
Sunset was amazing!The front door at night!Our driveway!Our beach house patio!
Val & George arrived that day too… I’ll let Val tell their travel stories on her blog, but needless to say it wasn’t as straightforward as they had planned!
It was a gorgeous evening and they came over for dinner! It was so good to be able to spend time with them again! It’s been a long 22 months!
Very tired but here!
Our next day was a very quiet day of relaxing and finishing unpacking our totes!
Family photos are set up along with our new Digital Frame!A quick jaunt up to the roof!Another Uaymitun sunset!
Saturday… A very special day has arrived!
Anniversary sunrise!
January 8, 1972, 50 years ago today, Elaine and I were married in Kitchener, Ontario!
Yours truly and my lovely bride!
It is beyond belief that 50 years have passed since that day! As has happened to so many, our plans for celebration have been changed by the Pandemic!
With the well appreciated help of friends down here, the love of my life was delivered gorgeous bouquets of flowers from Janina Floreria in Mérida !
From Gaby & Billy
From Me with Love!
Val & George came down for celebratory Mimosas!
For many recent winters, we have celebrated our anniversary with Val & George at Hacienda Xcanatun near Merida. However, it has changed hands and the menu has changed quite a bit. So we decided to go to a new restaurant for our 50th Anniversary dinner. Humo Bistro in Progreso!
Any of our friends who have gone to Humo Bistro have given it great reviews! We booked a table on their patio where it was open aired and only a few tables. They followed proper protocols, so we felt very safe!
Humo Bistro, Calle 66 x 25 y 17, ProgresoGreat ambiance!Great table location!Great food!Great memories!
That concludes our 2nd blog of the 2022 winter season in Uaymitun! Next post will highlight out settling in time in Uaymitun, Chicxulub, Progreso and Mérida!
Welcome to our blog post that captures highlights from our long-awaited return to Uaymitun!
To paraphrase the title of the opening chapter of The Fellowship of the Ring, this is “A Long-awaited Return” to Uaymitun!
As our lofty hopes of a quick passing of the Pandemic melted away in 2020 and on into 2021, last summer we regained some optimism that life would soon return to a new normal. We started to think and hope we would be able to return to our winter home in Uaymitun in 2022. So we confirmed our beach house and rental car. We purchased tickets for a Jan 4th flight on WestJet from Toronto to Merida.
And then, in November, we started hearing rumblings of a new variant, Omicron, that had been identified first in South Africa! Before we knew it, suddenly all was again put into jeopardy!
Case counts began to rise… restrictions reappeared. Our Christmas plans only partially worked out and then only with Rapid Tests for all! And then it was the countdown to departure! Would the flight be one of those cancelled? Would somehow we be exposed to Omicron and be denied from flying? It was a stressful time!
Then, suddenly, Jan 4th dawned… we shuttled from our overnight hotel to the airport… checked in… and wonderfully our plane took us to paradise!
As we prepared for our trip, we said our farewells to family and friends! But this wasn’t easy as we were very concerned about inadvertently becoming exposed to COVID as the days were counted down.
A welcome visit from Faith, Ryan and Trish!Sharing birthday gifts with Trish and Faith!One last taste of winter the day before we left!
On the Sunday before our flight, we locked up the house for the winter and drove up to Wellesley to visit with Kerry, Bryan and the boys! We were finally able to exchange Christmas gifts from us and from the Sarnia clan!
Kerry with her new earrings!
On the Monday, Kerry & Bryan drove us to the Sandman Signature Toronto Airport hotel where we could spend the night and take the shuttle over on Tuesday morning.
Interesting sidenote… back in the summer as we made our plans, I had reserved a room at our usual airport hotel. It’s an International Chain who’s name rhymes with Milton! Literally two weeks before our stay, something made Elaine wonder about our choice of hotel. So I called and told them we had a reservation for Jan 3rd and wanted to ensure that they were NOT a COVID Quarantine Hotel! A long pause… “Are you sure you have a reservation?”… yes… “that’s strange as we’re CLOSED (read that as YES We are a QH)”!!! So we quickly made a reservation at the aforementioned Sandman hotel!
In any case we had a nice room overlooking the airport down the road and were able to get a nice dinner from the on-premises Moxies restaurant!
Overlooking Pearson International AirportCelebratory Mimosas in an secluded area at Moxie’s!
After a very early “wake-up” call and shuttle, we arrived at Terminal 3 and went to the baggage drop kiosks! We printed and tagged our bags and went to the self-service baggage machines… validated with our boarding pass QR code and loaded our 1st bag onto the conveyor. It went out of sight, so at the prompt, we loaded our 2nd bag… in/out… in/out… in/out… halt — error! Bending over, we could see our 1st bag stuck at the back of the machine as the main conveyor belt wasn’t working! Shortly a harried technician arrived and went into the back and after a few minutes it started working and the bag left! Looking back at the validation terminal, it merrily said “Please validate your Boarding Pass QR code”! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! However, an attendant said not to worry… happens all the time! And when we validated again, it said 1 / 4 bags already sent! HOOOOOORAH! While this will pale in light other’s horrific luggage stories it was very stressful at the moment!
While we did have a couple of hours to wait before boarding, it was really good to start to relax and actually believe we would soon be on our flight!
A quick check and I could see our plane waiting at the end of the boarding gantry!
Boarding went smoothly and as the pilot surveyed the mostly full plane, he went on the microphone and announced that Doug & Elaine Loten were on the plane and would be celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary on Jan 8th… the whole plane cheered and clapped!
Sarnia and Bright’s GroveOur flight attendant served us champagne enroute!
We arrived on time in Merida and were very fortunate to pass through Immigration, pick up our bags, get a Green light at Customs and proceeded out to meet Diego and get our car! All in all, we were through in less than 20 minutes! Amazing!
Diego of Yucatan Vacation Rentals at our rental car!
And then it was back on familiar trails… out of the airport, onto Benito Juarez to the Periferico… then North and East to the turn North to Progreso! It felt so good! We’d been dreaming of that trip for a long time!
A quick stop at the Bodega Aurrera and Soriana to pick up a few essentials and out the Costera to Uaymitun and our winter home!
A happy selfie by the pool!Sitting on the patio almost in disbelief that we are actually here!
First morning!
Our morning coffee view!Toes in the Gulf
One of my manly chores at the beach house is raking the beach! This was a habit I got into from our very first year here, in hopes that family and friends could visit and enjoy the beach! This year, so far, the daily washup of seaweed is fairly small.
Looking eastwardLooking westwardAdmiring my handiworkAfter that hard work it’s time for a 2nd coffee
Then it was time to start provisioning the house for the winter… so off to Bodega Aurrera and Soriana in Progreso!
It’s winter in Progreso too!
After groceries were packed, we headed downtown Progreso and parked at the square.
Christmas tree on the square…… with reindeer of course!
After a quick visit to the HSBC bank and a stop in El Paso for a few other hard to find items… it was back to the beach house!
Well, I think I’ll close out this blog for now! The next one will highlight the arrival of Val & George as well a very, very special day!
One final note… while Omicron rages almost everywhere, the case counts in Yucatan are still relatively low. It is very rare to see anyone in public here without a mask. To enter a grocery store you need to be masked, sanitize your hands and have your temperature taken. We will be keeping our circle small and do the things we’re familiar with doing over the almost 2 past years to stay safe!
We recognize it’s only a matter of time before Omicron becomes widely spread here. However, the majority of our time is spent outdoors and we’ll only dine at restaurants with outdoor patios. So we’re feeling safe here… and it’s a lot warmer! 🙂
Welcome to the 2nd News Post of the revived “The Ducksoup Blogs”!
It’s hard to fathom the impact the last almost 2 years have had on all of us!
Memories from Feb/Mar 2020
Looking back on these pictures from late in our 2020 stay, we had no idea what was ahead!
We count ourselves very fortunate, not only to live in Canada where we’ve been able to receive our full vaccination status, but that our entire extended family have been able to avoid the severe outcomes that have afflicted so many!
NOTE: I originally created this News Post in early November... before Omicron! So, I put off publishing this until we actually made it here, which we did on Tuesday, January 4th, 2022!!!
We are planning on returning to our winter home in Uaymitun, MX in early January and returning home the 1st week of April! Hopefully our return will be less stressful that the one in March 0f 2020!
Our strategy while there won’t vary much from our strategy here… minimize outside contacts, avoid large crowds, socialize only with a small group of similarly minded folks, wear masks while in public! However, we plan to be much warmer there than we were last winter in Sarnia! 🙂
Once settled in, I hope to restart our blogs and I hope you all will enjoy them!
This News Post is also being sent to test out my MailPoet services and to ensure that all subscribers are receiving notification of new posts! As always, should you no longer wish to receive “The Ducksoup Blogs” posts, please let me know and I’ll remove you from the Active mailing list.
I will follow up this post with individual emails, as I will reset all passwords to make it easy for all.
Welcome to a blog post that captures highlights from our the final days of our trips to the Yucatán!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
With a tip of the hat to Charles Dickens, this post could be called a Tale of Two Cities, Mérida and Cancún, but it’s more a Tale of Two Trips. Elaine and I spent a few days in Cancún while the other two couples spent a few days closer to the beach house.
The sunrise from our hotel room in Cancún
Friday, February 13, 2009
Here’s a few pics from the Fiesta America Condesa in Cancún! The beaches had been decimated by hurricane Dean in 2007 and hadn’t returned when we were there!
We were happy…
… to stay at…
Fiesta Americans Condesa
The Atrium
Our room
Meanwhile, back in Chicxulub, the gang went on an excursion to the cenotes of Cuzamá. Things have changed a bit since then, but in 2009, you could buy a ticket for all 3 cenotes. Here’s a few pics from their day!
On to the 2nd cenote…
and the 3rd!
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Our final full day in Mexico… Val & George and Rog & Sandy spent time in Chicxulub and Progreso!
We enjoyed our final day at the Fiesta American Condesa and went out for a Valentine’s dinner at The Captain’s Cove!
We had a wonderful time time having Valentine’s dinner at The Captain’s Cove and enjoyed our first Cappuccino Maya!
The Captain’s Cove
Fiesta Americana Condesa
It’s hard to believe it’s been that long since our first venture to the Yucatán! It’s now become our winter home!
It’s been a blast for me to remember the good times from our very first trip to the Chicxulub, Progreso and Mérida area! I hope you’ve enjoyed it too!
