I met Jane yesterday afternoon. She is a very good friend of Gisèle, the owner of the house we are renting, and she dropped by to introduce herself. She is a vibrant woman, a retired early childhood teacher, and she is actively involved with the school library program here in Xcalak. She is also starting and ESL program at the school next week. She is from Minnesota, and spends six months here every year with her husband. Their house is about 2km down the road and she invited us to snorkel there as she has a nice shallow reef in front of her house - perfect for the kids. She will also take me and the kids to her ESL class on December 7, she said that it is a must for the kids to see what a classroom looks like here (they barely have a piece of chalk...). Looking forward to the experience.
She also told us how the bridge that used to link the beach road to Majahual went down. It appears that two Mexicans had a huge argument one night, and they burned it. There you go! I guess their affairs are settled now! She said that it's not a bad thing, since Majahual is the bigger town on this part of the coast and Xcalak is much more quiet and safe since the beach access has been... well...burned down (okay then...).
School work still going well - although for some reason we were not able to Skype with Leo's teacher this week. The session was postponed to Tuesday and while we waited for him to connect, we did the home work and after a half hour, he was still not there so we signed out. When the home work is completed I take a photo of each page and email it to his teacher. Today I tried to do this with my camera instead of my iPhone, but the resolution was too high and the filed were too big - so this will be done with the iPhone from now on.
We all went snorkeling a little farther yesterday, Leo's first time on a reef. I partnered with him and was holding his hand and the entire time he kept pointing at each fish (big blue, and yellow and purple ones) and I could hear him exclaiming his joy and surprise through his snorkel - what a pleasure to share this with him!
Time to prepare to go to town, I will put the final touch on my lesson plan and we will hit the road to Majahual. The last time we were there in March 2008, was 6 months after the town was completely wiped out by hurricane Dean and they were very busy re-building. It will be great to see the new town, the boys remember the way it was so they will appreciate the difference. We'll do some shopping too, I wonder if our list in realistic... the 'big' store there might not be exactly our idea of 'big'. We"ll see!
Somewhere between Izamal and Sudzal, Yucatan.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Life by the sea
We arrived here in Xcalak one week ago today, and we're still getting used to living by the sea. The weather was very rainy for the first 3 days, and then it turned for the better - with the occasional quick rain storm (very windy!!!). All of us, except for Leo. have difficulty sleeping the night and we can't quite figure out why. It's not too hot or cold, the beds are very comfortable, so maybe the silence! For me, the mosquitoes have a lot to do with it. My feet are covered with bites, and it's driving me CRAZY!!! Especially at night... I try every single cream that we have to sooth the itch, some kind of work better than others. We're going to town tomorrow (Majahual) and I will look for something more efficient. Anyone knows of a natural way to sooth mosquitoe bites? Please let me know!!! I'll try anything - lemon juice, banana peel, butter... really!
We started to practice snorkeling in front of our beach house to get used to the equipment, and the boys and Tim loved it! Tim spotted a lion fish the first time we went in, too soon and too close... these are a real pest but I'm glad that the boys could see one up-close, and that they are aware of them. The following day we practiced some more and we saw a barracuda, again I was glad that they could see small one and that they are now able to identify them. There are many little fish as soon as we get in the water, a lot of little striped yellow and black fish, some little purple ones with a yellow belly and tale, and many sand colour fish. Dylan seemed a bit concerned about going out farther to snorkel since we got here, and he did not want to go for kayak rides. Yesterday I accompanied Tim and Dylan to a small reef near our house and not too far out, for their first real snorkel experience (Leo and I had to Skype with his teacher). They were amazed at the difference in the fish so close to shore, and swam through schools of blue fish and saw many other beautiful ones, all around this small reef garden. They loved it, and Dylan wants to go every single day now!
The birds are also plentiful around here. Many migratory birds like cranes and cormorans, and others which we would like to identify eventually. On is black and twice the size of a robin, with beautiful bright blue wings and a bright yellow bill, and they travel in groups. I saw a yellow parakeet, and as I am getting better aquainted with our camera I will try to capture some good images to better identify them.
The sea shore is covered with conch shells, never saw so many - there are thousands! Unfortunately even in such a remote location, the beach is also littered by all kinds of plastic waste carried by the sea. Sad sight, but eye opening for the boys.
Today will be a busy day, a lot of school work for Leo since I received his evaluation papers for this trimester. I am helping him revise the subject matters every day, and give him the document to complete on Friday morning. I will find a good reward, he works hard and it's not easy for him to do school work here. I also have to prepare for my first classes which will take place tomorrow. I already translated some songs and activities that I do in French - this way I am comfortable with the material instead of learning all new songs. Let's get to work! Hasta luego!
We started to practice snorkeling in front of our beach house to get used to the equipment, and the boys and Tim loved it! Tim spotted a lion fish the first time we went in, too soon and too close... these are a real pest but I'm glad that the boys could see one up-close, and that they are aware of them. The following day we practiced some more and we saw a barracuda, again I was glad that they could see small one and that they are now able to identify them. There are many little fish as soon as we get in the water, a lot of little striped yellow and black fish, some little purple ones with a yellow belly and tale, and many sand colour fish. Dylan seemed a bit concerned about going out farther to snorkel since we got here, and he did not want to go for kayak rides. Yesterday I accompanied Tim and Dylan to a small reef near our house and not too far out, for their first real snorkel experience (Leo and I had to Skype with his teacher). They were amazed at the difference in the fish so close to shore, and swam through schools of blue fish and saw many other beautiful ones, all around this small reef garden. They loved it, and Dylan wants to go every single day now!
The birds are also plentiful around here. Many migratory birds like cranes and cormorans, and others which we would like to identify eventually. On is black and twice the size of a robin, with beautiful bright blue wings and a bright yellow bill, and they travel in groups. I saw a yellow parakeet, and as I am getting better aquainted with our camera I will try to capture some good images to better identify them.
The sea shore is covered with conch shells, never saw so many - there are thousands! Unfortunately even in such a remote location, the beach is also littered by all kinds of plastic waste carried by the sea. Sad sight, but eye opening for the boys.
Today will be a busy day, a lot of school work for Leo since I received his evaluation papers for this trimester. I am helping him revise the subject matters every day, and give him the document to complete on Friday morning. I will find a good reward, he works hard and it's not easy for him to do school work here. I also have to prepare for my first classes which will take place tomorrow. I already translated some songs and activities that I do in French - this way I am comfortable with the material instead of learning all new songs. Let's get to work! Hasta luego!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Apple Cake - Enjoy!
Yummy Easy Apple Cake
2 cups diced apples (small cubes)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup oil
1 egg, beaten
1 cup flour
1tsp baking soda
1/4 sp salt
Cinnamon and vanilla to taste
Mix the diced apples with the sugar and let sit for 30 min. Add oil and egg, cinnamon and vanilla and mix, add dry ingredients and mix well. Pour into a prepared 8'' or 9'' pan, bake at 350F for 40 to 45 min. To add a special touch after it cooled a bit, I poked the top with a fork and drizzled maple sirup on it. Yummy yummy! I will definitely make it again!
2 cups diced apples (small cubes)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup oil
1 egg, beaten
1 cup flour
1tsp baking soda
1/4 sp salt
Cinnamon and vanilla to taste
Mix the diced apples with the sugar and let sit for 30 min. Add oil and egg, cinnamon and vanilla and mix, add dry ingredients and mix well. Pour into a prepared 8'' or 9'' pan, bake at 350F for 40 to 45 min. To add a special touch after it cooled a bit, I poked the top with a fork and drizzled maple sirup on it. Yummy yummy! I will definitely make it again!
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Driving to Xcalak - what you should know
It occurred to me that as I was preparing for this trip I did not find much information about driving - so for the folks who are looking for such details, I will take a moment to share what we have learned.
First - if you land in Cancun I highly recommend that you spend the first night somewhere on the coast between Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen. The drive will be a little over four hours from Playa del Carmen, and it's better to avoid driving after sunset.
Second - Plan on leaving sufficient room in your car to pack the food supplies you will buy. In our case, we are a family of 4 so we purchased a rooftop bag (roofbag.com - good price and fast delivery) to store our clothing luggage. We also carry a banjo, a mandolin, a violin and a guitar, so the bag was absolutely necessary. Playa del Carmen has a few super stores, we went to Chedraui, but you could also go to Sam's - they are both very easy to find on the East side of the 307 in Playa del Carmen. We bought 2 styrofoam coolers, lines them with a garbage bag (the coolers may leak over time), and 2 bags of ice to store meat and dairy products. This type of cooler is not too big and gettin two is easier to place in your trunk than one big cooler.
Third - Get cash, there are no banks in Xcalak and the closest ATM is in Majahual (60km).
Fourth - fill-up you gas tank in Tulum, and when you get on the road to Majahual, fill it up again at the gas station located about 5km before arriving in Majahual (the only gas station here...).
Fifth - The turn off to Xcalak is just before the gas station, so you will have to go back on the road and turn left on to the Xcalak road and you should arrive in Xcalak in about 40 min. Thist is the only road going that way but there are no big signs, just a bunch of small ones. This is the ONLY road to Xcalak at this time (mid-November 2010). There used to be access from Majahual to Xcalak along the beach road, but one bridge has collapsed and has not yet been rebuilt.
FINALLY! You should know that the tortilla guy drives down the road every single day, a package of fresh warm corn tortillas cost $150 pesos. A food truck comes by twice a week, on Tuesdays and and Fridays. They have plenty of fruit and ) veggies, and meat (chicken, beef and pork). The beer truck also comes by twice a week, also on Tuesday and Friday.
The people who liv here are mostly Mayans, and they are honest, kind and simple people. And last for not least - Enjoy you stay!!!
NEXT POST : Yummy and simple apple cake recipe!
First - if you land in Cancun I highly recommend that you spend the first night somewhere on the coast between Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen. The drive will be a little over four hours from Playa del Carmen, and it's better to avoid driving after sunset.
Second - Plan on leaving sufficient room in your car to pack the food supplies you will buy. In our case, we are a family of 4 so we purchased a rooftop bag (roofbag.com - good price and fast delivery) to store our clothing luggage. We also carry a banjo, a mandolin, a violin and a guitar, so the bag was absolutely necessary. Playa del Carmen has a few super stores, we went to Chedraui, but you could also go to Sam's - they are both very easy to find on the East side of the 307 in Playa del Carmen. We bought 2 styrofoam coolers, lines them with a garbage bag (the coolers may leak over time), and 2 bags of ice to store meat and dairy products. This type of cooler is not too big and gettin two is easier to place in your trunk than one big cooler.
Third - Get cash, there are no banks in Xcalak and the closest ATM is in Majahual (60km).
Fourth - fill-up you gas tank in Tulum, and when you get on the road to Majahual, fill it up again at the gas station located about 5km before arriving in Majahual (the only gas station here...).
Fifth - The turn off to Xcalak is just before the gas station, so you will have to go back on the road and turn left on to the Xcalak road and you should arrive in Xcalak in about 40 min. Thist is the only road going that way but there are no big signs, just a bunch of small ones. This is the ONLY road to Xcalak at this time (mid-November 2010). There used to be access from Majahual to Xcalak along the beach road, but one bridge has collapsed and has not yet been rebuilt.
FINALLY! You should know that the tortilla guy drives down the road every single day, a package of fresh warm corn tortillas cost $150 pesos. A food truck comes by twice a week, on Tuesdays and and Fridays. They have plenty of fruit and ) veggies, and meat (chicken, beef and pork). The beer truck also comes by twice a week, also on Tuesday and Friday.
The people who liv here are mostly Mayans, and they are honest, kind and simple people. And last for not least - Enjoy you stay!!!
NEXT POST : Yummy and simple apple cake recipe!
Friday, November 19, 2010
Xcalak, Quintana Roo - Mexico
We arrived just after sunset on November 17, and it has been overcast and rainy since then - we are told that it's the first rain in about 15 days. It's fine - not too hot and just enough rain breaks to go and enjoy our surroundings. We went swimming in the sea this morning - lovely and warm, and a lot of life above and below water. So many big conch shells that Leo actually took for mission to take the ones on the beach and put them back in the water, saving them.
We realise that although we did by a fair amount of food, we will need to get fresh fruit and veggies regularly. So after chatting with Gabriel, our property care giver, I found out that there is a pretty good food supply system along this little secluded beach road. First, the tortilla guy goes down the road every day on his motorcycle with a cooler filled with fresh warm corn tortillas (I LOVE the smell of warm tortillas), then the produce and meat guy comes twice a week - Tuesday and Friday - just like the beer truck. I actually bought some fruit today, and beer too - it's just too funny to wave the beer truck and buy a 24 !
I also inquired about gas for the car, and we have just enough to get back to the gas station in Majahual, 68km from our little beach house. There used to be access to Majahual from the beach road, but the bridge collapsed so currently we can only get there with the jungle road - about 45 min. drive. I have leared that there is a good general store there and we will be able to buy some paper supplies, beach toys and other things we will need in the coming month.
Breakfasts and lunches are pretty simple, and an afternoon snack in needed since we tend to eat smaller meals here. Dinner is the bigger meal - I made a pasta sauce yesterday, cooked black beans which we eat every day as dip or in rice or any other way one can eat black beans! I am cooking chicken legs tonight, and will use the bones to make sopa de lima (my favorite soup!). I will share the recipe later this week. Tonight I will also bake a simple apple cake, and share that recipe as well as soon as I know if it works... you never know.
Schooling is going well so far, we have a shift in the morning and another one in the afternoon. For Leo's hme work, I took photos of each completed page with my iPhone, and emailed them to his teacher. She is supposed to email me his new home work today - and I will print it on our fine and dandy HP portable printer. It's amazing to be so far away from everything, with only solar power, and be able to communicate and skype with the satellite connection on this property. Awsome!
Over and out for today - I must go and chop some apples!
We realise that although we did by a fair amount of food, we will need to get fresh fruit and veggies regularly. So after chatting with Gabriel, our property care giver, I found out that there is a pretty good food supply system along this little secluded beach road. First, the tortilla guy goes down the road every day on his motorcycle with a cooler filled with fresh warm corn tortillas (I LOVE the smell of warm tortillas), then the produce and meat guy comes twice a week - Tuesday and Friday - just like the beer truck. I actually bought some fruit today, and beer too - it's just too funny to wave the beer truck and buy a 24 !
I also inquired about gas for the car, and we have just enough to get back to the gas station in Majahual, 68km from our little beach house. There used to be access to Majahual from the beach road, but the bridge collapsed so currently we can only get there with the jungle road - about 45 min. drive. I have leared that there is a good general store there and we will be able to buy some paper supplies, beach toys and other things we will need in the coming month.
Breakfasts and lunches are pretty simple, and an afternoon snack in needed since we tend to eat smaller meals here. Dinner is the bigger meal - I made a pasta sauce yesterday, cooked black beans which we eat every day as dip or in rice or any other way one can eat black beans! I am cooking chicken legs tonight, and will use the bones to make sopa de lima (my favorite soup!). I will share the recipe later this week. Tonight I will also bake a simple apple cake, and share that recipe as well as soon as I know if it works... you never know.
Schooling is going well so far, we have a shift in the morning and another one in the afternoon. For Leo's hme work, I took photos of each completed page with my iPhone, and emailed them to his teacher. She is supposed to email me his new home work today - and I will print it on our fine and dandy HP portable printer. It's amazing to be so far away from everything, with only solar power, and be able to communicate and skype with the satellite connection on this property. Awsome!
Over and out for today - I must go and chop some apples!
Thursday, November 18, 2010
DAYS 1 TO 5
Yeepee - we're here!
Our flights were on time and painless, we had a quick connection in Charlotte, North Carolina, and thank God our luggage made it!
No problem through customs, and finlly got picked-up by our car rental company to get to the car. Another unforeseen expense which I should have researched : liability insurance. Very important here in Mexico - for us it's an additional $800 for 3 months. Okay... now for adding my name as a driver? The guy says at least $500, but he can do it for $100 cash (HA!). While I'm talking Tim is looking at the contract and sees very clearly that spouse can drive under this agreement. So I told the guy that Tim would drive, we're just fine thank you very much : )
Got to our hotel at about 1:30 or 2pm - Occidental Allegro Playacar - beautiful place and very friendly staff, perfect beach. We got in our swim suits and the four of us ran together in the Caribbean. The boys were over the moon with all the perks of the all inclusive (especially the buffet 3 times a day) and as we were walking around Leo and Dylan were chatting and saying 'wow, what more can there be around here?'... that's when we got to the giant chess board and they both stopped and exclaimed 'GIANT CHESS!!!!!' We had a good laugh. I think the guys thanked me one hundred times on that first day. Leo did his homework, and we Skyped with his school tutor on Monday as scheduled.
I thought I had done a great job packing - I usually think of everything and more... but this time to my dismay I realised that the boys had no underwear... another good laugh! So we went to Playa del Carmen to shop, got what we had on our list including a new guitar for Dylan - made in Paracho, Mexico, just like my mandolin. Paracho is famous for its string instruments, mostly guitars. $80 with the case, perfect!
On November 17 we packed our bags after breakfast, installed and loaded the rooftop bag, checked out and hit the road to go grocery shopping. It took about 2 hours. We have 2 styrofoam coolers which we filled with ice together with the meat and other cold food, and we had just enough room in the car to pack the food we bought. Finally... we left to get to our next destination : Xcalak.
It was a 5 hour trip, including one pit stop to eat lunch. Of that 5 hour drive, about 4 is literrally in the middle of nowhere. From the highway we turn on to a road going west (towards the sea) and drive for about 45 minutes, then turn right on to the road to Xcalak for one hour - and it seems like the jungle is taking over the pavement pretty much all along. We finally got to the village as the sun was setting. Great... now we had to find the house in the dark! Got on to the dirt road along the sea shore and about 8km from the village - finally arrived at Casa Caracola. Good thing, we only have 1/4 of tank of gas left in the car! No gas station in town... Oh well, we'll take care of that somehow. We're here for one month!
Settling in, it rained A LOT overnight, today is overcast and we're exploring the permises.
Over and out!
xoxo
Our flights were on time and painless, we had a quick connection in Charlotte, North Carolina, and thank God our luggage made it!
No problem through customs, and finlly got picked-up by our car rental company to get to the car. Another unforeseen expense which I should have researched : liability insurance. Very important here in Mexico - for us it's an additional $800 for 3 months. Okay... now for adding my name as a driver? The guy says at least $500, but he can do it for $100 cash (HA!). While I'm talking Tim is looking at the contract and sees very clearly that spouse can drive under this agreement. So I told the guy that Tim would drive, we're just fine thank you very much : )
Got to our hotel at about 1:30 or 2pm - Occidental Allegro Playacar - beautiful place and very friendly staff, perfect beach. We got in our swim suits and the four of us ran together in the Caribbean. The boys were over the moon with all the perks of the all inclusive (especially the buffet 3 times a day) and as we were walking around Leo and Dylan were chatting and saying 'wow, what more can there be around here?'... that's when we got to the giant chess board and they both stopped and exclaimed 'GIANT CHESS!!!!!' We had a good laugh. I think the guys thanked me one hundred times on that first day. Leo did his homework, and we Skyped with his school tutor on Monday as scheduled.
I thought I had done a great job packing - I usually think of everything and more... but this time to my dismay I realised that the boys had no underwear... another good laugh! So we went to Playa del Carmen to shop, got what we had on our list including a new guitar for Dylan - made in Paracho, Mexico, just like my mandolin. Paracho is famous for its string instruments, mostly guitars. $80 with the case, perfect!
On November 17 we packed our bags after breakfast, installed and loaded the rooftop bag, checked out and hit the road to go grocery shopping. It took about 2 hours. We have 2 styrofoam coolers which we filled with ice together with the meat and other cold food, and we had just enough room in the car to pack the food we bought. Finally... we left to get to our next destination : Xcalak.
It was a 5 hour trip, including one pit stop to eat lunch. Of that 5 hour drive, about 4 is literrally in the middle of nowhere. From the highway we turn on to a road going west (towards the sea) and drive for about 45 minutes, then turn right on to the road to Xcalak for one hour - and it seems like the jungle is taking over the pavement pretty much all along. We finally got to the village as the sun was setting. Great... now we had to find the house in the dark! Got on to the dirt road along the sea shore and about 8km from the village - finally arrived at Casa Caracola. Good thing, we only have 1/4 of tank of gas left in the car! No gas station in town... Oh well, we'll take care of that somehow. We're here for one month!
Settling in, it rained A LOT overnight, today is overcast and we're exploring the permises.
Over and out!
xoxo
Thursday, November 11, 2010
3 DAYS TO DEPARTURE
It's actually 2 days since we are leaving home at about 4am on Sunday morning. I finished packing and weight our bags - we are allowed up to 50lb per bag, otherwise we will have an insane surcharge. And we do have 50lb per bag - yeah baby!
We're busy with last minute errands like banking, copying house keys, leaving photocopies of our passports and legal documents with our emergency contact, Tim is reviewing our insurance coverage, I finalised a bunch of winter schedules and invoices, the cleaning lady just came to do the ground floor, I cleaned the dining room windows, etc. It's certainly looking like we're moving out!
I am beginning to relax and let go now. The house will be ready, and so will we! : )
We're busy with last minute errands like banking, copying house keys, leaving photocopies of our passports and legal documents with our emergency contact, Tim is reviewing our insurance coverage, I finalised a bunch of winter schedules and invoices, the cleaning lady just came to do the ground floor, I cleaned the dining room windows, etc. It's certainly looking like we're moving out!
I am beginning to relax and let go now. The house will be ready, and so will we! : )
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