Avoiding the blues

I returned home 3 days ago, and I must prepare to work through the final sprint of the school year. I think that the timing was perfect for this vacation - the upcoming 8 weeks are loaded with to do lists in all departments of my business. This break allowed me to take a nice, long, deep breath and I feel I have the energy and perspective to get to work. Nice change from the pre-departure... which was tainted by a chain of unfortunate events, adding weight to my shoulders every single day... I feel much lighter now.

Being busy is good for me right now. The last time I traveled to Yucatan, after my return I found myself in a stagnant phase of post-travel blues which I think may have been enhanced by the fact that I had too much time to think and reminisce. I made sure to not have so much time on my hands this time around... Should help.

Part of the work I have to do is to brainstorm and research financing options for the Merida teacher training project, which also includes an important philanthropic component. At this time I think that it should not be a problem to pull it off in about one year... it's not a very expensive operation. The teacher training is a simple series of 3 hour workshops made available mainly to daycare and elementary school teachers, which would take place at the music school owed by my partners in this project - Musicalia music school in Merida. The community outreach aspect can be deployed in many ways - from acquiring instruments, to financing teaching time, or a decent room to teach. The owners of Musicalia are already involved in the community and it's a matter of fostering what they have developed. One hundred dollars can go a long way... so it should not be too difficult to make a decent financial contribution on that front.

And at home - I am very much looking forward to pampering my family and my nest. Dylan just turned 13 last month, and Leo's 10th birthday is coming-up in August. The time has come to invest in the garage... empty it of all rubbish, clean it up, re-inforse the structure and fix the roof. Let the boys design the inside. We want it to be a cool rec room, and hopefully make it somewhat of a headquarter for our growing boys and their friends. Skateboarding ramp seems to be part of the plans, this is an exciting summer project for all of us.

Tomorrow is Mother's Day and the boys - all 3 of them - decided to take me out for dim sum. My favorite! Enjoying this blissful weekend... Monday will be another story.

Back to the Caribbean

It was a great trip for the most part - I think that everyone enjoyed their vacation. No major glitch... the only mistake was mine... the night we had a mariachi band for Jeanne-Marie's birthday... and I had the brilliant idea to invite them for dinner. Not good Julie.  The food and the beautiful set-up was not intended for extra guests.  Most definitely the winner for outstanding bonehead move of the trip - and I will have to accept all pokes about this for the coming decade no doubt. Well deserved - I own it. Except for that very awkward episode, everything was pretty perfect in Telchac Puerto.

We had a great time in Merida on Saturday night too, and I'm delighted that we could enjoy a typical festive evening Merida style. On that front the only problem was that my sister and I were never able to check-in our hotel - Luz en Yucatan - because nobody answered the darn door. It was about 40 degrees, and we were stuck on the sidewalk with our luggage. No fun. I decided to join our traveling companions at Hotel Caribe, a couple of blocks away, and we took a taxi because of our big load. Because we did not have an apartment with kitchen as planned, our stay in Merida ended-up being much more expensive than anticipated. I don't like having to eat in restaurants for all meals... especially not in the more touristy centre of town. Oh well. It's very very hot in Merida these days, 40 celcius +. 

Our travelling companions left on Sunday morning, and my sister and I enjoyed the Sunday festivities. Because of the heat, we decided to get out of town and make our way to the Caribbean coast as soon as possible. I had a meeting on Monday afternoon, arranged by Judy, and I could not have possibly found a better group of people to connect with if I tried to. Judy knows a lot of people, and she is a master at connecting ideas. Now I can move on and develop a teacher training project, with a great group of partners in Merida. We will explore government financing options from our respective countries, and shoot for a series of workshops sometime in 2013. I am thrilled! As soon as my meeting was over, we picked-up our luggage and took the bus to Cancun. It was a scorching 45 degrees when we left Merida yesterday afternoon.

We arrived in Cancun at around 8pm and checked-in a big beach front hotel near the Club Med... and about 15 min. from the airport. I thought it was an all inclusive deal but it's not. Crud... more expenses... and now I can't wait to go home. My work here is done and at this point it all seems like too much. Strange to be writing this with a fabulous view on the pristine blue water of the Caribbean - I guess it's not at all what this trip was about for me so I have no urge to run to the beach.

Leaving tomorrow afternoon, and looking forward to being with my family.

Beautiful

Ah... what a beautiful time in Yucatan again! The first couple of days in Telchac were unusually windy, but now the weather has settled for the better and the sea is beautiful for swimming.  It's a fun time to come to Telchac, from May to September is prime season here and the owners of the beach houses come and enjoy their properties. We met our neighbours, beautiful people from Merida - they own a Sushi restaurant in Merida so it looks like our dinner destination is all settled for Saturday night.

I went to teach this morning, 3 classes at the little Diego Rivera Preschool in Telchac.  It was fantastic!
It felt very comfortable, I basically did the most popular activities from the program I did last year. The kids remembered me and it was very lovely to see them a little more grown-up. My sister took lots of great pictures, she has a very good camera. The school principal has asked me to come back, and informed me that the school will keep growing... next year they will have four groups of children there. Nice! I don't want to make promises, I'll see if things develop in that direction.

We all spent the afternoon in Progreso, most women wanted to shop for souvenirs and since Wednesday is a cruise ship day in Progreso, the craft markets are open (there are 2) and all the vendors are full on with cutting deals. I didn't buy anything, we have plenty of Yucatan memorabilia at home already. I know exactly what souvenirs I will bring back - and I will get them in Merida. We spent a couple of hours in a cafe by the pier, drank beer, ate nachos, and danced to the live band. It was a lot of fun!
Being there made me miss my family again, another place where we spent good times together.  I can't wait until I can squeeze them in my arms again. Soon.

In the meantime... I kick back and enjoy this great vacation. Tonight is our big birthday celebration for Jeanne-Marie - the reason we all gathered here in Mexico. She doesn't know yet, but we have a mariachi band booked for a private happy hour, and then a catered dinner. Should be another crazy night with the girls - so much fun!!! Time to get in the shower... Adios!

The Storm has passed...

It was a very challenging couple of weeks before I left last Saturday. Unexpected problems kept popping up and my 'to do' list was left aside for a few days. I am pretty amazed that I didn't forget anything important... I was extremely stressed and ended up packing my suitcase on Friday afternoon, with the kids around and my sister who had arrived in mid-day. I processed everyone's pay a couple of days early, but made a couple of mistakes which I will have to fix when I return. Trying to do too much too fast. I also had to let go of the teacher I was training - very disappointing... time and money wasted - something I don't have very much of to start with. It was a mistake. So... I left all that behind, Tim and the boys are just fine, and I can finally relax! The flight went very well, and 8 of us met at the Cancun airport. We got our pre-arranged ride to Puerto Morelos, and celebrated our first day together. Fun, late night. On Sunday morning we left at 10am, our private bus was on time and the driver was super nice and chatty. I would book with them anytime when I come back - the company is called USA Transfers - very competitive pricing, and very reliable service. We stopped in Izamal for lunch and groceries, as planned, it was a nice pit stop. It was strange to drive through Sudzal without stopping though... and being in Izamal made me miss my family very much. We spent a lot of time there together, good happy times for the four of us. We arrived in Telchac at around 5pm, beautiful houses, dinner ready (we ordered roasted chicken, rice and tortillas, made a guacamole - yum!). Our first night was excellent, we all danced for hours by the pool - at our house (we have 3 houses). Had a beautiful sleep with the gentle breeze of the ocean (or the Gulf...). Sleeping with my window open is a great treat - I can't do that at home and it bugs me. Wind, dogs barking once in awhile, and the Sound of the waves. Excellent! Day 2 in Telchac - just got the cars delivered to us (one per house), and we're about to venture out to Progreso for our big grocery shopping adventure. Probably public market first for produce, and then the grocery store. I love shopping for food here - it's a beautiful thing. Okay - time to go! So far so good!

6 Days to Departure

All righty! Did a lot work all week long, and cooked a few things to fill the freezer so that Tim and the boys can have a few good meals and manage through the week easily. I picked my clothes for the trip, now I need to find the perfect bag. Small is good, we'll see what I can find in our big closet.

I have another tight week ahead of me, and then work will be this thing far far away. Aaaaaah.

Because my sister LOVES to snorkel, I found a great excursion which we will look into when we arrive in Telchac Puerto. It's called the Scorpion Reef, and archipelago of coral reef located about 8 km North of Progreso, in the Gulf of Mexico. It's a National Park, and has some interesting ship wecks dating as far back as the 1600's - when pirates were ruling these waters. If the pricing is not outrageous and the ride is safe and sound - will probably do it.

I have to finalise the date and time to teach at the Telchac Puerto preschool, and also set a meeting with the owners of a small music school in Merida - friends of Judy. So far I have a lunch date with Judy, and my old friend Jose-Luis will visit us while we're in Merida. If possible I would like to pay a visit to the Alliance Française too. I don't want to book too much, because I want plenty of free time to walk around town. Merida is lovely. In many ways it reminds me of my home town of Quebec City.
And I would also like to do a couple of excursions out of Merida also, like the caves of Loltun, or the great archeological site of Uxmal. I heard a lot of good things about both places, maybe we'll do that... too????? Oh... so many places and so little time!

I'm looking forward to stepping out of my business shoes, it will be good for sure! Lots of decisions to make for the coming year and beyond - and i'm getting a brain cramp. A drastic change of pace and environment should remedy the situation : )

9 Days to Departure

Now at 9 days to departure, and the countdown has begun. It's a very busy week, which was rather accented by the fact that I lost wallet on Tuesday afternoon. Crud! Cancelled everything after checking every possible pocket and nook 10 times each. Tim is out of town this week so I had no alternate access to our bank account. The first few hours were excruciating... I was very upset and could not believe that this happened to me one week before I leave the country. Crud!

But there is nothing like a good night of sleep... and the following day I took care of business and found that it's actually not so painful nowadays to replace bank cards and driver licence. By Wednesday afternoon, I had my bank cards for my business account, and personal account, as well as a temporary driver's licence in hand. Still some calls to make, but the top items are taken care of. Phew!

On a brighter note, I started to sort my summer clothes to pack my suitcase! Yay! I travel light - simple and minimalist. Things which I know I will wear, and I will do a couple of loads of laundry at the beach house (we have a laundry room). I only bring a few skin care essentials, and I will buy the rest when I get there (shampoo, sun screen, etc.).

It will be a healthy break, and I am very much looking forward to introducing my sister to the Yucatan state. She is a Caribbean fan, loves to snorkle, but knowing her I think that she will love the region and the laid back life style. It will be a nice adventure for her to venture into new territory.

Time to make a list and make sure that I have what I need in my suitcase! Woo hoo!!!

A Little Bump on the Road

It's been awhile since I posted... caught in the swirl of multitasking I guess.

Time sure flies these days, and I'm almost 2 weeks to departure to Mexico. The last couple of weeks have brought a little bump on the road... one fellow traveller cancelled at four weeks to departure and refuses to pay a cent. My opinion is that it's very lame on her part. Not only do the rest of us have to cover for her empty room in one of the houses, I have to re-calculate transportation cost for each leg of the trip and figure out individual price differences for the 10 of us. No fun - but not the end of the world of course - and that is that.

Business is very good and lined-up until mid-June (closed in the summer) but I have a major challenge... one of my top teachers might stop teaching sometime next year. Lots of notice, but still very challenging because it takes about one year for me to train, and assess a teacher's strengths and level of commitment. Growth is stalled for the time being - I have to look for a new French music teacher now. There is a silver lining to everything, and this unexpected news has forced me to see what I didn't want to look at... like losing a great teacher, which is bound to happen sooner or later. Business must go on.
It also made me consider way to simplify my approach. My current operations are very demanding in terms of prep and processing (admin structure), and it might just be the time to rectify my procedures - work smarter, not harder.

And my upcoming trip to Mexico will be refreshing that's for sure - I do need to walk away from it all. It has been a very emotional time after my teacher announced that she would eventually quit... and at times I was ready to give-up the business altogether and look for a job.

Mexico here I come again! There's nothing like a good break to find a new perspective on a situation - or at least I hope it will be the case!!! I need it!!!!