Adios Sayulita, Hola Durango

December 17, 2004




Our last days in Sayulita were wonderful. We soaked up as much sun as we could and got in a few last surfing sessions. For our final dinner Bob, Sherry, Dan and I went over to Lorenzo and Estella’s house for family day. Tuesdays they close up the restaurant and have friends and family over for a potluck of sorts. It was a fantastic way to end our stay. Adrian drew us a Feliz Navidad card which we will treasure and we exchanged gifts with their family. Once again we are overwhelmed by the generosity shown to us by others.


Dan's last wave of the year.

It was with very heavy hearts that we left Sayulita Wednesday morning and headed north. Fortunately for us we spent the night in Teacapan which helped to ease the blow. Once again we were showered with fresh shrimp, fish and this time lobster, as well as copious amounts of cervezas. Unfortunately we couldn’t join in their fiesta for too long because we had a long day ahead of us and needed rest.

We had been hearing tales of the treacherous road through the mountains to Ciudad Durango. We had hemmed and hawed over driving it for weeks before settling on tackling the Calle de Espinoza del Diablo (The Devil’s Backbone).We awoke bright and early Thursday morning and hit the road. Nine hours later we had traveled roughly 230 miles. You read that right it took us nine hours! The Devil’s Backbone was all that we had heard and so much more.

20raquel.jpg" />
Right off the bat we got to take this little detour, through the river.





It is the most beautiful and terrifying road I have ever driven. And when I say I have driven, I mean Dan. Often people ask me what Dan does for the blog. Originally we had agreed to split writing duties 50/50, somewhere in the first weeks of the blog this was forgotten and Dan has never typed a single word of the text you read in hear. However, here is what Dan does. First he helps me remember details, names and times. He allows me to read the postings to him and we make corrections as a result. On occasion has been known to take a picture of me so I can prove to you all that I really exist. Most importantly however, Dan drives.



The "straight" part of the road.

I think I have mentioned before that we joke that Dan’s five years as a paramedic was practice for driving this rig. In the US we shared driving, although Dan still drove more than me. Since we hit Mexico I have not driven once. I would not have been able to drive El Espinoza because I had to close my eyes and pray as we navigated every blind switchback and met a semi barreling towards us in our lane. Next time you are complaining about paying taxes stop, and thank your lucky stars that we have shoulders on our roads in the US. Mexico does not believe in shoulders or guard rails.

Somewhere in the past few years I picked up a fear of mountain passes. This is a bit problematic seeing as how everywhere I want to go requires driving over them. None the less I am usually able to contain my panic. This was not one of those times. I honestly covered my eyes at every turn. I gasped a minimum of 50 times and seriously considered walking the rest of the road on at least two occasions. That said, and from the safety of this level parking spot, I am really glad we drove this way.
Daniel Lawrence Goddard, you are an excellent driver. Thank you.





The mountains, creeks and especially the tiny mountain pueblos were phenomenal. From the western turn off you immediately begin climbing. There are only 185 miles from the turn to Durango, but in those miles you cross every climate and ecological region of Mexico, all while going from sea level to 9200’. We climbed through cactus, Joshua Trees, conifer forests and even wild poinsettia fields. After you complete The Spine the road levels out and you enter a high desert plateau, and the temperature drops considerably. Just before you get to Durango you go through an area that for all intents and purposes could be Southwestern Colorado. Approaching Durango, Mexico from the west, looks almost exactly like driving into Durango, Colorado from the south. Dan and I were amazed by the similarities. Adding to this were the places we passed with familiar names like San Juan, Mesa Verde, Piedra and Santa Rita. It was a very strange sense of déjà vous.


This part looks just like the road between Cortez and Durango.

Here are a few signs I could stand to never see again after today's drive.






Our guide book talks only of the campground in Durango. We passed another one before getting to Durango, probably about 30 miles west. It was a park (I am not sure if it is state or national). From the road it looked like there were at least ten spots available. The entrance has a large white gate and there is a ropes course next to the campground. We passed many restaurants that I would guess would allow you to camp overnight if you ate there. Also there are many boondocking opportunities along the way.


Mary's Cocina, the restaurant we stopped in for lunch.


Dan enjoying a hot cup of Nescafe- I really didn't know they still made this stuff.


El Salto, a milling town on the west side of the pass.

We opted to head into Durango for the night. The Campo Mexico Hotel is a fine enough place. For 150 pesos ($15) a night we got a level spot with electricity and the key to a neighboring room for a bathroom and shower. The motel is located east of the city center by I’d guess 2 miles. A taxi to the plaza is only $15 pesos ($1.50). For the first time in months we had to use our sleeping bags last night, it was that cold.



Today we ventured into the city. We did a walking tour of the plaza and surrounding area. The entire day we did not see a single other gringo. It seems the tourist community has not found Durango yet. Even though this is not a tourist city we were treated very well and felt safe everywhere we went. I’ll stop jibber jabbering now and let the pictures tell the rest of the tale.


Plaza de Armas.




The Cathedral Basilica Menor built from 1695 1750.




A light sconce on the Teatro Victoria.


The Palacio de Gobierno is filled with murals depicting Mexico's history.










The Mercado.


Merchant in el mercado.


Our rig at the campground in Durango.


Someone tell Sandra Mapel that I took this picture for her.

Rellenos y Bicicletas

With the prank wars over, Dan Meredith and I settled into a more civilized lifestyle. We surfed a bunch and enjoyed all that this charming town has to offer.




It has been a real treat for Dan and I to get to eat out a bunch. Our favorite lunch spot is the Torta Stand where for about $5 we can get two giant sandwiches, and two smoothies. Dinner we can choose from the Carne Factory, a roadside taco stand, where dinner for 3 runs $8, a family style Mexican restaurant on the Plaza, dinner for 3 $6.50 or an array of fish taco joints.


The pan lady who brings fesh baked goddies to the Park every morning.


The Torta Stand Owner.

But our favorite place is Estella and Lorenzo’s, which is just up from the campground. Estella makes the BEST chili relleno I have ever had, and I fancy myself a bit of a connoisseur. We went there for dinner Wednesday night, the rellenos lived up tot heir reputation and we lingered long enough to pay our respects to the chef. While there we learned that Lorenzo is a biker. In fact he is the local bicycle repair man, and he is the coach for the local mountain biking team. His son Adrian is the Infantile Champion of Mexico. The Infantile category goes up to 15 years old, Adrian is 14 but this year he was bumped up to the Junior level.

We love mountain biking and asked if we could join them on a ride. Better yet they offer tours complete with front suspension bikes and any needed accessories. Cost of the trip, a donation to the bike team. We set up a date for the next morning, just a 1-2 hour tour.


Adrian with his trophies.

We met them at 8am. Adrian led us over the roads and passes between Sayulita and Punta de Mita which is 7 miles away along the connecting road. Lorenzo held up the rear with me, all the time giving me some sorely needed pointers which I am eternally grateful for. We wound up and down along the beaches then through the jungle, past mango plantations and farms. We rode past a rattle snake and even stopped for a coke in a small village along our route. Our one hour trip stretched into four and we rode somewhere between 15 and 20 miles. Lorenzo and Adrian both speak English very well and were amazingly tolerant of our broken Spanish. The ride and spending the day with them, was maybe my favorite thing we have done this entire trip.


Our group stopping for a Mexican Coke.


Me bringing up the rear.

Afterwards we made our donation in money and whatever cycling gear we could round up. Dan even sacrificed his favorite cycling shorts for the cause, essentially anything we figured we could replace we left for them.

The next day we ventured up to Chacala, another surf spot. This was our first official surfing skunk. From all accounts Chacala can be a heavenly place with a long safe left break. We hired a water taxi to take us out to the break, but the swell was all wrong and the waves were breaking only about 50’ off of the sea urchin covered rocks. Because we are all in our 30’s now we were wise enough to realize that losing $20 for a water taxi to nowhere, is far superior to being dropped off for three hours at a very scary break with no shoreline easily accessible. We tucked tail and returned to the truck. From there we drove back down to Burrows a much friendlier break for the likes of us.

Meredith left yesterday, but don’t you fear she will be reprising her role at New Years when we visit her again. Dan and I went to the big PV grocery store to stock up on some of the foods we love down here.

Once we returned to Sayulita it was time for my relleno lesson. Estella welcomed me into her home while she was preparing the food for the restaurant. She showed me how she makes the rellenos from start to finish. She would accept no help from me; I couldn’t even do the dishes. I stayed for 3 hours. I was fed cookies and a traditional rice drink. We talked about her kids, about how much she loves cooking and how well she and Lorenzo work together.

Lorenzo told me that he realizes Estella is the chef, she is a fantastic cook. He is there to help her, so he chops vegetables and helps clean up. They run an amazingly clean and conscientious kitchen. Because they are cyclists they are very health conscious, they cut out fats and use only fresh products. I was truly touched by their generosity and their willingness to not only tell me how to make this, but their insistence on showing me how.

Lorenzo said his role is to be social, greeting the patrons in the restaurant and making contacts to advance the bike team. People have donated everything from cycling socks to the full suspension, disc brake, Santa Cruz bike that Adrian races on. Lorenzo estimates that it costs 1500 pesos (about $150) per kid to go to the races, the costs are in entry fees, lodging, meals etc. Often they cannot take all of the kids who want to race because there is not enough money.

Recently they were invited to compete in a 12-hour race, but they can’t afford headlamps for the riders to wear during the dark times of the race, so they could not participate. From what we have seen the kids love Lorenzo and he is a fantastic coach. His team has lots of talent, but lacks funding. I wish I had more to give, but alas all I can do is tell you about it and hope that something more may come of that. You can learn more about them at :http://www.sayulitalife.com/sayulitabiking.htm




The past 12 days have been the Virgin de Guadalupe Festival. A fascinating festival that last 12 nights. We were fortunate enough to get to attend evening mass, where I was overwhelmed by the number of familiar faces I saw. You really can get to know an entire community in six weeks. We saw the parades and enjoyed nightly fireworks displays.


We have only a few days left here and I am desperately trying to soak it all in before we go. On that note I will pull my nose out of the notebook and enjoy the town.

I'll Get You My Pretty!

December 13, 2004

In the last week we have been really busy. Brother Pat kept us entertained for five days, friends Ryan and Jonika made a guest appearance, Meredith moved in with us and The Locals waged a war that severely disrupted my sleeping patterns.

During Brother Pat’s visit we surfed and surfed and surfed. At night we ate and ate and ate and then drank a little too. One night early on in Pat’s visit he and our friend Bob, one of The Locals, went out on the town. Late that night they had a moment of what I refer to as “Pacifico logic”. This allowed them to think that if they came into the trailer park at midnight yelling Dan’s name, he would hop right up and join in their debauchery. Dan did not leave the safety of our bed, he’s a good boy, but Bob had unknowingly kicked of the, “Who can wake whom up more often” pranks of the following week.

The very next night, Pat, Meredith Dan and I decided it would be a good idea for us to take a dip in Jamie and Rose Marie’s pool late at night, again “Pacifico logic” at work. We were busted about five minutes in. Jamie and Rose Marie were both principals and we had just been caught by them. We fully expected a swatting or detention, but instead we were punished with tequila shots and good conversation. Bob was at home recovering from the previous night’s events, so of course we had to call him repeatedly to wake him up, tit for tat if you will. He remained strong and never answered the phone, but we had defiantly sent a message.


Meredith’s birthday was the next night, we threw her a dinner party up at Bob’s house, since we were all there, no pranking was done on this evening and once we went our separate ways we all slept soundly.

We said goodbye, yet again, to Brother Pat. Don’t worry he will continue his reoccurring role in a post a few weeks from now when we meet up for Christmas. Since we were already in Puerto Vallarta we decided to spend a day at our friend’s Ryan and Jonika’s hotel there. Jonika won a trip to P.V. as a work incentive and they did it up in high style. They stayed at the Westin and Nikki Beach resort. Dan, Meredith and I had a hard time adjusting to how the other half live, but we did our best. The beach bed’s and cabana boys helped to ease the transition.


The cabanas at Nikki Beach.


Our motley crew.


The aftermath.

The next day we were in desperate need of a good night’s rest and a day of detox. Meredith had moved from her fancy digs at the surf camp, to the plot of grass in front of our camper and her tent. We were all asleep by 7:30. Around 11:30 I thought I heard carolers, really bad carolers. In fact what I was hearing was The Locals driving through the park screaming Jingle Bells and laughing hysterically. Then I heard Bob say “I know we’ll bright them”, this was followed by their truck doing a donut in the parking area so they could point their headlights directly into Meredith’s tent. Mer got up and addressed the drunkards, from there on all I heard was laughter. By some miracle we were not voted out of the RV park the next morning. Seems our neighbors have really good senses of humor and the sight of four people, with a median age of 60,heckling the youngin’s was appreciated by all.

In the morning we decided against retaliation, why not let the old folks enjoy their victory. Besides Jamie and Rose Marie were leaving for Arizona and we can’t afford the long distance charges involved with any future pranks. Thus ended the “Who can wake whom up more often” pranks of the winter of 2004.

Footnote: The surf camp Mer went to is pretty schwanky. Many of the women who attended it were a bit more high society then the likes of us. Case in point: One of the women, we’ll call her Texas, joined us for dinner one night. She asked about our travels and we told stories for as long as our companions seemed interested. The whole time though we were aware that Texas was watching us like you watch a car wreck. Morbidly curios I suppose.
The next day she was chatting with Meredith and she said the following, (it helps if you read this in a thick Texas accent) “I enjoyed meeting your friends last night, but I must tell you, I…I would never know people like that. I guess maybe I am just to0 civilized.”
We love this quote!

Invasion

December 4, 2004
This week we did some exploring. We ventured north to La Pinita, San Poncho and San Francisco. We were invaded by ants and by Coloradoans and still managed to surf every day.


Fisherman right in front of our place.

First we are both finally healthy again. The Sayulita Sinusitis that we and the rest of the town contracted has now passed; we can both breathe regularly although both are still prone to unprovoked coughing fits. We said goodbye to our new friends Drew and Kelly. Kelly is the daughter of Jamie and Rose Marie, our other new friends who live here. Kelly and Drew made for great surfing buddies, we spent a day with them at Burrows, near Punta de Mita surfing and fending off the dog attacks that are quickly becoming legend on the walk out to the break. We were very sorry to see them go, but they were immediately replaced by other friends, so we were not alone for long.

Scenes from our explorations




An agua fresca cart.










The ice cream stores down here are really something.

Wednesday we were joined by our dear friend Meredith, she can be seen in the Bryce Canyon post. Meredith is here attending the Las Olas Surf Camp. The camp is for women and includes everything, meals, yoga, massage, and 6 days of surfing instruction by some of the best in the biz. Meredith manages to steal away every now and again to pay us a visit. She will be staying on an additional 5 or 6 days after the camp is over, we look forward to having another surfing buddy to hang with during our last weeks here.

Thursday Brother Pat arrived. Yep, you read that correctly, Brother Pat is with us yet again. In typical Pat fashion he managed to miss his flight in Salt Lake putting him into Puerto Vallarta at 9:19pm. Due to this guffaw we had to break one of our Mexico rules and for the first time we drove at night. Safely back in Sayulita we deposited Pat at Bob and Sherry’s house where he’ll be staying during his visit.

I mentioned the ants. Well we have discovered a new kind of RV-ing villain. This villain is stealthy, it can reproduce itself faster than a bunny and it comes in the form of a 3 segmented, black, millimeter-long insect. The dreaded ants have found our home and they are driving us batty! No amount of cleaning or caution seems enough to force them out. The first few days we would kill them as we saw them, this progressed into purchasing caustic chemicals to be used outside along the perimeter, and finally culminating in the loss of countless brain cells as we sprayed poison on every surface of our poorly ventilated 8x10 can.


newly hatched villians in our medicine cabinet.

Thursday was the breakdown day. I awoke to find a new hatch of thousands of teeny tiny ants in our bathroom. We emptied all contents from the room and hosed, Raided and ant powdered the whole unit. Later we decided to fetch something from the cargo carrier on the roof of our rig. In the carrier we have all of our gear for snorkeling, fishing, camping, and the enjoyment of other water sports. All of it was coated, absolutely coated in ants. We have learned that they like moisture and it is humid here, not allowing for things to dry out. As a result we could not douse all of our clothes and gear because it would not dry and would attract even more of the vile villains.

I had a “Full Metal Jacket” moment in the parking area where I had placed all of the infested items to be cleaned, shaking out clothing was resulting in my being covered in ants, most disturbingly the hundreds that were in my hair. Normally I do not freak at the sight of bugs, mosquitoes not withstanding. On this occasion however, I had a melt down of rather epic proportions. Something about knowing that if I missed even one, the bastard would lay eggs and the problem would compound until either I die of Raid poisoning or we move up to a cold enough climate to kill them.

After hours of sweeping, shaking and otherwise displacing the villains, we sat down to drink a much needed Pacifico. I decided to relax further by crocheting, only to find a new hatch of ants in my yarn, which had to be thrown away. To ease my pain I proceeded to drink more Pacifico, then Meredith showed up with a bottle of Almond Tequila which sealed the deal and a few sips later I could hardly remember the day’s battles.

Last night we found ants in the bedroom. Today we are removing our mattress and all of our clothing in order to Raid the last vestiges of hope that these evil doers have. In the last week we have emptied out every cabinet, cubby and cushion, we have applied caustic materials to every surface. If I see another ant I may consider the matchstick method and hope that an ant-free camper will rise from the ashes.

If there is to be a silver lining in the Ant wars of 2004, it is this. We have been seriously considering stopping the trip here. This town suits us very well. Dan and I had scheduled a vote, should we stay or should we go? This issue has been settled by daily checking of snow reports in Colorado and B.C. and by the ants. Cold weather may not be wholly appealing right now, but lack of insects is enough to entice me to strap on my down slippers and wool sweaters and welcome a little frost nip. Our scheduled departure date is December 15th.


But just incase we change our minds, here's what the owner of the RV park is doing with his camper.

Dia de Gracias

November 25, 2004
Giving Thanks.



As it is the season, I will now bore you to tears with a list of the things I am thankful for.

I am thankful for:
Being born to the means that I was, just enough to feel secure, and not enough to make me lose appreciation for the small things.

I am thankful for:
The friendships others continue to build with me. To my friends, I love you and I would do anything I could to bring joy or comfort to you.

I am thankful for:
My parents, for the two best gifts a parent can bestow upon their child, independence and common sense.

I am thankful for:
The path that lead me here; to a year of exploring, learning and appreciating.

I am thankful for:
The generosity shown to us by strangers and new friends, and the opportunities we have had to show generosity to others.

Finally, I am thankful for:
Every single, solitary day that I get to spend with the love of my life, Daniel Lawrence Goddard.
Coco Loco
Tis the season to cut down the cocos at Sayulita Trailer Park. Here is the groundskeeper David climbing and pruning the palmas. Really it is a sight to behold, her climbs the tree in about 10 seconds, using no protection whatsoever. Once up top he climbs over the cocos then chops them out from under him. When he is done he wraps the rope around his bottom once, then self-belays to the ground. He earns about $20 per tree, there are almost 50 trees on the property. He hates climbing the trees anymore, loses sleep for weeks before hand, but the money is good and he says it is just part of his job.









David's children practice climbing like their Papi.

The Mexican Revolution

November 21, 2004
Sayulita

Yesterday was Mexican Revolution Day.
Sayulita celebrated with a big parade and the entire town came out to watch. While in Mexico I have lost many an hour of sleep to the roosters and dogs down here. In Sayulita the roosters aren't bad but the elementary school's bugle and drum practice has woken me up a few times. We often joke about how the bugles sound like dying roosters. Yesterday as the band "played" the rooster flocked to the familiar wailing of the injured sounding caws, only this time it was a flock of eight year old buglers showing their patriotism. I feel for my poor parents who were subjected to band recitals for years.

Seemingly every child in the community was in the parade. The youngest ones were dressed up as hombres with guns and cowboy hats, the girls as damas with flowing gowns and braids. Older kids were drummers or dancers or flag bearers. The town was one big fiesta for the remainder of the day. From here I'll let the pictures tell the story.










Our friend Eddy from Crested Butte, Dan and Kale from Juneau, Alaska.




The announcer signaled the end of the parade and children ran in every direction to reunite with their parents.


This kid looks like he's had a bit too much Mexican hot chocolate.











My parents headed back for Ohio Friday morning. This is the first time I can remember that I have not known when I will see them again, it's a strange feeling.