Hurricane Paul

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061025/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/hurricane_paul

Here is a update on Hurricane Paul that is due to hit inland Mexico tomorrow, Thursday. It has been downgraded to a tropical storm and hopefully won't cause much trouble when it hits Mazatlan. We saw the first signs of it yesterday when we went out to get groceries. Here are some shots of the flooded streets on our way home in a pulmonia after the downpour. Today it is still raining off and on and the wind is starting to pick up - so the storm is certainly on it's way.

Now that we are settled

Like I mentioned earlier, it has been a very challenging 2 weeks getting settled into our new condo. Between our furniture not arriving on time (it was all due to arrive a week ago last Wednesday) and it arriving piece by piece (we still haven't received the ceiling fans which are very important for comfort down here) and getting items installed on Mexican time, it has been quite challenging. However, we are very close to being settled now and very glad about that. We are very happy with the bright colors we chose and they look great with our new furniture. We still have to order curtains, get a few more furniture items, hang pictures, etc. but we are pretty well settled in and enjoying our new place. We will be taking some pictures as soon as we get things on the walls and will post them for you.

The weather has started to cool down. Temps are still in the high 80s but humidity is coming down and the ocean breeze is much cooler than it was. We are enjoying this change very much. Looking forward to spending more time at the beach and Greg is looking forward to doing more body surfing and fishing too. Our retirement so far has been very busy but that's what everyone said "they were busier when they retired than they were before". We think it will be a great kind of "busy" though now that we have our move in behind us.

Visit to the orphanage

We also took Jane and Terry to the orphanage to meet the children. They were very happy to see us and didn't mind their picture taken at all. Here are a few pictures they allowed us to take. The baby boy I am holding is Diego He has been at the orphanage since he was 7 weeks old and he is now 10 months. Not walking yet but looked like it would be real soon. Just a really sweet baby and as solid as a rock. The young teenage girls really enjoyed posing for us and got a kick out seeing their picture. We enjoyed our visit very much and plan to return real soon. Greg took some badly needed miscellaneous tools to them and plans to help in repairing many items around the orphanage.

Trip to Stone Island

We also have had the opportunity to spend some time with Jane and Terry while they have been here on vacation for three weeks. We took a trip to Stone Island which is really a peninsula, with miles of great beaches. It is a 10-minute ferryboat ride from the docks near the old marina. This is unlike any ferryboat you know, it is an outboard motor boat that carries 10-15 passengers. We spent a lazy day just enjoying this area. Here are a few pics.

Our first guests arrive

It has been a challenging two weeks getting settled into our new place. Before we tell you about that, we need to tell you about our visit with our first guests. About three weeks ago two of Greg's former co-workers arrived in Mazatlan. Debbie arrived via cruise ship and Jane and Terry are here on vacation. The day Debbie arrived we all went to El Centro (Old Mazatlan) on a tour of the Market and Cathedral. Then had lunch at Senor Frog's and back to our condo for margaritas. Here are a few pictures of the fun day we spent together before Debbie had to be back to the ship. It was so great to see them!

Still getting settled

We are still in the process of getting settled into our new place. Hopefully have time to post some pics soon. Stay tune for more on our retirement life here in Mazatlan!

Just a few more days

We just have a few more days before we can move into our condo.

We have, however, experienced a bit of a challenge getting our retirement funds from Fidelity transferred to the bank here in Mexico in order to close on Monday, October 9. Seems the two persons in charge of the Mexican bank were out and couldn't verify the transfer of the funds.
So we have been anxiously awaiting the funds transfer for the past few days. Without it, we were going to be unable to take possession. We just heard all is confirmed though - the funds are there!!

So next week will be very busy with getting settled. It has been 8 weeks now since we arrived in Maz. It will feel so good to be in our new condo.

Shrimping season opens

Shrimping season has opened here in Mazatlan and this is a picture Greg took this morning of a boat less than a mile out. We can't wait to get some of this fresh shrimp and prepare the shrimp ceviche receipe our maid taught us. Soooo delicious!

A Little Story

A little story about a Mexican fisherman
illustrates success in a simple life well lived.

The businessman was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The businessman complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied only a little while.The businessman then asked why he didn't stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs. The businessman then asked, but what do you do with the rest of your time? The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos; I have a full and busy life, señor."The businessman scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and I could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats; eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you would sell directly to the processor and eventually open your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City where you would run your expanding enterprise."The Mexican fisherman asked, "But señor, how long will this all take?" To which the businessman replied, "15-20 years." "But what then, señor?" The businessman laughed and said, "That's the best part! When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions." "Millions, señor? Then what?" The businessman said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."
The fisherman, still smiling, looked up and said, "Isn't that what I'm doing right now?"
-Author Unknown

Greg hits the waves

Greg was so excited when his boogie board finally arrived. He has been catching some waves at the beach.
Here are a few photos.

The weather is still very hot and humid but we keep hearing in just a couple of weeks it will cool down and be very, very pleasant. Sure looking forward to that!

Update on the delay

Well, according to the phone call we received this morning, we didn't think our household goods were going to be delivered today, but about 5:30 this evening, unexpectedly, the truck showed up with our goods. You just never know what to expect here in Mexico. It took the movers about 2 hours to unload and carry our shipment up to our condo. Anyway, it is nice that everything has arrived. A couple of items are broken and scratched and we could tell that some boxes had been gone through at customs but, overall, everything seems to be here and in pretty good shape.

Another delay

Well today was supposed to be the day our household goods would arrive. Got a call this morning and turns out the truck they are on broke down about 10 hours from here. Wouldn't you know it! They say it will be tomorrow now. Guess we wait and see. At least we don't really need our goods yet anyway. Still on schedule for the 9th to take possession of our condo though. Just hoping all will go well with that date.

Just a few tips on our blog

If you haven't noticed already, you can double-click the photos and they will enlarge.

Please note there are new links on the left side of the blog. For the link to the current weather in Mazatlan, be sure to refresh your browser. That is the button on your menu bar with the two green arrows. Just click on it and the current weather in Mazatlan will appear.

One of our new friends

This is a lady we have met here in Mazatlan. Teri is waiting to take possession of her condo on October 9th too. She has been renting in the same tower as we are. Teri has traveled all over the world in the Peace Corp and in sales. Most recently, she was in China but has been in Maz for about 1 year. She has traveled through India, China, Australia, Europe and is orginally from Florida. Very interesting, sweet lady and we are enjoying her company.

Oyster Divers

Here are a few more pictures of the oyster divers. There were quite a few of them right out front of our condo this morning. I tried to zoom in on one diver so you could see the equipment that they use.