Most often pinto beans are dried so they can be stored and used at a later time. But during harvest time, you can set aside some of the beans for immediate use.

These are regular pinto beans, but instead of drying them, these were cooked soon after being picked from our aunt’s garden. They’re very similar in taste and texture to the dried version, but knowing how fresh they are makes them taste great. Especially when served with avocado and fresh tomatillo salsa!

We discovered that the roof has some leaks in at least one area of the house. On day one we worked late into the evening removing roof tiles…

Then we cleaned them up and reinstalled the tiles, thus the new roof looks a lot like the old:

But it’s what’s underneath that counts. A new layer of plywood and water-repelling roofing paper should enable this refreshed roof to last for many years to come. It was hard work, but a good sense of accomplishment. We only did the two rooms in the center of the photo; we’ll assess the others later.

There was another large earthquake today. Thankfully, it was not near us and did not impact us. The earthquake hit about 76 miles south of Mexico City. It did a lot of damage in Mexico City, but we are more than 300 miles away from where the earthquake hit, so we did not feel anything. Our prayers are with the many who were impacted.

These guys can devour all the leaves on a whole branch of a rose bush in one day. They also bite, but thankfully we haven’t gotten in their way yet!

The house where we are staying is an old adobe, approximately 150 years old. There have been various additions and changes over the years, but overall it is well maintained and in good condition for its age.

Nonetheless, there are a few minor repairs we’re working on on the house. Starting with the foundation, where some of the old adobe is crumbling. Nothing major – just chipping away the loose stuff and then sealing  it up.

Before:

After:

We have two large lime trees in the backyard, which produce more than we can use. We have started drinking lots of limeade, made with the fresh squeezed juice. We also juice extra limes and freeze the juice in individual serving sizes.

5 limes, picked from our backyard tree
A couple spoonfuls of sugar
600 ml sparkling water
Mix and share in two large cups

Enjoy!

Corn is plentiful from now through December. Often a meal will include multiple versions of corn – in the form of tortillas, corn on the cob,
tostadas, various types of corn bread, even to drink (atole)

We helped pick some this afternoon, and here I am carrying it home.

As with many cities and suburbs in the United States, the population grows over time and the cities and towns expand. Sometimes this causes “growing pains”. In our town, homes have been built along the main street beyond the paved section. It has actually been many years, but this section remains unpaved. When the rains come, this section essentially becomes a river, as there’s a gradual slope leading up into the fields. Here’s a photo of the road to our uncle and aunt’s house last week:

And here it is today:

Most of the roads in town are paved, and the local people keep requesting that this section be paved, but so far they are still waiting. Until then, they must live with their seasonal “creek”.

One of the meals Maricela is fond of making is chicken soup. She’s very informal about it, throwing in whatever we have on hand. The basic recipe here is:

1-2 pounds of fresh chicken, which was still walking around the owner’s backyard earlier in the day
Assorted vegetables, picked within the past 24 hours
Salt and spices to taste
Water

Even better: serve with tortillas, hand made from dough that was ground this morning.

Some of our friends and family heard about last night’s big earthquake. Fortunately, it was not near us and did not impact us. The earthquake hit in southern Mexico and was felt as far away as Mexico City (650 miles north of the quake’s epicenter). We are another 250 or so miles north of Mexico City, and did not feel anything.

Pray for those who were impacted by the earthquake.

When we decided to move to Mexico, we had to figure out what to do with our dog, Sasha. Our son was willing to take her, but that would be difficult since he’s in an apartment and still has a couple more years of university. We decided taking her with us to Mexico was the best option, feeling that once we were here, she would enjoy the freedom afforded by our new living arrangements – a big yard and having us around more often. We had never driven with her farther than to the vet or to the nearby hills for a walk, but hey, we said we’re looking for adventure, right?

First, I have to say a big thank you to my brother. Our first stop on the US portion of our trip was at my brother’s house in Southern California, where we visited for a few days. During a conversation about Sasha, he agreed to let her stay with him for the duration of our US travels, about five weeks. We are so grateful for this; it would have been a very different trip if we’d had to bring her with us across the country and back!

Once we returned to Southern California and picked up Sasha for the trip to Mexico, she actually traveled very well in the van. Her crate was on top of other stuff in the van so that she could watch out the window as we drove along. She seemed to really enjoy it. We stopped often to let her out for a break.

It almost seemed like she knew how to behave, too. Several times, people approached the van to wash our windows or sell us some snacks, and Sasha would bark at them. Then one time a police officer motioned us aside to check our papers, and she sat silently. I don’t think the officer even knew she was with us!

Since arriving at our destination, Sasha has adapted quickly. She loves the big yard. She gets more walks than in the past, since we walk most places rather than driving everywhere. She even has a new friend that she doesn’t argue with much – Maricela’s aunt has a dog, and the two of them get along very well.

So we’re happy we made the right decision. Sasha is happy to be here with us, we’re happy to have her here, and the process of getting her here was not too bad!

American credit cards are accepted here, but people don’t use credit cards as widely here as in the US. In the US, we used to buy nearly everything with a credit card – groceries, coffee, fast food… Here, cash is the preferred medium of exchange, unless you’re purchasing a large item such as an appliance. Even the gas stations remain cash only, and it can easily be 800 pesos ($50) to fill the van. That being the case, we go through a lot of cash fast.

Everything I read in advance suggested that the best way to obtain pesos in Mexico is via your regular debit card at an ATM, and that seems to be holding true for us. Some ATMs will dispense up to 7,000 pesos at a time, about $440, and the exchange rate is pretty favorable. Some of the difficulties we’ve run into:
– many of the ATMs will dispense a maximum of 4,000 pesos ($250);
– one that we used had a surcharge of $6; usually it’s less than $2;
– there’s only one ATM in the town, but they don’t stock it with much cash, so what happens is: you put your card in, enter your PIN, select the amount you want, listen to the machine count through the bills, and then it tells you it “cannot complete your request”. It doesn’t tell you how much money is available, so you have to repeat this process, asking for smaller and smaller amounts, until you hit the right number. The next closest ATM is about 7 miles away, and we’ve only gone to it once, but it was not in service at that time. The next one is 15 miles away from us, in the nearest city (population of 100,000), where there are multiple ATMs available from multiple bank brands, so you can be confident about being able to get cash there. The banks are Mexican brands, not names you would know from the US, although Banamex is affiliated with Citibank. Like with many things here, it takes planning ahead and patience.

While there are plenty of unhealthy food options to be sure, one of the things I remember from previous visits to Mexico (and which is still common) is that you can also find healthy and quick options. On many street corners you will find vendors selling cups of freshly cut fruit, served in a to-go cup. Choose from the various combinations of pineapple, mango, watermelon, coconut, cucumbers, and papaya, or specify which fruits you want and they’ll put it together for you. Typically, locals add chili powder and lime to the fruit, but I prefer just the plain fruit.

You can easily find healthy meal options, too. Lots of fresh vegetables are used, either as a part of the dish or as a topping, as many items are topped with salsas, onions, cilantro, and/or peppers. Boiled beans, plain corn tortillas, and yogurt are also common. The best part is, many of the foods are grown nearby and sold soon after being harvested.

Before we left Pleasanton, people would ask, “Well you’ll at least have running water in Mexico, right?” It seems like a simple question, but the answer is complicated.

The short answer is yes, we have running water. But the definition of “running water” here is different from where we came from.

First, the source. There is municipal water. However, the water does not run all day every day. Instead, it is turned on neighborhood by neighborhood, on a rotating basis, for a few hours at a time. When all is operating smoothly, each neighborhood gets the water turned on for 4-8 hours, every other day. You don’t know which 4-8 hours – it could be in the morning or the afternoon – and sometimes they skip a day without notice. But it’s actually not as bad as it sounds. Most people now have a large tank (300-500 gallons) on the roof, so whenever the water is running, the tank fills automatically. So realistically, running water is available pretty much all of the time.

However, as I said, that’s when all is operating smoothly. That has not been the case since we arrived. They are working on the valve that directs water to our neighborhood, so there’s no municipal water here for four weeks or more. And no one has a tank with enough water in it to last a month! We are very fortunate to have a backup – we have a well on the property with plenty of water. We spent two days during our first week here finding, purchasing and installing an electric pump. So now we can use well water to fill the water tank as needed (see photo of Richard filling the tank).

The second part to the definition of running water is the practical application. Yes, there’s a toilet and a shower in the bathroom, but no, there isn’t a sink. The kitchen doesn’t have a sink either. In fact, there isn’t an American-style sink on the property at all. There is a “lavadero” outside, which is a type of utility sink, where we wash dishes, hands, etc. (See photo of Maricela washing dishes.) The lavadero is not connected to the rooftop water tank, so it only has running water coming to it during the windows of time when the municipal water is turned on. For the other times, there is a large drum from which to scoop water; we refill the drum with municipal water when we happen to be home at the right time.

Don’t misunderstand any of this post to be a complaint. It’s different from where we came from, but it’s not bad. It all works very well. And there have been many improvements over the years, the biggest of which is the rooftop tank, which essentially makes running water available on demand any time.

As far as drinking water, it appears that most people purchase purified water for drinking and cooking rather than using the municipal water or well water. Bottled water is widely available, and a vendor passes through the town twice per week. The vendor sells 5 gallon water bottle refills for about $1.

A final note about water. The water bill is paid annually and costs about $27 for the year.