When you think about Mexico, what is the first image that comes to your mind?
Perhaps, it is Mexican men wearing serapes and large sombreros, spending their hot and dusty days in makeshift cantinas on the edge of town, drinking rot gut tequila? Or, do you visualize sandy beaches, crashing waves, spending your day lounging in the bright sunshine drinking a cold cervesa (or perhaps an icy margarita ?) Do you think of Aztec and Mayan pyramids, colourful fiestas, perhaps shopping for souvenirs at road side stands, and haggling with beach side vendors? Or maybe, all of the above?
For hubby and I, it was the warm sunshine and the balmy gulf breezes, which convinced us that Mexico should be our winter get away. No longer would we be at the mercy of frigid, arctic, sub-zero temperatures; never again would we need to brave the elements or the icy snow covered roads of Northern Ontario! It didn’t take much to convince ourselves that we should spend the 2010 / 2011 winter in México! Our exact destination: Chicxulub, (pronounced chick-shoo-loob)is a small, sleepy fishing village, well known only to geologist and seismologist! Chicxulub was once the site of the largest meteorite to hit the earth millions of years ago, destroying all life, dinosaurs included, and bringing about the ice age! Scientists still come to gather whatever they can to examine and catalog! Chicxulub is only 10 minutes from Progreso, on the Yucatecan shores of the Gulf of Mexico.
During that winter (2010-2011) My honey & I spent a great deal of time soaking up vitamin D generously supplied by the sun. We also got our other vitamins by eating well. Every day we ate fresh, locally grown produce, as well as partaking of the fruits of the ocean (assorted types of fish, calamari, octopus, and lobster) supplied to us by our housekeeper’s husband, a pescador (a fisherman) who would venture out daily into the sea to bring in whatever he could to sell at the local fish market to help support his family of six (his four children, his wife and himself.) Some days, when the seas was too rough to fish, Enero would do clean swimming pools for $9.00 Canadian. He did a great job of it, and, in this way was able to support his family.
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The house we rented was on the beach, so, we always had great sea views of sunsets and sunrises. We photographed many of them, but after a while it became VERY difficult to pick the nicest of them to keep as they were all so beautiful)!
(This is one of my favourite sunset pictures taken right outside our bedroom window!)
On many an evening we were able to enjoy wonderful breezes (which came through our two sets of patio doors in our bedroom) that kept us cool enough at night that we didn’t need to use air conditioning at all, which was a good thing, because electricity is very expensive in the Yucatan. Even as Canadians, when we heard of the prices people paid for electricity, we found it to be very expensive!! Our rental home had 3 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, a huge dining room, livingroom and kitchen. We also had a ‘bodega’ shed, which housed assorted things, but, in summer time, it was ‘home’ to Juan, the home owner’s man servant . Juan did ALL the cooking, cleaning, yard work, etc., 5 days a week. ALL of this for the equivalent of $90.00 Canadian per week! This is considered good money to most Mexicans!
For those of you who don't know, this winter, we will be constructing a new home there for ourselves in Chicxulub!
We had never thought in our wildest dreams that we would ever purchase a Mexican home, much less build a home from scratch! It is a HUGE undertaking at our age, to oversee the construction of a home, and to take on a debt such as this, especially now that we are retired and living on a fixed income as well!
We really enjoyed going in the village’s shopping area whenever we had to take the combi into Progreso. (you have to transfer combis in ‘downtown’ Chicxulub to get from the beach area of Chicxulub to Progreso.) Often, we would do our fruit and vegetable shopping at the little Mercado in the Centro while waiting for the combi to take us home again. If we were lucky, the ‘panaderia’ (the bakery) would be opening for her late afternoon customers, who would flock in for the freshly baked goods which had been made that afternoon! Mmmmm! Freshly baked bread, buns, cookies and other sweet treats still warm from the ovens! But, the best kept secret is the little old lady just a few doors down who makes fresh coconut cream pies! Yummm! The bakery doesn’t even try to compete with her as she is the best at it!
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This is a photograph of the hotel where we are planning on staying is going to be our temporary ‘home’ while we are building our Mexican is called “Hotel Nicteha”.
Nicteha in spanish means: “Water flower”.
The two windows above the entrance of the hotel are both part of the room which we rented. Our room (room #1) is the largest at the hotel.)
The hotel features 20 housekeeping suites, in varying sizes. There are 2 levels to the hotel. The hotel features an in-ground pool, as well as an outdoor poolside lounge area, an outdoor ‘library’, and an upper terrace with a palapa covered hammock lounge. It’s a wonderful way to spend an afternoon out of the heat, swaying gently with the breeze.
The hotel is priced quite reasonably. We will be paying roughly about $535.00 cdn. Per month; which considering that includes a/c, internet, and cable, is VERY reasonable! These rooms are comfortable, clean, and functional; they include a kitchenette, living / sitting area, bedroom area, 3 pc. bathroom and even a private indoor laundry room where you can hang your wet bathing suits, wet towels, undies, etc.!
The hotel staff clean the rooms weekly and change the bedding weekly as well (for those staying for more than one week). The staff, as well as the owners, are very amiable and go out of their way to make your stay as enjoyable as possible!
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We are hoping that our construction goes well and that we can be moved in by mid-April, which gives our contractor more than enough time! He tells us he can have it done in 6 months, but, as all contractors are wont to do, I think it’s a little ambitious, but, we shall see!! Mexicans are NOT known for being fast workers, although, that being said, these men do work hard and take great pride in doing good work. A good lead hand, who is respected by the men on the construction site, is very important. It is also important that you trust your contractor and his choice in men / workers.
Our contractor, Senor Miguel Dbaz of Merida, Mexico, is the man we have chosen to oversee the work on our hogar; Miguel is not only a contractor, but he is also an engineer. Together, Miguel and I oversaw the planning and development of our home's blueprints. The blueprints are now done and they have been approved by the head architect in Progreso. Our building permits have been paid for and approved; So, we are fully prepared to begin construction within a few days of our arrival in Progreso. The first step in our construction will be the septic system as it will be at the front of the property (under the driveway, exactly where Miguel and I are standing in the photo!) When that is completed, the next step of our construction will be the casita, the outdoor kitchen, outdoor eating area and then the pool. All of these are found at the back of the property (10 ft. deep by 30 ft. wide cement slab at the back of the property. Those openings that you see will be closed off for privacy; and above that space will be our 10’d X 30’w X 8’h guest casita) All this work must be done first before the house can be worked on. It is the work on the house which I am most anxious to see started! The lot we purchased is not large (8 metres Wide by 20 metres long), but, will accommodate our needs perfectly! The main floor will feature the kitchen, dining-room and living-room. It will also have a main floor bathroom (which will have both an entrance from inside the house and from the pool area as well.) and the laundry room. However, the second floor will feature only one room! OUR BEDROOM!
I’m willing to bet that you're wondering why we only have one bedroom in our home! Well, that's because we want our guests to enjoy their time with us, and not feel like they are invading our space or privacy. This way, they can have their own space & enjoy their privacy. This guest room, called a casita ( small house) will measure 10’ deep by 30’ wide and 8’ high! It will feature a bedroom, a seating area, a kitchenette and a lovely three piece bathroom. It will have a view of the pool area, as the casita will be on the second story , above the outdoor kitchen and seating area! This isn't 'exactly' what the casita will look like, but it gives you a rough idea of what the casita would look like from a neighbour's view!
As for OUR bedroom it will have a HUGE walk in closet, sitting area (lvgrm.), a 3 pc. bathroom on one side of the room, and a large sunken bathtub on the other side of the room. The room will measure 30 feet wide (YES ma'am, 30 feet wide!!) and 46 feet long! I can’t wait to start furnishing our Mexican casa; although, there is little in the way of furniture to purchase, as the living room U-shaped couch will be made of cement! yup, you read it right! CEMENT! Our livingroom’s wall unit and shelving, and even our king sized bed will be made of cement! The base will be made of cement, with storage under the mattress for valuables, etc. I know that it sounds strange to say, but, I have been in several homes now that feature cement furniture, and, I have found them to be very beautiful to look at as well as practical! They do not need repair, or a lot of maintenance. And, if you get tired of looking at them, then, it is just a matter of changing the upholstery on the cushions and, voila, you have a whole new look!! Furniture made of soft woods do not do well in the Yucatan due to the high moisture and salt in the air, as well, there is the problem of termites who love soft wood, (which is what most pieces of furniture are made of!) Raymond and & discovered while we were in Mexico last year, that most of our ‘living’ was done in our bedroom, as it accommodated all of our needs. It was an extremely large, spacious room with an ensuite bathroom, an enormous deck overlooking the terrace, and had magnificent views of the Gulf of Mexico. We had our television, our stereo, comfortable furniture (some of which we brought up from the livingroom.) It offered us all the creature comforts we needed and wanted. The far bedroom offered our guests, a view of the pool area, and wonderful vistas and stunning sunrises.
As you can see, Stephanie and I have already started shopping for things for our casas, such as the ceramic tiles for our homes, paint colours, plants for around the pool area, and various nick-knacks to turn our houses into welcoming and comfortable homes!
I know that I'm putting the horse before the cart, but, it's so much fun doing it, and, it will be even more fun doing it with a friend! You see, as luck would have it, it turns out that our friend Stephanie and her husband Marc will be our neighbours in Chicxulub! Our 'casas' will be kitty corner from each other!
How great is that? Friends in Canada, and now, neighbours in Mexico!!
Hey, if you enjoy the new blog (NOW that I've finally figured it out!!!!!) leave me a comment! I'd love to hear what YOU think!!
Hasta Manana!
Sue (& Raymond too, even if he thinks that blogs are silly!)
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