FINALLY! The tech guy from Cablemas, the local cable company, came today to hook up our Internet connection. We had been going through a week of missed appointments and delays so we are so happy to be finally connected.
At the same time, we also have SKY, the satellite TV. We did not get TV from the cable company because they do not have yet the "Paquete Internacional".
Since our phone is with Vonage, we can now call our friends in the US and Europe just as easily as if we were in the US. The good partis that we can be in touch with everybody, the bad part is that the telemarketers are following us here...
Monday, July 31, 2006
Saturday, July 29, 2006
Finally in the new house!
We moved in the new house, we love it! He took us some packing and sweating and reorganizing but by now we are trained!The house has a large living area and roomy kitchen for whoever wants to come and is in need of cooking, the rooms upstairs are spacious. Only the cats seem upset that they to changed environment again…oh well!
The outdoor space is shared with the neighbors but it has a good amount of plants and flowers which gives a good feeling.We also tried the new swimming pool, which is this time a bit further away: we have to cross the path in front of the house. Around the pool there are deck chairs and tables under the palapa where you can sip a margarita or play cards.
At the new swimming pool, I met Martina from Palermo, she is the daughter of Benedetto, the guy of Café Gitano. She is 9 years old but wise as a 19 year old. She gave me same tips on which beach to go and told me about the clientele at Cage Gitano.
Believe it or not, the technicians from Sky and from Cablemas are both here at the same time. I hope this time we are finally going to get connected. That is going to change our life.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Xaman-Ha
This morning we finally went to see Xaman-Ha, a bird sanctuary in Playacar that we had planned to visit for a while. It’s not very big but you can see flamingos, pelicans, macaws, tucans…and many other local birds whose name I forgot. M & O loved it: they just want to see more, more and more animals.
After the “jungle tour”, we went to Sam’s Club to get stuff for the new house: sheets, towels, pots and pans ($50 dollars for 17 pieces, not bad). It is kind of refreshing to be in a country where they sell product made in that country. “Hecho in Mexico” instead of “Made in China” is a nice change! We are looking forward to be in the new house and to make it homey.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Playground
Alain spent most of the day at the Internet Café, so I took the kids for the afternoon stroll with our now traditional stop at the beachside playground. Our new routine is very much like in Brooklyn, except that here, they get to breathe the air from the Caribbean Sea while they play.
At the playground, a woman started to talk to me in all kind of languages until I finally figured out she was Italian. She was selling handcraft jewelry so I felt obliged to sustain her effort by buying something. I did not really like anything she had, so she went home and came back a little later with the bracelet I wanted. She had traveled all over Mexico and finally settled in Playa with her boyfriend. She is from the province of Sondrio (close to the Suisse border) and she does not want to go back (who can blame her!).
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Xcaret
Xcaret is a must-see for tourists with kids. It's an eco-park with all sorts of animals in an amazing setting. See their website for details: http://www.xcaret.com/. What it is amazing is that even in such a touristy destination, you have a total respect for nature and the all constructions are totally immersed in nature. The restaurants have a delicious buffet, and everything is organized, but without been obsessively organized.
We saw plenty of tropical birds, turtles, and all the animals that M&O see in “Diego” their favorite TV show. We bathed in a natural pool while a big rain storm came down on us. It was fun until the thunderstorms started so we decided that it was better to get out and run for cover.
After the thunderstorm experience, we were kind of tired and we could not decide what to do next so we started to follow a large group of people that were all going in the same direction. We got into a huge theater where we saw an impressive 2-hour show. It was about the history of Mexico, starting with the Indians, the Spanish conquerors, all the way to early 20th century Mexico, all with dance and costumes.
The first part about the Mayan culture was the most intriguing: we show a game that was sort of ancestor of hockey, but he ball was literally in fire! The kids were fascinated.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Life like in Cefalù (minus the Cathedral!)
Living here is like living Cefalù: you go somewhere and you meet someone you know, you stop by for a little chat and go on with your day. Today, I went to Monex again to give them the rest of the information they needed..
On the way there I met Vito, who was at Café Gitano just across from Monex. Café Gitano is owned by Benedetto, a guy from Palermo… I am sure soon I will find a long lost cousin.
I forgot to mention a major improvement in my life: I do not do laundry anymore. One year of no washing, drying, ironing, and folding sounds pretty good to me. I guess I could do this in the States as well, but here, I trust the Italian guy who owns the local Laundromat, I know he’ll use the good Mexican soap and not some cheap version of Tides. Plus the folding is impeccable. On the top of that, I get a discount!
In the afternoon, we discovered a new beach south of Playa, close to the Copacabana Hotel. There were few bungalows with some hippy French tourists and a family of Mexican and basically that’s it. The water was warm and clear. I also came to this sad conclusion: Oscar is like Alain, he prefers the beach at sundown!
On the way there I met Vito, who was at Café Gitano just across from Monex. Café Gitano is owned by Benedetto, a guy from Palermo… I am sure soon I will find a long lost cousin.
I forgot to mention a major improvement in my life: I do not do laundry anymore. One year of no washing, drying, ironing, and folding sounds pretty good to me. I guess I could do this in the States as well, but here, I trust the Italian guy who owns the local Laundromat, I know he’ll use the good Mexican soap and not some cheap version of Tides. Plus the folding is impeccable. On the top of that, I get a discount!
In the afternoon, we discovered a new beach south of Playa, close to the Copacabana Hotel. There were few bungalows with some hippy French tourists and a family of Mexican and basically that’s it. The water was warm and clear. I also came to this sad conclusion: Oscar is like Alain, he prefers the beach at sundown!
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Music and Carnival
You know that you have extra time when you can plunge in a book and not let it go until the end. My friend Elin gave me this great book for my birthday, which brought me back to Brooklyn, complete with its odors (!!!) and the city’s mugginess. Well for now I don’t miss the city, but I do miss the people….
Jorge, M & O little friend, went back to Mexico City today, so we all said goodbye and took few pictures. Matthias found his class album, and looked at the photos of his friends from Park Slop. He said he misses Bianca and asked me if she will come and visit. We hope she does.
In the afternoon, we took the kids to the “carnival” (small amusement park) again, and on the way we did a late afternoon stroll on the beach.
The beach at Playa is not just a place for tanning and bathing: at sun down, you have all kinds of activities taking place right on the beach, a real social life. There are a lot of bars with tables, tourists, and late bathers and just people walking around.
There was a local band playing on the Plaza Principal. They were pretty good and Oscar was dancing to the music. We got closer and discovered that the audience was 100% Mexicans, not one tourist! No one was dancing yet, and there was food and drinks but I did not know what the occasion was.
At that point, Matthias was putting pressure (as only Matthias can!) to go to the “Carnival” so we left even though I would have liked to stay longer. The rides are not expensive (10 pesos, 90 cents) but they give you a lot of value for your money: the Merry-go-around last forever, like a good 15 minutes.
Jorge, M & O little friend, went back to Mexico City today, so we all said goodbye and took few pictures. Matthias found his class album, and looked at the photos of his friends from Park Slop. He said he misses Bianca and asked me if she will come and visit. We hope she does.
In the afternoon, we took the kids to the “carnival” (small amusement park) again, and on the way we did a late afternoon stroll on the beach.
The beach at Playa is not just a place for tanning and bathing: at sun down, you have all kinds of activities taking place right on the beach, a real social life. There are a lot of bars with tables, tourists, and late bathers and just people walking around.
There was a local band playing on the Plaza Principal. They were pretty good and Oscar was dancing to the music. We got closer and discovered that the audience was 100% Mexicans, not one tourist! No one was dancing yet, and there was food and drinks but I did not know what the occasion was.
At that point, Matthias was putting pressure (as only Matthias can!) to go to the “Carnival” so we left even though I would have liked to stay longer. The rides are not expensive (10 pesos, 90 cents) but they give you a lot of value for your money: the Merry-go-around last forever, like a good 15 minutes.
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Another woman in Oscar’s life
Oscar seems to like all the women of Mexico. We met Carolina, a very cute and sweet 17 year old, here in vacation with her older sister and her niece Anjelica, a very determined 2 year old. But Oscar loves Carolina and he glued himself to her all day at the pool. I made sure that Carolina was not annoyed by him but she kept saying that it was ok. She seems to like children, and she is taking good care of her niece.
Carolina wants to study medicine but, this year, she is going to go to Canada for 6 months to learn English. Jorge’ cousin also went to Canada to learn English, so I asked her if it was a coincidence, but it’s something else. In the States, people look down on Mexicans, not in Canada. Keep him mind that these two people are the White Mexican and they do not fit at all the physical stereotype.
The amazing thing it is that she is clearly from a right wing family and she considered the leader of opposition party to be as communist as Castro, but still she does not like Bush.
I clearly have to understand more about this country’s political and social make up.
We receive the lease from our new landlord: 18 pages long! Much more than the 4 we had in the lease we create to rent our own house. Oh well… all that redundancy in official documents really reminds me of Italy. Same love for important words, the abundance of sections and subsections, etc…
At least Alain will now stop asking me all the time to call Raul. This is how it works in Mexico: if someone tells you something is going to happen tomorrow (like an email), that means it is going to take a few days. Once you know that, there is no need to panic.
Carolina wants to study medicine but, this year, she is going to go to Canada for 6 months to learn English. Jorge’ cousin also went to Canada to learn English, so I asked her if it was a coincidence, but it’s something else. In the States, people look down on Mexicans, not in Canada. Keep him mind that these two people are the White Mexican and they do not fit at all the physical stereotype.
The amazing thing it is that she is clearly from a right wing family and she considered the leader of opposition party to be as communist as Castro, but still she does not like Bush.
I clearly have to understand more about this country’s political and social make up.
We receive the lease from our new landlord: 18 pages long! Much more than the 4 we had in the lease we create to rent our own house. Oh well… all that redundancy in official documents really reminds me of Italy. Same love for important words, the abundance of sections and subsections, etc…
At least Alain will now stop asking me all the time to call Raul. This is how it works in Mexico: if someone tells you something is going to happen tomorrow (like an email), that means it is going to take a few days. Once you know that, there is no need to panic.
Friday, July 14, 2006
Vive la liberte, vive le Mexique!
I know it is suppose to be a French celebration but Mexico feels like real freedom right now. For having been part of an over-ruled world for so long it is good to know that you don’t have to wear the seat belt all the time, and you can talk on you cellular at a traffic light without having to pay 90$ fine, and you can double park for a second or two without paying 130 $ fine. Sorry Bloomberg you will not get my contribution for a year! That is the proof that sometimes, bending the rules makes life easier for everybody.
I spent the morning running errands (it’s beautiful word that my friend Cary originally thought me… I always wanted to lightly translate in Italian with “errare”). You know you are not a tourist when you have to give up few hours under the sun to do stuff.
First, I went to Monex (a kind of upscale Western Union) and the lady in charge is actually my neighbor. Every morning, even before M & O, she is swimming doing laps. I did not recognize her because she is swimming with a cap and goggles, but she recognized me. I have been here not even 3 weeks and I can’t even think about doing something anonymously.
I called my friend Stefania from the Internet Café, I can’t wait to have broadband so I can have my regular evening phone conversations and my daily updates, so it would feel more like we live in a different neighborhood than a different country.
While I was running my errands, Oscar was shopping for another mother at the swimming pool. Apparently Alain said that he fall in love with Jorge’s mother, and he was hugging her and did not want her to go. These men are all the same: anyone’s mother is good enough! (I told you that Oscar has a thing for “older” and “latino”). I guess, after he got reprimanded yesterday, he realized that maybe he did not have such a good deal. He also changed his name to “San Diego”. I fail to see what my son has in common with a Saint but that is what he answered when his newfound mother asked him for his name…!?
Talking about names, I don’t even attempt Veronique anymore: I go straight for Veronica (or Beronica as they pronounce it) and I suddenly realize that my life is so much easier.
In the States I used Veronica for the restaurant or the dry cleaner. Here is for everybody, and it is part of the general rule of relaxation. Why I do want to explain all the time that I am Italian but I have a French name and all that blablabla and now that I am thinking about it, I should have done it long time ago… who knows, maybe I haave some missed opportunities because someone could not remember my name.
Alain tonight felt patriotic (Bastille Day) so went for a stroll (the famous “passeggiata”) on the Quinta. It was very pleasant, there was a little breeze and tourists are starting to fill up the restaurants and bars. The kids had ice-cream but after an entire day of swimming, they were exhausted.
I spent the morning running errands (it’s beautiful word that my friend Cary originally thought me… I always wanted to lightly translate in Italian with “errare”). You know you are not a tourist when you have to give up few hours under the sun to do stuff.
First, I went to Monex (a kind of upscale Western Union) and the lady in charge is actually my neighbor. Every morning, even before M & O, she is swimming doing laps. I did not recognize her because she is swimming with a cap and goggles, but she recognized me. I have been here not even 3 weeks and I can’t even think about doing something anonymously.
I called my friend Stefania from the Internet Café, I can’t wait to have broadband so I can have my regular evening phone conversations and my daily updates, so it would feel more like we live in a different neighborhood than a different country.
While I was running my errands, Oscar was shopping for another mother at the swimming pool. Apparently Alain said that he fall in love with Jorge’s mother, and he was hugging her and did not want her to go. These men are all the same: anyone’s mother is good enough! (I told you that Oscar has a thing for “older” and “latino”). I guess, after he got reprimanded yesterday, he realized that maybe he did not have such a good deal. He also changed his name to “San Diego”. I fail to see what my son has in common with a Saint but that is what he answered when his newfound mother asked him for his name…!?
Talking about names, I don’t even attempt Veronique anymore: I go straight for Veronica (or Beronica as they pronounce it) and I suddenly realize that my life is so much easier.
In the States I used Veronica for the restaurant or the dry cleaner. Here is for everybody, and it is part of the general rule of relaxation. Why I do want to explain all the time that I am Italian but I have a French name and all that blablabla and now that I am thinking about it, I should have done it long time ago… who knows, maybe I haave some missed opportunities because someone could not remember my name.
Alain tonight felt patriotic (Bastille Day) so went for a stroll (the famous “passeggiata”) on the Quinta. It was very pleasant, there was a little breeze and tourists are starting to fill up the restaurants and bars. The kids had ice-cream but after an entire day of swimming, they were exhausted.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
The Movie
After a quiet morning practicing jumping in the pool, I thought that I should take the kids to the movies. They deserved it since they were dragged through administrative tasks this past few days. Alain stayed home to get some work done.
Here we are, mother and two kids in the car going to “Pelican Plaza” for our first movie in Spanish. We went to see “Cars”, and I was thrilled, as you can imagine. Well at least I got to listen to some Walt Disney in Spanish.
On the way out from the theater, there was a inflatable castle-trampoline. Of course, Oscar had to do an Oscar “thing”. First he wanted to go in, but then he did not want to wear the paper bracelet and he put his shoes back on, in sign of defiance. Then he came back, reluctantly put the bracelet, got in, cried the all time and did not want to jump.
I could have killed him so I decided that it was better that he stayed in the trampoline for his own sake.
On the way back, he got a major reprimand, and we start taking away privileges and see how it will work! Or will not… What will he be at 15???! Matthias was also defiant because I was reprimanding his brother. Alliances are nice but you will have to live with the consequences.
Here we are, mother and two kids in the car going to “Pelican Plaza” for our first movie in Spanish. We went to see “Cars”, and I was thrilled, as you can imagine. Well at least I got to listen to some Walt Disney in Spanish.
On the way out from the theater, there was a inflatable castle-trampoline. Of course, Oscar had to do an Oscar “thing”. First he wanted to go in, but then he did not want to wear the paper bracelet and he put his shoes back on, in sign of defiance. Then he came back, reluctantly put the bracelet, got in, cried the all time and did not want to jump.
I could have killed him so I decided that it was better that he stayed in the trampoline for his own sake.
On the way back, he got a major reprimand, and we start taking away privileges and see how it will work! Or will not… What will he be at 15???! Matthias was also defiant because I was reprimanding his brother. Alliances are nice but you will have to live with the consequences.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Car Insurance
The rule is everything bureaucratic takes half a day. Today, we had to buy car insurance, which, by the way, is $400 dollars per year!!!!! That is A LOT less that what we pay in Brooklyn. Anyway the lady from the insurance company had big boops and fake white flower is her hair, but was super nice. She made all kinds of phone calls, she sent faxes, she gave candies to the kids… all this took almost 3 hours.
Finally we went to pick up our gray Pointer Volkswagen. So I met the famous Amir, Israeli, part owner of the Internet Café, part owner of the car, part real estate agent. A tall, bold, muscular guy, that plays domino all day with his Mexican associate. He told me he was born in a kibbutz, which in itself does not tell me much, but he continued saying that he was playing professional basketball in Italy and then he also lived in NY and Atlanta. So I told him about my Israeli athletic connection to Vlad and his brother, and he said he knew them. Go figure… I have to double check!
I also had a long conversation with the Italian guy who owns the cleaning store next to our house. It is interesting to know every life story, because every story is a bit different. He moved to Playa not long ago and before that he was living in Belize for four years and before that in Texas. He gave me few tips about life in Playa and the Italians he knows here.
The kids finally realize that “Mexico” is not only a beach, and that we are “in Mexico” even if we are not actually at the beach. Sometimes when they get reprimanded, they say they want to go “home” (which they also refer to as “the trampoline house”). I feel a little self-conscious but I know it is just a way for them to refer to a place where they feel cozy. Friendship is something that already means something to them, so I also say that I will not move them around from 12 to 18 years old and I will try to hold to that promise.
Finally we went to pick up our gray Pointer Volkswagen. So I met the famous Amir, Israeli, part owner of the Internet Café, part owner of the car, part real estate agent. A tall, bold, muscular guy, that plays domino all day with his Mexican associate. He told me he was born in a kibbutz, which in itself does not tell me much, but he continued saying that he was playing professional basketball in Italy and then he also lived in NY and Atlanta. So I told him about my Israeli athletic connection to Vlad and his brother, and he said he knew them. Go figure… I have to double check!
I also had a long conversation with the Italian guy who owns the cleaning store next to our house. It is interesting to know every life story, because every story is a bit different. He moved to Playa not long ago and before that he was living in Belize for four years and before that in Texas. He gave me few tips about life in Playa and the Italians he knows here.
The kids finally realize that “Mexico” is not only a beach, and that we are “in Mexico” even if we are not actually at the beach. Sometimes when they get reprimanded, they say they want to go “home” (which they also refer to as “the trampoline house”). I feel a little self-conscious but I know it is just a way for them to refer to a place where they feel cozy. Friendship is something that already means something to them, so I also say that I will not move them around from 12 to 18 years old and I will try to hold to that promise.
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
We are in the paper!
I just bought “Il Sole d’Italia” (Vito’s paper) and we are officially mentioned in the article about the celebration of the World Cup in Playa del Carmen. I guess a French-Italian family watching the match at his office was news-worthy!
It is finally sinking in that we are becoming Mexican residents. Up to know, I have been amazed by the fact that so many things that are the same as in the States. But today, driving in the Calle Benito Juarez (a busy commercial avenue) we could see street vendors, men riding bikes with a sort of cart in front, mothers crossing the street with sleeping baby in their arms, and flocks of tourist who appeared a bit overwhelmed by the heat and the new environment… it was more than obvious that we were *not* in the United States!
We put in a deposit on the new house, and we are really looking forward to move on August 1st. Alain wants to buy a desk and an office chair and even a TV with a TV stand! I could live with the TV being on a chair, but Alain said we don’t have to live like students… I think we can… we are student of a new life.
It is finally sinking in that we are becoming Mexican residents. Up to know, I have been amazed by the fact that so many things that are the same as in the States. But today, driving in the Calle Benito Juarez (a busy commercial avenue) we could see street vendors, men riding bikes with a sort of cart in front, mothers crossing the street with sleeping baby in their arms, and flocks of tourist who appeared a bit overwhelmed by the heat and the new environment… it was more than obvious that we were *not* in the United States!
We put in a deposit on the new house, and we are really looking forward to move on August 1st. Alain wants to buy a desk and an office chair and even a TV with a TV stand! I could live with the TV being on a chair, but Alain said we don’t have to live like students… I think we can… we are student of a new life.
Monday, July 10, 2006
The house search is over
It is 8:30 a.m. and the kids are playing the pool with Jorge, who knows Oscar’s name but he cannot remember Matthias’ so he calls him “amigo”. There are no language barriers when you are jumping in the pool.
I had a “bank” morning again to get some money to pay for the car; everything is in cash and in dollars! Viva los pesos!
In the late afternoon, we chilled out a little, Oscar had a bit of fever, but around six, everything went back to normal again. We decide to do a little trip to Sam’s club (since we are in Mexico, I think we’ve been going food shopping every other day). It is incredible; the only difference between trips at Sam’s Club and Cotsco is that my friend Elin is not there with (and she is also a Costco aficionado). Even the food is organized in the same way, and I found the same prosciutto of the same brand…it feels very exotic!
At Sam’s Club, I also like to buy the grilled chicken that I always snubbed at Costco, since I discovered that the kids like it, so an evening without cooking feels good to me.
On the way back, we stopped to see if there were any “For Rent” signs in our favorite block of houses, which is close to our present home. Actually there was one, so we called the number and 20 minutes later, we went to see the house.
We liked it, it felt more like a real home and there are a lot of kids around so M & O will have friends to play with after school. In Playa, you do not organize playdates as in the States, you play with the kids in your neighborhood so you better make sure than there are actually some around.
There is a little guest room downstairs with a mini private bathroom; we will make it cozy for you all!
Also, the house is cable-ready, so we can have broadband Internet and feel connected to the world again….
Our new landlord is Raul and lives in Mexico City. I guess it corresponds to what a New Yorker is to United States. He has an iPod, he is cool in an urban type of way, but the difference with your average neurotic New Yorker is that he is very pleasant and relaxed.
I had a “bank” morning again to get some money to pay for the car; everything is in cash and in dollars! Viva los pesos!
In the late afternoon, we chilled out a little, Oscar had a bit of fever, but around six, everything went back to normal again. We decide to do a little trip to Sam’s club (since we are in Mexico, I think we’ve been going food shopping every other day). It is incredible; the only difference between trips at Sam’s Club and Cotsco is that my friend Elin is not there with (and she is also a Costco aficionado). Even the food is organized in the same way, and I found the same prosciutto of the same brand…it feels very exotic!
At Sam’s Club, I also like to buy the grilled chicken that I always snubbed at Costco, since I discovered that the kids like it, so an evening without cooking feels good to me.
On the way back, we stopped to see if there were any “For Rent” signs in our favorite block of houses, which is close to our present home. Actually there was one, so we called the number and 20 minutes later, we went to see the house.
We liked it, it felt more like a real home and there are a lot of kids around so M & O will have friends to play with after school. In Playa, you do not organize playdates as in the States, you play with the kids in your neighborhood so you better make sure than there are actually some around.
There is a little guest room downstairs with a mini private bathroom; we will make it cozy for you all!
Also, the house is cable-ready, so we can have broadband Internet and feel connected to the world again….
Our new landlord is Raul and lives in Mexico City. I guess it corresponds to what a New Yorker is to United States. He has an iPod, he is cool in an urban type of way, but the difference with your average neurotic New Yorker is that he is very pleasant and relaxed.
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Italy won!
Back in the pool, the kids are now definitely swimming. They made a new friend: Jorge. He is a real sweet kid, the cousin of the brother of the French teacher who lives close by (are you following?).
Jorge is 7 years old, he lives in Mexico City but he is here on vacation. He likes soccer and he was hoping Italy will win, so he is also my friend.
We went to Vitto’s office to follow the game. Oscar was wearing the French soccer team t-shirt and Matthias the Italian one. The game was excruciating but finally Italy made it.
We took a walk on the Quinta half an hour later and the Italian supporters were still hugging each other.
Vito’s wife, Juliet, told us about this other area called Campestre a little further away than Playcar where there was a big house for rent, so we went to see it. In a way, the place looks more authentic in the sense that there are Mexicans living there instead of tourists. The house was big but unfurnished. So we don’t know we are still searching!
Jorge is 7 years old, he lives in Mexico City but he is here on vacation. He likes soccer and he was hoping Italy will win, so he is also my friend.
We went to Vitto’s office to follow the game. Oscar was wearing the French soccer team t-shirt and Matthias the Italian one. The game was excruciating but finally Italy made it.
We took a walk on the Quinta half an hour later and the Italian supporters were still hugging each other.
Vito’s wife, Juliet, told us about this other area called Campestre a little further away than Playcar where there was a big house for rent, so we went to see it. In a way, the place looks more authentic in the sense that there are Mexicans living there instead of tourists. The house was big but unfurnished. So we don’t know we are still searching!
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Searching for a house
The house situation is consuming most of our energy. We have visited a few alternatives through a real estate agent, but none of them we really liked. We decided to take the bull by the horn and drove went around Playacar, writing down the phone numbers of house for rent or sale (sometimes they agree to rent yearly) but I guess we will have to visit a few real estate shops as well.
Friday, July 07, 2006
We bought a car
To live here, we will need a car to go back and forth between Playacar and Playa del Carmen, to go grocery shopping and starting next month, to take the kids to school. There is no public transportation available besides taxis that charges tourists 5 dollars for the smallest ride. Let’s face it, we’ll always be taken for tourists, thanks to my blond child.
To make a long story short, Alain bought the car (a 2004 Volkswagen Pointer) from the owner of the Internet Café where he goes every day. The guy is Israeli. Israelis, like Italians, are everywhere! Anyway, we hope to have it in the next few days, assuming Chase does not make it impossible for us to transfer money to our Mexican bank account.
In the afternoon, the kids wanted their share of “brown ice cream”, so we went to La Quinta and visited the local Hagen Daaz. Their prices are crazy: 4 dollars for a single scoop chocolate ice cream.
We also went looking for Corto Maltes, the cabanas complex where we stayed during our vacation in 1997. Well no more! They are now building 15 luxury apartments on the beach. The two French guys who owned the place at that time were complaining about the expansion of Playa, I guess it is now their turn to take advantage of it. It was a bit disappointing; we had such a good vacation there! But at the same time, it is prime real estate, so who can blame them? For consolation, the condominiums (always only three stories high) will be called Corto Maltes as well.
On the way home, I finally found the little Italian grocery store I have been hearing about. I chatted with the owner, we talked about soccer, obviously, and, as always, he enjoyed the fact I have a French husband on the eve of the WC Finals!
To make a long story short, Alain bought the car (a 2004 Volkswagen Pointer) from the owner of the Internet Café where he goes every day. The guy is Israeli. Israelis, like Italians, are everywhere! Anyway, we hope to have it in the next few days, assuming Chase does not make it impossible for us to transfer money to our Mexican bank account.
In the afternoon, the kids wanted their share of “brown ice cream”, so we went to La Quinta and visited the local Hagen Daaz. Their prices are crazy: 4 dollars for a single scoop chocolate ice cream.
We also went looking for Corto Maltes, the cabanas complex where we stayed during our vacation in 1997. Well no more! They are now building 15 luxury apartments on the beach. The two French guys who owned the place at that time were complaining about the expansion of Playa, I guess it is now their turn to take advantage of it. It was a bit disappointing; we had such a good vacation there! But at the same time, it is prime real estate, so who can blame them? For consolation, the condominiums (always only three stories high) will be called Corto Maltes as well.
On the way home, I finally found the little Italian grocery store I have been hearing about. I chatted with the owner, we talked about soccer, obviously, and, as always, he enjoyed the fact I have a French husband on the eve of the WC Finals!
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Back to the Bank
Strangely enough, I am a lot more patient here. Things take time here. It’s not a lack of efficiency or sloppiness, it’s just the way things are.
Today we went to open a bank account. The process took a good two hours. But now we have a debit card and it now feels like we are officially and financially here. We immediately made good use of the brand new debit card by going grocery shopping in one of the many superstores the city has to offer :-)
Life is hard, even in Mexico, so we needed help. We now have a cleaning lady and my status of exploitative expatriate is now complete. It costs us 200 pesos ($20) to clean the 3-story house. Alain was questioning whether we really needed a cleaning lady… I said “Hell Yeah! For 20 dollars, even if we are unemployed, we need cleaning lady!” I know that you think, and I feel totally self-conscious but it is true that we pay a cleaning lady a lot more in NY but here at least she does not have to emigrate and suffer the harsh NY winter and discrimination.
Talking about discrimination, Lorenzo was telling me that the Mexican of Hispanic (white) origin threat badly the ones of Indian origin. It seems such a rotten fate to be discriminated both inside and outside your country.
I also asked Lorenzo about my previous socio-economic concern: how come there so many superstores around? Apparently the standards of living here are pretty compared to the rest of Mexico (thanks to the booming tourist industry). A waiter can make up to $2,000 US dollars a month. Assuming he does not live on La Quinta or Playacar, rent will be cheap, and he will definitely be able to afford the goods at Walmart and Sam’s Club and a small car to carry the good back home.
Back to the pool and the kids are now swimming for about 2 meters on their own. They are really getting a kick out of it!
Today we went to open a bank account. The process took a good two hours. But now we have a debit card and it now feels like we are officially and financially here. We immediately made good use of the brand new debit card by going grocery shopping in one of the many superstores the city has to offer :-)
Life is hard, even in Mexico, so we needed help. We now have a cleaning lady and my status of exploitative expatriate is now complete. It costs us 200 pesos ($20) to clean the 3-story house. Alain was questioning whether we really needed a cleaning lady… I said “Hell Yeah! For 20 dollars, even if we are unemployed, we need cleaning lady!” I know that you think, and I feel totally self-conscious but it is true that we pay a cleaning lady a lot more in NY but here at least she does not have to emigrate and suffer the harsh NY winter and discrimination.
Talking about discrimination, Lorenzo was telling me that the Mexican of Hispanic (white) origin threat badly the ones of Indian origin. It seems such a rotten fate to be discriminated both inside and outside your country.
I also asked Lorenzo about my previous socio-economic concern: how come there so many superstores around? Apparently the standards of living here are pretty compared to the rest of Mexico (thanks to the booming tourist industry). A waiter can make up to $2,000 US dollars a month. Assuming he does not live on La Quinta or Playacar, rent will be cheap, and he will definitely be able to afford the goods at Walmart and Sam’s Club and a small car to carry the good back home.
Back to the pool and the kids are now swimming for about 2 meters on their own. They are really getting a kick out of it!
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Finding a school... that will accept Oscar!
This morning we had to register the kids at the school. We went to the closest one, the Escuela Manuel Acosta located at the entrance of Playacar. The director was nice and professional, but unfortunately the kids had to do a test. Two teachers came to take them to separate rooms to take the test, and I was surprised that M&O left with them without saying a word. Did they finally mature into law-abiding students? Our hope was short lived. Turns out that Oscar only agreed to participate to the first 3 exercises and just wanted to flip the pages to see what’s next. Matthias was more cooperative but still borderline. In the end, the director told us they could not accept Oscar, and recommended another school with a more “liberal” approach to learning, called Papalote.
On our way to Papalote, we made a mistake and entered into another bilingual school just a few blocks away, called Yats’il. The building was beautiful, with a lot of tropical character with wooden shade and a big internal courtyard with a playground and green everywhere. Once we realized the mistake, we went to check out Papalote but I did not like it so we went back to Yats’il (which we found later, has an excellent reputation).
School starts sometimes at the end of August. The kids will wear a uniform: short sleeve polo shirt and short pants but closed shoes! I had a very good impression of the school director and her daughter, who seems to be in charge of admissions. They had lived in Paris when the daughter was in Kindergarten and their French helped my Spanish. It was a good connection. Anyway, we decided to pay monthly. You never know with my kids how things are going to turn out!!!!
We also had to renew our car rental while we are still looking to buy a used car. By the time we got home, the France-Portugal had already started.
During the game, the kids were playing in the pool and were looking at a bunch of teenagers who gave them their first taste of life at 16 years old: cigarettes, French kissing, etc. Well they could not have learnt that at the Red Hook pool because there, you are not allowed to kiss!
France beat Portugal without glory, so we will have to figure out how to watch the finals on Sunday. I hate France-Italy games because many times the French just get lucky without making too much effort like today against Portugal.
After the game, the kids wanted to practice swimming on their own, like “big boys”. Oscar was jumping into the big pool, almost touching the bottom then swimming back up to me. Matthias was going back and forward between Alain and the ladder. They were really excited about learning to swim on their own. Maybe they will not be corporate executives but they seem to have potential with physical activities.
On our way to Papalote, we made a mistake and entered into another bilingual school just a few blocks away, called Yats’il. The building was beautiful, with a lot of tropical character with wooden shade and a big internal courtyard with a playground and green everywhere. Once we realized the mistake, we went to check out Papalote but I did not like it so we went back to Yats’il (which we found later, has an excellent reputation).
School starts sometimes at the end of August. The kids will wear a uniform: short sleeve polo shirt and short pants but closed shoes! I had a very good impression of the school director and her daughter, who seems to be in charge of admissions. They had lived in Paris when the daughter was in Kindergarten and their French helped my Spanish. It was a good connection. Anyway, we decided to pay monthly. You never know with my kids how things are going to turn out!!!!
We also had to renew our car rental while we are still looking to buy a used car. By the time we got home, the France-Portugal had already started.
During the game, the kids were playing in the pool and were looking at a bunch of teenagers who gave them their first taste of life at 16 years old: cigarettes, French kissing, etc. Well they could not have learnt that at the Red Hook pool because there, you are not allowed to kiss!
France beat Portugal without glory, so we will have to figure out how to watch the finals on Sunday. I hate France-Italy games because many times the French just get lucky without making too much effort like today against Portugal.
After the game, the kids wanted to practice swimming on their own, like “big boys”. Oscar was jumping into the big pool, almost touching the bottom then swimming back up to me. Matthias was going back and forward between Alain and the ladder. They were really excited about learning to swim on their own. Maybe they will not be corporate executives but they seem to have potential with physical activities.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
We are not BBQing
Alain went to work… which, in our Mexican lifestyle, translates to driving a couple minutes to the Internet Café and sipping coffee while uploading yesterday’s work.
While America is BBQing, we are just floating in the pool. Summer vacationers have started to arrive in our little neighborhood and unfortunately the first batch was not very pleasant. An American father and his two kids came to the pool. I said “hola” to the father who did not even acknowledge my presence so I decided to ignore him and his offspring. The little boy was just as obnoxious as his father. He said to M&O “so you *do* speak English?” and continued on ignoring them. The little girl seemed nicer and Oscar played a bit with her although, let’s face it, she was no match for his new Hispanic playmates. For the icing on the cake, here is what the kid told his father as they were leaving the pool: “Father, by the way, I wanted to thank you for taking time off to come with us to the swimming pool”. Yikes… what type of family is that? Would they thank each other for flushing the toilets?
M & O are starting to get some good colors and are looking more and more like the players in French national Soccer team (you know what I am talking about if you have seen the games). Talking about soccer, Italy just beat Germany with a spectacular game ending in 2-0. (Sorry Dirk! But imagine how your life would be difficult in a final Germany vs. France. By the way, Alain might have a problem. In fact if Italy is playing with France, he will have to watch the game at Walmart).
I will take a moment to congratulate myself and all my Italian friends for supporting Italy in these grandiose moments and for criticizing it the rest of the time. For me, who cares about soccer only on during the World Cup, I think it’s good to be patriotic for a month every four year and then be international the rest of the time.
Later on that day, we went to visit an incredible Spa and hotel just down the street from our house. The Spa is inside a Maya Pyramid style construction (a little kitsch), but the inside is very luxurious and they have all kinds of way to pamper their guests: from water therapy, to massage, and including been wrapped into chocolate. For the people who want to generate a minimum of effort they also have a gym, spinning classes and a climbing wall…but we are not going to be climbing walls, are we?
It is funny how living in New York takes away the wow effect… the guy who gave us the tour was still impressed by the place even if he works there. Meanwhile we felt we had to look a bit impressed and not let the New York “done it seen it” transpire. But hey, I was just happy to get a half hour of listening-comprehension in Spanish…
Back at the pool, I met brother of the woman who teaches French at M&O’s future school, hopefully he put a good word for them.
While America is BBQing, we are just floating in the pool. Summer vacationers have started to arrive in our little neighborhood and unfortunately the first batch was not very pleasant. An American father and his two kids came to the pool. I said “hola” to the father who did not even acknowledge my presence so I decided to ignore him and his offspring. The little boy was just as obnoxious as his father. He said to M&O “so you *do* speak English?” and continued on ignoring them. The little girl seemed nicer and Oscar played a bit with her although, let’s face it, she was no match for his new Hispanic playmates. For the icing on the cake, here is what the kid told his father as they were leaving the pool: “Father, by the way, I wanted to thank you for taking time off to come with us to the swimming pool”. Yikes… what type of family is that? Would they thank each other for flushing the toilets?
M & O are starting to get some good colors and are looking more and more like the players in French national Soccer team (you know what I am talking about if you have seen the games). Talking about soccer, Italy just beat Germany with a spectacular game ending in 2-0. (Sorry Dirk! But imagine how your life would be difficult in a final Germany vs. France. By the way, Alain might have a problem. In fact if Italy is playing with France, he will have to watch the game at Walmart).
I will take a moment to congratulate myself and all my Italian friends for supporting Italy in these grandiose moments and for criticizing it the rest of the time. For me, who cares about soccer only on during the World Cup, I think it’s good to be patriotic for a month every four year and then be international the rest of the time.
Later on that day, we went to visit an incredible Spa and hotel just down the street from our house. The Spa is inside a Maya Pyramid style construction (a little kitsch), but the inside is very luxurious and they have all kinds of way to pamper their guests: from water therapy, to massage, and including been wrapped into chocolate. For the people who want to generate a minimum of effort they also have a gym, spinning classes and a climbing wall…but we are not going to be climbing walls, are we?
It is funny how living in New York takes away the wow effect… the guy who gave us the tour was still impressed by the place even if he works there. Meanwhile we felt we had to look a bit impressed and not let the New York “done it seen it” transpire. But hey, I was just happy to get a half hour of listening-comprehension in Spanish…
Back at the pool, I met brother of the woman who teaches French at M&O’s future school, hopefully he put a good word for them.
Monday, July 03, 2006
The Bank
This morning, I thought our laundry was piling up a little too much so I went to the Playcar laundry. The owner was Italian, so I think he will treat our clothes with respect.
In the afternoon I went to run errands just to get the feel of a resident’s life. I went to check two banks to see what I need to open a checking account. Once again, I was reminded that I should take a book with me at all times to make good use of my waiting time. Even when the line is small, there is still a good amount of waiting because people chit-chat and they are not in really in any hurry. Plus today was pay day, so everybody was lining up at the bank to cash their check (direct deposit seems like a foreign concept).
In the afternoon I went to run errands just to get the feel of a resident’s life. I went to check two banks to see what I need to open a checking account. Once again, I was reminded that I should take a book with me at all times to make good use of my waiting time. Even when the line is small, there is still a good amount of waiting because people chit-chat and they are not in really in any hurry. Plus today was pay day, so everybody was lining up at the bank to cash their check (direct deposit seems like a foreign concept).
Sunday, July 02, 2006
La Quinta
This morning we finally found the courage to stroll down La Quinta (5th Avenue). It was hot but there was a little breeze, so we went for it, a real stroll, like the Italian “passeggiata”. La Quinta is a pedestrian street parallel to the beach with little stores, cafés and restaurants. It’s clearly touristy but pleasant. We stopped for “brown ice cream” and expressos then went on and discovered a playground just across the Cozumel ferry docks.
Today is the presidential election in Mexico, and I am telling you this country is committed to democracy. The voting polls were under huge tents, some sponsored by Corona…is that really politically correct? ;-) The hot sun did not prevent people from lining up for hours. If it was the States, we would have a 1% turnout. On the top of it, no one was showing any sign of impatience or irritation. Some women were chatting under a huge umbrella, one man was playing guitar and so on.
Sorry but I have to mention another superstore shopping experience: we went to Mega, which is sort of a Mexican Walmart, located just next door to…Walmart! We bought cell phones and beach towels. Mega has an incredible selection of food, pastries and pretty much everything else.
I really need to ask someone about all these huge stores in such a small town. In Brooklyn, there must be at least 5 million people, and we have one Costco, a (new) Fairway, and a few C-Towns and Key Foods, but that does not come close. In Playa, there must be 10 to 20 thousand people and FOUR megastores. It maybe 30 to 40% less expensive than in New York… but average Mexican wages are probably way less 40% of NY wages… I need to figure out the local economy a bit better.
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Walmart
It is a routine already: 8:30 a.m. and the kids are in the pool. It has never been easier to take care of them. Mothers of the world unite… we need a pool in every house!
To complete yesterday’s shopping experience, today we went to Walmart. We needed some extension cables, plus floaties for the pool and more varieties of pasta (absolutely!). We ended up with two carts full of stuff. If you ever been in a Walmart in the States, you have not seen anything like *this* Walmart. The food is fresh, the service is excellent, the air conditioning is at the right temperature and you can’t even believe that you are in Mexico… it is surreal!
In the afternoon we watched Brazil-France (Alain reclaimed his French citizenship… for one day). After the game, Alain went to an Internet Café to work a bit, while I was dedicating myself to be a good mother in the swimming pool with M &O (I still want to be in the competition for Mother of the Year).
The AC in our bedroom does not work so we moved in the middle of the night to the guest bedroom. Lorenzo stopped by to take look and he called his Italian friend repairman to come fix it on Monday.
By the time Alain came back the kids were already in bed and completely exhausted. I don’t get how we are going to be able to fit a school schedule in this. After dinner, Vito stopped by so we finally got to meet the person who inspired us to choose Playa. He is really nice and we hope to see a lot of him.
To complete yesterday’s shopping experience, today we went to Walmart. We needed some extension cables, plus floaties for the pool and more varieties of pasta (absolutely!). We ended up with two carts full of stuff. If you ever been in a Walmart in the States, you have not seen anything like *this* Walmart. The food is fresh, the service is excellent, the air conditioning is at the right temperature and you can’t even believe that you are in Mexico… it is surreal!
In the afternoon we watched Brazil-France (Alain reclaimed his French citizenship… for one day). After the game, Alain went to an Internet Café to work a bit, while I was dedicating myself to be a good mother in the swimming pool with M &O (I still want to be in the competition for Mother of the Year).
The AC in our bedroom does not work so we moved in the middle of the night to the guest bedroom. Lorenzo stopped by to take look and he called his Italian friend repairman to come fix it on Monday.
By the time Alain came back the kids were already in bed and completely exhausted. I don’t get how we are going to be able to fit a school schedule in this. After dinner, Vito stopped by so we finally got to meet the person who inspired us to choose Playa. He is really nice and we hope to see a lot of him.
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