[A/S] TWIMC - Last one for six months

[Sandy Noyes <boojum@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Folks -

I am sitting here in Rancho Santa Fe by the pool looking out over the sunlit and beautiful valley which 
lies at the bottom of the canyon and wondering how much better can it get?  Rancho Santa fe is just 
north of San Diego and pretty horsey.  The Del Mar racetrack is close by, and in between RSF and Del 
Mar are numerous polo fields.  What large land surfaces are not for horses are devoted to golf.  You 
are correct when you assume that this is pretty upscale.  I sneak in because my aunt lives here and has 
for some 30+ years.  That places her here before it got so wildly upscale.  RSF is where the Crosby golf 
tournament started because Der Bingle lived here and started the tournament here.

I have been fixing much on the truck.  Tomorrow is new transmission time as the SOB who put the 
current one in last year failed his ethics course.  This time the shop is good and I will leave with great 
faith and a great transmission.

I have been passing the time with my Internet cruising 82 year-old aunt who really gets around.  She is 
recovering from a back injury and fractured pelvis.  Despite the injuries she was out slapping the ball 
around the golf course last week and will be out again Tuesday while I am rolling down Mexico 1 to 
El Rosario, stop number one on the way down Baja California to Mulege.  I have gotten my aunt 
hooked up for Internet Mah-Jhonng which means there goes another life ruined by gambling and the 
Internet.  Really, she is quite thrilled to be able to play on the Internet and thinks she can drop her 
drive to town for the Monday Mah-Jhonng meeting.  Who could have dreamed that the Internet could 
do these tings for us?  And that it would bring back the art of writing letters?

While in the area I got in touch with Bob "rhymes with tiger" Kiger and found him to be a great guy.  
He has a very sweet Airstream which he has ensconced in an RV park close to the sand and surf of 
southern California.  The trailer is a little jewel, laid out very well and while it has everything you 
need for living short term or long term is also very compact.  They don't make them like that anymore.  
I was quite honestly envious as while I love my trailer it lacks the compactness and efficiency of Bob's.

I have stocked up with everything I think that I will need in Mexico and may be pressed to find.  Good 
toilet paper and paper towels are at the top of the list.  That along with a BIG box of Tide, fabric 
softener, popcorn, Irish "steel cut" oatmeal, olive oil, SoftScrub, toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, 
deodorant, sun dried tomatoes, spaghetti, paper napkins, and God knows what-all including 50 
pounds of rice and 25 pounds of pinto beans.  Yes, there are plenty of rice and beans in Mexico, but 
these pinto beans are triple cleaned so that I don't have to rinse, rinse, rinse the hell out of them.  Plus, 
the rice and beans are cheaper here at Costco that they are in Mexico.  Many of my expenses will be 
taken care of before I cross the border.  Good thing, too, as I have been spending like a drunken sailor.  
This is very scary when living off savings.  oh well, a year from next February I can start collecting 
from Social Security which will help a lot.  Finally getting some of that money back.  I already used up 
my GI Bill college money which got me through undergrad and grad school.  Thanks Uncle Sam!

I will travel down through Mexico with a friend and his wife who will be neighbors when we arrive 
there.  While it is not dangerous travelling in Mexico despite what you may have read or heard it is 
nice to have someone with you "just in case."   We will stop in Ensenada to get our visas paid for at the 
local Banamex bank.  I will draw out about $2,000 (that is pesos; the "$" is used in Mexico to denote 
pesos) to carry me down.  If figure that fuel will cost about $100 max for the 700 mile ride down.  The 
rest will be fore RV parks and food and will leave a lot for when I get there.

The first night in El Rosario is at RV park Sinai for US$15.  He has a restaurant where the prices are 
higher than in the states.  The little taco stand next to him serves up pretty good tacos for less that a   
US$1 apiece.  Guess where I am eating.  When driving north I saw the freezer in the top of the fridge 
was so in need of defrosting that there was almost no room in it.  I am dying to know if they have 
defrosted it yet.

Second night in Guerrero Negro is at Malaremo where you can set up a whale watching tour.  They go 
for about US$40 and include lunch.  I want very much to do this.  There are cheaper options, too, but I 
will check with my friends in Mulege to see what the options are before I drive back to do the tour.  
One day up, one day tour and one day back.  Some very trusted person will have to babysit the dog, 
Edie, while I am away.  Very trusted!  Mike Walsh will probably be the guy.

Third night is Mulege.  The only problem will be getting the trailer down into the RV park as the road 
in is narrow and winding and bumpy.  But, I need only do it going in and leaving.  Not to big a deal.  
The place I will be has a big palapa (palm thatched roof) to park the trailer under, another palapa to 
hang around under, a washer, fridge and range with electricity, filtered water and sewer hookup for 
$275 a month.  That is a good deal in Mulege.  Baja California is more expensive that  the mainland. I 
may travel to San Miguel del Allende to check it out while down there.  San Miguel is a colonial 
capitol which is one of Mexico's two historic cities meaning no new construction.  It is beautiful and 
picturesque.  Check it out on the Internet.  If it is really great I would consider spending the winter 
there, Guanajuato and Guadalajara next year.  Guadalajara has the most beautiful climate but is 
smoggy.   But that is a ways down the road,  I haven't left for Mexico yet!

So, Tuesday please wish me a good road and a good ride.  I will be thinking of you all while away.  I 
will send any interesting thoughts, or just thoughts, to Hunter while away and she can pass them on as 
she wishes.  I hope that I can pass on the some of the joy that I find in Mulege for you folks back at 
home, especially those whose homes are visited by snow.

Happy Trails.