ONE FLEW OVER THE MEXICAN CUCKOO’S NEST
(ALTERNATE TITLE: SHERYL’S LITTLE HOUSE OF HORRORS)

We’re back writing our blog again!  To recap, our last posting was way back in August 2012.  We had a wonderful 6 month stay in Grand Cayman and thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Pat’s daughter’s family.  However, all good things eventually come to an end. 

We were required to leave Grand Cayman, with the boat, when our visitor’s permit was up in February 2013.  Our initial plan was to circumnavigate Cuba because the island had captured our interest.  But just as we were making these plans, Pat’s sister (Sheryl) contacted us and asked if we could come to Cancun, Mexico and oversee the renovations on her house.  She was unable to do this herself because she lives in San Miguel De Allende (far from Cancun) and has a job there.  We thought the idea was great; a chance to visit Mexico, something we hadn’t planned on doing. 

However, we couldn’t take the boat because the marina prices in Cancun are sky high.  As well, we couldn’t leave the boat in Cuba because the marina prices there are almost as high.  (Apparently, the Cuban government has adopted a very capitalistic style when it comes to tourism!)  The Caymans charge a duty of 10% of the value of the boat if it stays in the country longer than 6 months, so we had to do something.  We went to the customs office with a letter that made a case for leaving the boat in the country until we returned, and we got lucky.  The official allowed us to leave the boat until August 2013 for just a $100 fee!  It must have been our white hair and our pleading, helpless looks that did the trick. 

Pat’s daughter and son-in-law (Kristen and Graeme) graciously agreed to let us leave the boat at their dock, and they also agreed to take care of Dude.  (You may remember that Grand Cayman will not accept animals that have been in most other countries in the Caribbean and Central America, so it was not possible for us to bring Dude back if we took him to Mexico.)  It was wonderful of them to do this for us, but unfortunately, they got more than they bargained for.  Dude was a real nuisance for them.  He barked at night waking them all up, and he growled at them for food.  Plus, he competed nonstop with Marley for attention.  Kristen and Graeme will be very happy to see us back in Grand Cayman so they can divest themselves of the beast! 

We arrived in Cancun on February 25.  Sheryl and a couple of her Mexican friends (Osmar and Marlen) met us at the airport.  It was just great to see her after 5 years or so.  We stopped for a meal on the way to the house, and ate a typical Mexican lunch/dinner.    Here is a picture of us all.

We bet you have been wondering about the title/s we gave this posting.  Well, now we are going to explain!  But first, here are some pictures of the house so you will have a frame of reference. 

 

The house is situated in a middle-class neighborhood, and the street is quite pretty with a planted boulevard in the middle.  It’s close to everything (Home Depot, Wal-Mart, groceries, laundromat).  Although being close to things is not really an issue in Mexico because taxis are dirt cheap (about 25-35 pesos per trip, approximately $2.50 Canadian).  Besides a living/dining room and kitchen, the house has 3 bedroom-sized rooms on the main floor and a living/dining/kitchen area and 3 bedroom-sized rooms on the second floor.  Sheryl’s renovation plan was to create two separate apartments.

The previous tenants had not vacated completely when we got there.  They stayed somewhere else once we came, but they didn’t move their boxes or furniture out for two weeks!  It was quite a sight to see everything piled in the living room, and a bit awkward for us, but no biggy.  Sheryl had done a great job of setting up our bedroom with lovely sheets and a comforter on the king-size bed.  On the whole, our overall introduction to the house was positive.

Then, we started to look just a little deeper.  Even though Sheryl had done a lot of cleaning, the place was filthy.  There was not one surface that didn’t need a thorough scrubbing, and even then, there was grime that just wouldn’t come off.  It was pretty clear that the previous tenants had not done a speck of cleaning during their whole 5 year stay! 

There were also some safety issues from our perspective.  Most of the houses in Cancun are pretty resistant to theft or home invasion.  They have wrought iron doors to close over the front door, and wrought iron panels over all of the windows.  As well, there are locking gates right at the sidewalk.  Sheryl’s little house of horrors had front gates that were easily opened even with the locks on; there was no iron panel over one of the main floor windows; and the iron front door was broken and needed welding.  As well, at the back of the house, there is a wall of high windows which had no glass or covering except for the iron grating; this allowed for all manner of friendly or not so friendly beasties and insects to get in.  For instance, one day we watched a scorpion just walk right through our open front door (it was open because it was very hot).  Of course, it could just as easily have walked right in under the door if it was closed because there is a ½ inch gap there!    So, for safety, we installed new locks (to ensure the previous tenants could not get in), covered the back windows, got the iron gates fixed, got the iron front door welded and got the iron grating over the window installed.   

We started making lists, and our list of “things not working” was much longer than our list of “things that work”.  Please be grateful that we decided to post the shortened version of this whole adventure in Sheryl’s Little House of Horrors.  The full version would be horribly long and thoroughly boring.

We needed to priorize the list, so we started with the things that needed doing just to make the house livable, namely the water and electricity.  The water systems in Mexico are quite interesting and vastly different from ours in Canada.  The city water is piped through a meter and into a cistern (large concrete box) usually located in the front courtyard of the home.  Then, it is pumped up to the roof and into a tinaco (large metal or concrete container) located on the roof.  Then, the water flows into the house piping and out the taps via gravity.  The whole system is automatic via float switches in the cistern and tinaco that control the pump.  Here is a picture of a tinaco on a roof and a picture of our cistern.

The previous tenants had unhooked themselves from the city water system and were using a hose to the neighbor’s system.  It was a week and a half before the city came to hook us up to the water system.  Over time and with much investigation by Dave and several plumbers, we ultimately learned that the float switch in the tinaco was broken, there was a leak where the city water entered the cistern, the automatic system parts were not installed or not working, the piping from the cistern to the tinaco was leaking, and the pump plumbing had never been installed properly.  For weeks, each morning, we had to turn on the pump manually and hope that we didn’t overfill the tinaco on the roof which we couldn’t see from the ground.  Sometimes, the water just poured out of the tinaco, or so the neighbors told us.  The water bill for our first month there was as much as it would normally cost for a whole year!  Ultimately, it was April 16 (over  1.5 months from when we arrived) before we had it all working properly!

The former tenants also didn’t want to pay for electricity so they were stealing it from the city; they put jumpers in where the meter goes.  Furthermore, they must have felt generous, and so they hooked another house on the street into their little system!  Naturally, this is completely illegal, and we learned that people have been jailed for doing it.  Luckily, Sheryl was not sent to the slammer….she just had to pay a hefty fine!  Our handyman unhooked the illegal setup and strung a combination of electric wire and extension cords across the front walls and on top of roofs from our house to a friendly neighbor four houses down the street.  Dave cringed as the work was being done because the handyman worked on live wires and the wire itself was too light for the load.  The city promised to come within 5 days to do the hook-up.  It took 15 days before they finally came!!  While we waited those 15 days, one day, the cord somehow came unplugged and another day, an animal chewed through the cord.  On a third day, we lost power and we could not figure out why.  So, our handyman simply jumpered the cord into the meter box!   Keep in mind that every time we were without power, we were also without Internet and phone service.  As well, in the hot climate, our refrigerated and frozen food was at risk.

Aside from the water and electricity, we had the propane system fixed (propane is used to power the stove and hot water heater), had an exhaust system for the hot water heater installed, had a fissure fixed on the roof and sealant applied (the upper living area was flooded one day after a heavy rain), got the oven working (it was crudded up with gunk probably because the previous tenants never cleaned it), had the whole place fumigated for termites, and had two mini-split air conditioners installed.  By the time we left on May 15 (3 months after we arrived), the house was finally ready for the renovations to begin!

We learned a lot about Mexican houses, Mexican companies and Mexican workers.  We learned to be prepared to wait for just about anything to get done and to not expect to get good workmanship.  This is not to say that good workmanship is never present, just that one cannot expect it will be present. 

For instance, here is a list of the workers and companies we dealt with along with the related problems that occurred.

• Valentin: the fellow Sheryl hired to work every day and get the house renovated.  Pleasant and worked hard.  But one day, he just didn’t show up and his phone number didn’t work.  Huh!!  I guess we will never know why he stopped coming.
• Dontonio: came recommended as a good plumber/electrician.  Arrived on time and did some work for us, but spent most of his time trying to convince us that his work was worth a lot more than the average workman.  After he left, we still had problems that he thought were fixed.
• One fellow, also highly recommended, just walked away when we were asking him (through an interpretor) to install the electrical wiring for the mini-splits.  He said nothing and simply just walked away down the street!!  We were shocked.  Dave thinks it was because we wanted it done a certain way and he didn’t want to do it that way.
• The fumigation company’s workers drilled a hole in a water pipe and practically flooded the entire main floor.  They didn’t clean up either, and it took us 2 hours to put the house back in order after they left.
• The mini-split installers drilled a hole in the rainwater pipe, and an area upstairs and an area downstairs were flooded the next time it rained.
• One of the mini-splits only worked for 1 day!  The compressor was faulty and a new compressor needed to come from Mexico City.  Guess how long that took!!

On the other hand, we also hired Charly who, within minutes, determined the cause of the water problems, had set his crew of 4 guys to work, and everything was done properly and well within 2 hours.  They were all pleasant and charming, and their fee was not exorbitant.  We also met a fellow named Juan who expertly fixed the wrought iron gates etc. and worked fast (Besides, Pat will tell you that he was also “nice eye candy”.  According to her, he’s a “Mexican cutie.”)
 
As frustrating as it was to have to wait around for things to get done, the more frustrating part for us was not speaking Spanish.  It meant we always had to get someone to make telephone calls for us, someone to translate when the workers were there, someone to do the research for the appropriate places to call for service etc. etc.  It made us feel so helpless.  We learned a lot of Spanish though – out of necessity and also from an online course we took.  We can speak a lot more now than when we first got here, and we can understand most of what is said, if it is not technical stuff and if it is said slowly.  Our plan is to continue to study the language, so that when we come back or go to other Spanish-speaking countries, life will be easier.

We also want to tell you a little bit about the other people we met.  First of all, there’s Osmar and Marlen (they are in the picture of our first meal in Cancun).  They are Cuban.  She is a dancer and came to Mexico with a Cuban dance troupe.  She just stayed once the show was over.  She married a Mexican man and has a son who lives part-time with her and part-time with his father.  Osmar has a degree in agricultural science from Cuba, and he was a wrestling champion there.  We never learned how he came to be in Mexico.  They were very helpful to us by driving us to specific places.  Even though they had minimal English and our Spanish was poor, we had some interesting conversations using Google Translate.  When we first got there, Dave was anxious to get a cheap guitar to practice on.  They helped us find one at a pawn shop, but when we got it home, we discovered it did not work properly.  They helped us get our money back from the pawn shop, which is not something pawn shops usually do.

Then, there was Enrique and Lorena.  They were the neighbours who let us hook up to their house for electric power while we waited for the city to come and hook us up.  They own and run a school (kindergarten through to college prep).  Lorena’s family owns a jungle ranch nearby which has tours with zip-lining and other such activities.  They are simply lovely people.  Anything we asked of them, they stepped right up to help.  Enrique helped us find workers and he made many, many phone calls for us.  We took them out for supper one night and had a lovely time.  Lorena understands English a little, but she rarely speaks it.  Enrique understands quite a lot of English, and he speaks some too.  His background is Mayan, so he speaks that language as well.  We were very grateful for their friendship.  Here is a picture of them.

In mid April, Sheryl arranged for a man to rent the upstairs of the house even though it was not really an apartment yet.  His name is Ken, and his English is very good, so we had great conversations.  He was just a pleasure to be around, and he made everything so much easier for us.  All we had to do was call to him upstairs and he came down and made phone calls, talked to workmen, whatever was needed.  At one point, our Internet went out, and Ken must have gone 5 times to the office to complain and fight with them to get a serviceman out to the house.  Without Ken, it is unlikely we would ever have gotten it fixed.  Ken’s 5-year-old daughter lives in Cancun with her mother, just a few blocks away, so he is able to spend quality time with her and talk to her frequently.  His face just lights up with joy when he talks about her.  His work background is architecture and he worked for GE at one time.  He also has facility management expertise, so once we left, Sheryl had someone with experience to get the rest of the work done.  Since we are now “friends” with Ken on Facebook, we expect to stay in touch with him forever.  This is a nice feeling; to have a good Mexican friend.  Here is a picture of him.

There is a website for English-speaking people living in Cancun.  Through this website, we met Steve.  He is British and has been in Cancun for about 3 years.  Prior to coming there, he travelled extensively around the world.  He says he has no idea why he decided to stay in Mexico, but he loves it.  He's an artist and has his wonderful pictures hanging throughout his house.  He was extremely helpful and stayed in constant contact with us while we were there.  He took us to a bookstore that sells used English language books, which we would never have found out about on our own, and he gave us a ride to the airport when we left.  Here is a picture of him.

Here are some of the other things we learned while in Cancun:

• There are three price structures: the “amigo” price, the “Mexican” price and the “gringo” price.  Guess which one is the highest!
• You don’t tip taxi drivers, but you do tip the baggers at the grocery store or the fellow who directs traffic in the parking lot.  Apparently, there are lots of folks who do not get any kind of wage; they just work for tips
• If you can’t handle waiting, then don’t live in Mexico.  You will line up for almost everything, and you have to wait a long time for anything to get done. 
• Mexicans seem to be patient with waiting, but they are extremely impatient drivers
• If you don’t like bugs and critters, don’t live in Mexico.  There are lots of scorpions, mosquitoes, fruit flies and, of course, cucarachas (cockroaches).  Being comfortable with geckos living in your house helps; they eat up most of the small bugs.
• To make a telephone call, local or long distance, you need to keep a set of instructions handy.  It is too complex to explain here.

Now, just so you don’t think we never had any fun while in Mexico, let us tell you about a few of the things we did.  There are two major marketplaces in Cancun, Mercado 23 and Mercado 28.  We visited both and thoroughly enjoyed our time at each one.  Mercado 28 is the more upscale one and appeals to most tourists, but we preferred Mercado 23 which is very Mexican and the prices are lower.  We loved bartering for items and ordering food at a restaurant without having any idea what we would get since the menu was entirely in Spanish and no one spoke English.   Here are some pictures of Mercado 23.

We took a tour of Chichen Itza.  It has been named one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and it is definitely something to see.  It has whetted our appetite for visiting all of the Mayan and Aztec archeological sites at some time in the future.  Dave spent a few days on the Internet researching the Mayan culture, and he is completely hooked.  Pat is learning too and anxious to learn more.  Here are some pictures of Chichen Itza.

 

 

 

The tour we took of Chichen Itza included a stop in a lovely city called Valladolid where we had a scrumptious buffet meal, and we made another stop at a cenote.  Cenotes, which are especially associated with the Yucatan Peninsula, are deep natural pits or sinkholes that are filled with groundwater.   The water is usually clear, and the cenotes are favourite places for tourists and Mexicans to swim.  Here are some pictures.

One weekend, we rented a car and took a 2 day trip to Progreso.  It is situated on the north coast of the Yucatan peninsula on the Gulf of Mexico.  It was described to us as a fishing village with lots of expats living there.  It reminded us of Wasaga or Sauble Beach.  It’s a vacation spot for Mexicans and a cruise ship stopover.  Expats like it because of the beaches and because the cost of living is minimal compared to Canada or the U.S.  Here are some pictures of Progreso.

 

 

A funny/not so funny thing happened on our way to Progreso.  We picked up the rental car (this process took about 2 hours!) and headed out of Cancun.  We had a GPS, so we were closely following directions when we happened on a police traffic stop.  They pulled us over and in broken English explained that we had been speeding and that we would have to go to the police station to pay the fine.  Well, that would have taken the rest of the day and maybe the next one, so Dave asked if there was any way to pay the fine right there.  Hmmm!  “Sure, $40 USD would cover it (in almost perfect English).  When in Mexico, do as instructed, so we paid the money.  We are quite certain we were not speeding.

Our last outing was to Tulum.  We took a bus ride down the coastline from Cancun to the village.  Like Progreso, there are a lot of expats living there.  We found that the town itself was too far from the water for our taste, and it lacked the Mexican charm of other villages and towns.  However, there is a super Mayan ruin there, the only pyramid site that is right next to the ocean.  Here are some pictures of Tulum.

 

 

We left Mexico on May 15, feeling a little sad and definitely planning on returning.  We flew to Canada, and currently, we are visiting with family and friends and enjoying ourselves immensely.  On June 15, we will be flying back to Grand Cayman, and will be preparing The Hope to travel by the end of August when we are required to leave the island (our visitor permit expires).  We will likely go to Cuba at least for a while, and then back to the States.   

We hope you are all well and enjoying your lives.

“It is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy”.....Anonymous

 "What you get by achieving your goals is not nearly as important as what you become by achieving your goals."…. Zig Ziglar