Hola Amigos!
We have been home here in Baja for almost a month now, and it has been a HOT month! Phew! It is finally cooling down (high today was mid-80's and lows in the low 70's) and we are appreciating that a lot. We have gotten a lot of things done since we got here. Ben has a lot of the garden planted with tomatoes and squash and cucumbers, and he recently planted some sweet corn. We have helped many of the local restaurants by going to check out their menus and food. We are eating well! The dogs are adjusting, and we finally have them cured of their Giardia that they each came home with from the breeders! Thank goodness!
The trip down was good. We left earlier than originally planned, because our travel mates couldn't leave yet due to some truck issues. Also, we felt like we needed to get the dogs HOME to deal with them and their illnesses. Their Giardia episode resulted in diarrhea, for both dogs....often! Ugh! They traveled during the day like champs. Settled right down and didn't fight each other too much, and Gus would warn us when WE NEED TO STOP FOR A POTTY BREAK!
The hotels at night were another story. They weren't potty trained yet, so we had pee pads, a little wire pen to contain them, paper towels, wet wipes; you name it, we had the stuff to clean up after them! And they christened every floor around. Any rugs? We picked them up! We shortened up our planned stops near the end to just get home, although we spent two nights in San Quintin at Hotel Jardines (tile floors in Mexican hotels are wonderful!) We visited a very nice winery in the little town just north of San Quintin... and bought a nice supply of Baja wine for our wine cellar.
We were stopped about 15 miles north of Loreto by a long, long line of traffic due to a traffic accident, but noticed various people and cars leaving after having little discussions among each other. So, we got brave and pulled out to pass the stopped traffic. I asked a man "que pasa?" He said "you're 4x4, you could take the arroyo and bypass the accident." So, off we went! We took the first arroyo exit available (have no clue if it was the right one or not!?!) and bypassed everything.
It was a beautiful drive, and we had another vehicle following us. We stopped and talked, and let him know we didn't know what we were doing or where we were going! Hopefully, to Loreto! I was using Google Maps, and he had an app with a much more detailed map so we compared maps often.
We eventually got to a nice housing development north of Loreto.... and a locked gate! So, being polite, we asked around to see if someone had a key. No key, but a nice worker did give us a hack saw blade!! Instead of trying to saw through the lock, Ben and our new friend Brian dismantled the fence on the unlocked (hinge) end, and we drove through, then re-assembled the fence! Then continued on about 4 more miles to Loreto! Phew!
We cleaned house (thank you Dalia and Isabel), cleaned out our new fridge, had an AC guy in to clean our 2 air conditioners (which needed it badly!), picked up rugs that the pups might pee on (all of them, mostly!)and settled right in. The AC guy was great. He had a pressure washer to clean the unit, and an apron to go around it with a hose attached which went out the window! Very little water in the casa. He did such a great job on our bedroom unit, I told Ben to hire him for our upstairs unit, too, and he came and did that one a few days later.
I've been walking, and reached my miles goal for October, and am above goal for this point in the year. I recently started taking the dogs for a walk (one at a time, thank you very much). They are on leashes, and go every which way, and try their hardest to sample every cow pie or burro dropping that they see (and there are a lot). On the beach Gus will try for fish bones, crabs, lots of icky dead stuff! They do not like the water, so stay plenty far away from it. Gus has also learned where to stop for treats when we go through Vista del Mar! They learn so fast!!
We are entertaining (very low key!) our first visitors of the year. My sister Shelley has returned to visit with her husband David. They enjoyed horse-back rides this morning, and a pedicure and massage yesterday. We are taking them to La Paz to show them around there, and meet up with cousins Tom & Karan, who finally have arrived here in Baja California Sur after a week long hiatus in Palm Springs getting a new transmission in his 2018 4x4 truck! (They were the ones we were going to travel with, leaving Oregon Oct 1. Maybe next year!!)
We were able to watch all the World Series games, and even some of the University of Oregon games (Go DUCKS!) FYI, my teams are winning!! ;-) This is the only time of year I wish we had a TV and access to sports.
I've created a 2024 October album with more scenery and events. All the pretty pictures are there!
Good news! We get to see son Ryan for Thanksgiving for a week, and daughter Rebecca and her family for Christmas for a week! We are so happy to be able to have them here for that time. Just wish granddaughter Olivia could come, too.
Other than those times, our guest rooms are available. Please consider coming down to see us. We'd love to have you. And you could walk the dogs with me!!
BTW, we had one batch of Trick or Treaters, and I didn't get a picture, and now it's time to go to dinner! Chinese tonight! Yum!
Hasta la proxima vez!
Tus amigos en Baja,
Harriet, Ben, Gus and Pancho
PS. Pancho is the nickname for Fransisco (Frankie), so that's what we've been calling him, just in case you're confused. Of course, his dog tag and embedded chip say "Frankie", but oh well!
Pitahaya cactus bloom