Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Where are Kevin and Ruth now? Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Where are Kevin and Ruth going next? Kuwait City, Kuwait on March 31st.

Friday, January 1, 2016

The last few days...

First off, let  me clarify yesterday's post.

Yes, we will be picking up Helen and Tony at LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) but that doesn't mean that Sherman will be going into the city, or that we will be spending much time in LA itself.

In fact, we're likely going to rent a car and actually pay for Sherman to stay at one of those RV "resorts". Something around Palm Springs maybe!

I know, that's not usually our style, but we want Helen and Tony to enjoy themselves and relax for the first few days of their trip. We'll take them boondocking during the second week! And, if they want to spend some time in the city, then we're okay with that too. But we won't be going in with Sherman.

It will be handy having a rental car for that time period to do lots of day trips. There is sooo much to see and do in that area.

We've been doing a lot of relaxing the last couple of days! Our friends Paco and Oti went back home for a couple of days, but they're supposed to return here this afternoon. We had them over for dinner before they left!

Dinner party in Sherman...Paco, Oti, Ruth, and Kevin

Interesting discussion regarding prices at both here and the other marina down the road. They pay approximately 2,000 pesos ($166 CAD) per month for their RV sites. Yes, with electric, and some sites have sewer. Now, admittedly, those are long term rates and they pay that price whether they use their trailer or not. Or, they could actually live in their trailer and pay the same price. 

Just wanted to show you what prices are like when there is no gringo influence.

I'll be doing a blog post shortly that details the prices of the rental accomodation here at Chago's marina. 

Yesterday morning, we had a knock at the door and it was young Jamie, asking if we wanted to take a kayak out. The lake was calm as could be, and Chago was already out in one kayak with his daughter Fatima, and he wanted us to join him.

Out on the lake!

Chago, and daughter Fatima (3).

Guess who?

There are some expensive homes on the lakeshore.

Another big place.

Lago Avandaro.

There are also some not so expensive homes.

There is a disparity in some of the properties on the lake. Some of them have been in families for a long time, and are owned by the locals. These are people who grew up in the area, and perhaps the land has been in the family for generations. 

The more expensive homes have typically been built by weathly Mexicans, usually from Mexico City or Toluca, to be used as weekend retreats. 

We had a quiet New Years Eve with just the two of us. Ruth made pizza for dinner, and then we relaxed and tried watching a movie, but by 10:30pm I was falling asleep and so it was off to bed. Couldn't make it to midnight!

Mmmm...pizza!

But at midnight, we were woken up by the explosions. Mexican's love their fireworks, and especially the ones that simply make loud noises. Sounded like they were going off all around us, and they actually were.

I got up to look out the front window, and there were some beautiful ones going off across the lake. I grabbed the camera, but this was the best I could do through the front window...

Happy New Year!

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And today at Amazon.com - USA...


Same thing at Amazon.ca in Canada...




39 comments:

  1. We stayed at a nice place in Desert Hot Springs a few years ago called Caliente Springs. It was Passport America and you could use the discount for 7 days. You'd have to check their policy now as it was a while ago. Happy New Year to the two of you.

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    1. We are not Passprot America members but if the prices are right then it may be worth it to get the membership. We will definitely look into it, thanks Eveyln.

      Happy New Year to you and Kevin.

      Delete
  2. Happy new year Kevin and Ruth. Looking forward to another year of your adventures.

    Cheers, Peter and Shelagh.

    peterandshelagh.blogspot.com

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    1. Thank you Peter, we are looking forward to them as well.

      Happy New Year to both you and Shelagh.

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  3. Happy New Year, another great year for adventure.

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  4. There are casinos in the area where I believe you can boondock.

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    1. Thanks Geoff we will look at that but I think at least for the first few days we will treat them to an actual RV Park after that perhaps some US Forestry boondocking.

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  5. Happy New Year to you. Looking forward your your 2016 adventures.

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    1. Thank you Contessa, we are looking forward to some more adventures too!

      Happy New Year to you and Colin.

      Delete
  6. Never thought we'd hear about you spending any time in LA! That said, after spending a fair amount of time in CA, be sure you srltock up on groceries and gas before entering the state. Everything is outrageous. Don't know how folks live there. As an example, shopping at a Safeway in AZ then one in CA.....CA Safeway is 25% higher across the board, item for item. Cheapest gas we experienced (as of a week ago) was $2.69.
    Finding ANYTHING cheap is a challenge. I agree with another poster on the car rental. Won't be cheap anywhere but at least stay away from an LAX rental. And given the territory/drivers I'd strongly recommend the daily collision waiver. Could save you a ton of grief in the case of an unfortunate incident.
    In any event, best wishes for a great trip. Safe travels!

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    1. Car rental will be no problem. I've already seen deals under $22 a day. I have almost three months to look for a deal, and I guarantee that I will get one! Don't need the collision waiver...have insurance through our credit card.

      Yes, It will be more expensive than what we're used to....but we will do fine. :-)

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  7. Have a Safe, Happy and Healthy New Year!

    It's about time.

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  8. Happy 2016. Already sounds like a great year full I f advrntures.

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    1. Thanks Jim and Sandie, yep 2016 is definitely shaping up to be another great year.

      Happy New Year to you both.

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  9. Great idea - Palm Springs CA area! Last year, I went with our daughter who took her high school team to the National Field Hockey Tournament in Indio CA. Palm Springs was our base. We enjoyed our evenings walking, eating at all the different restaurants, the shops, just the not so hustle bustle atmosphere. Each day, after the games were over, we put miles on our car rental exploring the area. So much to see and do - loved everything about it! Happy 2016!!!!!

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    1. Thanks Connie, it sounds like it might be a good spot for us. We have lots of time to organize things and check out pricing because we want to get the best deal possible. Looking forward to exploring this area.

      Happy New Year to both you and Barry!

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  10. The weather should be nice and warm by the time you're in Palm Springs.

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    1. I am sure Helen and Tony will be looking forward to some sunny skies and warm temperatures, considering that they will be arriving from England. ;-)

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  11. Here's hoping you have a Happy New Year.

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    1. Thank you Ray and Cindy, and we are hoping the same for you both.

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  12. That water does look very inviting. Happy New Year to you both.

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    1. The water is lovely to look at and to kayak or boat on but not warm enough for us to want to go swimming.

      Happy New Year, Paul and Marsha!

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  13. Sounds like a good plan for your LA visit. I'm at the point now where I can't take it with me so I might as well spend it having a good time and showing others a good time.

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    1. We may splurge by staying in an RV park and renting a car but I don't expect we will change our habits much more than that. We will still be wanting to do things frugally. ;-)

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  14. Happy New Year K and R. We were on our way home fro Puerto Plata thru TO to Calgary. At the stroke of Midnight we were somewhere over Sask so we were in the air on 31 Dec and 1 Jan 2016. I need to catch up on my Blog.

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    1. Hope you had a good flight back from Puerto Plata, looks like you had a good time there and really enjoyed the pool and the ocean.

      Happy New Year to you both.

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  15. Loads of best wishes and happy traveling coming your way in 2016....cheers

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    1. Thank you Leslie and we are wishing you a great 2016 as well.

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  16. We used the Dart and also rented a car when in LA... worked for us.... I know you two will do whatever works for you. Sounds like another adventure... a bit of a different kind ;-)

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    1. We are also looking at the public transportation system as well for getting around in the city. It may work out cheaper driving the rental in the city but it may not be as quick plus you have to look at parking as well, so even though the DART may work out to be more for the four of us, it may be the better option at least in the city itself.

      The car will come in handy for excursions outside of the city. Definitely a different adventure and we are up for the challenge. :-)

      Delete
  17. I have enjoyed checking out your blog and I think we may have to name our RV. I love how you refer to it. Enjoy having the car for a while and getting to places you might otherwise not.

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    1. It sounds much nicer giving him a name rather than always referring him as the motorhome or the RV. Many people have names for their units.

      We are looking forward to this luxury, as it isn't often that we have an additional vehicle to get us around. We normally just rely on the public transportation system, our feet or our bikes. Yes, this will let us get to many different places that we may not have been able to access with just Sherman.

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  18. Happy New Year Kevin and Ruth, hope you have many more adventures in the new year. And we get to follow along with you!
    KLO

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    1. Thank you so much. So far 2016 looks like it is shaping up nicely with many more adventures ahead and we are looking forward to them.

      Happy New Year to you, KLO.

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  19. We are currently at the Happy Traveler RV Park in Palm Springs. Very reasonable $, walking distance to both hiking trails and downtown Palm Springs, and a very, very friendly RV park, currently full of Canadian snowbirds. :-)
    We live very close to LA, in next door Orange County. Would love to host you both for a few days if that wo I led be of any assistance. Kevin may remember us from my spouse's now-ended blog, My Early Retirement Journey (Tamara and Mike).

    PS. LA is not as bad as is being projected. It has changed a lot in the last 10 years. :-)


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    1. Thanks! That would be great Mike...we would love to meet you and Tamara and take you up on your offer! Yes, I certainly remember the blog.

      Maybe you could send us an email to [email protected] just so we can get a little more info about location etcetera and make sure the timing will work for you.

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    2. Will do. Watch for an email from us later today.

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