I wonder where we'll end up tonight?

Sure enough, we decided to stay put, relax, and just enjoy the view from where we are parked. We're in no rush to get anywhere, so when we have a nice beautiful spot like this we might as well enjoy it. But, we are heading out this morning...don't want to overstay our welcome.

We did go for a walk for an hour yesterday though. Beautiful area.

Another great overnight spot...

We got off to a bit of a late start yesterday and it was almost 10:30am by the time we left our spot at the marina near Valle deBravo. Not a problem, because although we didn't know exactly where we would be overnighting, we knew we weren't going far. The goal is always to plan to be parked up by 2:00pm. That way, if you have problems you have lots of daylight hours left to fix them.

And so we began the steep climb out of the valley. The road out goes from 1,750 meters (5,750 ft) to 2,600 meters (8,500 ft) in about 50 kms (30 miles).

Time to move on...

We've enjoyed the past three weeks here at Valle de Bravo. It's one of our favorite places in Mexico. But, Mexico is a big country and we like  to explore and see what else is out there! So today, it's time to move on.

No idea where we're going to end up tonight. We're heading towards the city of Queretaro, which is only about 250 kms (155 miles) away, but we're taking the back roads and we don't know what we're going to come across.

A big giveaway to start off 2016!

We've hosted quite a few giveaways over the years, and it's always fun for us to see one of our readers win something. Last year Motorcycle House, one of the largest online motorcycle supply companies helped us give away a beautiful leather jacket.

This year, we're starting things off even better!

It's always an adventure...

We decided to do another day trip yesterday. Can't just spend our time lounging around when there's so much to see and do in this area! Our friend Paco had told us about a waterfall near the town of Ixtapan del Oro, about 44 kms (28 miles) from where we are staying.

One of the things we love about Mexico is that you don't need a car. It's relatively easy in most places to get where you want to go using collectivos and buses.

For rent near Valle de Bravo

This is our fourth time staying here at "Nautica Las Olas de Valle"...a marina on the opposite side of Lake Avandaro from Valle de Bravo. It's located in between the communities of San Gaspar and El Arco.

From the time we first arrived in December of 2010, we were welcomed by the owner Santiagao (nickname "Chago") and his family. Later, we also met some of the other regular visitors who have now also become friends.

The marina is a family business, and Santiago has slowly expanded the boating base of operations to include camping and rental accomodation.

RV'ing in Mexico. An informational forum...

There have been a couple of online forums that I've followed over the years regarding RV'ing in Mexico. But one of them only had a few regular posters, and the conversation regularly digressed to items regarding the perception of "safety" in Mexico. I got tired of it, and found what I thought was a better forum. And it was, for a while, but now it has gone way downhill in my mind, to the point where it's not helpful.

Someone said "if you're not happy, why don't you start you own forum?"

So I have.

Back to work!

Well, for most people in Canada and the U.S., today marks the return to work and school as the Christmas and New Year's season comes to a close.

Here in Mexico though, holidays continue through to January 6 which is Three Kings Day (Dia de los Reyes). So things don't return to normal here until Thursday this week when the kids return to school.

And we've decided that will be the day we move on.

What's the strangest thing *you* saw yesterday?

We took a little day trip to Avandaro yesterday. There is a park near there and the Velo de Novia (Bride's Veil) waterfall. We had done this trip 4 years ago, but it was at the end of February and there wasn't as much water as there is now, so we wanted to see it again.

Plus, being a Saturday in the middle of the holidays, there would be a lot more people and sometimes that makes for a better atmosphere in itself.

December Expenses and 2015 year end financial review

Considering that we explored Colombia for the first two weeks of the month, and we had some travel related costs to get back to Mexico and the motorhome, it was a fairly reasonable month in the expense department.

December came out to a total of $1,567 CAD. For those of you who think in USD terms, simply subtract about 25%.

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!

California, here we come!

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that Ruth's cousin Helen and her husband Tony from England had been scheduled to come visit us here in Mexico, but Helen broke her leg and they had to cancel. Well, the leg is on the mend and they've rescheduled their trip.

Now, we're meeting them in Los Angeles, California!

Thanks for a great 2015!

2015 was a great year for Travel with Kevin and Ruth. Both for the blog itself, and for the people who write it!

And we couldn't have done it without your support. So this blog post is to say thanks!

Brrrr.

Well, winter has finally arrived across much of North America. Our daughter Lindsey back in Ottawa, Canada sent a note with a picture of their snow covered back yard, saying that her husband Justin has the day off and roads are terrible and there has not yet been any sign of a plow.

Meanwhile, temperatures in snowbird-friendly Arizona have been well below normal.

Colombia, on $39 USD per day

We recently spent just over six weeks (47 days including travel days from Mexico) touring Colombia. I wanted to detail our expenses over that period of time so that others can judge if they can afford to do the same type of trip.

Including our airfare from Mexico City to Medellin, Colombia, we spent a total of $3,062 CAD ($2,250 USD) for the two of us. That figure includes all food, travel, accommodation, booze, and entertainment.

A birthday party in Mexico

Sunday is market day in Valle de Bravo, and we went into town with our friends Paco and Oti who drove us in their car. It was getting close to lunch time and so we went to one of the many food food stalls and they asked if we wanted a bowl of menudo...a popular Sunday soup dish in many parts of Mexico.

But the main ingredient in menudo is beef stomach! Not our favorite part of the cow!

I wish we knew about this before...

We decided we had better get out and get some exercise, and we had been told of a nice hike in the hills behind where we are parked up, so around 10:30am we set off to try and find the trail.

And we found it! I think this is the fifth time we've been to Valle de Bravo and we never knew this trail existed. It's actually an old road that has obviously not been used as a road for many years.

Smile for the camera!

We had a good Christmas Day. We even got to watch our grandchildren open the gifts that we gave them! Through the miracles of modern technology, we were able to sit in our motorhome in Mexico while connected to our daughter Lindsey who was visiting the rest of the family back in Ottawa, Canada.

Not quite the same as being there, but certainly the next best thing!

Feliz Navidad!

Merry Christmas to all of our friends, relatives, and loyal blog readers! We hope that you are exactly where you wanted to be today.

We are very happy where we are, with perfect weather and good friends. We are only missing our family this Christmas. Sure would be fun to spend Christmas with the grandkids, they're at the perfect age. Perhaps another year.

Our first Mexican posada

As with past days here, yesterday morning wasted away without a problem. Then, we received an invite from Luis and Lorena to come over to their RV at another marina as they were having friends over for food that afternoon, and did we want to join them? Yes please!

So Ruth made a big salad to take for everybody and Luis said he would pick us up around 2:00pm.

We got a fun surprise we got when he arrived!

A good bottle of scotch!

Yesterday afternoon, we took the collectivo back in to town. Ruth wanted to get her hair cut (for the first time in 13 months!) and we wanted to pick up some booze that had been on sale at 20% off. I say had been on sale, because when we got to the store it turns out that the sale ended the day before!

But, that doesn't mean there weren't some deals to be had...

Our top 10 campsites of 2015!

As you can see, we've got a few top 10 lists on the go. We're also counting down our header photo over the next few days with our top 10 header photos of 2015.

Our regular readers already know that we're not "RV park" type of campers. We don't like to have neighbours too close by and we like to have a nice view out of our windows. That's just what's important to us. That usually entails some form of boondocking, and we sure did our fair share of that this year!

So...in chronological order...(if you click the date, it will bring you to the blog post from that day)...

New friends. Some with two legs, and one with four!

It's pretty easy to pass the mornings here simply doing nothing. Not nothing really...but just puttering around. Internet time, washing a few pieces of laundry, cleaning Sherman. Just hanging around the motorhome. Seems like the morning just disappears.

So we try and make an effort to do something in the afternoons. Yesterday, we went and visited some neighbors!

The very best place to buy your fruits and veggies!

Just about every town in Mexico does a weekly tiaguis market. There is no English translation for the word "tianguis", since this is essentially a Mexican and Central American event. The tianguis market can take place on any day of the week, but it usually takes place on the same day of every week in each particular town. Here in Valle de Bravo, the market takes place on Sunday of each week.

We have found that the weekly tiaguis market is the very best place to go and buy your fruits and veggies in Mexico.

Plus, it's fun to go to the tianguis market!

Plans change, but we adapt and move on...

We had been looking forward to a visit from Ruth's cousin Helen and her husband Tony. They were scheduled to arrive here in mid January and stay with us in the motorhome for two and a half weeks. They live in England, and have never been to Mexico and we were really looking forward to showing them the real Mexico...the one outside of the tourist havens and all inclusive resorts.

But last week, Helen broke her leg.

Well that was fun day!

Around 9:30am yesterday morning, we were sitting at our laptops when we noticed some activity going on out front. A truck had arrived and they were unloading some tables and chairs. We knew right away what this meant. There was going to be some kind of fiesta!

Our friend Chago (who owns this marina) often rents out the green space overlooking the waterfront to various groups. Sometimes wedding parties, or family reunions. Whatever. So we wondered what it would be this time! It's usually a good party, and we have often been invited just because we happen to be here.

A great way to do laundry!

Normally when we're in Mexico we get our laundry done at a "lavanderia". It's usually relatively inexpensive. You simply drop off your clothes, they weigh them, and the price is based on what your dirty laundry weighs. If I remember correctly, prices are usually between 10 and 13 pesos per kg, and your clothes are washed, dried, and folded and you pick them up fresh and clean later that day or the next morning. Normally, our total cost is between $5 and $10 CAD depending on how much stuff we have.

It's a great way to do the laundry! However, where we are parked up just now there is no lavanderia within walking distance.

Now...that's better!

We arrived here on Tuesday afternoon, and since then we haven't had very good internet. We've been using our BearExtender long distance antenna and it was picking up a very weak unsecured signal. And of course only one of us could be online at a time...and even then, the internet would come and go.

Very frustrating, so that was the first problem we had to fix!

A 20 hour transportation marathon...part 2

This is the second post of today...if you missed the first one you can read it here...

http://www.travelwithkevinandruth.com/2015/12/a-20-hour-transportation-marathonpart-1.html

When we left off there, we had just got on the airplane and taken off from Medellin, Colombia. It was a four and three quarter hour flight that left at 1:00am in the morning. And then the first thing they do is serve you some food and put on a movie! Pretty sure that all everybody wanted to do was to sleep!

A 20 hour transportation marathon...part 1

We are happily back with Sherman (our motorhome) in Valle de Bravo, Mexico, after a 20 hour transportation marathon from Medellin, Colombia.

We left our couchsurfing host Andrea's house at 4:00pm on Monday. The Medellin international airport is located about about 50 kms (30 miles) outside of central Medellin, and we were leaving during rush hour traffic. We could have waited until the traffic subsided, but the area where you have to get the bus from is a bit sketchy and we didn't want to do it after dark.

What a fun public transportation system!

Note to city planners:

Want people to use the public transportation system? Then make it so that it's cheap, easy, and efficient. Then, add an element of fun, and everybody will use it!

Yesterday, Ruth and I used the public transportation system here in Medellin, Colombia to go from the Robledo neighborhood situated high on an eastern hill to the Parque Arvi (Arvi Park) situated high on a western hill on the opposite side of the valley that contains the city itself.

They were right.

Medellin, Colombia is one of the top 10 places in the world to view Christmas lights!

So, yesterday we had a busy day! The Medellin Botanical Garden in the afternoon, and the Christmas lights displays in the evening. And, a ton of walking.

I didn't measure out how much walking we did, other than knowing the distance from the house we're staying at to the Botanical Gardens...which was 6.0 kms (3.8 miles). Ruth and I decided to walk that route and we met our couchsurfing host Andrea at the gardens because she had some work to do prior to that at the University near there.