New Foods to Try!

I didn't know that Minneapolis had such a great Mexican community! I just tried two new things last night. Horchata drink, instead of my usual Jamaica (pronounced Hah-my-kah for my non-spanish- speaking friends), is SOOOOO tasty! And probably loaded with calories...it is raw rice blended with coconut milk and cinnamon--wowee!! this looks like a pretty good recipe...
http://unasmanitasgringas.wordpress.com/tag/rick-bayless/
and here is a link for numerous aguas frescas recipes
http://www.thekitchn.com/farmers-market-inspiration-agu-92569

I also tried sopes al pastor--the little fried corn cakes with yummy toppings...
****Spanish lesson for today--if you order so-pah you will get soup instead!!
Sopes is pronounced so-pays! Tip to remember, since I am barely beginning to learn spanish... :)
oh no, maybe I have it backwards, I will have to check...

Two of the MANY great things about Puerto!

Second largest barrier reef in the world, folks! Scuba and snorkeling paradise!
Here is a chart of fish commonly seen in this area--thanks to Yucatan Living for this..http://www.cozumeldivemap.com/fishchart.html

And, such great ocean fishing!

Also see "Matt's King Mackerel" post...

Critters!

Ok, so I pride myself on being an outdoorsy sort of girl, but there are a few things that take me back a bit--hahha, you are thinking "spiders" or "snakes"! Nope! Mosquitos and geckos :)

This is one of my defenses against the dark lords of the insect world! I am on a one woman mission to rid Puerto of their mosquito population.            Wanna join me?

So then, because geckos search out and destroy the little flying varmint mosquitos, one would think geckos would be my favorite friends!! NOOOOOO, I am so SCARED of them (but of course, Matt says they are MUCH more afraid of me! Highly unlikely and impossible. I am petrified.)  Don't ask me why, I know it is an irrational fear...the best thing was, I didn't see a single reptile indoors in the whole two weeks of our last trip! Maybe because the house is full of mosquito-killing chemicals? hmmmmmm....

Meanwhile, we have a resident iguana that we are a little bit fond of...

and we have our next door neighbor furry friends...

I call them el tigre and negra-but my Spanish isn't good...

Sorry I don't have a pic of a gecko--I am tooo busy being scared to snap a photo! I didn't catch a snapshot of the tejone that sauntered through our front yard, either :(

On a good note--there is nothing like the bird songs in the morning in Puerto...it is a symphony to greet you each new day! Love it!

Update---found a picture of a gecko on our screen door!

The Wondrous World of Celestun!

I am justing bursting at the seams to show and tell about Celestun! The main trouble is that I have SOOO much I can't sort through it all! So here is just ONE picture to tantalize you all :) Check back, I promise to get on this....

It is a magical place, I am tellin' you...

Bougainvillea!

Breaking News! Jose', with the help of two of his children, just planted two bougainvillea plants outside our little casa! I am SOOOO excited to watch them grow! I have loved them for YEARS, but could never have any of my own, due to the climate I have been living in!! Hurrah for Jose',  and muchas gracias!!

Soon, I hope to have some beauty such as this outside our home!

Ken outside their beautiful little resort in Celestun--Celeste Vida! Check out that bougainvillea!

Puerto Morelos Blog: My take on the "Violence in Mexico" Topic

This posting is really worth reposting to every blog about Mexico! Thanks, Amber!

Puerto Morelos Blog: My take on the "Violence in Mexico" Topic: Well, I've finally decided to tackle the topic.  Generally I avoid it, for several reasons: I tend to believe that peoples' minds are...

Playa Del Carmen Restaurant Reviews

Last July we stumbled on Aca Los Tacos in Playa at the corner of 5th Avenue and Constituyentes. We had teeny weeny tacos for a great price, with assorted salsas to try--love tacos al pastor anytime, anyplace :) When some friends and I went looking for lunch this Febraury I couldn't find the restaurant! BIG frowny face! Now that I have returned I found this info on tripadvisor--
Aca Los Tacos closed their doors at the Constituyentes and Daniel and Michela moved to a new location at Ave 30th between 2 & 4th Street in Playa del Carmen. Their new location named TACOS DANI serves still the best Tacos etc. in Town
Next time I will be there!!!!


By the time I discovered the restaurant was gone...the three of us were starving beyond belief. So we found this little gem of a place--Skinny Bikini Potatoes--

It was pretty yummy and we were pretty hungry--good combo. It was so warm in the kitchen, we invited the nice worker outside to take a quick shot to put on facebook!!  SO glad that food adventure worked out well--and potatoes in Mexico are GOOD! Try the french fries anywhere (I tried McDonald's) and the carrots and avocados and tomatoes and onions--all taste great!! Why? Not sure, but I am gonna find out!!

Puerto Morelos Blog: Puerto Morelos Bike Path Fun Facts

Puerto Morelos Blog: Puerto Morelos Bike Path Fun Facts

Walmart or Chedraui?

So, being from the US, we are well acquainted with Wal-mart and their prices. As I have written in previous posts, we have gotten several large purchases and MANY other small things (including food) from there. But I was wanting to explore the large Mexican chain stores, since we are in Mexico (duh!)
Here is what I have found so far:
Cancun has at least three Walmarts and Playa has two.
For the Mexican chains-Mega, Soriana, Chedraui-I found an excellent resource in the Cancun area--bookmark this one!
http://www.bookcancunonline.com/supermarkets
In Playa, I know there is a Mega by the Walmart and a Soriana down highway 307--here is a link to an excellent map I have used multiple times!
http://www.mexicovacationvillas.com/map%20to%20Wal-Mart%20and%20Sams%20Club%20in%20Playa%20del%20Carmen%20Mexico.htm
Chedraui--two in Playa and one in Cozumel; at least six in the Cancun area...

We found a nice little Chedraui in Valladolid-about an hour out from Cancun, on our way to Merida...
got a membership card, which is FREE (can't get a better deal than that!)

Found a mop and a broom for 10 pesos, a vinyl/flannel storage top for the washing machine, and some Voltaren (by prescription in the US for about $75) for 160 pesos.  The exchange rate in high season is usually not as good, but this time it was 12.5%, so a pretty good deal!

i was still looking for a rectangular plastic tub to put in the sink so I could soak fruits and veggies in a disinfecting soak, but they only had ROUND ones too! Wasn't there a rectangular plastic tub in the whole country??? Stay tuned for the answer!
Summing it up---Chedraui is my new favorite store--the one at the Americas Mall in downtown Cancun is ENORMOUS...has fresh prep areas--bakery, coffee, tacos, pizza, plus furniture, electronics, fabric, groceries of course, clothing, home goods, pharmacy, and vision--YAY! Matt got his glasses fixed that he shut in the door of the rental car :)
Yes, Chedaui is my favorite...now, if I could only pronounce it...

Purchasing Large Items Gorski Style

so we knew that we needed a washing machine if we were to stay in our home for any length of time...

the lonely laundry room!

our laundry room had a sink, outdoor shower and water heater, but no WASHING MACHINE! We checked Sears here in the states for shipping to Mexico (no WAY!) and then online for the one in Cancun; checked Telebodega in Cancun...and finally gave in and went to Walmart in Playa--the one downtown was out of stock but the one out by the Playas Las Americas Mall is less known to tourists and has more of a selection in our opinion.  They offered a 13.5% exchange rate and will allow a large portion of the purchase to be made in US dollars. After negotiating amounts, the final cost for our nice little washing machine came out to about $266 US. FANTASTIC!  We asked an SUV taxista named Pascal in Puerto Morelos to take us down, and he helped get us all checked out and on the way!

Our new Whirlpool!

Whirlpool in its new home!

That was our November trip! It worked out so well that we asked Pascal to take us to Playa Walmart again, and get a new Queen size mattress. JUST TIED IT ON THE TOP OF THE TAXI!!! hahahaha check out the picture! Pascal is the best!!
Our present bed was a matrimonial (double), and we wanted our new one to be a bit bigger.  Just a tip: queen size in Mexico is a bit smaller width and length wise, so if you bring down sheets from the US they will be a bit large...

We also realized that goose-down feather pillows don't weather well in the climate, so we found great products for beds at the Liverpool store in the large downtown Cancun Mall Plaza Las Americas-and they were 20% OFF!!! Score!

We found a wonderful mattress pad there, and some perfect pillow covers that are impermeable-terry fabric on the outside, vinyl on inside--we are hoping they help a lot in preserving our pillows. When we leave we always put them in space saver plastic as well.

P.S. We have also heard that if you purchase large items at Costco there will be guys with pick-up trucks out by the loading dock that will take items to your home for a fee...

next: Walmart or Chedraui?

The Polish Connection-the Gorski Name!

I have been meaning to tell you why the title of the blog is the "Polish/Mexican Connection"! Matt's whole family is Polish, and they came over to America just three generations ago...so, to honor that heritage, I included it in the title. Mystery solved.

great polish food in Minneapolis--

http://www.kramarczuk.com/

http://www.ziachpolamer.com/

Dreaming of the Sun and Surf!!

SO I thought I would put my mind to the problem solving of the front entry gate. It is the outer iron door, and we don't always want passersby to see right in (especially when we aren't home). So it needs to have something opaque, like a second gate piece, that can swing onto it...

Inner gate is FANTASTIC! Just a little black anti-rust paint and it is perfect. It is that outer door...

Major "ugh!" factor! That inside part is warped and peeling-off plywood...as are the garage doors...
I WILL be painting the brownish iron gates black like the inner gate (well, actually, to be honest...MATT will probably be painting the doors...right, dear?) And just wait til you see what our neighbor Angel's uncle is doing to the whole entryway area ABOVE the doors!

Help, help, help, I need ideas!! Comments, please!!  New varnished wood, some type of opaque vinyl that can swing onto the iron...???
(Major construction going on at Angel's house next door, BTW.)

Tough problem, but beats thinking about the snow :)

Architecture of Merida

I just am dying to post my photo feature of the architecture of Merida. Can't wait a second longer! Soooo...indulge me while I diverge from our little casa story to do a bit of travelogue. Matt and I drove the span of the Yucatan this February, and I will give lots of details soon. But first, Merida's story!
Population: 970,377 (2010)
History: Mérida was founded in 1542 (Henry the eighth was still king of England then, folks!) by Francisco de Montejo "el Mozo" (son). It was built on the site of the Maya city of T'ho which had been a center of Mayan culture and activity for centuries. Because of this, many historians consider Mérida the oldest continually occupied city in the Americas. For a brief period, around the turn of the 20th century, Mérida was said to house more millionaires than any other city in the world. (Wikipedia)
PLEASE ENJOY THE PHOTOS!

 

CASA MEXILIO

Amazing, Right?

first of many restaurant reviews

We found a great little place in the Colonia, on Timon Avenue across the street from the new OXXO...called Tamaleos :)
Check them out on facebook...https://www.facebook.com/tamaleosoficial
You can also see a copy of their menu in English on this website...http://www.vivapuertomorelos.com/tamaleosinenglish.html

Yummy tamales, uh-huh! I took a couple of pics of course...their interior is fun, with pictures of Einstein on the wall next to Elvis and Che...

I asked if I could put them on facebook!

We will be back again for more tamales and mixiotes :)

Matt's king mackerel :)

Matt has been fishing off the shores of Puerto Morelos for twenty years. Still isn't disappointing him! He knows many of the fishermen and has brought equipment down to them through the years for the use of locals and tourists alike :)

Jose' and Martin are captain and first mate on Gustavo's boat

Mike and Jason enjoying the catch-cooked fresh at La Petita