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/