There has been a lot going on in our lives since I last wrote a blog post. Buyers put a contract on our house just a few weeks after it was put on the market. That was great news! But then the real work started. We needed to figure out what to keep and what to sell, and all without a plan for where we were going to live. That’s hard!
Ultimately we decided to move over to our other house in Mazatlán, a tiny one plus bedroom. We will make it comfortable and that way we can have a home base while we locate a new place in México City. That decision helped us since trying to pack and ship household goods when you don’t yet have a new address or a closing date would be almost impossible.
Eventually we started sorting through everything and made several huge donations of household goods to charity. We held a moving sale. That was hilarious – I think there were something like 50 people who surged through the door when we opened them at 9 am. Most everything sold the first day and the remainder the following day.
The new owners bought some of our furniture so it’s been possible to manage as we wait for closing. We walk the dogs to get them used to their new life without a grassy back yard. They are doing great as long as we don’t encounter one of those crazy off leash chihuahuas like we did yesterday!
The city is really working hard to get all the beautification completed in time for the Tianguis Turisticos (April 15 to 18) but I would guess there will still be lots pending. There is a huge change-out of palm trees on the malecón, the remodeling of the lighthouse (El Faro) path and the addition of a zip line and glass bottom viewing platform. The malecón itself is still far from complete. Some of the streets in Centro are still incomplete. I’m sure I am forgetting some projects, too. But no matter how far they get I know that Mazatlán will look much better than it had.
The city has also planned to move the city busses off Benito Juarez in mid-April and put them on Teniente Azueta, saying that the only busses on Benito Juárez will be tourism busses. That sounds great to me as the mercado is always surrounded by every bus in town. I believe Serdan will remain the Southbound bus route. Some of the new cobblestone streets are being damaged already by overuse.
Right now it is the beginning of Semana Santa, or Holy Week. As most of México likes to come to the beach for Semana Santa, it will be crazy busy in town. So much so that we don’t even try to take the car anywhere and many shops and offices are closed. We will just buy anything we need right here in Centro and enjoy a few glimpses of the chaos. I always have to go to Playa Norte on Friday or Saturday just to take pictures of the beach totally packed with people and sun umbrellas.
After Semana Santa comes Semana de la Moto. That is always fun, and most years there is a Moto Parade to enjoy.
We don’t know exactly when we’ll head out of town, but it will be sometime before it starts to get hot. I promise to keep you up to date with how things are going now that I am not so busy packing and planning.
Jan
March 27, 2018You guys have really made your life interesting. Once we leave Maz you will be missed by everybody
Nancy
March 28, 2018We hope to come back in the Winter for some time each year!
Larry Clifton
March 28, 2018Glad to hear things are going well and glad you posted on your blog. I’ve been following your adventure since you left Washington those many years ago but I haven’t switched over to FB. Maybe I need to do that….’address’? Good luck as the move continues. I’ll be interested to see where you end up in the ‘big city’!
Larry-Sumner, WA
Nancy
March 28, 2018Thanks so much for writing, (and reading!) Larry. I will be blogging more now that we are through the worst of the move! Here is the Facebook link if you choose to checkk it out: https://www.facebook.com/CountdownToMexico/
Kim G
March 28, 2018Hola Nancy!
Wow! It sounds like you all have your time completely stuffed with activities. You’ve now been in Maz for, what? Ten years? It’s amazing how one just accumulates stuff, isn’t it? I’ve still got stuff in my attic in Boston that I haven’t unpacked since I moved from San Francisco in 1995. When I finally get back to Boston, I’m going to pitch it all out, or give it to charity. I’ve now lived nearly 2 years with hardly any of my stuff, and I seem to be more or less just fine.
So where will you be looking in CDMX? Roma/Condesa/Cuauhtémoc? Or farther afield? The former areas really appeal to me, but the earthquake hazard gives me pause. My fantasy penthouse was damaged according to the CDMX website that lists damaged buildings. It was minor, but I don’t know to what degree the damage was. Meanwhile there are many nice, but distant, neighborhoods in the south of CDMX like Coyoacán, San Ángel, San Francisco, among others. Of course they aren’t immune to earthquakes, but the soil is stronger.
By the way, I have a seismic map of CDMX. Email me if you’d like me to send it to you. It could help with house hunting.
I’m looking forward to your next adventures, and hopefully some day we’ll be able to meet up in CDMX.
Saludos,
Kim G
Redding, CA
Where we’ve barely made a dent in getting rid of my mother’s excess stuff.
Nancy
March 31, 2018Hi Kim,
We’ll be living hopefully in Roma Norte although we are open to some other areas. I would love your seismic map, I saw one ages ago and I just can’t find it again. I hear you with so many things you haven’t missed, it is unreal how we accumulate stuff. I am really enjoying being in this tiny place, I just have to turn around to put my hand on whatever I need! I’m sure we’ll meet soon, I am counting on it! xoxo
Steven Cotton
March 28, 2018I have no doubt everything will go well for you. You are one of the most organized people I know.
Nancy
March 31, 2018Hi Steve, Yes, I am very organized but it comes at a cost! I don’t think I slept well throughout the whole process. Thankfully now I am having multiple naps a day and starting to feel like my old self again.