Friday, November 27, 2009

Los Algodones Mexico








What a wonderful day. I learned who has the best gold prices, the best silver prices, the best dentists, the best optomotrists, who has the best prices on trinkets of all kinds, the best prices on pottery and who offered the best food. Moments after we crossed the border into Mexico, we were inudated with offers for dentistry, glasses and souveniers. We did learn that you don't pay the asking price but bargain with the sellers. We did purchase a few things, but not until we had pretty much toured the 4 block area, including alleys and back streets. We pretty much just smiled and said "no thank you" and tried not to be rude NorteAmericanos.
We had a wonderful lunch at Papalos and listened to a one man Mariachi band. Actually, he was pretty darn good. I tried to get a video, but it didn't come out too well, so it got trashcanned.
If there is one dentist in Los Alodones, there are 200. And the same for pharmacias and eye doctors. The lines in the pharmacies were long with a lot of Canadians and Americans with their bottles of prescription medicines to be refilled at bargain prices. We visited with one couple that had their eyes examined ($10) and went back in 2 hours and picked up their glasses for less than $100 each and that included designer frames.
When it was time to return to the US, we joined the long line and slowly snaked along until we got to the US Border. Our wait wasn't too bad, only 45 minutes. But during the height of the snowbird season, we were told the lines could be up to 3 hours before you get back to the states.
All in all, it was a fun day and we will go back the next time we are in the area.


Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving In Yuma


We arrived in Yuma, Az on Tuesday with a new GPS unit guiding us along the way. Cheryl went to KMart in Lake Havasu and bought a Magellan to guide us along the way, but this one didn't reconginze where we were and told us that the RV park that was next door to us was 3.6 miles away. Needless to say, it was returned. Now, we have another Garmin that we bought at Staples. It's not named Ethel, this one is Sammy.

Yesterday, we took a little side trip to San Luis Colorado in Mexico. We kept hearing about all the Americans and Canadians that go there for dentisty or prescriptions. I coudn't figure out where they all were. We were the only "Anglos" there. Come to find out, it was the wrong town and nobody goes there due to the dangerous conditions. We should have gone to Algadones which is across the California border and 5 miles south to Andrade, Ca and walked across. We will do that tomorrow and see what it is all about.

On the drive south from Lake Havasu to Yuma, we noticed a lot of RV resorts along the Colorado River in and around Parkerr, Az. It looks like a real interesting place and we will put it on our "to do " list for next winter.
The RV park that we are in is close to the freeway for easy access. www.shagrilarv.com. Nice friendly people here, and they even brought us a Thanksgiving 'goodie" basket yesterday.
We will look for a nice buffet restuarant for Thanksgiving dinner later today and maybe explore the surrounding area or just relax and watch a little football and nap the afternoon away.
I haven't figured out how to place a photo is the appropriate spot, but the one above is from San Luis Colorado.
More to come.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Cross It Off The "To Do" List


You can't go to Lake Havasu without seeing the London Bridge. Now, we've done it and we can cross it of the "to do" list. We did the whole tourist thing and perused the tacky little shops under and around the bridge. While it was interesting to see the bridge, there isn't any reason to go back and do it again. Lake Havasu City is a lot larger than I thought that it would be. It runs on for miles and miles, but then, they can't build any farther west and east is BLM land so it just runs along Hiway 95. We did take a spin across the lake on the Dreamcatcher to the Indian casino on the California side of the lake for dinner and of couse a couple of hours of slot entertainment. It was interesting to see the lights of Lake Havasu from the other side of the lake. Today is just going to be another "kick back" and relax day. We'll stay here tomorrow also and then on Tuesday start working our way to Yuma for a few days before venturing east towards Casa Grande and Tucson.

Friday, November 20, 2009

The "Ethel" Saga Continues

She died a horrible death. Yesterday when we left Bakersfield, she announced rather proudly that she lost the satellite signal. We didn't think to much about it at the time due to the haze and smog but after 100 miles and no signal, we surmised that she died. Cheryl called Garmin on the cell while we were going down the road and they tried several things and suggested that when we had internet to call back and they would try a couple more things. After 45 minutes with the Garmin tech today, they agreed that she died and that for a proper burial that I would need to send her back and they would send me a new one. Unfortunately, we won't have an address for another 3 weeks, so until then - it's off to WalMart of Kmart or somewhere else and to purchase the most inexpensive one that I can find. After relying on the GPS, it's the pits to go back and read road signs and maps.
We were going to spend last night in Barstow, Ca, but after looking at the primitive and I mean primitive RV facilities, we opted to keep going. We actulally wound up in Laughlin, Nv at the Riverside Casino Rv Park. It worked for one night, but I don't see how people can spend the entire winter there. We did Casino a bit of course.
Today we took the scenic (tongue in cheek) drive to Lake Havasu, AZ and found a nice and clean park. www.havasufallsrvresort.com It's rather new and not a lot of amenities, but super nice people and nice level sites. We'll be here for 4 days awaiting the repair of our Motosat satellite system. They will do it on site either late Sunday or Monday morning. We spent most of the day relaxing in the sun and enjoying the warm weather. Tomorrow, we will unhook the little car and go exploring and see what is in the area.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Oranges, oranges and more oranges

The RV park is the middle of a 500 acre orange grove. There are 200 spaces for RVs. Although the oranges aren't quite ready to pick yet, they are wonderful and sweet. The park encourages the "guests" to pick a grocery sack full during their stay. We will be in Bakersfield another day before we head towards Barstow and Lake Havasu. Although I am not a Buck Owens fan, we want to go see his Crystal Palace museum and bar. I might just have to have sample their dining menu.
I'm still roughing it. The satellite dish will not recognize the satellites, so we will have to go to a Motosat dealer in Lake Havasu and have it reprogramed. We found out that it will work in Oregon and Washington as is, because it will pick up the older satellites, but new ones have been launched for the southern US.

Monday, November 16, 2009

A review of the last park

It is really a resort and not an RV park. If you enjoy a good wine, there are 51 wineries within an 11 mile radius of the park
http://www.jacksoncasino.com/
When we left today to head further south, we stopped and got diesel and at the same time had the coach washed. They have an automated wash and it did a decent job, not perfect, but a lot better than it was. We only made it as far south today as Visalia, Ca. Bakersfield was our destination, but I didn't want to mess with the rush hour traffic, so we stopped early. Unfortunately, we can't use the satellite due to the trees, so we get to watch a little over the air TV tonight. In other words, we're roughing it.
Tomorrow, we will go to Bakersfield for a couple of days. We picked out this park for our stay.
http://www.orangegrovervpark.com/
There is a storm coming in with cooloer temps and rain forcasted, so it looks like a nice place to sit and relax. We aren't on any schedule and have plenty of time to get to Mesa, Az since our reservations don't start until Dec. 10th.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Off The Road For A Couple Of Days

It's time to relax for a couple of days now. We've dodged the snow going over Mt Hood and over the Siskyous heading into California. So, now we'll just sit for a couple of days. It's too bad that Cheryl and I are not wine lovers since we are in the middle of the Napa Valley and all the wineries. We're not unhooking the tow car, we're just going to relax. Cheryl is happy since the resort that we are staying at is on an Indian reservation and they have a casino and a shuttle from the park.
Now, Ethel II and I are going to have a little chat. Not only does she show my speed, but she also shows the posted speed so I can't even "fudge" a little. Cheryl used to be my navigator, but now she's becoming a nagivator. I'm wondering if I can turn that setting off.
Tomorrow, we'll start working our way down to Bakersfield and then over then over towards Barstow. Why Barstow? I don't have a clue, except that we've never been there and need to see what's there.
I'll post more later when there is something more exciting going on.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

We Lost "Ethel"

We lost Ethel and don't have a clue where she is. OK, Ethel is our Garmin GPS and we won't leave home without her. Sometime between the 14th of October and now, she has come up missing. We've scoured the house up and down as well as the pickup and the PT and she's nowhere to be found. We're thinking at this point, that she's been kidnapped by some unscrupulous nefarious person. So, it looks like tomorrow I will go "Ethel II" shopping. If she ever shows up again, we'll give her a good scolding and relegate her to Cheryl's Honda and not let her go in the motorhome again.

We've just about got the motorhome packed. Most all of our clothes are packed as well as the fridge and pantry. About the only thing left is to take out Cheryl's sewing machine and quilting supplies. Then it's on the road Tuesday as soon as we get the Scotties back from getting groomed.