“Wow, that place smells great! Let’s go check it out!”, growled my stomach.
The lunch hour was well behind us and the smells of slow-cooked meat were wafting out the door, carried on waves of loud Latin beats. Hidden in the faded paint on the wall we could barely make out the word Barbacoa and a picture of a sheep. My stomach growled again
The place was packed, with rows upon rows of well-worn wooden tables filled to capacity with older men in dirty flannel. A waiter cleared off a small table covered in empty beer bottles and soiled napkins, seating us with an easy view of 3 different soccer matches on the wall-mounted flat screens.
This place was seriously local. My skin color was the palest by several shades, and through the dim light and smoky haze I stood out like a sore thumb. Our neighbors to our right immediately engaged us in conversation in a broken mix of Spanish, Tsotsil, and Tseltal (the 2 most common local Mayan languages) that was truly dizzying. “Where are you from?” “Welcome to Mexico!” “You like it here?”
We sipped our warm stale beer from Dixie cups as we waited for our order of tacos, and did our best to participate in the verbal barrage coming our way. Two of our new friends didn’t speak Spanish any better than we did, and the 3rd as self-appointed ambassador did his best to share their questions, difficult as it might be with alcohol hindered enunciation. For 2:00 pm on a Sunday, he was sauced. Hell, for 2 am on a Friday he was sauced
We’ve shown every month how much we spend on dining out, but what does it really mean? How do you use that information to budget for your own world travels? To help, this is the first of a series of posts where we share 3 meals we’ve enjoyed in different budget classes. Welcome to food voyeurism at its best
Budget Meal
Carnitas is a traditional Mexican pork dish, cooked in a large copper pot with herbs and spices for hours and hours until the meat is so tender that it falls off the bone and can be shredded by hand. Stuff some of this in a hot off the comal hand made gordita with some fresh salsa, and you have one of our favorite lunches
A bit off the beaten path in the Allende neighborhood, the wonderful Bautista family runs Carnitas Bautista. Since they don’t have a website, the address is Guadiana #2, Colonia Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. We recently brought a friend there for lunch, and he said, “I didn’t know anything existed in the world that tastes this good!” The reviews don’t get much more glowing than that. And since the place is always packed and we are the only foreigners we see, you know it is good
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. All Dressed Up and Ready to Celebrate
El Día de Muertos, the day of the dead, is a Mexican holiday honoring the lives of friends and family members who have died. It is a time to gather with loved ones, build altars to the deceased, and visit graves with gifts and offerings. It is not a time of mourning, but a grand celebration of life
For 4 weeks in March-April 2013, we enjoyed the waves and surf in Puerto Escondido, Mexico. As usual, we had a room in a hotel for a few days while we explored the area, and when we knew we wanted to stay longer we found a monthly rental. Due to the popularity of posts about our longer term rentals, here is a brief tour of our Puerto Escondido home
We found a place that looked great in the online photos. A few emails, 2 phone calls, a meeting, a tour, and a fierce negotiation later, we were the proud residents of a casita near Playa Manzanillo. The asking price was $350 a week, and the property manager would not budge. But after a short conversation about how we liked “the other place more”, she emailed the owners and they had agreed to accept our offer of $1000 for the month.
Brush after meals, floss daily, visit the dentist once a year… these are the rules of dental care as I remember them. So a year after kicking the old boss (and insurance) to the curb, we found ourselves in Mexico once again and in need of our annual dental cleaning
We started asking around if people liked their dentist. At a dinner party an American-Mexican couple gave us a strong recommendation, “We’ve been to many dentists in town over the past 25 years, but this one is the best! But he doesn’t speak English…” We also had many other recommendations for English speaking dentists, but we enjoy a challenge
