Going home, saying hasta luego until the next time....

Time to pack up, say good-bye to both new friends and old and to face reality of returning to our home in the good old U.S.A.

This has been a good winter overall. The wind was more reluctant to lie down this winter but it finally did and it has been very hot the last couple of weeks. The waters have also become very warm but with the warmth come the "aguas malas" or jelly fish. On the surface of the water, they appear to be just bubbles but upon closer inspection you can see the blue hue. I guess the sting inflicted is not too pleasant and I hope I do not find out.

I had the opportunity last week to go see a friend's "ranch". It was really a neat place that this couple has here. It consists of a small storage building that houses their solar equipment that provides power to the ranch. It is certainly all self contained! They also have a palapa with an outdoor kitchen and a bedroom and bathroom. All very nice. My friend calls it "primitive". I call it luxurious! It is very peaceful there and the plants that they have planted and care for are wonderful. We hiked around the area most of last Sunday. It was a real treat for me

I also drove by myself to the airport to pick up some folks that were coming in. The drive to Cabo San Lucas airport is not so treacherous although there are a few curves but I think I did pretty well. Mike was on pins and needles while I was gone but I had a cell phone w/ me so I was able to call him and let him know I arrived. The old Toyota Buggy got us there and back although a temperature light went on and the A/C kept coming and going so I turned it off. None of the other gauges showed any overheating and after I got back the light didn't come back on but it is something we have to get checked out!

Most of the residents here will be slowly vacating and heading home. Although we will miss our little oasis here, and as we start packing up things, we are kind of anxious to get home and look forward to wedding plans and the fun it will bring. We feel very fortunate to have this little hang out for the winter and will look forward to coming back next winter. During my last few days here, I spend a few hours packing and then the rest of the time I hit the beach and kayak and snorkel.

Tonite was the full moon so a group of us went down to the arroyo and built a fire and sat around talking about how we all came to find this little village of Los Barriles. Some folks here tell of coming down here from California and Washington for years and how there was nothing here! No phones, no grocery stores, nada! Talk about primitive! And to think that folks today think it is primitive here! Compared to many other little villages in the Baja, los Barriles really is quite progressive. No, you can't find everything that you would want in a store here, but you can get what you need to survive. Car problems can be trying especially if parts are needed. But the health services here are better than adequate and the airport is only about an hour away. And it is quiet and peaceful and the locals are friendly and helpful. I know that I have blogged all this before but each year I realize more and more how wonderful this little strip of land truly is. Those of us who love it here, realize that it is not for everyone who cannot tolerate a little imperfection, the irrationality of the way things are done and the slow paced way of life. I have learned a lot more this year about the Baja and even a lot of new Spanish expressions.

We love living so close to the beach and living our outdoor "patio" life as one resident here coined it. Again not for everyone who may not like to see an iguana run through the living area. For me, it is natural and there is little if anything that I find intolerable here. Oh, maybe the stupid and bigoted people who populate too many areas of the earth. I find them sufferably intolerable and just plain boring.

We hope that we have shown you a little more of the life down here and that you may one day want to visit us here sometime in the future. Most people who visit, come back again and again and again! Those of us who stay also have a LOT in common. Love of the Baja is the string that binds us.

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