Los Algodones, Mexico

Wednesday, Dec. 28^th 6 of us decided to leave Pilot Knob RV Resort and drive to Mexico. This would be a brand-new experience for 3 of us, Gerry, Bill and I, and I was so excited!

I was up by 7:15 and got in a mile walk around the park, meeting Rob and others doing a similar thing, before Bill got up. He has gotten involved in a good book called The Forgotten by David Baldacci and was up until midnight reading! This is rare, Bill doesn’t usually read books and he doesn't usually sleep in like this.

I’d heard as much about Los Algodones as I had about Quartzsite so knew it was a must see, must do. With passports in hand, Bill drove Melinda, Gerry and I, following Rob and Pat in their own truck. The weather wasn’t perfect, cloudy and a cool wind with temperatures around 66F at 10 am. Deciding what to wear was the hardest part.

Our destination was only about 5 miles down the highway and after passing some interesting signage, we arrived at the parking area. You pay $6 to park here for the day and walk across the border to Mexico. Capiche?

Following Melinda’s, Rob’s and Pat’s directions, us newbies followed along through the walkway into this unique shopping area.

Pat modelling a sombrero style hat

Bill modelling an apron

Guess who, getting in the act

A glimpse of our group and the vendors

My sister, Gayle, advised that I practice saying “non, gracias”.

After walking the closed in sidewalks between a multitude of vendors for an hour and a half, I was really good at saying “No thankyou”. WE HAD A BLAST!! It has been a long time since I have enjoyed myself so much in such a short time. The vendors were constantly coming up with new and individual ways of offering their goodies. "I have a store full of junk to get rid of", "I have many things that you don't need".

I was the only one of us wearing shoes that were leather instead of running shoes so the young and older boys were constantly offering to shine my shoes. I should have given in to one for $2 so I could see if there was as much interest.

Bill and I found a few things that with some bartering, we picked up for a steal. The best things were those things that were done right before our eyes.

A very pleasant looking Mexican made my zipper pull
just in time, as mine broke yesterday

Pretty neat watching him make this for me

You knew it was an original.

Now we will know who we are!

We noticed that there were many, many dental offices along the street as well offering free check-ups and $20 teeth cleaning and vision centres offering free eye exams and eyeglass lenses starting at $19 for single vision to $39 for progressive/bifocals. Unbelievable, another time for sure.

Bill noticed this water tower over our heads

To top off the fun we met at the tiki restaurant (no that isn’t what it’s called) for a lime or strawberry marguerita and a real Mexican lunch.

Tiki hut serves drinks at the bar

 The laughter ensued as we ate and drank. 

Gerry and Melinda

Rob and Pat

Bill and I

My chicken quesadilla, beans, rice and salad

Now we know why there was such laughter!!
I see 5 marguerita glasses and 1 beer bottle there

All I can say for sure is that when you feed 5 people super-sized margueritas, funny things are bound to happen. This was no exception.

Last stop was to the Purple Pharmacy for our allowed bottle of alcohol, if we chose to buy one. Most of us did and I found my Kahlua for $7.25 and chocolates for a treat.

When we left to get in the line to cross the border again, we were amazed to see no less than 75 people were doing the same thing. The sun was beginning to come out by now and the day warmed up nicely. With no more than a 25-minute wait, we had our passports checked and were on our way back to the park.

A happy bunch ready for home

Lineup for the border and there is another mass of people
down around the corner!

Back home, Bill and I changed into shorts and we joined George and Suzie, Rob and Pat at Melinda and Gerry’s site. Retelling the day’s events to George and Suzie was fun and no doubt, it will be a story told over and over among friends.

In the line up to cross the border

We were still pretty full from our lunch so settled for a bowl of mushroom soup for our supper. There was an amazing sunset again making the sky a gorgeous show of pink.

This day will go down in the books for me as pretty close to perfect. The vendors, although totally repetitive in their desire to share their wares, were a delight to me. Most had an awesome sense of humour and they made my day all the while I was walking away saying no thank you.

One in particular offered to sell Bill motorcycle saddle bags to which I replied “we don’t have a motorcycle” and he returned without any pause “a motorcycle is included!”. A real treat and I loved every minute of this adventure.

Now Bill has his own blanket for those cool evenings

A private joke for me, I love puzzles and I'm finally
learning the location of the states

Good night

I hope your ‘hump day’ was just as enjoyable and thank you for sharing in mine. I love reading your comments.