Pantla, Guerrero

We have been reading about the huge snowstorm in Wellington County where all the roads have been closed and driving is dangerous. Neighbours sent photos of the snow drifts and the blowing wind. Here we have the opposite. It has been scorching! In fact, a heat advisory has been issued. Thank heavens our evening are cool. It starts to become hot by 9 a.m. and it get hotter and hotter as the day progresses.

Because of the heat, a few creatures have come to visit us again - scorpions, spiders and crabs. This creepy crawly brigade although small, keeps us on our toes, literally. Haha.

Since the goats have eaten most the flowers and greenery, they are now more interested in the water in the pool. All the creeks have dried up and who knows where they are finding water. We feel somewhat sorry for them now. We have seen the chicken coop that the herd is living in, when they are not roaming the jungle. Not the best place to hang out, especially in this heat. We are just worried that when we are not at the house, a baby goat may fall into the pool and drown. Not a pleasant thought. Maybe we can find and fill a tub of water for them to drink out of, away from the house? Oh, the goats…

This morning, while the house keeper and handyman couple worked around the house, we decided to drive in our air-conditioned car, to a market town just north of Zihuatanejo, called Pantla. We needed to fill up the propane tank that services our stove and that’s where we had to get it done.

Chris happened to see a guy watering a Volkswagen garden with a hose in Troncones, and asked him if he would fill up our window washer water container, which he did with a smile. Funny.

We don’t know anything about Pantla and an internet search doesn’t provide us with much info either. About 4,000 people live there and it appears to be a market town. I’m saying this because some shops weren’t open yet when we drove through it. It is a dusty and very Mexican town with no gringos that we could see. But it did seem to be bustling with activity, including a Fed Ex truck. A few sleepy dogs on the street and the kids were in school. An interesting place, but hot!

We drove back north and went to our favourite tianguis town, Lagunillas,, where the fruit and vegetable vendors were making some good sales. Limes are still very expensive but they are available. We filled our bag up with apples, grapefruits, tangerines, grapes, jicama, potatoes, tomatoes, bananas, a cabbage, carrots and other goodies. We wore our masks and kept our distance but in 33C it sure gets hot under the mask.

We decided to go home by taking a shortcut and driving across the riverbed in Boca de Lagunillas. That was fun. The water has really gone down and it getting a little skunky. Too bad as it was a clear and clean river a month ago. It was a pleasant and cool drive home under the big palm trees.

We wash all of our fruits and vegetables using purifying drops, Microdyn, added to a sinkful of water. Most of the veggies are dusty so this way they are cleaned and disinfected before going in the fridge.

Sara and her husband, Jaime, did a great cleaning job, inside and out. They even cleaned the big woven carpet in the living area. I guess that they beat it, hosed it down and put it in the sun to dry. Whatever they did, it is clean now.

Our landlord and his family went to the States today from Patzcuaro. They will be there until mid April and we will be long gone. It is too bad that because of covid we weren’t able to see them this year. They are a special couple and we would have enjoyed seeing their kids.Read more