travel

Things That Work

Frugal we may be, however we unabashedly admit we like a new toy now and again. Living in Mexico requires quite an adjustment relating to things. We get a lot of email asking about what to bring to Mexico and how much. The quality of many items here in Mexico is inferior to their U.S./Canadian counterparts making this definitely something to consider.

Every trip down from the North is an opportunity to bring some things that are not available, of better quality or here in Mexico at a substantial increase in cost. This is a way of life when living in a developing or third world country – we guarantee it.

Another way is to find a ‘mule’. Not the half horse half donkey variety or the drug runner, but a gentle spirit who is willing to cart something down to Mexico for you – more of an angel than a mule. We have brought things as large as a mig-welder and as small as a letter to waiting recipients below the border.

A while back a friend delivered a Kindle to us. But the other day we got the mother-load. Our neighbor and friend here in Puerto planned on driving down from Oregon around Christmas time. He offered to mule for us as he has a large truck with a shell – and was essentially coming down empty.

Coming down empty went away fast as this hombre has a lot of friends down here. He hauled everything from vitamins to motorcycle tires and much more for his friends – very cool!

Here in Puerto one’s living space is often open to much of the out-of-doors conditions. Our casa is very open. In the kitchen we battle breezes that blow out the flame of our propane stove top. We have jury-rigged sheets of cardboard to eliminate the breeze, mostly unsuccessfully.

We have never wanted to cook with an electric stove. Aside from the obvious issues, electricity is costly here in Mexico – so a watt gorging electric stove is even less desirable.

We had read about induction cooking, how it is favorable yet the cost of said stoves was very expensive. We began to research one and two burner induction stovetops. Not only were they affordable, but they were sexy looking units. We discovered one on Amazon that was offered at a ridiculously low price for this technology. We ordered one to be sent to our neighbor’s house in Oregon – later to arrive here.

We have had the unit for a couple of weeks. We are in love with it. Each time we go near the kitchen Senora Calypso can be heard cooing something about how much she loves her new induction stove top.

Boiling water for morning coffee on the induction stovetop barely allows time to get the eyes open – we are talking fast. The unit is portable – so if you are cooking something that emits lingering or objectionable odors this becomes the perfect setup to go outside and cook on the patio. We are now totally setup for cooking odor wars between us and the neighbors that lease their floors to folks that have some very strange meat-based diets (you know we are vegetarians).

Simmering beans for hours is simple and energy efficient. More efficient than gas, easy to clean and very portable make this induction stovetop a real winner – and at a great price. Liked so much by the Calypsos we now have two.

¡Manténgase Sintonizado! (i.e. Stay Tuned)

John Calypso lives outside Veracruz, Mexico, as well as Puerto Escondido. Back in the 60s, he was a very hip guy living in Hollywood and rubbing shoulders with Beatles and Monkees. Read lots more in his blog, Viva Veracruz.

Got a 400 word travel piece you'd like to contribute? Click here.