Wednesday January 10, 2007

Nuevo Progresso, Mexico

After breakfast, Paul took grandpa to get a haircut. They picked me up around noon and we decided to go to another flea market we had passed in Mercedes, the next town east of here. It was closed. Soooo, since we are so close to Mexico, we decide to go. We parked just outside the bridge for $1.50. Paulie put my scooter together and we set off across the international bridge over to Nuevo Progresso. The main street is chock full of vendors, cars, trucks and people. The sidewalks are very narrow and clogged with the vendors on each side. The variety of products is amazing...beaded purses, clothes, hats, belts, silver, blankets and chimeras and pottery. Amazing. Small children roam the crowd selling small packs of Mexican gum. Mothers with small babies sit on the sidewalks with paper cups extended for money. Each vendor tries to catch one's eye with their wares. Every other storefront is a dentist. Each dentist has a hawker outside the establishment with cards and flyers trying to get you to go in for a cleaning, a whitening or a crown. I bet there aren't this many dentists in Illinois....the whole state!

We find the Rose Garden, a tavern that grandpa wanted to take us to. It was basically an alley with tables and chairs. There were men selling peanuts at the entrance to the alley; several shoe shine guys lined one wall. They all wanted to polish my scooter. We are seated in the back. More small children, positively the cutest and most adorable kids I have ever seen wander in trying to sell gum. Paul and grandpa order Sol beer and I get a Margarita. What I am served is a glass of tequila that has been mixed into a slush with ice. Maybe they waved a lime over it...maybe not. A young man offered to polish my shoes and for a buck I say ok. He takes them and is gone for the longest time. Great...now I don't have any shoes. After a while he comes back with them and they really look good. We finish our drinks and head off to find a pharmacia and to buy some tequila. We decide to get something to eat and everyone recommended Arturo's. It is a very nice place with table cloths on the tables and waiters in fancy red jackets. Paul and I have the luncheon special which was a tamale, an enchilada, a taco, refried beans and rice. Grandpa orders the stuffed green pepper and a drink. Hmmmm, hope he can walk back across the bridge! After a nice meal, we are off again to find the tequila and pharmacy stuff. We find a store near the bridge heading out and I buy some penicillian and some macrobin in the event I get another bladder infection...I have one every couple of months yanno. Paul buys two bottles of tequila and one of vodka. After our purchases we head back through customs. It has been an interesting day in Mexico. Obviously the rest of Mexico isn't like this tourist trap.

We head back to the US and our rig. It is already 4:30 and happy hour has already been started. Even though the sun is out, the wind has picked up and it's a bit cool outside. We visit for a while before its time to go in. Since we have had a late lunch, we won't be doing dinner.

The RV show opens tomorrow in Mercedes at the fairgrounds so maybe we will head that way tomorrow.

Later...

dee