living in Mexico

We lived in a small, poor, village in the North called Esqueda. It was poor and cold in the winter. I taught school, only because I spoke English. I really enjoyed the kids and my class started with 5 little ones and I had 17 in the end, the oldest being 73.

wow that sound like an interesting adventure.

I just read your Toad in the Hole recipe. Sounds delicious, especially since I did not have breakfast today...

I'm embarrassed to say I've been to Mexico more than once, but never really experienced the culture. We visit the markets, or pass through villages on the way to the Mayan ruins and other excursions away from the fancy resorts. So far in our travels we have been very much the typical tourists.
One day we'll take more time and experience the true heart and soul of Mexico.

Did you go to Mexico as an English speaking teacher with the intent to teach? OR were you just a person living there and since you spoke English, found yourself appointed as teacher? What brought you to a small Mexican village in the first place?

Living through a few Canadian winters, I would be interested in what a cold Mexican winter felt like.

I want to go to Mexico and teach.

Yo hablo Espanol.

I'm with you Uno, I would love to go to Mexico to teach as well.

cuckoomama I would love to hear more about your Mexican adventures!

That's funny, one of the jobs I had in Mexico was teaching English. That was while I was in La Paz.
Did you ever get to the Copper Canyon?
Mexico is very interesting. Most of the coastal towns seem to have the wealth, while most of the interior is poor as dirt. The Baja is wonderful.
I was fortunate enough to travel south to Belize through Mexico and saw some of the east coast. Then I worked on private yachts and travelled up the west coast. La Paz was home for over a year, and La Cruz for 6 months. Wintering in Mexico and summering in Northern California was an amazing experience.
Did you find the locals as warm and friendly as I did? The thing that so amused me was the children were treated communally. If one was missing, they could often be found eating at a neighbor's house. It didn't matter where they came from, they were welcome. Family was so important.
Thanks for refreshing some warm memories...

I went to Mexico because my X was an engineer working with Mexicana De Cobre. We were only 3 hours from the Border, so I took some course at a satellite campus of University of Arizona. Because my courses were Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I had a lot of time on my hands. Some kids came to the door and asked if I was Ingelsa, no I said, Canadian, they look disappointed until a little girl named Marisol said, but you speak English? I said yes, and she said ..then you will teach us English! I remember taking about 7 or 8 kids down to the village to buy shoes because some had no shoes to speak of, some had boots but because we were there in the rainy season, I wanted to keep the floors in the cook house clean so I thought the little chinese slippers were just the ticket. I think the older people came for the cake or cookies and tea, coffee and juice that were served during the class. One girl, Marisol was brilliant. I would scrounge up books from the Douglas Arizona library for her to read. My X's company paid for writing materials etc. marisol could read Judy Bloom by the time we left Mexico...2 years plus or minus a few weeks. The villagers were wonderful. When I left the women gave me a shawl, a table cloth that was hand embroidered and some wonderful recipes for turkey Mole and other things. I learned to make torillas which I still do today. I love them even though they are fattening. Everything in moderation, right?

That is so kind to have taken the children for shoes. They must have loved that.
Sounds like you were adopted by the village.
The tourist areas are so different than the small towns. The people are so welcoming in the smaller places, whereas I found the tourist towns they saw visitors as dollar signs. In Alcapulco, the women were grabbing at me when we went to the market. It was rather disquieting. Probably being tall and having blonde hair didn't help.
Did you get a good chili relleno recipe? Cata in La Cruz would make them for me, but I could never understand enough Spanish to figure out her recipe. They were so scrumptious!
Home made tortillas are so much better than the store bought ones.
Mmmm now I am hungry.

Because I was with a company we had to employ staff. We had a cook (Angel, two women that did laundry and swept up, a gardener (we had only gravel and a huge cactus)he used to rake it (the gravel). And I had two body guards...that's another story. One of the women used to make Chili Relleno...yum, but spicey. The closest I have come to it is this link.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] I loved the guacamole, especially in Nacozari. It made your bottom lip disappear, it was so spicey.

The interior mainland is so different than the coastal or Baja areas. At least it was.
La Paz had many foreigners living there. In fact, I joked I learned more German than Spanish living there. My friends included German, Swiss, US, Canadian and English visitors, and many locals.
The locals were great. Maybe I was just lucky though?
Most of my time in Mexico I was living and working on foreign owned vessels. This means I didn't need a work visa, as I wasn't working in Mexico. Weird, I know!
As a foreigner living and working there though, you'd definitely be a target for any money grabs they could come up with. Staffing your house is a good example.
None of my friends that owned places there were required to. Many did, just to help out their neighbours.
Fresh avocado is delicious! The mangoes were to die for. Market day was always a highlight of the week. Great, now I'm drooling again...

Avocados came up from the south, they were so different from the ones we get here. I really loved the cheese that we got from Chihuahua.It was called Menonitas, I believe that there is a fairly big Mennonite population in Chihuahua. Those were the days of the fondue. Yummy!I used to go over with my two bodyguards, in an old Mexicana De Cobra truck with bald tires...

Wow, just love love loved reading this thread. Please go on.

I have friends that moved to Belize about 2 years ago and they post photos of the jungle and caves and rivers and it makes me want to sell everything I own and hop on the next plane.

Ya, My husband (who is an illustrator for publishers) can work anywhere as long as he has his paint brushes or his computer (most publishers now want digital and they want it yesterday) talked about moving out of Canada because it has become so expensive (to us). We looked into moving to Ecuador to a town? city? called Cuenca. I followed the blogs for about a year. We have adjusted our thinking to remaining in Canada and moving to PEI, because the cost of living is a lot less. Our friends are horrified....you will have WINTER, and SNOW, they said. Well, um, ya, but we have just had 5 1/2 months of RAIN and gloom and everything turning GREEN and not the lawn kind of green, after all I live on the Someshine Coast...oops, the Sunshine Coast. It is like living on an Island, to get to Vancouver, you have to take the ferry, which has almost doubled since we moved here 7 years ago, along with food, gas etc

Now, if only the house would sell, anybody want to buy a house????

Hey cuckoomama, do you know Jules Smith in Roberts Creek? She lives in the housing co-op there in Roberts Creek.

No, sorry, I do not know Jules Smith. Although we have lived on the SC for 7 years, we lived in Sechelt for 4 1/2 of the 7. We know only a few people in Roberts Creek, but are meeting more people now that we have chickens, eggs, ducks, and fertilized eggs. I didn't mean the Coast isn't beautiful, it is. I think the only other place that I've been that can compete is Cape Town....ah Cape Town. The wine country is beautiful. That was the last place that I took my Mom before she died.

You may enjoy New Brunswick. The Fundy coast is rugged and beautiful. I've not been to PEI, but it appears very flat. As for house prices and weather, they are similar.
We picked up a small fixer upper on 44 acres, with a nice barn for $33,000. We are less then 5 mins from the water. There are still some great deals around.
My friends just bought a nicely renovated 100 year old home on 234 acres for $170,000. That's a bit north of us.
Towards Moncton and Saint John prices are a bit higher. Inland is really cheap, but I am unfamiliar with most of it.
Just a suggestion, though you may have other reasons for looking at PEI than land prices. We opted out because of the additional costs associated with island living. Perhaps we are wrong though, and they don't exist? Any islanders out there willing to let me know -lol

Maybe now I should call it looking eastward. No, we hadn't thought of New Brunswick, I don't know why. Maybe I thought the weather was a big colder in the winter and had more snow. I have no idea where I got that idea. We have been to PEI twice. My husband has illustrated several Anne of Green Gables book covers and books and he went there on a business trip so I went along. It may be a little like living on the Sunshine Coast....being an Island and having to use the bridge or ferry to get off. I am not sure if the prices are more than say NB...you might know. The gas here is going nuts and I have no idea why. My sister is Calgary is only paying $1.27, or at least they were. Why Vancouver and Sunshine Coast pay nearly $1.50, I don't know. I will check the MLC.ca and see what I can find.

Do you have a good idea of what you are looking for?
The weather along the coast from Miramichi south, is a plant hardiness near 5. Inland it is a 4. We definitely get snow, but generally it doesn't go below negative 20 for more than a week or two.
The biting flies near us are horrendous! We live in a swampier area and are surrounded by water and peat bogs.
NB is great if you like the water, there is tons of coastline here. NB is still over 90 percent forest. It is a lovely province.
Just so you know, I am from Ontario and my hubby is from Alberta. We both loved BC, but just couldn't afford to own there. Food and fuel is similar in price I'd imagine.
We've only been here for five years, but are very pleased we moved here. We miss some of the amenities of the larger cities, but will sacrifice them for the benefits.
If we had the money, I'd love to buy this place:
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It is across the road from our favorite beach. Minutes from Cape Enrage, Hopewell Rocks and Fundy Park.
Here's another one that is lovely in that area;
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Boy, sounds like us. Came from Toronto, followed the dream. We love the beauty of the mountains and ocean, but the prices are a killer...$2.50 for gas? why? We are on 2 1/2 acres in "the Creek", There is a creek that runs through the middle of our property, almost splitting it in half. We were told that the road would be extended and then we could be able to get to our other side. 7 years later and a few neighbours complaining that they don't want the road extended, we are stuck. The other side is quite beautiful, old growth forest with a carpet of Chantrelle mushrooms, but no way to get to it. We can't afford to build a bridge,we can't subdivide it and sell it to a neighbour according to the SCRD (who rules the universe!) We pay $3200 a year taxes, live on a dirt road that goes nowhere, have a property we can't get to and are "stuck" here in a place we can barely afford. Yikes! I am starting to rant, sorry.

I looked at the area, very nice...my husband wants to be able to drive not too far to go for a coffee (one of the hazards of working from home, you don't see many people), he loves book stores and antique stores and will shop with me...he's very patient, so we need to be in the country (We love our chickens and ducks), but need to be close enough for Wes to get what he needs. I was hoping for a pair of goslings for my birthday, but when I woke up this morning, they were still chickens, no goslings. Oh well, maybe I should wait anyway...if we are moving.

cuckoomama wrote: We are on 2 1/2 acres in "the Creek", There is a creek that runs through the middle of our property, almost splitting it in half. We were told that the road would be extended and then we could be able to get to our other side. 7 years later and a few neighbours complaining that they don't want the road extended, we are stuck. The other side is quite beautiful, old growth forest with a carpet of Chantrelle mushrooms, but no way to get to it.

I remember last summer when we had our family campout at the Roberts Creek my Brother was telling me that he (Wife might have been with him or my other Brother, can't remember) went to look at something from childhood memory stuff and they went onto this person's property. There was a big creek running through the property that they had to cross to get to where they were going, but I don't think they crossed the creek cause it was too steep of a bank. I cannot for the life of me remember what they were going to look at, but it was just nostalga. The woman said no problem to cross through her property. Wonder if that was you, smiling. Just these things that people say, like you talking about the creek running through your property, that trigger memories of something someone says. Do you recall some people wanting to walk through your property to look at something that they remembered from childhood days. Remember I was telling you we grew up in our teens in Roberts Creek, not far from the wharf, on beach front home? I don't know, jsut thinking out loud I guess. Have a beautiful day, CynthiaM.

I don't remember but then today I am old, well I fel old. It could have been, we see so many people here that want to go to the other side. We have a ladder that goes down about 30 ft to get to our well which is in the creek (wish I could post pictures, will retry the photobucket thingy) We are on Miles Rd (not the one off of Joe Rd, but up behind Cheryl Anne, if you know where that is?). This land was divided very weirdly (is that a word?) Half of our land is behind the guy on the highway and runs back to Miles Rd...landlocked) Larry, the guy in front will not let us use his driveway, and believes that our duck pond was put there for his use (he would have no backyard). I don't know why the SCRD did that but they in their wisdom know...I guess but it is a secret. Anyway, not good for selling.

Auntieevil, I looked at the Mls farms that you mentioned. I love the 2nd one. My husband said, well, where is the coffee shop, I found one for him in Hillsborough, not too far away. He thinks 2-5 acres is quite enough for us. I would like something a bit bigger. I want to raise chickens, ducks and geese, also have a few hives of bees and maybe make cheese. I wanted a goat or two and Wes doesn't like the idea...yet. Right now I am working every day so am away from the house and this leaves him with all of the menagerie. Because we have bears, cougars (well one), eagles (took away one of my female ducks, right under my nose, coyotes, hawks etc, etc he is very vigilant.
When we move, he just wants to paint. he is an illustrator and likes to do Aviation paintings and Marine paitings, mostly old ship and planes. I will be the farmer because I don't think that I will be able to get a job in Mental Health....being that I am almost ready to retire. If you find anything smaller (acreage wise), let me know. Even an acre is ok for us. We want to travel too and will have to look for a house/animal sitter.

Does your husband need a particular type of coffee, say Timmy's or Starbucks? Or will a generic coffee from a small store or gas station work?
We personally bought a coffee maker and grinder and buy great organic coffee. But that's not for everyone.
People around here are super friendly, so finding people to talk to is easy. In the a place like we are in, it can be a bit of a rumour mill, but that's small towns. I joke that people know what I am doing before I do it
There are definitely lots of smaller (5 acre) residential lots here. Zoning will be the thing to watch, so you can decide if you want animals or not.
Sounds like us. My husband tolerates my hobby. He helps with butchering chickens and building things, so that's great. We have goats, pigs, chickens and turkeys. Luckily my neighbour helps me kill and clean the pigs and goats. Eventually I'll get the stuff for cheese making, but that will be after we are done with renos. Bob's slowly coming around as he enjoys the homemade bacon and home raised meats. There's no way he could eat an animal he spends time with, so that's likely why he has little do do with anything in the barn.
The second listing is amazing, but not for everyone. It should would be nice though!
Is Wes a fixer upper kind of guy? Or should the house be move in ready? Do you guys want to be close to the water? Do you like the more rugged hilly terrain, or flatter beach type areas? How far from a big town? How far from an small one?
Guess a studio would be really great!
Finding an animal sitter is probably the hardest thing, at least where we are. Maybe I am just over protective...
Here are a couple listing you might like:
Handyman special with lots of land... This is closer to where we are. It seems prices are up right now. It is far from coffee though.
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This one is 10 mins from us. Wilson's is mins away and sells coffee -lol
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mls so fun to explore....

Thanks for the info. I really liked #2. It seems like a nice area.

Wes is not fussy about his coffee. I think it is just getting out of the house. When I get home from work he sometimes takes the car and goes into Gibsons (about 12 minutes away) and takes a book to read or a sketch pad to draw. It just gets him out of the house. Sometimes he meets someone he knows, sometimes he doeasn't. I don't think we could eat any of our chickens/ducks either, although there are times that I wouldn't mind sticking the rooster in a pot.
I am not sure what we are looking for yet, rural, but not too far away from a city, and close to a town (for that getaway cup of coffee) We had once thought about opening a B&B, just to keep busy. Not sure how I feel right now. We have heard that with a B&B in PEI you can't serve guests your own eggs, why would that be, I wonder. Our eggs are better, fresher, organic and certainly more nutritious than supermarket eggs.

Wes is handy, we put in sweat equity when we built the house in 2010, I painted all of the ourtside wood before it went up, Wes did all the tiling in bathrooms, flooring, helped put in the kitchen, and a bunch of things I don't remember anymore. It was a busy time. So, if the house needed a new kitchen or bathroom, he's your man. I saw some houses with mudrooms...boy are we the mudroom type of people. That is such a good idea. NB is a bilingual province yes? Do you have any language problems? Just wondered. We had friends that had lived in Dieppe and he said that sometimes he wanted to leave because of the sign issues. He didn't say much more. They are sailing the world right now.

If you see anything else interesting, send it along.

Cuckoomamma, Ya I know Joe Road, but don't know much more. It has been a long time since I hung out in the areas on the Sunshine Coast, moved when I was 29, I too am coming up 60 this year, so know the failing mind, smiling that huge smile. Amazing what we remember and what we don't, smiling again. I have emailed my Bro and told him of your description of where your property is and he will surely get back to me, he is as inquisitive type of a person as I am. It would jut be interesting to say the least, it is a small world, and I am sorry that I have taken your thread from one about living in Mexico to one about living in Roberts Creek , just kidding, threads are wonderful how they snake and turn, have a beautiful day, woman, CynthiaM.