Mural in Bucerias.

JANUARY 6 

Today, we tried out our Charles Schwab ATM card. I hadn’t mentioned it earlier, but a big part of this trip is medical tourism, or more precisely, dental tourism. Last year I had lots of gross stuff done, including jaw bone grafting, gum surgery, wisdom teeth extractions, a root canal, an implant post, and a crown. This year, I need one more gum surgery and the installation of my permanent implant crown and my other regular crown. 

The dental clinic that we go to gives us a 10% discount if we use pesos. Their prices are already nearly 75% cheaper than in the US. Another 10% is nice. The only problem is that most people lose nearly 10% when they exchange dollars for pesos. I made it my life’s work to figure out how to beat that exchange-rate racket. And I have.

This is where Charles Schwab comes in. If you open a Schwab savings or checking account, you can request an ATM card. Schwab does not charge anything to use their ATM card. In fact, if you use an ATM machine that charges a fee, Schwab reimburses your account for that fee. They really do. I tried it out back in Wisconsin as soon as I got the card. Sure enough, a few days later, they credited our account for the $2 ATM fee.

It gets better. Last year, before I opened my Schwab account, I had an Associated Bank ATM card. Associated Bank charged us 3% to exchange currencies. Schwab doesn’t charge anything. It gets even better. The ATMs in Mexico run a little scam. They ask you if you will accept their exchange rate, which is always significantly lower than the official rate. Most people automatically hit the ‘yes’ button, believing that if they decline they won’t be able to proceed with the transaction. But, if you do decline their offer, you get the full official, and much higher, exchange rate. 

Getting money in and out of the Schwab account is all electronic. I can transfer money from my home bank to Schwab, and back, quickly and easily - no fees. Therefore, my Schwab account is my de facto foreign exchange account.

Anyway, starting on Wednesday, January 11, we start our dental appointments. It seemed like a good time for a trip to the ATM to collect pesos for the dentist. The best machine is 1 1/2 miles away. We could easily hop on a bus for 50¢, but we decided to walk and make a day out of it by poking around in a few neighborhoods that haven’t poked yet this year. 

It was mid afternoon by the time we reached the ATM. I inserted my card. The machine tried to get me to accept its rip-off rate. I stood my ground - no deal. It whirled and clicked and finally burped out 7,000 pesos. I logged into my Schwab iPhone app. Sure enough, I got the official rate of 19.33 pesos per dollar and no fees were charged. Mr. ATM tried to offer me 17.60 pesos per dollar. I declined. As I said, it is a scam.

Our magic Charles Schwab debit card.

Feeling pretty darn smug about beating the system, we decided to eat an early supper at Las Famosas Burger Restaurant. This is only one of two non-Mexican meals that we get down here. The other is a wonderful Italian place. La Famosas, ironically, makes the best gourmet burgers in North America. Those $15 burgers at Chicago’s Navy Pier, are $5 at La Famosas. 

I ordered the Bieber Burger with bacon, tomato, cheese, lettuce, and a secret sauce. Wanda ordered a Mexicana. It included Frito-like chips and a zillion other ingredients. Both were excellent.

We have to come all the way to Bucerias to get the best Americana burger. The fries are also terrific.

The Mexicana Burger.

The Bieber Burger. Most of the burgers were named after celebrities - Madonna, Elvis Presley, Charlie Sheen, Che Guevara, Justin Bieber, etc.

Las Famosas Burger's informal setting in a courtyard in downtown Bucerias.

On one side of Las Famosas is the Voodoo Lounge. A pretty good band was rippin’ it up. We could clearly hear them from Las Famosas. After dinner, we watched the band for a couple of tunes. However, Jax is at the other end of the block and the Availables were playing. These guys are top-notch. I was happy to see that they were still together with the same lineup. So many bands down here either break up or exchange band members from season to season. Jax was way too crowded to find a seat, so we watched from the street. The clubs are so open that listening from the street is just as good as being inside. They haven’t missed a beat - they are still the top band in Bucerias.

Since we weren’t going to get a seat at Jax, I proposed topping off the evening by splitting a Sunshine Bar margarita. We figured that we could survive a half of a Sunshine margarita. Somehow, our waiter misunderstood us and brought us each our own margaritas. We found our way home, but barely.

The Availables. The guritar players are good, but the bass player and drummer make up an outstanding rhythm section.

We topped the evening off with Sunshine Bar margaritas.

Downtown in the evening.

January 7

We didn’t feel it, but sometime in the middle of the night, a small earthquake struck offshore. The epicenter was several miles north but it brought in some tsunami waves. They weren’t giant killer tsunamis, but they covered the entire beach. Our favorite beach bar and restaurant, Oceans, normally is 200’ from the water. Luckily, the beach bar, like most beach bars, is built high above the ground. The whole bottom area, where the outdoor seating is set up, was flooded. We were oblivious to all of this and only learned about it from friends we ran across at Oceans later in the afternoon.

However, today, the plan was to find an optometrist to get Wanda a pair of sunglasses. After our cataract surgery a couple of years ago, we have 20/20 distance vision and super-blur near vision. We like to get shades with progressive lenses - no prescription on top and +2.5 on the bottom. We were told about a place up by the hospital, which is near our ATM, so it is a hike.

We took a roundabout way and went north first, halfway to La Cruz before turning south along the oceanfront. Last year, this northern section experienced a condo building explosion. Technically, all of Bucerias shared in this boom, but it seemed most prevalent in this neighborhood, probably because it had the most open land to exploit.

This area is schizophrenic. It wants to simulate the more developed wealthy southern end of town. There are some very nice condos and hotels in the north, but there are also some that need a facelift. The infrastructure, however, is terrible. The streets are a complete disaster and there are empty lots that could use sprucing up.

We were delighted to see that all the condos that started last year are still going strong. It takes a solid three years to build a condo down here. It is funny to watch a skeleton crew of a half dozen guys piddle away on a large construction site. Still, it looks like this section of town may eventually receive its facelift. It is hard to imagine brand new expensive condos not demanding some new streets.

Again, we poked around here and there, picked up on paletas, and generally enjoyed the spectacular weather.

Some pleasant condos in the northern condo neighborhood.

The vast street market downtown. These trinket markets are not to be confused with the great Sunday arts and crafts market in La Cruz.

I am a sucker for froggies.

Blackberry cheesecake paletas - INCREDIBLE!

More Bucerias beach-life photos.

Somehow, we got a ridiculously late start, and with the added roundabout loop, it was pushing mid-afternoon by the time we got near the hospital where the optometry office was supposed to be. It turned out to be a difficult-to-locate hole-in-the-wall office. Unknown to us, they close at 2:30 pm on Saturdays. We got there at 2:45 and was greeted by a corrugated metal garage door.

The optometry office at 2:45 pm on Saturday. Closed up tight.

Oh well, time to go to Oceans for a swim and dinner. On the way to Oceans, we came across another optometry shop that was also closed. At least we know where two are located. The water had receded from Oceans’ outdoor beach seating area by the time we got there. Oceans has excellent food. We ordered nachos and sparkling mineral water. It was prudent to take a short break from margaritas. 

The nachos were terrific but made us lazy. We never got into the water. We justified our laziness by repeatedly telling ourselves that tomorrow we are going Playa Destiladeras, one of the nicest beaches in Nayarit. We’ll get in the water for sure.

The wave-action in front of Oceans beach bar and restaurant.

This is the view from the main floor of Oceans. We usually sit underneath this patio to better access the water.

JANUARY 8 

The next town north of Bucerias is La Cruz. Although it isn’t a very big town, it does have the finest marina in the area. On Sundays, the marina plays host to the finest arts and crafts market in the entire Bay of Banderas. For us, Sundays are a twofer: first the La Cruz Market, then Playa Destiladeras, just down the road from La Cruz.

The market doesn’t change much from year to year, which is a good thing. The same high-quality hand-made craft makers set up booths here, and there are several hundred lined up along the narrow breakwater that protects the marina. Artists come to paint and sell their canvases. Food vendors whip up magnificent feasts. They aren’t street tacos. These are gourmet dishes from many different cultures. There are French crepes, Spanish paella, Texas BBQ, etc.

For me, the best part is the entertainment. The market organizers never have the same acts and yet they dig up an endless supply of the best local musicians that play all kinds of musical forms. Today, we saw four musical acts: 1) A solo lady singing beautiful French folk songs; 2) Two lady violinists singing and playing traditional Mexican folk songs; 3) A four-piece band playing rollicking electric Mexican tunes; 4) Three guys weaving jazz with the bass player taking his share of jazz solos.

The marina at La Cruz.

You can see the market booths lining the marina's breakwater.

No genuine arts and crafts market is complete without a glass blower.

Much of the art in Mexico employs bold colors.

Some artist use the time at the market to continue to work.

Craft-made tequilas.

This lady played and sang beautiful French folk songs. It was an interesting contrast to hear French lyrics (above) just a short distance from tradition Mexican songs (below) sung in Spanish.

Above and below: What a great setting for a band shell.

These guys had a different take on jazz. The base player was the lead instrument. The guitar was mainly for complicated rhthyms. The percussionist is playing what is called a Cajon Drum Box.

These guys made all things crepes - meat, seafood, and fruits. If you could think it up, they would make it.

Unabashedly, meat.

Spanish paella.

Above: Now that's a sandwich! In the forefront, the customer is holding a board with a custom-crafted sandwich - a sort of burrito too big to close.

After the market, we always take the ATM bus (not to be confused with ATM machines) to Playa Destiladeras located further down the coast. This beach has always been our favorite beach in the 50-mile wide Bay of Banderas. This time, we were committed to going swimming.

If you don’t lug your own chairs and umbrellas, you can rent them at Playa Desiladeras. We rent. It is pricey at 350 pesos ($17.50 US), but it guarantees you a comfortable shady spot for the entire day. There are two beach bars and restaurants that serve you food and drinks, and there are a flood of food vendors with everything from grilled shrimp on a stick, to giant fruit plates, to baked goods, and a variety of deserts.

It was now time to get wet. Sadly, and I mean this in the most tragic sense, this perfect beach was littered with rocks. They were everywhere near the water and in the water. Playa Destiladeras had the most perfect sand surface of any beach we have ever walked on. Now it was full of pebbles and rocks. Later, we found out that Hurricane Roslyn, back in October, brought these intruders into paradise.

We tried to walk into the water but the rocks hurts too much. Fortunately, we have Chaco sandals and they make excellent water shoes. We put our sandals back on and that worked. We discovered that 30’ into the water, the rocks disappeared and our perfect sand bottom was restored for the rest of the way into the surf. That was especially good because the waves were strong and we didn’t want to get pounded into a bunch of rocks when a giant rogue wave took us by surprise. Thanks to Chaco, our beach day was salvaged.

Water soaked and sun soaked, we took the bus back to Bucerias at 6 pm.

Playa Destiladeras.

A plate of Nachos to split.

A mountain of freshly prepared fruit.

Dave and Wanda

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