The Wagon

Last night at around 9:30 I drank my last frosty margarita in celebration of another season in Mexico completed. And as of today, I am officially on the wagon until around 10:45am on June 13th, when I hope to be crossing the finish line at the annual Jay Moriarity Paddleboard Race in Santa Cruz. The Jay is not too punishing, but is not exactly pleasant either. It's 12 miles of mostly glassy water, but often comes with side orders of thick fog, thick kelp, and thick marine life. I have done virtually no training, but I've got 2 weeks and a brand new 19' board to pull it together. That is going to be one delicious, ice cold Pacifico. I can almost taste it.

Round, green and perfect

I had a dream where I was trying to convince someone of the great value of something by declaring that it was "round, green and perfect." I was certain of these attributes, but I can't remember what it was. Here are some possibilities...

 

 

 

Open for business

Like the open face of a clean, green chest high wave waiting for a customer to come racing down the line, Mexico too, is open for business and hopes you will stop by. H1N1 virus? It's pretty much over, but not forgotten. The effects—both positive and negative—of mainstream media linger. Lets focus on the positive. 

In my little corner of Mexico, the normally crowded beach and lively town is PDQ... pretty damn quiet. It's a very pleasant change to paddle out to small, clean waves and wonder where the crowd went—instead of how to Jedi-mind-trick it, or slalom through it. Restaurants are open and getting the best table with a view of the surf break or town square is a given. Flights? Empty and cheap. Beer? Cold, as usual. 

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Don't see any swines

For those that emailed me (that I have not responded to... sorry, hectic week) YES, I am now home from Mexico, and NO, I do not have swine flu. Thank you for your concern.

With a safari underway and 14 guests and staff to look after, the news of the spreading virus was of great interest, naturally. We were only five hours away from ground zero in Mexico City. I gathered information daily from a broad variety of sources, including the CDC, the WHO, and the State Department (valuable links for travel, by the way, bookmark 'em). I looked at enough different media outlets to quickly see there were two almost opposite stories going on. You get the troublesome twins of Panic and Fear from Fox and CNN. And you get simple facts and smart recommendations from doctors and experts at the organizations above. I can assure you that there was far more paranoia here at home than where I was in Mexico. 

We updated our guests each day and let them know what we were prepared to do on behalf of their safety, which included getting everyone to the airport and rebooking flights. Not one was interested in leaving a minute early. We provided anti-bacterial soap, alcohol (rubbing, not drinking) and face masks, and reiterated the best recommendations of the experts... avoid crowded/enclosed spaces, avoid contact, wash hands frequently, etc. 

We saw plenty of precautions being taken; people wearing masks, cleaning everything with alcohol, and we heard of restaurants and public places being closed in Puerto Vallarta. In the end, all guests and staff left on their scheduled departures and went home with nice memories of surfing and sun and cervezas.

When I arrived at the airport yesterday afternoon everything was orderly and calm. Before you could check in for your flight, you simply had to fill out a short form, stand in a short line, and have a doctor scan your forehead to take your temperature. They stamped your form and off you went to check in. Since airports are crowded and since planes recirculate air, lots of travelers were wearing masks (including me). Better safe than swine.

Prediction: the swine flu scare of '09 will be almost entirely forgotten a week from now, and America can refocus on Britney Spears' current/next meltdown.