shoestring gringa

Easy or difficult of access? This is something you don’t have to think about usually in the states, as travel is still so cheap and readily available. It’s a much bigger issue in Mexico, however, particularly if you’re in a hurry.

Consider: How far is the nearest airport? How often are there flights to where you might need to go? Some cities may offer direct flights to selected stateside destinations a couple times a week; these can be a real bargain. At other times it will be necessary to route through Mexico City (all roads lead to Mexico City), which costs more. Do you have aged parents or other family likely to necessitate emergency visits? Then maybe San Cristobal de las Casas, on its remote, cloud-shrouded mountaintop, wouldn’t be the best choice (although I think I read somewhere an airport was in the works).

If you’re planning to travel within Mexico, it’s usually a time/money tradeoff. Mexico has a fabulous bus system extending to every nook and cranny of La Republica, and prices are quite decent. But, distances being what they are, bus travel can involve many days, which has its own costs, like eating. Airfares within Mexico are pretty pricey. Rental car prices are comparable to those in the states. Gas prices are rising, although not to the same heights as in the states so far (unleaded is about $2.70 a gallon at this writing). If travel of any sort is going to be a big part of your Mexican life, and money is a consideration, then think well on these things.

Remoteness per se is not necessarily a big deal. It’s the mix that any particular place has to offer that’s important. Progreso, Yucatan, where we lived, for example, was a great location for access to the US by plane; less so for access to the rest of Mexico. This place is pretty damned remote, perched on the tip of the Yucatan peninsula. BUT, it’s only a half-hour from the Merida airport, which has daily flights to Houston, daily reasonably- priced flights to Houston, at that. I flew round-trip Merida to Albuquerque, New Mexico in June of 2006 for only $500. A couple months later, the MG and I traveled to Guadalajara round trip, a far shorter distance, and it cost us $400 each. (I’ve noticed that on Mexican carriers, roundtrip airfares are not discounted as opposed to buying each direction separately, but I don’t know if that’s always the case.) The Merida airport has dozens of flights daily to Mexico City, from where you can connect to anyplace in the world. And, you could do the whole thing without using your car; a taxi from Progreso to the airport was about $25.

Additionally, we were able to ship a crate of five large (48 x 36″) paintings from Merida to our gallery in Arizona, via DHL, for about $500. So, Progreso/Merida was excellent for access to the rest of the world, despite being at the end of the earth and a 7-day drive from Tucson.

In terms of shopping, Progreso had a great central market (roast pig tacos for breakfast!) and a pretty fair small supermarket. We shopped for wine, parmesan, and cat supplies at Sams and Aurrera in Merida, a half-hour drive away. Progreso got its own Aurrera about a month before we left.

In the northern state of Sonora, where we are living now, the situation is very different. Here, we are a three-hour drive from the US border, four to five hours’ drive from the Tucson airport, and a three-hour drive from Hermosillo and its airport. That’s in your own vehicle. There is bus service which of course takes a lot longer.

As far as shopping goes, only very basic items are available in the local tienditas; all other shopping must be done in the city, three hours and maybe $50 in gas distant. The nearest bank is an hour and a half away. Careful planning is of the essence when living in such a remote location. One example: We forgot to fill the truck with gas the day before departing on a trip to the states, and so, after getting up at 4 a.m. for an early start, were obliged to sit around feeling very disgruntled until our local Pemex station opened at 7.