Ottawa to Cuernavaca, Late Fall, 2006
Saturday, December 2nd, 2006 - Under the Great Lakes
We left Ottawa at about 9:30 on a sunny Saturday morning after our first major snowfall the day before. We headed south to Ogdensburg, NY and then over to I-81 to go on to Syracuse. We encountered a fierce snow squall just north of Syracuse, but after a quick lunch at the Carousel Mall, the snow stopped and the I-90 was clear all the way to Erie, PA, where we stopped for the night. Sorry no pictures, but we did see beautiful ice covered trees on the Canadian leg from the freezing rain. Had supper at Safari Grill in Erie which had great ambiance. The California Pinot Noir was quite potent, while the salmon was a little too sweet, being "honey glazed" although not advertised as such. It was otherwise very good. Have a nice room with a balcony with a view of Lake Erie. Temperatures are about the same here, right about freezing, but tomorrow should tell a different story.
Sunday, December 3rd, 2006 - The Heartland
Off to a cold start at 9 am, after a good hot breakfast, but putzed around Erie for a while meaning we didn't actually leave until 10. Another grey day, but a fairly bright grey day, and no snow or rain, so we count our blessings. We got to Columbus, Ohio, the state capital around 1:30 and spent some time at Easton Town Center, a very nice, upscale shopping mall, the all outdoor kind, which made for some brisk walks from store to store. Had a late lunch at the Brio Tuscan Grill, a very nice chain only in select cities. I had a great "Bistecca Salad" with a heart of iceberg lettuce laced with Gorgonzola cheese and pieces of real bacon, followed with a lasgna bolognaise, both delicious. Solange had a grilled piece of swordfish with roasted vegetables, also good.
Then on to Cincinnati for the night, arriving at 5 pm, when it is still getting dark early. We will have to go further west and south to get later sundowns. Also the 6 pm temperature was 28°F or -2°C. Didn't get any of the high winds they were forecasting either. It can only get better.
Monday, December 4th, 2006 - Musical Cities
Left Cincinnati at 10 am, getting lazy or tired, not sure which, but we again had a good breakfast. Took a little break enroute and again for an hour or so in Nashville, but then on to Memphis, or actually, a favourite suburb, Germantown, Tennessee. This wireless high speed internet accepts my smtp account so I can send from my home email instead of using web mail. Progress. We decided to spend two days here to get caught up on some down time and do some shopping and other errands and take in some music on Beale St.
The day started sunny and remained sunny all day. Very beautiful, but still cold. It got up to 40°F at midday but went down to 35°F as night fell. There was an interesting restaurant in Nashville, in the Opryland Center, where you dine underneath live fish, including sharks. Appropriately enough the reataurant is called Aquarium.
We are now in Central Time, so we gained an hour, but also, as we progress westward and southward, the sun goes down later. Saw the thermocline in USA Today, so we can see where it turns warmer. Maybe we should head south faster rather than westward to get into the balmier temperatures sooner. Maybe down to Louisiana and then around the Gulf to Texas. Decisions, decisions!
Tuesday, December 5th,2006 - Memphis Rest
Today, we did a little browsing around Germantown, visited an Apple store, drank Starbucks and in the evening strolled down the famous Beale Street, reading the bronze Rythm and Blues tributes embedded in the sidewalks, including such as Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley and absorbing the live bands in the various clubs. We finally settled on the Blues City Cafe Band Box, on Beale Street, where we enjoyed Gary Hardy and the Memphis Two. He was particularly good on Johnny Cash songs and had a great voice. The "Memphis Two" represented a second guitar and a bass who played well with Gary's lead guitar. I had a seafood gumbo and a couple of beers. Later, we checked out the Peabody Hotel, elegant as usual with a live piano player playing quiet tea room music in the large lobby with the famous fountain.
Wednesday, December 6th, 2006 - Cajun Country
Today, we left at 9:15 am, well rested. The temperature was 51°F or 10°C, warmer than the day before, but we decided on the southern route anyway. We went south on I-55. As soon as we hit the Mississippi state border we started seeing brown and yellow leaves on the deciduous trees and some green bushes and shrubs, both a welcome sign. The grass by the road turned a deep blue green and halfway down the state, near the capital Jackson, we started seeing some gum trees, with their thick dark green leaves. Magnolias, Eucalyptuses, etc.
By Jackson the temperature had soared to 68°F or 20°C and soon we crossed into Louisiana. After turning west from I-55 to I-12, we decided to stop early at 4 pm in Baton Rouge instead of carrying on to Lafayette. We did a little shopping and then had supper at a Cajun place called Copeland's of New Orleans. We had Mahi-mahi, mine blackened and Solange's grilled. The service and the ambiance were very good, and the food too. We went for a walk after supper, at 9:30 and it was still a relatively balmy 65°F. A nice change from chilly Memphis.
Thursday, December 7th, 2006 - Texas
Woke to sunshine and left around 9:50 as Solange wanted to Skype her mother for her 93rd birthday. The thermometer stood at 57°F with sun and high haze above us. Heavy traffic through the oil and gas corridor from Lake Charles LA to Beaumont TX with all the stinky refineries and the large tanker trucks. Got to Houston around 1:30 and spent some time at the Galleria. Temperatures around 67°F at mid-day and on we went to San Antonio.
We ended up having supper at a small Mexican restaurant called Tac-Iza run by two MDs from Mexico City who moved to San Antonio to keep their children away from the kidnappers of DF. It is too hard to get licenced to practice in Texas with their Mexican degrees and certification, so now she waits and he cooks.
Friday, December 8th, 2006 - The Border Town
We left very late today, at noon. Too many little chores in the morning. We had blue skies starting out and 57°F (13°C) as a cold front had come down even to San Antonio. As we headed south the temperature actually dropped and about an hour out of town it plummeted to 45°F (7°C) and then we encountered very noisy hail! During the hailstorm people started slowing down, but I realized we would not get any ice on the road until we got down to freezing. Imagine two Canadians driving in a hailstorm near the Mexican border. Soon the hail changed to snow and the temperature dropped again to 38°F (3°C). Close but no cigar. It stayed at 38F and then turned to a steady rain, the first rain on our trip so far. After we arrived in Laredo, the temperature rose but a mix of hail and rain remained.
More shopping and we decided it was too late to make any headway into Mexico, so we stayed in Laredo. At 7 pm, when we went for supper, the rain had stopped and the streets were dry, but cool. The Holiday Inn dining room had a definite slant toward Mexican. I had tortilla soup, followed by a small filet mignon, while Solange had the red snapper Veracruz style. All very good, but not haute cuisine.
Saturday, December 9th, 2006 - Northern Mexico
On Saturday morning we were organized. We left at 8:35 am in 44°F overcast weather and crossed the border. They didn't even look at us, no look at passports, nothing, just waved us through. Next we went to the car temporary importation place where everything went smooth as silk. Tourist cards, photocopies, get the decal, paste it on and off we went. This time we found a straight road from the permit place to the road to Monterrey without going through the town. Perfect. Soon we were on the toll road to Monterrey. A bit of fog going around Saltillo and then clear sailing to Matehuala. However, it was mainly cloudy and cold.
We stopped early at 3 pm in Matehuala, at the Las Palmas Midway Inn, did a 15 minute walk around a 1.7 km measured course amidst two kinds of cactus, Nopal and don't know the name of the other. We visited the town, had an early supper at the hotel restaurant and early to bed. Ceviche for a starter, Sirloin Tips with mushrooms for me and "Carne Asada" for Solange. Very good as usual.
The hotel had both wireless and wired internet, wired for a fee and wireless for free, however, neither were working at this time. So, maybe next year.
Sunday, December 10th, 2006 - Below the Tropic
Sunday, we left at 9:15 after a hearty breakfast at the hotel restaurant, Huevos Rancheros for me and an egg-white, ham and cheese omelet for Solange. We set out in 11°C overcast weather again and reached the Queretero bypass at 1 pm. Now it was 23°C, sunny with blue sky and a few puffy white clouds. This is more like it! We entered northern Mexico City at 2:30 pm and exited southern Mexico City at 3:45 pm, 52 km in 1 hour 15 minutes, not bad on a 12 lane divided bypass with bumper to bumper traffic. That is an average of 41.6 km/h for you arithmetically challenged. Got home to Cuernavaca at 4:30 pm. Unpacked enough to get into sandals and shorts and walk into town for a supper at Sanborn's terrace.
Statistics
We covered a distance of 5,000 km, a little over 3,000 miles in 9 days and the last two days spent 655 pesos in tolls, or about $70 Cdn.
We pay exactly 6.74 pesos per liter for gas, or about 72.8 cents Cdn per liter in all of Mexico, as set by the government. Of the 5,000 km, 1,183 km (738 miles) were in Mexico.
Gas in the US was about $2.25 per gallon or about 59.4 cents US per liter or 68.2 cents Cdn per liter. Cheaper than Mexico and much cheaper than Canada.
Temperature is 27°C or 80°F. Just right. The pool is 25°C, 77°F, a little chilly. Should probably turn on the heater.
December, 2006
