New and Improved: LunaBlueHotel Dot Com!

We’re pleased as punch to announce that FINALLY, as of yesterday, we have a website of which we can be proud! The day to day work of running the hotel has consumed all of our energy these past three years, and somehow updating our website was always put on the back burner.

But then our friend Mike, creator of the awesome video site about Playa del Carmen, Playatube, said, “Hey, I’ll do your website.” After a huge amount of patience on his part, weeks of sending detailed emails back and forth, and several long breaks where he thought we had fallen off the planet, he produced what we think is a really great site, the new and improved www.lunabluehotel.com. Not only did Mike create some kick ass videos but he worked closely with us to get all the pages just right. He was a dream to work with–just the right mix of “I’ll do whatever you want” and “Let me tell you why I think your way won’t work.”

We’re happy as clams. Check out our new website if you get a chance and give us your feedback. Now that we have a fresh new site, we’re hoping to keep it updated on a more regular basis with current happenings in Playa, hotel specials and other goodies. We’re also planning to integrate our blog onto our main site later in the year, as well.

And to Cheri’s brother Dean in Sacramento (owner of our favorite shopping site, where we start whenever we buy anything online, fightdivx.com), who spent hours and hours of time he didn’t really have, thank you SOOOOO much for everything. Your knowledge, advice and time was very much appreciated. You’re the best!!

Woo hoo!! We’ve earned us a beach day!

P.S. Important note: We love feedback on our blog. However, if you’re doing a comment here requesting information on hotel availability, your’re better off going to our new website and sending us a request via email. Other than the times we have trouble with email (it is Mexico, after all) that’s the fastest way to reach us, since we generally respond to email every single day. Muchas gracias.

What’s New in Playa del Carmen for 2009

For the second year in a row, we’re going to start the new year with a blog about what’s new in Playa del Carmen. Playa is growing so quickly we could probably do a “what’s new” blog every couple of weeks, but given our schedule, particularly during high season, we’re lucky to do this once a year. So here goes.

This year mostly we’re mostly reporting on our own neighborhood of north Playa, Playa Norte, or as we call it, North Beach. When we first took over the hotel (four years ago February 1), North Beach was the outskirts of the resort zone. We were practically in the boonies. Fifth Avenue had only recently been paved at our end and was not yet closed to traffic. There were few restaurants and stores, and the Luna Blue Hotel (at that time, the Hotel Zanzibar) was one of the few reasons to journey that far north on Fifth Avenue. Boy has that ever changed.

The North Beach section of Playa (north of Constituyentes) has become the new happening center of Playa’s restaurant/bar/shopping scene. Here are some of the newcomers from late 2008:

The Luna Blue Bar, Calle 26 between 5th Ave & 10th Ave. Our very own Luna Blue Bar officially opened this year, just in time for St. Paddy’s Day, but it has really come into its own in the last few months. Parrothead Cheeseburger parties, Pet Shelter fundraisers, and spontaneous happenings like lap dance lesson night have all made the ‘Blue a fun place to hang out. And starting Tuesday January 6th, one of Playa del Carmen’s favorite local musicians, Chris Bolister, will be doing an acoustic set at the bar every Tuesday night. Tony will probably be grilling his famous Papa burgers on those evenings. Chris Bollister is known around town as a great rock ‘n roll performer, but his up close and personal acoustic sets in the intimate setting of our bar show a whole other side to his personality.

Garden of Eating, Calle 20 between 10th Ave & 15th Ave. Another rather new restaurant in Playa is the Garden of Eating. The owner of a great old house in Playa refused to let her building be torn down for modern condos and instead created this interesting new restaurant. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, with dinner having an Indian influence with a special influence on curries. We just ate there tonight and had a tasty and interesting meal. We’ll definitely be back.

Molusko, 5th Avenue between Calles 28 and 30. Just next door to our favorite Italian restaurant Antica is newcomer Molusko. They have tostadas, tacos, ceviche and many more items on a largely seafood menu. Again, it’s on our “to try” list.

Ben & Jerry’s, 5th Avenue between Calles 28 and 30. As quality ice cream never goes out of style, regardless of the country, Playa has added to its list of ice cream parlors with a new Ben & Jerry about three doors down from North Beach’s Haagen Dasz. You now have a choice of where to buy very expensive high quality American ice cream!

1847, 5th Avenue between Calles 28 and 30. This is a new traditional Mexican restaurant and bar.

La Destileria, 5th Avenue between Calles 22 and 24. La Destileria is a gorgeous new restaurant which features an eclectic nouveau Mexicano cuisine served in a beautiful modern dining room or in an open air palapa bar. It is the latest in a series of upscale restaurants in Playa. La Destilleria is part of a chain that has restaurants in the larger Mexican cities, and its presence here in Playa shows how north Playa is suddenly on the “in crowd” map. We’ve eaten here several times and really recommend this place.

El Muelle, 5th Avenue between Calles 28 and 30. Another rather large bar on the same “foodie” block of Fifth Avenue between Calle 28 and 30. They were having electrical problems the night we were visited, so we’re unsure what the atmosphere is, but our first impression is that it is of the terminally hip thump thump music type popular among a crowd younger than us.

Corsi’s, Calle 28 between 5th Ave & 10th Ave. For those who like their ice cream with an Italian twist, Corsi’s joins the roster of many gelato cafes to be found in Playa. The emphasis is on gelato, but they appear to have coffee drinks and other small snacks as well. In a quiet side street café style setting. Very reasonable prices for ice cream/gelato, at least in this town.

Evolve Health Club, Calle 24 between 5th & 10th Ave. This new ultra modern health club is the talk of the town. Locals are pretty thrilled with its amazing array of fantastic workout machines & cool classes. We’ve already joined in anticipation of taking off our extra holiday pounds. And, we’re pleased to announce that guests of the Luna Blue Hotel can purchase day passes for only $100 pesos (normally $150 pesos). It’s by far the largest and nicest health club in Playa.

Airborn, 5th Avenue between Calle 22 and 24. Mens clothing store with an emphasis on guayaberas.

Soho, 5th Avenue between Calle 22 and 24. Soho clothing store has opened a second, larger location here in North Playa. Cute clothes, reasonably priced. Now they’ve added the latest ankle breaking high heel fashions for shoe divas.

Zingara, 5th Avenue between Calle 22 and 24. This is the third Zingara in town that we know of. They sell the latest in miniscule bathing suits, one of which ended up under our tree as a present for Cheri. Cute stuff and reasonable prices.

Maria Vazquez, 5th Avenue between Calle 22 and 24. Upscale womens clothing.

Mimosa, 5th Avenue between Calles 28 and 30. Upscale womens clothing.

KumKum & Mezcal Room, 5th Ave at the corner of Calle 28. This one is pretty bizarre. It’s a combination mezcal bar and jewelry store. It appears you can sip mezcal (a raw distant cousin of tequila) while you shop for high end silver jewelry, something we prefer to do sober.

Crybaby’s, Calle 24 between 5th & 10th Ave. Visitors who crave American food and can’t go a week without a burger, fries and a chocolate shake, should find what they want at this new Fifties style restaurant. The prices are pretty hefty ($8 to $11 for a burger) but they are big enough to split, and the fries were hot and crunchy, although they were out of onion rings the day we were there.

Road to the Mamita’s & Kool beach clubs, Calle 28 between 1st Avenue & the beach. Underneath the new and still under construction Aldea Thai condos, a large number of stores and restaurants are being prepared and opened. There’s one small burger joint already open. Our friends at Mexico Blue Dream Dive Shop are also relocating there in early February.

Last but not least, there has been a major change in the central part of Playa. The legendary Coco Bongo, which is a dance/nightclub with locations in Cancun and Mexico City, has now opened in Playa del Carmen at the corner of Calle 12 and 10th Avenue. We were privileged to attend the invitation-only VIP Grand Opening last week and were favorably impressed. The senses are assaulted with a never-ending stage show, trapeze artists, air and confetti cannons, flashing lights, booming surround sound and the endless pouring of liquor. It’s expensive with a $20 admittance for cash bar or a $50 all you can drink ticket, but we think it’s worth the price. It is crowded beyond belief, and movement in the club is difficult but not impossible. But still, it’s a little slice of the exotic that many people in Playa will enjoy. And the former Bali dance club has now opened as Dubai, on Calle 12 between 5th Ave and 10th Ave, right next door to CocoBongo. We haven’t checked it out yet.

Oh, and did we mention Playa now has its very own Dairy Queen? Woo hoo! 5th Ave between Calles 8 & 10. The taste of childhood is so sweet.

2009 looks to be another incredible year for Playa del Carmen. Despite the economic woes in the world, people are still flocking to our little home as one of the hippest vacation spots around. We’ll do our best to keep our blog readers up to date on whatever is new and fun down here in paradise. One thing that hasn’t changed of course…the beautiful Caribbean Sea is still here, and that’s where you’ll find us tomorrow morning to greet the new year.

Feliz Año Nuevo….Happy New Year.

It’s a Great Time to Come to Mexico

Despite the economic issues around the world, right now is the best time to plan a trip to Mexico that we’ve seen in years. Why, you might ask???

First off, all of the major airlines are having sales at the moment, although they don’t appear to be too well publicized. We’ve seen one way fares from San Francisco to Cancun on American Airlines for $94 and $99 fares (each way) on USA3000 to Cancun from Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and St. Louis. Other airlines are having similar sales. These are some of the best rates we’ve seen in years!!

Secondly, the rate of exchange between the US dollar and the peso is higher now than it has been in a very, very long time (as long as we can remember). Right now one US dollar equals anywhere between 11.5 and 14 pesos! That’s a HUGE increase over the “normal” rate of about 10.5 that has been in existence for several years. That means a savings of about 20% to 40% on everything in Mexico. And if you’re planning an upcoming trip and want to take advantage of these good rates (in case they fall back down again, which we’re guessing is going to happen), check with your local bank and ask if they can exchange some dollars for pesos and at what rate. Buy them now & sock them away for your next trip. You can’t lose.

Third, this is low season here in Playa. Hotel rates are very good across the board from now until right before Christmas, when the extra high holiday rates kick in for a few weeks before we settle into the high season months of January through April. November and early December are excellent times to come to this part of Mexico. The weather is not as scorching hot as the summer months, and temperatures are generally in the 80s during the day & the 70s at night (with occasional cool nights, like we’re having now, which are heavenly, in our opinion!).

And except for the busy time around the Thanksgiving holiday, it’s generally not hard to find hotel rooms at this time of year. Our own Luna Blue Hotel still has quite a bit of availability during the next week or so and then again in early to mid December.

Even if you plan on making a trip to Playa del Carmen or the Mayan Riviera during the holiday or high season, now’s the time to make those plans. The gorgeous blue Caribbean awaits.

Day of the Dead

Living in Mexico has exposed us to many traditions we were never aware of back in the US. One of those we really admire is observance of El Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.

In Mexico November 1st and 2nd (All Saints Day and All Souls Day in the Catholic church) are celebrated as Dia de los Muertos. It is not a Catholic holiday but a tradition which goes back centuries. During this time people remember lost friends and family whose spirits symbolically return to the world of the living for one night to be with those they love. These are not scary ghosts but memories of the departed recalled and shared by those who love them. It is a chance to honor loved ones who have passed and to acknowledge that death is not to be feared but accepted as part of life.

The spirits are called back to this world by altars called ofrendas, or “offerings,” on which are placed pictures and objects that recall those who have passed away. The altars are festooned with flowers and decorated with candles, crosses and other significant icons. Water and a sweet bread called pan de muerto are also placed on the altar to give refreshment to the spirit who journeys across the void to be with family. A deceased person’s favorite foods or drinks or other objects associated with him are often put on the ofrenda as are candy skulls which symbolize that death comes to us all and is nothing to be afraid of. An altar may be set with cigarettes, whiskey, sweets or anything the deceased liked in real life. We once even saw a marijuana cigarette placed by a friend who explained to us that getting a little buzz was one of the deceased’s favorite things to do.

On the night of November 1st people gather to eat, drink and recall those who are no longer here. For some it is a symbolic celebration. In some areas of Mexico it is believed the spirits of the dead actually return to hear from the living about how much they were loved. The next day on November 2 people in Mexico visit the graves of the departed and party! Whole families visit the cemetery with picnic lunches. They spend the day remembering those who are gone. Tears are not allowed as they may make the path from the spirit world too slippery for the souls to travel. Whether it is symbolic gesture or in true belief of traveling spirits, El Dia de los Muertos is a beautiful gesture towards those who once shared our lives.

When we first started to come to Playa, many restaurants and store had an ofrenda out front. Sadly, nowadays they are rarer as Playa becomes more cosmopolitan. However we have always liked this celebration and this holiday, and so for the last few years we have made our own ofrenda, honoring the memories of family members and friends who we have lost but not forgotten.

This year our ofrenda is decorated with paper coverings, candy skulls, cigarettes, a bottle of Irish Cream liquor, some wooden cats, lots of flowers, candles, pictures of St Jude and The Virgin of Guadeloupe, a cross inlaid with pictures of saints, a nicho or shadow box showing a small skeleton couple holding hands (a Day of the Dead tradition) and a Bible. The following friends and family are part of our ofrenda this year:

Tony’s Mom and Dad, Jack and Rosalie Head. Rosalie’s picture is her high school graduation picture showing her red hair, green eyes and bright Irish American smile. Jack’s picture is when he was 21 just after he made corporal in the Marines on the eve of WWII. It is inscribed “To Rosalie, The Sweetheart of the Marines.” On the back of the picture of Rosalie is a brown smear. It is Jack’s blood. The picture was inside his shirt on the island of Guam when he was hit by mortar fire. He carried it with him through the rest of the war, and still had it when he returned after the war to marry Rosalie. They remained together until Rosalie passed in 1997. Jack passed away in 2002.

Cheri’s dad, Ed Skultety. Ed is pictured on our altar in his US Air Force uniform. He spent twenty years in the Air Force serving honorably in Vietnam. He was later stationed stateside, mostly in Omaha, Nebraska. He married Sally Vernon (Cheri’s mom who now lives in Sacramento) and together they had six children. He retired from the Air Force in 1974 with the rank of Master Sergeant. That year he and the family moved from Nebraska to Pennsylvania where Ed had grown up and where much of his family still lived. He passed away in Pennsylvania in 1985.

Bill and Barbara Oates. Bill and Barabara were dear friends of ours in San Francisco where Bill was a waiter and Barbara a bookkeeper at the legendary restaurant the Washington Square Bar and Grill. We met Bill one day when we sat down to lunch and he served our food. As Bill set her plate down, Cheri exclaimed, “That looks delicious.” Bill said, “you know, it really does.” He picked up a fork from a nearby table and took a bite of her lunch! We were friends ever since. Bill and Barbara were one of the strongest, most loving couples we ever met. They lived through a time when interracial couples (Bill was black, Barbara white) were often ignored at best, or treated with disdain, or worse. They never complained, never returned the hatred they occasionally saw and never looked back. They held on to each other no matter what. They found a wonderful life in San Francisco where they were known at every good restaurant and decent bar in town. After they got older and ill they passed away within a few months of each other…it seemed they couldn’t live without one another. We miss them very much.

Jerry Seawright. Jerry was the founder of the Blue Devil Drum and Bugle Corps. He took a small group of kids in Concord, California and created a performance group which eventually became an international sensation which today still sets standards for excellence. Jerry’s vision led the Blue Devils to win the Drum Corps International World Championship an unprecedented twelve times. The Blue Devils selects teenagers from across the country to come to California and become part of the group of performers and musicians Jerry called “my kids.” He was a special soul who managed to make each member of the corps feel special and important–and he somehow managed to always remember everyone’s name. One young 18-year-old who received a call from Jerry to come join the Blue Devils was Cheri. She was a member of the Blue Devils color guard from 1979 to 1981 (they were named world champions in 1979 and 1980). She then became an instructor of the color guard for the next two years, during which time they won another world championship. Cheri says the Blue Devils gave her an opportunity few ever experience, allowing her to mature, to grow and to see the world. And she largely thanks Jerry for that chance. Jerry passed in 2004 and is still remembered lovingly by thousands of “kids” all around the world.

Larry Hartsell. On our altar, Sifu Larry Hartsell‘s picture is laid on the book he wrote and next to a patch from his martial arts association which he gave to Tony many years ago. Larry was a pioneer in mixed martial arts. He was one of the first American black belts in both Judo and Karate. Later he became one of the few people ever trained by the great Bruce Lee, whose art of Jeet Kune Do Larry helped to carry on after Bruce’s death. Larry never became as famous as some in the fight game. There were no movies or big paydays, but he was one of the truly great and gifted fighters of his generation. And while he sometimes fought with his own private demons, he still had a gentle soul and was a good man. Tony was honored to have known Larry and to have been his student. Larry passed away late last year. We remember him fondly.

Also on our altar are pictures of our many pets, our family, who journeyed here to Mexico with us, or became part of our family after we arrived, four of whom we lost within the last six months: our beloved English Bulldog Huggybear; our sweet cats Belle and Carib who made the trip from San Francisco in our van; and finally Blue and Lola, cats who made their home for their short lives in the garden of the Luna Blue Hotel.

Our ofrenda gives us a chance each day to stop, look at a picture and recall a moment or time with someone special to us. And if their spirits join us for a night then we hope they find nothing but love waiting for them here in this world.

Halloween in Mexico Mexico never used to celebrate Halloween. In fact, many Mexicans are scornful of the holiday, possibly seeing it as interfering with the sanctity of Dia de los Muertos, since the two holidays fall so close together. As a result, trick or treating, costumes, and the images of ghosts, witches and pumpkins have been relatively unknown here. But with the influx of foreign goods and influences, that is changing. This year, Walmart, Mega and other stores had large displays of Halloween costumes, decorations and bags of candy—in addition to traditional Day of the Dead items. It’s quite fun watching young Mexican children eyeing the colorful costumes and plastic pumpkins while their parents pry them away. Seems that kids here have caught onto the fact that all you have to do is put on a costume, and you can walk around and get candy from people on the street! We have seen more and more children on Fifth Avenue the past few years, for days before and after October 31, taking advantage of what must seem like an incredibly cool custom. Other than the few trick or treaters on Fifth Avenue, how is Halloween celebrated in Playa? Mostly by expats and tourists in bars! Many local watering holes are having Halloween costume parties, including our own Luna Blue Bar, where we’re having Halloween Happy Hour this afternoon, October 31, from 4-8 pm with a free shot or beer for anyone in costume. You could easily start early and bar crawl your way through Halloween in Playa. If you find yourself in town later today, stop by & say hello. We’ll be the ones in costume trying to keep the locals cats off the ofrenda.

Election Escapades: From San Francisco to Mexico to Key West & Back

With the US presidential election racing to a finish soon, we thought people might enjoy hearing about how we are taking part in the election from down here and how it compares with politics here in Mexico. And of course we will offer what has been labeled as our “misguided” opinions on who should be President…but don’t worry, we won’t get too preachy and you can even skip that part if you want. We won’t be offended.

Unlike the US elections, open democratic elections in Mexico have only existed for a few years. From 1929 until 2000, Mexico was ruled by one party which controlled the outcome of elections. Democratic reform swept the country in 2000, and Vicente Fox became the first opposition party candidate to ever win the Presidency.

That fragile democracy was tested in last year’s presidential election when Felipe Calderón ran against López Obrador. The race was very close and very nasty, splitting the country into two camps. Most educated professionals and people in large cities went for Calderón. Poor people living in the rural areas went for Obrador. The result was very close with Calderón winning but with many Obrador supporters claiming that the election had been fraudulent like so many in the past.

When we tried to talk about the election with Mexican friends or even our employees we were met with silence and downcast eyes. Unlike America where everybody has an opinion and is more than willing to share it, most Mexicans don’t speak easily about their political views. Whether a matter of etiquette or fear we don’t know. The few who did speak about the election were unshakable in the belief that no one could stop the rich and powerful from always being in control. It appears to us that a large part of this country views the entire political system with a mixture of distrust and fatalism.

With that atmosphere here in Mexico, we sometimes have to chuckle at the partisan squabbles back home over who is too left or too right. And the complaints about an unfair media or fears of a fraudulent voter turnout seem pretty overblown to us when compared with the real problems in establishing a democracy south of the border. Americans should never forget how really special, and strong, their democracy is.

If anything, seeing how people reacted to elections in Mexico made us want to participate in our own elections even more. The question was how to do that from 4,000 miles away. Our original thought was that we would take some time off and go back to the US as volunteers for whatever candidate appealed to us. It was a nice idea, but the more we discussed it, the more reality set in. Who was going to do our reservations, supervise our hotel, watch our bar and most important babysit all our animals? We realized pretty quickly that wasn’t going to happen. So, we did the next best thing. We sent money. By the time we were ready to give money, the race had narrowed down to Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama. Lifelong Democrats that we are, we sent our money to Mr. Obama.

Of course, in our world of international living, writing a check and sticking it in the mail is not possible. If we had mailed a check to the Obama campaign from Mexico, it might arrive in time for the election in 2012. So we went online and gave what we could. And then we gave a little more. Okay, we maxed out our contributions. We decided this election was that important.

We got a nice thank you email from the Obama campaign. And suddenly we had new best friends. Actually it was kind of nice. Even though we couldn’t give any more money, we still got almost daily updates from the campaign. They also gave us the opportunity to volunteer without ever leaving Playa del Carmen. As part of their internet volunteer program, they provided phone numbers of undecided voters in swing states for us to call. Our swing state was Nevada.

Of course it wasn’t an international call as we have an internet phone line that basically operates as a San Francisco number. That was the good news. The bad news is we have been getting constant phone calls from state, local and national campaigns who don’t realize they’re contacting us in Mexico. Boy will we be glad when the election is over. We even got a phone call tonight from the Obama campaign asking us if we’d come down to the San Francisco office tomorrow and make phone calls to get out the vote. We’d love to, but it’s a bit of a commute.

Having done what we could to help our candidate win, the next step was of course to vote for him. That was easier said than done. It ended up involving several weeks, multiple emails, two trips to the United States, a mule from Iowa, and a ballot that eventually passed through three states, four time zones and an international border. We take our voting seriously!

We got the ball rolling on a trip to San Francisco in early September. We still maintain a home in San Francisco, so that’s where we are registered to vote. After a couple of phone calls and emails, the Department of Elections in our home town informed us that we needed to print out an application for a mail-in ballot and bring it to City Hall. As we had a laptop but no printer, we asked the nice folks at the front desk of the Chancellor Hotel (where we always stay when traveling through San Francisco) for help, and they graciously printed out our forms. We then headed over to City Hall. We couldn’t pick up the ballots that day as they had to be mailed to us. Since nothing mailed to Mexico ever arrives on time if at all, we arranged for our ballots to be mailed to our friend & semi-adopted daughter Sarah in Iowa, where she lives with her now husband Adam.

Sarah & Adam were heading down in October to get married on the beach here in Mexico. Along with her dress, party favors, decorations and assorted wedding accessories, they “muled” our ballots to us. We set them aside knowing we would be returning to the US before the election, so we could mail them ourselves. There they sat relatively undisturbed (except for one unfortunate incident involving the overflowing bladder of our very old cat) until we took our vacation to Key West last week. There, amidst the insanity and raucous fun of Fantasy Fest, we managed to find time to fill out the ballots and prepare to mail them back to San Francisco. Except that somehow in the process we lost one of the return envelopes. Panic. Calls and emails back to San Francisco’s Department of Elections, who calmly informed us that we could send it in another envelope as long as it was properly addressed and specifically marked according to their directions.

So off we went on our bikes through Key West, weaving among painted nymphs and tipsy pirates searching for a store to buy the proper size envelopes. We finally found one and purchased what we needed. We stuffed and addressed the envelopes, and asked the store clerk how much it costs to mail a letter these days. He said, “Hell, I don’t know.” Key West is very laid back. So we stuck on four or five 37 cent stamps just to be sure, made our way back through the partying crowd and deposited our ballots in a US mailbox. From San Francisco to Iowa to Mexico to Key West and finally back to San Francisco. We sure hope your trip to the polls is easier.

So now it’s just a matter of waiting for election night. When it comes we’ll probably end up on the couch in front of the TV with a cup of tea, a dog, a bunch of cats, and our fingers crossed. We truly believe that Barack Obama will be the best choice for the country, and we dearly hope that he wins. More importantly, though, our experience in the third world has reinforced our belief that the best thing about democracy is that everyone has a chance to be heard and that in the end we’re all Americans, no matter which political party we belong to. Regardless of who is elected on November 4, we hope the country will give him a chance. He’s going to have one hell of a tough job.

Now go VOTE!!!!

Staying Connected…Even on the Beach

Warning!!! This entry contains references to our liberal Democratic political leanings…but we still think it has some interesting info for everyone.

Before we moved to Mexico we considered ourselves good citizens. We voted, we were active on causes and issues we cared about, and we kept informed through the print, broadcast and internet news outlets. When we moved south of the border one of our challenges was keeping up that flow of information about what was happening back home.

Amazingly some folks ask “Why care?” Some folks even assumed we surrendered our citizenship and had no rights left to voice opinions about America. That is not so. We are US citizens living and working here with both the Mexico and US governments’ permission. We still pay taxes to the US government on the money we earn here in Mexico, and we still vote! We would never give up our status as Americans. We love our country as much as anyone…and, perhaps because we have seen how the rest of the world sometimes operates, we appreciate it more than some who have never left its shores.

We still have our house, our family and our friends in the US. We visit often and will undoubtedly live there again some day. The United States will never cease to be our “home.” So it was and is important for us to keep the lines of communication open on a daily basis.

In California we regularly watched US network or cable news. Neither is widely available here. We heard stories from some people about smuggled satellite boxes and gigantic rooftop dishes that can pull in US television shows from up north. But that wasn’t our style or plan.

Instead we hooked up local Mexico satellite TV which has some limited US network coverage. Through that system we receive the CBS Morning Show and the CBS Nightly News broadcast (along with Oprah, Dr. Phil and various American soap operas) on an international broadcast channel called the American Network.

We also get FOX News Channel, which we abhor. Setting aside its political leanings, the network is little more than a televised version of the National Enquirer. It seems stories don’t have to be true, just sensational. Any attempts we made to make peace with FOX ended when they reported that our town of Playa Del Carmen, Mexico had been destroyed by a hurricane, which in reality had missed us by a several hundred miles! There is a newspaper here in Playa which is known for its false stories, sensationalized presentation and overt political prejudice…and it’s better than FOX! It saddens us sometimes that the image much of Latin America sees of the US is from FOX News broadcasts.

Local satellite does offer CNN International. It can be fascinating to watch. It hosts regular news broadcasts in English alternating between the US, London, and Hong Kong. It truly allows us to see the US as part of a larger world and we love it. When something big happens back in the States (like a Presidential debate) they broadcast it. Similarly, when there is a breaking story in Asia or Europe we see that too. The world gets smaller every time we watch. In addition we get the British Broadcast News (BBC) but tend to watch CNN because of its American connection.

However we have discovered our favorite news source is not on television but can be watched on our laptops and iPods. (Ain’t it an amazing world?!). We download MSNBC-TV podcasts for news every day, especially for the pleasure of watching Keith Olbermann on Countdown. Unashamedly liberal, his views reflect our own, and more importantly, so does his sense of humor. (BTW, Keith is on our “People Who Can Stay for Free” list.) We couldn’t get through the day without knowing who the “Worst Person… in the World” is. With our iPods we can even take Keith down to the shore of the Caribbean Sea and watch in the sand. Liberal news analysis and thong bikinis…Tony says it is the best way to follow politics.

As far as print media, the local landscape is pretty bare. Spanish language newspapers and magazines are difficult to read. Even if you understand some Spanish, reading the local vernacular instead of a textbook recitation is HARD! And unfortunately for us, English language magazines are difficult to find here in Playa. One of our secret pleasures as hotels owners is finding that guests have left behind their Newsweek, People or GQ magazines when they checked out.

It’s also worth noting that newspapers down here do not always have the same sense of independence and objectivity that US journalism has. We have to laugh when people back home complain about the prejudiced media in the States. Live in a world where you can literally buy the printing of any story you want regardless of the truthfulness of it and you won’t be quite so critical of the reporter or editor back in the US.

We do get the Miami Herald Cancun Edition which is an small English language newspaper with US national wire stories and a comics page (can’t live without Doonesbury and Classic Peanuts). But we miss our Sunday paper with Sports and Entertainment and Advertisement foldout sections. (Cheri almost had to join a twelve step program to help her get over the loss of her weekly Target ad.) Eventually we ended up turning to the internet for solace.

Now on Sundays we read the New York Times, the Washington Post and the San Francisco Chronicle, online. Occasionally we add the New Orleans Times Picayune (we love Nawlin’s) or the San Diego Union Tribune (our son Chris lives in San Diego) and we have it covered.

We also recently installed Sirius Satellite Radio. When we are not listening to Radio Margaritaville (what did you expect?) we can turn on NPR and hear Fresh Air or Car Talk with the Tappet Brothers.

All in all, over the last three and a half years we have gotten ourselves pretty wired in to the news of life back in the States. And just in time, because we now have a President to elect.

To be continued…

Next: Making a choice, and trying to help from 4000 miles away.