The day started of with a run with David. We have this thing where we start off walking, and then after probably 10 minutes, we run intervals. Now, these are not the intervals of David’s racing years, so I can keep up. That is one thing about Parkinson’s – it is the great equalizer when it comes to me being able to run with David. We run for one minute, then walk for two minutes, run for one minute, walk for two minutes…you get the idea. We do this until we get up to 20 minutes of running. But we are building up again after being off the pace for a bit, so today we did 10 runs.
We returned to the RV for breakfast, cleaned up, and headed out. Our goal was to take Kathie to Los Algodones, and to share the little town with her. My personal goal was to go to Meyer Optical and get a proper eye exam and prescription. The readers are just not cutting for me, and I know that I need glasses that will address each eye individually.
Along the drive from Imperial Dam to Highway 8, we pass farm fields and groves of date palms. There is a very popular store that sells date shakes, so we stopped and took a look.
The date shake is made from dates, vanilla ice cream, and milk. They had no alternatives, so we passed and Kathie partook. She “mmmmm’d” all the way through that shake, so it must have been good.
They also had a great deal on lovely medjool dates – 11 lbs for $18.95. We will return for a box of those shortly.
It was then on to Los Algodones. We stopped short of the paid parking, and walked in. The weather was lovely, but windy.
Kathie has been looking for silver bangles, a hat, and a leather backpack, so those were the items that she was hoping to find. We stopped and talked with many vendors on the streets, and found some bangles that she really liked. We didn’t have much luck on the hat or backpack front, and thus made our way to Meyer Optical. (Just a quick aside – I have never seen so many mexican blanket backpacks with Seattle Seahawk logos in my life. The Pats were truly under-represented on the streets of Los Algodones. Sorry, didn’t take a picture.)
I paid $20 for an exam and to take my prescription with me. Because Kathie bought her glasses there, her exam was free. If I choose to return to Meyer in the next month, the exam fee will be applied to whatever I buy. I am going to compare prices to see if they are the best deal for me, but the frames I liked were only $45, and if I choose to get bifocals, then the lenses start at $70. Kathie’s frames and progressive lens were under $200, and will be shipped to her in Maine.
With the business end of our trip completed, it was time to get a little snack. As you can see in today’s featured photo, that snack consisted of margaritas and chips. David got a bottle of water. I thought the chips and guacamole were a tad pricey ($7.50) but that might be because I am used to Chipotle prices. The $5 margaritas reminded me of the cheap margaritas we used to get in college in Sacramento at that place on Arden Way near Togo’s. You remember that place, don’t you? (Kico’s Mexican is still there, according to Urban Spoon. Who knew?)
We felt like our Mexico experience was properly wrapped up, and we headed out to get in the line at customs to return to our native country. One more stop at one of the liquor stores to see what all of the fuss was about – and they have tequila tasting in the store! I tried a coffee flavored tequila, and an almond tequila. That one could be deadly because it tasted just like a La Bou almond croissant. I am heavy on the Sactown references today, aren’t I? Settled on a bottle that was probably just as cheap in the US, but I was happy, and THEN to the customs line we went.
Except that there was no line. 3:30 pm, and not a soul (or sole) in line! The town was pretty empty, and we had no explanation. Generally at this time of the day, you would have at least a 30 minute wait to have your passport looked at.
The fine men of US Customs allowed us back into the US, and we then set off to grocery shop in Yuma. (David drove, in case you were wondering.) The Fry’s on Frontage Road was packed to the gills! It was like the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. The fine people of Yuma must take this Super Bowl party stuff seriously.
We headed back to the RV’s with yummy goodies, and I made fajitas burritos for dinner, which we ate while watching the Women’s finals of the Australian Open on TV. All of that fun wore me out, and I was in bed by 9 pm. I know, I am such a lightweight!
Just a couple more days of having Kathie with us, so we are looking to make the most of it. Can’t wait to see what we do tomorrow!
I’m glad that we could have this chat,
Nancy
RV Get Fit 