Puerto Escondido (day 8)

Well today was a coasting kind of a day. We slept really well at Tracy and Jims, and they drove us back to Sherman around 10:00am. We knew Mary would be concerned about us not being there in the morning, although when we got back she had gone into town with Sylvia, her mother in law.

I noticed a sign down the road where a new mechanic had opened up shop. Sherman’s rear springs are starting to get weak, and when I was inspecting them, I had noticed some missing bolts that hold the springs together tight. I’ve known for a while that they were gone, and it’s not really an issue except that now that the springs are getting weak. They only exist to make the springs stronger when there’s a heavy load. Anyhow, I had bought new bolts with the intention of installing them. All I needed was a decent jack.

So I got this new mechanic to wander over here and he said he could do the job and that all he had to do was go get a different jack. He did that, and worked away at it for a half an hour or so before deciding that his jack wouldn’t lift Sherman high enough. I asked him how much I owed him for his time, and he said nothing. I gave him 40 pesos ($3.33) and he was very happy. Understand that mechanics are VERY inexpensive in Mexico, so this probably wasn’t much less that he would have wanted had he done the whole job from start to finish.

He told me about a mechanic in town who specializes in heavy truck suspension, but we’ve decided that we are leaving tomorrow for sure. So maybe we’ll have it looked at in Acapulco if I see a place that looks convenient. As I said, it’s not imperative, just something that we’ll need to have done at some point soon.

Mary decided that she wanted to take us out for mariscada. It should have been us taking her out, but she insisted that it would be her treat. Mariscada is a popular local seafood dish that is served on a big plate, and then everybody in your party helps themselves off the plate. There were five of us going, plus the two children, and it was to a local restaurant that was only a five minute walk away.

Ruth, Mary, Alejhondra, Olivia, Sylvia, Nataly, Mary

So we’re heading back towards Acapulco on Saturday, but we don’t really want to drive the six hours straight back to Playa Ventura, so we’ll try and find somewhere to overnight along the way. Even if we make it to Playa Vantura, there won’t be any intenet access there, so don’t be concerned if you don’t hear from us again until Monday or Tuesday!