We've got gas!

Now we're cooking!


The Easy Bake oven is gone, and a real, cooktop is in working order!
Augustin and the plumber showed up this morning. They moved the gas bottle closer to the kitchen, which made a much shorter distance between the tank and the burners. Yippeee! I was doing the happy dance when they lit all four burners and the oven, all at the same time. The price to pay for being able to cook, however, is no hot water. The tank is now too far from the water heater to be efficient. The plumber is coming back Saturday to install another gas tank for the water heater, and to chisel out the concrete wall in the shower, in order to replace the valves. Mexican plumbing: everything is embedded in concrete, which makes repairs interesting. It's ok about the hot water. The water tank is on the roof, and we both had hot showers this afternoon. And, I'd take a cold shower to be able to cook!

Campeche, Hostal Pirata



The bus ride to Campeche from Merida is about 2.5 hours. The road is good, and takes you through the low, scrub jungle. There are a couple of small villages, but not much population to speak of. This is the lowest density section of the country. Not much farming, the living here is mostly from fishing.

We found the Hostel Pirata inside the old walled city, and dumped our day packs before exploring the city. The very first impression is that the city is so pretty! And, clean. The architecture is typically spanish, built right on the street, with the hidden courtyard behind the walls. What makes it so pretty is that EVERY building has fresh paint in a bright color, and the trim is in good shape, mostly white. The result is that the city looks like a wedding cake, with white icing. Much of the original Spanish wall is gone, but several of the bulwark's are still standing, and in use. A couple of sections of the wall that still exist really are 10 feet thick! Most of the historical things tourists would be interested in are free, and those charging a fee are worth the low price asked. We walked the malecon, beach walk, and enjoyed a couple of beers on the roof of our hostel at sunset. It's quiet here, so far only two other people here, and they are speaking German. Our dinner quest turned out to be rotten eggs, after a 2 mile walk, and we ended up back at the same restaurant where we had a very good lunch of ceviche and sopa de limon. For dinner, we had fish, and enjoyed sitting after our hike.

The hostel had dorm rooms for about $10US, where 8 or 10 people grab a bunk, and that usually works out fine, but for a few dollars more, we got the luxurious private room you see pictured here. I couldn't quite touch both walls at the same time, but close! And, we had our own bathroom. With hot water. And, the price included breakfast. The next morning, at breakfast, we found 6 other travelers had spent the night, and we never heard a peep.




We toured the fort and museum of Mayan artifacts, the botanical garden, and just walked the city to see the beautiful, old buildings. I'd come back here, to do nothing but take pictures and watch the sunset daily. The brown pelicans would welcome anyone to do the same.