Welcome back... from the Wandering Berkmans!
Admittedly it's been a while since our last post but we have been busy-- five-stays-in-5-weeks busy! So we'll break up the last 2 months over a couple of posts.
We finished up our great 6 month stay in Tucson by making sure to spend time with some terrific friends we made there. We happened to meet Marilyn and Aurelio on our last day in Lisbon way back in Feb 2020 (a million years ago it seems!) when we heard English being spoken in our local park. We were amazed to find they were going to be living in Tucson in the coming year so we made plans to reconnect when we returned there. We shared some delicious meals and great conversation regarding travel in the patio of Locale and in their home as well. Wrestling with a wayward, oversized patio umbrella was a bonding moment!
Jim and Sylvia have been our Tucson friends for years and a welcome respite when we needed a safe place to rail on politics, share a meal and share many a laugh. Now we just have to get Jim to retire! (photobomb by Nessie)
On our first day we were treated to a delicious lunch at their place with an added treat of having Alexis' parents Lulú and Serafin join us. Yes, we expected great food but the bonus of wonderful conversation with them (Don's year of Spanish lessons came in handy!) and a dance lesson post meal made for a terrific day.
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| Zalexis were kind enough to make pollo a la milanesa for Don's delicate composition. I know you were all wondering... Don and Zach wielded bbq tools to cook for us a delicious pulpo a la plancha (bbq octopus) in our Airbnb in the Condesa section of the city. And, yes, Don ate this with gusto! Here they are debating the merits of spices with hard "C's.  Day trips took us around and outside of this very large city. We'll remember our visit to Tepoztlán as the day Alexis rode a horse for the first time.....and ultimately the last time. After a near-disaster before we left the corral and a way too eventful ride, let's just say only Don truly had a generally relaxing ride. At least we looked bad-ass in our sort-of chaps.  The lunch afterward of pre-hispanic food at Restaurante El Cuatecomate soothed our nerves and filled our bellies with stewed deer for Alexis and a series of vegetable fritters with sauces for the rest of us. What did Don eat? His plate included a fritter of banana, pineapple, almond, sesame seed and amaranth with a prickly pear sauce. Not a white meat chicken breast to be found! It was truly a special and delicious meal.  A visit to a Carmelite nunnery in the forests of el Desierto de los Leones , still part of Mexico City, was a series of amazing ruins, gardens and tranquility. Cue monastic chanting.  While we were visiting, Zalexis were in the process of looking for an apartment to buy in the City. When we left on the 15th the search was continuing but we're now happy to report that they found their next home! Assuming all goes as planned, they move in to the apartment the end of June. ¡Felicidades!   It was so wonderful to see our first born in his element, happy and making plans for the future. And for us to get to know Alexis better-- he even jumped on the bandwagon and started making fun of Don's eating proclivities. Now you know he's family! Thanks for being wonderful hosts, Zalexis! <3 This post's Slice of life-- CDMX did a tremendous job of keeping the teeming population safe. We saw signs everywhere like the one below and we have never been offered more hand sanitizer in our lives. Most restaurants and stores had special mats to step on at the entrance, brimming with sanitizer. And of course, our temperature was taken everywhere. With beautiful weather, we were able to eat outside often so as a result we felt very safe. ¡Bien hecho, CDMX!  We're currently in NJ visiting friends and taking care of doctors appointments until 5/17. We hope to see as many people as possible in the short time we're here but if we missed you, hopefully we can meet up when we're back in town in November.
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We continue to keep our fingers crossed that this plan is a go!
One last note-- we've recently been asked specific questions-- very good questions- by a number of people about the logistics of this all as we've experienced it so far (miss your home yet? medical coverage? travel time frame?). We're happy to address these queries in a later post. On that vein, if you have any questions you'd like answered, comment below (don't forget to click on the "PUBLISH" button afterward to make sure it posts) or send an email and we'll add your question to the list. Understanding the humor and sensibilities of many of you (and you know who you are!) we may be setting ourselves up for who the heck knows what but that's the chance we'll take!
Until next time, thanks again to all for following along. Be well, stay safe and we hope to see you sometime soon!
Don and Monica
arizona, mexico
Happy Trails! XOXO!!
ReplyDeleteAmazing! Enjoy! And most of all, be safe! ❤️
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear from you and that you are doing well. Love you
ReplyDeletewho knows?? we may end up in Croatia for longer than anticipated if Scotland doesn't open up in July. These interesting times!
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