They left and I went back to sleep, only to be rudely awakened once more by the sound of machinery breaking the pavement...WTH? It was not the Water Department but the Waste Water Department making repairs in the corner and once again closing off the street to traffic.
Gave up and got up when one of mother's friends called to ask if I could drive her to Ciudad Acuña. Her sister had been hospitalized the night before and she had just been notified. She is a very sweet lady who like the majority of mother's friends, is a widow who lives by herself. Her children left Del Rio as soon as they could (kind of like myself) so she has no other family in town.
Was getting ready when the darn electricity went out. What the heck is going on with the local utility companies lately and why our street? Lucky for us it came back after thirty minutes.
Mexico has socialized medicine, while it is not perfect it's better than not having insurance. If you are a federal employee you are covered by the ISSSTE, if you work in the private sector you are covered by IMSS.
This ladies sister is a retired school teacher and in Mexico, school teachers are considered federal employees. I had not been to the ISSSTE installations in a long time. They are building an addition to add more hospital rooms but it is still lacking in many respects. I judge a hospital or doctor's office by the ease of access for a handicap person. There were steps to climb to get in the front door and no hand rails, there was no wheelchair ramp...things you expect a hospital to have. Their public restrooms did not have the basics like toilet paper, soap and paper towels...sure hope the nurses and hospital staff have better facilities!
Hospital Ejeza is closer to mother's house than Val Verde Regional Medical Center (only hospital in Val Verde County) and in case I ever have a need for emergency medical attention...I plan to drive myself here.
The ISSSTE facilities are close to Bodega Aurrera (grocery store owned by Walmart) it is a small facility in comparison to their large installation on the north side of town. While I did not buy a lot of things...I did save more than enough money to cover the cost of tolls and then some...you know how much I love bargains :-)
They borrowed a page from my favorite grocery store Gutierrez and put up shade canopies, which are a big plus in particular during the very hot summer months.
Across the street from Bodega Aurrera is another grocery store...Merco, the only grocery store in Ciudad Acuña when we moved to this border town.
Was glad to see that the dollar to peso ratio has gone down. This gives Mexican citizens the ability to purchase dollars at a better rate and come spend them in the United States. I apologize for the poor picture quality. You can click on it to expand it and see the exchange rate on the right side of the picture.
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| $19.30 Mexican Pesos to one US dollar - Compra $19.70 Mexican Pesos to purchase one US dollar - Venta |
The return to the USA was a breeze. I got in the lane with the least traffic, knowing fully well that the reason for this was probably due to a female agent manning the booth. Had to pop my trunk open so she could examine my ice chest but it was no big deal, cleared customs in less than three minutes.
Good night. May you all have Terlingua Dreams.
Cheap medical, saving on groceries (how much are the tolls?) and a quick trip thru customs. Nice!
ReplyDeleteI hope you're mother's friend's sister is doing well
Thanks for sharing..
It costs $3.75 US dollars to cross into Mexico (the city of Del Rio determines this rate). It cost 28.00 Mexican Pesos depending on the exchange rate about $1.45 US dollars to cross to the United States. This rate is determined by the Mexican Federal Government.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the deal with female border agents. I found the same type of thing leaving Canada to return to the U.S.
ReplyDeleteI have several theories but that is all they are...none scientific or proven by actual facts. One is that as a woman we think we have a more advanced level of intuition than men. Secondly, those with kids feel like they can detect a lie or when someone is hiding something better than their male counterparts. Thirdly, I think they work harder at trying to prove themselves in a mostly male dominated profession.
DeleteAll I know is that people living in border towns will tell you if at all possible to avoid a booth manned by one. It is an unfair assessment of female agents as they are some good ones that will not bagger you to death with questions of the reason for your trip to Mexico but they are few and far between.