Eagle Pass / Piedras Negras / Podiatrist

Mother woke me up at 8:20 a.m. knew I needed to get up but prolonged it until 8:30 a.m. 

The City of Del Rio meter repair guys came at 8:50 a.m. I was pleasantly surprised at how polite and professional this young man and his partner were.  They assured me that since the leak was on their side of the street, mother’s water bill would not incur additional charges and they answered all my questions.  I was very pleased with the manner in which they conducted themselves and as soon as I get an opportunity I am going to write a letter to the City to let them know.

We had a nice leisurely drive to Eagle Pass and got there early enough so we could cross into Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico using Bridge #2.  It took me a while to find it but by golly I did!  The office of mother’s Podiatrist is much closer if I cross into Mexico at this point.

 

In the waiting room I was reading the local newspaper when I saw an ad for Gutierrez (a chain grocery store) and they had absolutely GREAT prices and you know how I like bargains.  I had never been to this grocery store in Piedras Negras before and I believe I have only been to the one in Ciudad Acuna perhaps on two occasions.  I think that may have to change, as we were both pleased with what we saw.

Today’s exchange rate was:

To Sell US Dollars      13.45

To Buy US Dollars      13.60 

       

So you can get the feel for some of the bargains we purchased and their price in Mexican Pesos:

Lettuce                2.90 a head

Bananas              2.90 a kilo

Watermelon        2.90 a kilo

White onion        3.90 a kilo

Jalapenos           3.90 a kilo

Cabbage            3.90 a kilo

Cilantro              1.90 a bunch

When I came to the beverage aisle I saw Mexican Coke and could not help but think of Dizzy Dick as I once read on his blog how his wife and him enjoy purchasing one from time to time.

Since we ventured out to this store at a part of the city I was unfamiliar with I was not able to find my way back to Bridge #2.  Not a problem as there are lots of signs pointing you to the downtown area I do know, to cross back to the USA at Bridge #1.

 

Gas was high at the name brand gasoline stations in Eagle Pass. We found it at a more reasonable price at Stripes.

All in all we had a very good day and we certainly accomplished a lot.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Readers Questions and Concerns

I did a blog of our trip to Eagle Pass on February 23, 2012.  Since then I have gotten a lot of e-mails asking why I did not do a post on Piedras Negras (across the border from Eagle Pass) or at least post a couple of pictures.

My answer:  I had every intention to do a post but was having a lot of problems with my slow ISP as well as uploading pictures to Photobucket so I nixed the idea but by popular demand will post some of the photos I took.  However bear in mind that driving in Mexico is very different from driving in the US, you have to be on your toes because they weave in and out of traffic especially taxis and motorcycles.  I had to stop to get the shots I did or take them while waiting at a stoplight.

Some e-mails I received also questioned the safety issue involved when crossing to Mexico with the drug cartels and associated violence and if it was a wise decision on my part to do so.

My answer: Living along the Texas-Mexico border I am certainly aware of the dangers and while each of us have different tolerance levels or definition of what constitutes dangerous climates I have no problem going into Mexico but only in certain border towns like Del Rio, Eagle Pass and Presidio, Texas.  You would  NEVER catch me crossing El Paso into Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Laredo into Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas or other border towns in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.

Why just these towns?  Because I am familiar with them, I visit them often with the exception of Presidio, Texas but I would have no qualms crossing there either.  As a matter of fact Ciudad Acuna, Coahuila is considered the safest border to visit in Texas.  Hope that answers your questions if not feel free to e-mail me at msbelinda@hotmail.com or you can leave me a comment here on the blog.

The Blame Game

We got back late last night from Eagle Pass, Texas and its border city Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico.  Took a lot of pictures but as you know my Cricket broadband connection that is really like “dial-up in disguise” takes hours to upload pictures to Photobucket.  Hope to do a post on it soon.

Today we had an appointment with the Betty Boop hating ophthalmologist and I cannot say that I am happy about it.  Seems the medication that he gave mother had a substance that caused an allergic reaction and instead of taking responsibility for it, he now blames HEB pharmacy for not letting him know that it had said substance.  Hello??? Aren’t you the doctor?  Shouldn’t he have told the pharmacist to make sure said substance was not in the substitute medication?

It has been a very exhausting week both physically and emotionally.  We have had to attend a wake, a funeral, two doctor’s appointments and a trip out of town.  Hopefully things will slow down some but it does not look very promising, as I still have to somehow fit in a trip to Houston.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.