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Costa Maya Newsletter> Archived Costa Maya Newsletters > March, 2010 -

Costa Maya Newsletters: of primary interest to property owners and those interested in Mahahual / Majahual - Rio Indio - Placer - Uvero - Punta Herrera - Xcalak and other points along Quintana Roo South

You can now read up to the minute Mahahual happenings at http://costamayablog.mahahuallive.com/ and Facebook

*******************Costa Maya Newsletter*******************
March / Marzo 2010

CONTENTS
Hi Costa Maya Neighbors-

New Vivero reveals my hidden weakness!

I'm not really a shopper, I like the same clothes, khaki shorts and floral shirts - after purchasing massive amounts of food and items for the gift shop, buying things for myself really looses its appeal until it comes to plants. Now the danger starts! If a nursery (Vivero in Spanish) has a plant that I don't have and I have the cash in my pocket and room in my car - its a done deal. When I lived in Washington, I really did have one of those gardens that people stopped and took pictures of. I gave my self a $1000 USD budget a year for plants (Kim never reads this newsletter - so no one tell him how much I spent)!

This is why I am announcing Mahahual's first Vivero here in the editorial - to me it is a really important event and worth every word I write about it!. So on my first outing, I purchased several plants, a bag of compost and the lovely sales girl was still suggesting more to me - since I was out of cash it was a useless endeavor. I vowed to return. You can't have a hotel called Mayan Beach Garden without a great garden! The prices are every bit as good as they are in Chetumal and the variety is great. The Vivero doesn't have a name yet - I asked her and they are still trying to come up with one. Right now the winning name is Tierra Negro, but don't look for that name - there was a lot of shrugging when I asked her about it. The nursery is located close to the KM 55 area on the North side of the road - calling to me as I leave Mahahual - which of course I will answer!

Now that I've confessed my weakness, I also have to say that I like to spread the beauty. Please stop by and get cuttings of anything I have on hand - especially abundant in my garden are Tradescantia, Queen Emma's Lilly, spider lilies, local basil and various varieties of cactus.

As soon as Semana Santa is over, you very likely will find me hanging out at the Costa Maya Villa Condos helping out in the Mayan Paradise Properties model and sales office. This is a new thing for me, but Todd promises a big budget for plants and flowers - I should do all right! Stop by there if you are in town, visit and take a look at the condos!

Marcia with Baracuda

Past newsletters can be found at NEWSLETTER ARCHIVES

Sign up for up-to-date info at Costa Maya-Mahahual Live Blog with updates and current events

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Message board - Looking for your best Mexican Recipe

This is a repeat from last month - a few recipes were posted, but not many. If you have photos and want to include them, please send them to me and I'll find a way to post them for you.

I've been thinking about ways to fund beach cleaning and have decided to publish a Costa Maya Recipe book with proceeds going toward cleaning up the plastic on the beach. I know that cooking and plastic don't exactly go together, but every little bit helps! If you would like your recipe to be included, please post it on the message board. Recipes should be items that can be made here at the beach with ingredients you can get here in Mexico and that can be repeated when you leave here and return to your home. Depending on the response, we will also offer the opportunity to vote on your favorite recipes. THANKS - can't wait to see those recipes.

Message board conversation for this month: http://costamayalive.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?p=2546&sid=7c017b3b2e6b032b0ff54c07213bb1a6#2546

Riviera Maya Airport in Tulum

Last week President Felipe Calderon made a surprise visit to Tulum to announce the Riviera Maya Airport. That same day, there were policemen everywhere in Mahahual as well making one think that there was something going on here as well. I've talked about the airport in the past and it has been on the radar for years and nothing really has gone forward. Last year with the influenza scare, things almost ground to a halt and the airport was put on hold citing lack of funds. On March 22, , Calderon the bidding process to construct and operate the airport has been started and the "bases" for the competition will be published on April 15, 2010. This sounds like the same thing we have heard many times before, but never by the president.

The new airport will cost some 3.2bn pesos (US$255mn), and will be the first entirely concessioned airport in Mexico, President Felipe Calderón said during a ceremony broadcast live from Tulum.. The new airport will occupy some 1,500ha located 130km south of Cancún airport, and is expected to handle 3mn passengers each year. The Riviera Maya project was scheduled to go ahead in 2009 - however, SCT (transport and communications department) postponed the tender due to the global economic crisis. Local airport operators OMA (Nasdaq: OMAB, BMV: OMA) and Asur who runs the airport in Cancun, Chetumal and Cozumel (NYSE: ASR, BMV: ASUR), Spain's OHL and the Mexican branch of Australian investment bank Macquarie (ASX: MQG, Pink Sheets: MQBKY), are all reportedly interested in the concession.

I've always thought that getting people here is the biggest roadblock to development here. The airport should make a huge difference to property values and investment opportunities in Southern Quintana Roo which is getting a lot of focus for investment. Tulum is not considered Southern Quintana Roo, but the building of an airport only 2.5 hours away is huge. I'll continue to update everyone on this.

mahahual and Costa maya news

2010 Carnival highlights and photos.

Mahahual ended up with a fine display of floats without the promised floats from larger organizations like Hard Rock Cafe. I never actually counted the number of floats, but it stretched half a kilometer - most of them being local children's groups and small businesses. Anyone could join in with a float and they did.

Gathering at Aromas
All the floats gathered at Aromas and Bard's waiting for the parade to start. Scheduled to start at 5:00 PM, it was well after Bug eating time before the parade actually began. The float on the right was sponsored by one of the fishing tours.
All dressed and waiting to start
Little pirates in disguise.
Recycling Float
Recycling float sponsored by Mayan Beach Garden, Blue Ocean Safari and Yum Botic. Biodegradable trash bags were passed out to everyone.

The festivities took place over two nights, Friday 26, February and Saturday 27th. The Parade started at Barudis, drove North through the casitas, turning around at Corona House and then south to Mahahual Highway where it turned east toward 2nd street. There it traveled south turning east again at the southern end of the Malecon. It traveled North along the Malecon to the stages which were set up in the vacant area between Tequila Beach and Super Carolina.

Two stages accommodated both the dancers (seen at the right) and a live band. The dancing ended about 10:30 at which time the band started playing. I left about 11:30, but I know they played until early in the morning.


The performances were very good - lots of color, loud music and beautiful girls

Happenings in and around Mahahual
(thank you Marilyn Marshal for letting me include some of the Mahahualanean's news)

  • The yearly Marathon for the children will not be occurring this year due to the absence of a number of key people who are unavailable to attend. Instead, sodas and refreshments will be passed out to the children on April 30th, children's day.
  • Mahualeaneans will be holding a silent auction in the fall to raise money for a public playground for the children. If you pass by the kindergarten, you will notice a new play set .
  • The streetlights are now finished in Mahahual - you can see the glow 20 km away. I wonder what the turtles will think about that! 
  • Ice cream stores... both Tropicante on the Malecon and Salamandra offer "home made" ice cream.
  • A new dentist in town is now open for business on the north end of second street - this is near Fernandos for those who are unfamiliar with the area, but know Fernando.
  • Fernando's new restaurant (formerly Roots) is now open for lunch and dinner. 100% Agave is still open.
  • Starbucks - Starbucks now open between HardRock Cafe and the port entry.
  • Circle of Faith Christian Studies meets at Corona House every Sunday at 10:00 a.m.
  • Mail pickup: For those who aren't aware, you can pick up mail at t Mobius Cafe They are located on the first block into the casitas on your left as you are entering.
  • The Mayan Museum mentioned in a previous newsletter will be built beside the health clinic and will start construction immediately. The new playground will occupy the property beside it.
  • Sport complex- They are building a huge covered sports facility between the office of the Alcaldia and the offices of IPAE.  It is the standard one that you see in the adjacent communities of Bacalar and  Limones with the green roofs.  This will be a great place for many of the locals to gather for special events as well. 
  • Market - currently scheduled to occur every other week - a Farmer's market and artisans has had two successful weeks and hopefully will repeat two weeks. The next one should be on April 7th. It will be located in the empty lot that is just across from Matan Ka'an hotel and next to the health clinic.
  • Health Clinic- if you haven't been in the health clinic lately, you will be surprise. It now has a nice little waiting room and a pharmacy, looking much more professional that it did a year ago.
  • Fashion show (do you believe it!) on the Malecon at National Beach club in mahahual - March 27th at 7:00 PM
  • Nursery/Vivero newly opened on the Mahahual highway, in the KM 55 area on the North side of the road
BELOW: the area just outside the Costa Maya pier with the new shops including Lapiz and Hard rock

Costa Maya port

Artisans and Farmer's Market

Scheduled to occur every other week, the farmer's market will hopefully draw large crowds. Although it occurs on what normally is a cruise ship day, the market is geared to locals. Starting at 7:30 in the morning and going until 3:00 PM, the market includes craft items, produce, lots of plants, even quail and parakeets for sale. I checked the prices and they seemed to be very good. I purchased 10 small plants for $15 pesos each. I was gifted with two free plants. Seemed like a deal! The next market should occur on the 7th of April. It is located in the empty lot East of the health clinic and across from Matan Ka'an.

Mahahual Market

Ambulance and handicapped donation from Royal Caribbean

According to Andrés Ruiz Morcillo, president of Othon P Blanco, one of the main priorities of the Municipality for Mahahual's tourism development and progress, is emergency and health services. He maid the statement at a ceremony celebrating the delivery of an ambulance from the State Ministry of Health and a grant from Royal Caribbean of16 wheelchairs, 17 walkers and 30 canes for the blind..

The ambulance is equipped with medical and emergency equipment, including an electrocardiograph and a defibrillator, oxygen and suction system, five gauges and inhaler, plus operator training through coordination with the Secretariat of Public Welfare. and commitment of Governor Felix Gonzalez Canto to fund it.

fee increase proposal for passport and services

On February 9, 2010, the Department of State proposed fee increases for American Citizen Services.  The fee increase is currently in a “period for public comment” and would take effect later this year. In particular, passport services fees will increase as follows:

  • Passport Renewal for adults-- $75 to $110.
  • First-time Passport Application or Replacement of Lost/Stolen Passport from $100 to $135.
  • Passport for Minors:  from $85 to $105
  • Report of Birth Abroad $65 to $100
  • $82 fee for adding passport pages

You can find the complete list of proposed new fees at our web site: http://merida.usconsulate.gov

You may renew your passport at any time by making an appointment with the Consulate at http://merida.usconsulate.gov/merida/passports.html

Water Taxi to Belize - now leaving from Chetumal (REPEAT)

Water Taxi

The Chetumal to San Pedro belize Water Taxi is now running regularly Friday - Mondays. Weekends are currently not part of the program because of the high weekend visa fees imposed by Belize.

The boat leaves Chetumal at 7:15 PM and returns at 3:pm. The cost is $55 USD round trip.

I have yet to take the trip, but Lupe (my cook) has a daughter who works for Immigration issuing the day long visas. According to her, they are currently getting enough passengers to keep it going. It is my understanding that the boat leaves from the maritime pier which is North of Sam's club.

Contact information is shown on the image at Left. Belize city and San Pedro will have English speaking operators.

 

Mayan beach garden reservation News and Free stuff offer

The Free stuff offer is still in effect in March, April and May. If you email and I forget to offer you a deal - you'll get a free cocktail (minimums apply). The longer you stay, the more the free stuff accumulates. Additionally - there is no High season or Low season to these offers - they are good any time through October 2010.

Referral Program

Many of you have stayed with us here at Mayan Beach Garden and have also referred friends and family in our direction. We really appreciate your business, especially in these times when things are tight. The best compliment anyone can give us is to provide a referral. Because all of our customers are important to us (and hopefully will return!), for every person we know about that you refer (make sure they let us know!) we will credit 5% of their lodging stay toward a future visit for yourself. The more you refer, the less your stay will cost. Plus, it can be added to our" Free Stuff" offer!

Fishing in Espiritu Bay (Sian Ka'an)

Anyone wanting to fly fish Espritu Bay has been challenged by inexperienced guides, lack of good housing and just not knowing the area. Previously, the only way you could get good guides was a week at Casa Blanca, an exclusive fishing lodge in the middle of the Bay only accessed by boat or plane. Now you can book a couple of days on the island and stay at Casa Rodondo. So you can stay and Mayan Beach Garden, leave the non-fishermen here and to up to casa Rodondo for a couple of days without having to devote the entire week to fishing.

2 Day 2 Night - GROUND TRANSFER FROM MAYAN BEACH GARDEN
For MBG Guests (prices are per person - no more than two persons per boat)
Includes round trip ground transport to and from MBG to Punta Herrero
Nightly Accommodations hot breakfast & family style dinner included
Full Days of Fishing with fly fishing guide lunch and boat beverages included. On Site Host

Does not include alcohol and gratuities.


4 persons = $545
3 persons = $705
2 persons = $685
1 persons = $1,360

Please contact info@mayanbeachgarden for reservations and to book.

FREE STUFF!!!
The more days you stay, the more free stuff adds up!

Find out more

  • Free Taxes!
  • Free food
  • Free Tortilla 101 class
  • Free night's stay
  • Free massage
  • Free 6 pack of beer
  • Find out more
  • Current offer good
    through Oct. 2010

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Costa Maya Villas

Penthouse units sold out. It was inevitable. Costa Maya's first luxury Condo Hotel has only 5 units left. The condos at Costa Maya Villas have been selling themselves. Once people get a look at the color of the water in front of the Condominium project, they are hooked. It is the most intense turquoise of anywhere I've seen outside the Saragoza canal. If you ever ridden a boat through the canal south of Xcalak, you'll know the color I'm referring to. Similar condos in Playa del Carmen are selling for 50% more. Now that Riviera Maya Airport is back on track, people will be looking to purchase here - getting here will no longer be an obstacle.

If you don't know where Costa Maya Villas are located, you can reach them by turning left at the light house - driving north on the road that parallels the beach. You can't miss them, they are the only beachfront project near the port. Financing is available. The project is fairly close to being on target for a completion date. A few of the latest pictures are shown below. Click on any of the pictures to see the Mayan Paradise Properties web site

Arched entrance into kitchen View from living room
Looking north toward the cruise ship pier Looking south toward Mahahual Old town

Contact Mayan Paradise Properties directly at sales@mayanparadisepropertiesinc.com

statistics regarding women in Mexico

The following statistics were reported in the Diaria de Quintana Roo paper - On the eve of the celebration of International Women's Day, the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) estimated

  • the average population for this year is 108.4 million Mexicans
  • 50.9% are female and the remaining 49.1% men or 96 men per 100 women.
  • In 2009, eight of every 100 women can not read or write, for men the ratio is five per 100 men
  • 78.7 million people 14 and over, nine out of 10 Mexican's work; of those 40.5 million are women and 34.9 million are men
  • average women works 41.3 hours a week and men 23.2 hours, a difference of 18 hours
  • Unpaid work: Men on average have more hours engaged in unpaid economic activities (36.1) and self-build housing (17.7). In contrast, women work 27 hours a week on household chores in their own home, and involved around 25 hours in child care, sick and elderly.
  • In general, more men die then women - In 2008 there were 130 deaths of males per 100 females.
  • of every 100 households, 77 are headed by men and 23 for a woman

National Seal and flag of Mexico - significance

Mexican Flag

Since this is the bicentennial, it is worthwhile for all of us to become a little more familiar with Mexican history. I'm sure you are familiar with the Red, White and Green national flag of Mexico. What you may not be aware of is the symbolism behind the image in the center of the flag.

The legend has it that the Mexicas traveled from Aztlán, present-day Nayarit (on the Pacific coast) , in search of a sign from the god Huitzilopochtli telling them where to settle and establish their empire. The sign they were looking for was an eagle devouring a serpent while perched on a flowering nopal cactus on a small island in the middle of a lake. After a long journey, they finally found it in the Valley of Mexico in 1325, where they built the city of Tenochtitlan.

For the ancient Mexicans, the eagle symbolized the cosmic force of the sun, while the earth’s force was embodied in the image of the serpent. The eagle devouring the snake represents the communion of these vital forces. The nopal cactus, in addition to being an important source of food in prehispanic times, is part of the Mexican landscape and puts us symbolically within national territory.

After the Spanish conquest, the inhabitants of the new city asked the Spanish crown for permission to continue using the same seal, with a new frame of cactus branches to symbolize the tlatoanis who were vanquished during the conquest.

In 1811, during the war of independence, the Supreme Governing Junta used the Mexican eagle as the seal for their official documents. This symbol was adopted by José María Morelos y Pavón for his flag and correspondence. On July 3, 1815, a decree was issued adopting the first symbols of a nation that was still fighting for its independence.

Once the republic had triumphed over the Spanish empire, the Constitutional Congress issued a decree on April 14, 1823 redesigning the symbol to reflect the original tradition: the eagle in profile perched on a cactus eating a serpent. The imperial crown was replaced by branches of oak and laurel, symbols of victory.

NEWS FROM XCALAK POLLY I love you Xcalak

Hola everyone

Editor's NOTE: I will be posting Polly's text shortly - please check back!

Polly

DISCLAIMER

The editor of this newsletter (me) makes no claims that the information here is completely true. I am not a news reporter, Spanish is not my native language, the newspapers are notorious for not verifying information and this is not my primary business, but rather a service to the neighborhood. If you find something untrue PLEASE let me know and I will print a disclaimer. I try to verify the information but even the newspaper prints up rumors, so I can only report what I read and hear.

Unless otherwise stated, all content is copyrighted by MMB Contractors Inc.

Until next month,
Best wishes from your neighbor,

Marcia

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Updated: 26-Mar-2010

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VACATION RENTALS

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