First, Michael and I hope you are all as safe, and as sane as can be expected, wherever you are in the world right now.
In the last blog, I said we would ride out the Coronavirus rollercoaster here in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. And as of now, that is still the plan. Although we are a bit concerned about the President of Mexico’s rather weak response to the crisis.
Last week we joined a Virtual Town Hall on Facebook organized by the US Ambassador to Mexico. He and his staff gave a fairly comprehensive update on the situation and answered viewer's questions. The overarching message was “only you know your circumstances, but if you are visiting Mexico as a tourist you should go home now. If you are a resident, but your best support system is in America, you should also consider going home. In either case, the sooner the better as flights will become scarce. And, while we “have your back”, we cannot evacuate you or cover your health expenses if you get sick in Mexico.” Have a nice day.
We feel somewhere in between. Not exactly tourists but not residents either. So after weighing the pros and cons, and consulting family and friends, there seem to be more reasons to stay right where we are, as opposed to running the gauntlet to get “home” to Seattle. Where, in fact, we don’t have a home.
We would need to find an Airbnb where we could self-quarantine and perhaps live in for a while. And, while Michael has Medicare, I don’t have health insurance coverage in the states right now. We have reviewed our international traveler's insurance and our policy does include coverage for the coronavirus as long as we are not in the United States, so that’s another tick in the pros column. This is a week-by-week decision, so we will keep you posted.
Our Social Distancing Picnics have become a weekly gathering of friends who are still here.
Meanwhile, we’ve connected with a few couples who follow the blog as well as friends we’ve made during past visits here. Several of them are nomads like us but have decided to return to the states or to Canada. Others we’ve met have booked Airbnbs until early May like us, or even into June. We are staying connected by having weekly picnics in the park sitting a good ten feet apart on park benches. It’s nice to have others in the same boat to compare notes with.
And, as Michael (and Chief Travel Planner) has pointed out - we are connected to the good ol’ USA by land, so we can always hire a driver or rent a car and hightail it to Nuevo Laredo and walk across the bridge into the arms of America.
So in the meantime, we watch CNN, read the Mexican News Daily (in English) and have subscribed to their daily briefing called The Whole Enchilada. We also monitor three different San Miguel Coronavirus Facebook pages to keep up with what the Mexican government and local officials are doing to keep the citizens of Mexico safe.
Finally, San Miguel is under a “stay at home” directive. Now bars are closed, restaurants are reduced to take-out, and gatherings of more than 50 people are banned (that’s still a lot of people!) Schools and public buildings like the library and community center have been closed for a while now, and church services, theatre, and musical performances, and social events were curtailed weeks ago.
Michael in the deserted square in front of the Jardin - a place usually packed with tourists and locals.
The two large grocery stores continue to be fully stocked so we haven’t had trouble finding food or toilet paper (although the run on TP never seemed to be a problem here). However, we haven’t been back to our favorite supermarket since the “lockdown” kicked in so it may be different when we go tomorrow.
The grocery stores are still well-stocked. A few weeks ago I was able to get some good old American processed foods to make my own birthday cake!
But if it turns out to be chaos, we have a pantry full of staples and a few 20-liter jugs of water, so we are fine for a couple of weeks. And if you’ve been to Mexico you know there are tiendas (little grocery stores) around every corner where you can pick up fruit, cold drinks, fresh tortillas, and all the beans you can eat!
Our biggest concerns — if we do get sick the health care system in Mexico is precarious and nearby hospitals will be easily overwhelmed. Also, many Mexicans live day to day, let alone paycheck to paycheck, there could be some unrest if food and other resources become scarce.
The fact we won’t be traveling for a while is just beginning to sink in - we should have moved on to Costa Rica, last week, followed by a few weeks in Colombia and Ecuador. We were able to cancel our Airbnbs and get airline credit, but it won’t be anytime soon that we can revive those plans. And, sadly, our week as Guest Faculty at the Modern Elder Academy in June was postponed. So here we sit. Nomads with nowhere to go!
We still do the things we’ve always done when living in a new home. But this is the first time we’ve been in one place for 5 weeks! That is a Senior Nomads World Record! Fortunately, this is one of the nicest Airbnbs we’ve ever had so we don’t mind staying here as long as necessary. Right now, we are booked through May 3rd with the option to extend into June.
Our Airbnb has a great kitchen, lots of outdoor space, a big gate and an alarm system so we feel safe.
So if we don’t take the COVID-19 restrictions into consideration, this could be a dry run for retirement here in San Miguel. Even though we aren’t going to Scrabble Club every week, or to restaurants, movies, plays or lectures, we still have a house to run and days to fill.
Two of my favorite cats at the shelter. Lots of animals are getting adopted as quarantine companions.
To fill those days we’ve been doing jigsaw puzzles (that we pass along to other shut-ins), write, take long walks, watch Netflix and cook. I have been volunteering at the nearby no-kill Animal Shelter looking after kitties (dream job) and Michael is reaching out to a long list of friends on FaceTime, Zoom and Skype. And of course, we stay close to family in Seattle, Hermosa Beach, and Samois Sur Seine.
Seven years of travel have taught us to accept the things we cannot change and to embrace the new and the different. So we will live here like we “live here” until we decide otherwise. It’s a good thing that Michael and I have spent almost every single day together for the past seven years. Unlike many of you adjusting to being with your spouse or partner (and perhaps your children) twenty-four hours a day, that is the least of our challenges.
Headbands turned into masks have worked for going on walks and to the grocery store.
Please stay safe and be well. And thanks for following along,
Debbie and Michael Campbell
The Senior Nomads