Mover Mike

Maybe the unemployed and under-employed should consider moving to Mexico.

Mexican Nominal GDP Up 11.5% In Q2

Mexican nominal gross domestic product rose 11.5% annually at current prices in the second quarter, the statistical office INEGI said Wednesday. At the same time, secondary activities, consisting of mining, electricity, water and supply of gas through pipelines to end users as well as construction and manufacturing, generated 35.3% of the GDP. Meanwhile, trade and services, referred to as tertiary activities, contributed 61.8% during the period.

Mexico Jobless Rate Drops In July

Mexico’s jobless rate dropped in July from the previous month, a report by the statistical office INEGI showed on Wednesday. On an annual basis, the national unemployment rate dropped to 5.7% in July from 6.12% last year. Meanwhile, the underemployment rate increased to 8.5% from 8.3% a year ago.

Tags: Mexican Nominal GDP Mexico’s jobless rate national unemployment rate

Tags: mexico by MoverMike
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I read yesterday that it was raining in Mazatlan and was directed to this reenactment of a thunder storm:

Turn up the volume!

Tags: Moving to Mexico, mexico by MoverMike
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The “Pulmonia” monument on the Malecon in Mazatlan

We asked our pulmonia driver how he learned English, he said he attended American movies. The movies are in English with Spanish subtitles. Wouldn’t be interesting to watch James Cagney with subtitles.

I asked how would you say “You dirty rat!” in Spanish. He said “Usted sucia rata!”

Tags: Travel, mexico by MoverMike
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What a night! Tuesday night Bev and I were at Pedro Y Lolas in Mazatlan on Plaza Marchado. We were late for our reservation so we had to sit inside. As we are eating I heard this wonderful clarinet music coming from the sidewalk. I got up from my seat and checked it out. I met Jock Faulds playing Hoagy Carmichael’s Star Dust. Oh, it sounded good and all the memories I had of ever wanting to play that song came flooding back.

When Jock was done I chatted with him just a bit and told him how much I enjoyed his playing. I went back to our table and Bev asked if he had a CD. When we were leaving, Jock was having dinner with friends and we stopped to ask about a CD. He introduced us to his love, Anita from Manhatten and suggested we visit him at The Sea Farer the following night. He starts to play at 6:30. Jock described the place as a lighthouse surrounded by an estuary and the water flows around and under the restaurant.

You know we almost blew it off today. I said late this afternoon, “Why don’t we stop by for an hour and then head for The Shrimp Bucket.” Bev said, “Great!”

We took the pulmonia from the hotel to the restaurant for 50 Pesos. The place was magical. It was set in a marina and large boats were moored within feet of the salmon colored adobe restaurant built over a large aquarium. I asked if the water was connected to the sea, but was told it was a closed system with natural sea life. Large and small perch and grouper, even a Manta Ray swam right by our table. There are no walls, just arched pillars in adobe holding up the roof, All the tables were set around the outside of the circular building with an opening in the middle to view the fish. It was like an island in the bay.

Jock Faulds began playing in 1947 at 16 years old with Billy Eckstein, Sarah Vaughan and Peggy Lee and for over sixty years has enjoyed being a professional musician. Jock wandered around the restaurant playing the clarinet, sax and flute while we drank and dined. Bev ordered Emperor shrimp and a mixed-green salad and I ordered Filet Chianti, a filet mignon with a reduced chianti sauce on top. It was the most flavorful dish I’ve ever eaten. The caesar salad lettuce leaves stood upright in a thick slice of baguette bread. The bread sat on a bed of caesar salad dressing. The food was a ten, the atmosphere was a ten and the waiters were a ten. The evening was topped by Jock sitting down with and sharing memories of his career and a brief history of night life in Mazatlan.

Jock and The Sea Farer were a “find” and our tab came to 900 Pesos including tip. No more expensive than the typical tourist stop that we hear many rave about when sharing dining-out tips around the pool.

Tags: Travel, mexico by MoverMike
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Last year in Mazatlan the Mexican Peso was about 10-11 to the USD. This time the Peso trades about 15 to the dollar. I have been asking Mexicans how the fall in the Peso affects them.

One waiter at La Paraje, The Place, when asked if they had raised prices on their menu said, “If we put a sticker over the price every time the Peso has fallen this year, the stickers would be an inch thick. We plan on a new menu next year.” Asked where he thought the Peso would end up he said, “About 20 to the dollar!”

Most say it is great for tourists. “Your dollar buys so much more.” That’s true. Last night we had dinner at Los Zarapes and the tab was 676 Pesos. Last year that would have been about $67. Now that 676 Pesos is about $45. I asked a pulmonia driver, “Cuanto Pedro y Lolas?” “How much to take us to Pedro y Lolas?” He said $10.” I said, “Pesos?” He told me 100 Pesos!

They do acknowledge that imported goods at markets are more expensive, but they say, “We just have to pull in our belts.” A particular philosophical comment came from that same waiter. “I ask myself, can I do anything about this situation. If the answer is no, I just pull in my belt.”

It seems that many are very reliant on tourists and construction of condos and timeshares. For them the fall in the Peso brings more Americans with USDs and that means income and jobs.

Tags: Travel, mexico by MoverMike
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Two very interesting articles appeared yesterday. Rob Kirby at Financial Sense Online has an article entitled THE LOOMING FIAT CURRENCY TRAIN WRECK Kirby figures that at $60 per barrel of oil, come March when Iran starts taking Euros instead of USDs, that will mean a big increase in the demand for Euros. Then he factors in Venezuela and in total you are talking about $110 Billion new demand for Euros. Kirby includes a chart of US Demand vs Domestic Production and the gap is enormous. I can’t understand why there isn’t more urgency to drill in ANWR!

The second article is one written by Martin Feldstein, Uncle Sams bonanza might not be all that it seems. The MSM argues that the flow of capital into the US is more than adequate to fund our current account deficit and the inflow is primarily coming from private investors who want to participate in our strong economy. Feldstein argues both premises are not true. If it were true we would be seeing an increase in Forex reserves, which in fact have been declining over last two years. He believes the private investors are in reality governments and private institutions acting for governmments.

Collectively, the articles convince me again that the USD will decline at least 30% from here.

I had an interesting talk with a small business owner in San Jose del Cabo about the Peso. I asked what it was like to have experienced the devaluation. At its most recent the exchange was 3 Pesos to the USD, now it is currently 10.57 to the USD. One day, he said, was like the next except that people with their savings in Pesos were big losers and eventually prices were much higher. He said he protects himself by putting his savings into USDs. People who live in countries like Mexico, Argentina, Japan or China have experienced many devaluations and are knowledgeable about protecting their savings with other currencies or gold. Here, in this country, we have some experience with Continentals and Confederate Currency losing their entire value, and since 1971 the USD has lost 95% of its value, but we are naive about protecting our savings. It has been such a slow rot that no fanfare gets generated.

USD Gold Mover MIke

Tags: Gold, USD, mexico by MoverMike
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Ola, we enjoyed a wonderful week in Cabo San Lucas, Cabo del Sol, and San Jose del Cabo and after a 10 1/2 hour trip, are back. We stayed at the Fiesta American, a vacation club, that last year gave us a studio apartment for $100 a night if we would think about buying their time share. I asked before we left, if we wanted to come back next year and again wanted to stay in the villa, what was the nightly rate? The charming Mexican said it was not available to non-members, but a room in the hotel of equal quality would go for $350 to $600 per night, depending on the season.

The grounds at Fiesta Americana are the nicest I have seen in any resort in Hawaii or Arizona. A members infinity pool, 30 feet about the Sea of Cortez; a volleyball pool and a bikini pool where you swim up to the bar. I saw a man sitting at the bar in a “manziere” and a beribboned straw hat. Then there was a huge infinity pool water. We spent many hours hanging on the wall watching the breakers below. Everywhere there are liitle hottubs and cozy little crooks that make the experience more intimate. Everywhere there were two kinds of lounges and hammocks. You could sit on the beach and snorkle in the sea and be served by Mexican waiters.

I asked the lifeguard, “como se dice ‘Help!’ in Spanish.” He did not understand me. “no hablo Englese!”, he said. I finally learned that if I yell “ajuda me”, he would rescue me. I thought that strange. I love Spanish, but I was worn out by the time we left, concentrating, trying to understand what they were saying. I did learn some new phrases to go with my old vocabulary. I have dos nietos (two grandchildren), un nieta y un nieto (one grand daughter and one grand son). I learned that I am “mui bien”, if I am asked how I am (come uste), but bien is not used for food. Then it becomes comedia es buena (The food is great!). The Mexicans seemed to enjoy helping me and pleased that I was making an effort to learn their language.

I was amazed and embarrassed by the number of obese Americans. Not just fat, but a butt that is two big pigs in a sack. Many are so heavy that walking is a strain. The average Mexican I saw was about 5′ 5″ and thin. We were like sharks in a school of minnows.

Bev and I stopped by Los Bungalows,

where we stayed last year. Eric and Stella run the small hotel and Junior is selling timeshares to the tourists and doing well. Stella gave me a hug and asked if we were coming to breakfast on Thursday. I said yes if invited. She said breakfast is between 8 and 10 AM. We worried that we didn’t define “invite”. Were we paying or did they feel obligated to serve us free. In the end, after a wonderful fritata and guava juice, fruit and coffee, I said to Eric “La quenta por favor!” He consulted with Stella and came back with a note that said, “Two Breakfasts, No Charge!” Rates: In season $125 to $175 plus tax for two adults, price includes breakfast, $10 extra per person over 12yrs. Summer rates $78 to $110 USD. The buffet at Fiesta American was $ 240 pesos apiece or about $23, so Los Bungalows is an inexpensive way to enjoy Cabo. Plus Stella and Eric are wonderful people!

The sunrises off our deck were magnificent, the sun coming up over the Sea of Cortez. We had heard about a beautiful place to watch the sunset: Esperanza. We found the place a few miles down the road toward Cabo san Lucas. It was heavily secured and the guard at the gate had to radio in to see if it was ok to let us in. The heavy iron gates opened and we were escorted in and shown to the ristorante. Bev and I sat above the sea toasting the best sunset ever with margueritas and virgin strawbery daiquiris. As we were leaving, we got a rate card. Room rates at Esperanza run from $1200 to $5000 per night. It is the place for the stars, Gwyneth Paltrow, and dressers of the stars, Ralph Lauren.

Bev and I found the prices very high. It wasn’t uncommon to spend $150 on dinner for two; that includes a VAT of 22% and servicio. We were dumb founded to spend $7.20 on a loaf of bread at the supermarket.

We did dine at some very good places for dinner: Mi Concina and Tequilas in San Jose and Mi Casa in Cabo. We had Sea Bass at Mi Concina on a bed of mashed potatoes and pureed mango. Bev had Tequila Schrimp and I had beef tenderloin at Tequilas. Both meals were delicious. Mi Casa was tradional Mexican and I had El Mole Poblano, which was wonderful; 35 different spices go into their mole. We did not enjoy the dinner at Mango’s, though we did enjoy sticking our toes in the sand, and we did not enjoy the nachos at Finistera Hotel on the Pacific.

We are glad to be home. Seven days is just about right for me. I start missing our dog and life style and my blog, but not the ever present winter rain.

Tags: mexico by MoverMike
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From News24.com, Hurricane Wilma destroys town

Cancun - The Mexican resort town of Playa del Carmen, popular with European and North American tourists, was “destroyed” by powerful Hurricane Wilma, civil defence officials said on Saturday.

[…]

“The water is already reaching the third floor of some hotels,” said Humberto Hernandez Uzon, a spokesperson for the national weather service. “And the bad weather will continue for another 12 hours.” (emphsis added)

wilma

Tags: Hurricane, Natural Disaster, mexico by MoverMike
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Hurricane Wilma has battered the coastline of Mexico and the tourist attractions of Cozumel and Cancun for more than 24 hours and was expected to hang over the area.

Wilma dumped 590mm of rain on Isla Mujeres island yesterday, an unprecedented downpour for Mexico.”We are talking about a record hurricane as far as rain is concerned,” meteorologist Alberto Hernandez Unzon said.

US meteriologists predict that some areas in the Yucatan will get up to 1000mm or about 40 inches of rain.

“It’s a monster, it is roaring all the time,” Guadalupe Torroella said from the low-lying resort of Cancun, where the sea rushed onto the land and flooded international hotels.

The track of the storm still has it hitting the west coast of Florida on Monday somewhere between Naples and Tampa.

wilma

Tags: Hurricane, Natural Disaster, mexico by MoverMike
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From StormTrack, this absolutely stunning shot of Cozumel taking a direct hit from Hurricane Wilma

Winds are still 140 MPH and it must be awful to be there at this time.

Dr. Jeff Masters’ WunderBlog is saying that rain is coming down an inch per hour! He has a link to a blogger InCozumel:

While (Wilma) is pounding us and she has been at it since 12:00AM CDT. The winds gradually picked up and have been gusting at levels that I had not witnessed before. The winds are definitely lot worse than what we had seen during Emily, may be it was night time and we could not judge but what Emily had weakened, plant wise, Wilma is taking it down. At best we are looking for a massive clean up effort of streets and properties and hope to get back to business as our whole economy is dependent on tourism. I will try to post some roof top shots of what we can see shortly

.

wilma

Tags: Hurricane, Natural Disaster, mexico by MoverMike
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