Pie de la Cuesta, Tuesday June 16th - 18th

Wednesday we relax. I stow away all our purchases, as best I can. Some of the items are long term and can be put into the upper cabinets for use as we need them. The food and perishables, things we'll consume in the next month or so are put into cabinets or a food box over the front cab. Winston has his own cabinet and he observes with interest exactly what goes in there. He loves the chicken jerky treats that we buy at Costco. The day is suspiciously overcast and humid. We are told that there is a tropical depression headed this way. I try to stay current and well-read but had to admit that I really wasn't sure exactly what a "tropical depression" was, other than that, it probably involved wind and rain in some way. I check with Google. If you google "tropical depression" the weather channel states rather benignly, that it is a series of thunderstorms lined up in a lowered pressure system with organized circulation which will reveal a single closed isobar below it and have sustained winds of 29 - 45 miles per hour. Huh! Not knowing the difference between a closed,open or any other type of isobar for that matter, let me explain in layman's terms what a tropical depession is. It is about 10 at night and I am outside reading. There is a boom, Winston and I jump and look at each other, a crash of surf brings me to my feet. The ocean which is normally about 10 - 15 ft from the campsite is pounding the seawall. The boom was thunder. Now lightening and thunder and torrential rain have in the space of about 2 minutes, taken over. I don't know the exact speed of the "sustained" wind but it has built to a crescendo and is threatening to rip our awning away. I grab my chair and get under the awning. Winston is hurling himself at the screen door to get into the RV, so much for his bravery. I am already drenched, guess those thunderstorms with the closed isobar are in place! I secure everything the best I can and crawl into the RV. The windows are open. The table is getting wet as is my side of the bed where I have an open window. I close the windows. The thunder is cracking, the lightening is bright, the rain is pouring down and ... Tom sleeps. I dry off and crawl into bed. The storm related noises are amazing. The RV seems to rock and sway a little but we are dry and safe and warm. Thursday morning, the outside is saturated. It is still raining and continues so throughout the day. In addition, Tom's ereader has mysteriously developed a problem. It appears as though one of the crystals on the LCD screen has ruptured and now half of the screen is a blur. Cripes! what next. We had already decided we were not leaving to check on the tires. We will call and find out if, in fact they have arrived and in the meantime I will go online to get Tom a new e book and somehow get it sent to us. It's noon and Tom goes to make the dreaded tire phone call. Surprise, they have not arrived but.. are expected. I figure the storm is a good enough excuse for this current delayment. I purchase the new reader and have it sent to Jeanne's. Once she has it, we will figure out where to send it to here. We try to stay dry and spend the day reading, playing dominoes and at 4 pm make another call. The tires are in! Of course, we have heard this before but now it may be a distinct possibility. We plan our departure for Friday. We will get up early, pack and get to the shop. Tom figures it will take about 2 hours to install them and we will hopefully make it to Pinotepa National (about 275 kilometers) before dark. Friday morning. It has rained through the night again, so our ground mat, awning and outside stuff are wet. We dry them and pack up as best we can. Kiss and hug the ladies at the campsite, is this deja vue or what! and head to town. We arrive. The tires are there and proudly displayed for us. The install starts. 2 hours later, there is a problem! They are unable to balance the two front tires, something to do with the rims not fitting on their balancing device. Tom is now faced with a prospect we have avoided since coming to Acapulco, driving the RV downtown. After much conversation, we decide that Winston and I will stay at the tire shop and Tom with the manager will drive to another tire store which does have the right equipment. It could take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours. We grimace but at this point we are stuck. The tires have to be balanced. They leave, I watch a little TV, the World Cup (Soccer) is on. It is being held in South Africe and England is playing Algeria. I walk Winston and watch more TV. Thankfully, within an hour Tom and the manager ar back. Everything is fine. Everything is done. Everyone is happy and smiling. The angst of the past two weeks are over and there are no hard feelings. We pay our bill, I get a free hat and we are on the road. But to where. It is already 4pm. Should we head south and find a place to stop or...? We drive back to the trailer park. The ladies are amazed. What now. We proudly show off our new tires to everyone and explain because of the time it was easier for us to return here than head south. Tomrrow is another day. We settle in but unpack only what we need for the night. The weather is better. It is still humid but no more rain. Saturday, after a marathon stay in Acapulco we will be on our way. Puerto Escondido awaits and some friends of Midge, Dean and the Saladita gang, Pat & Rick are there. We will hopefully meet up with them on Sunday. For now this might really be our last night in Acapulco. It has been fun. This is a nice campsite ran by a couple of wonderful ladies. If you come here, mention us and take the time to visit with them. We will come back on our return trip.