It seems I spoke too soon in my last post. I feel like fate kicked me in the teeth (don't laugh, it's been a horrible week). Thankfully we are in Bucerias right now, which is a little more like normal civilization. The beach in Lo de Marcos is stunning , but in my opinion and from my experience, the town is lacking. And we had miserable luck there. It all started last Thursday afternoon, right after I posted my last post. Three things happened at once:
(This is the busiest we ever saw the beach.)
First, and by far the least of our problems, the headache that has been coming on since morning turned into a full blown migraine accompanied by some pretty bad nausea and a bit of trembling. Hours later I realized I had heat exhaustion (it's was as hot and humid as Hades). I couldn't eat and couldn't really move or do anything. I took a load of pain killer and sleeping meds and went to bed when Zoe did. I didn't sleep much that night, but when I woke up I was functioning, but stupid enough to eat breakfast, and eat it at a restaurant with windows but no AC (NOBODY has AC there), but it was the only restaurant open (Lo de Marcos is the smallest town I've ever stayed in). After breakfast I spent an embarrassingly long amount of time in their bathroom so sick I was sure fainting was inevitable, which horrified me because the bathroom was about 103 degrees, dimly lit, 3'x3', dingy and the toilet didn't have a seat (nobody has toilet seats here, which aggravates me to no end) and I had no idea where I'd land in that disgusting hole of a bathroom if I did. I lived, and didn't pass out. I went home and focused on coping with the two other problems that had taken the relief of getting out of Ajijic from me.
The second problem was that Jed's computer stopped working, which doesn't sound horrible, but it was. Jed's business and contract work doesn't get done without his computer. It stopped working right after we'd paid for wireless internet. It's existence in Lo de Marcos was pleasantly surprising, but turned out to be useless. I'm sure Jed will post about his plight on his blog, so I'll only say that it's been an expensive, extremely inconvenient mess trying to get his computer functioning. We were at a lose for information that was vital to us getting around and getting things done, ETC, too. Jed ended up buying another Mac in Puerto Vallarta yesterday, which is a blog worthy event by itself. With no computer Zoe hasn't been able to watch any shows when there is nothing else to do, and my contact with the outside world and blogging has obviously stopped. I'm happy to feel connected again! And Zoe is happily singing along with The Letter Factory as I type. (By the way, The Letter Factory played a big role in teaching Zoe the names of all the letters and their sounds. That and a lot of practise, which is a great way to distract her at restaurants, stores, church, etc. I highly recommend it.)
(Some kids surfing behind a boat just off of the beach.)
The third problem has caused me a lot more stress than the other two. Let me start by saying that a week and a half ago Zoe woke up in the middle of the night with a fever, which went away after a couple doses of children's Motrin. Her diarrhea that started right after the fever has been plaguing us all since then. On that Thursday afternoon Zoe came in from the beach (just after Jed told me his computer wasn't working) and I saw that she had by far the worst diaper rash I've ever seen. It showed up so fast! It was so painful to her that every diaper change had her thrashing around in tears and me close to bursting into tears myself. It was so sad to watch her hobble around trying to walk. She could hardly move. We did all of the normal rash remedies that we could think of (wash, air dry, ointment, no ointment, etc), but nothing worked.
Friday morning it had gotten worse and we all went into town looking for some oil so Jed could give her a blessing. (Jake and Sarah - can you believe we forgot it!?!) We didn't find any, but when we got back Jed gave her a blessing anyway. At this point the large sores in the rash started weeping. Poor thing! We decided that if the rash didn't get noticeably better by Saturday morning I'd either book a flight back to the states or take our chances with a doctor here. Meanwhile she still had diarrhea a few times a day, which hurt her even more. I was very stressed out and heading back to the states sounded better and better every minute.
Saturday the rash had gotten worse and I found an open internet cafe (a lot less common than a closed internet cafe here in Mexico) and did some research, which validated my concern. We'd planned on taking a day trip to San Poncho and decided we'd look for a doctor to take Zoe to there. It made no sense to me even at the time since San Poncho is about the size of Lo de Marcos, but it was supposed to be nicer and we could get there on a collectivo. (Collectivos are big vans that are like large cabs, but you have to stop to pick up and drop people off wherever the random place they are or want to go. Cabs are rare in the small towns. Big commuting buses and collectivos are how we got around most of the time.) The manager of the restaurant we ate brunch at told us the doctors in San Poncho were are a waste of time and recommended a couple doctors in a few different towns.
(Riding in the collectivo to the doctor's in La Peñita. It was hot and humid (surprise) and the breeze coming through the open windows was a heavenly. Zoe loved catching the wind in her mouth.:)
We went to the doctor in the closest town we could, La Peñita, and to my surprise, it was a good recommendation. It was a bit odd, but for the most part, a successful visit. When we walked into the doctor's office, it was air conditioned!!! It lifted our spirits quite a bit! We asked the receptionist (who didn't speak English) for the doctor who was recommended to us, but he wasn't their. She asked what the problem was, we told her our daughter has a rash, then she jumped up and went outside to talk to a man who was talking to someone inside of a big truck. At this point I went to bathroom where I was pleasantly surprised to find a seat on the toilet! When I got back everyone was gone. I found everyone in an office (computer, desk and books)/exam room. Zoe was naked, crying and sprawled out on a cover less, old exam table while a very well kept and very young man in jeans and a polo shirt, the same man by the truck, was talking with Jed and fishing a sucker of a jar. He gave the sucker to Zoe and she was perfect the rest of the visit.
The doctor (I assume that's what he was, although his diploma wasn't displayed on the wall like four other doctor's were) quickly examined Zoe and said that the humidity, the ocean and sand probably caused the rash and then got some cream from the on site pharmacy for her. He didn't seem to think the diarrhea was a problem and said to keep her out of water and sand, and to let her go diaper less as much as possible, especially when she goes to the bathroom. He gave us a prescription for some special soap that he didn't have and directions, then sent us on our way. The cost of the entire visit (including the cream) was $432.50 peso (approx. $43 US dollars). Jed said it worth the AC alone. :) From there we went to another pharmacy to get the soap, which cost about a dollar, then walked around Le Penita happy and hopeful. But no more beach, pool or ocean for Zoe. She was the happiest she's been on this trip when she was playing in the sand or the ocean. We felt so bad for her.
(Two of the few pictures I have of Zoe on the beach.)
By the next morning, the rash had improved significantly! We all felt so much better about the situation, except for the diarrhea, which only got uglier when Zoe wasn't wearing a diaper. Especially since we didn't have a washer or dryer. I got to hand wash everything in the kitchen sink and then hang things on a rusty old drying rack provided by the place we were staying. It usually took things two days to dry because of the humidity.
Right now, I am healthy, Jed's computer works, and all but the big sores on Zoe's bottom have healed. We are doing better, but the diarrhea has me very concerned and very close to insanity. It's been a week and half. I am so sick of it and I'm sure Zoe is too. I'm fairly certain she has some sort of intestinal bug, but I'm not sure that a doctor here would think it's a big deal since who knows what's normal for a Mexican child.
(A dead blowfish that washed up onto the beach.)
Whew. Things always seem to be so complicated and stressful here. I don't think we are doing this quite right, or maybe that's the point, either way we are certainly learning. Our goal was to avoid being tourists and try to "reside" in a variety of towns as much as we can for being nonresident gringos. Quite honestly, I would never moved to any place like any of the ones we've stayed. Although Ajijic had more conveniences than Lo de Marcos and here in Bucerias. I can wash my own dishes without a dishwasher, wash laundry without a washer and dryer, heat bottles in hot water instead of a microwave, get by without an oven or AC or decent water, but I don't like it. Call me an America snob or high maintenance, but I wouldn't move here without living a higher standard of living than we currently are. I need a washer and dryer!
