January 5th 2022: Went to Ventanilla Nature Reserve which is mostly swamp and crocodiles but has some other wildlife thrown in for good measure.
January 7th 2022: Went on a boat trip to see whales and dolphins. Saw a few dolphins and turtles but no whales.
January 9th 2022: Oh how the mighty can fall.
For so long on my travels I have grown accustomed to staying in 3 and 4 star hotels or complete apartments, mostly complying to my pre-requisite requirement of air conditioning, flat screen TV, wi-fi, swimming pool, hot water in the bathroom, safe and clean. My current accommodation only adheres to the last two but it is on the beach so it could be said I have the largest swimming pool in the world if you count the Pacific Ocean as a pool. However, upon return after watching the sunset I was offered a different room, next door to mine, basically the same layout but it had a table. Changing rooms for a table! I feel like a backpacker.
January 16th 2022: Late afternoon a 5.3 magnitude earthquake hit.
I was sitting in a beach chair in Zipolite and thought somebody was fooling around by shaking my chair but when I turned around nobody was there. As earthquakes go I've been in much bigger.
Over the previous week I've been contemplating my future travels quite a lot and come to the realisation that Vancouver is still under partial lockdown so a no go, Iceland is open to essential visitors only, Thailand has too many lockdown restrictions and Bali is simply off limits to UK subjects at the moment. I didn't realise that in 2021, with the airport being closed to international flights, Bali only had 45 international visitors compared to over a million in 2020 and over six million in 2019.
Following a trip to Jersey in mid-May I will probably return here. Maybe have a trip to the USA at some point too. We'll see.
January 24th 2022: Home cooked food at last. I buy a small cooker and accessories for my room.
January 26th 2022: Half past midnight, as I lay in bed there was a shaking.
Another earthquake. It was hardly mentioned on the news but seemingly measured 5.4 on the richter scale. The world, as I, am getting used to them by now.
January 30th 2022: Saw a whale close to the shore at Zipolite.
We'd seen a whale at Mazunte about a month ago but not nearly as close as this one.
February 3rd 2022: Again another whale splashing around at Zipolite.
November to February are the months that whales migrate and the best time to see them. To be honest, I expected to see more.
February 4th 2022: I start Spanish lessons.
I said from day one that I would enjoy this place a lot more if I spoke the lingo. Given that at this time there is no indication when or if the tourism situation will improve in India I have to have some kind of base somewhere and Mexico is as good a place as any, so, I'm learning the language to make the transition as comfortable as possible.
February 7th 2022: Rain.
With the exception one a big storm about a month ago in the middle of the night this is the first rain I've actually seen since arriving.
February 23rd 2022: We were treated to the most spectacular exhibition of whale diving yet in Zipolite.
February 25th 2022: Construction work commences on the property I stay at.
With the addition of a kitchen my place could be one of the most desirable budget properties on the beach but without a fridge it's simply "a room with a view".
February 28th 2022: I move into my new place at the other end of town.
March 1st 2022: An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter Scale hits mid afternoon.
Being in Oaxaca state it wasn't too far from us but fives and sixes I pretty much take for granted now.
March 3rd 2022: Another earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter Scale hits at 08:40.
Whilst being felt a lot more than the effort of two days ago the epicentre of this one was in Veracruz state over 700 kilometres away.
March 5th 2022: And another earthquake at 21:30, this time measuring 5.5 on the Richter Scale.
The epicentre was about 200km North West so whilst it wasn't so big it's the closest one yet.
March 7th 2022: Bali opens it's borders with virtually no restrictions.
No Covid test or quarantine. This is definitely good news for me along with many others. Already I'm considering using Bali as a second base at the end of the year with Mexico on the sideline as first reserve.
March 10th 2022: Another sighting of a whale splashing around off Zipolite Beach.
I'm guessing that will be it for a while as the whale migrating season (which is the best time to see them) is November to February.
March 22nd 2022: Another sighting of a whale antics off Zipolite Beach.
I was wrong about our last sighting being "the last sighting". This time it was two adults and a baby.
(now available to read on-line in it's entirety).