Almost Free in Mexico! We Go Across the Border

Our third weekend in SPI found us going to one of Jane's favorite places- a flea market. The market was located in Donna, TX, and it was huge, covering about 5 acres. While there was the usual assortment of merchandise, the sheer size and number of vendors allowed one to browse everything from the sublime to the eclectic, from bins of sheer junk to racks of fine lace and embroidered clothing. Jane was in heaven and Capt. Larry was constantly reminded that he was "no fun to shop with!" While Capt. Larry has honed his shopping skills to where he can glance inside a vendor's tent and immediately know whether to enter, Jane's shopping ability is less refined, requiring her to actually enter each tent and view every item at an agonizingly slow pace. After about two hours of waiting for Jane to emerge from each tent and wondering if she would see her shadow, Capt. Larry starts to head for the exit when she announces that there are "just a couple" of places that she wants to revisit. So back we go. By now the experience is getting uncomfortable, because the wind has picked up and is blowing dust from the parking lot all over the place. Apparently, this was to much even for a diehard shopper, and after revisiting the third tent, she says its time to go. On the way out we stop at one produce stand and make a purchase, only to visit another stand and purchase more when we find the prices are halved, because it's time for the vendor to go home. In spite of his complaining, Capt. Larry was the one with the most purchases- a new denim jacket and two new belts. Jane was happy too, so everybody's happy.

Progreso bridge- American side

Who says you can never shop enough? While we thought we did well at the flea market, our neighbor Winter Texans said we had to go over to Mexico to get the "real deals." Jane found this deal talk arousing and Capt. Larry viewed it as more exotic than another winter day in SPI, so we decided to make the trip. There are two international bridges in the SPI area where one can cross the border. The nearest one is in Brownsville which crosses at Matamoros, and the other is in Progreso crossing into Nuevo Progreso. However, visitors really only have the Progreso option, because Matamoros is considered less safe and the town is located a lot further away from the bridge which makes walking over less convenient. When you step off the bridge at Progreso,  you are in the shopping district of Nuevo Progreso. Driving over is an option, but parking is limited in the shopping district requiring parking away from watchful eyes and there is a $25 charge on the Mexican side to bring you car back over (like a bridge use tax). So just about everyone parks in parking lots next to the bridge and walks over.

Rio Grande River at the border

Welcome to Mexico!

We arrived at the International Bridge and paid our $2 to park in the lot all day. When we had made our way to the bridge, we found that the automobile plaza with checkpoints that controls the flow of cars between the two countries had a long line of cars waiting to return to the U.S. Another reason not to drive over as many of the cars are thoroughly searched before being allowed to re-enter. Each pedestrian has to pay 25 cents to leave the country. Capt. Larry inserted his quarter in the turnstile and tried to pass through but the turnstile didn't rotate. He stepped out of the turnstile and attempted to turn it with his hand. It turned, but he wasn't able to get back into the turnstile to pass through. A lady on the other side suggested he crawl under the turnstile, but the clearance was small and he didn't think he could bend his knees that much. After he and Jane were both fishing for another quarter, the lady on the other side came up and handed us two quarters. This time we got it right and we able to pass through. We thanked the lady and later realized that we actually made 25 cents on the transaction. We figure she felt it was worth the laugh.

The shopping district

As soon as you cross the bridge you are immersed in a sea of street merchants, store doormen, cute kids selling candy, nail salons, pharmacies, dental and doctor's offices, crowded sidewalks and signs so numerous they become an indecipherable blur. According to Jane, "there's nothing that we have to have." But Capt. Larry knew better. We made our way through a maze of jewelry, leather, glass art, wood carving, and pirated movie displays and, after walking one block, we darted into a pharmacy. The array of medications, both prescription and over-the-counter that were available for purchase by the tourists really amazed Capt. Larry. Knowing that we would be doing some extensive traveling later in the year, he decided to stock for the trips. Although the brand names were unfamiliar, the Spanish generic names could be deciphered and we quickly loaded up with four different antibiotics and several tubes of a prescription wrinkle cream for Jane. The total came to just over $50, and Capt. Larry noted that the pharmacist's cost for one of the antibiotics alone would be more than that in the states.

When in Rome....

It was lunchtime so we went down the street a couple of more blocks to Garcia's, a restaurant that was recommended to us by one of our neighbors. While we were eating, our neighbors who recommended the restaurant to us came over to our table. Seems they had the same idea we did. So we ran into someone in Mexico that we knew! We had a wonderful meal which included two drinks, soup and salad, two entrees, and dessert for $24. The food was great and the great looking receptionist strutting around with her 5" hooker heels added to Capt. Larry's dining pleasure.

A grand old hotel

Winter Texans waiting for customs

The automobile plaza- U.S. side

We left the restaurant and Jane started to get serious about shopping. She bought some clothing items and jewelry, while Capt. Larry found some Mexican rum and crackers that Jane thought were so good in the restaurant. We wandered down the street until the shopping district ended. The boundary is distinct and you knew when to turn around and not proceed any further. We crossed the street looked at the shops on the other side, but the offerings were the same. Of course, the last store before the bridge was a liquor store and a big one. We went inside and Capt. Larry found some Appleton rum that was about one-half the price across the border. However, when he went to check out, the bottles rang up at a higher price. He questioned the price and noted that the tag on the shelf indicated a lower price. The cashier went to the shelf and tore off the tag and said that they were out of that rum and what was there is the higher priced bottle. Well, Capt. Larry figured that if that were so, why not restock the item rather than remove the tag. He said, "No thanks," and walked out of the store. The cashier looked dumbfounded that he wouldn't buy and she would have to unpackage the bottles and return them to the shelf. Oh, well! We walked back across the bridge only to find a 30-yard line of people waiting to pass through customs. But then, old people will wait in line for anything. The line did move rather quickly and we cleared customs in 15 minutes. We found the car and headed back to SPI, happy at the things we purchased, but thinking we may want to return again.

Back in the U.S.