I hadn’t planned to go out today, but work for the next and a half dropping in made me acutely aware that I only have five full days left here, of which at least one needs to be full on dedicated to packing and cleaning. If I wanted a final relaxed lunch on the Malecón, today was the day to have it!

It’d been a relaxed day so far. I’d picked up a cinnamon roll at the bakery yesterday to enjoy this morning and I was really happy with how fresh and cinnamony it was without being insanely sweet and gooey. After savouring it with a coffee and enjoying the quiet of an Isla Sunday morning where all you hear at the birds, I went for a long way down the beach. There were lots of herons out and I also saw what I believe to be a hawk as well as a vulture. The vulture was eating a pelican and at one point, a heron came up to them. It really looked like the vulture and the heron were having a chat around the proverbial water cooler. After a few minutes, the heron took off. What an incredible wing span!

I came in not sure what to do with the rest of my day. I’ve been sidelined by “something” since Wednesday and the coughing has kept me up at night, so I’ve been very lethargic because of lack of sleep. It’s really strange — I’m congested and coughing up a lung, but otherwise, I feel fine (except for the lack of sleep, of course). I have a normal appetite and am still enjoying my beer at the end of the day. So I’m not sure I want to say that I’m “sick,” but I definitely don’t have much energy. So I was rather glad for the kick in the butt to go to town!

I headed out around 2:00 (okay, so it would be linner more than lunch) and was slightly concerned that the Copa de Leche wouldn’t be open since so much is closed on Sunday afternoons. I was really craving their enchiladas mole, but was certain I’d find something else suitable along the water if they were closed.

From Emilio Barragán, I took 21 de marzo to Centro rather than Leandro Valle to avoid the big hill and rather than Constitución to avoid construction. 21 de marzo isn’t great for strolling since the sidewalks are lacking and the buses are numerous, but it’s fine on a Sunday and it takes you right to the cathedral. Then, I meandered my way to the water. I’m always surprised by how far the restaurants on the Malecón are from the embarcadero when I walk straight there. Normally, I make stops along the way.

Thankfully, the Copa de Leche had a few customers. Since I have tons of Tecate and Pacifico in the fridge, I “splurged” on a XX (dos equis), which was $5 more and the price that you pay for a beer on the beach here on Isla. It’s the one in the green bottle. Shame there was a truck blocking my view…

Here’s my plate of enchiladas. Buried under all that delicious sauce are three corn tortillas wrapped around a filling of chicken and veggies.

The sauce is so good that I asked for some tortillas so I could mop it up. Tortillas are always free, so if your meal isn’t quite enough, they’re an inexpensive way to stretch out your food a tad. But in this case, it was pure indulgence 🙂 The tortillas came out with a different server and I watched in amusement as he presented the basket to two of the three Mexican tables before I was able to catch his attention. The tortillas were warm and lovely and soft, but with crispy charred edges, just the way I like them best.

The bill was a bit of a shock. I hadn’t paid attention to the enchilada prices and expected them to be $120.

Even with the tip, I came in at under 10CAD for my meal!

I walked along the water for a bit after lunch and then headed back towards the embarcadero, stopping to see if my favourite nieve vendor was working. Yes! My last one of those was prune, strawberry, and lemon. Mmm.

Unfortunately, the mercado is closed on Sunday afternoons, so I wasn’t able to pop in there one last time. I did go to the little Ley for a few sundries.

Tomorrow, I need to go back into town to make a withdrawal of enough pesos to get me to the border. Just in fuel and tolls, I’ll need around $3,000 (230CAD), plus I’ll want enough for a hotel and am willing to pay up to $700 for a bed (54CAD) for a bed. Shame that hotel prices in Mexico aren’t much better than those north of the border. Of course, Totonaka is well under that, but I really don’t want to go there.

Even though departure day is looming, it doesn’t feel real yet. And yet, I am steadily saying my goodbyes.