BAJA FRIENDS
Arthur and Joanne Rook had just moved to Loreto and we hadn't seen them for 1.5 months. We were overdue with no way to contact them and worried that they would think we were in trouble. On our way further south from La Paz we ran into them on the first beach we stopped at by Todo Santos (about 400Kms from Loreto). They were escaping from the heat on the Sea of Cortez for a few days.
Gary was our neighbor for a month or so at Tecolote near La Paz and fed the wild dogs when we were away. He is from Lake Tahoe and Lupita is from La Paz.
We had a nice experience last week in Todo Santos . We were camped on a beach where a lot of American surfers come. At night we heard a vehicle drive in between us and the next camper. I know how intimidating it feels coming into a strange encampment at night, so I went out to ask them if they wanted to camp there. It was a young Mexican couple and they said yes. When I told them they were fine there and that it was safe, I saw a wave of relief come over the wife's face. They slept in their vehicle and the next morning, the man, Tony asked if I knew how to set up their tent, so I showed him. He said he liked Boogie-boarding and had tried a surf-board that he'd received as a gift, but didn't like surfing so asked if I'd help him sell it so they could extend their vacation a bit. He was going to ask $150 U.S. but would give me anything over $100. I said I'd help him but didn't want any money for it. I helped him a bit by connecting him up with someone who inquired when he was away. He sold it and came to me with the money and insisted I take it above my refusals. They extended their stay for 3 days, and we spent a lot of time together. Later that first day when an American couple had their car-stereo stolen he showed me his ID that he is a Federale Police Investigator from Tiajuana. That evening over the bonfire he told me that three months ago police had broken the biggest drug cartel in Mexico and confiscated all their records of police on their payroll. A month ago a sting was set up where all police were invited to a barbeque. When they arrived they each received a ticket instructing them where to locate. This separated the honest from the dishonest into groups and the military and SWAT teams moved in and disarmed the suspected ones, threw them on the ground and handcuffed them. All levels, police chiefs included were trucked off to an underground stronghold in Mexico City. Tony was among the innocent, but said some of his best friends were arrested for corruption. You can see that he's still affected by it. Mexican Federales have been notorious for their corruption until now.
We met Tony and Dolly Tamayo in La Paz, though they're from San Jose de Los Cabos (originally California). They're a really nice couple and we've become close friends with them. We house sat for them while they were in New York in June.
SOME MORE LINKS (just click on them)
Matt is an interesting study...I may paint him.
https://exmatrix.tripod.com/2002BajaAlbum/Images2/Matt14.jpg
