[Catalina Kids]

I was just wondering if American products were available at the mercado, such as bottled water? Can you get Dasani water down there? Coca Cola etc. We're leaving in November and Patti is starting to freak out about feeding us. Well, not quite that bad but a Catalina 38 doesn't exactly have a lot of storage space. I figure we can shop just as well down there as in the states. We need to devote a lot of our space to spares, diving gear, and sailing gear etc.

We don't drink the water here, I don't think I'll start drinking city water down there. I know putting in a watermaker is a good option but that may have to wait. We can stuff 80 16.9 oz Dasanis in one cubby hole in our boat. We carry 40 gallons in our tanks but I don't drink that either.

[Jan]

Not 100% sure of the availability of bottled water & pretty sure it might not always be Dasani! We didn't find much on the Mexican Yucatan coast, but that was mostly because we didn't hang out in cities. We have friends that spent 3 years in the Sea of Cortez & Mexico Pacific Coast. They say a watermaker is an absolute MUST. It's our experience that boats without watermakers are always having to head back to civilization to fill the tanks while we're staying an extra week or two out in paradise.

Seriously, I'd re-examine the question of a watermaker. Bottled water will be available, but not everywhere. And keep in mind, it's HOT -- our experience is that we drank alot more water than we ever did before we went cruising. We took 3 of the largest containers of powdered gatorade & drank alot of that too -- put it in the water bottles nightly. We kept about 12 water bottles and kept refilling them to put in the fridge.

I know it's another expense, but the Seagull water purifier made our tank water drinkable. I would never drink our tank water before the Seagull & now it tastes better than alot of the bottled water we buy. So if you don't want to get a watermaker before you head to Mexico, think about splurging for a Seagull (they're expensive too, but the best) so you can drink your tank water as well as the bottled water you carry.

Also, don't know where you're planning to head, but if you venture northward from LaPaz, up toward Loreto & Puerto Escondido, you'll find a wonderful cruising ground!

Enjoy! Jan

[Rick Beddoe]

Great info Jan.

What model of Seagull do you use?

[Jan]

http://www.generalecology.com/marinesystem.htm

Ours is the top model, the Seagull IV, I think.

Expensive -- but based on our limited experience, if you plan to cruise for more than about a month at a time, you need to be able to live on your boat as close to the creature comforts of home as possible. Being able to turn on the faucet & make coffee, refill water bottles for the fridge, etc is one of those comforts for us. Keep in mind tho', the water in our tanks is our own watermaker water, never shore-filled, so maybe that contributes to the water quality?

Having to do laundry in a bucket & a daily shower from a sun-shower is about as close to giving up my creature comforts as I'm up for! Of course, we don't use A/C at home so we don't miss it except when we're stuck in a marina, which is as infrequently as we can make it!

[Jan]

Before we left last winter, I freaked out about what we were going to eat & tried to stock up on everything we'd eat normally. As we cruised, we found that a BIG part of the fun was trying new stuff & shopping locally. It's important to look at it as part of the adventure tho' because some of what you try, you'll HATE and some you may like better than what you have at home! We have several things we MISS now that we're back in the States for hurricane season!

When we head back to the boat in late October, we won't take much in the way of foodstuffs. Even the red wine we get in Guatemala -- Chilean -- is good, and loads cheaper than if we stuck with American brands!

My advice ... forget American brands & start experimenting. Try buying just one of something & if you find you like it, go back & buy more! But BE FLEXIBLE! You can't plan to go to the grocery store & simply buy items on a list to adhere to a menu plan. You have to do it in reverse -- oh look, these smoked pork chops look great, oh, they have blah, blah here -- I can make XXXXXXXXXXXXXX!!!! Be flexible & creative!

We always have enough food aboard that we could last a week, probably more without having to supplement it. But it's mainly things like tuna, etc -- stuff that we don't usually touch -- and it makes useful trade items for local fishermen so it doesn't get outdated! When it's been on the boat for a season, I use it to trade & buy more before the next winter season. But we'll buy even our stock foodstuffs locally this year!