In Mexico, November 1st is one of the biggest holidays of the year.
more photos – ABC
The day after The Day of the Dead, I call the Day of the Not Yet Dead.
Category: travel
Banff Mountain Festival
Up in the mountains for the weekend, for those interested, I’m blogging the films and book presentations over on my hiking website.
For example, John Harlin III (the son) presented the personal background story of his new book, The Eiger Obsession: Facing the Mountain that Killed My Father.
IMAX had a big hit with Everest. They’ve followed that up with a movie called The Alps.
Harlin, in the film, repeats the cimb of the Eiger where his father had fallen to his death. With his wife and daughter looking on.
To see the trailer click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Banff Hostel – Mountain Film festival
For the Banff Mountain Festival I’ll be staying at the Banff International hostel.
Coolest attraction there is the man made ice climbing wall. (Not sure if it is in operation yet this winter.)
I have a standard $150 ticket package for events. But I’m guessing just the ambiance of the mountain resort over the festival days will be the highlight.
photos from Mexico – Lake Chapala
Chris wrote from Guadalajara, where he’s a coach with a travelling Cirque du Soleil show.
They made a trip down to Lake Chapala where my parents spent 2 winters. It’s a quiet Gringo enclave.
more Mexico and Chapala photos
my Mexican Dental Vacation
This is Dr. Stephen F. Mackey, my dentist in Mazatlán.
UPDATE – Dr. Mackey wrote to say: “I am no longer affiliated with Mexican Dental Vacation and do not reccomend them.” Also, they’ve moved to the Golden Zone and, last I heard, do not have a full-time dentist on staff.
The rest of the original post below:
He practiced for over 40 years in the Seattle, Washington area. Finally, after some minor heart trouble, the doctor decided to leave the rainy Pacific N.W. and head for the sun.
Mexican Dental Vacation, the business, was founded by a Canadian Nick Konev from Alberta. Nick recognized the opportunity to sell dental work at 50% the cost or less than what it costs in Canada and the USA.
This was my third time visiting a dentist in Mexico, but the first to have MAJOR work done.
My trip was precipitated when a big chunk of one of my front teeth fell out. I took that as a sign that I had put off major work for too long. I booked a trip to Mexico immediately.
I had done some research and the buzz on-line was generally very good for a company called Mexican Dental Vacation that caters almost exclusively to Gringos. I like that they are up front with the cost of work, posting it on-line, and stick to those prices.
On arrival Dr. Mackey drove me over to get a panoramic X-ray as I brought none with me from Canada. No appointment. No referral. Imagenes Diagnosticas de Mazatlan $18 was a brilliant beginning.
I was in and out of X-ray in 15min while the Doctor popped into Home Depot for building supplies. (In Mexico only 3 months, he was still making himself at home here.)
That same morning the doctor laid out his recommendations. He feels I need bigtime work.
We decided I would get 7 root canals, have four teeth extracted, and do some minor repairs this trip. Then, in future, as time and cash permit, put in 3 bridges and as many as 10 crowns. He did not feel I needed any implants.
To keep costs down, as much work as possible is farmed out to local Mexican dentists. I was sent to get my root canals done by Dr. Ernesto Bertrand Morales. He was excellent, doing 7 in 4 appointments over 5 days. Only one caused me any pain. The doctor recommended a pain killer called Flanex. I didn’t need it.
I like the personal attention you get here. None of that sitting in a chair waiting for someone jumping from patient-to-patient to finally attend you.
My cleaning was well done by the office of Dr. Roberto Coppel Azcona, the most posh dental office I have ever seen. It was a little too “Western” for me.
I had a couple of days recovery, then went to get 4 teeth extracted by Dr. Mackey in one appointment. Though that is a lot of freezing, this was supposed to be the least of my worries.
People ask me, “Rick — what if something goes WRONG when you are getting medical attention in a foreign country?”
That is a good question. My extractions went very, very WRONG.
Though my teeth have been poor my entire life, for some reason they do not want to be removed from my body. I was one of the most difficult patients Dr. Mackey could recall.
Finally, he decided to sent me to a dental surgeon. He and the dental assistant both drove me while I was still frozen.
The Mexican surgeon saw me immediately, but also had mucho problemas despite having a full surgical set-up. I was also one of his most difficult patients ever.
I don’t think anyone counted how many sutures I had in my mouth. Plenty.
On to antibiotics (Dalacin C / Clindamincina), an anti-inflamatory and yet more rest.
Dr. Mackey decided to do just one post / repair and save everything else for the future. I plan to return late January 2008.
All in all, I was very happy with Mexican Dental Vacation. There was no language barrier at any office. The city of Mazatlán is clean and modern. And certainly safer than Calgary or Seattle.
My COSTS aside from airfare:
$50 / day total – hotel, food, etc.
$18 – X-rays at Imagenes Diagnosticas de Mazatlan
free – quotation on work
$290 / root canal
$60 / extraction
$70 – cleaning
They guarantee their work for a period of 2 years.
Dr. Mackey drove me to the airport. When is the last time your dentist did anything like that for you?
Next time you get a quotation for work from your dentist, check this chart:
Mexican Dental Vacation – official website
Contact me if you have any specific questions.
World’s Largest Ice Caves?
I posted a link to Matanuska Glacier a couple of days ago.
These are even better …
There are many ice caves throughout the world, but the Eisriesenwelt Ice Caves in Austria are some of the largest known to man. They are located within the Tennengebirge Mountains near Salzburg and stretch for a remarkable 40 kilometers. Only a portion of the labyrinth is open to tourists but it’s enough to get a taste of what the remaining network is like: a truly mesmerizing palate of Mother Nature’s handicraft.
photo – Matanuska Glacier cave, Alaska
Meltwater sculpted the dagger-like shaft of ice near a cave in Matanuska Glacier in Alaska’s Chugach Mountains. Matanuska is an active glacier, advancing about one foot (0.3 meters) every day.
Matanuska Glacier Cave Picture, Matanuska Glacier Cave Desktop Wallpaper – National Geographic
Is Colombia the NEW New Zealand?
A new film might do for the nation what Lord of the Rings did for New Zealand.
Colombia is my favourite country in South America, mainly due to the friendliness of the people.
We’ve been tracking Colombia’s rise from narcotics netherworld to “hipster tropical destination du jour” for some time now, and it looks like an upcoming potential blockbuster movie could help complete the transition. Love in the Time of Cholera, the novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, hits North American theaters in November.
Oops, watching the trailer … looks a bit of a chick flick.
Maybe skip the movie, fly directly to gorgeous Cartagena, Colombia.
raise your Pacifico to Sr. Claussen
One of the city fathers of Mazatlán, Mexico was German immigrant Jorge Claussen.
Indeed, my favourite walk in town is Paseo Claussen which he had blasted beneath icebox hill near the old town centre.
Jorge did much for this city, but today is best remembered for Pacifico Beer. It’s a workingman’s brew (i.e. burro urine) but I’ve always liked it.
You will not be surprised to learn there are a number of monuments in his memory including this one:
… this homage to the Pacifico Beer Factory. This monument was unveiled on March 14, 2000, the hundredth anniversary of the day the brewery first began producing Pacifico beer.
The Pacifico brewery was founded by three German immigrants, Germán Evers, Emilio Philippi and Jorge Claussen. … The monument itself, which was designed by brewery workers, is a huge copper cooking vat capable of holding 24,000 liters (6336 gallons) of beer.
Farewell Mazatlán.
Valentino’s
I fly to Spokane today.
White Fang – the book
This past summer, a cheechako in the Yukon, I brought with me Jack London’s great novel White Fang as an audio book.
I had read it in my youth, but knew White Fang would get me into the Yukon.
London is no brilliant wordsmith, but his ability to put himself into the mind of a wolf dog is staggering. He must have watched these animals for weeks and months.
The book brings home the harsh violence of wilderness. And the even greater violence of supposedly-civilized humans.
White Fang is sold to the sadistic coward Beauty Smith who wagers on him in dog fights. (After reading this account, I’m hoping they send Michael Vick to prison.)
The book also explores themes of morality and redemption. There’s a happy ending with the long suffering wolf playing with his puppies.
White Fang is not as good as London’s The Call of the Wild, but they are both worth reading.
