Sushi?!

Mayra called me and said she didn't figure Alma would go with us (Lenin has issues with this circle of friends, so Alma has limited contact these days), but that she would come pick me up for dinner.

We were on our way when I got a text from Iván saying they were in the closed part of the restaurant.  I didn't realize there was an open area in this sushi place because I'd never been there before and was super excited about it.

As we get closer, I feel like we're headed towards Wings and ask Mayra where we're going.  Wings she tells me.  I thought sushi, no?  No.

We walk in, to the closed area of course (for the record, the open-air part is way cooler), I say hello and then start my complaining about how it's not sushi.  I get over it and drown my sorrows in chicken fingers and fries.

A few minutes later, in comes a TV guy and asks if he can ask us a few questions on the air.  I'm already annoyed and worried.

In they come, running, to our table.  The guy starts with me.  Asks if he can ask a few questions.  With my best gringa accent and pronouncing the "h" as strongly as possible, I say, "No HHHHHablo español."  "No big deal," he says in Spanish.  "We can do it in English," he says in English.

Ugh.

So then he asks me a totally inappropriate question that I'm blushing about thinking about your responses if I put it.  Now, realize that I'm easily embarrassed, so for some of you, it's not nearly as bad as you're thinking.  Regardless, there are still words I can't put on here knowing my family is reading!

Intrigued?  Sorry.

I do not answer said question and he moves on around the table.

Mayra has the great idea at dinner that we should go to the beach!  The guys had mentioned going to the beach on Tuesday, and since schools were out, Mayra the kindergarten teacher, Quinantzin the language school teacher, and I the elementary school teacher didn't have to work on Tuesday.  Iván had vacation, and the instructors were there until Thursday.

Mayra says we should go right now!  Everyone gets excited about it.  Eventually, Mayra and Héctor change seats and let the overboard Mexican flirting begin.  I could not handle it.  No interest what so ever.  

If only it could have ended there.  But no, Iván totally hung me out to dry.

So after an hour of annoying conversation, we pay the bill (or should I say the guys pay the bill, thank you!) and head downstairs.  True to Mexican form, we can't have a plan on the way to the cars; we have to stop and chat.  Mayra is starting to back out of the beach trip which of course is unacceptable since it was her idea.  We eventually all cave and meet back at Iván to get in the van and get some sweaters for the girls.

We take care of that and a bathroom break and get on the way.  Now it's Mayra's turn to hang me out to dry.  She takes the middle seat, leaving me squashed with Héctor, Pipo and Quinantzin (who quickly have fallen in love).

Being in the back of the van was a bad idea anyway.  I should've realized it earlier.  But I got nauseated and hot.  I was not much fun.

We get to the beach, stand around, drink the beer and tell jokes.  It was fun and funny until I got tired around 2:30.  By 3 we were close to leaving.  Insert Iván's second hanging to dry.

He was going to drive and I was in the passenger seat to see the road on the way back.  Then he asks if anyone else wants to drive.  Awesome.  Any bets on who volunteered?  Yep.  My buddy Héctor.  He spent the first five minutes trying to cover me up with his sweater.  I kept explaining that I was hot and the last thing a hot person wants is more layers!  

I just needed to be left alone, but he kept chatting.  In a stroke of terrible luck that actually benefitted me, we ran out of gas.  As we were leaving the beach, Iván said we needed to look for a station (which most would be closed at this hour, but especially in Altata, a tiny daytime beach town).  Not 8 minutes down the road the van stopped.  Two cars passed, but neither stopped.  We all got on the horn trying to find someone willing to bring us gas.

Iván was successful with his roommate Carlos.

Again, luck was on my side.  I fell right asleep.  Well, within 15 minutes, but I did a good job of faking it immediately so Héctor would leave me alone!  Rude, but he wasn't getting it.

I woke up around 5:15 when Carlos arrived on Iván's motorcycle, shivering from the midnight air.  They got the van gassed up and off we went.  This time, Iván layered up and drove the bike while Carlos tried to warm up in the car.  He had to be at the airport to work at 6, so we were pushing it.

As we got close to Culiacán, the van started stalling again...

It stopped in the parking lot of a gas station.  
While Gerardo (not Hernando, oops) slept, Iván, Carlos and Héctor pushed the van up to the gas.
Pipo and Quinantzin didn't seem to notice or care.  Poor José Luis didn't have anywhere to sit in the back since they had taken up more than their fair share.
Carlos, Iván and Héctor take care of the gas situation.
José Luis waits in Carlos' seat with Mayra while we get gassed up.
I take a self-portrait.  If I could've kept my eyes open I would have, but I'm terrible at these shots.  But this is a more accurate portrayal of most of my trip.

What a night.

We got back to Iván's, got into Mayra's car, and went home.  As I was coming in at 6, Mamá Alma was getting ready to go to mass.  I think she might've said a prayer for my soul on the way there!

Later, she told me that she wasn't going to say anything to me (she was kind of hidden when I got there, but I saw her and said good morning) in case I hadn't wanted her to see me.

Ha!