On Sunday, I snuck away from my convalesce to check out the Sunday Market in Bucerias.

So, let me get the dentist stuff quickly out of the way. The wisdom teeth extractions were nothing. Installing the implant post was nothing. The bone graft and gum grafting was SOMETHING, alright. That was tough. My gums are very tender. Losing jaw bone was the scariest thing. Without enough bone, implants are not possible.

Wanda had a bone graft done back home in Stevens Point. It worked great. The bone was rebuilt and she was able to get implants. Anyway, I am supposed to convalesce for a week, including eating mushy food. I fear it will be longer than a week.

By Sunday I was stir-crazy. The weather outside is spectacular. The food around Bucerias is spectacular. The surf at the area beaches is spectacular. You get the idea.

FLEA MARKET. On Sunday, feeling pretty chipper, we snuck out to the Sunday Market in Bucerias. This market, being on the grittier side of Hwy 200, is for the locals. It is a sprawling flea market lining a couple of dusty streets. Each booth had a theme: clothing, shoes, kitchenware, trinkets and novelties, hardware and tools, taco stands, etc. This was our first time at this market, in fact, we just learned about it.

On Sundays, Bucerias holds a giant flea market that is the exact opposite of the arts and crafts market in La Cruz, also on Sundays. This booth obviously specialized in kitchenware.

The market flows through several streets and stretches on for blocks and blocks.

You can’t have enough trinkets.

I wonder if these guys are experts in embroidery?

Big chunks of pork were boiling in the big vat. Then this guy chopped and chopped and chopped until my arms were falling off just watching. Being the only guy manning this booth, he could chop, build a taco, collect money, and serve all at the same time - a blur of orchestrated movement.

Zapatos.

More trinkets.

To reinforce the hooks on my waterproof fanny pak, we went to Walmart to locate a small locking carabiner - no luck. Mega - no luck. La Comer - no luck. A back alley flea market - LUCK! We found a booth full of tools and hardware. Sure enough, hanging up right in front of us was a wad of locking carabiners that were perfect - 10 pesos each ($.50 US). We bought four. Wanda’s fanny pak also needed two.

One of 3 or 4 tool and hardware booths, where we found the carabiners to reinforce our Ugo fanny paks.

Wanda’s Ugo fanny pak. Mine is the same but black. The pak looks a lot bigger in the photo than it is in real life. My wallet and large iPhone 12 Pro Max fit perfectly, however, that is about it. The waterproofing really works.

Wanda has had her Ugo for three years. She has tested it in very rough surf without a fail. My freak failure was caused by this hook unhooking. The small gap was just enough to unhook in a violent tumbling.

Never again! This small locking carabiner that we bought at the Bucerias market is perfect for reinforcing the hook. For just knocking around town, the carabiner isn’t necessary. In a rough surf, it will be essential.

Behind Hwy 200, in this section of town, the steep hills begin. We zig-zagged these back streets for a while. The Friends of Bucerias Facebook Group recommended some restaurants over here, so we scoped them out. They looked like nice neighborhood taco restaurants - a cut above street carts but nothing overly fancy or touristy. These operations often serve surprisingly terrific food.

One of the few highrises on the grittier side of Hwy 200.

More nieghborhoods.

Introducing the famous Hwy 200.

The streets in Bucerias vary. I can’t say there are many good streets. Most are pretty bad. This, however, is one of the worst.

Speaking of food. My mushy food requirement disallowed all the crunchy tortilla dishes I love. We went to Walmart, La Comer, and Mega to pick up some home-cooking ingredients. It turned out to be much better than I thought. Homemade soups, mashed spuds, spaghetti sauce with well-cooked rotini, and a lot of refried beans heaped with melted jalapeno cheeses, and salsas, minus the tortillas all worked well.

Eggs were my real discovery. We bought a dozen eggs at the neighborhood Oxxo convenience store. They are not factory-farmed eggs. They are farm-fresh with deep-orange yokes, full of flavor. Scrambled eggs go well with beans.

Sadly, due to medications, I can’t drink Pacificos or margaritas. Oh, the horror!

This little foray into the outer world went well. We clocked in at four miles. My brain is starting to spin out an adventure for tomorrow. We’ll see.

Dave and Wanda

Get Vaccinated To Save Lives.

Virtual Business Card

North America . Europe . Mexico . Asia . Product Reviews . Books & Maps

Please send us your thoughts and any errors we may have missed. We're on the road and cellular service is intermittent in the remote areas. As soon as we get online, we are eager to read all of your messages.

Text: 715-252-6664 | 715-252-3326

Email: alloverthemaptravelventures@gmail.com