The tropics are hot and humid. Many cruisers who live aboard their boats during hurricane season or other long periods tied up in marinas, make life a bit more comfortable by judicious use of good old American air conditioning. Here's how it's done in Mazatlan, where most all the liveaboards run AC at least part of each summer day:
1. Buy a small air conditioning unit (8000 BTU for a 40-foot boat, for example), in the dead of winter. We got ours at Home Depot in Mazatlan at their December 31 end-of year sale. Screamin' deal, man.
2. Find a place aboard to store the AC unit you just bought, until you need it next June.
3. Now that it's June & you're in a marina for hurricane season, pull out the AC unit & find a good hatch to hold it. We used the overhead hatch in the saloon.
4. Go back to Home Depot to get some 2x4 pieces to support the unit, some hose to drain the condensation off the side of your boat, and some insulation in which to encase the AC unit for maximum efficiency in sunlight and heat.
5. Use lots of duct tape to hold everything together.
6. Get a crew member to sew a Sunbrella cozy for the AC unit, the better to hold it all together and protect it from the elements.
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Hi to both of you! I just had to tell you how much I've thoroughly enjoyed your stories. We'll be following your path in a few weeks, from Anacortes, and will be sure to stock some Beefeater for when we someday share an anchorage! Thanks so much for such helpful tips and a preview of what we should expect, though I do hope we don't have a similar "fogust" down the coast!
Posted by: Jan | July 11, 2008 at 05:53 PM
Hello there - I came across your blog after searching Google with "neurosurgeon Guaymas" where it said something like neurosurgeon in Mazatlan...do you happen to know of a neurosurgeon in Guaymas or anywhere north of Maz? My husband needs one...it's a long story...see our blog cintia-y-miguel.blogspot.com. Thanks!
Posted by: Cynthia | July 29, 2008 at 04:57 PM
Hi Cythia -
Glad to see you've settled in Guaymas - one of our favorite towns & one we'll likely return to on our next circuit 'round the Sea of Cortez in 2009. But to your point: how to find a neurosurgeon in Guaymas. Unfortunately I don't personally know of one up there but it may not be very difficult for you to find a good one.
It seems that here in Mexico, you find good MDs by word-of-mouth. For example, when I was looking for one in Maz, I was leery of just picking a doctor out of the phone book or from an ad, & I tried but never found a state or federal physicians' medical board on which to do an online search for any local MD with a license in good standing. The only thing that was left was to ask around for a doctor's name from people whose judgment I trusted. Difficult, when you're new in town. Anyway I got a name of a good MD from a fellow who'd written a guide book to Mazatlan & then I picked his brain some more about the MD via email, and asked around with other friends to see if they knew the guy. The MD turned out to be terrific.
In your case, if I were looking for a neurosurgeon in Guaymas (& I'm certain there's at least one there), I would start by asking the local folks I know the best. They'll be happy to help. For example, the nice lady at the tortilleria you mentioned on your blog, who lost her hearing? I bet she knows someone. Or maybe your landlady knows of an MD. Other ideas from my perspective as a person on a boat: go down to the malecon and the Singlar marina (a short distance across the water from the fisherman's statue, institutional-green colored buildings), and ask around for Horacio - he's the dock supervisor & hard to miss - he's a big guy, very friendly, fluent in English, lives in Guaymas; he might remember Mariana from the sailboat Gallant Fox who was there a couple months ago in May so tell him hi for us & ask him if he knows of a good local MD. Or, head over to San Carlos near Marina San Carlos, & find the restaurant called "Club de Capitanes" on the road to the east of the marina across the street & south a couple of blocks from the hotel. The guy who runs Club de Capitanes is an expatriate who's lived & worked in San Carlos for many years, & he could probably help you find a good MD. If you already know where a radiology clinic is, go in & ask them for a list of local MDs - they'd be getting all their business from them anyway, especially from neurosurgeons who'd be sending their patients out for MRIs & whatnot. If all else fails, you could telephone my neurosurgeon's office in Mazatlan & maybe they could give you one or more names of good MDs in Guaymas:
Saul Santana Quintana
Polimedica Mazatlan
Rafael Buelna s/n 4to. Piso Cons. 418-C
Mazatlan Sinaloa Mexico
Tel. 52-669-986-23-37
Bottom line: it takes a bit of legwork of a different kind, to find an MD in Mexico, but there are many good physicians in the major cities & you might even find that many of them did at least some of their training in the US. Also? You can get an appointment & results much more quickly in Mexico than you could ever hope for in the US. And for cheaper.
Hope this all helps; & certainly give me a holler if you have more questions. Finally: congratulations on being here!
Posted by: sailnmuffin | July 30, 2008 at 08:32 AM