Sometimes a last minute invite can be a fun one!

Late this Wednesday afternoon, Lawrie just happened to check his emails and discovered a message from Marla Bainbridge Martinez asking if we would consider helping out as bartenders at a fundraiser starting at four in the afternoon.

I heaved a sigh and stared longingly at my just-poured glass of Malbec wine. Our afternoon plans had included reading a book on the ocean-side patio, with a glass of wine in hand. 

But it was a fundraiser put on by a group of island friends and businesspeople in support of a badly injured islander. Julio Zapata had recently been in a horrific motorcycle accident in the nearby City of Mérida. Julio has two young children and a third on the way. He is facing large medical bills for multiple surgical operations.

We couldn’t say no. It’s what people in small communities do – help out. Lawrie and I scrambled to get to the fundraiser for the four o’clock start time.

Navy truck. Providing an armed escort for the ice?

Driving to the venue at the Casa de la Culture via Guerrero Avenue, we trailed behind a golf cart, loaded with bags of ice. 

Just ahead of the golf cart was an armed escort in the form of a truckload of Navy marines. Presumably protecting against the threat of ice-bandits?

Lawrie, Fernanda are all set to sell beer and drinks

At the ocean-side esplanade for the Casa de la Culture, busy hands were in the process of setting up the venue. Lights and sound systems installed. Band instruments unpacked. Beer was organized in the cooler and covered with the precious ice. Bid pages were arranged for silent auction items donated by several island businesses. And then our favourite beer dispensers arrived: Isla Brewing.

La Banda Sin Nombre

Okay, we’re good to go! Now let’s hear some tunes from La Banda Sin Nombre, the Band with No Name!

The crowd was small but very generous in their donations. Thanks to everyone for helping out. Here’s a copy of Marla’s list of contributors: hopefully, no one has been left out.

Javi's Cantina Restaurant Tapas Bar, Bobo's Grill & Bar, Isla Mujeres Bar Card, El Arrecife, Parque de los Sueños, Restaurant Asia Caribe, CARM Tours & Transfers, The Joint Reggae Bar & Grill, El Patio house of music, Gigi Kraycar, Nirit Ben David, Olivia Tastes from the Mediterranean, Catrina Restaurant, BE Wings Restaurant, Nisa Disco, and Michael (no last name given).

Aida bidding on an auction item

La Banda Sin Nombre y Deejay Dani for the tunes. Cheryl Gabel and Kevin Gabel for running the auction. Isla Brewing Company - Cerveza Isla. Emilio Fernando Sosa Delgado and Martin Burgos for setting up. Jason Williams and Fernanda.

Some of the silent auction winners include: Mark and Monica Macpherson, Sandra Murray, Tomas Christianson, Terri Huff, Dede Clark, Aida, and Patricio Yam.

Barbara Beck, Chris Shannon, Jimmy Picuri

Between the beer sales, the silent auction items, and an earlier GoFundMe campaign, the group efforts have brought in about 41,000 pesos of the 70,000 pesos needed to pay for the operations. It’s a great start! Donations are still gratefully accepted. Contact Marla at Javi’s Cantina for details.

The weather was perfect, the music enjoyable, and the crowd was happy.

Thank you, everyone, for your generosity.

Hasta Luego

Lynda, Lawrie, Sparky, and Thomas the Cat

Isla Mujeres Mystery series

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Death in the Vineyards

How do you make a living in a small community? Diversify!

Javi & Marla 

Earning a living in a small community can be daunting, but for energetic and resourceful people, it can be an interesting adventure.  When Javier Martinez Cen and Marla J. Bainbridge teamed up romantically and professionally, their world got a lot more interesting.

Javi’s family, Martinez, is one of the oldest families on Isla Mujeres. He has spent his entire life on the island, except for a few vacations to Canada, Germany and the USA. Grinning Javi added he was actually born in Mérida. He is not sure if his mother planned to have him in Mérida or if she just happened to be visiting family when Javi made his debut. 

Not long after they joined forces, Marla created a spreadsheet for Javi, with the week blocked out in one-hour segments, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. It was a simple demonstration that they would have a plan where and when they worked, as sleep was a non-negotiable line item on the spreadsheet. 

Toso, Julio, and Javi part of Banda Sin Nombre

In previous years, Javi tried a variety of jobs. He worked on the reception desk at the Cristal Mar Hotel and as a guide at the turtle farm. He also tried his hand at lobster fishing and boat cleaning, but music was always the main motivation in his life. 

Taught at an early age by his dad, Toso, Javi later expanded his music education in Mérida. His grandfather and uncle were also musicians, and his dad still plays a mean bass guitar in La Banda Sin Nombre. However, for Javi, playing a late-night gig at Fayne’s and then reporting to work at the middle school at 6:45 in the morning was not going to be successful in the long term. It doesn’t matter how young you are, eventually the body says: stop!

Javi and his bud.  

On the other hand, Marla, who was originally an Alabama girl, moved to Isla Mujeres about three and a half years ago. She has lived in several American cities and states, and enjoys the challenge of re-inventing herself when presented with new opportunities. Marla readily admits that when she was in high school, she was an awful student; she had absolutely no interest. Several years later, she decided she was bored and needed a new challenge. She enrolled in Pepperdine University in California, and breezed through her Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership.

Moving to Isla, she realized she had to cast a large net over the island to find job opportunities and business ideas. Creating websites and promotional ideas for various island businesses, plus property management for eight homes, got her started. The property management led to purchasing the web-based business Isla Mujeres Budget Rentals, offering booking services between several lower-priced properties and tourists. This has expanded to include Isla Mujeres Vacation Rentals for mid-priced properties and Isla Mujeres Luxury Rentals for the higher-end properties.  

Another one of their business ventures

Creative and restive, her mind is never still, so Marla came up with two more inventive ideas. Dinnertainment: private dinner parties hosted in your home, condo, or apartment, complete with music.  And Transportainment: Javi tours clients to the off-the-beaten-path locations of Isla Mujeres, complete with a local history lesson.

Just when I thought they had revealed all their business secrets, an early morning email informed me of their newest venture, Isla Iguana Tag, to be launched in November.  According to Marla, “it’s an updated version of a scavenger hunt where teams use their smartphones to join in the fun, and are given a list of challenges to compete for points. It’s a great way to see the island, and to visit local attractions or businesses.” 

 

With all of these enterprises rolling along, Marla realized an important fact about herself. She enjoys developing new business ideas. Her criteria for a great business venture are simple: the joy derived must be more than the time spent and the money earned.  

Javi wants to be a good husband and a good dad to his thirteen-year-old daughter, Ambar, and to lead a balanced, happy life. 

Hasta Luego 

Lynda and Lawrie

Murder. Mayhem. Revenge. Romance.

Isla Mujeres Mystery Series

Death in the Vineyards Mysteries

The Adventures of Thomas and Sparky

Summertime and the living is easy, Isla Mujeres Mexico!

Buckets of ice-cold cervesa

"How can you live in Mexico in the summertime?"  

It's a frequently asked question and has a simple answer. "Easily! It's great. The winds die down, and the temperature and humidity rise a bit, but not as much as you would think." 

Living on the Caribbean side of the island, the windward side, we typically have a cooling breeze most of the year. In the summer, it is still breezy, but not windy. The ocean flattens out, and the waves turn into ripples. 

Swimming with whale sharks on Isla Mujeres

Summertime is the only time you can swim with the benign giants, the whale sharks, the biggest fish in the world. They migrate here in May and usually stay until late September. 

It's hard to get the proper perspective on the size of the whale sharks until they slide along beside or under a 31-foot boat – then you see that they are scary big, reaching up to a 40-foot length.



Large pod of whale sharks off Isla Mujeres


And swimming towards a freaking big fish with a huge mouth that is open wide, it is spine-tingling fabulous! Even Sir Richard Branson, owner of Virgin Air, among other things, has twice produced a TV show depicting his experience of swimming with the whale sharks.  

The whale sharks are still hunted in the Philippines for Shark Fin Soup, but not in Mexico. Here they are a protected tourist attraction.



One hundred and twenty Sea Turtle eggs

Summertime is also the only time we have nocturnal visits from the sea turtles. 

The females land under the cover of dark, or in the pre-dawn hours on our beaches, digging several holes in the sand until the perfect nesting site is found. 

The beaches look like something out of a war movie by the time the ladies have finished with them.  Huge holes as if a mortar shell had hit the ground - blowing sand and debris in a wide circle. 

During the night, employees of the Turtle Farm patrol the beaches, looking for nests and gathering the eggs for hatching in a safe environment. In late September and early October, the hatchlings will be released back to the various beaches, starting the cycle all over again.

Ciro, Javier, Julio & Miguel play for singer Jen Rae.


And the other fun ways we keep ourselves amused in summer? 

Listen to live music at bars and restaurants.

Or buy a delicious Panini sandwich from Barlito's on Hidalgo Avenue to enjoy at home while taking a cooling dip in our pool.


Or gaze at the ocean, watching the fabulous sunsets, while quaffing cold, cheap beer. 



Evening sail with Induna Charters

Buckets of these icy little treats usually cost less in the summer as an inducement to patronize the various restaurants. 

Or take an evening sailing cruise around the island with Induna Charters. 

Or if I really get ambitious, I borrow a kayak from family members and paddle out to the reef in front of our house. 

Lynda, kayaking on a summer day!

Grab your copy today!

Isla Mujeres Mystery Series

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Death in the Vineyards Mysteries

The Adventures of Thomas and Sparky