When we moved to Sayulita last October, I arrived with dreams of being out on the water with Lori and the boys til the sun went down.
Seven months on, Lori and I still haven’t gotten much into surfing, Riley’s still only two, and Noe’s swimming hasn’t quite been up to snuff…until recently.
We do, however, have a bodyboard that we take out regularly with us. I told Noe that when he could swim back and forth in a pool a few times without our help I’d take him out on it.
Noe’s been swimming for ages, but is still reluctant to lose the floaties even in foot-high surf.
Two hours in the pool next door at Grammy and Grampy’s rental for two weeks straight seemed to boost his confidence enough to finally get him to head out into the open sea and splash around on his own.
At the end of Grammy and Grampy’s visit, Noe easily completed several laps across the pool, which meant one thing, of course. It was time to catch some waves.
But we’ll get to that.
Another beach morning out with Riley, solo. Reminds me of the first few weeks of living here when Lori and I would take turns taking him to the beach while Noe was at school. The weather’s starting to feel just as hot as October too.
So, this is about the time we originally planned to head back to the U.S. to get our FMM tourist cards renewed. Mexico gives U.S. citizens a six months visa-free stay when they enter. But as you may have gathered, we’re still here.
When the pandemic started, Mexico eased its immigration restrictions, particularly with regards to overstays. Info even circulated on official social media about various ways in which tourists could potentially extend their stay [legally] without leaving the country.
Intrigued, Lori called up INM (immigration) and eventually got through to a rep who confirmed that, yes, indeed this was possible, going so far as to give Lori a list of required documents, application forms, and a fee quote.
As a result, we planned to not return in April, but rather extend our card in-country and wait until the end of the school year in late July to fly back to the U.S.
Since school is out for six weeks and the weather is the best all year in the PacNW at that time, this seemed like the obvious choice.
In March, we swung by the immigration office on our way to Mascota to have the renewal processed before our six month deadline. The woman at the front window told us they couldn’t begin to process it until after our tourist card expired and directed us to come back then.
Which, of course meant we’d be overstaying at some point. Oh well, we thought. This is the official guidance and such are things in Mexico.
Immediately after our tourist cards expired, we hired a driver to take us first thing in the morning back to the INM office in Nueva Vallarta, an hour south of Sayulita.
Once we arrived at the office, we were told that there was no longer any way to extend our visitor permit without leaving the country (though we did know of a few people who had done just that in Queretero that same week), and the only thing they could do for us was to regularize our overstay.
At this point, we didn’t appear to have many options. A return flight out of the country and back would easily cost over $1,000. So we proceeded with regularization.
We spent the morning in the office going through the motions and then it came time to pay. The total was over $700 (USD).
Standing in the office, there didn’t seem to be many good choices. Either we pay it, or we overstay our visa and risk…
Um, Lori. What are the consequences for overstaying our FMM for a few months? She turned to the two officers working at the counter and repeated my question in Spanish.
They looked at each other, then the man replied, “You may have to pay a fine at the airport when you leave.”
I asked if that affected coming back into the country? They shook their heads. Does it go on our record or something? This question seemed to baffle them. Record?
Ok, ok. How much are we talking?
“Maybe $25?”
So… $700 vs. $100?
“Maybe, if they ask. They usually don’t.”
Is it too late to cancel our regularization application?
“No, not at all.”
They handed us our application and called the next person in line.
So that’s that, I guess. Not much of an incentive to do things the right way, but that’s not exactly surprising. On the bright side, we saved $700…so, yay?
We called an Uber for the return back. It was Jesus, of course.
Nothing surprises me anymore.
Noe’s latest school project. Lori thought it was particularly cool.
The sun coming up over our favorite Sayulita coffee shop, Anchor. The Golden Serrano is awesome.
Brunch at El Break, one of our favorites for feet-in-the-sand breakfast and a view.
Out with the old, in with the new.
Morning hike to Playa Carricitos.
International Children’s Day Festival at Sayuparque, the main park in town and the boys’ second home after the beach.
Nope, the boys aren’t throwing elbows at each other. They’re helping me hand-grind my morning coffee, a newfound passion of theirs.
Playa Malpaso.
The water level right now is perfect for exploring the caves that connect Playa Malpaso with Playa Las Cuevas.
Yep, we’re deep into dry season. EVERYTHING is brown and/or covered in a thick film of brown dust. Six months without measurable rainfall will do that, even in the lush tropics.
Noe and Riley’s new favorite play cafe. It’s easy to see why.
Our other “Big Boy” is trying out his first nap in a real bed (versus his Lotus crib). Will it take?
Yep, I believe it has.
Pickup time at school. It’s always a little tricky getting Noe out the door. He’s always engrossed in a fun art project or game with his amigos.
In other news, we’ve been battling a mystery stench around the house for the past several weeks. If you’re familiar with the smell of a rotting animal carcass in the tropics, you’re at least half way there.
As the weather gets hotter and hotter, the stench has gotten stronger. We used to only be able to catch a faint whiff sitting in the front of the house with the windows open. Now, it’s everywhere.
The property manager initially thought it might be a small iguana that got stuck under one of the terracotta shingles and met its demise there. Following some serious roofing investigation, we knocked that one off the list.
The search continues, but good golly, it’s getting bad. Just another day in paradise.
And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Or at least Noe and I for the last few months.
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen him so excited as he was on the way to the beach and while we geared up. He was definitely stoked.
Noe’s been watching me and others bodyboard for months, so he has a pretty good idea of what he’s supposed to do. Still, I made him sit through a few turns of me demo’ing before setting him loose.
Noe took to it right away, and loved every moment. He had his fair share of wipeouts, but recovered like a champ.
The conditions were just about perfect for a four-year-old’s first time on the water with a board. A fun and memorable morning with daddy.
