Have sheep, will travel: I'll have a tub of milk and a bag of eggs please!

The Mexicans living in Lo de Marcos are extremely warm and friendly to visitors here. Undoubtedly, the visitors help their economy, as the town is apparently very quiet once the winter residents leave at the end of the spring. Almost every person, no matter the age, greets us with a "buenos días" when we pass, and oftentimes are happy to try and talk with us.

Today we had the pleasure of getting to know two locals a little better. Nearby where we live, you'll find this storefront (near the corner of Luis Echeveria and Allende, for anyone living here).

If you read yesterday's blog post, you will know we visited a sustainable organic farm yesterday. El Paraiso is a similar farm nearby that raises cattle. We chatted at the store with lovely Lisa, who operates the store and is from the farm. She is friends with Britta, the lady who runs the farm from yesterday's walk.

Lisa has a variety of cheeses in this display case, as well as tubs of milk. Greg and I drink skim milk at home, but I'm told what we buy here is full pasteurized milk. Its taste reminds me of my childhood in Britain, when we had fresh milk in glass bottles. No glass bottles here, but the same great taste, and surprisingly at a cost equal to the boxed milk on the shelves of the grocery stores. No comparison, in my opinion.

I asked one very technical question about the milk ... "When did this milk come out of the cow?" I was impressed to hear that the cow would have been milked yesterday, the milk would have been pasteurized overnight and be ready for the store today. Any milk not sold the same day would then be used in the cheese production. Now that's fresh!

On the far side of the display case Lisa has a selection of field greens from Britta's farm, so they are available in town after all. Good to know.

I also stopped in at another nearby store to buy eggs.

Our fresh milk and eggs purchase

There are lots of chickens in this town, so farm fresh eggs are plentiful. However, they are sold by weight and put into a regular plastic bag, so you need to be careful carrying them home. I must admit I had a ding in one by the time they reached the fridge.

As we walked back from our daily visit to the beach, we saw this man cleaning one of the main streets. It's one of the few that is paved, and it runs closest to the beach, so it's a well-travelled street. I wondered whether he was a town employee, or whether he was paid by one of the nearby hotels ... so I asked him. His name is Joe, and he was happy to take a quick break and chat with us.

Joe recently returned from living in America, and speaks perfect English. He currently lives at the office at the Pretty Sunset Trailer Park. He explained that he's looking for a job in Lo de Marcos, but in the meantime he thought he would busy himself with cleaning up the side of the road to help keep up the appearance of the town. He said he is grateful to God for his life and wants to give back. If anyone locally can help him find a good job, please go see him at the trailer park. A personality like that deserves a helping hand. Good luck, Joe!

Yesterday, we visited a neighbouring trailer park on the same road and noticed this potted plant.