Where do you go in Mexico for drugs? Walmart, of course!

To my surprise, my husband Greg specifically asked me to write this post. He said it’s important that we tell this story so others can learn from it.

As we all know, when travelling it’s important to do a final check for the essentials: passport, money, medications. Greg always says if we’ve forgotten anything else, we can just buy it when we get there. Yesterday, as Greg went to fill his drug dispenser, he discovered he hadn’t packed his blood pressure pills. We hunted everywhere but they weren’t to be found.

Last night's view at supper at a beach restaurant. I just had to share it.

We both carry our detailed prescription information, so we went online to find as much information as possible about his medications. He takes three different types for high blood pressure, so it was certainly important to stay with the same ones to avoid any possible interactions. Thankfully, many medications that need a prescription in Canada can be bought over-the-counter in Mexico. That was the case for the ones he needed.

Greg always has to check out every motorcycle & scooter he sees (19 pesos = $1 U.S.)

Living in this area is one place where my Spanish is sometimes better than the other person’s English, so I have certainly become more comfortable with getting into conversations. My Spanish is also improving because of it. We spoke with the doctor at the local pharmacy, but he said we’d need to go to a bigger city to get what we needed. So, where do you go? To Walmart, of course!

While I was taking this, a worker came with more stock!

Today we did a one-hour bus ride to Walmart in Puerto Vallarta. The lady at the pharmacy counter was very helpful and took the time to work through it with us. We were able to buy the equivalent drugs and returned feeling more at ease. We plan to check Greg’s blood pressure regularly with the local pharmacist and hopefully all will be OK.

Was this taken in Mexico? Are you sure?

There are many negative media reports linking drugs and Mexico, but this is one story that is unlikely to make the headlines. It does show how important those final travel checks are though. In different circumstances, this would not have been as easy to resolve. It also made us appreciate our drug plan at home, as usually we don’t have to pay for our medications. This is one time we didn’t mind paying though!

How about this one? What makes you think we're in Mexico?

Once we’d bought our drugs, we could relax a little and wander around the store. I was taken by the volume of flip flops; you can tell we’re in a warm climate as it’s such a popular footwear. They sell boots and parkas for the locals here too though. Notice the clothing in the photos; almost everything – for men, women, and children – has English written on it. Given the global dominance of English it’s not surprising, but nevertheless interesting to me.

I’ll close with another of my favourite flowers. We did another farm tour yesterday in a neighbouring town. The young family there moved from the cold climate of Buffalo, New York, USA to this tropical climate. They are horticulturalists, but having to adapt to this land and climate has been a learning experience for them. However, their water lilies were such beautiful colours that I just had to share one here.

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Location: Lo de Marcos, Nayarit, Mexico
Weather: High of 77ºF (25ºC), low of 71ºF (22ºC)

(and the locals are still talking about how cold it is!)

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