First, there was the bang - then the flash. We were playing cards at the kitchen table. My computer was right beside me, so that I could dive back into the net whenever I finished beating Robin at rummy. He said "What was that?" "Fireworks, I think." In Mexico, it's usually fireworks. They're very popular, and their use isn't limited to holidays.

Then the electricity browned out for a moment. Never mind. It came back. When we finished our game (I did win) I picked up my laptop and found out that I had no internet connection. Sigh. Wait a minute and try again. No luck. Then there was a knock at the door. It was our neighbour, the one between us and the swimming pool - also, between us and the wi-fi gizmo. "Do you folks have electricity?" she asked.

"Yes."

"I don't. Nobody at that end of the park does. It looks like the problem is between your RV and mine."

So it was. The bang? The flash? Something had fried the electrical connection in the space between the two RVs, and it had thrown half the park off the grid. By this morning, it still hadn't been fixed. Our poor neighbour had to run a generator to keep her fridge in operation.

I did mention that Robin was thinking we should cut our losses and head north, didn't I? Well. I'm writing now from the lobby of the Poza Rica Inn Hotel in Poza Rica, which is about 70 kilometers north of Casitas. http://www.pozaricainn.com/home.htm We left Casitas before nine o'clock this morning (good-bye, Chica!) Along the way, we stopped at El Tajin to visit the archaeological site there. Once we got through the hordes of people selling food and drink and souvenirs outside the gate, we found a beautiful, well-tended site complete with museum. The paths were wide and paved with stones - uncomfortable walking, but much cleaner than the mud paths at Palenque. I said at one point that it was like using stepping stones to cross a very wide stream. Climbing on the structures themselves was forbidden. I thought that made perfect sense. Palenque, by contrast, was an accident waiting to happen, with people scrambling all over the stones. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Tajin

After our visit to El Tajin, we followed our noses to Poza Rica, since our maps didn't seem to be of much help. Somehow, we found the hotel, and we secured a spot in their parking lot. We have electricity and water, and the internet reception is fabulous - as long as I sit in the hotel lobby or the restaurant. I'm in the lobby right now. There's canned music playing. I enjoyed hearing "All By Myself". I caught one of the receptionists staring at me, so I suspect I was doing an unconscious imitation of Bridget Jones - but very quietly, of course, and in a dignified manner. The music alternates between Latin and North American pop. Meanwhile, there's a music video station playing on the television. I see that there is a swimming pool here - oh, and a hot tub - so I know what I'll be doing this evening. We plan to have dinner in the hotel restaurant, which advertises filet mignon for 90 pesos. I will probably have enchiladas. Now begins my frantic attempt to eat all of Mexico before we cross the border in a couple of days. It happens every time. I start going into Mexican Food withdrawal before we even get to the border.

Tomorrow, Victoria. Robin tells me there's no wi-fi there. I hope he's wrong, but if I'm not here, I'll be there, tapping my feet, pacing, making typing movements with my fingers.

photo from Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Tajin