Fifty years ago, when I was 16, if you told me that I’d be excited about going to a ‘fiberglass rally’, I’d have told you ‘you’re insane!’ Life can be kinda funny.
All the same, Saturday morning I arrive at the Fiberglass Rally and I am greeted by Sharron, who was parked next to me at The Scenic Road, and ‘Arizona Eileen’, who is well known among the Casita crowd. They help me get situated in a spot that is perfectly side to side level. Who woulda thunk there was such a spot out here at Dome Rock.
Meet “Dome Rock”!
We become part of a small village of fiberglass trailers, heavy on Casitas and friendly folks. People walk around greeting whomever they find, and sometimes lengthy conversations result. When I walk the dogs, I follow suit, so our walks are punctuated with friend-making. I have to say that Joy and Shiloh are easy conversation starters.
Saturday night Sharron and I have our own campfire, and Sunday night we are invited to a propane campfire (!) in Arizona Eileen’s large size Clam. Lance the Pie Guy is there and he brings a lovely Dutch apple pie to share. He’s from Julian, CA, known for it’s perfect climate for growing apples, and it’s apple pies.
Monday evening I use to prepare for my excursion into Mexico the next morning for my trip to the dentist.
Tuesday morning dawns and Kerry and Mirabel arrive early . Thank you so much Kerry! This means I can leave for the day with complete peace of mind about Joy and Shiloh. That is HUGE for me.
From Q to the Quechan parking lot at the boarder is about a 90 minute drive mostly on Hwy 95. At the lot I park under the light pole marked “H” so I can find JR again when I come back…this parking lot is huge.
Walking into Mexico, I’m feeling anxious, hoping I can find “Dental Betel”. I’m walking into a different world. Narrow streets in bright colors (“The Purple Pharmacy” is first) lined with drug stores, dentists offices, optometrists offices and curio shops, along with restaurants, is what lies before me. I either must walk on the street or on the narrow sidewalk which is actually sales area. The walkway is crowded with people….there are tourists, vendors carrying their wares, and the most annoying are the hawkers, working for the various businesses….mostly dentists….trying to lure me into their offices.
I walk quickly, and with purpose, looking straight ahead, ignoring it all, and hoping to heck that I don’t get lost. The office I want is only a tad over 3 blocks from the boarder and I’ve studied the route on Google Maps. Within minutes I see “Frida’s Curios”on the corner and I am relieved to know the office is around that corner and 2 doors down. It’s just off the beaten path so the street is more calm, and this dentist does not promote business by sending guys out to lure folks in. She has all the business she needs from repeat clients and referrals.
Long story short: there is nothing wrong with my tooth, at least not anything that can be found by exam or ex-rays at this time. It has stopped hurting too. A complete set of ex-rays is done for $50. Now this dentist has a baseline, and I have a dentist in Mexico. I am able to get my teeth cleaned by a very gentle hygienist for $30. I leave the office glad that I came. I feel like I can safely recommend this dentist’s office. Everything was exquisitely clean and there are various dentists there with different specialties.
After a quickie stop at a pharmacy, I go back and line up to come back into the USA. It’s just before noon and the wait is between 20-25 minutes long. Finally I show my passport and cross.
People in line behind me at the boarder crossing back into the USA.
I quickly find JR and after a couple of stops for shopping in Yuma, I come back to my little home where I happily greet my babies. Kerry has kindly kept me posted with texts and a picture of how the kids were doing while I was away, too. 🙂
Home Sweet Home!
Now to get ready for the party tonight! A party at my house no less. Some of the solo women are getting together tonight and WS has been nominated as the location. I’m happy to comply because that means Joy and Shiloh will be on the guest list. Ten or 11 women show up along with 6 or 7 dogs….that includes me and mine. There is plenty of wine and snacks and we have a great time chatting and getting to know each other.
The ladies all consented to have their pictures on the blog, but requested no names please!
Honestly, we didn’t drink all this!
This morning as we take our walk, I look back down the hill at the little fiberglass village….wait….what’s this? It’s become a fiberglass metropolis!
This isn’t all…they are spread out in all directions!
And last but not least, ‘morning has broken, like the first morning…’
Guess it’s strange to put sunrise at the end of the post. But it’s just a reminder, to be thankful for every single sunrise we see…every new day we have. Beautiful. Just beautiful.
Wandering Spirit 
I was anxiously awaiting your post about the dental experience, happy to know all went very well. Nice to see you’re having s good time with friends new, and old.
I have to say I was SO glad there was nothing wrong with that tooth! Dentists offices make me a very nervous camper.
Thanks, yes, I am having a good time in this cute little metropolis!
Enjoyed reading very much! A fiberglass rally? So I could have attended. Please let me know if there are any in my area. Hugs!
I didn’t know you are fiberglass. There are no Winnie’s here. It’s all these little rounded things like Casitas, Escapes, Scamps, Trilliums, Oliver’s. Fiberglass top to bottom. There is a fiberglass rv forum on line, and they will tell you if there are any fiberglass rally’s in your area. Check them out! I get my info about that kind of thing from the Casita Forum.
It is so great to have these fun meet ups! making new friends along the way. i am wondering how other women travel with their dogs? My daughter and I were talking about going for a while in my VW camper. With our 5 dogs I think we would need a little trailer for them. Your dogs look so happy [except for the shoes] It has to be really good for them and you. Happy trails you guys.
I’m not sure how it would work with two humans and five dogs in a VW bus girlfriend! Kinda wild! You would want to spend most of your time outside….which is mostly the point of camping anyway, right? And I don’t know how other trailers ride, but I know that Casitas ride very rough…I wouldn’t want to leave my dogs in it when I am driving.
The women who are here have one or two dogs so far. Or cats. The pets ride in the vehicle with them while they drive. Some are crated. Kerry crates Mirabel while she is driving. Some harness them to the seatbelt latches. Some like me, leave them free in the back seat area.
I’ve seen women with larger (than mine) RV’s who have more dogs. They have been small and crated when driving. These are people who show their dogs.
Yeah, Mexico is a trip, especially the first time. Glad it went well. The Casita ‘village’ is usually a surprise too, the 1st time. Unbelievable, but confirms ‘you don’t just get a Casita – you also get a family’. Sunsets & sunrises are the BEST.
Hi Glenda. The first time I met a Casita was at a fiberglass rally in CA. I was ‘shopping’ and since it wasn’t far from where I lived, I asked the camp hosts if I could come by. When I drove up to the campground and saw the eggs nestled among the trees, I just broke out in giggles. It put me in mind of some kind of Ewok village. ☺️
How fun to see photos of your little casita city!
And I always enjoy reading about solo women travelers, especially with their doggie partners.
How did you choose that particular dentist office ? I’ll need to get down there this Spring.
Thx for any insight.
Hi Caroline,
I think my next blog is going to be about some insites I’m getting concerning solo travelers, so stay tuned.
I asked Kerry which dentist she went to. She seemed to have a good experience, so I made an appointment at the same office. http://www.dentalbetel.com is the website.
A story on solo women travelers would be great ! I look forward to that.
Getting a recommendation from someone is ideal and that’s what you got from Kerry. I’ve read Nina’s reports on WheelingIt regarding their successful dentist visits so I was going to use the same, but now I have a choice. yay. Thank you!
Enjoy the rally! Look forward to hearing all about it.
Whoa Micky, What a great life. Old and new friends seem to be every where you travel. I love the idea of dinner parties without cleaning the house and cooking for hours. I apologize for taking so long to mail you but we had another septic explosion here. it was a problem with the drain field(what do I know about that? 0,that’s what).But today it seems to be ok after $1750.00 and re clean downstairs,ick. We are looking for a small trailer for the dogs to sleep in. They would keep us awake all night if they were in the camper. Keep up the good life! E
Oh man, septic tank explosions can’t be good!!!!! I’m so sorry. Hope you find just the right trailer! Somehow your comment got under an old blog.