El Mariachi, Tulum Pueblo ***

El Mariachi's in Tulum Pueblo is a great restaurant with good local dishes at a great price. Funny enough, this was actually the very first place we ever heard of in Tulum. Were looking for a launrymat and the directions were "right next to El Mariachi." It was the very first place we ever ate at in our new little town.



Located right on the main avenue of Tulum it was very easy to find. The first thing we saw was a huge platter of fish being served above a large flame and it smelt delicious!!!. We ordered some traditional favorites and dug in. The beers were cold and the salsa was spicy. It was perfect.



We have had many other good times at El Mariachi's since that night. Some of the most recent favorites being World Cup 2010. We watched the Mexico game there and look forward to watching the quarter-semi and Finals there as well.



The plates are very large at El Mariachi's. This was my husband's favorite part. The food was good and there was a lot of it. There are some very plentiful breakfast items. The Chiliquilles is a favorite of mine and my kids.



This is one of the spots that is absolutely slamming with locals in the evenings. From 11:00 p.m. till close (5 am) this place has 2x1 beers. Talk about some happy hours. Especially when you think about the fact that so many of us work until the late evening- El Mariachi is the best place to go.



There are times they will have 10 peso tacos but as you can imagine... these do not last long.



There is also a nice garden area in the back of the restaurant. it opens up onto a nice little courtyard.

Living in Tulum

So, you want to live in Tulum? I always get the question… “What is it like to live in Tulum?” “How much do I need to live on in Tulum?” and “Are there jobs in Tulum?” Here is my answer…Since this whole blog is about my experiences living here this information is based on how I live and how I know that some others live.

When I moved to Mexico a good friend of mine said 2 things that I have found to be pearls of wisdom here. 1) “If you go to Mexico and try to find ‘Rice-a-Roni’ and focus on the fact that you cannot find it -you will be miserable. But if you focus on the fact that just bought 3 pineapples for a dollar- then you will be thrilled.”
This is very true. Not in many of the big cities but in the smaller towns and villages it is very true. I in fact started a whole blog about my new cooking life here in Mexico because I cannot find the things that I am used to having around so I have to learn new ways to use things.

Now, for living in Tulum and what it is like to live in Tulum. The 2nd thing my friend said to me is also very true, “to live in Mexico is very inexpensive. But to buy anything in Mexico is expensive.” The cost of living here is very low but, especially in the touristy areas like Tulum, the cost of buying anything is near what you would pay in the states. A soda is a dollar, a cocktail is 4 or5 dollars and cloths are 15-30 bucks a piece. While things are cheaper than they are in the states, they are still pretty high, especially when you think about how much we make.

So here is the breakdown.
Housing: rents range from 2000 pesos for a room sometimes with a little furniture and small kitchen sink. You basic little house (2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms) with a little yard is around 4000-6000 pesos per month depending on how nice people have made them. There are some nice apartments and condos and small houses that rent for 9,000+ pesos a month as well.

Utilities: Our utilities are internet, cable, water and electricity. The city takes care of garbage. There is currently no recycling pick up (we are all working on changing this) For cable and internet we pay 550 pesos for the higher speed internet and about 60 channels (5 or so in English) Water is about 150-200 pesos a month. And electric can range between 200-400 hundred pesos in the lower months but in the hot summer months when we are running our fans a lot it is about 800-1000 pesos a month. If you have air conditioning it can be upwards of 2,000 pesos.

Food and water: We cannot drink the water out of the tap here so we buy large 20 L. bottles for 23 pesos. We use about 3 or 4 a week. I would say we spend about 300 pesos a month on water. And for food- we budget 1000 pesos a week for food. ****There are some great fruiterias and meat stores in town and these are a great way to get fresh, local ingredients and support the local economy!!!****

If you do not have a car transportation is another thing to think about. Taxis are cheap and so are the collectives. Bikes are a very easy and fast way to get around Tulum as well.


As for jobs: Yes there are jobs- it gets really slow during certain times of the year but there is work to be found. Sept and Oct. are the best months to move and start looking for a job. Tulum is also a great place for people who want to start something of their own.

My husband has a good job. He speaks English and Spanish and makes around 10,000-13,000 pesos a month. There are better jobs and worse jobs as well and pay can fluctuate.

Well, I hope that this helps any of you that are interested in moving to Tulum. It is a wonderful place and I love living here. If you have more specific questions, feel free to email me.

Casa de la Cultura Tulum

Here is a list of the current classes at the casa de la cultura. The casa de la Cultura is wonderful because there are so many great classes and the techers keep the money that they earn. Part if the inscription goes to the actual Casa de la Cultura to help keep it running and is good for 1 year.



To join a class you can simply go to the Casa de la Cultura and speak to the teacher.
Yes it is in Spanish but you can figure it out. :)


ARTES PLASTICAS
CURSO DE VERANO:l "RECICLANDO"
Mtra. Laura Patricia Bernal Jardón
Niños y niñas de 6 a 13 años
Lunes a viernes de 4:00-6:00 p.m.
reutiliza, recicla y forma todo lo que la imaginación
proyecte para la creatividad.
Fecha: de 1 al 16 de julio
INCRIPCIONES ABIERTAS
Inscripción: $ 55.ºº
Mensualidad: $ 55.ºº

BORDADO
Mtra. Georgina Blanco Chi
Mayores de 9 años
Lunes a Viernes 5:00-7:00 p.m
Inscripción: $ 55.ºº
Mensualidad: $ 55.ºº

DANZA FOLKLÓRICA
Mtra. Maritza Maricruz Ramírez Kinil
Lunes a Viernes
6-12 años de 4:30-6:00 p.m.
13 años en delante de 6:00-8:00 p.m.
Inscripción: $ 55.ºº
Mensualidad: $ 55.ºº

MÚSICA (Guitarra)
Mtro. Natan Ignacio Vital Cortez.
Lunes a Viernes
A partir de 9 años de 4:00-5:00 p.m.
Jóvenes y Adultos de 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Inscripción: $ 55.ºº
Mensualidad: $ 55.ºº

TAE KWON DO
Mtro. Isaias Chávez
Lunes, miércoles y viernes
niños y niñas
de 4 a 6 años de 5:00-6:00 p.m.
de 6 a 11 años de 6:00-7:00 p.m.
mayores 12 años de 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Mensualidad: $ 300
Inscripción: $ 100

BALLET CLASICO INFANTIL
Mtra. Caty Dominguez
Niñas de 4 a 12 años
Martes y jueves de 4:00 a 6:00 pm
Mensualidad $300.
Inscripción $100 pesos.

DANZA CONTEMPORÁNEA
Mtra. Caty Domínguez
Martes y jueves de 6 a 8 pm
Mensualidad $300.
Inscripción $100 pesos

DANZA FLAMENCO
Mtra. María Díaz
Infantil
Martes y jueves de 5:00 a 6:00 pm
Jóvenes y adultos
Principiantes
Martes 10:30 y sábados 12:00
Intermedios
Lunes y viernes 11:00 a 12:30
Avanzado
Miércoles y sábado
10:00 am a 12 md
Mensualidad $400 pesos

DANZA FOLKLORICA
"SEMBLANZAS DE MEXICO"
Mtra. Maricarmen Gallegos
Sábados 2:00 a 3:00 pm (Infantil)
5:00 a 7:00 pm (Adultos)
Inscripción $50 pesos
Mensualidad $50 pesos

INICIACIÓN MUSICAL Y ENSAMBLE
Mtro. Mauricio Mota
Sábados de 10:00 a 13:00
y de 13:00 a 16:00 pm
Costo $50 pesos por clase

INICIACION AL PIANO
Mtro. Bernardo Ramírez Azcoitia
Lunes, miercoles y viernes
3:00 4:00 pm y 7:00 a 8:00 pm
Costo $800 pesos mensuales
o $100 pesos por clase
Material: Cuaderno pautado, lapiz,
sacapuntas y goma.

CORO DE TULUM
Mtro. Antonio Reyes
Martes y jueves
de 6:00 a 8:00 pm
Inscripción $100 pesos
Mensualidad $300 pesos.

YOGA
Instructor: Fabián Salazar
Lunes, miércoles y viernes
8:30 a 10:00 am
Costo por clase $50 pesos

HATA YOGA
Instructora: Lucrecia Rivera
Martes y jueves de 8:00 a 9:30 pm
Costo por clase $50 pesos
INICIAMOS 14 DE JUNIO

AEROGIMNASIA
Combinación de gimnasia reductiva
y ejercicios aerobicos
Mtra. Evangelina Villamil de la Garza
Lunes, miércoles y viernes de 8 a 9 pm
Mensualidad $300 pesos

CORTE Y CONFECCIÓN
Mtra. Honoria Balam Gómez
Martes y jueves
de 6:00 a 8:00 pm
Mensualidad $300 pesos
INICIAMOS 20 DE JULIO

INGLES INFANTIL
Niños y niñas de 9 a 12 años
Mtra. Judith Castillo Chan
Lunes, miércoles y viernes
de 6:00 a 7:00 pm
Inscripción gratuita los primeros 10
Inscripción $100 pesos
Mensualidad $300 pesos

INGLÉS PARA ADULTOS
Mrta. María Pía
Lunes, miércoles y viernes de 8 a 10 am
Lunes, miercoles y viernes de 3 a 5 pm
Sábados de 8 a 11 am
Duración 6 meses
Costo por semana $250 pesos
Inscripciones abiertas hasta el 15 de marzo.

ITALIANO PARA ADULTOS
Mrta. María Pía
Martes y viernes de 8 a 10 am
Costo por semana $250 pesos

TALLER DE LENGUA MAYA
Para principiantes
Lecto-escritura
Mtro. Aniceto Velázquez Chi
Martes de 3 a 4 pm
Martes de 4 a 5 pm
Jueves de 10 am a 12:00 hrs
Costo de recuperación:
$50 pesos mensuales

LUDOTECA TULUM
Curso de Verano "Te quiero saludable"
del 19 de julio al 6 de agosto 2010
Lunes a viernes
9:00 a 12:00 hrs (niños y niñas de 6 a 12 años)
1:00 a 4:00 pm (niños y niñas de 4 a 5 años)
Rquisitos
Copia del acta de necimiento
Comprobante de domicilio
No. de telefono celular
Inscripciones abiertas
TOTALMENTE GRATUITO