![]() Are you kidding, I have to dial what first? Then the what? Seriously, I think I'll just text. Dialing within Mexico: Land line to local land line phone dial the seven digit number (i.e. 143-1234) Land line to long distance land line phone dial 01 then the ten digit number (i.e. 01-612-123-1234) Land line to local cell phone dial 044 then the ten digit number (i.e. 044-624-122-1234) Land line to long distance cell phone dial 045 then the ten digit number (i.e. 045-612-123-1234) Cell phone to local or long distance land line dial the ten digit number (i.e. 624-143-1234) Cell phone to local or long distance cell phone dial the ten digit number (i.e. 612-122-1234) Dialing into Mexico: To dial a land line phone Dial 011-52 then the ten digit number (i.e. 011-52-624-143-1234) To dial a cell phone Dial 011-52-1 then the ten digit number (i.e. 011-52-1-624-122-1234) Dialing from Mexico to the US/Canada Dial 001 then the ten digit number (i.e. 001-303-333-3333) Dialing from Mexico to the rest of the world Dial 00 then the Country Code and phone number Dialing US Toll Free Numbers For 800 numbers - dial 001-880 then the seven digit number For 866 numbers - dial 001-883 then the seven digit number For 877 numbers - dial 001-882 then the seven digit number For 888 numbers - dial 001-881 then the seven digit number
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Wow, it's been about 10 months since my last blog entry!
What can I say, I've been "busy" (hahahaha). Before the move to Cabo San Lucas back in October of 2013, I for some strange reason thought I'd have so much more free time to devote to "working"on the site once we got here. I have found that the layed back, relaxing, low stress is not always very productive. As many people who have made the move and are now comfortable with the lifestyle say "If I get one thing off my to-do list today, I feel successful". Update on the development of the site. We have "shared" the site with members of the Caboholic Support Group on facebook for feedback, suggestions, and ideas. So far I'd say we're doing okay. The site is clean and user friendly! Tabs are easy to understand, and categories will be added as necessary. We are now in the process of adding advertisers. For years, we wanted to help the small Mom and Pop owner operated businesses get a bit more exposure. When I checked on what advertising costs are here a while back, I was surprised to see how expensive it was. It saddened me to see that many of these small businesses don't get the exposure they should and eventually shut down. Well, we are now in a position to help and we'll be doing just that. We'll be charging $25.00 per month to advertise on the site which should be affordable to just about any business. In addition to these small businesses, we will also be offering the advertising space to businesses that have provided great service and recognize Caboholics. I've got a long list of additional areas I'll be adding to the site as time permits Off to get some more work done. "Hoping" this new site is what I dream of will not get it done ... "Gotta Make it Happen"! ![]() A "SMARPHONE FRIENDLY" SITE! Although the "old" website had served it's purpose, we hoped for something better! A new "improved" caboholics.com website that would be much more informative and useful "on the go" as well as from the comfort of your home. This new website will also give businesses the opportunity to advertise their offers, specials and promotions to Caboholics for a small monthly fee and the promise to honor their offer! The unpublished version was sent out to a few trusted friends (randomly selected) for their thoughts, recommendations, and suggestions. We hope to have the new site published and running by the end of August! Wish us luck! We were so excited about this new endeavor! We just knew there were many, many lost Caboholics out there that needed to know they were not alone! But first came a bit of research on what we should next. THE LOGO AND REGISTERING THE TRADEMARK
After a bit of time spent on creating different "logos", comparing different fonts, colors, styles, etc., we finally agreed on simple black & white word and the official "Caboholic Logo" was born. The applications and logo were then submitted to the US trademark office, and term "Caboholic" became a registered copyright as well. Of course, we also submitted an application to register the trademark in Mexico, which was a bit more difficult since the application had to be "hand delivered to Mexico City. With the services provided by "Marcaria", this task was made much easier! Within a couple weeks, this had all been completed and we had to do was wait on the results. It was during the month of February, 2011 that this all finally made sense! This "obsession" (as many referred to it as) I had with Cabo was absolutely normal behavior for anyone who has ever been "addicted" to anything! It fills your mind no matter how hard you try not to think about it! Even when you're not thinking about it, something triggers it, a song, a smell, a color, whatever ... and there it is - you're thinking about it again! One evening, after getting back from a recent trip to Cabo, John and I were sitting on our back deck talking and reminiscing about our vacation and discussing when the soonest would be that we could go back, just like we did many times before ... then the realization hit us! We were addicts! Here we were trying to shuffle our lives around so that we could get our next FIX! We spent the next few seconds in silence, just looking at each other before we smiled and said ..... "WE ARE CABOHOLICS!". A sense of peace and calmness came over us. We knew then, that we were not weird, or strange, we were suffering from an addiction that we weren't sure we wanted a cure for! At that moment, we vowed that we would spread the word about this addiction, and search out others who suffer in silence, or are outcast because of their constant talking about Cabo! We were sure that they, too would find comfort in knowing that they were not alone! That very evening, the "Caboholics Support Group" on facebook was created. The group description read ... WHAT IS A CABOHOLIC? ![]() If you have already taken your first trip to Los Cabos, you may recognize some of the early stage symptoms: You may not have been aware, but during your vacation in Cabo you begin to think about what kind of business you could start in Cabo. The ideas seem to come so easily and they are great ideas! This will work! It has to work! There must be a way to make a living here in this wonderful place! Surely, there is something you can do! Most people become aware there is a problem soon after their first trip to Cabo. Upon returning home, they may find it difficult to focus on work, even when they try not to think about Cabo, thoughts and images continue to fill their mind. Be aware of the physical addiction as well, you may find that a day or two after you get back from your vacation in Cabo, you become physically ill ... most of the time it starts with the sniffles and can quickly progress to a severe cold. Even though you are feeling sick, you still have the desire to go online and post the photos you took while in Cabo. Of course, you are sidetracked by any other articles or posts from others about Cabo. Though you are sick and still show up for work, you are absolutely useless in productivity. All of your energy seems to be directed at anything regarding Cabo. Within a week after you return from your vacation in Cabo, you are already checking out the airfare and hotels / timeshares available for your next trip. You now have more friends on facebook that you met while you were in Cabo. You feel like "old buddies" and are quick to "like" or "comment" on their posts. There are other symptoms, but too numerous to mention. You must remember ... as with all other addictions, the symptoms will fade .... but the core addiction remains. Each time you vacation in Cabo the addiction grows. The desire for your next "fix" is much stronger than it was after your first trip. You may find yourself flying down for a "quick last minute trip" more often than you ever thought you would. IS THERE A CURE? No, there is no cure. However, you can better the quality of your life by limiting the number of "fixes" you get during each year to no more than your budget allows. Join the "CABOHOLICS SUPPORT GROUP" on Facebook and fill in the time between each "Cabo Vacation Fix" with regular visits for moral support. Share information and experiences, ask and answer questions, and post your favorite Cabo photos. Rest assured, you are NOT alone, there are other Caboholics who truly understand what you are going through. The month of October was filled with setting up a website and everything else that goes along with it.
THE NAME Choosing a domain itself took days. We went through dozens of ideas ... All About Cabo, Got Cabo?, Come to Cabo, Go to Cabo, Guide to Cabo, Cabo Cabo, Cabo Info, Cabo this, Cabo that, etc, etc .... Every time we thought we had the perfect name, we came to find out that the domain was taken! "Cabo Friends" had been one of our first choices, but of course cabofriends.com was taken and it wasn't even being used ... it was "parked", and I wasn't about to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for a domain name. At this point, being very frustrated with all this time wasted, we decided to just stick with Cabo Friends and use "net" as the domain. And so the first step to the new website was taken! The website address would be WWW.CABOFRIENDS.NET! THE LOGO Of course we needed a logo! It had to be something that would be easily recognized, not too much detail, but not too plain either! After a few "drafts", our simple little log was ready for the website! THE WEBSITE I had no idea of what "type" of site would be ideal for what I wanted it to do! After looking at so many other "Cabo Websites", this one had to be different! So the first thing we had to decide on was a "Mission" of sorts. What did we really want to do with it? Well, our primary goal was to have a method of contact with the many friends that we had met while in Cabo over the years. Of course we wanted to be able to share whatever we thought might be of interest or helpful with them. In addition, we wanted to help friends we had made who live in Cabo and owned smaller "family owned" businesses there. There were so many little places that we had discovered over the years, that could use some "word of mouth" recommendations. As we started to list what "types" of contacts could be made ... the list grew! Resort timeshare owners could make friends with other resort timeshare owners, then they could trade, sell, or rent out their places. People could share what they knew about EVERYTHING, from where to buy, what to do, or where to go if you have an emergency! Oh, how the list grew! We also wanted everyone to be able to share their pictures! And of course, their videos! And be able to chat with one another, and this, and that, and this, and that! (Oh, if I had only known that Facebook was good for more than Farmville back then) It was clear that not just "one" type of site would do. So there went the idea of setting up a simple "fill in the prepared area" type of website. What I wanted was not available and this was going to take a little more time than I figured it would. There were many late night hours put into researching different sites and platforms. Testing and tweeking, learning more about the technical side of websites and hosting companies. The end result was more than a few "prototype" sites that were started and worked on for days, only to thrown out because it wouldn't do what I wanted it to do! By the end of October, the site was live and running with everything I wanted on it! Members joined free and had access to their personal "profile" page, a wall to post stuff on, a photo gallery, a video gallery, a chat room with the option of "video chat", and the ability to comment, on other members uploads (sounds familiar, doesn't it). Yup, the website had all I wanted it to have, the only thing lacking were members! THE MEMBERS I had bothered and harassed all family members to join and test the apps and modifications of the site until I'm sure they'd roll their eyes every time they'd get a phone call from me. I'm sure they avoided coming over to visit as well! My biggest "Guinea Pig" was John. He spent almost as much time testing it as I did building it and I could not have done it without him. So the next step was to recruit members! The next few months was spent emailing friends with a link to the site and asking them to join. We also had some business cards made up to hand out during our next visit to Cabo which would be coming up in December! We thought we'd hand them out to old and new friends while we were there! ![]() Over the years, we've been asked this question numerous times, and I'm sure it will be asked again and again. Our love and obsession for this magnificent part of the world began with just one trip! Yes, that's all took! HOW IT ALL BEGAN! My husband, John, and I took our first trip to Cabo in the late 90's. It was a motorcycle ride with his buddies that started in Salem, Oregon and ended in Cabo San Lucas, BCS. It was a life changing trip to say the least.
As a child, I had been to Mexico many times before, but usually just across the border from Texas for day trips to do some shopping. Of course that was years ago, and I was quite excited to be riding down the Baja Peninsula to a part of Mexico that I had heard so much about. The ride began early one cold, rainy, February morning. The Goldwing was packed with minimal clothing, a first aid kit, and a small bag of necessities. We made sure there was enough space to pack away our heavy riding gear once we got far enough South. Oh, how I looked forward to warmth and sunshine. The ride down was an adventure in itself, but that's a whole other story. We made it to Cabo San Lucas after 5 days and 4 nights of riding. I will never forget the first time we rode into town. Many of the streets that connected to the main boulevard were still dirt roads filled with bumps and holes. We found our hotel, checked in and headed into town. Our friends had "researched" all the hot night spots that we just "had" to find. That night we hit Cabo Wabo, The Giggling Marlin, and of course Squid Roe! The next morning we were up early and headed over to see a resort that some of our other friends had told us about. Back then, The Solmar, was the only resort on the beach and it was absolutely beautiful. We went to the bar in the pool area and had a few drinks and quickly made about 20 "new" friends. Funny how that happens in Cabo. After a quick hike part way up and down Mt. Solmar we decided to see what the Medano Beach area was like. So off we went, next stop Billygans. Upon entering the Medano Beach area, it hit me! I was in love with this place! We spent the afternoon at Billygans with a whole bunch of Coast Guard boys that were down from Port Angeles, WA. What fun they were! The atmosphere, the weather, the company, the ocean, the sunshine, the sand, the vendors, and most importantly the feeling I was feeling ... this was the first time I'd ever felt I BELONG here! This is where my heart has been my entire life, I just didn't know it! That evening we hit the town again and it was another fabulous night. The following morning I felt it! That dreaded feeling you get when you know you'll have to leave soon. We had planned on being in Cabo 2 full days before riding back, which was fine with me until I got there. Today was going to be my last full day, we'd be packing up and riding out in the morning. We had decided that breakfast would be the buffet at the restaurant in Plaza Las Glorias overlooking the marina so John and I headed there and waited for our riding friends to join us. They showed up a few minutes after we had sat down and told us that they had to ride back immediately. A family emergency came up and they'd be riding long and hard to make back as quickly as possible. Now they racing up the highway on a Triumph and a BMW and we riding double on a Goldwing keeping up with them DID NOT appeal to me at all. I suggested that they go ahead and that John and I would ride back alone. After a bit of discussion, my suggestion was taken. I was soooo happy that I'd get to spend more time in Cabo! We said our good bye's and then John and I were alone to explore even more of the wonderful place. We took a water taxi out to tour the arch and I was mesmerized. The feeling that came over me was something I had never felt, somewhat magical and mysterious. These "rocks" symbolized the end of land, where beyond the waters took over. At this very point the strong raging Pacific Ocean met the sweet calm Sea of Cortez. To this day, I get the same feeling ... and I still can't explain it. Once the tour was over, we were dropped off at the marian and decided we'd go into town to do some more "exploring". A little shopping, with a lot of stopping for drink here and there was what we did. At each stop, we made new friends, some local and some tourists but all were fun. The evening once again ended with Squid Roe. The following days were somewhat repeats of the previous, with the exception of a little hotel/resort on Medano Beach that we decided we wanted to take a look at. We had passed this place going back and forth to the beach but could not find an "entrance". There weren't even any "timeshare" information people anywhere near it. We finally asked someone how to get into the place. He pointed at a small opening in the concrete wall which was covered with vines. We walking through a long outdoor hallway that looked nothing like a hotel entrance and finally got inside where we had to really look for someone who could give us some info on the place. We were asked to wait in the little courtyard and someone would be out to help us soon. Imagine that, we had to 'ASK FOR A TOUR". The timeshare salesman finally came out to greet us and take us on the tour. It didn't take very long for us to know this was it ... we were "home". We bought 2 units for Christmas week! Again, I was so happy! This meant we HAD to come back at least once a year. And so it began ... my love for Cabo has grown stronger over the years and the visits became more frequent. During each of these visits, I'd sit on the beach and wonder ... how many others like me are out there? How many have come to this place and become addicted? And do they know that others feel the same way? It was then, I decided that someday, I'd find a way for every one of us to find each other. Someday came many years later, October of 2010. Fortunately, over the years, I had picked up a little bit of knowledge about the internet and websites. Now I'd put that knowledge to the test. I was finally going to DO THIS THING! |