(Continued from the disastrous Part One)
As usual, just when I was at my lowest, totally exhausted and disappointed after two days of apartment searching, something happened to lift me back up again. I lay awake all night in the sweltering heat, worrying about what to do, and arose with renewed focus: We could start looking at apartments in neighboring areas like Bucerias, San Pancho or even down in Puerto Vallarta, but you know what? I really liked this place. I wanted to live here, and surely there was some solution that would let us do so.
Almost immediately our friend Dave phoned. He had talked to his own landlady, and she had agreed to let us take over their apartment when they left in mid-December. Dave and Lauren’s apartment is great, with a large spacious patio, a kitchen and even AC. This meant we only had to find a place to stay for the next two and a half months and we were golden.
We were back in the game, and immediately went over our options. There was stupid Roberto California with his cave apartment (not so appealing), there was the gorgeous $1300 a month place (also not so appealing), then, there was another apartment we had looked at but not taken so seriously since they’d already told us it was only available until Mid-December. A really nice one-bedroom near the center of town, with no AC but a really comfortable living area and completely in our price range.
We took it, and it’s perfect.
There is a spacious bedroom with an absolutely enormous bed and a tv for Mike to play xbox. There’s an oddly elaborate bathroom with stone floors and a bubbling airjet tub. There is a big living room with a table for Mike to work at and a couch for me, a small, but usable kitchen and a big fridge. There’s no AC but with the windows open and the fans on it stays cool enough. Plus if you crane your neck out the window you can see the ocean, which is just a couple blocks away.
Best of all the place is $650 a month, including electricity, wifi and maid service twice a week. We’re still not over the novelty of having a maid, I have a feeling it’s going to completely spoil me forever.
My favorite part is the little balcony. I could sit here for hours, pretending to work, watching the world go by. Surfers, vendors and lots and lots of dogs. We’re right next to the river, and little kids shriek and play. Our landlord is the smoothie cart owner across the street, who blasts a random mix of tunes throughout the day. Earlier it was Coldplay, than the greatest hits of Tina Turner. As I wrote this a horse just ran by sans owner. It’s unparalleled people watching. If you crane your neck you can see the ocean, just 2 blocks away. Even when I’m cooped up working I still feel like part of the street scene.
So what did I learn? Here are my tips for renting an apartment in Sayulita:
- Start Early. Like ridiculously early. High season here doesn’t start until December but to really get your pick of apartments you ought to be here by September at the latest.
- You won’t find anything online. Unless you have a ridiculous amount of money to spend, forget websites like Sayulita Life. All of the apartments on there are rented out by expats, many don’t rent long term and most a ridiculously expensive. The apartment we found is not listed on any website and the landlord is local.
- Ask Around. There is no centralized database of apartments, not even the agents in town seem to have any idea what is available. You literally just have to ask everyone you meet if they know someone with a place to rent. We found our place because of a sign posted on the corner of a building.
- Expect to pay. Rent here is really not cheap compared to most places in Mexico it seems (although it’s definitely cheaper than a lot of the US). If you want anything fancy, more than one bedroom or with a serious ocean view, know you’re going to pay out the nose for it.
It’s going to be hard to move in a couple of months, but for now I am so happy to be home!
