You can find Rick Hudson and Star Piddington by the bright yellow school bus parked outside their Chelem, Yucatan home. You can't miss it when driving down the beach road in the village. There it lurks, an oddity in a puebla where bicycles are a common mode of transportation.
The couple bought the bus in Indiana, converted it to a home on wheels and drove it to Mexico, prompting wide-eyed stares along the way.
In fact, they were kept at the border overnight last year because border patrol agents in Brownsville, Texas, couldn't decide how to classify the converted motor home.
"I had the bus title changed to an RV title. They only had a picture of one old Winnebago motor home and they knew it wasn't that," Rick explained.
A $500 bribe finally did the trick.
Rick and Star first visited the Yucatan in 2006. Rick's friend Dave, whom he worked with at U. S. Steel in Indiana, married a Yucateo woman. The newlyweds passed through Merida on their honeymoon and decided to stay. Dave and his bride found a home, later inviting his friend to visit.
It wasn't long before Star and Rick, both 53 years old, sold their home in the farming community of DeMotte, Indiana, to live full time in Mexico.
"It was the way of life, the slow pace and the people," Star said about what attracted them to the Yucatan. "It's the charm."
Her husband added that the cost of living north of the border was also a factor in the decision to chuck everything familiar and start a new life.
The couple is in the process of renovating the home they bought in Chelem near Hotel Garza. Rick lives in the bus while the remodeling is being done. A rented home in Merida serves as a retreat for Star when the bus, which is shared with two full-grown German Shepards, becomes too confining.
The space became more cramped recently when Jade, the female, added five puppies to the family. The offspring will be sold to good homes.
"We don't want them to become guard dogs, tied to a chain. We want family pups," Star said.
She worked with special needs children in the states. Both she and Rick are brain-storming ideas to assist the disabled in their adopted village. One idea they've tossed around is a day of swimming, crafts and fun.
In addition to an array of tools and household items, three inflatable "Moonwalk" bounce houses, folding tables and canopies were crammed into the bus and brought to Mexico. The couple would like to use the party supplies to entertain children in the community.
Both expats said their Spanish is coming along, albeit slowly. Rick drew chuckles in a hardware store in Merida recently when trying to buy rope to hang a hammock. Since so many Spanish words are similar to English with just an 'a' or 'o' tacked on, Rick thought it was logical to ask for "ropa." Clearly, the store didn't sell clothing. But the employees smile each time the gringo customer returns.
Star enjoys the beach, making candles, oil painting and other crafts. Rick is happy working on the house, fishing and "bull-shitting" with the locals.
The couple doesn't regret the life-changing decision that brought them so far from home.
"I want to die here," said Star. "They can feed me to the sharks," Rick agreed.
Beachbum conducts interviews with expatriates and collects their stories. Her column, Expat Profiles, can be found here on Yolisto.
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