Thursday, January 23, 2014

What It’s Like to Live in a Doctor’s Office

Our house in Mexico used to be a Doctor’s Office.

But not just any Doctor’s Office. The Doctor that lived here was such a fixture in the city that if I want to give people directions to our house all I have to say is “We live beside Dr. Escalante’s house”. Present tense. Even though he hasn’t lived there for 20 years. Anyone that was born in San Cristobal de las Casas knows exactly what I’m talking about.

If I were to say that I live in his old office or on street “X”, they’d look at me with glazed eyes. But the fact that no one knows what the streets are called or even their own address (I’m not exaggerating), is not the purpose of this post.

The purpose is that the house has some “unique features” and I’m not talking about ghosts.

Take “The Phone Booth” for instance.

phone booth in doctors office mexico

While it’s not exactly a phone booth (although we thought it was for years), that’s what we call it. We think that it was probably a small change room. We’ve recently added shelving so now you wouldn’t think it was anything but a fancy closet with an orange tinted glass window.

Then there’s the kitchen sink.

kitchen sink in doctors office mexico

Thought the picture of my toilet was bad? I’m currently writing a post that will contain a picture of my shower water. Bet you can’t wait…
 

We figure it was originally intended as a sink for washing hands. If it was used for washing dishes then it is seriously lacking in that department. You can hardly wash more than a few things at the same time and the spout often hits whatever it is you’re rinsing. I regularly have to buy new drinking glasses.

The fact that it was intended as a place to wash your hands (for sanitary purposes) makes me a bit concerned. You see, while there are two taps and they both work, neither is connected to the hot water heater. And it’s not just a case of the two being switched (like the tap in the bathroom). Yes, we wash our dishes in cold water but I’m saving that for another post.

And, in case of a catastrophic event, we’re ready. The 10-foot ceilings and slanted floors will provide a natural slope for water drainage and the height will give that little extra room while treading water. Because we get a lot of tsunami’s and hurricanes at 2,200m.

And then there’s the staircase that leads nowhere…

mystery staircase in doctors office mexico

We scratched our head about this for a long time. We figured it must have led somewhere but couldn’t quite figure it out. Then we realized that it must have led to the bedroom (on the other side of the wall) and the door that connects the two bedrooms (you have to walk through one bedroom to get to the other) must have been added at a later date. Not that either room was ever a bedroom anyways. It doesn’t matter to us because we use the one with the sink as a kitchen and the other one as a bedroom.

There are a lot of other things that make this house “special” but they have nothing to do with the fact that it was a Doctors Office.

Anything Different about your House?

21 thoughts on “What It’s Like to Live in a Doctor’s Office

  1. Rene

    I love the staircase to nowhere – maybe it was used to climb up on a table/bed for patients? I really enjoy seeing photos of your house. It gives me a truer sense of your life there..thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    1. admin

      Dear Rene,

      What else do you want to see pictures of? I’m working on a post that involves my shower water. Something for you to look forward to.

      Besos, Sarah

      Reply
    1. admin

      Dear Christy,

      The staircase is much more of a convenience than a hindrance. Except for that one time that they flew off of it…

      Besos, Sarah

      Reply
  2. Freda Mans

    My house used to be a butcher shop back in the day. Thankfully you can’t see any of what was here previously. I do have a nice room made out of concrete in the back though, where they had the cold storage. That’s the only thing of significance or can tie to anything of previous.
    Cool little place you got there!
    Freda Mans recently posted…#Giveaway & Interview with Jessica MillerMy Profile

    Reply
    1. admin

      Dear Freda,

      Our house in Canada has a cement storage room too (although it was never a butcher shop). If the walls in your house could talk.

      Besos, Sarah

      Reply
      1. AlwaysARedhead

        I should have added, I am also quite jealous of the life you are leading. I wish we had had the opportunity to live in another country part-time when the kids were young. This is such a beneficial treat for your twins, one they will always remember fondly.

        Reply
    1. admin

      Dear Sandy,

      Funny you should mention the water. I was thinking about the post today, while I was showering and collecting the shower water in a basin. We’ve been without city water for 10 days (still a bit in the tinacos on the roof) so who knows what will happen with my bath water. Never a dull moment around here.

      Always lovely to see you, thanks for stopping by.

      Besos, Sarah

      Reply
  3. Ferenc Kunszt

    Being a university student I’ve lived in some weird places myself…definitely brought up some memories for me lol

    Reply
  4. Joseph Marchionda

    I can just picture having to fit all my family’s dishes into that kitchen sink Definitely would be a challenge lol

    Reply
  5. Rebecca Brown

    My current house is over 100 years old so I’ve found a lot of strange things as well when renovating…pretty interesting really.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badge

Subscribe to Journeys of the Zoo! ⇒