The Real Story on Rick’s Bar in Zihua

There have been rumors circulating on Mexico’s Coconut Telegraph that Rick Carpenter, the owner of Rick’s Bar in Zihua, who has been a great friend of cruisers and the Zihua SailFest, has been kicked out of Mexico. That’s not true. Here’s the real scoop from a person we consider to be a very reliable source:

"Rick applied for his working visa for the 10th year in a row this year. When the Immigration field inspector routinely visited his bar, he found Rick personally serving drinks and collecting money — a no-no because Rick’s visa is as a restaurant consultant. He’s not allowed to do any hands-on work. So they canceled his application for a visa renewal.

"Regulations required Rick to fly out of the country — he doesn’t even have to leave the San Diego Airport before flying back — before returning on a six-month tourist visa, so he can apply for a new working visa. It’s admittedly an expensive and bureaucratic hassle, but ultimately not a great crisis. The situation is actually more common than one might suspect. Folks tend to forget that Mexico is the home team, and that we gotta play by their game rules."

It’s unclear to us how much politics might have played in the actions of the Immigration folks. Thanks to Rick’s understanding of cruiser needs, he’s had a successful business, and that may have caused jealousy among the local owners of competing businesses.