Mexican Dreaming (Part I)

I love summer, and I love TRAVELING! Finally I got the opportunity to get out of Jackson to search for some sunshine and warmth. This past week my family (including David, and Allison's boyfriend Bryan) went on a cruise to Mexico. It was absolutely fabulous. Of course I was incredibly excited to take my camera along so that I could get some shots of something that wasn't cold and snowy. We visited three ports, so I will begin with stories of Cabo San Lucas.

On May 15, David and I packed up our stuff and headed down to Los Angeles, California. We spent a night in San Pedro before our ship took off the next day. We were all incredibly excited to board our floating home for the week, Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas.

On the plane.

Allison & Bryan on the way to the ship.

Home for a week.

After we boarded, it was time to check out our living quarters. We all had indoor staterooms with views of the Promenade, the ship's gigantic interior, complete with bars, restaurants and shops. It was the perfect way to people watch.

David checking out the view.

The Promenade.

David and I couldn't wait to start celebrating so we bellied up to the bar at the Wig & Gavel. We instantly befriend the bartender, Dillon, who was from Jamaica. He gave us free drinks. What a great start to the trip! Next we went up to the top deck to watch the ship sail out of the cloudy San Pedro port into much sunnier skies. The area around was super industrial. I couldn't wait to get to those secluded beaches much further south.

Me & my camera.

The next day was spent at sea, enjoying the sunshine by the pool. There wasn't much to do besides lounge around and drink fruity beverages to that's exactly what we did. That night we had dinner in the beautiful dining room.

The next morning we arrived at our first port, Cabo San Lucas. The city is located at the tip of the Baja California peninsula and is a popular place for spring breakers and tourists. It's known for its beautiful rock arch El Arco de Cabo San Lucas and white sandy beaches. The weather was warm and sunny.

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The famous rock formations of Cabo San Lucas.

The city of Cabo.

We walked around the city for a while to try and find Medano Beach. We were instantly bombarded by Mexicans working in the tourism industry, offering to take us to "The Arch" in a "glass bottom boat". We did our best to ignore and continued on our journey. About halfway around the harbor, Bryan was just strolling along when one of the locals shoved a small iguana at him. Bryan thought it was cool and my mom took a picture of him. Should have known better. The guy started following us asking for a tip. I later found out that it's completely illegal for the locals to be doing that because iguanas are endangered. They should be up in the trees in their natural habitat, not being tossed around by tourists. Lesson learned.

We reached the other end of the harbor and saw some fins poking out of the glassy water. A seal! First animal of the trip :)

Finally we made it Medano beach where we were looking to rent sea kayaks so that we could go to Lover's Beach, which is a small beach tucked into the famous rock formations. The kayak prices seemed a bit steep so we settled for one of those glass bottom boats. We were all excited to get away from the stressful atmosphere at Medano Beach. Vendors were coming at us left and right, selling us anything from necklaces to giant glass salad bowls (that the lady was wearing!).

We got to the beach finally, spread out our towels, and went exploring. One side of the beach is the Sea of Cortez, which is safe for swimming, and the other side is the Pacific Ocean side, which had massive, dangerous waves. Still, the rock formations were absolutely stunning and it was so peaceful just to sit and watch the waves crash onto the shore.

Lover's Beach.

Pacific waves.

Lover's Beach on the Pacific side. Complete solitude.

It's always a good time for a back tuck!

David & me on the beach.

Playing in the waves.

Soon, our sunburns were telling us it was time to go, and we packed up our stuff to wait for our water taxi back to the harbor. Sure enough, "The Bad Boy" (the name of our boat), decided to show up 20 minutes late. I'm pretty sure that he did it on purpose so that we would get worried and take another company so that we would have to pay again. Patience paid off though, and he ended up coming around. Oh and for the record, if you ever go to Mexico and they offer to take you on a glass bottom boat tour, don't think for a second that you will be able to see anything out of the glass bottom. You are moving to fast and the water is too deep and cloudy to see any sea life. Plus the glass bottom is nothing more than a small window with lots of scratches on it. Go snorkeling instead.

Our final stop was at a restaurant where we all quenched our thirst with Pacificos and margaritas. Best deal I've ever seen: A beer and a shot of tequila for $3! Of course that will get you drunk pretty fast, but what does it matter when you're just going back to a ship? They also had some of the best guacamole and pico de gallo I've ever tasted.

Next stop: Mazatlán.