Mazatlan 2007

Saturday, February 10 (Ron)

We finished our packing, had breakfast, and took the bags down to the lobby. We paid our bill and left the bags behind the desk until we had to leave for the airport. It’s another beautiful day in Mazatlan, so we went out by the pool to watch the ocean and soak up as much sun as possible.

By noon we were getting hungry, so we went to the Playa Maria restaurant and had lunch. Felipe was our waiter and he brought us a very nice lunch. Not anxious to leave, we took our time and enjoyed lunch and the beautiful setting. By one o’clock we knew we’d better get going so we paid the bill and went to the lobby to collect our bags and catch the taxi that they had called for us.

We arrived at the airport, checked in, and sat at a table to people-watch and do our best to prepare to leave Paradise. I had hoped that the plane was over-booked, but it was not so we knew our time was up for now.

Our flight was from Mazatlan to L.A., clear customs with a short layover, then on to Portland. I will do my very best to never fly international thru LAX again! It was a complete madhouse, totally disorganized, no signage, no airport employees to help us. I was about to go ballistic but knew better after getting 86’d from Chicago O’Hare on our last vacation. (Don’t ask.) We eventually made our way thru the madhouse and got on the plane to Portland. At least it was not packed and Pat and I had three seats for the two of us.

By shortly after midnight we were driving home in the rain, already planning our next trip to the greatest, friendliest place on earth.

Mazatlan 2007

Friday, February 9 (Pat)

Our last full day in Mazatlan! Since we were out of milk, we had breakfast at the Playa Maria restaurant after getting the first round of packing done. Then we decided to spend some more pesos and pick up a few more items. At the Mexican craft area opposite Pueblo Bonito I found a silver chain that I liked - $12US. We got some carved leather coasters at another store and I bought a t-shirt and dress/sleepshirt/bathing suit cover-up at Johnny’s Place. Ron got his post card for Rod and sent them all off. Then off to the beach at Chili’s Pepper for some chips and salsa with a couple of Pacificos. Ron wandered off to take some beach activity videos and I held down the table in the shade, saying ‘no’ to the vendors. A few would chat and I practiced my Spanish. When the silver jewelry vendors came by I would say I’m looking for mother-of-pearl earrings. Several didn’t have any I liked. Finally one came by with some nice, shiny, iridescent pendant and after he changed the hook parts to match I paid him $170MN. Ron came back and we had another beer. An old Mexican gentleman came by with a ceramic frog and mobile. They were colorful but not what we like. I mentioned tortugas (turtles). Sure enough a few minutes later he comes back with a bag. He starts unwrapping these smaller ceramic turtles painted in all colors - yellow, pink, red, lavender, green, blue. Soon I had a small herd of turtles in front of me. $20MN each. So I bought two turtles and another little bowl with a sun lid. The guy works hard for sixty pesos!

Back to Playa Maria, sat by the pool for a while, did some email then caught the bus again to check out the sunset on the malecon. Pretty plain tonight but we enjoyed a Pacifico and watched the crowd. Ron gave away some more kid gifts as well. We walked up to Cowboy and had another beer at the bar – sitting in Mexican Saddles for bar stools. I guess I had one beer too many as after paying for the beer I neglected to close the zipper on my pouch purse. We walked a ways then caught a bus to go to Chili’s Pepper. I realized the 500 and 100 peso notes I had were gone – my donation to some gringo or maybe a sharp-eyed Mexican! We had our last dinner at Chili’s. It was crowded and the music was loud but good. Ron had chicken fajitas and I had shrimp fajitas. $170MN for dinner and tip! Excellent meal. Some of the crowd was doing some swing dancing to the country music, having a good time.

Back to the ATM to get money for lunch and taxi tomorrow, get some milk, and back to Playa Maria. A very pleasant day – another beautiful, warm, sunny day.

Mazatlan 2007

Thursday, February 8 (Ron)

Slow morning at the Fitch hacienda. We had coffee, juice, and cereal. Read some and worked on the computer some.

Shortly after noon I took a bus down to the malecon to get one more bottle of tequila and to take some pictures. After getting down there, I ended up buying tequila, t-shirts, and baseball caps. Took a bunch of pictures, stopped at Senor Frog’s for a couple of beers, watched a beautiful sunset along the malecon, then walked up to the southern end of the Gold Zone and stopped at a place called Cowboy. Johnny Cash was playing on the sound system and Calvin Coolidge was keeping the customers entertained. Not Calvin Coolidge the former president, it was Calvin Coolidge the broom and rocks guy that we met at Chili’s Pepper the other afternoon. He was all dressed up but doing the same gig – challenging anyone that wanted to raise up a broom with three pounds of rocks stacked on the bristle end of the broom. I have yet to see anyone do it other that Calvin, a short, seventy-two year old man. Business was slow for him, so we sat at the bar and talked for a long time. He said he didn’t drink much but would sometimes bet a shot of Jack Daniels instead of the usual five dollars. I knew that I still couldn’t lift the broom, but I told him that I’d take that bet because I wanted to buy him a drink. I couldn’t even get the broom off the ground so I bought him a shot. We sat at the bar and talked while he sipped his drink. A very interesting man, I really enjoyed our conversation. It was getting late so we said good-by and we both headed towards home.

Mazatlan 2007

Wednesday, February 7 (Pat)

We got up a little after 7am and had our usual routine. We had so much fun at Stone Island the other day we decided to go back for one more visit. By 10:20am we were out the door with our stuff (taking less this time) and caught a Sabalo Centro bus. This time we knew the routine so headed out on a different street that headed toward the docks. Not as many interesting homes on this street and more hill climbing! Soon we were on the main street by the docks and knew to turn left this time and were soon at the Stone Island ferry dock. A group of Russians were there at the dock getting their tickets and rode on the same panga with us. They were loud. They spoke some English and may have come from one of the two large cruise ships that were docked in Mazatlan. The Russians asked how far it was to the beach – we said a short taxi ride. We got in our taxi and headed off. They grabbed a taxi that could take them all. We went to the Pili restaurant again where Rudy is. He set us up with two nice lounge chairs in front with an umbrella and small table. Perfecto! Two Pacificos and we were set. Then the Russians came. Sure enough they ended up right beside us. It made for good entertainment as the street vendors were having some luck with them. We managed to convince the vendors we weren’t buying today so didn’t get pestered too badly. It was a very warm day, slight breeze with some interesting clouds.

We settled in for some reading, picture taking, and people watching. The restaurant next door – Lety’s – was busy, probably with the cruise ship tours. We ordered some coconuts for the coconut milk – no rum though. It was good, Later we used the straw to collect the coconut meat around the edge of the hole and it was tasty as well. We were getting hungry and ordered two garlic fish fillets. Rudy had netted some fish from his boat earlier in the morning. The boat was pulled up on the sand nearby and his dog was sleeping in the shade of the boat. Lunch was good and filling as usual. The Russians were having lunch at the next table and wheeling and dealing with the vendors. One of the Russians had bought a straw hat that caught Ron’s eye so he went over and checked them out. He found a nice tan straw cowboy hat with a stretching liner and nice size holes in the crown for cooling and a good wide brim for plenty of shading. Time for a walk. Ron grabbed the camera and we headed down the beach. Picked up a few shells, Ron found an intact, dried sand dollar – perfect for our sea shell collection. We had a lady walking along the beach take our picture together with the beach and coconut palms behind us. After a while we turned around. We had walked over towards the palm trees and on the way back noticed an interesting track/print in the sand about two inches wide. We followed it as it went away from the water towards the sea grass. It appeared to be a baby turtle trail. As we got closer to the sea grass we saw many turtle tracks going all directions. We figured there must have been a turtle nest that hatched out although we couldn’t find it. Pretty cool!

When we got back to the Peli restaurant – Rudy had pulled in the chairs and tables and everyone was gone. We decided to head back as well to get to the malecon in time for sunset – by now it was a little before 5pm. Ron paid the bill and found out Rudy had several kids so Ron gave him the baseball and soccer ball for the older boys and a coloring book and crayons for Rudy’s young daughter. A taxi ride and panga boat ride and we were back at the boat dock. We took a taxi and told him the cliff diver area – he thought we said cruise dock and started to pull in there. No! No cruise ship, and pointed towards the opposite way. We got turned around and directed the driver back towards the malecon. The scenic route past the fishing marina, cliff area, Ice Box Hill, then down to the fishing beach. We had the taxi driver stop and paid up – only $50MN this time.

Ron was hungry and thirsty and I suggested we head up towards the dolphin statue for a more interesting background for the sunset. So Ron grumbled but we headed up the road. There were several statues then a tall look-out area where Ron climbed up the stairs to check out the view. It was near the cliff diver perch and a diver had climbed up to the top and was getting ready to dive. He watched the waves, perched on the corner of the railing, then pushed off and made a dive. I couldn’t see him land in the water from where I was, just the splash. Pretty daring! A crowd was gathered and donations for the diver were collected.

We walked over to the large area off the street around the dive cliff. Some vendors were there and the diver and friends and other people were waiting for the sunset. We ate our pastries we bought at the panga boat dock and Ron headed off with the camera and to find something else to eat. I sat on the wall and watched the setting sun. For a while it was so-so – just a little glint of color within the clouds to the west. A Mexican guy came over to where I was sitting, waiting for Ron. He asked if I spoke Spanish and I replied “Un poquito.” I could understand him a little bit so we had a short conversation. He took off and I waited some more while Ron was over at the dolphin statue taking pictures. The Mexican guy came back and we watched the sunset some more. Ron finally showed up and for a while it seemed like the sunset was over. In a few minutes there was an explosion of red to the west. The clouds lit up in shades of red with different textures and brightness. Over the next ten to fifteen minutes different areas up higher turned blue/gray until just a thin band of red along the horizon remained. Very nice, worth the wait.

Time for some food and drink so we headed back along Olas Altas to the Fonda St. Clara restaurant where we had had some cervezas previously. We took a roadside table and ordered our Pacificos and dinner. Ron had the Chicken Mole (not pronounced mole, it is Moe-lay). I had the shrimp brochette. Both were very good, again. It was a very comfortable temperature for eating outside. Afterwards we walked around the inside of a nearby hotel, The Belmar. It had large tiled courtyards three stories high. As we walked out a Sabalo Centro buss was just there so I flagged it down and we headed for the Playa Maria. Shower time, journal time, and checking email at Marina del Rey, then off to bed.

Mazatlan 2007

Tuesday, February 6 (Ron)

Had breakfast in our condo, then Pat went down to the Gold Zone to get online while I used the laptop to get online next door at Marina del Rey. We met back at our resort to plan the afternoon. I had promised our amigo, Fernando, that we’d have lunch at the resort right next to ours, Marina del Sol, where he works as a waiter. So a little before 3pm Pat and I went over there, talked with Fernando for a while, then had a light lunch. We came back over to our resort just briefly, then headed down to the Gold Zone to rent a kayak.

I had never been in a kayak before, Pat had but never in the ocean. We got off the bus at Chili’s Pepper and walked out onto the beach. Just a short ways up was a catamaran on the beach so we went over there to get a kayak. The guy said that normal price for an hour is two hundred pesos, but today, special price, only a hundred and fifty pesos. We said OK and he gave us some brief instructions. A couple of minutes later we are in the water. Getting out past the breaking waves was a little tricky, we almost capsized, but once we got out a ways the ocean was pretty calm. We paddled out to Bird Island. There were thirty to forty pelicans on the rocks and a few more splashing in the water. We paddled around some and let the current carry us some. Totally different view of the Gold Zone from out there. We stayed out for the full hour, came back in, and then went over to Chili’s Pepper where there were some plastic tables and chairs in the sand. We sat there to dry out, have a beer, and watch the sunset. Right out there on the beach you are exposed to every beach vendor in the area. One after another came by, showing us their wares. We are getting pretty good at convincing them we don’t have any money because we really don’t have any money after being down here for a week and a half. Of course, we did get a few things – Pat got a nice shawl and I got one to send to Florida. Five hundred and twenty pesos - $25 each seems like a lot and maybe it is, but they had a lot of sequins and small beads sewn on by hand. Pat’s has sea horses and the one I got has butterflies. A little while later a vendor came by with shirts, kind of a different design and kinda cool. One of them caught my eye so I showed a slight interest in it – didn’t want to overplay my hand. He was asking two hundred pesos, but I got him down to a hundred and fifty and he even threw in a free Mexican suitcase to put the shirt in. Never heard of a Mexican suitcase? It’s a plastic grocery bag! Several more vendors came by, we said it was very nice (whatever they had) but we were not interested. They would go on to the victim, I mean customer. Then this one guy came by, I don’t even remember what he was selling. We told him ‘No, gracias’ but he was persistent. We told him ‘No dinero’. That seemed to piss him off and he started ranting about how everybody says that, but they wouldn’t be here if they didn’t have any money. Then something about the cruise ship people. He didn’t make much sense and seemed to be getting all worked up about it. He must have been drunk, high, or loco. We decided it was a good time to leave so we paid our bill and left him there talking to himself.

We caught the bus back to the resort and had supper in our suite. We bought so much food at Gigante yesterday that we had a lot of prepared food from their deli and a bunch of pastries left over. Supper was very good, very quick, and very cheap. After supper I worked on the journal while Pat read, and we got to bed early for a change.

Mazatlan 2007

Monday, February 5 (Pat)

Today we planned to stick around Playa Maria after a trip to Amigos de los Animales (the local animal shelter) to deliver some blankets and cat treats. We started out with our usual morning routine. Another beautiful blue sky day. It is getting warmer now so we keep the sliding doors open with the screen closed to keep it cool and fresh. Unfortunately the morning sounds start early – 5am with increased traffic noise, mourning doves and other birds. Then the workers next door arrive and it is more challenging to sleep in! Ron got directions to the Amigos de los Animales from Angel downstairs. We head out about 11am to catch the Torreo bus. The directions/map are very accurate and we find the place easily. And they are closed for the day! Some holiday today in Mexico. There is a little calico long-haired kitty hanging out on the sidewalk in front of the building so we pet her and give her some of the treats. There aren’t any responses to Ron’s doorbell ringing and no other entrances so we leave the blankets and treats in the bed of the Amigos de los Animales pickup parked in front and head off.

We look up and there is Olivia, Angel, and another person from Playa Maria. We say we’re off to Gigante and they say it’s just a short walk down and over to the right. We get some water at the super market there on the corner and head off to buy some groceries. We walked through a residential area with some nice homes. All built side by side, with different colors, styles, and wrought iron gate designs. Some had very nicely created garden areas, others just had a carport area in the front space. Pretty soon we were at Gigante. It is like a Super Wal-Mart with everything there – furniture, hardware, clothes, and food. We just needed coke, beer, sugar, and coffee; however, Ron was hungry so we stopped at the deli. They have various pans of cooked foods, roast chicken, salads, flan, etc. with plastic containers out so you can serve yourself. Then you place them on the counter top and the lady puts a lid on, weighs them, and puts on the price sticker. Ron picked out several dishes for lunch and I got a piece of flan. Then we went to the bakery area, called a panderia. Shelves of scrumptious looking breads, croissants, pastries, muffins, Mexican scones (piedras), cakes, etc. You get a tray and tongs from the counter area then pick what you want. Go stand in line with the tray and they will bag or box your treats and put on a price sticker. Ron picked out several yummy looking pastries and I chose a thick veggie or banana-nut type bread slice and a piedra. Ron found his Jose Cuervo Tradicional Tequila (a 950ml bottle and a 375ml bottle together on one box) for 217 pesos. Found the coke, coffee, and sugar (Sweet & Low) and headed for the cash register. Six hundred and thirty-seven pesos! So much for just coke, coffee, beer, and sugar. We were starving by now so we moved into the shade away from the store entrance and drank our frappacinos and ate some of our goodies to tide us over until we got back to Playa Maria. Since we had several bags – some heavy – we opted for a taxi. The first one wanted to charge eighty pesos. We felt that was too much and got our bags back from the driver, saying that was too much, we’d take the bus. Another taxi driver down the line said he’d take us for sixty pesos. Okay! So we loaded up in his pulmonia with a shelf area behind the back seat to place the groceries, and headed off. The driver spoke good English so we chatted. Ron found out he had some kids so when we got to our resort Ron went up to the suite to get some of the kid’s toys he had brought and gave them to the driver while I paid him the fare plus tip. So he made out pretty good!

We were full now so we changed into our swim suits and sat by the pool. I took a dip, we chatted some of the other guests, and read our books. Very relaxing – not too hot, beautiful setting, blue ocean, golden sand – aaahhh! Ron saw Fernando next door and found out he only works until 4pm at the restaurant. It was almost 4:00 by then so set up a date to have lunch there on Tuesday. After 5:00 I finished my ‘Cat Who…’ book and we decided to go for a walk up the beach. We walked past Sea Garden resort and then turned around. We watched another clear-sky sunset and walked back to Playa Maria enjoying the color changes as dusk set in. Shower time, change clothes and by 8pm we were off to dinner at La Costa Merinera, another favorite. It is another nice evening so we eat on the outside portion next to the beach to enjoy the view. We had drink coupons so started out with a free margarita for Ron and a free strawberry daiquiri for me. Our waiter wasn’t quite up to the service level we are used to at La Costa Merinera but the food was good. Ron had Beef Chilichi and I had stuffed shrimp. Another round of drinks. We enjoyed watching some kids doing cartwheels on the beach to burn off energy. When we were finished a beach vendor come by with some black wood carved sculptures. They were very creative, graceful, stylized designs. One was a man, woman, and child. Another was a more detailed man and woman entwined. A third was a stylized face of a woman and man together in a circle. The vendor said he had come all the way from Oaxaca, a thirty-six hour bus ride, in order to sell the sculptures that his family made. We looked at them for a while – they were really different and artistic. Not really our style but I felt like I wanted to purchase one. He was asking three hundred and fifty pesos. I tried to bargain with him but he didn’t come down in price. Then I had the idea of buying the man, woman, and child sculpture to give to Rob and Christine as a wedding gift. So the deal was done and Pablo wrapped up our sculpture. The figures were roundish, with the man figure taller, standing behind the woman who was standing behind the little child. Graceful curves and simplistic figures made for a very nice effect. Down the street the vendors were closing their shops, it was after 10pm. Ron got a postcard and some sun glasses since his others were broken. We crossed the street at Pueblo Bonito and waited for a bus. It seemed none were coming by. Several taxis came by offering reduced fares. Another ten minutes or so and no bus so we took the next offer for a thirty peso ride back to the resort. The driver of course wanted to set us up on another timeshare deal. I couldn’t hear him very well while he was telling Ron about the deal. I’m done with spending our time listening to new resort ideas so I walked off, playing the nay-sayer Ron makes me out to be. Back to the room, wind down for a while so we are not going to bed with stuffed bellies, and then off to bed at 11:30pm.

Mazatlan 2007

Sunday, February 4 (Ron)

Super Bowl Sunday! Who cares?!?! In Mazatlan there are a hundred better things to do than sit on your ass, inside, and watch TV!! One of the best things to do is go out to Stone Island. It’s not really an island, it is an isthmus with the end wider that the rest, and the best way to get there is by boat. So it is somewhat isolated and very relaxing, not a lot to do there but relax and enjoy the place.

We left the resort around noon. Seemed like it took us forever to get ready, I was so impatient to get out there. It can be a lot of work, preparing for a day of doing nothing. We’ve taken the Stone Island guided tour, and that’s a lot of fun, but somewhat structured. Now we just go on our own. It is so easy to do things in Mazatlan, just get out there and do it. If you get lost or get confused about anything, just stop and ask someone. Everyone here is willing to help out. No worries.

So we are finally all good to go. We walk out front and catch a bus that goes to El Centro (downtown), then walked a few blocks to the street along the shore where the docks are. The street we walked on from El Centro to the shore had a lot of neat old houses (like just about all the streets in that area). Pat and I got to thinking and dreaming about living there and owning one of the houses.

We came to the street along the shore. It’s kind of an industrial area, light industry with a small naval base, shrimp boats, docks for the cruise ships. So we come to the T where the street we were walking on ends and we have to make a choice, left or right. We have a small map with only the major streets shown, no detail. We have written instructions on how to get there. Very general instructions, again no detail. So we have to decide, left or right. We choose right. Wrong. After walking about a mile we start to think maybe we should have gone the other way. An industrial area on a Sunday is not that busy, even in Mexico, but we soon come to a guard shack for the cruise ship docks and the guard speaks fairly good English. He verifies that we should have gone the other direction. We give him our thanks and head back the way we came.

We eventually make our way to where the small boats are that will take us to Stone Island – Isla de la Piedra. We purchase our tickets for the round trip – fifteen pesos per person – and get on the boat. They are small pangas and hold about twelve people. The ride over takes less than five minutes and once on the island we get a taxi over to the beach – twenty pesos. A five minute taxi ride and we are on the beach. This section of the beach is lined with small restaurants, side by side, right on the beach, small plastic tables and chairs in the sand. Just pick a spot and sit down, doesn’t matter where. Whichever restaurant it ends up being doesn’t matter – it’s all good. The beach along here is about twelve and a half miles long, fifty to a hundred yards wide, very flat, and absolutely gorgeous. On the ocean side is the beautiful Pacific Ocean, waves breaking gently in the distance. A few small islands offshore. On the land side are palm trees, miles and miles of coconut palms. The area near the restaurants is usually busy, not too bad, but it is a popular spot with the locals as well as the gringos. But with twelve and a half miles of beach, it’s easy to find a spot where one can imagine being alone on a tropical island, lush palm trees behind you, the beautiful clear blue sky above you, and the mighty Pacific Ocean at your feet, stretching out to the horizon. (The ocean, not your feet.) It just doesn’t get any better than that.

We sat down at a table in the shade; I kicked off my sandals and dug my toes in the sand. We ordered a couple of Pacificos and settled in. Our biggest problem for the afternoon would be what to order for lunch. After weighing our options carefully we decided on Shrimp Ajo (Garlic Shrimp – for Pat) and Quesadilla con Pollo (Chicken Quesadilla – for me). Both were excellent. There are a lot of beach vendors in that area to help separate the beach-goers from their pesos and we did our share of helping out the local economy. We got some jewelry, pastries, and assorted souvenirs. It’s just like the other day in El Centro with the pigeons. Throw out a little bit of bird seed and they come flocking to you. Open up your wallet and every beach vendor is trying to sell you his goods. “Cheap, almost free, special price today only.” Some people hate it, but I enjoy it. If nothing else it’s free entertainment and it gives you a chance to interact with the locals. Their food is always good, there are some nice trinkets, and the vendors are always friendly, even when you say no.

After lunch we just sat and relaxed a while, enjoying the beautiful scenery and the warm sun. I decided to go for a walk up the beach. Before long the restaurants and their customers were behind me, ahead of me were miles of wide, sand beach. On my left were lush palm trees, on my right waves were gently rolling into the sand. Above was nothing but clear blue sky and the bright tropical sun. I wonder if this is what Heaven is like.

I was trying to reach the point where the palm trees, the sand, and the ocean all meet, so I walked quite a ways but it was always just at the edge of the horizon. I finally decided that my quest would have to continue another day, and I turned around and headed back with the sun shining on my face.

Walking into the sun warmed me up so I walked back in the water. Words and pictures cannot begin to describe how I felt. William Shakespeare at his best could not put quill to paper and allow someone to know how wonderful it felt. Ansel Adams on a good day would not be able to create the perfect photograph to show the beauty of the area. Walking on that beach, with the sun on my face, my toes in the water, my heart in Mazatlan – you have to experience it for yourself to understand.

When I got back to the table Pat was kinda pissed ‘cause I was gone so long, but time had no meaning while I was out there. Besides, my mind was still in heaven. No problemo. No worries, mate. So Pat went for a short walk while I had another Pacifico. I talked with Rudy who works there or owns the restaurant or something. Pat returned and it was time to go. The ferries run until 6pm and it was after 5. We rode back on a wagon with a bunch of bench seats. The wagon was pulled by a tractor and I was one of three guys on the wagon and about twenty girls. Yeah, life is rough here in Paradise. Ferry ride over to the mainland and we got a pulmonia over to the malecon.

We arrived at the malecon just after sunset. The Pacific Ocean was a calm navy blue. The sky above the horizon was orange and blended into a deep blue above. Palm trees along the sidewalk near the beach completed the scene. We enjoyed the evening sky for twenty or thirty minutes, then boarded a bus back to our resort.

Back at the suite we got cleaned up and dressed for supper. After discussing our options we decided on Mary’s, down in the Gold Zone near the bookstore. Mary’s does not serve Mexican food – they have hamburgers in several varieties as well as about ten different kinds of salads. Good salads are even harder to find that good hamburgers down here. I had a bacon cheeseburger with fries and a Pacifico; Pat had a Cobb salad, side order of garlic bread, and water. One more Pacifico for me while we sat outside and enjoyed the evening. There is an ice cream shop next door so we found just enough room for a scoop of ice cream. We walked as we ate our desert. With the ice cream only a memory, we caught a bus back to Playa Maria, relaxed a little, and then went to bed, the end of another wonderful day in the heaven-on-earth called Mazatlan.

Mazatlan 2007

Saturday, February 3 (Pat)

We woke up relatively early (7am) considering we went to bed after midnight. Since we were out of Raisin Bran we decided to have breakfast at the Playa Maria restaurant. Ron had Mexican eggs and I had a ‘light’ veggie omlete. Both were very good. Back at the room I finished up the book “Prey” by Michael Crichton that Ron had read last week and he added journal entries onto the laptop. Then we got ready to head off to El Centro. We caught a bus and stopped of at an internet café near the book store across from Costa de Oro resort and caught up on e-mail. That took me over an hour so Ron waited outside. Next we took a pit stop Cost de Oro and caught a Sabalo Centro bus and headed for the market. Another beautiful, sunny, perfectly blue sky day. Not too hot – almost cool in the shade. The bus travels the majority of the malecon before turning down a narrow street. After a few more turns we are at the ‘mercado’ and get off the bus and head in. We are in the corner where the meat stalls are so get hit with the aroma of fresh meat. It is always an interesting sight to walk through as the vendors slice up meat cuts using very sharp knives. All body parts of the animals are on display it seems. We are here to shop for the grandkids and to find our ‘chili’s’ and a ‘sun’ for our carport Mexican patio. We wander through the aisles looking for ideas for Matthew, Austin, Christine, and Rob. At one store we see some interesting ceramic mobiles of different designs. Ron picks out a nice yellow sun and flower mobile for Christine and Rob for one hundred and thirty pesos. We wandered through the aisles – many vendors are very pushy/persistent so it helps to know what you are looking for, otherwise you could get talked into buying a lot – t-shirts, sandals, trinkets, curios, etc. We found a place with colorful ceramics – large bell peppers and other veggies and some interesting sun ceramics. Not quite the right ones. Then we went to the adjacent stall and they had a bunch of chili’s hanging from the ceiling. Red, yellow, green, and some multi-colored ones. The red ones were ceramic, Ron liked the multi-colored ones – they were bigger and made out of paper mache so they will travel better. They also had some suns. More ceramics in the next stalls – lots of colorful suns, iguanas, snails, turtles, etc. Tucked under a shelf we spotted a number of well-painted, colorful sun ceramics with happy painted faces. We checked out several and settled on a shiny finish, blue rays with yellow center face sun about eight to nine inches across. Just right for the ‘patio’. Now it was Matthew, Austin, and Ethan’s turn. More wandering. Ron bought some pastries. Then we saw some small frog figures drinking Coronas, playing drums, etc. Ron picked out two for Matthew. We went back to the first stall and picked out a baby sized woven Mexican jacket for Ethan. Enough shopping. Off to the cathedral and plaza. At the plaza we sat on a bench and watched a guy feed the pigeons. A few would be there, then from all over the plaza pigeons would be flying in, hopping all over each other in a feeding frenzy. No special noise to alert the others – they just knew some rice was being tossed on the ground. We went into the gazebo structure in the center and Ron took some video. Then an older kid showed up with a pigeon on his shoulder eating out of a bag of rice. He handed me a small plastic bag filled with rice. I tossed a little out and of course bunches of pigeons showed up. I put some rice in my hand and held it out and soon I had two, three, four, five pigeons on my arm, on top of each other, eating the rice. The kid said the rice cost ten pesos a bag and that he was very poor. Ron gave him fifteen pesos in coin, but he wanted paper money (the smallest denomination in paper money is twenty pesos). Fifteen pesos is enough for a little bag of rice, so Ron handed him back the rice, let him keep the coins, and we walked off. More picture taking around the plaza and cathedral. We were getting hungry and I wanted to wash my hands after feeding the pigeons so we headed to Panama Pastelarie, a fun restaurant kitty-cornered from the cathedral. I had tortilla soup and Ron had quesadillas. Lots of Mexican families eating there so it was noisy but entertaining. They have a tall cart full of scrumptious pastries being wheeled around to tempt you so we had the girl come by and I chose an apple bread cake and Ron had a neapolitan cake. Yum! We decided to find our way towards the Angela Peralta theater. A block or so from the plaza we decided we had better make sure which street we needed to be on to find it. A real estate office was on the corner so we went in to ask directions. A very nice gentleman – who spoke very good English since he was raised in the U.S. – chatted with us. We asked some general questions about homes in El Centro. He then showed us the interior of the building. It was an old building that had been converted to a school. His mom bought it and was remodeling. It was eight thousand square feet. In the center was an open garden area just re-cemented. A tiered fountain was in the center. Wood post structures were placed around the garden. Now this is what we want – only smaller. He showed us a finished room with a gorgeous tile floor that looked like patterned wood. Very nice furnishings, high ceilings. We talked a bit more with the gentlemen, Kris DeSoto, and got his card for future reference.

To get to the theater/plaza we just had to head up the street from where we were. At the plaza they were setting up for some event. There are a lot of adjacent restaurants with outdoor seating. A neat place to eat. It was getting cooler and we had all our shopping bags to lug around so we decided to walk up to the malecon, get a beer, and then catch a bus to Playa Maria. We found the same little restaurant we were at Tuesday and enjoyed the sunset and a couple of cervezas. Very clear so the sun just disappears into the water.

Caught the Sabalo Centro bus – toured through El Centro, then off north through the Gold Zone to Playa Maria. We had some chalupas at the malecon restaurant and were still full. We decided to just change clothes and head down to the Purple Onion to listen to Brenster again. We got a seat outside and ordered a couple of Pacificos and some chips and enjoyed the music for a while. We even bought one of his CD’s. Later we stopped at the super market to get some cereal and coke then took a bus back to the resort. Some reading and journaling and off to bed – midnight again!

Mazatlan 2007

Friday, February 2 (Ron)

We’ve been busy all week, today is a lazy day. Around 11am we had finished breakfast and coffee so we went down to get some sun and hang out by the pool. We read, watched the ocean, and the other guests. I walked up the beach then played in the waves for quite a while. Did some more hangin’ out. While we were sitting there a guy came around on the other side of the wall and said “Hi, remember me? Fernando.” It was our friend we met last Sunday. I went over and talked to him for a while. He said he was a waiter at the restaurant in the resort next door to Playa Maria, and asked if we’d come over for dinner. I said sure, we’ll be there.

We sat around by the pool some more and a few people said they could see something out where the waves started breaking – dolphins or whales or something. A few people had binoculars and looked for quite a while but there didn’t seem to be anything out there. Then everyone went back to what they were doing. Pretty soon someone would start motioning like there was something out there. Everyone would stand up and look and not see anything. This went on several times but I did briefly see a dolphin, which was pretty cool. We watched the sun go down then came up to the suite and got cleaned up for supper.

Finally a little after 8pm we went next door for supper, but the restaurant was closed. We went to Plan B. Took a taxi over to Citrus Ocean, the restaurant at Isla Mazatlan, and used the certificate for five-hundred pesos that Olivia had gotten for us. It is a very nice restaurant. We started off with a strawberry daiquiri for Pat and a mango margarita for me. Then sautéed mushrooms for Pat and a Caesar salad for me. The main course was Mahi-Mahi for Pat, I had meat and pasta, forget what they called it but it was very good. We were hoping to have desert, everything was so good – we knew desert would be very good as well. By the time we finished the main course we were stuffed, so no desert tonight. We paid the bill; it came to five-hundred fifty-five pesos, and walked back to Playa Maria under a full moon.

Mazatlan 2007

Thursday, February 1 (Pat)

The alarm went off at 5am waking us from a deep sleep and we got up, showered, and got ready for our jungle tour. Out front of the resort at 6am we met another couple going on the jungle tour. It was dark and cool out. After a few minutes a nice, new mini tour bus drove up and we headed into the Gold Zone to pick up a few others at Pueblo Bonito. Twelve passengers total, Arturo the tour guide (he was our tequila tour guide last visit!), and David the driver. We stopped at the Vista Tours office for a continental breakfast and by 6:30am we were back in the bus, heading south for Tepic and San Blas. It was about a three and a half to four hour ride on Hiway 15 and the new toll road. Arturo pointed out the highlights along the way - Sierra Madre mountains to the east, agriculture fields, mango groves, and cattle (Brahma) pastures by the hectares. Occasional small towns, a cluster of cement blocks or brick buildings with thatched roofs or galvanized steel - often patched. We had a pit stop at a Pemex with clean bathrooms about mid-way which was appreciated by all. The tour also provided water, coke, or beer in a cooler. We passed a large estuary from one of the rivers that was neat to see from the high road. It spread out for miles. Apparently a big gathering area for migrating birds. It is supposed to be the third largest estuary in the world. We had crossed into the neighboring state, Nagarit, of which Tepic is the capital. Lots of crops, tobacco, sorghum, milo, beans, cucumber. Also saw various horses, donkeys, and dogs around the 'shelters'. Our first tour stop was in a small village that had been a key Spanish fortress for King Carlos in the 1500's. Just down the hill from it was an old stone church. The fort had thick stone walls and a large gathering room which was being used for some big 'political' event according to Arturo. Lots of cannons were along the wall and below was a good sized town (Tepic?). We took pictures and headed to the old church for more pictures. The large, high stone arches were still intact and made for an artful scene against the blue sky. There was an etched inscription, something about 'Those who pass through these doors will have their sins removed'. Back into the van. By now we are getting hungry. It is a short drive and we pull into a parque parking lot along the river and mangrove forest. We place our order for either shrimp rancheros or fish fillet for lunch, but boat ride first. I eat my banana and Ron buys a coconut crisp from a vendor before we load up. The boats are long, flat boats with five rows of seats and an outboard engine. Three people per row. Ron is in front of me in the second row and we take off. The river is narrow at the beginning with thick mangrove, cypress, and other trees lining the sides. The roots are dry and bare, creating a network of sticks projection down into the water. It is a maze of wood and greenery on both sides. Some tall trees jut out above the rest and make for interesting silhouettes against the blue sky. As we cruise up-river sharp eyed people start picking out the wildlife and the boat pulls closer with the engine off. It was a good day and we saw a lot, various birds, storks, fly-catchers of different types. Turtles of various sizes, a couple quite big - about eighteen inches across. Then we saw several alligators/crocodiles. One small one was eating a crab, some mid-sized ones sunning on a log, and two huge ones. One had its mouth wide open facing us - no dipping in the water there! Another was sunning behind some branches and was as big as some we've seen in Florida! After a while the mangrove gave way to swamp grass about six to eight feet tall with occasional trees and the river widened out. There were various branches, twists and turns, three huts on stilts used in a movie once - and eventually the river tour ended at a large home(?) or restaurant(?). We turned around and headed back at a faster pace. We saw a group of wood storks trying to land in a tall palm tree. Hard to get a picture but neat to see.

Back to the boat ramp and across the street for lunch. A patio with a long table set up for us. The food was simple but good. The bathroom was a cement block building with a seatless toilet, no toilet paper, and a shower curtain for a door. They did have running water but the water ran out the sink onto the walkway! It is always an experience to see how others live. The family was nice and we bought some banana muffins from another little girl as well.

We got back onto the bus for the long drive home. Most of us snoozed. The road was rough and being a two lane road, would get congested behind slow-moving trucks. David would watch for breaks on traffic coming the other way and roar around the slower vehicles. It would be interesting to know what the incidence of car wrecks is. There was a nice sunset as we got closer to Mazatlan. After dark we were winding our way through the back streets of Mazatlan and dropped off the passengers starting at the north end. It was close to seven when we got home to Play Maria.

We were getting hungry and wanted to walk after a long day sitting, so we went to the Gold Zone and ate at 'El Paraje'. I had chicken enchiladas and Ron had the combo and two Pacificos. Two hundred pesos including tip. We had live entertainment - a mixture of soft rock, oldies, and country. The singer wasn't as good as Brenster but was OK. The temperature was nice except the stiff breeze cooled you off so we decide to limit a walk to gathering some groceries and walking north until we could catch the bus. Back in the room we added some layers and went for a nice moon-lit walk on the beach down to the marina entrance and back. A little reading and it was time for bed!

Mazatlan 2007

Wednesday, January 31 (Ron)

Got ready for another sales presentation, we are outside by about 8:45, met Magdalena, Magda for short, who was outside to greet us. She explained that Mark had promised us too much for attending the presentation. He had told us we'd get 2500 pesos, but Magda said if we got that much part of it would have to come out of Mark's pocket. She asked if we would agree to 2000 pesos. What the heck, we are already down here, besides I can't say no to a pretty girl, so we agreed. She got us a taxi and we're off to La Jolla.

Our resort is near the north end of the Gold Zone, but La Jolla turned out to be even farther north - just north of Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay. We met the rep and had a nice breakfast. The salesperson showed us the mock-up of a suite, none of the suites were actually finished, most of the construction hadn't even started yet. It looked like it would be a very nice resort, but we told her we were definitely not interested, so she didn't give us the high pressure sales pitch. We were given out 2000 pesos and a ride back to Playa Maria

I don't know if we've mentioned it yet, but the conversion rate is about 10.8 pesos to the dollar. Some places will give you 11 pesos for your dollar in order to get your business. So 2000 pesos is just under $200US.

So we are back at the resort, at the door to our suite, and we run into the couple staying in the junior suite next to ours. We start talking, they live on a farm in southwestern Minnesota. Their suite was being cleaned so we invited them in. Nice couple - very talkative. We talked for quite a while.

After they left, Pat and I went down to sit by the pool, read and get some of the wonderful Mazatlan sun. Around 4pm we came back up to get ready for dinner. Before we left home, I had purchased two tickets for a dinner theater at a restaurant called 'Canuck's'. Got down there at 5pm, confirmed our reservation, and when the show started.

We had about an hour to kill so we walked down the malecon for a couple of blocks, until we found a good spot to sit outside, get a couple of Pacificos, and watch the sunset. By shortly after six we had finished our beers and watched the sun sink into the Pacific Ocean.

We walked back to 'Canuck's', found our seats, and ordered drinks. The two other couples assigned to our table arrived and we chatted while waiting for our dinner. The ticket included a shrimp dinner. I knew Pat would enjoy it, and I was planning on eating tortillas or whatever else came with it. Just before dinner the waiters began covering all the tables with plastic table cloths. Then they brought out dinner and dumped it on the table. Shrimp, corn on the cob, small potatoes, everything all mixed together. That's it. Everybody at our table started digging in except for one of the ladies and me. It became obvious that the two of us would go hungry. I excused myself and walked about a block to a small convenience store where I purchased a bag of chips, some bran bars, and a couple of Mexican cookies for desert. The other lady and I ate that while everyone else devoured the shrimp. The waiters cleared off the tables and the show began. It was called "Murder on Maui" and was put on by a bunch of ex-pat gringos so it was all in English. It was very enjoyable and benefited Conrehabit, a Mazatlan environmental group. After the show we caught a taxi back to the resort. We were bushed after our big night on the town, so we went right to bed.

(Pat)

The "Murder on Maui" experience was fun. Our table was close to the stage on the left side so we could see the characters well. It was different having a huge pile of boiled peel-and-eat shrimp, which were cooked just right and good sized, just piled onto the table. With two not eating that left more for us shrimp lovers.

The show included some young hula dancers, some 'wahinis' older women, and the main cast of characters. They set up the skit introducing the characters and their relationships in the plot. 'Ruth', and older gentleman in drag, ended up being murdered. In the second act various clues were shown - the only one I was aware of was the singer (Donnie Wo) now had some lipstick on his cheek. Now it was the audience's turn to pick the murderer as a table vote. We discussed it and ended up choosing the singer as having the motive enough to commit murder. In the finale he confessed and that was the end of the show. Ron and I walked quite a ways along the south end of the malecon, enjoying the lights and big moon, then caught a pulmonia back to the resort. A fun evening. Definitely a large crowd of gringos down here enjoying Mazatlan during the winter months.

Mazatlan 2007

Tuesday, January 30 (Pat)

Tuesday morning and no timeshare presentations! We had decided to not show up to get picked up to go to Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay so we hung out reading and writing in the journal for the first part of the morning. It is a beautiful sunny blue sky so we have breakfast – Raisin Bran and juice. Around 9:30-10am I get into my new swim suit and head for the pool area looking out on the ocean. Unfortunately the towering cement structure next door is blocking the sun so it takes until 11am to have the sun come around. The pool is an infinity type pool where the water level is even with the edge by the ocean and then gets pumped back in. Makes for a neat effect. It is noisy with the construction but I am into my new Lillian Braun’s – “The Cat Who…” book so tune it out most of the time. At 11:00 I go check on Ron – he is still typing the journal entries into the computer. I stay out enjoying the nice warm sun until just before noon then come in to shower and change and head into town (GZ) for my massage. We catch a bus and arrive early. I hang out and look at books (the massage therapist is in the book store, she was recommended by the gringos in MazInfo). Ron is off to find ‘When Pigs Fly’, a restaurant/bar that was hosting a fashion show. He thought it would be fun to take some pictures. (He had an adventure trying to find the place and helping out a lady with her car that he can write about later.)

Sonja the massage therapist delivered a nice, invigorating, vigorous full body massage, working a bit more on my neck. It felt great!! Done with that I went next door to the cyber café to check on e-mails and then sat outside and waited for Ron. I spotted him pass by in a pulmonia and after he got out we headed over to Costa de Oro for a pit stop and he shared his adventure. We continued walking north up the Gold Zone until we came to Chili’s Pepper – one of our favorite places to eat. A brightly colored restaurant overlooking the beach and with an open front (back?). When we got there, there was a group of people gathered around the tables watching a black gentleman lift 3 stones on a long handled broom that was taped up to hold the rocks. The deal was to pick up the broom with one hand, touch the top of a water bottle, and put it back down. If you couldn’t do it then you paid the guy 50 pesos. The black guy could do it in about 10 – 15 seconds. He also could lift it and touch the top of someone’s head. (He was about 72 years old and had been doing it for a long time!) The guys in the group, Ron and some others gave it a try and couldn’t do it, some even with one stone. The group included the girl that Ron sat next to on the plane down here and her boyfriend. They shared their raw oysters, fresh out of the bay, with Ron – I didn’t like them – and then they left.

We grabbed the outside table, the sun felt good and we were hopeful for a nice sunset over the island. I had the coconut shrimp – yum! – and Ron had a garlic fish filet. We had a large Margarita each. They were strong and I was feeling it after a few sips!! The sunset was so-so. We enjoyed talking with Victor, the waiter, then headed for the ATM and Gilberto’s to share some toy for his boys. They were happy to get them. Back to the resort by bus where we met our neighbors in the lock-off returning at the same time. They are from Minnesota. More reading and off to bed.

(Ron)

Pat is scheduled for a massage so I decided to go watch a fashion show. Maybe get a little culture, take some pictures, kill some time. The fashion show is at a restaurant/bar called ‘When Pigs Fly’. I don’t really know where it is, just somewhere along the malecon. I asked a girl at the bookstore where it was and she said it was down on Paseo Clausen near ‘Roco Mar’ restaurant.

I got on a bus that went that way and the driver indicated that he knew where ‘Roco Mar’ was and yes he did go near it. So we’re going and going, I’m starting to get a little concerned. Pretty soon the driver indicated that we were at the end of the line and I would need to get off. I said what about ‘Roco Mar’? He said it was four blocks down and one block over. Actually he didn’t speak English and my Spanish isn’t that good, so that’s my interpretation of what he said.

So I walk four blocks towards the malecon and one block over, but I’m still several blocks away from the beach. I stop several people to ask directions and they all knew where it was – it was always this many blocks down and this many blocks over. Never did find it. Finally decided to go to the malecon and start walking back to try to find ‘When Pigs Fly’. Started walking up the malecon and thought ‘It’s almost 1:30, the show started at 1pm, I might as well just go over to El Centro for a while’.

Walked a block towards downtown and saw a couple of little girls maybe five and seven pushing a van out of a parking space. I ran over to help. The mom explains that she wants to get along the curb because the battery is dead and someone would be able to give her a jump that way.

We got the van along the curb and the lady asked several people, but no one would stop. Finally an old guy did. His pickup was almost as old and beat up as he was. We got out the jumper cables and the guy popped the hood. The battery terminals had corrosion built up all over them but we put the cables on and wiggled them to cut through the corrosion and get a good connection.

The van still wouldn’t start, it didn’t even turn over. The old guy decided to take her battery out and put his in the van. Her battery was easily disconnected but his was a real challenge. We finally got it out and he hooked it up to the lady’s van and it started right up. Disconnected the battery, swapped them back, and everything is good. The old guy told the lady that there was a place nearby that did electrical repairs, gave her directions, and left with our thanks.

I told the lady that I’d ride along with her to the shop in case of more problems. I don’t know what kind of directions she got, but they must have been like the ones I got for ‘When Pigs Fly’. So we are driving around all over the place, going the wrong way on one way streets, just having a good ol’ time. Eventually we find a place that does electrical work.

A mechanic came out and checked the battery – everything was OK. The lady and the mechanic had quite a conversation, entirely in Spanish of course – so I don’t know what was said, but I looked over and they had the two rear tires up on blocks and another mechanic was under the rear end.

Finally the conversation slowed down and I asked the lady if everything was under control. She said it was, so I said adios and went to catch a taxi. Got back to meet Pat just after our agreed-upon 3pm rendezvous time.