Busy, Busy, Busy!

Such a busy day today! First, there was the shopping...

Sure, there's lots of crazy, junk-y stuff - just like at home.





But there is also a surprising amount of really beautiful things, too.






















I nearly missed this painting (about 3'x 4'). It was high on the wall, up and behind the door to the shop.



It's calla lily season here right now. We've seen several vendors (older and less striking than this one) walking along the side of the road with big buckets of calla lilies on their heads.

Sunset

Ya, sorry - another sunset.

Today's was just too beautiful not to share!

La Isla de la Peidra (Stone Island)

One of the places we both enjoyed on our last visit to Mazatlan was Stone Island. We returned there today with Harry and Joanna, who are also quite fond of this area. Not quite an island - a peninsula - Stone Island is a long stretch of beach easily reached from old Mazatlan (downtown Mazatlan) via small, open skiffs for a $2 round trip fare.

A short walk from the skiff dock brings you to the beach proper, which features a long row of modest eating establishments. Simply pick one, choose a chair or lounger and spend the rest of the day enjoying the view. Wednesdays brings the hustle and bustle of cruise ship excursion traffic, eager to ride banana boats, snorkel, drive dune buggies, ride horses, and toast themselves (literally and figuratively). Wednesday also brings with it a crush of beach hawkers! Thank goodness we're getting more emphatic with our "no, gracias"! Or, as Joanna suggested, "muy bonita, pero no gracias". (very pretty, but no, thanks).

Despite the touristas and the sales pressures, we all enjoyed the day very much. So much to see...so little to do!

Pretty restaurants where you can enjoy your lunch while running your toes through the sand...


















Fabulous local drinks delivered to your lounger...


Yes, there are some tidy banos (bathrooms)...






















...siesta's going on all over the place...


















...and today, these two grinning fools!

Thanks for the Memories

I've been coming to Mazatlan for about 15 years now. To say that going to Senor Frog's was a highlight of my first visit (and pretty much every visit thereafter) would be a huge understatement.


Suffice to say, Senor Frogs is the first and most likely, the last place I will ever dance on a table. I danced on tables there more than once. Sometimes by myself. Mostly with other people. Sometimes I knew their names. Many times, I did not.

Senor Frogs' was just one of those places that everyone should have in their repetoire of stories to tell grandchildren about. (Even if there is a rule that what happens at Senor Frog's stays at Senor Frogs!)

I had heard that the "original and still the best" Senor Frogs in Mazatlan (the one on the malecon) had moved - down the street, to a spot underneath the El Cid hotel. I'm sure it's very nice. You know how it is tho...once a place like SF's moves, it's never really the same. The building carries as much mystique as the events that happened there.

Even forewarned, I was not prepared for this sight. So very sad.


As it used to say on the ceiling over the dance floor, it ain't easy being green.

Thanks for the memories, SF!

Licence to Chill

It was the half-way point of our vacation and we were ready to reach maximum relaxation level. Jimmy Buffet would have been proud! But before we could truly relax we had to go forage for the essential supplies...like cervezas and rum. So we ventured out onto the main street, braved the pulmonia cabbies and time-share sales-sharks and boarded one of the local buses to head downtown.


Riding a bus in Mexico can, like many things here, be a near death experience. The drivers seem to take their jobs very seriously: they attempt to get you to your destination as quickly as humanly possible. That means driving insanely fast down congested streets, and veering wildly around obstacles in their path, such as dogs, pedestrians, and other vehicles. This might explain why the illuminated "walk" signs here depict a little green man running for his life.



All brakes here seem to be emergency brakes, because that's the only time the drivers will use them. At one point a car was making a left turn in an intersection ahead of us and I swear the bus driver actually sped-up!

The real fun comes when it's time to get off the bus. The driver pulls over to stop, the doors open and you have 1.5 seconds to leap to the pavement before the bus starts up again. You don't see many old people in Mexico....

Most of the trip felt like a scene from Speed, but somehow we survived the journey and found ourselves at Mexico's answer to Walmart: MEGA. We loaded up on the basic food groups: pastries, M&M's, alcohol, and chips. Finally, we were ready to RELAX!



We hurtled back to the hotel and hit the beach for the rest of the day.


















Linette thought for a nano-second about doing some shopping...
















...or maybe swimming...















While I caught up on some important current events...

Viva Tequila (Mescal)!

My perfect Mazatlan Monday would go something like this...

We’d breakfast by the pool with a Spanish lesson on the side, followed by some pats and kisses from Geordie and Maggie. The day would be spent touring around the countryside with Joanna and Harry, starting with at the local mescal factory, Osuna (tequila made outside of the state of Jalisco officially has to be referred to as mescal).



Osuna makes gold medal winning mescal, and has been doing so for more than 150 years. Our guide explained to us how they take the pineapple-like stalks of the blue agave cactus, trim them down, bake them in underground ovens, and let them ferment.

The mellow and sweet caramel juice is then separated from the fibre and put through a series of processes, one of which is required to REDUCE the alcohol content (as per very strict government regulations).








After so many years, this family-run operation is incredibly efficient and their product – truly, the best tequila I have ever tasted (sorry Mike!).


Lunch was found and enjoyed at the Hacienda Las Moras...a timeless and beautiful apparition just a short distance (but long, and at some times very bumpy drive) from town.


















We were hmm...entertained (?) by some schmuck who insisted on regaling each and every gory detail of his gunshot wound survival.


Toward the end of his half-hour tale, we wondered if the assailant might not have been someone who knew him.

The margaritas,tortilla soup, and coconut shrimp more than made up for him.



















Bellies full and brains reeling from mas forte margaritas we made it as far as the pool deck before the siesta struck.


Suddenly it was 4 o’clock! The shadows grew long and the light ever so lovely. Shutterbugs unite!



















We attempted a tour of the petting zoo, complete with pigs, wall-hopping baby goats, shy horses and their colts, turkeys and two pair of attack geese.


Thankfully, the peacocks roamed freely which meant we could enjoy them without fear of waddle by goosing.



















Wanda, intrepid and reliable as ever, delivered us home in time for sunset...another spectacular end to the day.

Mmmm Mazatlan

We slept like we were dead. Then, shortly before 9, we headed out in search of breakfast.


When we were here 2 years ago, we had the most amazing vanilla bean oatmeal at the hotel where we stayed then. A 15 minute walk from Pueblo Bonito, El Quixote Inn has undergone some fantastic renovations and upgrades. Sadly, the oatmeal did not survive the transition. Breakfast was lovely, and the coffee...oh the coffee! Every time I come to Mazatlan, I am blown away by how absolutely wonderful the coffee is here! Three cups later, we were buzzing (er, walking) our way over to meet Joanna and Harry for a trip to the Juarez outdoor market.

En route we noticed the building we had seen in progress on our last trip was now completed.








Who would imagine the same techniques and technology were used to build it as are being used for this one, going up directly across the street.



Note the tree poles, used as temporary supports to hold up the reebar and concrete flooring.










Safety standards in Mexico are almost nonexistant - for people, for parkades...


















...or for perros (dogs)!


(this little guy keeps an eye on things from his rooftop!)

Mexico is such a dichotomy. On one corner, you may find a car that looks like it hasn't moved (or run) in months, while across the street you'll find brand-spanking-new, top-of-the-line models like this one, a four door Ranger that's only available in Mexico!














Juarez market was exactly as expected - a busy and interesting cross between a farmer's market and flea market.


Unlike the big market in old towne Mazatlan, the Juarez market was surprisingly fly-free, perhaps due to not having an open meat selling area. The tell-tale butcher smell was gratefully absent as well. Our stroll through the stalls was punctuated by drive-by sales pitching, spanish announcements and music blaring, machine gun-like from stadium speakers strapped to cars which wended their way through the crowded streets and market stalls.

We returned to the hotel just after lunch. Within minutes we had packed our beach bag, donned our sun wear and parked ourselves on the beach where we spent the rest of the afternoon napping, reading, snacking on nachos and camarones (shrimp), and sipping bebidas under palapa #18.


There were no takers for parasailing today. Manana?


Despite a near constant barrage of beach hawkers, we managed to relax. A school of passing dolphins signaled the arrival of Happy Hour, and what is sure to be the first of many pina coladas. Those ones were for you, Aaron!

Harry and Joanna made it by in time to enjoy this evening's spectacular sunset.















We retreated to La Casita for a fabulous al fresco chicken mole and fixins' dinner with the Pettits and perros, who were once again overjoyed to see us at the gate.