Panama Canal Day 14

Today in Cabo San Lucas, it was nice and cool in comparison to every other day. The ship arrived in Cabo early, 7 AM, and we were ready to go shortly after. We had to go ashore via tender because the harbour is not deep enough for cruise ships.

When we got off of the boat, we were met with a barrage of salesmen pitching their tours. They were most persistent and we walked on until we found someone who wasn’t. His boat tour around Los Arcos was only $10 and he set off almost right away with just the two of us as passengers. It was a ‘glass bottom’ boat and had a roof as well. We got close to some of the beaches and also saw some sea lions. Our driver was able to call to them and make them respond to his barking.

As we rounded the corner, we saw the famous Los Arcos and our guide manoeuvred the boat so we got some good photos. As the waves hit us, our boat really rose and fell but our guide wasn’t concerned so I decided to chill. There were also pelicans roosting on various rocks and boats and we saw some interesting yellow fish that were hard to photograph.

After that excursion, we took off on foot toward the church and then the town square. The church was small but nicely decorated for Christmas. The town square was almost deserted which is unusual for Mexico. Most often, the zocalo is the center of the town or city. It’s where people hang out to visit, relax and meet, kind of like the equivalent of our ‘going to the mall’.

There was a museum nearby but it wasn’t open yet and we didn’t want to hang around waiting so we continued on along a main street. We went into a few shops, one of which sold cotton clothing. The owner did a lot of the sewing and embroidery work in traditional patterns. I tried on a few things and bought a lovely 100% natural cotton top with beautiful lacework in the front. I just love this type of fabric for hot weather!

As we continued along, there were many shops with interesting work: masks, glassware, and Day of the Dead figures, some of which were life-size. I was hungry so we stopped at a restaurant and had quesadillas. My chicken, mushroom, salsa, sour cream and guacamole one was delicious and the tortilla was flaky like phyllo pastry. Yum! We slowly made our way back to the dock and caught the tender boat back to the ship.

The afternoon consisted of a nap then sunset pictures, but clouds interfered again. We had a great comedian tonight in the Stardust Theater, David Naster. He is doing a show tomorrow as well and it should be worth going to. Supper was fabulous: surf and turf (a.k.a. steak and lobster). Dessert was even more fabulous: key lime pie! We checked out the ‘white hot dance party’ in the lounge but it didn’t hold our attention for long. Tonight we set the clock back an hour again. That’s 3 times since we set sail!

Panama Canal Day 13

8 AM - Puerto Vallarta. We headed out shortly after and walked to the main street to catch a city bus to the downtown area. The trip for 2 of us cost $1 USD. The busses have seen better days but you can’t beat the price and the interestingness of the ride. I was amused to see the bus driver’s cell phone holder attached to his dashboard– a child’s holey shoe.

We weren’t sure exactly where to get off but it didn’t really matter because we had all day. We made our way to the big cathedral and photographed the colourful plastic flags which were hung in many rows beyond the reach of anyone.

After that, we headed further south into the ‘old town’ district. There are a few tourists there, but not like the Malecon area. We wandered along a market with many stalls down by the river.

I was in search of the public ‘farmer’s market’ that I remembered from last trip – until I realized it was Mazatlan that I was thinking of. By that time, I had asked several people where it was and I was given directions so I checked them out. Indeed there was a market but on a smaller scale than Mazatlan’s. I still enjoyed photographing the fruits in the stalls, the meat in the market, the children playing in the streets. The sights, sounds and smells are like no other.

We stopped at another church then walked over to the Malecon, a long walkway beside the ocean. There is a fancy new pier since I last visited Puerto Vallerta. As a fisherman was cleaning his fish, many pelicans gathered nearby hoping for the scraps. 

Several boats were moored nearby and there were lots of beach restaurants. The sand and waves were inviting and lots of people were enjoying the water. As I wandered closer to that section, the waves suddenly came much farther than I expected and sent me running.

The forecast for today was 28C, cooler than other ports, but it still felt pretty darned hot to me. We walked north on the Malecon, stopping to look at the statues, Christmas decorations, and browse in a few stores. After grabbing a bite to eat, we headed back to catch a Centro bus back to port. We passed many vehicles with live tigers in cages and some large fibreglass animals as well – the circus was in town! 

The bus stopped by Walmart so we had a look in there before walking over to the ship. The seafood section of the store had octopus, squid and whole fish, not the usual Walmart fare.

Sunset was unspectacular tonight due to low clouds. I enjoyed a movie in our room for a change. Then at 10 PM there was a chocoholic buffet upstairs. There were 3 stations of chocolate desserts galore – chocolate cake, chocolate covered strawberries, cheesecake, éclairs, squares, etc. etc. My oh my, what a day to end the day!