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Friday, May 11, 2007

Guacamole Tour 2007




Perfect weather, an amazing hotel with a swim-up bar and a private beach made for a delightful vacation. We swam almost every day, played a lot of Boggle, ate really well and contributed to the local economy (shopped).

We invested in a guided tour of the Sierra Madres and while it was geared for tourists it wasn't totally disgusting and we loved it! Two big BMW jeep things drove us up into the mountains where we took a hike, spent time on a rural farm, ate hand-made fire cooked tortillas, explored a town of about 1200 people, and then finished off the afternoon on a private beach with Mexican BBQ and swimming in the ocean. All in all ... a great day!

Rico spent one morning on a "Canopy Tour" which is this crazy thing where they've tied cables above the trees strap you onto them and push you off rickety little platforms. As you zip across the jungle you try to put the fact that Mexico seems to have few personal safety laws out of your head. While he was off doing this, I was at the spa paying them to place hot rocks on my back and trying to stay awake. After my 90 minute session I was in a drunken stupor and had to spend the rest of the day in the pool. (Darn)

Some things about Mexico you can not gleen from the brochures and web sites, the first thing is that it is not a place for anyone with less than 100% walking capability. I think each business owner owns the sidewalk in front of their building and were allowed to put them in at what ever height they wanted. There can be a 6 to 18 inch differential in the sidewalk from building front to building front and block to block. Some are wide enough for two to walk side by side, others are so narrow that the street is the better option.

While the boardwalk area, beaches and hotels are an oasis of relaxation and beauty the city and the roads are less than idyllic. We took the bus a lot to avoid a $8 cab ride into town and it was an adventure. The buses don't appear to be on a maintenance schedule and the suspension systems were for the most part... shot to hell. However, the patrons were always quiet and kept to themselves unlike the buses here where it can get quite noisy.

We saw lots of wild life. Dolphins, Cows, Birds, Bugs, Chickens, Pelicans and the elderly cruise passengers.

1 comment:

MJS said...

Welcome back Terri! We really missed you. Glad you had a great vacation!