First of all, our free "obstructed" balcony was wonderful. There wasn't anything in the way of the view. It was wonderful to wake up to the sun rising, and to read out on our balcony, watch the ship come into the port- I'm so spoiled!
On Monday we changed clothes seven times- I counted. We worked out in the gym, went in the spa, sat out in the sun. Tuesday we went to one of the shows, with a swing singer and a few dance numbers. We also went to an art auction, the first of three we attended, to get the free seriographs they were handing out after. We now have three nice pieces of art, each of which at least one of us likes.
Wednesday we were in Puerto Vallarta. We went shopping, then went on a "jungle tour" to Mismaloya. We went on a hike in the jungle and swam in a natural pool with some fishies. I got lots of mosquito bites. We saw baby pineapple, a gum tree, tons of mango trees (these were all over in rural Mexico) and bamboo. We saw an iguana from the bus on a tree in the city. By the way, 100% of the tequila in the world is made in this state. That night a local mariachi band came onboard and played, and there were also dancers. It was a pretty good show.
Thursday we were in Mazatlan. For all the hype, I didn't think the shopping was that good. Of course, that was the day John got sick, and we didn't have a lot of time to shop anyway. We went on a seven hour bus tour to some tiny villages in the Sierra Madre. We got to watch people making brickes, baskets, and really nice wood furniture. Lunch at a Mexican restaurant was included. There was really yummy coconut banana cream pie.
Friday was the best day. In Cabo San Lucas, we ended up going on a boat tour and to a beach club, which we hadn't planned before. The boat tour went around the arches, and the sea lion rocks at the very tip of Baja California. The sun was just coming up and it was beautiful. Then we went to a private beach club and spent a few hours playing around in the beautiful, warm, clear water. I saw a school of fish swim by. I found three pieces of sea glass. We met a couple there from Tehachapi named John and Susie and, even weirder, they were the only other people we met on the cruise that didn't drink. After the beach we got dropped off downtown and walked back to the port, shopping along the way.
The only thing we really bought the whole time was a yellow bowl with chillis painted on it. One of the free things I got was a silver Aztec calendar charm that I can put on my charm bracelet. I also got a free sapphire and a cheap gold charm bracelet- you could get a different charm at each port.
Saturday we mostly just lay around watching movies so John could feel better. Poor thing had a really bad fever for a few days, so we got lots of sleep. One thing I was disappointed in was the food on the ship. I guess I'm just not a fancy food person.
Mon May 09 2005 23:23 MST Cruisin':
I have about a million things to say about our wonderful trip. I even made a list so I could remember everything.