Cabo- We're Not Leaving

Nothing helps me recall my French like Spanish.

When I think, it’s “err, je voudrais un camisa avec bleu y yo tengo todos huit dolores, please, por favor, sil vous plait...”

I’m thinking and hearing en espanol. Words are coming back to me. On the beach, pretty much anything is around $8. Eight bucks for sun dresses, wind chimes, a couple t-shirts… so when I negotiate, it’s “todos 100 pesos” “That’s all I have. (Take it or leave it.)” Sometimes they take it, sometimes not. It’s all fair in playa commerce.

I had a rule this vacation. I couldn’t buy anything for myself for the first two days. 48 hours. Was I up to the challenge? Place your bets! Yeah, I totally failed. I bought a couple sun dresses on the beach “for friends”… baaaad Alyssa. But they’re cute and I’ve used them daily (sorry “friends”).

And please pardon my previous grumpy post. Things (weather, food, exercise) have righted themselves since then.

We left D with Grandma and went on a sunset cruise last night. We left from the marina and I felt a little seasick. I thought I could handle some more waves and be okay. I knew better, but chose to sit at the front of the boat. We stuck around there until dinner was served, then we sat inside and watched the sun set. Muy bonita. The waves were bothering me and I was reconsidering the snorkeling cruise we had gotten tickets for the following day. After eating we hung out on the upper deck in the front, which also happened to be the dance floor. The terrible 70’s disco played and we watched the waves and the people. They made us dance and since I only do the Alyssa dance… actually, I rocked the Macarena; hard; just like I did 10 years ago when the song came out.

Happy 7th Anniversary to us

The boat photographer took our pictures and printed them out below deck on his 1999 Epson. We, of course, bought one. It will undoubtedly sit in a drawer just like our photos from Cancun.

I realize that my writing comes across as condescending and generally negative, but I had a good time on the sunset cruise. And, I learned to take Dramamine.

Today we snorkeled. Once I was in the water, it took me 20 minutes to remember that I prefer to partake in abbreviated snorkeling. I use only the fins and a face mask, no life jacket and no obnoxious snorkel tube. Too bad my suit adds so much drag. Skin divers have the right idea. I just like to swim. So, today I swam and it was fun. I could spend lots of time swimming. It feels good.

Buyer beware. In Cabo, there is one place that all the boats go to snorkel. So, there were 7 boats and 150 people looking at the same 15 fish. The only place to snorkel is St. John. Go to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, then take a ferry to St. John. Rent a Jeep and drive to a beach and voila, gorgeous multitudes of swimming sushi. Delicioso y bonita.

We got some good sun today and the boat was a catamaran. It was smooth sailing. Mediocre music… I only wish we started counting how many time we’ve heard “Hotel California”. They like Will Smith here too.

We’ve had some great food here in Mexico too, but at the momentitio I am guac’ed out! Holy frijoles, if I have any more lime or cilantro my face will pucker up permanently. Again, not complaining; I love every minute of it. And we had grub mojitos today… this morning… at like, 10am.

Dahlia at "Mi Casa" Restaurant

Tonight we hit the infamous Cabo Wabo club. We arrived before sunset, so it was a ghost town, but it was fun to see all the pics of Sammy Hagar and his musician friends. We had a drink and since we had the MIL and Dahlia in tow, we dined at an Italian place called Galleon. It had white tablecloths. As a mother’s rule of thumb, I try not to take my 2 ½ year old anywhere with white tablecloths. But we beat the dinner crowd and tried to eat quickly. The waiters enjoyed watching D dance to the piano man.

We have officially decided to stay a couple extra nights. We lost our vacation momentum while we were waiting for the hurricane to hit, so I think we need a couple more days of saltwater, mariachi and dreamy weather. Grandma will be leaving tomorrow. B re-booked our flights and we’re considering other our hotel options.

The real reasons I want to stay? My hair goes crazy blond when I wet it in salt water and dry it in the sun. I need a couple more days of that. Plus, our babysitter at home is out of commission, so I can’t work. And, the work we’re having done at home isn’t finished. We found a few more restaurants to try here and we’ll get some family time in. The only sad part is that I’ll miss my Monday night soccer game. Hopefully, my team will forgive me and not replace me in the process with a younger, more agile player.

At "The Office" on Medano Beach

I think that’s about it. I haven’t checked my email, but I’ll do that now if I can. Peace out.

Cabo San Lucas, "Hot Water Sandals"

October 20, 2009

It seems we have gotten the crappy weather from Rick, which was downgraded to a tropical storm, but none of the frightening wind. I feel a little disappointed. At least we can get the “storm” over with tonight so the skies can clear up. I’ve barely had to wear sun screen while we’ve been here.

I’m a little surly due to greasy room-service, lack of exercise and lack of mental stimulation. We’ve kind of been cooped up since the streets are flooded and almost everything is closed.

Somehow, two people managed to die in the storm that hasn’t even hit us. A fisherman was dragged off a cliff into the waves and was not able to be resuscitated. And somehow, I don’t know when because we didn’t see anything, a 16-year-old died on our beach today. It must have been much farther down. I don’t know anything about it, but it makes me sad.

This morning, I lazed around in bed reading Breaking Dawn. It’s terribly written (“show, don’t tell!”), but it’s growing on me. I love to hate it. Stupid vampire drama. xoxo

When my crew of husband, toddler and MIL were stir-crazy around noon, I put my book down and we made a break for it. We took a taxi into town to Mi Casa Restaurant, recommended by my pal Lauren. Lauren’s family has a time share here and she insisted that we check out Mi Casa. They serve tortillas, rather than chips with their guac and pico. The guac was amazing. I think it was the salt that made me consider licking the bowl clean. Mi Casa had a fantastic gift shop, but their prices, negotiating tactics and exchange rate made B’s eyes pop out, so I left all my treasures on their counter and walked. So sad.

After D’s nap, she dragged us all down to the empty pool. Everyone who is still at the hotel watched from their balconies; watching the waves, the sunset, the calm before the storm.

Early in the summer, I got Dahlia some classic Salt Water Sandals; the kind my sister and I had when we were kids. For some reason, D calls them "Hot Water Sandals".

Tonight, B finally got me on the internet and I was able to check my email. Not a word from my family. No “hey, heard the worst storm since 1972 is supposed to directly hit you, you okay?” But I checked CNN and there’s no mention of a storm and blogger.com hates me and the internet is slow, so how would anyone know?

I opened the balcony door so I can hear the waves. They sound calm and the palm trees are swaying in the breeze. Tiny, solar lights are twinkling from the bottom of the swimming pools. Everything is quiet.

Cabo San Lucas, Awaiting Hurricane

October 19, 2009

Hurricane? What hurricane?

Yesterday the pool was buzzing with rumors of a hurricane on its way here to Cabo San Lucas.

The weather was mostly flawless until the afternoon when the waves began thundering, pushing up the beach, and creeping under the tables of naive tourists at Mango Deck and The Office. We watched from our hotel balcony as the waves came ashore higher and stronger until the guys at the beach restaurants began pulling their chairs and tables back to waiting vehicles. They were packing up.

Early this morning, thunder and lightning rocked the coastline, waking us up in the dark. D crawled into our bed, which may explain the 3+ hour nap she’s currently having.

Today, we awoke to an empty beach. The jet skis were hauled off and everything is pretty quiet.

We watched as a cruise ship pulled into the bay, only to leave an hour later. This afternoon a Holland America ship did the same. Our port is closed.

Despite the grim weather report, we went into town to Starbucks (6 minute cab ride) and walked to the marina where we had dinner last night. Today, guys were out hosing off the sand that had blown up the boardwalk. I was determined to check out the “Old Town” which was the only thing here 10 years ago when I visited. The street was closed and partially flooded. Most of the shops were closed. We walked up and down the main street, buying a few trinkets from street vendors; a “silver” bracelet for Dahlia and a little wooden toy.

It started to sprinkle and B, having lived in Costa Rica and anticipating a storm, suggested we go inside because we probably had 10 minutes until it started raining hard. We hauled ass to the indoor mall, tried to eat some not-so-terrible food at a terribly lit restaurant and I almost got sick. Why would they cover their light bulbs with red paint? And what’s with my adverse reaction?

After lunch, we caught a cab back to Casa Dorada and burned a few calories walking up to the 6th floor since the elevators are not functioning. We found a letter from Victor Gomez under the door of our room.

Dear Guest:
We would like to inform you of an imminent hurricane event in the general area of southern Baja California Sur. Hurricane Rick, a category 3 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale, at 9:00 am was off Mexico’s Pacific coast, 370 miles southwest of Cabo San Lucas, with a trajectory that will very probably approach the coast of the state tomorrow.
Although we are not expecting major effects within the next 12-24 hours, there is a probability of having electric storms and rain during the day; by late Tuesday, Rick’s effects, such as rain, wind and high tide, will be much more evident.
In case you want to reconsider your travel plans and maybe shorten your stay; our concierges will gladly assist you in coordinating them. We will be informing you on the development of the storm. More information can be found at the Front Desk.
Regards,
Victor Gomez
General Manager

Should I stay or should I go, now? If I go there will be trouble. If I stay there will be double.

We checked the NOAA weather report. We are in the direct path of the storm. It’s going to hit us. We will have no power (no A/C), no water? Sounds interesting! I love typically adverse weather conditions, but maybe not so much in Mexico.

Maybe we should go to Vegas with Grandma. Maybe we should just go home. Let’s look at our options.

So, B got on the horn with United and discovered that nothing after today is flying out. So, we’ll hunker down.

As of now, the wind is gently howling, the sky is grey, the sea is green and tourists are out playing volleyball in rain that is apparently not too bothersome. The pool bar is open. The beach restaurants are boarded up.

The hotel brought our deck chairs inside. I took a couple out again to read with my feet up and manage my Pacifica with lime. Vive Mexico!

D is awake and a bundle of energy. She wants to go swimming. Now, they are waiting for me down at the covered bar, watching baseball and having a drink.

We are stocked with some food, several bottles of water and wait a sec, aren’t our doors electrically locked? So, I guess we could get locked if the power goes out… I’ll have to do some recon on that.

On the bright side, the weather is slated to be gorgeous again on Thursday and Friday.

Fingers crossed.

xoxox

Cabo San Lucas, Days 1&2

October 17, 2009

In Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Getting out of the house was stressful and complicated and I wondered if it was worth only a week out of town.

We had to get up early to make our flight. I took an extra 20 minutes when we left the house, so we barely made check-in, barely made seating and I think B learned not to cut it so close when he’s traveling with his wife and 2 ½ year old. Even though I was 90% ready to go to the airport, that last 20% had to be done the morning we left. And the extra 10% didn’t get done. I forgot to close the living room shade, pack my headphones, bring D’s crocs and her coloring stuff… but, nothing life altering.

We didn’t get upgraded to business class because of a glitch in United’s system, but we lucked out there because the business class and economy were the same on our first flight. All D wanted to do was watch her DVD anyway, so B had to buy me a boxed lunch and all was well.

Note to self: since watching DVD’s is Dahlia’s Holy Grail, we can pretty much fly anywhere within the life of her battery, which is maybe 5-6 hours.

I was skeptical of coming to Cabo because our trip to Cancun in 2002 was so depressing. We had already done a lot of travel the year we got married and Cancun was an easy honeymoon destination considering it was fall, we had to dodge hurricanes and Hawaii was out of our budget. The disparity between the tourists and the locals was sad. The hotel was overdone. The toilets didn’t work. The highlight was Isla Mujeres; boats, a little island, fun shopping, good food etc.
I came to Cabo in high school with my dad and sis. I was flunking Spanish at the time, but managed to give the street vendors hell regardless. We had mostly fun. That was the trip where I got my “shark bite” from an ATV; managed to kinda go too fast and singe the skin off my leg and flip the four-wheeler over. And hell no, I didn’t go to a Mexican hospital. I wanted to keep my leg.

I’ve heard about how much Cabo has grown since my last visit, but was shocked (and a little disgusted) to see a Cartier here. Blame the Americans! Again, the disparity between the tourists and the children selling dirty, handmade toys in the marina. Why aren’t those kids in school?!!?! Oh, it’s Saturday.

Virgin Cabo tourists beware, upon your arrival, the airport is crawling with parasites; hundreds of people trying to sell you taxi rides back to town, condo timeshares, their children… jkjk. I guess you have to talk to at least taxi driver to get a ride, but ask your hotel how much you should have to pay and then don’t pay any more. Have that exact amount in cash (American dollars, or Pesos). Cab drivers have already tried to confuse me with the dollar to peso conversion, which is a simple and fun way for them to make my head spin. Fortunately, since I truly get so confused, I just stand there looking like exactly what I am at that point, a dumb blond and then if I’m really, super lucky, like I was today, the cars behind the taxi start yelling and honking and the parking attendants kick the taxi driver out and I make a mad dash for anonymity. I saved $2 with my “act” today.

I’m tired from walking in my flip flops in the sun and drinking pina coladas, so let’s see if I can reflect quickly on the other highlights from the last 24 hours.

• Our Hotel, Casa Dorada is gorgeous. B chose it because it’s one of the two best in Cabo and it’s very close/ in town. It’s on Medano Beach. (More on that in a sec.) I liked the name of the hotel because it reminds me of Blair Waldorf’s maid’s name in Gossip Girl, Darota.
• Because of the famous arch (El Archo) in Cabo, many of the hotels have an arch reflected in their hotel design. Upon entering ours, the arch frames the lobby; gorgeous pools, the ocean and the rocks by the arch. It was breathtaking, even when I was holding a squirmy, sweaty, hungry, tired, excited toddler.
• Our room is a suite because we invited B’s mom along for the trip. This way, we get quality grandma time, another person to hang out with and a child caregiver on our anniversary. BTW, that’s why we’re here. We are celebrating our 7th anniversary.
• The pools here are relaxing and gorgeous, but they cannot be compared to those at Atlantis resort in the Bahamas. We went to Atlantis last year. We had to be very careful with D around the water because she loves it and she can’t swim. This year, today actually, I got her water wings. We inflated them and off she went. I still stay within arm’s length of her, but I remembered when I had water wings as a kid; such independence!
• So far, the drinks have been weak, but then, I am not a very dedicated drinker and it’s 90 degrees out.
• Today, at the pool, we were all down swimming after my forgettable, but fun trip to, dare I say it, Walmart (family, please don’t disown me, it was my only option barring Costco and I didn’t need 40 bananas, I needed 5). We were done swimming and I went to the bathroom to change into something dry before dinner on the beach. Grandma took D a few feet away, out of sight and a woman went up to B and asked him what he was doing later tonight. She and her drunk friend had just been sitting next to us making out with a guy and 10 minutes later she hit on my husband… I’m not sure if I’m more confused, or amused. The lady and her friends were at least 10 years older than him, yelling and hooting at the pool and when we walked by them later they felt compelled to declare that they were the “fun girls” to the guy whose attention they were desperately trying to get. Later, from our balcony, 6 floors up, I could still hear them hooting and telling yet another guy how much they had smoked. I may push them both in the pool tomorrow even though they’re not worth the hassle.
• The Office is a well-known bar that is right on Medano Beach. Medano is right outside our hotel and The Office has great food, good drinks and a nice vibe. We get to eat with our toes in the thick, heavy Cabo sand. They waiters adjust the umbrellas overhead as the sun moves. The chips are great and they have fresh pico and guac.
• Tonight, after we put D and grandma to bed, we snuck out to The Office. I drank out of a pineapple and B saw fake boobs on two very blond ladies! A group of, um people were there celebrating a birthday. Two of the chicas had enormous ta-tas and took liberties with the restaurant photographer and “Rambo” the icon… hard to explain; just more drunkies looking for attention. And attention they received! Every head was turned. Women were disgusted, men were intrigued; it was hilarious! Good times here in Cabo…
• Both days we have been here, there have been cruise ships out in the bay. The ships dwarf the town and I thought they would flood everything with people, but the marina was quiet and we didn’t notice any disruption.
• We have a full kitchen, a diabetic and a toddler, so hitting a grocery store was a priority. During D’s nap today I thought I’d pop over to a store, grab some necessities and hurry back to catch some cancer on a lounge chair. I asked the baggage guy in the hotel where I should go if I wanted food, a big store. He sent me “two” (three) blocks down to what turned out to be a Mexican equivalent of costco. I could get 300 churros, a back yard play set and a new TV at a great price, but I couldn’t get PB&J. FAIL. Back to the hotel. In a taxi, I went, to The Forbidden. Walmart, sure enough, had everything I needed and more. I returned to the hotel and climbed out of my cab to find B holding a sweaty Dahlia nervously asking the Mexican hotel staff where the hell they sent his wife. I was gone for how long? Oh, tres horas? Oops.
• Looking forward to snorkeling.
• And we saw the turtle club release some baby turtles into the ocean today. Go turtles, go!

It’s been great here. It’s hard to unwind, but it’s nice to have an extra adult around to pick up some of the slack and let B and I go to dinner.

Laptop battery dying.

Seattle to Chelan

The 3 hour drive over from Seattle to Chelan on Thursday was beautiful. My main concern was how Dahlia would fare. By the time we hit the road in the afternoon, she was zonked. I told her that we would be in the car for a long time and told her to take a nap. Snuggled with her favorite stuffed animal Mr. Cat and her super soft blanket, she slept for two hours and woke up in Wenatchee. We took a break to play, potty and run through the sprinklers at Confluence State Park.

Chelan greeted us with thundershowers and two gorgeous rainbows. Every time we get in the car now, D asks where the rainbows are.

Since our arrival, we have been off the grid; just keeping Dahlia happy at the playground, pools, lake etc. Regardless, I have found that on this vacation there is too much to Tweet. I think in 140 character spurts, but there are so many, it would become white noise. And I’m supposed to be unplugged, but what’s the fun in being totally isolated?

Instead, I’ll throw a few fake Tweets down here, just to get them out of my system.

• Life or death situation required a purchase at Chelan’s new Wal-Mart. Forgot a baby crib & our loft has lots of deadly climb/fall possibilities.
• Just saw the world’s shortest parade in Chelan, WA. A rodeo exhibition is in town, turned out to be 1 fire truck, 1 cop, 1 clown, 10 horses.
• Having BBQ lunch at Lake Chelan Winery. A+ for the BBQ Pork sandwich & view. D- for their Chardonnay and Pinot.
• It’s difficult to get an “accidental” sunburn with all these thunderstorms!

There are many new shops and hotels in Chelan as things change seasonally and with the economy. I was happy to see a few neighborhood coffee houses and a little annoyed at the shiny, new Starbucks. The old staples, like Campbell’s Resort and Lakeview Drive-in are still around.

Today we went to the farmer’s markets in Manson (nothing there to speak of- kids selling lemonade for 50 cents a cup) and Chelan. There were less than 10 vendors in Chelan, but we bought a little sculpture of 4 quails on a log. It’s garden art, super cute for $25.

B and I can’t help but look at real estate. No matter where we are, we’re drawn to it… sucked in… maybe it’s because we are curious about how much property values differ from region to region. Maybe I’ve always wanted a place in Chelan… We looked at a few buildable lots and a few “fixer-uppers” (tear that sucker down!). It’s fun to dream, but we’ll see what happens.

Tomorrow is B’s b-day. D and I are going to make cupcakes with sprinkles and sliders on the grill.

Did I mention that I love summer?

I'm not sure if it's La Nina, global warming, or just good luck, but here in Seattle, the weather this summer has actually been... summery!

It's been hot and gorgeous. We have been getting weather that usually comes a week after the 4th of July weekend, for 4 weeks out of the year, if it ever comes at all. Skies are clear and blue. We can see Mt. Rainier daily.

There are always a lot of community festivals through out the summer in Seattle and the surrounding cities. Now that our daughter, Dahlia is 2 1/2, she gets up early and naps later in the day. We have until around 1pm to play. It's easy to take her to new places as long as there is a place for her to run around.

Yesterday, our early bird required attention at 6:30 am. We gave up on sleep, packed up our Ready-for-Anything toddler bag and headed to Pike Place Market. We were there so early that some of the vendors were still setting up. We wanted to skip the massive crowds, so we hit the important spots before her next diaper change and left downtown.

At Pike Place, we entered at the paper stand on the south end and made our way directly to the mini doughnuts. We bought a dozen, plain. They were soft, warm and deliciously greasy.

We meandered toward the famous flying fish mongers and watched as they scared tourists. I took some photos of B holding D as they looked at the fish.

Next, we put D on The Pig for a few pictures. She still had doughnut in her mouth, so it was somewhat of a failed attempt.

Next we took the obvious route through the market, buying veggies, two king crab legs for lunch (at home later) and a couple chunky sweaters for winter, despite it being 80 degrees by then.

We crossed the street and looped back by the original Starbucks. It was packed with mostly Asian tourists, so we skipped coffee for a block.

The smells from Le Panier sucked us into the French bread shop. We bought a couple croissants that were nowhere near my top two favorite croissants ever 1) Any croissant ever, in France and 2) Specialties Bakery in downtown Seattle and Bellevue. (When in doubt, add more butter!) Le Panier also supplied us with coffee. I had a mocha.

I pushed the stroller and my 30lb kid up a super steep block and back to the car we went. It was still only 10am.

So, we went over to Woodland Park Zoo. We left the stroller in the car and let D walk until she dropped. We saw a lot of monkeys, a few lions, an ostrich, some huge ostrich eggs, an elephant, bears, snakes and zebras. To be honest, I was pooped. I was ready for a nap. We made it through the labyrinth of pathways and found the exit. We were back home by 12:30 where I laid in the aforementioned sun while D napped upstairs.

Today, we got up early again and went to downtown Kirkland for breakfast. We walked through Peter Kirk Park to Park Lane where Kirkland Uncorked and the Classic Car Show were going strong. B decided to enter his BMW 2002 tii in next year's show. He's a perfectionist with that car, so we'll see how he does at getting it pristine enough to show.

Now, I'm sitting on our deck not working, like I'm supposed to be, and watching my sweet girl play in her mini swimming pool; an inflatable bathtub that I used to wash her, when she outgrew her infant bathtub. She's out here snacking and eating an Otter Pop. I can hear kids playing, a neighbor mowing the lawn and the lazy drone of an airplane; all memories of my childhood summers.

This week, we're driving to Eastern Washington to spend some time at Lake Chelan; another throwback to my childhood summers. D can't stop talking about sand castles, toys, swimming and cupcakes. It's her dada's birthday, so we're going to make cupcakes and decorate them.

It's not even August yet; there's plenty more summer to come.