We invite you to also view our online trip album at http://www.figart.net/2005cruise/
Hola, Amigos! We survived our Mexican Riviera cruise in fine fashion and offer these impressions of our trip. We were accompanied by Virginia (Ginger) & Jerry Brewer, from Houston. Mary Nelle & Ginger have been best friends since 4th grade. The Brewers were celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary, while Jack wanted to do something different for his 65th birthday.
We sailed out of
Besides the main show lounge, there were 4 other lounges (3 with nice dance floors) providing live music to satisfy most any taste. Live music was also provided in the atrium, poolside and while dining. We had a very nice movie theater showing films that had been released within the last 3-4 months. There were 2 pools and 2 hot tubs, which Mary Nelle enjoyed very much.
The international staff was friendly, upbeat and entertaining. There were activities & classes available throughout the day, including bingo, computer instruction, ice carving, fruit & vegetable carving, napkin folding, cooking demonstrations, ship tours, gambling and dance lessons, some of which we attended. Lounging by the pools seemed to attract the most participants.
The shows in the main theater included themed nights dedicated to Broadway, the 50's/60's, The Piano Man, Country Music and Mexican Folkloric Dances. There were also comedians, a magician and a ventriloquist who kept us laughing, especially when they involved members of the audience in their skits.
The food was good to great and much too plentiful. At dinner we shared an 8 person table with 2 other
couples our age (from
We had ideal weather (high 80's during the day and mid 60's to low 70's early mornings) and smooth sailing for most of the trip. There were only brief periods that we were aware of any motion and it was a minor, gentle rocking (like maybe the couple in the adjoining cabin were celebrating their anniversary a little too vigorously) .
This was our 1st
stop at the tip of the
The signature symbol of Cabo San
Lucas is a natural arch carved out of the rocks at the very tip of the
peninsula where the
Our 2nd stop has
been proclaimed the most beautiful harbor in
As we disembark, Jack keeps thinking his friends & co-workers from home will surprise him by showing up for his 65th birthday. Alas, the only surprise is that there is no surprise. He has to be content with a balloon bouquet on his stateroom door and a chocolate ice cream cake at dinner.
Our tour starts with a performance by the cliff divers who
must join a union before they can dive.
Johnny Weissmuller, the original Tarzan, who owned a home in
Other sights include the various resort areas and several stops to view the panorama from mountainside overlooks. Mary Nelle particularly liked the pink adobe Las Brisas Resort with its pink & white jeeps. We also visit a jewelry factory and watch as craftsmen work with silver, gold and precious gems to create beautiful rings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and pieces of art.
Back at the pier we still have 8 hours in port, so we hired a guide, Gino, with a suburban for the afternoon. We decide to do lunch at Senor Frogs restaurant which offers a spectacular view of the bay and the city. From there, we head to El Mercado, where our guide's cousin has a shop with "special prices for his customers". We wander around buying an occasional souvenir when Mary Nelle spots a fabric store in the next block. She and Ginger storm the fabric store and come out with a sack full of fabric. Later she discovers that she should've come out with 2 sacks, but refused the 2nd one when the Spanish speaking clerk held it out to her. She wishes that she’d paid better attention in high school Spanish class.
We depart
Zihuatanejo (ZEE-WAH-TUH-NAY'-HO), our next stop, is a quaint fishing village and the smallest port we visit. Our tour visits several quiet, secluded coves with beautiful beaches surrounded by lush jungle vegetation. The main tourist area is in Ixtapa, about 4 miles north where a cluster of resort hotels line the beach fronts.
Besides fishing, coconut plantations provide a major source of income for the residents. We visited one of the coconut processing sites to see demonstrations of coconut splitting and to sample the nut. At another stop we watch as craftsmen make clay roofing tiles by hand and then lay them out to dry in the sun.
Our 4th port of
call,
Americans soon discovered the beautiful beaches, the tropical jungles and the charm of this Pacific coast city. Many who came decided to live here full time, mainly in an area called "Gringo Gulch". Countless resort hotels to the north and south serve as bookends for the traditional Mexican area of the city.
Our tour includes a stop at a hacienda where we tour a tequila distillery and sample the many types and flavors of tequila. While enjoying a delicious Mexican buffet, we're entertained by a Folkloric show that includes traditional folk dancers, a blindfolded knife dancer, a dancing horse, a lariat artist and Papalanta Flyers (who start on a pole high above the audience and, hanging by a rope tied to their feet, swing around the pole 13 times until they reach the ground).
Mary Nelle volunteers Jack when the call is made for 5 macho men to come on stage. It turns out to be a contest for the macho men to chug a tall shot of tequila, then give their best Tarzan yell. Jack tried his best, but could only manage a puny squeak when the tequila took his breath away. He was just thankful it wasn't an invitation to join the flyers hanging upside down atop the pole.
On our 8th day of
cruising we reach our final port of call,
We continue to the city center where we visit a beautiful cathedral before driving to the "Golden Zone", the area of tourist hotels and shops. Here we meander among the shops before making our way to an amphitheater for a Folkloric Ballet performance which includes another show by a group of Papalanta Flyers.
Back at the pier we browse the many shops for last minute bargains and enjoy a delicious soft taco lunch at a sidewalk cafe. Mary Nelle & Jack both get a chair massage before boarding the ship for the 2 day cruise home.
Our brief time in each port is like the miniscule food samples offered at the grocery store – they usually leave you hankering for a heaping helping. So it is that we would love to explore each port in more detail and at a more leisurely pace.
We agree that of the ports that we visited,
Adios, Amigos!
Mary Nelle & Jack Figart