December 12th is Dia de Guadalupe which is one of the most important celebrations of Mexico and Catholics around the world.
This time last year we were in La Cruz and the celebration started on Saturday the 11th and was celebrated with lots of festivities including activities around the town square across from the church, street parties and loud music until about 4 in the morning, along with what we call flash bang fireworks, sort of like a cannon, which are lit off from the afternoon until well into the wee hours of the morning. Here in Zihoutenejo they are selling fireworks on the street. They shoot them off randomly during the night they are pretty to watch and haven't kept us awake or frighten the dog. It is relatively quite in the bay here during this celebration or maybe we are just getting used to the music. There was actually an opera singer we could hear the other night. It was a nice change of pace.
So what was the celebration all about? My friend Carol from SvStrayCat found an article about the Virgin of Guadalupe I thought I would share.
“The Virgin of Guadalupe is the most famous and celebrated of all saints and she is also known as the “Virgen Morena” and is the patron saint of Mexico. Supposedly she was first encountered by an Aztec Indian, San Juan Diego, on the hill of Tepeyac now known as modern day Mexico City, in 1531, shortly after the conquest by the Spanish Conquistadors. As the story goes he was on his way to a monastery and when passing the hill of Tepeyac he heard signing as the sky turned brilliant colors and at the end of the signing he heard a call from a woman. As he knelt before her she identified herself as the “consummate virgin Saint Mary, mother of the true deity, God, the giver of Life, the creator of all, the ever present lord of heaven and earth”. Then she then asked for a temple to be built on the site so that she could attend to the “weeping, sorrows and prayers” of all the people of the land. While he tried to rely this sighting to the Bishop he had no proof and was afraid to offend the deity so he returned to the hill and once again he saw her and she told him to pick some Castilian Roses and return to the Bishop with the roses that were very uncommon to the area at that time. With this “miracle” the Bishop then believed Juan Diego’s story and shortly thereafter there was a Basilica built on that site in honor of The Virgin Guadalupe. Dia de Guadalupe is more important for many Mexicans than Easter or Christmas and is celebrated with parades, pilgrimages and fiestas throughout much of Mexico and most of Latin America. In 1737 she was recognized as the patron Saint of Mexico City and eventually by 1946 to include all of the Americas. This day is to celebrate the love we give to the Virign de Guadalupe and is known to many as the day of Love (Amor).”
December 12th marks the beginning of the Christmas Posadas (festivals) and holidays all over Mexico and Latin America Carol asked the family that runs a favorite week-end “tacos in the street” eatery. She told her that after December 15th it gets harder and harder to conduct business or get services done as executives and employees travel to see their families in other parts of Mexico or the world (like the US). The holiday festivities or Posadas will continue until the last day of Christmas which in Mexico is January 6th which is Epiphany or Three Kings Day (Dia de los Reyes). This is where the 12 days of Christmas originates and many Mexican families still give one small gift every day from Christmas until the 6th. She said Posadas are sometimes just a family or a neighborhood and start with a candlelight procession and are often are all night celebrations like the one on the 11th.
The tacos in the street lady remembers as a young girl her family painting a dried Century plant silver for their Christmas tree. Now she says her family has what we gringos would call a traditional artificial fir tree. Of course poinsettias are plentiful here and are found everywhere. Santa Claus is not a traditional figure here in Mexico but he is becoming more popular and some families open all their gifts on Christmas Eve after a big family dinner. But rather it is more traditional here for children to write their wish list to the Three Wise Men and wait until January 6th to see if their wishes are granted. Instead of leaving milk and cookies for Santa, they leave their shoes outside filled with hay for the camels.
But wait there is more. This will kind of remind you of Mardi Gras and King Cake and who gets the baby. On January 6th families eat a sweetbread ring shaped cake with small bits of fruit and candy inside and a small plastic baby that represents the baby Jesus. The person who receives the baby in their slice is responsible for giving a party and making tamales for the Fiesta de la Candelaria (Candles) on February 2nd, the last party of the Christmas season.
And we didn’t talk about what happens for New Years?!!
All the details above where as I mentioned from my friend Carol and I wanted to log them in and the blog seemed the perfect spot. I love learning about peoples traditions and Carol somehow is really good at searching them out.
I received a DHL package today here in Zihoutenejo. It was my new credit card. I am thankful for the wonderful network of people that made it possible for me to dingy to shore and pick up a package at the little grass shack at the end of the pier, how amazing is that?
We haven't really figured out what we are doing for Christmas eve or Christmas day yet, just going with the flow. There are now 8 boats in and around the bay. The restaurants in town have posted some dinner specials which look good.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Zihoutenejo for the holidays
We left la Cruz December 1, 2011 right smack at the starting gun for this years Bandaras Bay Blast. Timing is everything right. Our destination Zihoutenejo for the holidays. We made a few stops along the way at Tenacatita and Las Hadas. The weather was warm and sunny for our trip but there was a lot of swell in the sea. I was a bit mal de mar. We saw jumping tuna, turtles, dolphins and of course a few fishing nets along the way. I really don't do to well with lack of sleep, I start hearing music that is not playing. In the past it was always The Magigal mystery tour, this trip I heard and old western tune (the one where the horses gallop).
Well we arrived here December 12 and put the anchor down for the holidays. This is our second visit to Zihoutenejo. We are familiar with most things in walking distance. The weather is warm, the water is warm 89 degrees. Doesn't really feel like Christmas. I took out my gallon size bag of decorations and was done decorating in about two minutes. I also found some solar Christmas type lights so they are outside on our solar panels, flashing!
We don't have any big plans, in fact no plans for Christmas. We are going to meet up with my sister in laws sister "Dorothy and her family" who frequently come to Zihoutenejo from the pacific northwest.
My friend Carol from Santa Rosa on board SVStraycat sent me this interesting news regarding the poinsettia plants that we see everywhere.
It seems like everywhere we go we see poinsettias – at the tienda (convenience store) ferreteria (hardware store) in the doorways and by the cash register, restaurants, offices, homes and even street taco stands as well as in the churches. They are sold at markets and from the back of pick-up trucks. The plethora of poinsettias prompted us to inquire about their significance. We were told the poinsettia was originally used by the Aztecs who called it “Cuetlaxochitle” (don’t ask me how to pronounce that). The Aztecs used the sap from the plants to reduce fevers and to make a reddish-purple dye. It is said that Montezuma, the last Aztec King, brought the flowers from Southern Mexico in caravans to Mexico City because the poinsettia would not grow at the higher altitudes.
In Mexico it is called “Flor del Noche Buena” (Christmas Eve Flower or literally Flower of the Good Night) or in Central America the “Flame Leaf.” In North America it became known as the Poinsettia and was so named after Dr. Joel Poinsett, who was the first United States Ambassador to Mexico from 1825 to 1829. The plants are native to the Taxco area in Mexico and while Dr. Poinsett was visiting the region he fell in love with the flowers and shipped some to his own nursery in Greenville, South Carolina where they were also given to several other nurseries to eventually be grown commercially. The Poinsettia starts out with star shaped green leaves that turn into a deep red at the top. Nowadays at home we see white ones, pink ones and variegated ones as well as the traditional red.
Naturally there is a wonderful legend in Mexico as to how the flower became used to celebrate Christmas. The story begins with a poor girl named Maria and her little brother Pablo (or cousin, Pedro, depending on who tells the story). Maria was very sad because she was so poor she had nothing to give the baby Jesus in the manger scene in the Village Church. On Christmas Eve (Noche Buena) on the way to church Maria picked some “weeds” to make a bouquet to leave at the manger scene. Her little brother (or cousin) said to her, “it does not matter what you give as long you give it in love”. Naturally the other children in the village teased them until they saw the “weeds” turn from green to a bright red right before their eyes as Maria knelt at the altar. The whole village then realized they had witnessed a true Christmas miracle and from that day forward the plant became known as the “Flor del Noche Buena.”
Well we arrived here December 12 and put the anchor down for the holidays. This is our second visit to Zihoutenejo. We are familiar with most things in walking distance. The weather is warm, the water is warm 89 degrees. Doesn't really feel like Christmas. I took out my gallon size bag of decorations and was done decorating in about two minutes. I also found some solar Christmas type lights so they are outside on our solar panels, flashing!
We don't have any big plans, in fact no plans for Christmas. We are going to meet up with my sister in laws sister "Dorothy and her family" who frequently come to Zihoutenejo from the pacific northwest.
My friend Carol from Santa Rosa on board SVStraycat sent me this interesting news regarding the poinsettia plants that we see everywhere.
It seems like everywhere we go we see poinsettias – at the tienda (convenience store) ferreteria (hardware store) in the doorways and by the cash register, restaurants, offices, homes and even street taco stands as well as in the churches. They are sold at markets and from the back of pick-up trucks. The plethora of poinsettias prompted us to inquire about their significance. We were told the poinsettia was originally used by the Aztecs who called it “Cuetlaxochitle” (don’t ask me how to pronounce that). The Aztecs used the sap from the plants to reduce fevers and to make a reddish-purple dye. It is said that Montezuma, the last Aztec King, brought the flowers from Southern Mexico in caravans to Mexico City because the poinsettia would not grow at the higher altitudes.
In Mexico it is called “Flor del Noche Buena” (Christmas Eve Flower or literally Flower of the Good Night) or in Central America the “Flame Leaf.” In North America it became known as the Poinsettia and was so named after Dr. Joel Poinsett, who was the first United States Ambassador to Mexico from 1825 to 1829. The plants are native to the Taxco area in Mexico and while Dr. Poinsett was visiting the region he fell in love with the flowers and shipped some to his own nursery in Greenville, South Carolina where they were also given to several other nurseries to eventually be grown commercially. The Poinsettia starts out with star shaped green leaves that turn into a deep red at the top. Nowadays at home we see white ones, pink ones and variegated ones as well as the traditional red.
Naturally there is a wonderful legend in Mexico as to how the flower became used to celebrate Christmas. The story begins with a poor girl named Maria and her little brother Pablo (or cousin, Pedro, depending on who tells the story). Maria was very sad because she was so poor she had nothing to give the baby Jesus in the manger scene in the Village Church. On Christmas Eve (Noche Buena) on the way to church Maria picked some “weeds” to make a bouquet to leave at the manger scene. Her little brother (or cousin) said to her, “it does not matter what you give as long you give it in love”. Naturally the other children in the village teased them until they saw the “weeds” turn from green to a bright red right before their eyes as Maria knelt at the altar. The whole village then realized they had witnessed a true Christmas miracle and from that day forward the plant became known as the “Flor del Noche Buena.”
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Día de San Patricio
Hola, Leo joined us here last night just in time for the St. Patricks day celebration in Melaque. OMG, it was the most amazing fireworks demonstration and fiesta I have seen in Mexico. We would NEVER, NEVER, EVER see anything like this in the USA.
Festivities began this week with the Fiesta del Torros which included rodeo events, bullfights, carnival, parades, blessing of the fishing fleet, folk dances, boxing matches, and nightly fireworks.
The town which I refer to as Melaque, is actually three towns seamlessly joined together: Melaque, Villa Obregón, and San Patricio. St. Patrick is the patron saint of San Patricio as in many other towns in Mexico. They all have a Saint Patrick's Day celebration but perhaps the biggest celebration is the Melaque, Jalisco, March 17 celebration which is the one event we went attended.
We took the bus over to Melaque from Barre de Navidid around 6:30 PM in the evening. The fiesta was in the town square. We wandered around and marveled at all the food stands selling taco, crepes, pancakes, hot dogs, hamburgers and finally decided on a taco stand that had a table, real fine dining.
After eating our tacos, which all had very elaborate names like a volcano, a gringa, etc., we shuffled off towards the bull ring to watch the dancing horses and the bull riders. On our way there we went by the church which was still having a service that was now including 3 troops of native dancers in the aisles of the church. I couldn't help but poke my nose in an have a look, very fascinating.
Just outside the church they had erected the "Castillo" which was a free standing fireworks display. You could smell the ingredients of the fireworks, it looked very explosive indeed. There was one small circle of caution tape around it with two fire extinguishers. This was to be set off around 11:00 PM. I noted that there was not a bombadero (firefighter) in site, not even a truck. I guess if something were to go wrong it would just be part of the show.
We continued down to the bullring and enjoyed a show of 2 dancing horses and the blessing of the bull riders. From our seats you could hear the 12 piece live band loud and clear! As we sat in our seats we experienced another only in Mexico! a vendor coming by our seats offering 10 peso aqave shots. We watched several bull riders (no hands) in the ring. One of the bull riders fell off and was trampled by the bull. It actually looked like he was injured pretty bad. The ambulance came into the ring. It was an old pick up truck with flashing lights. The driver/medic only had one leg but managed to move rapidly. They tossed the bull rider into the back of the pickup and took off. I'm figuring if he wasn't hurt by the bull that the truck ride to the hospital would certainly finish him off. On that note we decided to go pick a place to view the fireworks show.
We had heard you didn't want to be too close to the castillo so we found a spot in the square and waited for the fireworks to begin. We didn't have to wait too long, a guy just walking through the crowd let off huge bottle rockets with his cigarette! It was as loud as a shot gun and the crowd moved like a wave. Then the castillo ignited. The castillo is a very, very tall structure with several pinwheels attached. They started at the lower pin wheel. I can't even imagine why people where standing so close. The castillo launches fireworks out into the square and up into the sky at all levels. The crowd just goes wild trying to avoid the hot fireworks. Inside each pinwheel was a spinning figure of some sort having to do with the festival. Where we stood way in the back we were still ducking and jumping to avoid the fireworks. The show seemed to go on for a very long time. It really gets your heart pumping as you are wondering about crowd control, what crowd control! The top of the castillo finally ignited with even more gusto then any of the pinwheels. It was a little difficult to watch the whole show as I was avoiding hot piercing fireworks and trying not to get trampled but it was spectacular! The finale was a hot molten sign that said "fini" was launched into the crowd and landed on a tree and caught fire.
So we were thinking, ok, shows over the same guy who had started the show with the bottle rockets lit off several mortar rounds. I didn't even see the guy set them up but we where so close I could feel the concussion. I never even looked up at the fireworks cause I was too busy looking at the mortars that looked like they had misfired and exploded on the ground. Just after that little show a guys starts running through the crowd with a fireworks shooting rig in the shape of a bull. He ran through the crowd, leaving NO ONE out and aimed the rig and shot off fireworks intentionally right at people. It was absolutely nuts! This was a pretty big square and it was packed with people and I think I actually had eye contact with this guy at least 3 times! We had been trying to stay together as a group but at this point it was every man for himself. I ran into Kathy and Leo behind a small box truck trying to duck out of the guys aim only to see Kathy get pinned in between the truck and a motorcycle. It was crazy, crazy! When Kathy came out from behind the motor cycle we chatted and decided we thought we both we our pants on that one!
We tried to regroup where we all had been watching the show and let the guys know Kathy and I had to go find a bathroom. We walked around for a very long time trying to find a bano that did not have a huge line. We never did find one and I won't go into any details about that. What we did find was a carnival, Mexican style. I'm telling you it was like a dream, only we were walking through it. The carnival was pretty typical with the carni rides and amusement booths. At one booth they where playing a bingo game for kitchen plastics. It appeared to be a family oriented right up until we came to the full bar booth complete with "titty" drinking cups, "Call" drinks at a carnival.
Kathy and I spent the next 30 minutes looking for our group in the crowd so we could go back to Barre de Navidad. When we finally did find our group they where all sharing their version of how they managed during the show. Most everyone had black soot somewhere on themselves. The buses had all stopped so we went in search of a few taxi cabs. I think we were finally tucked back in our bunks by 2:00 am. what a night.
We are renting a car tomorrow (Saturday) and driving down to Zihutanejo to take Clark to the airport and drop Leo off on his next crew position about SV Precious Metal.
Festivities began this week with the Fiesta del Torros which included rodeo events, bullfights, carnival, parades, blessing of the fishing fleet, folk dances, boxing matches, and nightly fireworks.
The town which I refer to as Melaque, is actually three towns seamlessly joined together: Melaque, Villa Obregón, and San Patricio. St. Patrick is the patron saint of San Patricio as in many other towns in Mexico. They all have a Saint Patrick's Day celebration but perhaps the biggest celebration is the Melaque, Jalisco, March 17 celebration which is the one event we went attended.
We took the bus over to Melaque from Barre de Navidid around 6:30 PM in the evening. The fiesta was in the town square. We wandered around and marveled at all the food stands selling taco, crepes, pancakes, hot dogs, hamburgers and finally decided on a taco stand that had a table, real fine dining.
After eating our tacos, which all had very elaborate names like a volcano, a gringa, etc., we shuffled off towards the bull ring to watch the dancing horses and the bull riders. On our way there we went by the church which was still having a service that was now including 3 troops of native dancers in the aisles of the church. I couldn't help but poke my nose in an have a look, very fascinating.
Just outside the church they had erected the "Castillo" which was a free standing fireworks display. You could smell the ingredients of the fireworks, it looked very explosive indeed. There was one small circle of caution tape around it with two fire extinguishers. This was to be set off around 11:00 PM. I noted that there was not a bombadero (firefighter) in site, not even a truck. I guess if something were to go wrong it would just be part of the show.
We continued down to the bullring and enjoyed a show of 2 dancing horses and the blessing of the bull riders. From our seats you could hear the 12 piece live band loud and clear! As we sat in our seats we experienced another only in Mexico! a vendor coming by our seats offering 10 peso aqave shots. We watched several bull riders (no hands) in the ring. One of the bull riders fell off and was trampled by the bull. It actually looked like he was injured pretty bad. The ambulance came into the ring. It was an old pick up truck with flashing lights. The driver/medic only had one leg but managed to move rapidly. They tossed the bull rider into the back of the pickup and took off. I'm figuring if he wasn't hurt by the bull that the truck ride to the hospital would certainly finish him off. On that note we decided to go pick a place to view the fireworks show.
We had heard you didn't want to be too close to the castillo so we found a spot in the square and waited for the fireworks to begin. We didn't have to wait too long, a guy just walking through the crowd let off huge bottle rockets with his cigarette! It was as loud as a shot gun and the crowd moved like a wave. Then the castillo ignited. The castillo is a very, very tall structure with several pinwheels attached. They started at the lower pin wheel. I can't even imagine why people where standing so close. The castillo launches fireworks out into the square and up into the sky at all levels. The crowd just goes wild trying to avoid the hot fireworks. Inside each pinwheel was a spinning figure of some sort having to do with the festival. Where we stood way in the back we were still ducking and jumping to avoid the fireworks. The show seemed to go on for a very long time. It really gets your heart pumping as you are wondering about crowd control, what crowd control! The top of the castillo finally ignited with even more gusto then any of the pinwheels. It was a little difficult to watch the whole show as I was avoiding hot piercing fireworks and trying not to get trampled but it was spectacular! The finale was a hot molten sign that said "fini" was launched into the crowd and landed on a tree and caught fire.
So we were thinking, ok, shows over the same guy who had started the show with the bottle rockets lit off several mortar rounds. I didn't even see the guy set them up but we where so close I could feel the concussion. I never even looked up at the fireworks cause I was too busy looking at the mortars that looked like they had misfired and exploded on the ground. Just after that little show a guys starts running through the crowd with a fireworks shooting rig in the shape of a bull. He ran through the crowd, leaving NO ONE out and aimed the rig and shot off fireworks intentionally right at people. It was absolutely nuts! This was a pretty big square and it was packed with people and I think I actually had eye contact with this guy at least 3 times! We had been trying to stay together as a group but at this point it was every man for himself. I ran into Kathy and Leo behind a small box truck trying to duck out of the guys aim only to see Kathy get pinned in between the truck and a motorcycle. It was crazy, crazy! When Kathy came out from behind the motor cycle we chatted and decided we thought we both we our pants on that one!
We tried to regroup where we all had been watching the show and let the guys know Kathy and I had to go find a bathroom. We walked around for a very long time trying to find a bano that did not have a huge line. We never did find one and I won't go into any details about that. What we did find was a carnival, Mexican style. I'm telling you it was like a dream, only we were walking through it. The carnival was pretty typical with the carni rides and amusement booths. At one booth they where playing a bingo game for kitchen plastics. It appeared to be a family oriented right up until we came to the full bar booth complete with "titty" drinking cups, "Call" drinks at a carnival.
Kathy and I spent the next 30 minutes looking for our group in the crowd so we could go back to Barre de Navidad. When we finally did find our group they where all sharing their version of how they managed during the show. Most everyone had black soot somewhere on themselves. The buses had all stopped so we went in search of a few taxi cabs. I think we were finally tucked back in our bunks by 2:00 am. what a night.
We are renting a car tomorrow (Saturday) and driving down to Zihutanejo to take Clark to the airport and drop Leo off on his next crew position about SV Precious Metal.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Isle Grande
We are now on our way North back up into the sea. We stopped here to snorkel and enjoy this small island paradise. There is a Club Med over on the main shoreline, so I guess this is one of those places you might see in a brochure. Soft white sand beaches accentuate the island's shore along with a host of colorful palapa restaurants serving cold adulto beverages and fresh seafood. That's where lunch is today anyway!
Our next stop, after an all night sail is Las Hadas in Bahia de Manzanillo. We will meet up again with Leo, our crew since last November in Las Hadas. Leo has been in Guadalajara picking up his new passport and ATM card. We will also met up with our buddy boat SV Blue Dolphin.
We will take a little road trip back to Zihuatanejo to drop Clark off at the airport and send Leo South on board SV Precious Metal.
Our next stop, after an all night sail is Las Hadas in Bahia de Manzanillo. We will meet up again with Leo, our crew since last November in Las Hadas. Leo has been in Guadalajara picking up his new passport and ATM card. We will also met up with our buddy boat SV Blue Dolphin.
We will take a little road trip back to Zihuatanejo to drop Clark off at the airport and send Leo South on board SV Precious Metal.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
International Guitar Festival 2011 in Zihuatanejo
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| Enjoying the music of guitar fest 2011 |
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| Eric McFadden and Omar Torrez jamming at Paccolos |
We were in the right place at the right time to catch this years International Guitar Festival 2011 in Zihuatanejo. Amazing! Outstanding! are just a few words I can think of the say about the festival. It was very well put together and the price was right. The cost to attend a session was 100 pesos, plus your dinner and drinks. The venues all held varying amounts of people. We went to two shows a Paccolos with SV Zeppelin and there where only about 60 other people there.
The opening concert was held in Ixtapa, Plaza Ixpamar the cost was $500 pesos with dinner and all you can drink. We did not attend however I heard it turned out to be a very nice evening.
We did attend the closing concert on March 12 at the Zihuatanejo Centro. The cost was $250 pesos plus dinner, drinks and a taxi ride. Total for the evening was about $360 pesos per person. This was probably the highlight for us. It was a jam session that included all the artist that performed at the festival. Wow, you would never no these people only just met this week. The talent up there on the stage was staggering. My hats off the the women artist! They BELTED out the song lyrics and played those guitars with all their hearts. I couldn't say I had a favorite as they all had such different styles. They were all wonderful.
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| Adrian Raso & Nick Johnston the Canadian contingent |
Friday, March 11, 2011
Tsunami
Our morning started out at approx. 5:45 am with a phone call from our friend Ernesto in Mazatlan. He wanted to give us a heads up. The tsunami event happened here in Zihuatanejo at about 4:00 pm. We had moved the boat over to Las Gatas beach area and anchored in 40 feet of water, we had been anchored in about 15ft. near the pier in town. The port was closed and a big red flag was flying at the end of the pier. The bay was usually quiet all day long. Typically there are boats, parasailers etc., buzzing around the bay. We spent most of the day anchored at Las Gatas beach waiting for an event that was predicted at approx. 1:00/2:00 PM...., A guy in a panga boat came out and invited us over to a restaurant but we declined not really wanting to leave the boat.
Finally at about 4:00 pm I said I thought we should head back over to the anchorage since we have tickets for tonight's guitar fest. We hoisted anchor and headed back to the main anchorage and the bay proceeded to empty.... the level went from about 20.5 to 10.5 FEET in about 10 min. It was all very exciting. There is a small natural breakwater just off Las Gatas beach and Doug said he was looking at it and thinking he could see a lot more of it then usual, but was already concentrating on moving the boat. He headed towards the anchorage. The water in the bay became very violent with lot's of conflicting currents and waves. Upon getting closer the the anchorage they noticed that a disabled sailboat here in the anchorage (Blythe Spirit) was already beached on it's side, since all the water resided past it. It went back and forth in the waves but held anchors (bow and stern). All the other sailboats at anchor were dancing around on their anchors as we were moving around looking for a spot to anchor. The water literally rushed out like someone pulled a plug in the bay then swooshed back in. The small river near the pier looked like the Truckee River in Tahoe. In the river was washing a ton of debris being into the bay.
Doug was at the helm, Clark was on the anchor and me, well I was below resting after having made breakfast, lunch, bread, did dishes, washed the deck....., they said they called me up to have a look but they guess I didn't here them. When they finally got the boat anchored and turned off the engine I popped my head up and they said wow that was freaking amazing! I was like what? Oh you missed it.
Well it turned out I only missed the first wave. There were many, many more wave events.
Over at Las Gatas beach a panga boat sunk, there were kids in the water having fun at first then very scared, water up to the palapa tables, The water went out then back in within just a few minutes. The panga driver who had come out to ask us if we wanted to go to shore for lunch was on the radio saying you are on your own, I'm heading to high ground! The folks from SV Precious Metal were on shore over at Las Gatas having a cooking class at the restaurant. They dropped everything and started grabbing kids, helping with the pangas. They said it all happened so fast. One minute they were enjoying the food from the cooking class then all hell broke loose. They eventually got into their dinghy and headed back over to their boat in the anchorage.
All in all everyone faired very well, the waves continued well past midnight in the anchorage. We took a water taxi into the guitar fest and only stayed on shore for the performance then hailed a fellow cruiser to come get us from the pier. At 11:00 pm the water was still rising at the pier well over the walkway then residing below the walk in the course of 3 to 5 min. intervals. We had to dodge our way through a debris field to get back to the boat in the darkness. I stayed up on anchor watch until about 1:30 am when I felt that everything had seem to fall into a calm pattern.
Finally at about 4:00 pm I said I thought we should head back over to the anchorage since we have tickets for tonight's guitar fest. We hoisted anchor and headed back to the main anchorage and the bay proceeded to empty.... the level went from about 20.5 to 10.5 FEET in about 10 min. It was all very exciting. There is a small natural breakwater just off Las Gatas beach and Doug said he was looking at it and thinking he could see a lot more of it then usual, but was already concentrating on moving the boat. He headed towards the anchorage. The water in the bay became very violent with lot's of conflicting currents and waves. Upon getting closer the the anchorage they noticed that a disabled sailboat here in the anchorage (Blythe Spirit) was already beached on it's side, since all the water resided past it. It went back and forth in the waves but held anchors (bow and stern). All the other sailboats at anchor were dancing around on their anchors as we were moving around looking for a spot to anchor. The water literally rushed out like someone pulled a plug in the bay then swooshed back in. The small river near the pier looked like the Truckee River in Tahoe. In the river was washing a ton of debris being into the bay.
Doug was at the helm, Clark was on the anchor and me, well I was below resting after having made breakfast, lunch, bread, did dishes, washed the deck....., they said they called me up to have a look but they guess I didn't here them. When they finally got the boat anchored and turned off the engine I popped my head up and they said wow that was freaking amazing! I was like what? Oh you missed it.
Well it turned out I only missed the first wave. There were many, many more wave events.
Over at Las Gatas beach a panga boat sunk, there were kids in the water having fun at first then very scared, water up to the palapa tables, The water went out then back in within just a few minutes. The panga driver who had come out to ask us if we wanted to go to shore for lunch was on the radio saying you are on your own, I'm heading to high ground! The folks from SV Precious Metal were on shore over at Las Gatas having a cooking class at the restaurant. They dropped everything and started grabbing kids, helping with the pangas. They said it all happened so fast. One minute they were enjoying the food from the cooking class then all hell broke loose. They eventually got into their dinghy and headed back over to their boat in the anchorage.
All in all everyone faired very well, the waves continued well past midnight in the anchorage. We took a water taxi into the guitar fest and only stayed on shore for the performance then hailed a fellow cruiser to come get us from the pier. At 11:00 pm the water was still rising at the pier well over the walkway then residing below the walk in the course of 3 to 5 min. intervals. We had to dodge our way through a debris field to get back to the boat in the darkness. I stayed up on anchor watch until about 1:30 am when I felt that everything had seem to fall into a calm pattern.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
We have company!
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| Clark Hemphill, Doug's cousin from Napa, California where the temperatures where in the 40's the morning he left. |
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| Surf's up |
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| This is as far South along the Pacific Mexico coast as we will go this season. |
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| I have to take everyone on a Mexican bus ride! That's just part of the tour. Yes, the guy with the guitar was singing his heart out. |
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| Crocodile warning |
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Lunch in las Gatas, Zihuatanejo
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| We had an invitation from Noyo and SV Precious Metal to join them and SV Sea Turtle over at las Gatas beach for the day to sample some fresh tuna dishes. The chef made 3 or 4 dishes that were outstanding. My favorite was desert! |
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| las Gatas Beach, natural breakwater in the back ground |
Shopping in Zihuatanejo
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| The seafood section |
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| Pan or Bread at the street market. |
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| The shopping mall, Mexican style. This is not really the tourist zone |
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| The fruit and vegetable stall |
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| The meat section |
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| Zapatos or shoe section |
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| Dry goods |
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| Gift section |
Sunday, February 27, 2011
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| First night out in Zihuatanejo | We went out the Corner Bar for Michaladas |
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| Leo and Lucero at the Corner Bar. Some kids borrow the car to take a girl out on a date, Leo borrows our dinghy! |
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| Florie all packed up for the dinghy ride to shore. She was heading back to France via Mexico City and Costa Rica |
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| Leo sold the bike he bought in Berkeley, CA to a restaurant owner in Zihuatanejo. His cruising kitty was getting very low. |
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| Noyo, a local here, is always around to lend a hand. |
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| Hilda has a panga service to delivery beer, water, soda, fuel, laundry, trash disposal etc., This is the only anchorage we have been in where this type of service is offer. |
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Zihuatanejo
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| Florie sitting by the dock of Bahia de Zihuatanejo |
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| A flock of egrits |
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| A fleet of over 50 pangas |
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Caleta de Campos
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| Body surfing at Caleta de Campos |
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| Leo cooking fresh fish and veg at Caleta de Campos |
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Barre de Navidad
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| Linda and Leo on the bow in Barre de Navidad |
I'm really am out here on the boat, I don't show up in too many pictures
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Barre de Navidad
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| Florie thinking about her night watch? |
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| Nils and Caro, crew from Blue Dolphin showed us the way into the lagoon. We only went aground once! Seems everyone does. |
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| Crew catching up, but first beer for everyone! |
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| Pot Luck dinner by the pool at the Sands. I know it looks just like drinks but there was a very fine meal. |
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Yelapa - Just across Banderas Bay from La Cruz
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| Florie's first day sailing! |
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| I'm on Aquadesiac in the background. Doug likes his new found friend |
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| Florie being very brave indeed |
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| Now that's an interesting hair extension |
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
La Cruz de Huanacaxtle
February 16th, Our crew Leo and his friend Florie, from France, (via Costa Rica) arrived right on schedule! We had been on the boat provisioning, cleaning and resetting etc., for about a week so we were ready to head South.
Florie fit right into the cruising lifestyle on the first day. What a trooper she is. With everybody’s gear on board it was a bit tight, but not really a problem. Breakfast the first morning was crepes! Crepes are the most amazing little breakfast delicacies ever invented. I had my crepes with mango, but I think Nutella was invented just to spread across nice warm crepes.
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| Crew Leo Lestant and Florie Blanc |
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| Mango and Crepes |
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| Internet on the boat |
Florie fit right into the cruising lifestyle on the first day. What a trooper she is. With everybody’s gear on board it was a bit tight, but not really a problem. Breakfast the first morning was crepes! Crepes are the most amazing little breakfast delicacies ever invented. I had my crepes with mango, but I think Nutella was invented just to spread across nice warm crepes.
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| Tucker, where are you? |
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Circus, Circus
We could not pass up an opportunity to see a circus high wire act performed on a cruising boat. This French couple, along with their two small children are cruising on a small boat and have come up with a circus show to entertain fellow cruisers and make a little money while they are at it. It was a very good show. The Show was so good that we went back for the encore show later that evening. I have video of their slap stick show, there was a more "romantic" show later in the evening. They are both really talented and no there were no safety nets or lines. They actually plan on being in the bay area next year.
This is their website link:
http://www.voilierspectacle.com/spectacles_eng.html
This is their website link:
http://www.voilierspectacle.com/spectacles_eng.html
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| Muggs and Larry from SV Peregrin blew into town for the show |
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