Have you ever showered with a grasshopper?

Santa's house at Plaza Machado

Christmas at the Cathedral

I know some of our outdoorsy friends will say, yes of course. But this was a new one for me. I accepted the cockroaches in the Guaymas boatyard as part of the showering deal when our boat was in the desert of Sonora. Now we are in the tropics of Sinaloa, so different critters ‘own’ this place and we are merely guests. 

I was pretty surprised when I lathered my hair to turn and face a pretty good-sized grasshopper about 6” away hanging on the window cord, checking me out. Now it’s not a big deal and I doubt my life was threatened – ha – but startled nonetheless when you feel you’re being watched. Did you know they have beady little eyes?

Iguanas on the dock - this one 3'

Pretty fabulous sunsets at the marina

I conversed with that bright green specimen, goodheartedly, and advised that I’d be out in a few – this shower will shortly be all yours. I exited the shower to the lengthy marina promenade, walking the 7-minute stretch to our boat, enjoying a magical, tropical sunset. Nary an iguana to be seen, as it was late sunset. The other day I had a 5-iguana experience along the promenade.

15 year old coming out party with 

her entourage of girls and boys

After our safe arrival in Mazatlan in early December, we’ve been doing boat projects, exploring the many interesting sights here, and enjoying special times with various friends – all of whom we met in 2012! The Sinaloa cartels have been wreaking havoc in this region since October, so we were reticent to drive this further distance south. However, we had a carload of boat and life stuff we needed to haul from Guaymas, where we stored the car covered and safe in the guarded marina yard.

Nissan Kicks rental, bumper held on with tie wraps

After serious analysis and information gathering, we decided a car was the least dangerous (vs. bus or plane) and tracked down a deal for a one-way rental. We left before dawn on Sunday morning, didn’t stop except for gas, stayed on the main highway and blended in, in a small car with Mexican plates. The northbound and southbound roads were very heavily monitored by truckloads of the Federales, national guard, marina and army, intending to make you feel better about the route. We whizzed through 2 inspection checkpoints and were thankful to arrive without incident.

It's a beautiful modern stadium

With 2 other couples, we bused and walked to attend an evening baseball game, the Mazatlan Venados (Deer) against the Monterey (Nuevo Leon) Sultanas. While there was actually some good baseball being played, the distractions were astounding! One had to wonder - was anyone there to watch the game? Some of the entertainment:

• -        Super loud canned music blaring behind us, blasted between the pitches, occasionally not even stopping for the actual pitch
• -        Team mascots on the field, along with a pelican mascot (what was his deal?) who danced to Jailhouse Rock and Michael Jackson during the game

  

  Pelican performing Jailhouse Rock

  
  
• -        Vendors hawking beer, mixed drinks, donuts, French fries, peanuts (hot of course), walking incessantly in front of your seats
• -        Advertising flashing on the giant screen – hmmm, maybe it would be interesting to see replays instead of mattress or beer commercials?
• -        The cheerleaders were young girls and boys dancing provocatively. The guys removing their shirts and the girls prancing about

After 8 innings, we were sated with the experience, so we left before the crowds. We caught a pulmonia back to the marina, which are basic VW bugs converted to open air taxis. They are great fun for sightseeing and enjoying a breeze, but you need to hang on, as drivers quickly change lanes in heavy Mazatlan traffic. Sidewalks are often a good shortcut. Pedestrians are always at risk.

Fancy etched tuba, banda at the beach

And more of the Mazatlan experiences, we’ve gone to the covered and open-air markets where you come eye to eye with pig heads and piñatas. Late night music fills the marina, with party boats that feature complete banda bands on the foredeck blaring out tunes in addition to the pulsing ‘social clubs’ along the marina. My original blog title was “Falling asleep to tuba music”, which by the way is an oxymoron.

Lucha Libre wrestling beckons!

This Saturday, after going to see a rock n roll band featuring a Canadian drummer and 4 Mexican musicians at a beach club up north, we’ll go with our friends to experience Lucha Libre – an entertaining wrestling match with local color.

Mike installing hardware for my closet light :-)

Mike folding himself once again into a pretzel

Boat projects consume parts of our days, and we are certain to get in a good walk and some entertainment daily. The restaurant scene is vibrant here although because of fears installed by the cartel presence, the volume of visitors is quite low (both foreign and national), much to the chagrin of the locals trying to make a living from tourism. We are very blessed to have these good experiences and hope for better times for the locals in the new year.

We wish everyone a very Merry Christmas filled with family, friends and good times, celebrating  this magical season and preparing for a bright new year.