Our Baja Peninsula Cruise

On our Baja Peninsula Cruise we had three stops. The first one was at the bottom of the Peninsula, Cabo San Lucas. The Pacific Ocean is on one side of Cabo and The sea of Cortez is on the other. At the tip of the peninsula there are two beaches, Lovers Beach and Divorce Beach. From Lovers Beach you can see the famous arch that the wind and water has carved into the rock. Lovers Beach is calm and beautiful while Divorce Beach is rough and too wild to get into the water.

Cabo has a "Yellow Submarine" it only submerges halfway. The bottom half has windows to view all of the sea life below and the top half stays above water where you can view the beauty of the arch.

If you ever find yourself in Cabo, I suggest a ride on the "Love Machine" out to lovers beach where you can snorkel and sun tan. But don't spend all of your time on the beach, there is a lot of shopping to be done, and the stories you hear from the children trying to get you to purchase their goods might just be worth the price they are asking.

Our second stop was in La Paz. La Paz had the clearest water and the most beautiful beaches that I have ever seen, plus the water was warm. When googling La Paz before our trip I found that it is commonly rated in the top 5 places in the world to scuba dive. I don't dive but I do snorkel and it was amazing.

We took a boat out into the ocean for about 45 minutes, then we suited up and dove in. Half of our group was scuba diving while the rest of us snorkeled.

We actually swam with sea lions. They were so close that all it would have taken was a stretch of my arm and I we would have been touching. We had the opportunity to swim with hammer head sharks which I foolishly declined. Looking back on it now we were probably in more danger of being shark bait swimming with the sea lions than we would have been with a few hammer heads.     

After diving for a few hours we all got back on the boat and went to the beach, where we collected shells, and played in the water until the bus came to take us back to the ship. I have been told that La Paz does not allow too many ships to come to their city. I am grateful to have had the pleasure of visiting. Of all of the cities I have been to in Mexico La Paz was by far my favorite. 

Last and yes least of all was Ensenada, Mexico. I should point out that when I say least it does not mean that I did not enjoy myself. I am returning to Ensenada in less than a week from today.

In Ensenada we decided to pay for one of the ships excursions, we went to La Bufadora (the Blow Hole). La Bufadora is the largest blow hole in the world. The spout is created is created when ocean waves and air are drawn into an underwater cave located in the cliffeside, and the trapped air and water then explode upwards. This interaction not only creates the upward-shooting spout, but a thunderous noise as well. The water often shoots more than 100 feet above sea level.

The excursion started with a bus ride to the Blow Hole. We had a tour guide who reminded me so much of my mother that it was hard to concentrate on what she was saying and not just stare at her in wonder.

Our guide told us a lot about Mexican culture and traditions. Especially their Christmas traditions. She was well spoken and obviously well educated. Although the city was not my favorite I found her to be an excellent guide.

We drove through the city of Ensenada, there were a lot of apartment buildings and many farms along the way. The homes varied from very dingy to very colorful, but most looked to be very minimal. Cloths hanged on porches to dry and children played barefoot on the street. Our guide told us that it is not uncommon for Americans to retire in Ensenada, the weather is warm and the rent is low. Americans can rent a home that is suitable to their customs for as little as $1200 a year.

Along the road to La Bufadora there was more shopping than you could imagine. Bartering with the salesman proved to be a lot of fun, and we came home with more than we needed.