Our friends Ryan and Michelle were going to be celebrating their 10th anniversary too, so we met up in LA and did the 7-day Mexican Riviera cruise to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo. I resisted cruising for a long time because I thought it was for old people. I am not ashamed to say that I WAS WRONG. This vacation was the most relaxing, rejuvenating vacations that we have ever been on.
The first night onboard, we ate at our pre-selected dining time, at our assigned table. We really enjoyed the food, especially the desserts. However, the only other people seated at our table were a couple of little old ladies. They were as nice as could be, and hilarious, but their difficulty hearing the conversation made communication awkward. We abandoned the assigned dining idea and went for the any-time dining option for the rest of the cruise.
Docked at Puerto Vallarta
Wish the clothes matched the rest of this shot, but we just gone done swinging through the Jungle. If you are ever in Puerto Vallarta, you must do the zip line tour with Los Verranos Canopy Tours. It was crazy fun zipping down 14 different zip lines, through the trees, back and forth over the river. Below, you can see one of the Super Mexicans (their words, not mine) towing me to the end of the zip line after I stalled out.
One of the 2 formal nights onboard.
We took one of these open cab/golf cart things to the Golden Zone in Mazatlan. It was hard to tell what was 'Golden' about it. Maybe we just didn't find the best parts of Mazatlan, but I didn't love it.
We did find a beach at Mazatlan, but there were too many locals pitching their goods and services, so we stayed poolside at the nearest resort pool.
The tender boat that carried us from the ship to the marina in Cabo.
We took a water taxi out to Lover's Beach. From there we did some snorkeling (awesome!) and soaked up some sand. Can't decide if I liked this day better or the zip line day.
Lover's Beach is only accessible by boat. It is at the very end of the Baja Peninsula. This side is on the Sea of Cortez. A quick walk between those rocks brings you to the other shore, which is on the Pacific Ocean.
This shot of Nate and Ryan shows one of the water taxis as well as one of the tender boats from the ship and the ship itself.
The boat driver took us a little beyond the beach to Land's End, at the very tip of the peninsula. He said he's driven through the hole in the rock before, but I was happy to take his word for it.
If I look a little uneasy in this photo, it's because the boat was rocking violently while the driver had his hands on my camera, rather than the boat wheel.
I wish I had video of the really bumpy last day at sea, when the swimming pools sloshed out over the sides and once jumped right out of the "cold pool" into the hot tub all over Michelle. Probably funnier for me than for her.
Nate and I are already thinking about where to cruise to next. It's so cool that you get to visit lots of different places, and return everyday to the comfort of the ship. I will say that the first full day after getting off the ship was at times downright unpleasant. I never had trouble with sickness on the ship, but the sensation of rocking while standing on dry land is creepy. Hands down, best vacation ever. I hope to have many more to compete for that title.
