Cabo

Coming into to Cabo San Lucas this morning was promising. There was another fiery sunrise slowly lighting Land’s End and El Arco. The Carnival Splendor was already anchored off the harbor and a ship from the Princess Line was following us in. The harbor isn’t big enough to accommodate cruise ships so we all had to be tendered in. The day took a turn for the worse. Everyone wanted to get off the ship early as we had a very early [1:30PM] “All Aboard” and a 3PM departure. We were using several of our own lifeboats as tenders and the swells were pretty hairy. Loading took longer than anticipated and there was some frantic rushing and shoving by those trying to make it to their tours on time. The planners dropped the ball and created a real headache. Once we were ashore we strolled along the edge of the harbor for about a half hour. 8:30AM and every other guy was hawking a fishing tour or happy hour at the adjacent bar/restaurant. Breakfasts were offered with free beers, two free beers, a free margarita or a free bloody Mary. What a hole! The culture is not much different from Aruba except for the glaring presence of “DEEP SEA FISHING!” As the sun came up fishing boats were rounding Land’s End by the dozens. Then the speedboats came and they were followed by dozens of jet skies, followed by kayaks and inflatables. I saw a guy on a jet ski leaving the harbor talking on his cell phone. The front seats of all the bars along the harbor were filled with drinkers by 10AM. We took refuge in a luxurious mall but most stores were still closed. Disappointed we headed back to the ship hoping to see some whales or dolphins on our departure. No such luck. The Mexico I remembered and loved from so many visits in the 70s and 80s no longer exists. It all bars, jewelry stores and inebriated tourists. It’s a two-edged sword. You won’t find any of the real Mexico in any of the resort cities and if you choose to go very far afield you face the very real risk of being mugged, kidnapped, and even beheaded. Scratch Mexico from the vacation choices for now. Hopefully it will come around in another 30