buenas dias amigos!
i am here in lovely la paz, mexico, sitting in a nice courtyard coffee shop, after a long day of toiling on the boat.
just kidding… it wasn’t a very long day at all. i have to share a little about what i’ve done up to this point. i flew from kansas city to san diego last tuesday, and i took a minibus with my fellow stewards (‘stews’) to ensenada, mexico. we spent a few days in ensenada before setting sail on saturday afternoon and arriving in la paz this morning around 6.
our drive from san diego to ensenada was muy loco. our driver spoke little english, and – like most mexican drivers (and turkish drivers, italian drivers) – drove like a bat out of hell on a two lane, pitch black “highway” along the coast between tijuana and ensenada. we also had to go through immigration, and because i am working down here, i needed to get a visa. this involved stopping at the immigration facility, parking the car and walking into a very sterile environment. it was wal-mart bright, and there were guards with guns everywhere. we first went to an office, where our driver explained en espanol what we were doing there. the official – who looked like he was maybe 21 – gave us paperwork to fill out, directed us to the window to pay 295 pesos ($24.75), and then stamped our passports and gave us our visa. back in the car, we returned to the actual border crossing where more men with guns stopped us, spoke to the driver, flashed some lights around the car, and then let us go on.
since it was dark, i didn’t get a chance to really see the scenery as we drove south, but i do know that we went along the coast, and also that we drove along the border for awhile – you could see the fences and the detention centres that they have there.
after our harrowing drive, zipping in and out of traffic, around trucks that were also driving like demon-chased bats, we arrived in ensenada. the rest of the crew was staying at a family-style apartment hotel, and we moved right in. on the first night, i had an entire apartment to myself, but on the second night, i moved into another one with other girls. a few people took us out for food, since we hadn’t had dinner, and then i went back to my room, took a hot shower, and crawled gratefully into bed (i had been up since 4 am).
our first day in yard was nice – we spent time in the sun, working and slowly putting the ship back together. this entire week, actually, has been a lot of putting the ship back together and getting cabins ready for crew, staff and guests. we walked back and forth between the yard and the hotel at night, and it was a nice walk. the town has streetlight christmas decorations up, and we passed a christmas tree lot every night. it smelled like home, and for a moment, walking past under the lights with the christmas music going, i was transported back to a cozy, fireplace lit room with a tree and laughter of my family. and then i kept walking and passed a taquiera with the jams pumped up. a fleeting moment of home….
each night at the hotel, we went out into the downtown part of ensenada. the crew that spent time in yard had made some friends, and they were keen on showing us the town nightlife. it was a great relief to finish work, throw on clean clothes after a hot shower and hit the town for a drink. our shipyard is in ensenada often, so many people in town know our boat and crew.
on my third day back, we moved the ship back into the water – i have a video of the ship being transported along rails between the dock areas – and then moved back onto the ship that night. after two days living on the ship in yard, we left ensenada and positioned down to la paz. we were not supposed to leave until the morning of the 9th, but our supplies truck got stuck at the border crossing and the captain decided – very last minute – to leave at 6pm on the 8th instead of 6am on the 9th.
it took us about 3 days to cruise to la paz, and we had stunning weather the entire trip. the only time it got a little rocky was when we went around the tip of baja. it happened early though, and most us were in bed. on tuesday the 11th, we cruised past cabo san lucas, and there we dropped anchor off the coast for an hour so that those of that wanted to could go swimming. we put down the back stairs and opened up a gate on the 200 level (about 20 feet up) to jump off of. it was exhilerating! i’m not a big diving board fan, but how often in your life will you get to jump into the sea of cortez/pacific ocean from a ship? we thought about the 100 level, but captain vetoed it… still, it was crazy fun, and every time i think about it, i smile. the water was warm, about 70 degrees, and the waves crested over us as we paddled around. it was a brilliant azure blue too, which contrasted the light bright blue of the sunny sky. just as i started to climb back on to the ship as we pulled anchor, we saw some flying manarays jumping (flying?) out of the water. it was almost funny to watch, because they look like someone supermanning/belly flopping into the water, with their dark fins spread out wide, catching the glinting light and then flopping back into the waves. what a cool way to end our swimming adventure!
we had another hour or so off, so i took my book up to the 100 level, where i grabbed a deck chair and laid out in the late afternoon sun. i’m being smart and wearing sunscreen, so i haven’t really gotten a good base tan, but i figure, hey, i’ll be here for 4 months!
here are some photos… enjoy!