Mazatlan

Beach time! Today we headed out to the beach. It was a beautiful day for the beach too. We boarded a catamaran and they took us around the harbor area telling us about the area and how abundant their fishing industry is. Tuna and jumbo shrimp are a really big business there for them. After that, they took us to the island. There was a little bit of a ride from the dock to the beach and we got to take a Mexican Limo (translation a cart pulled by a tractor). We basically had an entire restaurant to ourselves (okay, not just US but the group from the ship). We had beach chairs, tables and umbrellas and were just a short walk to the water. Of course that walk was through a swarm of peddlers trying to get you to buy their stuff. Once again, their stuff was “almost free”. It just makes me laugh. The beach was wonderful. The sand was so incredibly soft and the water was crystal clear. Lunch was included and consisted of mahi mahi, grilled chicken, beans, rice, salad, chips and salsa and homemade tortillas. Now, I am not a person who particularly likes seafood or Mexican food. But I decided that since I was here in Mexico on the coast, I would brave it and give it a try. The mahi mahi was disgusting. The fishy taste is what I absolutely do not like at all. I even tried the salsa, and let me tell you, I literally thought there would be a hole in my tongue where it burned. It was so hot. Although hot for me is not necessarily hot for others. But anyway, back to the beach. My parents and I decided it would be fun to go for a ride on one of those banana boats. It was a lot of fun while we were headed out. Once we got out a ways, they turn around and head back for the beach. We were turning around and over we went. Way out in the ocean no less! I felt really bad for the little girl who was riding with her parents. She was so scared. I thought it was quite entertaining. Especially when we were all trying to get back up on it. That was quite entertaining and definitely gave us a story to tell. Can’t say it was a boring day at the beach. After a few hours on the beach and in the sun, we headed back to the catamaran to the pier by the ship. We dropped our towels etc at the ship and headed for the market and did a little shopping. The rest of the night was fairly uneventful until dinner. We were back to the dining room with our great table mates and had another evening of laughs with them. Right after dinner, we headed to the theater for the Love and Marriage Game Show. It is hilarious! They take a newlywed couple, the couple who has been married the longest (who wants to participate) and then two other couples in between them. They ask them questions and you get some crazy answers. I think that is one of my favorite things here on the ship that we get to see and do. Then we were back to the room to get ready and go to bed as were had another early wake up call. Next stop Puerto Vallarta!