Busy Days

2-17-13 – La Cruz, Nayarit, Mexico

Can you spot the whale cruising the anchorage?

As the saying goes “time flies when you’re having fun”.   Where did the last week go?  It’s hard to believe that you can stay so busy and not have a job.  While we are back in La Cruz again; this time relaxing in the marina; in the last week we made the trek to Punta de Mita and back, and filled every day with something.

Elizabeth with our toys on the beach

At Punta de Mita Elizabeth’s new kayak got some use and we didn’t even launch the dinghy for two days.  It just seemed easier to paddle the kayak and paddle board in to shore each day than to launch the dink.  We visited with many friends on the beach each day; ending each day with a little beach fire compliments of the crew on s/v Heavy Metal.  I can sort of say that I’m a surfer now.  At least I caught a couple of waves on the paddle board and actually rode them in to shore standing up even!  I’m a surfer enough that Rob on s/v Shindig and I took a special trip in his dinghy to a break a little ways from the anchorage in Punta de Mita called La Lancha.  So I am actually seeking out waves now, not just accidentally finding them.  I guess that makes me a surfer in some way.  Lots of good food at Mita, between Oscar’s for fish tacos and Mita’s Pizza, an excellent pizza place.  It’s a BYOB kind of place; which incidentally, there should be way more of in this world.  BYOB is the only way to go.  Stop in, order your pizza, walk down the road a little to the tienda, buy a couple of cold beers, and by the time you get back your pizza is almost ready.  You get the good pizza and the cheap beer, win win. 

Yummy fish tacos

I turned 36 somewhere in there.  Not a bad place for a birthday.  We “chartered” a panga with the Shindig folks and went to the islands just South of Mita called the Tres Marietas.   Our panga picked us up at the boats and buzzed us out to the islands.  We did some snorkeling, had a beautiful island beach to ourselves and then buzzed back to the boats with a quick stop to check out some other surf spots; since you know I’m a surfer now.  After a light lunch on the boat we took some beach supplies in to shore and did some surfing and beach hanging out before happy hour margaritas and then Mita’s pizza for dinner.  I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday.

Pelicans don't look too happy with us

Rob, Nancy, me and Elizabeth on the panga

We had great sails both ways to and from La Cruz.  Back in La Cruz we’ve taken up residence for the last few days in the marina.  We took a day long tour to San Sebastian, an old mining town up at 4800 feet in the mountains.  Then the next day sailed on Shindig for a practice race prior to the Banderas Bay Regatta coming up soon.  Sailing on a boat 15’ bigger than ours is a treat.  I even got to drive for a little.  The food has been great once again.  Street Tacos (that’s actually the name of the restaurant,  aptly names as they setup tables on the side of the street each night), Red Chair tacos (I think this place may actually have a different name, but they are known for the red chairs they setup in the street for dinner each night),  Mahi Mahi in a lobster sauce for Valentine’s day, chicken fajitas.  The list goes on and on.  As you may be able to tell, it’s hard to get motivated to cook on the boat when there are so many great options just a short walk away.  As you may also have noticed, you eat in the street a lot around here.  Many of the little places set tables up in the street, sort of in the area where cars would parallel park each night and take them down at the end of the night.  I’m not exactly sure what the purpose of this is, if it’s to increase seating capacity or to indicate they are open?  Either way it works, helps us know who’s open (because that’s also always a little bit of a mystery, Red Chair opens at 7:00P until midnight, 5 days a week and Tacos on the street is open from 5:30P to 10:30P, Philo’s is open all the time but no one goes there until late, the little taco stand by the fish market is only open in the morning) and then you can tell what’s good by how many people are sitting there. 

View of La Cruz

Hacienda Jalisco on the way to San Sebastian

Hacienda Jalisco

The San Sebastian tour group

The girls paddle board gang, Elizabeth on the left

Our friends on Wizard out for a sail

Shindig taking some spray over the bow

I could get used to this

Nancy and Rob,  aka The Shindigers, relax while I sail

This is really why you race sailboats, right!

So we have had a busy week and now it’s time to do some boat chores and catch up on our “responsibilities” after 18 days at anchor.  I always feel guilty if I don’t use my marina time wisely.  But that’s for manana, now it’s time for some fajitas, or will it be tacos tonight?