Cabo san Lucas
Cabo san Lucas
The final port stop for us was in Cabo san Lucas, which is on the tip of Baja California. (which, as I learned on this cruise, is not really in California, but instead is a state in Mexico. Learning is Fun!) Unlike the other two ports, Cabo is a resort town first and foremost, and is a young town. There was much stronger regulation in Cabo, so while there were people wanting to sell you boat tours or trinkets, there were specific places they had to stay, so it was much easier to avoid them than at either of the other ports. It’s the most Americanized of the ports we visited (by far). I spent about three hours walking around, where I left the main tourist boardwalk area and walked a little bit off the beaten path. I also visited a very American-style shopping mall and wandered onto the beach. It was a nice morning, just exploring the city.
I then had some more time to spend before our afternoon tour, so I went to the biggest tourist trap of them all - Señor Frogs. It had loud music, weak drinks, and bad food, all at high (for the area) prices. But they have marketed themselves like mad - there are merchandise shops for them everywhere. I figured - OK, let’s try it. I certainly don’t need to do that again!
That afternoon, we went on a whale watching cruise. This was a 2-hour trip on a smaller boat. We ended up seeing about 12 whales during that time. It’s tough to take pictures of them, as you don’t know where they are going to come up, then you just have a short time to get the shot. Instead, I focused on using a video camera and was able to catch a few of the breaches. They come up a few times, blow out water, and then drop back in. One thing I learned on this is that once you see the tail, the whale is then going back down into the water for a while. I will post the video when I get home.
So, our boat would see a whale, then pursue it to get closer to watch it. While our big boat was heading there, all of these small local water taxis would also zooooom right by them - really, way too close. The poor whales would be surrounded by 4-6 of these small boats.
Then it was back to the ship for another formal night and the final show. The entertainment on this boat was OK - one of the disappointments was that there weren’t two different shows each night like on the last cruise. In general, the production and the dancing was good, while the singers were not great. There was a late night desert extravaganza, which was basically the same deserts we’ve seen all week with some fancy plating.
Today is the last day of the cruise - a day at sea - and then back to San Diego tomorrow to fly home.
The final port stop for us was in Cabo san Lucas, which is on the tip of Baja California. (which, as I learned on this cruise, is not really in California, but instead is a state in Mexico. Learning is Fun!) Unlike the other two ports, Cabo is a resort town first and foremost, and is a young town. There was much stronger regulation in Cabo, so while there were people wanting to sell you boat tours or trinkets, there were specific places they had to stay, so it was much easier to avoid them than at either of the other ports. It’s the most Americanized of the ports we visited (by far). I spent about three hours walking around, where I left the main tourist boardwalk area and walked a little bit off the beaten path. I also visited a very American-style shopping mall and wandered onto the beach. It was a nice morning, just exploring the city.
I then had some more time to spend before our afternoon tour, so I went to the biggest tourist trap of them all - Señor Frogs. It had loud music, weak drinks, and bad food, all at high (for the area) prices. But they have marketed themselves like mad - there are merchandise shops for them everywhere. I figured - OK, let’s try it. I certainly don’t need to do that again!
That afternoon, we went on a whale watching cruise. This was a 2-hour trip on a smaller boat. We ended up seeing about 12 whales during that time. It’s tough to take pictures of them, as you don’t know where they are going to come up, then you just have a short time to get the shot. Instead, I focused on using a video camera and was able to catch a few of the breaches. They come up a few times, blow out water, and then drop back in. One thing I learned on this is that once you see the tail, the whale is then going back down into the water for a while. I will post the video when I get home.
So, our boat would see a whale, then pursue it to get closer to watch it. While our big boat was heading there, all of these small local water taxis would also zooooom right by them - really, way too close. The poor whales would be surrounded by 4-6 of these small boats.
Then it was back to the ship for another formal night and the final show. The entertainment on this boat was OK - one of the disappointments was that there weren’t two different shows each night like on the last cruise. In general, the production and the dancing was good, while the singers were not great. There was a late night desert extravaganza, which was basically the same deserts we’ve seen all week with some fancy plating.
Today is the last day of the cruise - a day at sea - and then back to San Diego tomorrow to fly home.