On a beautiful, sunny Sunday in SF, a good song to chill out to...
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Quiero butt massage
I'll get to that in a moment...
I'm sitting by the pool at the Todos Santos Inn, soaking up a few last rays of sun before driving two hours to the airport. One lesson for future travels: he farther from the airport you are, the more peaceful the place (generally speaking). 2 hours seems about right.
Yesterday was my last day surfing, and I intended to make the most of it. Instead of 3.5 foot swells the previous day, yesterday's swells were 2-3 feet, which made surfing a bit easier. I went out with Luis, my instructor for 2 of the 3 surfing days, and caught a good amount of waves. After a full 60-minute lesson, I felt satisfied with my progress. I talked to Mario after the lesson and he said I'm ready to go down to a 6-8 foot board (I had been riding 10-foot boards this week), and can go out on my own back in Cali. He said it would take about 2 years of practicing 1-2 times a week before I'd be able to use one of the shorter boards that the pros use. Unrealistic for me, but I feel really good about the start I've gotten off to. More importantly, I like surfing. The act is pure, and it's something I can get better at. Game on.
After the lesson, I decided to get a massage on the beach. The last time I got a massage was 10 years ago, so why the hell not - 40 bucks for an hour isn't bad at all. The masseuse was a Mexican woman in her 40's. I didn't know what to expect - especially the butt massage. After she finished with the shoulders, or the lower back, it whatever, she kept coming back to the butt. Perhaps this is standard for massage therapy. I took it in stride (why complain??), but every time she went for it, a quote from Jermaine in Flight of the Conchords went through my head: "hm, well this is an interesting situation." Don't know why I find that so amusing, but I do.
I returned to the hotel (but not before stopping at a bookstore to get a smoothie, mexican cookbook, postcards, a documentary of baja sur, and a book analyzing Mexican culture/psyche), then drive 60 minutes across the peninsula to La Paz. I must admit, I was compelled to go slightly because there is a great Mexican restaurant in Birmingham called La Paz that has ridiculous salsa. Strange the way the mind works. Armed with some podcasts, I drove across the desolate terrain to La Paz.
It was a quick, and unremarkable trip. The water off La Paz is the turquoise blue that you see in promotional photos. I drove past the city (which is a normal, local city of about 250,000 people) to Pichilingue, quiet little beach, but turned right around because I wanted to get back. Check - La Paz is off the list.
Back at the hotel I read a bit, had dinner with a retiree couple from Waynesville, NC, then finished my book.
So that's it. I packed a lot into these past three days, but not too much. I'm coming back to the US after learning to surf (sort of), finishing a book, getting some sun and sleep, meeting some good people (locals and expats) and eating very well. Not bad. Will I come back? I'm not sure. For a quick vacation, this place is great. So, yes - I probably will. I know the ropes now and could do it very easily.
One thing that the couple I had dinner with asked me was "do you always travel alone?". I had to think about that one. The past few big trips I've taken (Mexico, brazil, Colombia, southeast Asia, spain and Italy) have been a mixture, but I admit to the need to "just go" sometimes... To rejuvenate but more importantly to explore on my own. When I travel solo, I'm not alone (reference: all the people I've met through traveling, which always happens - and is in fact very easy when you're a solo traveler). But the freedom traveling alone accords me is something that I need from time to time. Not always - definitely not always. But sometimes. WHY I need to do this is probably not a question for this blog, but I've come to terms with the fact that it's an undeniable part of who I am, and that I should be mindful of this.
Now that I've had my kicks, I'm glad to be coming back home.
I'm sitting by the pool at the Todos Santos Inn, soaking up a few last rays of sun before driving two hours to the airport. One lesson for future travels: he farther from the airport you are, the more peaceful the place (generally speaking). 2 hours seems about right.
Yesterday was my last day surfing, and I intended to make the most of it. Instead of 3.5 foot swells the previous day, yesterday's swells were 2-3 feet, which made surfing a bit easier. I went out with Luis, my instructor for 2 of the 3 surfing days, and caught a good amount of waves. After a full 60-minute lesson, I felt satisfied with my progress. I talked to Mario after the lesson and he said I'm ready to go down to a 6-8 foot board (I had been riding 10-foot boards this week), and can go out on my own back in Cali. He said it would take about 2 years of practicing 1-2 times a week before I'd be able to use one of the shorter boards that the pros use. Unrealistic for me, but I feel really good about the start I've gotten off to. More importantly, I like surfing. The act is pure, and it's something I can get better at. Game on.
After the lesson, I decided to get a massage on the beach. The last time I got a massage was 10 years ago, so why the hell not - 40 bucks for an hour isn't bad at all. The masseuse was a Mexican woman in her 40's. I didn't know what to expect - especially the butt massage. After she finished with the shoulders, or the lower back, it whatever, she kept coming back to the butt. Perhaps this is standard for massage therapy. I took it in stride (why complain??), but every time she went for it, a quote from Jermaine in Flight of the Conchords went through my head: "hm, well this is an interesting situation." Don't know why I find that so amusing, but I do.
I returned to the hotel (but not before stopping at a bookstore to get a smoothie, mexican cookbook, postcards, a documentary of baja sur, and a book analyzing Mexican culture/psyche), then drive 60 minutes across the peninsula to La Paz. I must admit, I was compelled to go slightly because there is a great Mexican restaurant in Birmingham called La Paz that has ridiculous salsa. Strange the way the mind works. Armed with some podcasts, I drove across the desolate terrain to La Paz.
It was a quick, and unremarkable trip. The water off La Paz is the turquoise blue that you see in promotional photos. I drove past the city (which is a normal, local city of about 250,000 people) to Pichilingue, quiet little beach, but turned right around because I wanted to get back. Check - La Paz is off the list.
Back at the hotel I read a bit, had dinner with a retiree couple from Waynesville, NC, then finished my book.
So that's it. I packed a lot into these past three days, but not too much. I'm coming back to the US after learning to surf (sort of), finishing a book, getting some sun and sleep, meeting some good people (locals and expats) and eating very well. Not bad. Will I come back? I'm not sure. For a quick vacation, this place is great. So, yes - I probably will. I know the ropes now and could do it very easily.
One thing that the couple I had dinner with asked me was "do you always travel alone?". I had to think about that one. The past few big trips I've taken (Mexico, brazil, Colombia, southeast Asia, spain and Italy) have been a mixture, but I admit to the need to "just go" sometimes... To rejuvenate but more importantly to explore on my own. When I travel solo, I'm not alone (reference: all the people I've met through traveling, which always happens - and is in fact very easy when you're a solo traveler). But the freedom traveling alone accords me is something that I need from time to time. Not always - definitely not always. But sometimes. WHY I need to do this is probably not a question for this blog, but I've come to terms with the fact that it's an undeniable part of who I am, and that I should be mindful of this.
Now that I've had my kicks, I'm glad to be coming back home.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Surf
Suenos de Polvo
I just got back from the Casa Toto restaurant. I was walking back from the taqueria (where I went to pick up some tacos for the night watchman, who hadn't eaten anything) and heard an old guitar player playing Trova, which is a musical style I fell for when in Guanajuato 9 years ago. So after delivering the tacos I came back to the bar. I asked for a port, but since they had none I was offered a pomegranate tequila (tasty), then progressed to a glass of wine. The proprietor, Christine, sat me down with some of her expat friends, but after a few minutes I grabbed a chair and went to sit in front of the old guy (santos) playing the guitar. As I was going for my glass of wine, I stopped in my tracks because he started to play "Contigo Aprendi," which is an old Trova song that was covered by Nicho Hinojosa, my favorite musician from back in the Mexico days. I was just listening to Nicho's album earlier that day.
So, I finally met the expat community here. It reminded me of the community in Lencois, Brazil. Small, respectful of the locals. I can't say much more than that.
My day started with another healthy breakfast (and some huevos rancheros... Not healthy but seriously delicious), and then started day 2 of surfing. I tackled some big waves today, and have a pretty good feel for things. What's difficult is reading the waves. The pros know which waves to take, where to take them, when to paddle, when to give up, etc. without this knowledge, you waste a lot of energy. I did pretty well when the instructor was telling me "take this wave" but drank a lot of salt water when on my own. Tomorrow is the last surfing day and my goal is to ride some truly big waves all the way in. I think I can do it.
I stayed at the beach from 10:30 - 3:30. I broke out my camera on the way back and gained some momentum, so instead of going back to the hotel I drive down some random dirt roads, and eventually got on the highway toward La Paz. Lots of cacti, not much else. I had a good soundtrack going (stp, soundgarden were prominent, as was Santana to start the trip). I got halfway - about 30 minutes out - and decided to come back. Honestly, it was fun to just drive wherever - window down, warm weather outside, music blaring. Fun stuff. I ended up trying to find the local beach but ended up at a sea turtle protected beach, and I didn't feel like breaking the law so I came back to the hotel.
I showered up and asked Pepe if he had any recommendations on what to do, and he gave me proper directions to the local beach. Got some nice subset photos (which now completes my set - sunrise phitos from the north carolina coast, and sunset photos from baja). I then went straight to a taqueria (see photo) - amazing tacos. I had forgotten that tacos in Mexico and tacos in the states are different. Not by a ton, but they are. Pastor, asada, cheese, and a bunch of toppings. Delicious.
The rest of the day I already told you about.
Sometimes if you are open to chance, then chance takes you in pleasantly unexpected directions. After surfing I had planned on simply coming back to the hotel and reading. But, my intuition told me to do something else. What I ended up with was a mini road trip, cool photos, sunset on a beach (I was one of exactly two people on the entire beach), amazing tacos at a truly local joint, and Trova music - something I haven't heard live in 9 years.
Last thing before I go to bed. Knowing Spanish has, once again, opened a ton of doors. I can communicate with people here. I have no fear about going anywhere or talkikg to anyone because I can hack it (mostly). Even the slang I learned 9 years ago comes in handy. I'm thankful to Mrs. Harden and my Spanish teachers.
Anyway, I didn't finish my book today as planned, but I'm glad I didn't. Life had other things in store.
Todos photo 4
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)