On February 13th we had a torrential downpour. It rained hard for a couple of hours which caused some areas to flood. When it rains here it really rains, but it was still very warm.
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| The sky opened up and it rained hard |
On February 15th we went with our friends, Eva and Rene, to watch the parade at Carnival. Long before dark, crowds start to fill downtown's main street, which parallels the ocean and Malecon, downtown Mazatlan's famous seaside sidewalk. It was crowded with thousands and thousands of people. I took a few pictures but I have to say the floats looked a lot more impressive in person.
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| Crowds filled the Malecon for the parade |
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| One of the many floats in the parade |
We went to a restaurant called El Cuchapetas in Villa Union with our friends Marilyn and Gary on February 18th. It's about 30 kms out of town (by the Mazatlan Airport) but we'd heard so many good things about it we felt we should try it. The restaurant is authentic Mexican and they specialize in seafood. Kim and I shared a white fish which was delivered whole (including the head). It looked gross but I have to say it was very tasty.
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| Marilyn and Gary at El Cuchapetas |
On February 22nd Kim, Douglas and I went to the Juarez Flea Market. It's only open on Sunday's and it's very crowded as many of the locals shop there. It's filled with clothing, shoes, perfume, hardware items, fishing supplies, groceries, restaurants and many, many other items. Various hairdressers and barber's set-up on the sidewalk to do inexpensive haircuts for folks too. We also noticed that homes in the area are very close together so don't have front or back yards. As a result, their pets roam their rooftops.
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| Kim and Douglas enjoying the Juarez Flea Market |
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| Can you see the dogs on the rooftop? |
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| Another dog checking us out from his rooftop |
On March 3rd and 17th we went with Eva and Rene to the Mechado to a European Sausage store that recently opened for business. They make pepperoni and good Italian sausage (sweet, spicy and very spicy). We picked some sausage and pepperoni up then went for lunch to a nearby restaurant on the Melacon called Chikkowi. Eva and I ordered chicken salads and the food was delicious.
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| Delicious chicken salad at Chikkowi |
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| Eva, Rene and Kim checking out the menu at Chikkowi (on the wall) |
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| Eva, Rene and Jan walking up to the European Sausage Store |
We left the dock at El Cid Resort on March 12th and went for a 4 hour sail - Kim was really thrilled! Afterwards we anchored at Stone Island and spent two days and nights there. We thoroughly enjoyed it!
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| Kim enjoying a coffee while sailing to Stone Island |
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| Jan & Douglas enjoying the sail |
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| Jan and Douglas on the bow enjoying a sail |
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| Anchored at Stone Island - it's a pretty rolley anchorage as it's quite exposed to the open ocean |
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| Kim and Douglas enjoying the beach at Stone Island |
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| We found an excellent bay to anchor our dinghy and go for a swim |
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| Jan and Douglas at Stone Island on the Boogie Board - We love this picture of Douglas with his tongue out |
Over the last few weeks Kim, Douglas and I climbed Faro Lighthouse yet again, enjoyed breakfast or dinner and drinks with friends, and relaxed at the resort and on the boat. Life is good!
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| Jan and Douglas enjoying the view of Mazatlan from Faro Lighthouse |
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| Jan enjoying a large cold beer - Douglas enjoying cuddles |
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| Kim and Douglas at Happy Hour at Barra al Mar |
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| Douglas taking a nap in style - on a lounge bed in the shade |
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| Douglas walking the stone wall at our resort |
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| Douglas relaxing in his bed after another sunny hot day |
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| Out with some friends for a final farewell dinner at La Mona Pizza - Rene, Bub, Fay and Eva |
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| Out with friends for a final farewell dinner to Fish Restaurant - Debbie, Ron, Fran and Lynn |
Douglas has had a few mishaps in the last few weeks. I think he got stung by a bee one day, then while playing ball in the grass a pin ended up going right through one of the pads on his foot. We quickly removed the pin and bathed his foot in hydrogen peroxide. He was good as new within an hour and never even babied his paw. A few days later he was chasing a Pelican off the back of our boat and he fell into the ocean. It was a shock for him (and for me) but he's a good little swimmer. I quickly jumped off the boat and lifted him onto the dock. Other than his pride, he didn't get hurt thank goodness. A few days ago while taking him on his final walk of the day he came across a Raccoon in the resort. Of course he decided to chase it so I ended up running right behind him. All of a sudden I saw another Raccoon come up and start running behind Douglas. I thought for sure it was going to attack him but thankfully the Raccoon just ran right passed him. If dogs get 9 lives I think Douglas has used his up. Maybe he's just trying to give me a heart attack!
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| We removed the pin from his pad and it stopped bleeding pretty quickly - he's a trooper |
The last couple of weeks we've kept very busy getting the boat ready to leave it and packing the truck for our 4,000 km drive home. The boat had a wash and wax last Monday and Tuesday, and the bottom was also cleaned. We took the boat over to Marina Mazatlan on Friday, March 27th to store it there until we return to Mazatlan in late October. We started our drive home today (on Sunday, March 29th). We are in Navojoa tonight and expect our future stops to be in Phoenix, San Francisco and Portland. We look forward to catching up with all our family and friends at home over the next few months!
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| Kim fresh water flushing the generator and engine |
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| Kim mending one of our rugs with his Sailrite sewing machine. He completed lots of sewing projects on the boat this season (i.e. made window covers, Binnacle cover, Mexican courtesy flags, etc) |
