Life in La Cruz; A note from Gail; 02/12/2011

We finally left La Cruz after almost 7 weeks and are now anchored in beautiful Tenacatita Bay, about 130 nautical miles south.  La Cruz was a great place to be and we really enjoyed it.  We had planned to stay about 3 weeks but some repair and maintenance projects took a bit longer than expected, as does any boat project.  Plus I (Gail) went back to the states to visit my parents and John’s nephew and family made a short stop in Puerto Vallarta on their cruise ship.  We had a good day of enjoying the sites and activities around the area with them. 

A short while later, we heard about festivities and the blessing of the fleet in the nearby town of Bucerias so we headed down to watch the celebration.  It was fun to see the pangas, local fishing boats, decorated with balloons and ribbons.  After the fleet was blessed the town folk began their festivities.  There was a street fair with everything from tequila tasting to games for the kids.  We really enjoyed the cabarellos and their dancing horses.  A band played along the street and the men on horseback took turns having the horses prance to the music.  And, while they’re waiting their turn they congenially drank cans of Modelo beer pulled from the stash in their saddle bags.

Most of our blog postings show us at anchor with great snorkeling and beautiful sunsets.  But we haven’t said much about what it’s like when we’re in a marina.  La Paz was really nice, we could find almost anything we wanted, and knew quite a few folks.  But La Cruz is really great.  It’s a wonderful mix of small town Mexico with access to a more modern city, Puerto Vallarta. 

La Cruz de Huanacaxtle as it is formally known sits adjacent to the marina so with just a short stroll we would be at the town square for the Sunday market with fresh pastries, local crafts, and music, or the corner tienda where we could pick up fresh fruits and veggies, or Kenny’s carneceria for fresh meats and poultry.  And, there is a fish market at the marina where the local fishermen sell their catches of the day.  Fresh mahi mahi was cut right off the fish and weighed in front of you. 

Sonia would pick up our laundry in the late afternoon and bring it back the next day.  We could go for a long time without having to leave La Cruz.  When I did need to go to a bigger store for more staples, I would take a bus to the Mega, which is a combination department and grocery store.  John came with me once and his eyes were glazed over by the time we got to the produce dept.  It takes a lot of time to make it through a store that big when you don’t know where everything is.  I told him “Now you know why it takes me all day to go grocery shopping.”  Nothing happens quickly in Mexico.

I’ve had a few bus adventures.  Some buses make more stops than others.  On some buses people get on at a stop and sing for tips and get off at the next stop.  Some are better than others but it’s always entertaining.  Most of the places I want to go are at regular bus stops so I just get off when its time. You have to keep your eyes open though. Other places take a bit more effort. 

I wanted to go to Home Depot and I was told to get on a city bus, not the regular buses which go between cities that I had been taking.  No problem, I tell the driver I want Home Depot and he lets me know where to get off.  As I’m checking out at Home Depot I ask the cashier where the nearest bus stop is to go back to La Cruz.  I get a quizzical look and I’m told to go to the end of the block, turn left, and the bus will stop at the next block.  I follow those directions but realize that that bus will take me inland, not to La Cruz.  So I figure I’ll go back to the main road and walk until I find a main bus stop. 

I walk, and walk, and walk some more. After covering a mile along the main highway I figure I’d better ask someone.  I see a modern interior design store across the highway and figure they might have someone who speaks English.  I cross the 4 lanes with people barreling along at 50km/h and find a very helpful lady inside.  She tells me the bus stop is across the street.  I look and all I see is highway, but she says it will stop there.  So I stand on the side of the road and look for buses which I do see, but they aren’t stopping.  Then someone else joins me but he is new to the area so we’re both waiting for a bus to stop.  Finally some locals come over and wait with us.  Then I see how it really works.  The buses have the names of the towns they go to painted on the front window.  Buses that would be willing to stop will flash their headlights and you either flag them down or say no.  Luckily the Mexicans are really helpful and one of the locals helped me flag down the right bus.  I think I left around 10 am to head to Home Depot and didn’t get back until after 5pm.    Thank goodness most bus trips were much less eventful.

Now we are back at anchor, and in the beautiful bay of Tenacatita at that. It’s good to be back at anchor – you are almost forced to relax.  Actually, after a 24 hour run from La Cruz we went off the grid and did nothing for 2 days, not even get off the boat! When we did, we took a dingy trip up the estuary through the mangroves where we saw snowy egrets, blue heron, and John even saw a small crocodile. On our return we stopped and had a delicious lunch at the beachside palapa restaurant. 

Friday evening is dingy raft up night where folks take their dingies, tie up to each other, pass around appetizers, and float with the tide.  We were treated to some great bluegrass music from one couple who brought their guitar and banjo.  We’re heading off tomorrow to Bahia de Navidad to meet our friends, Jim and Diana Jessie, who will be cruising with us for a couple of weeks so we’ll be back here soon for some more fun.  Stay tuned for more sunsets and hopefully some snorkeling adventures.