It's The Baja

We made it back to home sweet home.  It was an enjoyable five days away and other than the getting there and coming home we had a wonderful time.  We very seldom have any issues with flight.  Once a plane was deemed unsuitable for flight and Alaska cancelled that flight and put us on another but that is the only hiccup we have had over the years.  The new TSA regulations are a hassle but necessary so we just deal with it.  I have been put in the x-ray machine once and Mia has never suffered any issues.  We just follow instructions and we are off and on our way.  Still, flying is difficult and I can't imagine doing it all the time although I doubt that I would have any issues.

Since we weren't sure when we would arrive home we both decided to take the day off today so I am updating the blog and doing some cleaning in my office and making Honey feel extra special.  We decided to leave her with my daughter and her family and Mia took her over Wednesday night last week.  Mia said she was trying to get out the door when she left to come back home.  I never ever thought I would be so attached to an animal but leaving her behind wasn't easy for either of us.  Of course, my daughter posted pictures of her on Facebook so we calmed down when we saw she was enjoying her vacation as well.  Our granddaughter was the primary caregiver and it appears she did an excellent job once again.  Of course, they had to do something, so here is how we found Honey when we got home...it is her PUNK look.

She was very excited to see us and ran all over the house, sliding from room to room on the wood floor.    She spent the night sleeping in a overstuffed chair in our room apparently concerned that we might leave again.  She usually sleeps downstairs on the couch.

We left for Cabo on Thursday morning.  There is one flight from Seattle daily that arrives around four in the afternoon.  Since it was a manufacturer sponsored event.  These trips tend to be nice because the manufacturer is trying to show their appreciation to the individuals who have made their franchise as success over the previous year.  This year was no exception.  We were picked up at the airport and driven past San Jose del Cabo and up the "corridor" to the Dreams Resort.  We were met at the entry by a young spanish lady who "showed me the way".  Once checked in we were off to our room if you can call anything this big a room.  I would guess that the room is a big in square feet as our current trailer and the only thing missing was a kitchen.  There was a patio over looking the ocean and the pool area.

These pictures were taken in the early morning hours before we went down for breakfast.  As you can see it is somewhat overcast as it was most of our stay but it never rained and it remained in the mid seventies the whole time until the sun came out the last two days and the temperatures raised a few degrees.

We had beautiful views of the ocean from our room, the restaurants, and whenever we walked the beach.  Several times over the course of our visit we saw whales breech the water, shoot water into the air and dive back into the water.  Unfortunately it happens so fast and is so far off in the distance that my little Canon Powershot SD450 couldn't capture anything but a small black dot on the water.  Sadly we have no pictures of the whales up close and personal.

The restaurants.  What can I say about the restaurants?  Excellent doesn't seem to do them justice.  I am not sure who the head cook is but suffice it to say that the man or woman knows what they are doing.  Several of the restaurants are buffet style and resemble nothing like Old County Buffet.  These buffets have wonderful assortments of food and there is something for everyones palate.   I gained three pounds because you could eat all you want and I wanted.  The service was amazing from all the staff but the wait staff was exceptional.  Once your plate was empty it was gone and if you need another drink it was there.

While we are on the subject of drink.  As readers of this blog know, I stopped drinking many years ago.  And it is always amazing to me the excesses that I went to when I did drink.  I watch the folks who come to these events and some are very docile like Mia and I.  We don't party hearty.  But the vast majority of these folks do and when you tell them drinks are all inclusive, well, lets just say they don't stop drinking.  Amazing to realize I used to do that.  Each to his own, they appeared to be having as much fun as Mia and I had watching them.

On the first night there was a welcome dinner on the patio between the pool and the Sea of Cortes.  It was a grand affair than went on for several hours.  We retired to our room and made plans for the next day to meet with the staff to see what was available for us to do since we had been given a ton of free time.

 The following morning I attended a 45 minute "business meeting" while Mia slept in.  After the meeting I gathered the information about things to do, met Mia for brunch and went for a walk on the beach while we discussed our options.  We decided to forgo the snorkle trip that was the scheduled event for the group on Saturday and instead go to Todos Santos.  Unfortunately there was no trip to Todos Santos until Sunday so we scheduled the tour and decided to visit Cabo on Saturday.  Last year we went to San Jose del Cabo and found it to be a quaint village with a lot of tourist shopping and artist everywhere.  Cabo would be the tourism capital of the Baja peninsula because they have everything thing you can imagine from luxury shops with armed guards to street hawkers trying to sell you every conceivable item.  We spent around two hours walking around the marina and found this boat with the best name we had seen.

There is tons of wild life around the marina.

We went back to the resort and laid around enjoying the sights and sounds that come with many drunk half naked people enjoying the swimming pool.  Neither Mia or I are big sun people.  I won't lay in the sun.  I'll work in it and if I get tan, great.  But just lay in the sun and get burned like one member of our party did...no thanks.  She was having a hard time walking.

So we enjoyed a quiet dinner and the rest of the evening we wandered around the facility and then went back to our room.  Sunday morning we got up early and had breakfast before meeting our tour guide at the front door of the resort.  We were the only folks going to Todo Santos that day so we got a private tour.  More on the tour and the Hotel California in my next rambling.