Arrived on a long awaited return to Mexico. Last time we were here was over a year and a half ago…a long time by Sarah and my standards. It’s great to be back…this time exploring a city that neither of us have been to; Mazatlan.
Our first day was filled with a bit more adventure then we would have liked…but it all worked out in the end. My parents graciously picked us up at 5:30 from our house and delivered us to Sea-Tac around 6:15. Walked up to the ticket counter, swiped my credit card to check in…”YOU ARE TOO LATE TO CHECK INTO THIS FLIGHT. PLEASE SEE A CUSTOMER SERVICE AGENT.” What? Our flight wasn’t until 8:00…sure we weren’t two hours early like they ask you to be for international flights…but c’mon! As we got into the gigantic line at customer service, a very nice Alaska Airlines representative, Pablo, asked what we were getting in line for. With a confused look on his face, he asked Sarah to stay with our bags and whisked me back to the ticket machines to see for himself. Same thing happened…so then he took me to an agent behind a desk to try and figure out what the issue was. Turns out Alaska had re-booked us to fly through Portland and then on to Mazatlan instead of going through Los Angeles…the BIG problem was that the flight to Portland departed at 6:30. They told me they sent an e-mail a few months ago…I had no recollection of any such e-mail. Oh boy. So I hurried back to Sarah, Maria and the bags and waited till we got to the customer service desk where we told our story to Craig. He was incredibly kind and spent the next 20(ish) minutes trying to figure out a way to get us to Mazatlan that day. Finally he was able to get us back on to the 8:00 to LA…and back onto our connecting flight for Mazatlan. In addition for the trouble, he waived one of our checked bag fees. Also…since we had spent so much time waiting in the customer service line and working with him, he recognized that it might be tight getting through security and to our gate…so he closed his booth and walked us to the front of the security line to let us through. When we got to the gate, the agents there told us that he had also called ahead to make them aware of our situation and they were scrambling to try and get us seats together on the plane. A few minutes later, they were ready to board us…the agent walked us down, boarded first to shuffle some people for us and came back with three seats right next to each other. Crisis aborted…we were on our way! BIG THANK YOU to Pablo, Craig and the ladies working Gate 3D (I’m sorry I didn’t catch your names) the morning of 7-10-10…you helped to make the entire situation very easy to resolve and helped get our vacation started with minimal stress. (Also note…during this entire process…Maria was amazing…standing with us calmly and quietly…maybe she was tired due to the early waking…but she was absolutely GREAT!)
The flight down to LA was quick and uneventful. One big change since our last flight with Maria is that she now prefers going to the bathroom on the potty…and after our first trip to the airplane restroom, she must have found the bathrooms fun because she wanted to go ALL THE TIME. On the flight, Maria and Daddy did four trips to the potty…three successful outings and even one poo-poo…which was GREAT for all three of us and the passangers around us. Who likes a poopy diaper? YEAH MARIA!
Due to the mix up of the tickets, we had to depart Seattle without tickets for the leg from Los Angeles to Mazatlan…but when we got to the gate, they had us ready to go with three seats together no problem. The flight from LA to Mazatlan was pretty short…only about 2 hours…and Maria slept most of the way, what a trooper! She really has become an excellent traveler. Yesterday Sarah and I that with all the complaining that we do about Maria’s inability to sleep through the night…a worse curse for us would be “2.0” to sleep like a champ but for him/her to not like to travel.
Mazatlan’s airport is pretty small, which is great because it allows you to get through customs pretty quickly. We gathered all our things and walked up to push the infamous button that decided whether your bags would be searched or not. We decided to let Maria push it for us…since she likes pushing buttons so much. Sure enough…ROJO…it was search time. The man who went through our bags was pretty kind and didn’t tear our bags apart too much. We were worried since we weren’t sure if we’d be able to get Sarah’s bag back together in the airport…and thankfully we decided not to pack any of those illegal items. Phew! Got out of the airport to find our hotel’s shuttle waiting for us. Once on board we realized…we left the stroller behind. CRAP. What do you do? Do you try to get back through security and immigration for a $20 umbrella stroller? Will we really walk so much that we’d need it…and more importantly…if we do walk so much that we think we’d need it, will Maria ride in it? We made the decision to leave it behind…more because we had no clue on how to get past all the armed security more then anything. Oh well…it was a good stroller while it lasted. We’re confident that it’s been cut in half looking for smuggled drugs or something by now…but we’ve sent an e-mail to Alaska asking for them to see if they can find it for us.
Got to the hotel…we got a great room overlooking one of the pools and the Marina. Once we got situated, we headed straight to the pool. With Maria’s swimming classes, she’s really started to like being in the pool a lot. The pool our room overlooks has a great kiddie section that is shallow enough for Maria to walk around and keep her head above water. We still need to be with her, of course, but we are able to give her a good deal of freedom while in the pool…which she likes. We kept it simple on our first day…drinks and food by the pool for dinner. Afterward, we did take a taxi to the supermarket to buy water, sweet breads, soda, snacks and milk…with these staples we were ready to being our vacation.
On Sunday, Sarah and Maria woke up around 8:00…I somehow slept in till about 9:00. I’m not a sleeper so I don’t know how that happened…must have been a combination of being tired, the blackout shades and the cool air conditioning…felt great! We spent the morning at the pool and then hurried off to find a restaurant that was showing the World Cup Final. The silly people at FIFA did not consult us on the timing of this game…and it unfortunately coincided with nap time. We got to the restaurant and Maria decided that she didn’t really want to wait for nap time, so she just fell asleep in Sarah’s arms…WOW…again, what a trooper! The swimming must have really tired her out because she made it all the way through regulation. After she woke up, Maria and Mom decided to go shopping for pool toys while Dad stayed to watch the extra time. What a game…I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that it didn’t go to PKs…what a horrible way to finish a tournament. Both teams had their chances, and didn’t convert in regulation. At the end of the day, I think the better team won. Now only 47 months to wait till the next cup…Maria and I are going for sure!
Monday…more or less more of the same. Pool in the morning…a well coordinated nap time and then we went to check out the beach. Our hotel surrounds a Marina that is on a small jetty that heads to the ocean. To get to the beach you have to take the hotel’s water taxi across the jetty…a 3 minute trip. It was a nice beach, a good breeze with plenty of chairs and umbrellas (for those who wanted shade). Unfortunately there were jelly fish in the water so they highly recommended we stay out of the water. We played in the sand and watched a family flying kites, Maria loved them! After a few hours, we headed back to get cleaned up…and went out to do some exploring of the city. Up till this point, we frankly hadn’t been too impressed with Mazatlan…no real walk-able areas to enjoy…just one random building after another…but then we found a neighborhood called Olas Altas. We didn’t get to explore much, but it was exactly what we were looking for. Lots of quaint, old world shops with little cantinas and cafes with al fresco dining, cheap food and views of the ocean. Unfortunately it is LITERALLY on the opposite end of town…so it requires a taxi to get there…but it was well worth it. After dinner at a cafe that was recommended on Trip Advisor, La Cueva del Leon, we walked around the street vendors stalls and enjoyed just being around some of the locals.
So on this trip, we decided to live like Mexicans and not pack our car seat. It is so bloody heavy…and it’s not like we’re able to strap it into the shuttles or taxis. (And before anyone judges us…remember that when we were all two, none of us had boosters…we were lucky to have lap belts…and we all survived.) When in Rome right? Anyway…on the ride back, we were riding along…about 9:30 at night, Maria seated in Sarah’s lap…and then all of a sudden she grabs the door handle and opened the door. Yes, that’s right, while we were whipping along the main thoroughfare. It was the craziest, most surreal thing. Sarah quickly grabbed her hand away from the door…and then I saw the taxi’s door start to swing open. Sarah then grabbed the door and pulled it closed. It happened in a matter of seconds…but WOW…CRAZY. The taxi driver was very cool about the entire situation…but he did tell us that we got his heart racing for a moment. WOW. Oh…speaking of taxis…Mazatlan is full of them…and they’re not just plain old yellow cabs…they’re freakin’ super-powered golf carts. Picture a VW bug…but saw off the top and put a golf cart top on it…that would be a taxi here. They’re great…but the first few rides are a bit nerve racking…especially when you’re riding around unbuckled while holding your two year old. We will, however, be riding in the open air taxis from now on as the handle to open the door is on the outside of the car…much easier to control Maria’s nimble hands from causing a commotion.
Alrightly…I’ve rambled enough. Really hoping all the craziness dies down…all we want is some peace and quiet and a safe trip home. OK…it’s nap time here…and I think I’ll catch some Zzzz’s myself. Adieos from Mexico! Pictures to come shortly!