Click on a photo to enlarge it.
On Monday and Tuesday we relaxed on the beach and Kirsten put up her hammock under a Palapa (a shelter made out of wood and large palm leaves).
We chatted to Warren and Sherry who have a 1960 converted school bus and have been coming down here for 10 years. Warren goes out with a harpoon
every day and brings back really large fish which he gives away to the local restaurants.
On Wednesday, impressed with Kirstens all-over body tan, Helen decided to try a spot of sunbathing to try and get rid of the shorts and T shirt tan
and try and get her stomach brown. After all that effort there was no difference whatsoever!! She probably put on too much sun tan cream!
Later, we went for a walk to the other beaches and had to cross a stream by clambering over two strategically placed boats. We saw hundreds of
pelicans in a feeding frenzy as all the sardines had come in with the tide. Even some Mexican boys went out into the water and, using their
out-stretched T shirts, scooped up loads of sardines!
There must have been thousands of sardines and you could see their silver skins reflecting the sunlight in flashes in the shallow water. Further
along the beach we could see large turtle tracks where they come up on the beach to lay eggs. You have to go back around midnight to watch them.
On Thursday, Winnie became a taxi and dropped off Mica and Nancy with a load of luggage at a bus stop on the main road and then took Lisa, who we
had met yesterday at the sardine feeding frenzy, further south with us.
We drove along the scenic coastal road south and, after stopping off for lunch, drove down to Playa Azul. We drove Lisa around to search for
accommodation and then we drove out to a free spot on the beach out of town.
We watched the sunset and had something to eat, but then we decided to drive back into town for the night as we were the only ones parked on the
remote beach. So we found a spot near the main square in town.
It was 28° C inside Winnie with no wind coming in through the windows - and it was 10pm!! Far too hot to sleep!
On Friday, Lisa found us and said she was going to stay another night here. She asked us to send an email to her children to let them know she
was alright, because there wasn't any internet in Maruata and we found out that there wasn't internet in Playa Azul either!
We set off at 11am and found an internet place about 10 miles south. Kirsten wanted to use a mouse to unlock the touchpad on our computer because
our mouse was kaputt! But they didn't have any compatible ones. So we sent Lisa's children an email and then headed further south.
We found another dump station on the way and got to Zihuatanejo where we found a supermarket to do some shopping. Afterwards we drove along the
bay to find a free spot but took a wrong turn and ended up going up a very steep road, high up above the bay and had to come all the way back down
again.
Finally we found a parking area near the beach and went for a walk. The beach was not as long and wide as we had thought. This is a major tourist
place, but we found Maruata a lot better.
That night, it was still really hot, so we got out our chairs and sat in the street under some lights to read!!
On Saturday, we walked along the beach and clambered over a lot of rocks to get to a very good snorkelling place. This was the reason we had come
here. Legend has it that a barrier was built against the sharks for a king 700 years ago, to make the bay into a kind of outdoor swimming pool.
Even Helen went into the water which was so shallow that the snorkelling was no good at all - too shallow and murky and nothing to see. Plus it
was packed with tourists! So we just found a shady spot and read on the beach for a few hours before coming back.
On Sunday, we left late because Kirsten wanted to finish her book and then drove back up north along the coast to Troncones where we were going to
meet up with Bob and Suzanne. We first met them in Tamasopo in January last year, which is on the eastern side of Mexico where they live. We met
up with them again in the Napa Valley in Ocotber last year.
They were staying in a friends house which is right on the beach in Troncones. It is a wonderful place, designed with relaxation in mind and very
open plan - no interior doors! But you can sit on the balcony, overlooking the beach front and get a really lovely cool breeze coming in. It was
far too hot to sit in the sun!
It was great to see Bob and Suzanne again and we also met their nephew George and his wife Christine, and one of Bob's college friends, Randy. They
were all staying in the villa - but it didn't look crowded at all!
