Mexican Wave

---

We made our first of many border cossings fearing the worst, the guide books suggest complications in particular if you have to import vehicles, which we have to for all the countries on route. Our initial observations was the sudden change from the orderly systems of the U.S. to the hustle and bustle of Mexico. Cars and people weaving about, horns blaring etc... . Our transition through immigration and importation were slightly better than anticipated, taking about 2 hours. It could have been quicker but for the subtle differences between European and Mexican Spanish. 'El coche´ in European Spanish means car and in Mexican means pig, anyway with our newly aquired pig permit we headed south 60 miles to Ensenada. We chose to stay our first two nights in a hostel recommended in the guide books for its friendly host Maria. This proved a good option. Maria, a very wordly wise Mexican and excellent cook enlightened us with what to expect on our journey south and shared her perceptive views on everything from politics to promiscuity. We left after a morning run with the loan of Marias ´perro bara´( a stick for whacking the street stray dogs if needed). Our plan was to follow the Mexican Baja peninsula south and cross from La Paz at the bottom to the Mexican mainland. The peninsula is about 1,000 miles long and co-incidentaly the famous Baja rally was on at the same time (I haven´t heard of it either). We quickly realised that Mexico to America is like Spain to Britain. A mixture of tourist trap resorts and authentic villages. You can tell when you have landed in a tourist town as when you sit down for a coffee you are surrounded by mariachies singing Óne Ton Tomato´. The landscape of the Baja is a mixture of desert with giant cacti and white sand beaches with turquoise blue seas. From Ensenada a long cross desert drive took us to Catavina, a small campground in amongst the cacti and huge boulders. Packing up the tent in the morning we had our first scorpion encounter as it scurried from under our tent. It was barely an inch long but a reminder to check in shoes. We researched the treatment for scorpion stings and apparently it is ´big hugs´..... another reason to be extra careful. Talking of little creatures, as avid nature lovers we have started a collection of moths and butterflies. We have an array of different species all sizes and a rainbow of colours. We keep our collection on the front of the truck radiator.
Next stop was a tiny beach town on the east coast called San Lucas but we had to get through a couple of military check points before reaching our destination. We were stopped by gun wealding Mexican soldiers who insisted on searching the contents of the truck. Funnily enough they all seemed to stop at Nik´s smelly training kit and then we were quickly waved on (a good place to stash any contraband if ever we should be short of cash). We have managed to sample a variety of Mexican cuisine along the way and have come to the conclusion that they are made up of either hard or floppy frisbees (alias tortillas), surrounded by beans, rice and a brown mush that is usually called something un-pronouncable that begins with a ´Q´. To balance our diet we usually alternate frisbees with good old spag bol. Travelling down the Baja was a little hairy as the roads are in good condition but a bit on the narrow side. The space between a large 18 wheeler and our truck is barely the size of a ´gnats c**k´. We called into a little place called Loreto and were mesmerised by the pelicans cruising along and fishing at sunset. The last stop on the Baja was La Paz, a bigger bustling city. We found a great beach just north of the town (Tecalote) where we pitched up. Had a dip in the sea and took a kayak out to admire the scenery from the water. The next day we took the car ferry to Mazatlan on the mainland. Met two beer swilling Bavarian brothers who were driving around the world in a British landrover. They had just traversed Russia and down through the US and here they were forcing us to drink Mexican beer. Aim to spend the next two weeks making our way towards the Guatmalan border.

---

Photos

Tecalote Beach
A bigger beak than Nik (just)

Hostel - Ensenada
Maria our friendly host

Catavina
A prickly problem

Baja Beach
Warmer than a bath

Loreto
Nik nearly pulled a muscle running to see the birds on a boat.

Our Butterfly Collection
Butterflyus splatius.

Comments

[Stuart and Sally]

Adios desde Tenerife
Hola El Blog es moy bueno. Aprendimos espanol tambion y encontramos lo un problema. Nosotros vuelta a ingleterra manana, donde lo frio. Tener un buen viaje a America del Sur. Adios Stuart P.S. May not scan that well, but it’s my best effort !!