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Published: October 4th 2016
PARROTS
Maybe these guys are bilingual.Cruise ships have not stopped in Acapulco this year due to the dangerous drug cartel activity in the area. But it has been a bit quieter recently so the decision was made to proceed to Acapulco. Besides, the guests were getting restless after so many sea days. Bahia de Acapulco is one of the prettiest natural bays in the world. I was amazed by this beautiful bay back in 1966 on my first international flight with Braniff Airlines and have been back to visit many times since.
After disembarking the ship, we were greeted by a local band. The Mariner docked in the shadow of El Fuerte de San Diego, the fortress built over 200 years ago to protect the settlement from pirates. It has now been turned into a fascinating museum which details the strong trading ties between Mexico and both China and the Philippines and best of all it is within walking distance of the port. There is also a fine program detailing the history of the indigenous natives of Mexico.
We opted for an excursion to the Pierre Marquis Hotel, a luxury beach resort 45 minutes drive around the bay. We spent the day on the
ACAPULCO BAY
A gorgeous natural bay that sparkles both day and night. beach and were treated to a nice luncheon. We noticed several things on the ride. The first being the high level of security that was very evident. Gun-toting militia were lining the beach promenade for miles. We also noticed that many storefronts and restaurants were shuttered due to the sharp drop in tourism because of the gang violence. In its heyday, Acapulco was the playground of the stars. The Los Flamingos Hotel was the center of the universe after the “Hollywood Gang” bought it. The gang was led by John Wayne and included Johnny Weissmuller, Errol Flynn, Roy Rodgers and Cary Grant among others. They partied and enjoyed the famous cliff divers at La Quebrada just as we still do today. Everyone seemed very happy to see us and there were no reported incidents during our stay in Acapulco.
In Guatemala we docked at the port city of Puerto Quetzel. Regent is an all- inclusive cruise line which means that tours are also included. The range of excursions offered by the ship in Guatemala is amazing. Do you want to climb a volcano, visit a coffee plantation, explore the beautiful Mayan ruins at Tikal or go take a boat
FUERTE de SAN DIEGO
Fortress and museum ride on the Rio Dulce river? It is all offered. We picked the coffee plantation as it would give us a chance to get into the countryside, see some of the volcanoes and check out the coffee trade in this interesting nation. We visited the coffee farm of El Barretal located high in the mountains. En route we saw the Pacaya Volcano which last erupted in 2010 and killed over 4,000 people. We learned that Starbucks buys all of the coffee grown in Guatemala and that most of the colorful fabrics produced here are shipped to China.
We toured the lovely grounds of the farm and got a good education in the intricacies of coffee growing, harvesting and roasting. After tasting some of the product, we took the ride down the mountain and back to the Mariner.
That night as we sailed out into the Pacific Ocean we dined al fresco at LaVeranda with Luke Bergado, the Destinations Manager and several of our guests. Luke started his career working in the United Arab Emirates and eventually joined the cruise line in the tour department. We have watched his rise within the organization over the years to reach this
MEXICAN BAND
We were welcomed by these enthusiastic musicians
In Acapulco. important and high pressure position on Regent. He does a great job. It was a beautiful night on the high seas and Luke told us how much he liked Guatemala and its people and how he was looking forward to our visit to Costa Rica.
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Bob and Lucia
non-member comment
Back on the Voyager
Hi Kev & Susan, Glad to see you're into the swing of things on the Mariner! We're on the Voyager starting end of December for 18 days going from Singapore to Sydney. We wish you were aboard!