San Jose del Cabo

I ended quarter 3 of my nursing program and quarter 4 doesn’t start until April 1st, so I decided to take a spring break trip. I had thought about Arizona first, as I really like hiking in the desert. I had planned on going to a spa-type resort, getting some sunshine and doing some hiking. Then Cabo entered my mind.

I ended up on a 4-day trip to San Jose del Cabo and arrived yesterday. I had hoped to have D join me (yes, she’s back in my life, though tentatively), but her work schedule would not allow. Same with my friend Christian. But I needed sunshine and some time to relax, so I went ahead and booked.

I ended up at the Hotel El Ganzo, a new hotel with a distinct contemporary feel. I arrived at about 2:30 in the afternoon and fell in love with the place. The beautiful blue sky and 89 degree weather certainly contributed to my quick embrace of the place. Though they are still working through some glitches attributed to its newness, the location is nice, the room is wonderful and the staff is outstanding. Upon arrival I changed into shorts and explored the surroundings. I started off with the pool on the ground floor, which I had to myself, then headed out to the beach. There were dozens of local families on the beach, and I especially enjoyed the peals of laughter coming from three little sisters who looked to be between two and six years old. I watched them frolic while padre and madre fished in the surf, took a swim myself, and returned to the hotel for a swim in the roof pool.

The roof of this place is pretty incredible. A view of the ocean and beaches for miles to the east and west, mountains to the north, and the city to the northwest, with an infinity pool and an infinity hot tub. The sunset was gorgeous, and the moonrise (a full moon) even more spectacular. Words, especially mine, can’t do it justice. After a swim and some time in the hot tub, it was back to the room to shower and off to dinner.

Dinner consisted of a wonderful seafood soup that was chock full of seafood and had right amount of spiciness – reminiscent of a cioppino – and some good but somewhat bland tamales, all accompanied by a jazz trio. From there I left to explore the goings on in the area. What I discovered is that although it is wonderful, this place is really off the beaten path – it is miles from the regular flow of Cabo activity, and it is a $20 round trip cab ride to San Jose del Cabo proper (and three times that to get to Cabo San Lucas). I stopped at a local market for an ice cream, and off to bed.

Today I got up and determined that it was much more convenient and cost effective to rent a car rather than taking taxis all over. The front desk arranged for a company to drop off a car at 2, so I grabbed a workout and then lunch at a little cantina across the street. Great fresh fish (served vera cruz) and authentic corn tortillas. I then headed for the beach at the hotel’s boat club. I got a chair next to a woman (Paula Clarkson) and her son (Lee Clarkson), who it turned out was on leave from the US Navy. As I was alone, I struck up a conversation with them and asked if she would put sunscreen on my very pale back where I couldn’t reach. She noted I needed it, then asked me to join them under their umbrella. Turns out the two of them were there under less than ideal circumstances. There’s actually 5 in the family, with Lee being the older of the three siblings. The family arrived at LAX for the trip and it turned out the two younger of the kids had expired passports. So Lee and Paula headed to Cabo, and dad and the two younger kids stayed in LA.

Paula and Lee were actually staying at the Westin in Cabo and had taken a taxi to El Ganzo to rent bikes and check out the sculpture garden near here, with the idea of going into downtown San Jose del Cabo afterwards. As my rental car was due to arrive within the hour and I too wanted to see downtown, I invited them to join me and save the cab fare. What a wonderful afternoon! Paula is a wonderful storyteller – one story involved sharing Aretha Franklin seats with Sharon Stone at the Hollywood Bowl while her husband was still feeling the effects of a vasectomy and on Percocet, another involved a friend who fought cancer and gave her the catchphrase “it’s only money and it’s not cancer” (which I have decided I’m going to co-opt), and a friend who was present when two small children were swept away by a rogue wave, among others. The three of us headed into San Jose del Cabo and had a spectacular time. We had a great lunch at a sidewalk café and then did some shopping.

Paula was an old hand at negotiating at the markets, so she and I teamed up to get a deal on some earrings, her a pair of black onyx and me a pair of red coral for D. As I lost my sunglasses I needed another pair, and she threw me out there to negotiate on my own. I ended up with a pair of Oakley knockoffs for a few pesos. She then insisted, due to my lack of color (pigment-wise, not personality-wise), that I get a hat. So the three of us set off in search of a hat. And we came up with a pretty good one – wide brim, white, fedora-like I guess you could say.

And with that, we were off. I dropped them off at their hotel in Cabo and made my way back to my hotel. A quick dinner, another ice cream, a soak in the soaker tub in my room, and here I am, on the roof and blogging away before bed.
So that covers the activities. Kind of a diary entry I guess, and boring to anyone but me I’d also guess. Anything deeper? Well, as much as I needed sunshine and warm weather after a long Seattle winter, I would be enjoying myself much more if I were with a traveling partner. I would especially love to have D here. I’m a bit of an extrovert in that I like to have people around, and though I mix well with strangers, I really like to have familiar folks among the mix. So many tours and adventure-type activities to do here, but most of them for me are much more compelling when shared – today’s junket is a great example. I had so much more fun with Lee and Paula than I would have by myself. And so, I’m spending much more time here in introspective pursuits. Time at the beach watching the waves and the people. Lounging on the roof enjoying the view and the drinks. Soaking in a great soaking tub. Reading and blogging. I’m having a great time, but am looking forward to getting back to Seattle, getting some time in on my bike, and hopefully getting some time with D. It’s not just about what you do, it’s about who you do it with I guess is the best takeaway. We all need alone time (some more than others), but very few of us would prefer to be completely alone I think.