Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Come Away With Me

IXTAPA/ZIHUANTANEJO, MEXICO, WEDDING TRIP/MINI VACATION, NUMERO UNO

I really wanted to get this entire trip recap in one blog post, but I made the mistake of using my husband's camera for most of the trip. He took the camera to work. GAH!

For some weird reason we couldn't get flights from San Diego into Mexico. Most of the flights went north to either Los Angeles, San Francisco, or even Phoenix, Az and Seattle, Wa. Really. San Diego is a border town. It seemed ridiculous to drive 2 hours to Los Angeles, so we opted for a short 20 minute drive to a friend's house, then another short 15 minute drive across the border to fly out of Tijuana. Easy. Smooth flights, little to no turbulence, no problems. No pilots slacking on laptops overshooting the destination...

We had one short layover in Mexico City. We had no time to leave the airport or explore the city, but the airport was ginormous. It reminded me of a Legos building...

Benito Juarez International Airport

Arriving at the little Ixtapa airport, greeted by the tropical foliage and 90+ degrees and humid weather, was the beginning of vacation mode.

"Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore..."

We took a taxi to Las Brisas Hotel. Each room has a view of the ocean. Here's a shot looking out to the patio of our room . I would have slept in that patio hammock all night if it weren't for the insects, iguanas, coati and other unusual jungle critters...

¡Cómo es escénico!

At our first evening at the hotel, we joined the parents of the groom at the hotel lobby lounge for happy hour.

Consumición de los cacahuetes en la barra de hotel.

Happy hour offered two drinks for the price of one, but they'd bring out the two drinks at one time. These margaritas were loaded, made from scratch, and not the syrupy sweet mixes you get in the states at chain restaurants. These were wicked.

¡Aclamaciones! My Spanish speaking skills were MUY BUENO after these.

What is it that they say about good intentions? I had intended to run, either at the hotel gym or somewhere, but after a few times up and down this set of stairs at the hotel, I figured I was good to go. My GPS didn't pick up a signal at all and it was too hot and humid to wear socks and shoes. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.


Stairway to heaven... or at least the hotel lobby.


Sure, we were there for a wedding and to visit with people, but we also spent a lot of time doing this:

My husband is one of those dots out in the water. Yes, I did join him to body surf every time we went out.


We bought Gatorade while there, in Ixtapa, thinking that it was the standard yellow lemon/lime flavor. Little did we know it was mango flavored until we had a swig of it and THEN read the label.

¿Mango? ¿Quién sabía?



Más a seguir...

Last Wednesday's song:
Mexico - James Taylor - Pat's Running Blog - Nine Oh Nine

PEACE

15 comments:

KatieFeldmom said...

Welcome back!!! It looks like paradise which I could use a dose of right now!!! Glad that you guys had a good trip. Awesome stairs and the picture of you relaxing at the beach looks like a Corona commercial.

Anne said...

OK, I'm officially jealous. And wondering what mango Gatorade tastes like. It sounds like you and Michael had a fabulous time.

Unknown said...

Ahhhhhh, thanks for that mini vacation, margaritas and everything.
Our honeymoon was in Ixtapa and your pictures brought back wonderful memories. So happy you had fun and thanks for sharing.
meg

Aka Alice said...

I'm DYING HERE reading the captions en español...muy bueno!

Love that 2 for 1 margaritas means you get 4...that's my kind of math!

Glad you're back.

Joyce said...

What a relaxing break you had! After drinking of the pictured margaritas, I think my English-speaking skills would be nil, LOL. Y no sabia que hay mango Gatorade en Mexico tambien. Las cosas que me encuentro en tu blog. ;)

barbie2be said...

norah jones?

love your pix! i am counting down the days to my mexico cruise... 24 as of 5:00 pm today!

Pat said...

I looked at the steps and I thought that was looking down. Boy, that second step would be a dozy.

Matthias said...

A good way to ensure a great hotel gym is to check out http://www.HotelGymReview.com (launching in several weeks) before you leave for your next trip. Also be sure to write reviews about the facility.

I Run for Fun said...

Ah! I took a mini-vacation myself, looking at your pics. Heavenly! Can't wait for the next batch.

Lisa said...

It sounds like a great trip! I never thought about flying out of Tijuana. Honestly, I didn't even know they had an airport. Welcome home!

Glenn Jones said...

Wow. And I thought my run along the beach last night was good.

I wanted to go to Zihuatenejo this past summer for some surfing (I've not been), but just didn't make it. Ixtapa is just a few miles from Zihuatenejo right? These pictures are stunning.

How was the water? In the ocean that is....

Jo Lynn said...

Hey! That picture, the one with the toes and the water? Looks familiar for some reason. ;)
Nice trip, eh?

Irene said...

Thanks! This trip did not suck! I want to go back. FYI, Ixtapa and Zihunatanejo are right next to each other, almost overlapping, it seemed. This was the respite we needed.

Pink Granite said...

What a wonderful getaway - and well deserved!
Welcome home...
;o)
- Lee

Irene said...

Thanks, Lee!