mazatlán

So as I mentioned in "the basics" post, I have been lucky enough to have the opportunity to travel pretty much all my life. Looking back on my childhood, the annual trips to Mazatlán, Mexico definitely started my traveling addiction. We used to go every year in January/February for two weeks until I started high school.

Clearly I have never lived in Mexico and my time spent in Mazatlán was more vacation time than adventure time, so this post will be a bit different in comparison to my switzerland or colorado posts. Being younger I did not have as much as an appreciation for traveling and different cultures as I do now, though I was always trying to learn a bit of Spanish and always participated in the 'culture' aspects our resort provided. Basically my disclaimer is that my experiences here are very 'touristy/resort' (and I haven't been back since 2005) but I long to go back to Mazatlán to get a better taste of its culture and relive my childhood experiences. I highly recommend taking a trip to Mazatlán for some excellent R and R (rest and relaxation), plus Mexico truly is an amazing country (in and out of resort walls) that doesn't get nearly enough credit.  (PS: I still have my timeshare so if this post inspires anyone to go check out Mazatlán, let's go!)

Mini- "Lesson" on Mazatlán, Mexico:

• It is in the Mexican state of Sinaloa
• It means "place of the deer"
• It is often called the Pearl of the Pacific
• The "Pacifico" brewery is located here (I love this beer mostly because it brings back memories of my dad drinking it every time we were there) 
• It's a pretty big tourist destination because of the resorts and the port for cruise boats (We have a timeshare with the El Cid-El Moro resorts) 
• There are islands close by in the Pacific Ocean (the ones closest to our resort are Wolf, Deer and Bird Island)
• The "White Rocks" on Bird Island got their name thanks to the amount of bird dung that has accumulated over the years, permanently staining the originally gray/brown rocks white.
  
• The beaches are great but beware that they are filled with people selling touristy stuff and beggars. You can bargain if you want to buy something and I do, however, suggest getting your hair beaded (I did it every single year). I would always go back to the same beader and we would bring her beads from the USA 
• There is always a lot of different activities going on whether it is golfing, kayaking, banana boating, parasailing, fishing trips, etc (again it's a big tourist town) We would always go to Playa Bruja to horseback ride on the beach with Ginger's Bilingual Horses' 
• The lighthouse, El Faro, was made in Paris and is located on Creston Hill, a popular destination for cliff divers
• If you need to get around take a "Pulmonia" which is a taxi that resembles a golf cart and only costs a few pesos (it's unique to Mazatlán) 
• There is a lot to do at the Malecon (boardwalk) which is also home to a lot of statues from unknown artistes such as the statue of Benito Juarez, the leaping dolphins and the surprised Mermaid
• The largest statue is "Fisherman's Monument" to pay heritage to the fishing history of the town, and it is commonly used as a reference point 
• It's a popular Spring Break destination with a lot of clubs and bars. We would go to Señor Frogs :P
• The Cathedral is really pretty, with great views, and it's gorgeous at night 
• The sea shell museum is pretty cool. You will see a lot of diverse sea life including puffer fish and starfish. Don't accidentally mistake a plastic floating turtle for a real one though 
• Though I personally have not, nor would ever go... there is a mexican bull fighting stadium 
• There's a lively open market (Pino Suarez) downtown but if you are more consumer driven there is also a Sam's Club haha
• Icebox Hill has a cave where they stored ice that was shipped from San Francisco to keep the seafood cold. Later it became a hideout from pirates, then to store ammunition and now it's called Cerro de la Neveria (Devil's Cave) 
• You can probably find a mariachi band playing in almost every restaurant on the beach 
• There is always something to do here, day or night, and the people are very friendly 

Favorite Dishes:

• MEXICAN FOOD. enough said.
• Pacifico Beer
• Tequila
• SEAFOOD
• Poncho's Restaurant (really great food, right on the beach)
• El Casa Country (so much fun and some of the best homemade steak sauce)
• Pineapple drink thing from El Cid resort (It's a cocktail in a pineapple) 
• Resort life: Buffets 

7 Recommended Places to visit/things to do:

• Take a free city tour: Explore the old city, Malecon and see cliff divers 
• Take a catamaran trip to Deer Island: You leave in the morning, tour around the other islands, then spend your day doing various activities (snorkeling, volleyball, banana boat, etc)  on the island
• See a traditional Mexican Dance Show. The dresses are AMAZING
• Horseback ride on the beach
• Paraglide (I still haven't done it!) 
• Enjoy the resort life: pools, massages, activities (Spanish bingo, Mexican pottery painting (great souvenir), drinking competitions, etc), aquafitness, rest and relaxation 
• Get your hair braided and give in and buy some souvenirs (I recommend some maracas, sombreros, and Mexican/Aztec Dolls) 

                                                                                The view from our timeshare:

                                                                                  "Viva México! Viva Mazatlán!" -Me