Cigars in Mazatlan 2

Cigars in Mazatlan 1

Return from Mazatlan

The backyard upon our return from Mazatlan on Sunday April 6, 2014. Still leftover snow on the ground from the 8 inch snowstorm we missed while we were gone.

Mazatlan 2014 - Hibiscus

The hibiscus that was blooming around the resort was beautiful.

Mazatlan 2014 - Shells

I liked looking for shells on my beach walks. Although there weren't a lot to be found, the ones I came upon were quite pretty.

Mazatlan 2014 - Te-Amo Cuban Cigars

Mazatlan 2014 - Te-Amo Cuban Cigars

Mazatlan 2014 - Imbibing

Gin and tonic on the plane.

Pina colada at La Paloma.

Cocktail hour martini on the balcony.

Martini at Los Delfines.

Mazatlan 2014 - Return Home: Picking Up Athena

We got home at 12:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. The flight home was wonderful. It was hard to leave the sunshine but picking up Athena from Silver Dog was more than enough to make up for it.

Mazatlan 2014 - A Few of My Favorite Things

Cigars in the hot tub.

Mazatlan 2014 - A Few of My Favorite Things

The sun.

Lounging by the pool.

Mazatlan 2014 - A Few of My Favorite Things

Morning coffee on the balcony with Dale.

The sky and sand of morning walks along the beach.

The sound of the ocean during walks along the beach.

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 5: Wrapping It Up

Saturday April 5, 2014

Morning coffee on the balcony with Dale.

Tried to stick as much as possible to our routine for our last (albeit not full) day at Estrella del Mar due to the things that have become part of our routine are the things we've LOVED doing here.  Coffee on the balcony followed by Dale taking a run and my taking a beach walk. I'm going to miss stripping down to my speedo and walking on the wet sand as my skin drinks in the warm sun while looking at the beautiful coastline and listening to the waves.  I'm already looking forward to the next time we're back.

Met up with Dale at the pool after my walk. We asked each other how many more days we thought we could stay without getting antsy. My guess is that I could handle at LEAST a couple. I think seven days would be perfect.

Had lunch in the hotel's courtyard although we were given the same menu as the Poolside Cafe.  I think anywhere you sit and can find service is considered the Poolside Cafe because we were given the same menu.  Anyway, I had the tuna fajitas which is what Dale had yesterday. He had a club sandwich with fries.

We spent most of the rest of the afternoon getting the condo tidied up and mentally preparing ourselves for the break with paradise. I'm so glad we missed the 8 inches of snow that fell back home. It was so nice sitting under an umbrella by the pool in nothing but swim trunks and felling the breeze caress my chest. That may sound cheesy but, hell, it's true. A warm enough temperature in shade with a soft breeze is nothing less than sensual! After the long winter we had this year it was so good to rediscover that feeling. I can't wait to go back.

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 4: Exploring the City

Thursday April 4, 2014

The following photos were taken when in Mazatlan as we were trying to locate Sanborns which is where John and Dianne recommended that I find cigars.

Top left and right: On the highway.
Bottom left: Toyota dealership. 
Bottom right: 2 Pollos. 

Senor Frogs. I'm not sure how to explain Senor Frogs. The shop was in the same mall as Sanborns. Sanborns is a higher end Mexican department store that also has a cigar counter. Not something you'd find in American department stores.

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 4: Cigars, Cocktails, Food, and Snow

Friday April 4, 2014

Woke up to a clear blue sky this morning. Another fabulous beach walk. Found some unique shells and I must say I'm amassing quite a collection.

On Facebook I'm noticing a lot of folks back home are posting pictures of the snow that started falling yesterday. Dale says there was about 8 inches of snow in Minneapolis. So glad we missed it. Our timing for this trip couldn't've been better. I'd like to say I planned it that way but everyone knows I'm not that all-knowing and powerful.

Lunch at the Pool Side Cafe which is in Las Villas Hotel which is on the Estrella del Mar resort. We sat outside and a very sweet cat came up and sat by my feet while I ate my crunch chicken tacos. Dale had the tuna fajitas.

A couple days ago Dale talked to Dianne on the phone and she gave him the name of the store John goes to to get cigars when he is here.  It's called Sanborns and it's actually a department store. I purchased two Te-Amo Churchills and a lighter. I'll leave the lighter and one of the cigars for John since I smoked one of his last night. 

We drove into Mazatlan to pick up cigars and some food to get through our last day tomorrow. We also filled up the rental car so we can return it with a full tank.

We went to dinner tonight at Los Delfines which is in the Las Villas hotel here at the Estrella del Mar resort. I had the surf and turf of shrimp and steak. Dale had the fish special. I, of course, started out with a couple of martinis. I watched the waiter make them and kudos to him for shaking the hell out of 'em. Sadly, they were rather weak for martinis. I think he reversed the vermouth to gin ratio. The t.v. in the bar was set to VH1 Classic which was a helluva lot of fun to watch. Dancing On the Ceiling by Lionel Ritchie was a scream. When we got to the restaurant there was a reallly drunk and obnoxious American woman who was climbing on barstools and having the waitstaff take pictures of her and her date posing in sombreros. I tell ya - some people.

After the restaurant Dale and I returned to the condo for our final evening. We hit the hot tub again and I lit up the Te-Amo Churchill I purchased today and enjoyed the warm water and sight of the cresent moon as I puffed happily away. How relaxing. Dale and I both commented how we're both going to really miss this place.

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 3: Sunset Photos

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 3: Getting Into a Routine

Thursday April 3, 2014

   Woke up this morning at around 6 o'clock.  My heart sank when I saw how cloudy it was.  Dale was quite positive it would all clear up.  He was right.  Bless his heart. 

   Went for a walk along the beach around 9:30.  Collected quite a few shells.  Met up with Dale at the pool afterward.  We really are starting to develop something of a daily routine.  Read The Trip to Echo Spring by Olivia Lang for a bit and then took a quick dip in the pool.  Dale and I took a selfie to text to John and Dianne as a thank you.

   Lunch at La Paloma.  I had the coconut shrimp again.  Dale had the enchilada.  It's gorgeous being able to sit outside and look at the ocean while eating.  

   Watched the sunset on the beach and then ate dinner at the condo - leftovers from last night.

   We went out to the hot tub about 8 p.m.  I smoked one of John's cigars, a Te-Amo, which was heavenly.  It was a gorgeous night sky again.  Lots of stars and a cresent moon which shined bright on the ocean.  Dale called it magical and I agreed.  Just like last night.

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 2: Morning Walk Photos

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 2: Cigars and Stuff

   Slept fairly well last night.  Dale and I were both up early.  It was beautiful to watch the ocean waves from the balcony as it lightened up.  Speaking of ocean waves, it was also lovely listening to them while falling asleep last night as well as waking up to them this morning.  They are very powerful sounding - sometimes as loud as thunder - yet also very comforting to hear.  I think it must have something to do with their rhythm.  Dale told me about the first time he slept near the ocean.  When he moved to Washington D.C. when he was 17, his parner at the time, John, took him for a vacation at Rehoboth Beach in Delaware.  He said falling asleep to the waves was such a memorable and peaceful thing.  He still remembers what a wonderful sleep he had that night.

   Around 9:30 a.m. I took a long walk along the beach - probably about 40 minutes.  It was gorgeous and I got a lot of nice photos and even took a couple videos.  One was of the waves and the other was of some pelicans flying overhead.  Dale took a run through the golf course and we met up by the pool.

   Lunch at La Paloma again.  I had a tuna steak and Dale had chicken.  We started with the fish ceviche.  The seafood is so amazing here.  Dale tells me that Mazatlan is a shrimping port.

   Took another excursion into town today in search of cigars and also to stop at Mega for dinner fixings.  Dale found a reliable cigar shop online.  I use the word reliable since the area is known for having a lot of counterfeit Cuban cigars.  There wasn't an address online but it was supposed to be across the street from a big hotel.  We plugged the address of the hotel in the GPS and found it with no problem.  Finding the cigar shop however was a much more difficult matter.  We searched a five block stretch across from the hotel and found nothing.  We checked inside the hotel and they knew nothing about any kind of cigar store.  

Just prior to lighting up.

   We decided to give up but on our way back to the car we ran into a street vendor selling all kinds of knick knacks but also having a selection of cigars.  I was pretty sure they were fake but decided to give them a try for lack of any other options.  The gentleman vendor told me it was 500 pesos for a box of five but that, for me, he'd part with them for 400 (about 40 bucks).  I figured if they were halfway passable they'd still be fun to smoke.  Well, they were far from passable.  In fact they were god-awful.  Dale and I hit the pool after drinks and dinner and it was there I lit up.  Bad, bad, bad.  I figure if the cigars weren't worth the 40 bucks then at least the story I got out of the whole thing was.

   Dianne had called just after we got back from our trip into town with the name of the cigar store John goes to when here.  She also said I was welcome to any in John's stash.  Maybe I'll try one tomorrow.  They're not in a humidor and I think they've been here a while but even if they're a little dry they've got to be better than the shit I was sold today. LOL

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 1: More Photos

Flowers on the grounds of John and Dianne's condo. Yes, summer does exist someplace in the world!

Another shot from the balcony of John and Dianne's condo.

Another shot from our afternoon walk along the beach.

Mazatlan 2014 - Day 1: Settling In

Tuesday April 1, 2014

   Got to John and Dianne's condo around 11:00 a.m. Mazatlan time.  After the plane landed we picked up a rental car.  The attendant, Luis was very sweet and nice.  He appreciated the chance to use his English and he was actually quite good.  Rather cute guy too.  Had lunch at La Paloma the resort restaurant.  I started with a pina colada.  Dale and I shared the shrimp ceviche.  I had the coconut shrimp for my entree and Dale had fish with mango sauce.  What wonderful food.  the shrimp was some of the meatiest I've ever had.  It came with mango sauce as well.  Divine.

   After lunch we ventured in to Mazatlan to find a store called Mega.  It was recommended to us by John and Dianne as the place to pick up staples.  It was a lot like a Target store and it had everything.  We picked up some essentials and also dinner for tonight.  John had us use his GPS systen which did a fine albeit round-about job of getting us there.  It didn't work out so well for the return trip.  Ther was an option to select home as a destination.  I wasn't until we got on the freeway going the wrong way before we realized that to the GPS system home was John and Dianne's residence in Denver.  Anyway, it was a bit spotty getting back but needless to say, we figured it out.

   After unpacking groceries, we took a long and glorious walk along the beach.  We walked into the setting sun and came across a funny bird.  I think it was a sandpiper.  We also saw some American kids having some fun on dunebuggies. 

   Upon our return home we sat near the pool and drank up some more of the setting sun.  Next came cocktails at the condo on the balcony.  Dale made a lovely dinner of salmon and stir fried asparagus.  We took a dip in the hot tub and pool before bed.

Photos
1. View of the pool area from the balcony of John and Dianne's condo.
2.  The Mega store in Mazatlan.
3.  Afternoon walk along the beach.
4.  View of some of the condos in the Estrella del Mar development.
5.  Dinner by Dale.