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

Trip Out East 1979 - More D.C. Photos

Top: Lunar Module at the Smithsonian Museum

Middle: Memorial

Bottom: Washington Monument

Trip Out East 1979 - D.C. Photos

I remember being taken with Washington D.C. Oddly, I didn't write about it in my journal. Here are some pictures I took.

Top photo: Lincoln Memorial

Middle Photo: Capitol Dome

Bottom Photo: Capitol Building

Trip Out East Day Four - 1979

Tuesday, June 12

We will perform at the Senate side of the capitol in Washington, D.C. at 10:00 a.m. - The rest of the day will be spent sight-seeing - We will stay with the Burke, Virginia families again this evening.

Journal: "We had a great time with the family . Me, Jeff, Dan W. and Tim W. We stayed with the ______. We stayed there two nights. They have a forienge exchange student. She was Jackie from Holland. Boy can she disco. There was Lori, Nancy, Scott. My glasses were hit by a soccer ball while play[ing] kickball. I forgot to mention the mother and father who were very nice. I did get my glasses fixed."

Trip Out East Day Three - June 1979

Monday, June 11

We are scheduled to sing at the National Cathedral, Washington, D.C., at 11:00 a.m. - We will tour the Washington area in the afternoon - We will arrive at the Lord of Life Lutheran Fellowship Church in Burke, Virginia at 5:30 p.m. - We will give a concert at the church in the evening and spend the night in church homes.

Journal: "We had to wake up at 5:30 this morning. I had to take a shower because my hair was dirty. We've went through Deleware and Maryland, and Baltimore. We've not yet made it to the National Cathedral yet. Philedphia was fun. We saw the Liberty Bell, Independance Hall. We sat for hours (our captian group) at Mcdonalds waiting for food to take back to the church we were staying at. Me, Jeff, David B. and Lonnie L. got in trouble for not, taking our showers with our captians groups."

More D.C. Trip - The White House

(Photo 3-26-11)

More D.C. Trip - Pete and Joe at the White House

Currently the home of Pete's favorite president EVER, Barack Obama!

(Photo 3-26-11)

More D.C. Trip - More Photos from Holocaust Museum

More D.C. Trip - Washington Monument

Walked by this on the way to lunch after meeting up with cousin Leo at the Holocaust Museum. Have seen it on all four of my trips to D.C. but have yet to make it inside and up to the top.

Washington D.C. March 2011 - Return Trip

Mom and I got home from Washington D.C. at about 4:50 p.m. today. We flew out of Reagan airport early this afternoon.

(Photo 3-27-11)

Washington D.C. March 2011 - Holocaust Museum

This was a difficult experience. Shocking, disturbing, horrifying are just a few words to describe what I saw at this place. When I asked my cousin Leo, who lives in D.C, if he wanted to come with us he said, "Everyone should see the Holocaust Museum once. I've already seen it once and I don't want to be depressed the rest of the week." We ended up meeting for lunch after Pete and I did the tour of the museum.

Particulary

affecting was walking through a room full of shoes of holocaust victims and walking through a train car that had carried people to the camps for extermination. It was set up that you had to walk through these things to continue on the tour.

Planning to Visit Pete

Talked to my brother, Pete, last night who told me that he and his wife are going to have a third baby. Exciting! Mom and I are going to visit them at their home in Virginia just outside of Washington D.C. at the end of March. Looking forward to seeing them and their other two wonderful children. Pete asked me what I wanted to go see. I told him I've never been to Monticello.