anybody know of web forums for mazatlan anywhere? that has people doing what they do here but centered around mazatlan?
planning a spring trip there and looking fo the good local info.bajalou - 12-26-2006 at 09:24 AM
hey thx, i am a member there now.rogerj1 - 12-27-2006 at 12:59 AM
Mike report back. I haven't been to Mazatlan since I was in college. Spend three months there studying spanish. Like everything else, I'm sure it's
changed a lot.capt. mike - 12-27-2006 at 05:20 AM
ok, and i tried to register, the stupid Yahoo thing sent me a code to validate and it won't work - go figure, i emailed them, see what happens.
now i'll likely get a ton of yahoo based spam.
rogerj1 - my 1st time on the train nogo to mmmz spring break 1974, we got 2 sleepers and were about the only ones to do so, me and my bud. only cost
about $20 extra each way - knowing we'd be getting really wasted 18 hour train ride both ways, we said hey - we need sleepers! so while all the other
back pack laden students were passed out in the std chairs and in the isles, we offered "shelter" to a bevy of co-eds in shifts to stretch out and
enjoy our mini suites.
then went back in my plane for a new years trip 1990. we got booked into a hotel for 3 nites that we didn't know until we got there that was a
featured resort for the Canadian gay crowd........not that there's anything wrong with that. So another straight couple from Canada was there too for
a 3 week vaca and they didn't know it was mazatlan gay central till they got there. They were hilarious, we got bombed with them every afternoon at
the bar's light loafer hour.
capt. mike...Mazatlan circa 1977
Summanus - 12-27-2006 at 09:40 AM
I found this old photo of us at a hotel bar. Note the sunflowered jeans. Fun times there...especially during Carnival!
capt. mike - 12-27-2006 at 10:46 AM
ha! mi esposa calls me the god of nightly thunder too. especially post mexican food.capt. mike - 12-27-2006 at 11:10 AM
ok, i somehow am registered there and already have a few pen pals.
i just hope they're not from the jail.............David K - 12-27-2006 at 11:19 AM
Is the EL SHRIMP BUCKET still in business?
I remember all the fun there in 1971!capt. mike - 12-27-2006 at 05:40 PM
oh it has to still be there! a landmark. it was going strong my last trip there 1990 or so i think it was.JZ - 12-27-2006 at 06:28 PM
We did a 10hr road trip there from SC about 2 years ago. Great trip. Got stopped by the Fedarales and they got mad that I had a Sonora Only and an
All Mexico permit on the truck. Cost us about $200 and we were on our way.
We hired a panga one night to take us out on the ocean to drink some cerveza and swim.
[Edited on 12-28-2006 by JZ]bancoduo - 12-27-2006 at 06:51 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by capt. mike
ok, i somehow am registered there and already have a few pen pals.
i just hope they're not from the jail.............
Cumondown! We have a room reserved for you at the El
Carcel hotel. Three meals and lots of MOTA and its all free.Mango - 12-27-2006 at 07:43 PM
Mazatlan was the first real Mexican town I ever visited. I took a 22 hour long bus ride from Mexicali. I have fond memories of the place..
Capt. Mike, thanks for the stories of your train travels. It is a shame that train travel is no longer possible in almost all of Mexico.
I took the train from Puebla to Oaxaca right before it was shut down. I think the scenery was as good, if not better, than the copper canyon.
I tried to take the train from Mexcali to Mazatlan in 96'; but, it was allready shut down.
I've often thought of showing up to a rail yard and trying to "buy" a ride on a freight train on a few of the old routes. I here DF to Monterey has
been re-done and has a nice rail-bed; but, is only used for freight.
The train station in Oaxaca is now a musem that doubles as a music school for children. I also read that the Mexicali station is now a musem too. I
will try to visit it next month.
Here is a link that contains some current train information for Mexico: http://www.mexlist.com/pass.htmcapt. mike - 12-28-2006 at 05:57 AM
Joe - where did you stay?
Banco - yes, save me a spot at the El Carcel. Is that a "bed and bong"
what - no more trains? you mean the old nogales to MMMZ and beyond rail service is nada??David K - 12-28-2006 at 08:12 AM
Captain, as most of us here are not pilots maybe use real town names along with those airport codes I see in your posts??? MMMZ I can guess is
Mazatlan, but sometimes other places one can't be sure! Are all Mexican airports MM first?
Been to Old Maz-Town many times over the years....
Mexray - 12-28-2006 at 11:17 AM
...starting back in the mid-70's.
First time stayed at the old Playa Mazatlan, one of the first big hotels north of centro, in the tourist trap area...we were on a cheapo 'package
tour' and had a room in the back that overlooked the Shrimp Factory Restaurant behind the hotel...after a couple of visits, we learned most of the
waiters names, and could yell down from our room to ask them to toss a Kilo of shrimp in the boiler so they would be ready when get walked in! The
place was open-air, and you could visit with many people as they walked by! Real fun place!
If you want a cheaper, funky type place to stay, go the the old Bel Mar Hotel, on Playa Olas Altos, just west of the Centro Dist - this is the beach
where Carnival is held each year. The place is OLD, but the rooms are OK, at least the last time we stayed there about 8 years ago - who knows by
now! There are several great bars on the beach there to have evening drinks - genuine 'Sundowners' for sure!
There is another small hotel behind El Shrimp Bucket there on Olas Altos that some friends stayed in just a few months ago...sorry don't remember the
name. El Shrimp Bucket is still going strong...don't know if the waiters still dance on the tables if you happen to be there with a fun loving crowd,
late in the evening....
During later visits to Maz, we stayed in the Mexican village across from the Navy Base in the main harbor - it was called Isla de la Piedra, but
wasn't actually an island, but a peninsula. You had to pay 3 pesos to get a panga boat ride across the harbor which ran 24/7. I swear that during
busy times, they crammed so many of us in those pangas, there was about 4 inches of freeboard keeping us afloat!
About 10 years ago, we took the train from Maz up to Guaymas to visit friends in San Carlos. It was the 'First Class' train, and left about
9:00PM...it arrived in Empalme outside Guaymas, the next morning. At every stop, all night long, local taco vendors would board the train yelling,
"TACO, TACO, TACO" waking us up! There were no 'Sleepers' at this point in time - they were long gone. The Diesel engine mounted under our coach to
run the AC and lights, was trying to throw a rod, and vibrated the floor to really keep us jumping, the whole trip! I would watch the train crew look
under our coach at each stop, trying to decide if the Diesel would live long enough to make the trip! It finally got so bad, they finally pulled the
plug on it - just as we got to Empalme, for the end of our trip!
Our friends in San Carlos returned with us to Maz on the return version of the train. We brought our ice chests with lots of food and drink and had a
REAL party riding the rails south on that trip!
Mazatlan is a great city, and you can find just about anything you want or need there. If you have to stay at a flashy hotel in the 'Golden Zone' -
get out each day and visit the city itself, where the 'real action takes place. The buses are great there, and are easy to navigate the city. Or buy
a ride on an open-air VW buggy...
[Edited on 12-28-2006 by Mexray]
Mango - 12-28-2006 at 11:04 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by capt. mike
what - no more trains? you mean the old nogales to MMMZ and beyond rail service is nada??
No mas. Unless you are willing to hop on a boxcar.
Moslt lines are only active for freight. I knew a man that worked on the DF to Veracruz line for a few years in the late 90's. I know the railbed
was upgraded on that line; but, again used only for freight.
The Puebla to Oaxaca line seems to be unused a few miles south of Tehuacan. The old rail line in Oaxaca that ran down the middle of the street is
torn up and abandoned. I followed what was left of it back to the train station last year on foot.
The guard there told me, "no more train." The rail line just north of town, which looked to be in better shape, used to run though a beautiful river
valley and sugar cane fields. The time that I rode on that line there was plenty of evidence of previous washouts along the river; and, I suspect the
cost of repair just became too high.
The new roads and highways are much more efficient.. for now.
I found some photos posted online about the Oaxaca line here:
It seems it was running to some degree around 2004. The guard I asked in Feb 2006 told me that no trains ran on the line anymore. So who knows..it
is Mexico.. maybe I should have asked a few other people. lol.
sorry about the airport identifiers, just force of habit. maybe i'll post a key under privato aviones sector.
yes, MMMZ is mazatlan.
most major mexican ports use MM as a prefix, the internacional id for mexico under the IOAC treaties.
some smaller ports IDs in mexico use national 3 letter codes recognized only in mexico.
Just got back from 6 days in Maz
Hook - 1-2-2007 at 12:25 PM
The town really is alot of fun. El Shrimp Bucket is still there. Nuthin' but gringos, though, so not sure that's a ringing endorsement. We usually hit
a place called Ristorante Dunia's near the central mercado. It's about a half block from the unofficial shrimp mercado where the shrimp ladies sell
their wares. You buy from them and take it over to Dunia's where they cook it up in any style you wish for 40 pesos per kilo. This includes tortillas,
beans, and various salsas. Generally, the largest shrimp you can buy from the ladies was about 90 pesos per kilo so it's agreat option with lots of
people.
We also bought shrimp in Guaymas this trip right from the processing plant. The seiners are actually tied up to the back side of the plant and there
are retail sales on the east side of the building. Here the grandes were 110 pesos per kilo. Frozen only but VERY fresca! Came home with a couple
kilos.
The old Hotel Bel Mar has been undergoing a significant renovation and is looking much nicer from the outside; havent seen the rooms recently. Olas
Altas area is a great location in Maz. Drinks at the top of the Freeman is a must-do; no better view of Maz in town. Easy and safe walking to Old
Mazatlan near the Angela Peralta Theatre, Pedro y Lola's and the sleeper eatery in all of Maz; El Tunel. Sinaloese cooking muy barrato.
Still lots of great boondocking north of town past Los Cerritos on white sand beaches as far as the eye can see............David K - 1-2-2007 at 12:27 PM
