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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
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Getting in the “way-back” machine to finish a long-forgotten TR
So, I logged into photobucket this morning, and saw my Baja 2009 album. That got me thinking of a trip report that I started, and then when life got
busy, just stopped abruptly and never went back to finish (Bay Area to Todos Santos and back, July 10-26, 2009). I would like to at least post the
rest of pictures and maybe a little commentary of what I remember. And I offer my sincere apologies for my flakiness to those who followed the
original trip report (here--http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=40484&page=1)
This was the final paragraph I wrote on that trip report:
“Mark drank almost an entire bottle of tequila, to make sure that he would be able to sleep. That worked out great...for him. Not so great for me, as
his snoring nearly drowned out the air conditioner. I almost fell asleep anyway, after taking several Benadryl, until a honking car full of hollering
people parked under our window. By morning, I had formulated a new plan.
....stay tuned....”
Some of you may have worried that my “new plan” may have involved burying his body in the desert, but no, I’m not that kind of person (although I MAY
have considered it in the middle of the night). No—this was the new plan:
Many of you probably recognize this—the Serenidad. It was still hot, but the air conditioning is quiet and powerful, and it actually gets a little
breeze off the river. By the time Mark woke up, I had the car packed and had checked out of the hotel. I even kindly waited until he was actually IN
the car before driving away. And now, some pictures from Mulegé:
I’m going to stop here and post this to make sure I still remember how to insert pictures. I promise not to leave the rest for another two and a half
years, though!
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
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The Serenidad was exactly the change we needed. It was a perfect place to head out to the rest of the unbelievable gorgeous Bahia Concepcion, and
spend the heat of the days bobbin’ in the water. Much better that sweltering and bickering! We even got to be there for the famous pig roast! Much
fun!
Some pictures from the Bahia:
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
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It’s been awhile (understatement of the century?), so I don’t recall how many days we stayed there—three , maybe? From there it was on to La Paz.
Gorgeous scenery, but a scary road between Mulegé and Loreto:
We stopped in Loreto briefly. It seems like a really neat place, and I’d like to go back and spend more time there someday, but it was July, and by
noon it was scorchingly hot. We saw the mission:
And ate some of the best tacos EVER, in the whole history of the world. Seriously. The best. OK, maybe in the top ten of the whole history of the
world, anyway.
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Cypress
Elite Nomad
Posts: 7641
Registered: 3-12-2006
Location: on the bayou
Member Is Offline
Mood: undecided
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LisaR, Thanks.
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
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Thanks for commenting, Cypress. 
I'd better get to work on the rest before I put it off and get too busy again. 
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Pompano
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8194
Registered: 11-14-2004
Location: Bay of Conception and Up North
Member Is Offline
Mood: Optimistic
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Keep em coming, Lisa....your photos look so clear and nicely composed....are you are a professional?
Looking forward to seeing the rest of the trip south... I seldom venture down that way anymore, so I wll do the next best thing...look at your pics.
Bon voyage!
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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Thanks, Pompano! No, I'm not a professional. I have a really excellent point and shoot camera 
More coming right now...
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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(I hope this doesn't post twice--I just tried to post, but it said that it had been less than 90 seconds. So, here's trying again!)
On to La Paz! We stayed at La Perla and really enjoyed it. The first night we had an interior room, but we had heard that you should always ask for
ocean view—it’s the same price, but well, it’s ocean view. The next morning after check-in they had one available for us, and it was absolutely worth
moving for! Here are a few pictures from the balcony:
Here’s the inside of the room:
We really loved La Paz, and would go back in a heartbeat, although maybe not in July. It, too, was hot. (That seems to be a recurring theme, doesn’t
it? I love warm climates and beaches, but since I’m a teacher, summer is pretty much it for a decent length vacation.)
A picture of the mission:
A cool artwork in a museum:
The reptile zoo:
note the rat leg hanging out of his mouth
And of course, the beautiful, beautiful beaches! Here are a couple of pics of the beaches, but I know I took a ton more. I’m going to try to find
them and get them uploaded to photobucket. I’ll just post these for now:
[Edited on 2-5-2012 by LisaR.]
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
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A few more (found!) from La Paz. I don’t recall the name of the beach, but what an amazing day! Beautiful, beautiful. I would go back in a
heartbeat. Too bad I don’t remember where it was... I’m pretty sure it was south of La Paz, but honestly I have a hard time getting my head wrapped
around directionality in La Paz. It’s bad enough that I grew up on the West Coast, and in my mind, the ocean is always west. Then I go to the Sea of
Cortez, and it’s to the east. And then La Paz on a bay. I give up!
Sorry for the lesser quality of these pictures. We have a really cheap underwater camera. It’s a Vivitar Vivicam 8400. The plusses are that it was
about 100 bucks on Amazon, and it really is waterproof. The minuses are that the viewfinder is virtually useless underwater, and the picture quality
is somewhat less than mediocre. Some of the Bahia Concepcion pics are from that camera, too. It's pretty easy to tell which ones. With that stellar
recommendation, here are the pictures:
As you can see, this wasn’t a great snorkeling spot. We really just went for the beach, and were pleasantly surprised that it had been worth bringing
our snorkeling gear, after all!
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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Time to head off for dinner. I'll post the rest of the trip pics tonight or tomorrow. No, really. I promise. 
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shari
Select Nomad
Posts: 13043
Registered: 3-10-2006
Location: bahia asuncion, baja sur
Member Is Offline
Mood: there is no reality except the one contained within us "Herman Hesse"
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wow, your photos are great for a point and shoot...nice cropping and colour Lisa girl...and your commentary makes me feel like I was there...love the
hotel room with the bar fridge within reach of the bed! great idea...jajajaja
nice style...more please.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64741
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Lisa, thank you for this... these are excellent photos!
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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Thanks, David and Shari!
And Shari, you KNOW we kept that little fridge stocked!
More to come momentarily...
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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Our original plan, when leaving home, had been to drive all the way down the peninsula and around the Los Cabos loop. Well, by this time we had
realized that it would just be TOO MUCH to do that. We had stopped in Cabo San Lucas on a cruise the previous April, and didn’t have any desire to go
back. I still wanted to see San José del Cabo (and still hope to, someday), but we decided that a better use of our time left would be to just kick
back and enjoy La Paz. We did take an afternoon drive down to Todos Santos, however, so at least we could say we made it that far. We only took a
couple of pictures, but we did enjoy the laid-back, artist-y vibe of the town, and would like to go back someday and spend more time there.
and a cute kid at an artist’s open house, playing with his new car from our “box-o-toys”
Before we sadly turn our wheels northward and head home  , a few reflections on La
Paz: What a great place! One of the best things about La Paz is the food scene. I realize that you would never know it by this trip report (and
part one) and the lack of pictures or descriptions of food, but Mark and I really are foodies. We had several great meals here, that I can still
recall after all this time. Let’s see, there was the killer mole from a hole in the wall at the city market, there was fantastic arrachera at a
restaurant a few doors up from La Perla. But our best dining experience of the trip had to be Tres Virgenes. I wish I had taken pictures. I don’t
remember what I had, but I do recall that we had a grilled baby octopus appetizer that was outstanding, and Mark had a porterhouse cut pork chop with
a port reduction glaze that makes my mouth water to remember, even now.
And now, we head home. Here are some random pictures from the drive:
The largest shrine I’ve ever seen:
This is one CRAZY road between Loreto and Mulegé!
And back past the incomparable Bahia Concepcion
The bridge over Mulegé river
Driving past Santa Rosalia-- What IS this thing? Anyone?
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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Ooops, almost forgot to add that at Tres Virgenes, we met Jesse. He gave us a Baja Nomad bumper sticker that I immediately slapped on the back of my
car, and still proudly sport. I may be a slacker, but I’m still proud to be a Nomad!
I just ran out and took this pic of the back of my car:
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Cypress
Elite Nomad
Posts: 7641
Registered: 3-12-2006
Location: on the bayou
Member Is Offline
Mood: undecided
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LisaR, More thanks!
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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More pictures from the road:
An interesting detail about this next one and the dangers of driving in Baja—if you look closely at the pile of rocks in the lower center, that’s
actually a totaled rusted car to the right.
It was a long day of driving, but we finally pulled into San Ignacio. We drove around for a bit, wondering where we were going to stay, until we saw
“Casa Lerée” painted on a building. Wow, we read about that place in Baja Legends. I wonder if they have a room? Not only did they have one
available, but Juanita, the owner, told us that she thought maybe we were the only travelers on the entire peninsula. Even if you don’t stay at Casa
Lerée, please stop by to see it and talk to Juanita, if you are in San Ignacio. It is quite a historic building, and Juanita runs a small museum of
San Ignacio history in one of the front rooms. In fact, she showed us a fossil Eohippus hoof that one of the local boys had found in the hills near
town that afternoon and brought to her. She is quite a fascinating woman, with extensive knowledge about the area. She is collecting and
transcribing an oral history from the elders of the village before they are gone, and their memories are lost forever.
I wish we had taken more pictures of the house and garden, because it is really something to see, both from an aesthetic and historical perspective.
I hope this gives you an idea of the beauty of the back garden, where the rooms are located:
I loved the old buildings in San Ignacio, and for some reason was compelled to take pictures mostly of doors:
The stunning Mission San Ignacio de Kadakaaman
A couple of shots of the center of town
And then, it’s back on the road again.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64741
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Thank you so very much... just beautiful!
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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Thanks for commenting again, David and Cypress. I'm glad you're enjoying the journey!
More coming right up!
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LisaR.
Nomad
Posts: 121
Registered: 6-3-2009
Location: Chapala, Jalisco
Member Is Offline
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A couple of days of hard driving, and then we’re home...
We stopped in Guerrero Negro for lunch at Malarrimo.
and then pushed on north.
I just liked this picture.
If you read (or re-read) my original thread on this trip report, you might recall this from the drive south—
“We stopped in Cataviña for lunch. We pulled into the Desert Inn because we really, really needed to go to the bathroom, we were starving, and we
hoped the restaurant would have air-conditioning (it didn’t). The menu was over-priced, and we afraid it would be over-priced and mediocre. It wasn’t.
We both had the mixed fajitas and they were great! I don’t know what they marinated the meat in, but it was absolutely delicious.
The Pemex pump there is out of service (foreshadowing...).”
—and know what is coming up next. Yup, the ultimate rookie maneuver for driving in Baja...
Somewhere north of Jesus y Maria, I starting thinking that maybe the other thing we should have done was to fill up the gas tank, but I was pretty
sure that there was at least one more before the long dry spell to El Rosario. Nope, that was it. I was so glad to see the guy selling gas out of a
barrel, that I would have paid anything he asked. But do you know what? We still paid less per gallon than the price at home! We were so grateful
to him, that we pretty much started giving him everything we could think of out of the car—a cold beer, water, soda, an Oakland A’s baseball cap, toys
for his son (who was with him) from the “box-o-toys.” He laughed at us, but in a kind way.
And then we were on our way north again.
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