Mexican Riveria April 10--17

We slept until 7:30 and went to our free breakfast buffet. The cost was $21 per person and was not worth that price. We packed our suitcases and waited for the bellman to come for them. I went back to the concierge station and left another $5 for Robert with a note apologizing for whatever I had done. To our surprise, the bellman came for the luggage at 10 instead of 11 as the letter from NCL had warned us. He was early so we went to the lobby in case he was right in assuming the bus would come for us at 11 instead of 12. We waited an hour. We were very happy that we had booked the room that included transportation to the pier. It was quite a distance and was worth the price. The bus was full and the air was not working as it should. We arrived before 1 and were on the ship for lunch. I was pretty good about sticking to meat and cheese for lunch. Evelyn enjoyed anything she wanted from the buffet. Our luggage came to the room and we unpacked them. We missed the emergency drill explaining the use of the lifeboats and jackets. We had the general idea from the video that played most of the afternoon. We walked around trying to understand the layout of the ship which is quite different from the Sun that we had cruised on 2 times before. We found most of what we were looking for but will take several days to remember how we found them. We changed into long pants so we could eat in the dining rooms. I had only blue jeans but wore my maroon spot coat too. We sat with a Jewish couple from Tucson and had good conversation. We left and went to the theater for the only show for the night. The cruise director introduced the staff and the dance troop did a number. There was also a comedic magician who was good. We left and went to bed at 11.
The Star is quite different from the Sun. I was surprised to learn that it is bigger! It is also more elegant and elaborate in its design. It is more difficult to navigate, perhaps because it is new to us. It is also strange that there is no observation lounge, therefore no dancing area at night. We will have to find another place for that. Nor was there any scheduled worship. Every NCL ship we have been on has had one. We were disappointed that our registered wakeup call never came, so Evelyn missed exercise. We went to the forward deck where the grill is located so I could have my omelet and sausage and bacon. We both think the orange juice is terrible but tolerable when pineapple juice is added. We attended the lecture on shore excursions but nearly fell asleep, prompting us to nap at 11. The sea has been very smooth so far, making us both happy. We are susceptible to motion sickness if things get beyond choppy. We have not seen as many Filipinos in the crew, but we know NCL does most of its hiring in that country. We have looked at the excursion tickets but have yet to decide what, if any, of them that we want to change. We met 2 women from Houma, LA at the Westin and have seen them a few times since then. We haven’t talked to them much but did before the cruise. Evelyn is looking for perfume, so I went to a seminar prior to our nap hoping to win a free sample of something. I didn’t. We wakened and went to the center of the ship and played cards for half an hour. We were headed to the Spinaker Lounge for ballroom dance lessons but went by the telecast of the Master’s tournament. We watched for another half an hour and got to the lesson late. Unfortunately the Salsa dance was well along before we arrived. I would have been there earlier had I known the featured dance. We could have learned the dance—perhaps better 10 years ago. We played some more cards and returned to the cabin to dress for dinner. It is “picture with the captain” night, but we both think our outfits don’t merit much of a photograph. The captain is short anyway. We tried to go to the Versailles restaurant but there was a long line. The maitre de’ finally took 7 of us to the Aqua (the other restaurant without a cover charge) since it has the same menu. We enjoyed our dinner and the guests. I have developed the habit of announcing to our dinner partners that we are going to ask a blessing inviting them to join us. So far everyone has joined. We went to a show in the Stardust Theater called “Band on the Run.” It was terrific, especially the choreography and the fact that the cast can remember them all. We passed up an opportunity to dance the night away. We were both tired.
We were blessed to receive our requested wakeup call on time. Evelyn went to stretch while I dressed for the day. I visited the service desk to learn about our tender tickets. We couldn’t pick them up until 11 (we changed time zones—moving into Mountain time) so I went to meet Evelyn for breakfast where the omelets are prepared. She was late for some reason. She came and joined me for a while and we parted again. She returned to the cabin and I talked with one of the photographers from Florida, telling him what he would do in Alaska. The ship is repositioning there at the first of May. He said he wanted to see penguins. Of course they live near Antarctica. He was excited, however, at the prospect of going out in the dingy to take photographs. I returned to our cabin as well and began our blog until 11. It is a beautiful, clear day with a predicted high of 88. We look forward to our bus ride around town. We took the Tender to shore and tried to retrace our steps from our Panama Canal cruise. We couldn’t find the art gallery we wanted but did find a charm for a bracelet and a farmacia. Evelyn also found some sun glasses and made me proud by refusing to pay the $20 he asked. She paid him $5. I had us lost for a few minutes, but Evelyn rescued us. We made it back to the meeting point for our shore excursion 25 minutes early. Evelyn led out very fast despite her not being able to walk quickly on the way from the meeting point. We boarded a bus at 1:20 and rode through Cabo San Lucas to a restaurant high over the Sea of Cortez. We were treated to a beverage. We both had a diet Pepsi because I am trying to avoid carbohydrates meaning no beer. We continued to Santa Rosa del Cabo where we visited a church and looked for skirts for the girls. She also found a silver and coral cross and chain for Rosalie. She paid $40 of the $55 he asked. We drove back to a cactus garden which featured hundreds of varieties cacti from all over the world. Evelyn also tasted cactus candy they offered. Then on to a glass blowing factory in Cabo. The master and a helper were there to demonstrate, but the other workers only work until 2 PM and were gone. After the demonstration, the tour guide, Armando, said any of us could blow some glass, so I volunteered and have a video of the attempt. We were dropped at the dock where we tried to buy some Pepsi but found it to be cheaper on the ship! We dressed and went to dinner in the dining room we had tried last night. We were earlier and had no trouble. Evelyn ordered monkfish, but it was broiled and she couldn’t stand to eat it. She ordered a steak instead. I had pork loin and a few more carbs than I should have. We went to the show performed by an illusionist/comedian, Bob Trunell, we had seen the first night. He was very good. We went to bed early so we could rise early for our trip to Mazatlan.
We rose and ate breakfast before disembarking. We had a tour scheduled for 8:50 but didn’t need to tender because we were able to dock. The busses were at the dock and off we went. The busses are clean and nicely air conditioned, and the tour guides have been good so far. We first toured the city showing the highest lighthouse in the world. It was interesting to go through the different parts of the city because there have been many differences in the functions of Mazatlan. It was an important trading area in the beginning but was converted to a small, poor fishing village after Pancho Villa came to the area. It was never clear as to what he did to cause the change. My guess is that he scared the traders off by being violent. There were also many pirates in the Sea of Cortez making it difficult to ship goods. Today it is a place where Hyundai and Mercedes Benz cars are made. We went to the Roman Catholic cathedral as is the custom and then on to the tourist areas. There are many new hotels in the area along the beaches. We went to several promised spots listed on the tour. We went shopping in the golden zone and found a place to get the next charm, to an outdoor theater featuring the Papantla Flyers, and a cliff to watch a man dive off into the ocean. We had seen several young men dive in Acapulco on another cruise. We had seen the Flyers in Nuevo Progreso a few years ago too but this group was better and had a more complete display. It was a ritual of worship by some natives from Vera Cruz. We saw much fine jewelry in the shops we visited in 2 areas but bought nothing. We returned to the ship and visited a different restaurant. Evelyn’s order was too bad for her to eat. I had a hotdog with chili con carne on it and some Buffalo wings that we shared. We went to the outdoor grill and had a freshly cooked hamburger that satisfied her hunger. She also had a soft serve ice cream cone. We decided to return to shore where there was a small set of shops and an outdoor cantina. Evelyn found several items to purchase to take to the families back in the East. We were able to dance a couple of songs there as well. We returned to the cabin, and she fell asleep while I loaded pictures and videos into the computer. We met for dinner in the Versailles restaurant where I enjoyed Coq au Vin that was good. Evelyn had scallops that she tolerated. We went to a show featuring a comedian/juggler who was good but not as good as others we have seen. We went to a piano bar area where the pianist, a crew member, and a woman from the show cast sang many songs before we went to bed. They were taking requests, and I made several. One I chose was “Till There Was You”, a song from The Music Man, the first play we saw together in Chicago. That was our song during our early years. Evelyn couldn’t remember that fact.
We were up and eating by 7:15. We were scheduled to meet in the lounge at 7:45. We were right on time and entered the tender vehicle (lifeboat) for the trip to Puerto Vallarta. We boarded another tour bus and had another good tour guide. He took us to the obligatory cathedral but couldn’t take us in because they were having a service. We walked through some of the streets around the marina area. There is always some pile of stone or concrete pieces in every street. The contrasts are amazing. Zoning is an unheard of concept, so a beautiful hotel or condominium might be next to a building under destruction. You read it right. The construction there is is primitive by our standards. All concrete is mixed in a hand mixer or in a mixing trough. We proceeded to a shopping area and found a hat with a broad brim for Evelyn. We still haven’t found anything for Tom but have time to look further. We went to a tile factory like the one we toured in Delores Hildago years ago. It is too hard to transport breakable items, and shipping them doesn’t usually cross our minds. We toured a newly opened theater that was hoping we would buy tickets for an afternoon performance. I don’t think anyone from our bus bought any. I would have liked that but was doubtful we could have made it back in time. We went on to the highlight of this tour: the tequila factory. We were served a poor lunch of tacos and beans. We then looked at some old vats and boilers while a different guide told us of the process of turning the “pineapples” from the blue agave plant into tequila. Then we were served samples of 6 different kinds/grades of tequila—blanca, aged 6 months in old whiskey barrels, aged in new barrels, peach flavored, almond flavored, and chocolate flavored. The purpose was to sell tequila and get us happy. We bought 750 ml of chocolate that Evelyn liked today but won’t when we get home. We were taken to the marina area and found the next charm for the bracelet. We then returned to the ship to rest a while. It was a very hot ride back in the tender so we had to wash up. Evelyn wrote a post card to a university friend. The ship was moved so we can walk out onto the pier to go back to town to look for another gift. We have met many Christian people on the ship. Today a couple from Albuquerque told of their non denominational church and their son and 2 sons in law are pastors in the area. We went to walk around the ship and then sat to listen to music. I then decided to go back to shore to look for the 1 last gift. I had to walk a long distance to find a shop. I found one and bought the gift. I walked back and met Evelyn in the Spinaker lounge for the Mexican folklore show. It was good even though I thought we may have seen enough Mexican dancing at Folkmoot. We went from there to the theater for a performance by Second City comedy group from Chicago. There was one extremely humorous skit but several salacious of sacrilegious. I doubt we will go to their special show later in the week. From there we went to the pool deck for the Mexican Fiesta party. There is always 1 of these on each cruise determined by the cruise area. We had a Carnival last year while cruising South America. We had a good supper and Evelyn had a good time dancing, but we left around 10 because we had both been tired most of the day and had no nap. We plan to sleep in tomorrow morning.
We were up at breakfast by 8, looking for things to do. We have found few people with whom we could develop a lasting friendship. We usually find someone we can buddy around with for the majority of the cruise. We walked around the ship and found a table selling some clothes, watches, and other jewelry for $10 but nothing we wanted. We tried walking around the outside of the ship but ran into a crew doing some repair and painting. I have been collecting playing cards for the resort park in Texas, so I collected another making 8 decks. We began playing kings on the corner and another couple saw us and began playing with us. We played until time for lunch and made a tentative plan to meet for ballroom dancing at 6:30. We went to the outside grill and had hamburgers and sausages. We went to a “Latitudes” (a group of people who have cruised with NCL before) party at 1:30 and enjoyed a glass of wine and hors de oerves. We stayed for a talk about a new ship recently added to the NCL fleet. It looked luxurious but we will likely not sail with NCL again. We have been disappointed and will seek other cruise lines. Then we will have to start dressing more formally instead of cruising “freestyle”. We did meet another couple I liked at the meeting and will try to rendezvous with them later. They are Jim and Lois from NY state. We returned to the cabin for a nap. Something is wearing us out and we need sleep. We arranged our evening and left for the big band dance opportunity at 6:30. We dressed a bit more formally for that. We were 1 of the few couples who came. The people I expected to be there weren’t. Only 4 couples danced at any time. We sat close to the dance floor, and the flood lights on the floor both blinded us until I asked the light tech to turn them down and heated us up. One light shined directly on me, so I was cooking all evening. When the band took a break, we left earlier than we had planned and went to dinner. The restaurant we prefer is more elegant than any we have seen before. It is layered with brass and reminded me of the scenes from “Titanic”. We were finished earlier than we had originally planned due to leaving the dance early and walked around some more. Then it was off to the show which was called “Circe Pacific”. What a flop! It consisted of some wretched costumes and oriental “dance” steps. The only thing good was 2 oriental men who were fantastic gymnasts. They worked both as a team and as individuals. Then, as is the custom, many members of the crew came onto the stage to be recognized and sing about this home away from home. We left there and went to a disappointing chocoholic buffet. There were many cake offerings but few actual chocolate candies and sculptings made of chocolate as in others we have attended. I did stray far off my low carb diet and felt almost sick when I finished. We met Jim and Lois and talked with them a while. He has a funny sense of humor and tells that he spent 25 years at Attica prison. He was a guard. He had at least 1 surprising bit of information: the inmates serving 40 years to life were the ones most cooperative while white inmates serving 3-6 were the worst and least repentant. We left that area and went to a “New Year’s Eve” party. It was not for us but had a funny twist: We changed time zones at midnight, allowing anyone who wanted to the opportunity to celebrate 2 times. We went to bed late and then watched “Couples Retreat” which was shown on the room TV. They have shown several recent releases. It was probably around 2 when it ended. We nearly went to sleep before it ended.
We really slept late this morning—10! We weren’t hungry so we just had coffee and juice. We met Jim and Lois, spending time with them. I found the lady who offered to help me with my computer and met with her in the Internet Café. She showed me how to make a template for my sermons so the pages would be numbered and how to move my pictures into folders I could find. When I went to get the computer from our cabin, I brought Evelyn’s sweatshirt to her. It was cold and windy outside. As I worked on the compute, she came back to the cabin for a nap. When I returned and found her asleep, I went to get her a hamburger and me a sausage. I also brought her an ice cream cone. She would only eat the ice cream and I ate the rest. It was nearly 2 by now. I worked on transferring pictures, hoping repetition would help me remember how to do it. We dressed for dinner and on the way Evelyn bought me a T shirt I really didn’t want while I talked to the 2 women from Houma we had met just before we left. We finally were able to have some strangers eat with us at a table. We have found many Christians on this ship. When I invite the others to pray with us, they seem happy, not just willing, to do it. We then went to the final entertainment of 2 juggler/magicians. They were good again. We then went to the Spinaker lounge to see Second City again. We saw only a small portion and then danced a few numbers when a band came in. We didn’t go to the dance floor because we were hot enough in the seating area. We left there and listened to the pianist and the cast member sing favorites. We returned to the cabin and finished packing our suitcases so we could put them outside the door. They will be waiting for us when we disembark tomorrow morning at 9:15.