Wednesday, December 2 to Friday, December 18, 2015 (Our trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico)

Well, it's been 4 days since we returned to Quartzsite and I'm finally working on the blog...it has taken Steve that long to edit the hundreds of pictures taken during our fabulous 2 week vacation to Mexico. Now it is my turn to get to work! Who knows how long that's going to take....

Better start with a Warning...

"This blog is long and jammed packed with pictures!" 

Remember, you can click on any picture to enlarge.

With suitcases packed and in the truck, we left La Posa South at about 9:00 Wednesday morning and headed to Phoenix. We stopped at Costco in Avondale, deciding to just go ahead and purchase new eyeglasses there rather than wait until we go down to Los Algodones MX. After a quick stop at a Verizon store to get a new JetPack to replace our aging MiFi, we continued onto Midway Chev to drop the truck off. We are leaving it with them while we are away to take care of the recurring exhaust brake squeal. The Isuzu Rep is involved now, so hopefully they will be able to resolve it once and for all.

We were lucky enough to be able to hitch a ride with some workers dropping off a vehicle...they happened to be going towards Tempe and it wasn't out of their way to make a stop at the La Quinta Inn where we would be staying for the night. That saved us about $50!

Thursday morning, we were up early and after a quick breakfast, we took the 8:00 shuttle from the hotel to the airport. We had plenty of time to get through security...and then wait for our 11:10 flight.

Bye Phoenix!

 Hello Baja...

...and San Jose del Cabo...

It took awhile to get through Customs as we snaked our way back and forth up to the booth...seems another flight had arrived at the same time as ours. By the time we got through, most of the luggage was already picked up but our big green suitcase sat there with a small black case...oh good, they're both together...so we grabbed them and continued out of the airport past the hordes of timeshare vendors trying to "help" you. This time we knew to continue right out past them through the doors...no gracias, no gracias...until you are outside. Then we had to look for 'Cabo Travel Solutions', with whom we had arranged transportation to the resort.

Our first glimpse of the resort...


Check-in went well, although we were disappointed in our choices of suites. I had requested one in a building down near the beach. We were given one in building 22 high up on the hillside with the possibility of moving on Saturday.

Everything had gone smoothly until it was time to load our luggage into the golf cart to be taken to our suite...that's not our black suitcase! Since we had made two stops before arriving at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach I thought someone must have taken our case by mistake. We left it with Concierge desk to contact the other resorts...and were taken up to our suite.

We were in a huge 2 bedroom Presidential Suite...first of all, the views...that's the lobby entrance below us...

The balcony with a hot tub at the far end...

The main living room...with dining table and kitchen...

The master bedroom en-suite complete with Jacuzzi tub, two sinks, and separate shower and toilet...

Master bedroom...

...and the second bedroom, it also had it's own en-suite....

By this time, it was 4:30 so we thought we would go back down to the lobby bar and sit on the deck enjoying the view with a cold bevie. Gord and Esther (Steve's uncle and aunt) should be arriving shortly and we could keep an eye out for them...as well as check in with the Concierge desk on the status of our missing suitcase.

The first of many absolutely gorgeous sunsets...

It was about 6:00 when Gordon and Esther arrived. Since they were the only one in their shuttle, they had asked the driver to stop at the Mega Store so they could pick up a few groceries. Perfect! After they got checked-in, we were whisked up to our suite.

Cheers! It's going to be a fabulous 2 weeks!

After unpacking a few things (not much since we plan on moving), we headed down to The Bistro for dinner. Today was my 60th birthday (yikes!) and with Steve having turned 60 last August....this trip was our birthday present to each other. So glad Gordon and Esther were able to help us celebrate!

Beautiful Christmas Tree in the lobby...

We checked back at the Concierge to see if there was any news on our suitcase...nope. Oh dear...of course, that case is the one that has all of Steve's clothes in it as well as our eyeglasses, extra contact lenses, containers and solutions...sheesh!

Friday morning, Steve and I were up early to watch the sunrise...

 Coffee out on the balcony...a great way to start the day!

 We left Gord and Esther to sleep and headed out to do a little exploring around the resort...

We're on the second floor on the left of this building...

We went up to the Sky Pool...which is just above our building and the highest part of the resort. What a view!

Infinity pool above the lower pool...

 This is the view from the eighth floor of our building (22)...

 The lobby entrance...

The owner of Pueblo Bonito Resorts Ernesto Coppel Kelly has two private homes on the property...this beachfront one is for entertaining family and friends. The main home is high on the mountain top above the Sky Pool overlooking their Kingdom.

After a delicious hearty breakfast, we finally heard from Guillermo at the Concierge desk. I could have sworn we left the airport with both of our suitcases but apparently not. Either we took the wrong black case or the owner of the one we had did, but ours was at the American Airlines counter at the airport. So Steve would have to go to the airport, taking back the one we had and pick up ours. Consequently, it cost us an extra $50 on shuttle fares...they would not deliver it because Steve had to show his ID to pick it up. Nice first day for Steve!

While he was gone, I went to reception and talked to Leydi, who is in charge of moving guests to different suites. She gave me two options for a move tomorrow (Saturday)...either up to the ninth floor in the building we were already in (22) or building 37, second floor (top) beachfront. After checking out both with Gord and Esther, it was a "no brainer"...we went with the beachfront one. Although the views where we were are fabulous, there is quite a bit of noise from rooftop exhaust fans and all the traffic below at the lobby entrance.

It was after 3:00 by the time Steve got back...and time to catch a few rays up at the Sky Pool...

Cheers! Ahh...all is good, we have our missing suitcase back. Time to relax!

Saturday morning we packed all of our stuff up ready for the resort staff to move it to our new suite (3721) and then took a taxi to Walmart to stock up on groceries (and beer, wine, tequila, etc...). We weren't supposed to pick up the keys to our new suite until 2 pm but since we were back at 1 and had perishables that needed to be refrigerated, they let us into our suite early.

Time to relax after a busy morning shopping. Our new suite is identical to the old one with the exception that there is no hot tub on the deck. But who needs a hot tub when it's hot out! Love being right on the beach. The only sounds are waves, birds and jumping Manta rays...

 Margarita time!

One of many dinner/sunset cruise boats...

The beachfront home of Ernesto Coppel Kelly (owner of Pueblo Bonito Resorts) is all lit up tonight...he must be entertaining guests...

Dinner tonight...Gordon cooked up prawns in butter, garlic and onion...

 ...served with rice and veggies...Delicious!!

After dinner, we went for a walk...Flamingos...

Our new location is near the main pool area...

The dawn of a new day...Sunday, December 6...







...and dozens of fishing boats are heading out...

We agreed to go on a "Presentation" this morning. We hadn't planned on it but we 'negotiated' a $500 credit to our bill (Gord and Esther, a $300 credit), so we decided to go ahead. We started with a buffet breakfast and then Troy, our representative and a fellow Canadian, took us out in his truck and showed us the development (and planned development) of the property.

We started at the Novaispania Residences...very luxurious...

Infinity pool with a swim up bar...

These places come with your own butler and maid...

They will stock the fridge and bar for you before you arrive...

Sitting area outside with a fireplace...

Wow...not in our budget!

After that, we drove through an area under construction, explaining what the plan for the area was. Our next stop was at Quivira Golf Club.. The Jack Nicklaus designed course is supposed to be incredible and in the top ten.

Looking back towards our resort...

The Steakhouse restaurant at the golf course boasts the best steak in Mexico. The reviews are great for it but we didn't try it.

Our final stop was at Montecristo Estates...each villa has its own pool...

Below along the beach is the adults only Pacifica Resort. Beyond that is the golf course which continues up and all around the mountain. There is lots more development coming in these areas including salt water lagoons for swimming, water park, and a village on the other side of the mountain. This side of the mountain is still the Sea of Cortes...the other side is the Pacific Ocean.

These are pretty nice too...

Well...all I can say is that Troy is a very good salesman...we are now owners at Pueblo Bonito Resorts. The "sell" for us is that we "traded in" our other vacation package at a good price and we no longer have annual maintenance fees (which were quite high, especially since they were in US $). Only time will tell whether it was a good decision on our part. Steve has talked to 4 different owners while catching rides around the resort and they all said they had no regrets and love the place so that makes us feel better. I think Steve has that Ahh...what happened look!

We went down to the beach to watch the sunset. The building we are in is on the far left...

Dinner at the Japanese Restaurant tonight! Very good...although service was a little slow...

After taking in another beautiful sunrise Monday morning, Steve and I decided to go for a walk along the beach. Pelicans were perched on these rocks every morning...

Steve took a great panorama shot of the resort from the beach... (click on photo)

Apparently it's $50 a day to rent one of these beds for a day...Yikes!

Looking west...

...and east...

It's amazing how the homes are built into the side of the mountain...

View from the east end of the beach looking back at the resort. That's the owners home on top of the hill...

A Humpback Whale blowing behind the boat. We were able to view many whales daily from our deck...even saw a few breaching.

After our beach walk and breakfast, we headed to the main pool...

All of the poolside lounge chairs at this end have been replaced with tables and chairs...they are getting set up for Mexican Fiesta night tonight...

We actually didn't stay that long at the main pool...it was pretty busy, too many kids and loud music. The pool just above us near building 40 is quieter...we prefer it (oh my...does it sound like we are getting old?!)

We walked past the flamingos...must be snack time for this fellow...

 After dinner we walked down to check out the festivities at the main pool area...







We didn't attend the fiesta...

There were a number of vendors selling their wares...

This fellow was very talented...he paints pictures using his fingers. We watched as he painted one for Gord...beautiful and a nice keepsake to take home...

Tuesday morning, Gord joined us on a walk down the beach. This time we decided to walk around the point past the rocks on the right...

 Talk about cliff-dwellers...the engineering is quite incredible...

No comment on the rock formation to the right of the fisherman...

We were told that this house used to belong to Bill Gates. It's built into the rock and has an infinity pool above the bottom floor...

It's a pretty wild shoreline...no swimming allowed at the beach where we are at PB Sunset Beach. But there is a free shuttle that takes you over to the two sister resorts...PB Rose and Blanco. Both are on Medano Beach in Cabo San Lucas. We headed over that way late morning...

This is The Rose...walking towards the beach...

A cruiseship is anchored in the bay...

 The white building beside The Rose is The Blanco...

 Looking back at The Rose from the beach...

Gordon and I...

We left Esther at The Rose and the three of us walked into Cabo. Esther's knee is giving her a lot of grief and she can't walk far on it.

By the time we walked into town, we decided that a nice cold beer would be a good idea...so let's go to Cabo Wabo!! Cabo Wabo used to be owned by Sammy Hagar from the band Van Halen. Apparently he returns every October and jams...

 Well...how about Margarita's? That's what Uncle Gord and I had...Steve stuck to his cervesa...

Like the sign on top...

On the way into town, we went by a restaurant and had a look at their menu. Looked like a good Mexican spot for lunch. On the way back along the marina, Steve and I stopped to pick up a couple of t-shirts while Gord went ahead of us to get Esther.

We met them at the La Ricazon Medano Restaurant and Bar (at least I think that was the name...they had just recently re-opened)...

 We had an excellent lunch!

Lunch, Margaritas, Cervesa....and then we decided to have a couples massage...ahhh...perhaps too relaxing? This was Steve's first massage...and maybe not his last!

Then it was time to catch the shuttle (bus) from the Rose back to Sunset Beach. Here are views as we enter the resort. Montecristo Villas...

...and Sunset Beach Resort in the distance...

Wednesday and Thursday (wow, we've been here a week already...our time here is going so fast!) were pretty lazy days...spent whale watching from our balcony...

...and lazying by the pool...that's Esther, me and Gord in the center of the photo...

The clouds we've been having made for spectacular sunrises...






...and sunsets!

The ocean was pretty wild!

I was surprised that we didn't see more cruiseships go by but I think they must come by early in the morning and leave late at night...

On our Friday (Dec. 11) morning beach walk, Steve and I came across this poor fellow. A small Roosterfish...perhaps he didn't survive the "catch and release"...?

There continued to be a high tide with a large surf...

We walked back to our place via the main pool and past the flamingos...

 Our plan for today...take the shuttle to The Rose, spend some time on their beach...maybe have a cervesa or two...and then make our way to Walmart for a little more shopping. That is the Pacifica Hotel down there...it is what Troy (our sales guy) described as an adults only "holistic hotel". The guys will go there later on and check it out.

 We have picked up our towels...now it's time to find some beach lounge chairs...

Even though it was cloudy, it was still very warm out...

 Steve and his uncle enjoying the ocean...

The Rose...

 The Blanco...

We were quite entertained by this fellow (see the spec in the water near the seadoo?) trying to learn how to "flyboard" ...




And he did it, after many attempts!!

After our time on the beach, we decided to get adventurous and take a local bus to Walmart...what an experience that was! You can't tell in the photos but a few windows are cracked and the destinations are hand written on the windows...

 Yay, we made it!

After a little shopping, we took a taxi back to the resort and sat out on the balcony watching the thunderous waves as they hit the beach...

Saturday we decided to take a tour to Tados Santos...about a two hour drive north along the Pacific coast. We were looking forward to seeing some of the countryside as well as a small Mexican town. The tour van picked us up at the Sunrise Cafe here at the resort at 10:00 a.m.

There are some ATVer's in the distance...ATV tours are very popular here...

 Our first stop was at a blanket factory. Our tour guide, Daniel, showed us the cactus garden first...

An oven for cooking...

 And then we had a weaving demonstration...

Then we went inside where, of course, they tried to get us to buy blankets...among other things.

He gave us a sample of a liquor...can't remember the name of it but it was yucky (at least I thought so)...

This blanket took 5 months to make by hand. Everything was very beautiful...

Passing through a farming community...

Next stop was at a candy store...all homemade...

Palm forest...

We're now in Tados Santos...

Then a tour of a museum...

This whale is solid salt and donated by a local salt company...

Replica of a village home...

A separate building for eating and food preparation...

and sleeping...

Town square...

 After that, Daniel took us to a jewelry store owned by his godfather...

...where they served cervesas and tried their darnedest to get us to buy something. Absolutely beautiful opal jewelry (especial the fire opals) but we all left without any more "bling"...

Then we went next door to the Tequila Sunrise Restaurant where we were treated like royalty.

They even served us a free dessert to share...oh my, it was incredible!

Getting direction to the bank ATM to get out more pesos because the restaurant didn't take credit cards

The owner thanking and hugging us as we leave...

After lunch we went to take a look at The Hotel California...made famous by our favourite band...The Eagles. Always thought this hotel was in California :-)

It's a nice quaint hotel...

After wandering through The Hotel California, we headed up the street towards the Mission...

Lots of construction beautifying the area after a recent hurricane...

Mission of Santa Rosa de Tados Santos...

Shops across the street...

We were back at the van on time and we started back to Cabo San Lucas. An old water park...

A large wash ending a the Pacific...

We were dropped back off at the resort at around 3:00...after a great day! Our tour guide, Daniel, had been excellent. Now it was time to relax and watch for whales and the waves crash on shore...

Down to the beach to watch another stunning sunset...

 We even did a selfie!

We had clear blue sky for our beach walk Sunday (Dec. 13) morning...

Steve and I thought it would be nice to take a look at a Studio Suite here at the resort...just to see what we actually bought into. Building 26 has display suites set up for Studio, 1 Bedroom as well as the 2 bedroom Presidential Suite...

A lot smaller than what we are in now but it's doable for the two of us. Then it was back onto a golf cart...the main mode of transportation around the resort...

And some scenic views around the resort...

 Time for some R'nR up at the Sky Pool...

After a couple of hours of relaxing by the pool, Steve and Uncle Gord decided to go take a look at the Pueblo Bonito Pacifica Golf and Spa Resort...

Inside the lobby...

Of course, Gord had to try out all the pools...

Although very nice they found it had a sterile feel to it with very little greenery...

Dinner that night was at the Asian Restaurant...Zao Shen...

Another great meal...

Monday, December 14...another gorgeous start to the day!

We took the shuttle into The Rose and then walked into town. Esther's knee is doing much better...thank goodness! We are meeting Steve's sister, Nadine and her husband, Mike who are on a cruise and spending the day in port. They are on the Love Boat and the cast from the show were all on board...very cool!

We walked around the marina...

As arranged, we met them at Senor Frogs on the main dock near where the ship tenders dock. What we weren't expecting was to see Steve's cousin, Cheryl and husband, Grant! They flew down from Vancouver for a week's vacation. What a lovely surprise!

Left to right...Nadine, Mike, Gordon, Grant, me, Steve, Esther and Cheryl...

After a beer at Senor Frogs, we walked into town to Cabo Wabo...

This was our third time here over the years and we had no idea there was an upper entrance and level to Cabo Wabo...

 ...Yah...more bevies!

Gord negotiated a fare of 250 pesos ($20 Canadian) for a taxi to take all of us back to our resort. When we arrived Steve gave the driver 300 pesos but he said not enough. He wanted 480 pesos! Steve said no way but Gord gave him another 50 and we just walked away. That was our only bad experience with a taxi.

We had a great afternoon visiting in our suite. Gord and Grant making themselves a sandwich for lunch...

Chatting out on the deck...

Gord, Grant, Mike, Steve and I went for a walk down the beach...

...and then it was time to pile into a golf cart and head up to the lobby...and say goodbye to Mike, Nadine, Cheryl and Grant...

 A wonderful afternoon with family! We even watched Mike and Nadine's cruiseship head out...did you see us flashing our flashlights at you??

Tuesday (Dec. 15) was our snorkeling day! We took a taxi to the main dock where we were to meet at gate 4. This pelican was patiently waiting on the dock for some food to arrive...

Colourful costumes...

 Time to board the Oceanus II...

Adult beverages at 10:30 a.m.!

Pelicans...

Lovers Beach on this side and Divorce Beach on the other side...

The Arch...

Another cruise ship arriving...

Many resorts along the way...

 A safety briefing before we all jump into the water...

Just about time to jump in the water!

There goes Gord...

Esther and me...

Steve decided to take our camera in the water and get some underwater shots. It's supposed to be waterproof...but you never know. Well, it turned out just fine and worked great...

A feeding frenzy below after our snorkeling guide left some food...

 Steve's selfie?

Time to swim back...

I was one of the first ones out of the water...just wanted to beat the rush. Besides a cocktail was waiting for me!

Unfortunately they are building a resort on this bay...

Here comes Gord...

 Lunchtime!

Tuna and ham and cheese sandwiches with salads...

Yikes...pirates!!

Our snorkeling cruise also turned out to be a whale watching tour...

Once the tail comes up it's a sign the whale is sounding or diving to the bottom...

Sounding again...

 Almost back in port...

Wow!!

A yellow submarine...

Wow, what a fabulous day! We were out on a big catamaran that was no where near full...lots of room to wander around and plenty of staff asking if you needed anything!

We took a taxi back to the resort...although it would have been fun to ride in this...

We went to "Burger Fest" for dinner...why not pass the time with a little dance as we wait for the golf cart to pick us up...

Delicious burgers for dinner...

Wednesday, December 16...our last full day here...started with another beautiful sunrise. Our day was spent relaxing on the deck watching all the ocean vista had to offer...

Not only have we been lucky enough to watch whales but these flying  Manta ray have also been entertaining us. We've seen large schools while walking the beach and are woken by their belly flops in the morning darkness. They have all been quite small compared to the info on the web.

An Osprey...

And many Ultra-lights flying around...

 We have enjoyed seeing the flamingos...

We also had our last day of "pool time"...although not mentioned all that much throughout this blog post, we did spend a lot of time at the pool(s)...most days (other than when we had other activities going on) we managed to get a couple of hours in...especially during Happy Hour (3:00-4:00) at our favourite pool when drinks were "2 for 1"!

But...alas...our final night at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach Resort has arrived. Esther cooked our final dinner, while Steve and I watch the 3 hour finale of Survivor on TV. Thanks, Esther (and Gord who lent her a hand)...the Chicken Cacciatore was delicious!

Thursday morning we were up bright and early...and watched our last Cabo sunrise. Gordon and Esther's shuttle to the airport left at 9:00. We had gotten our resort bills last night, gone through and confirmed charges and taken care of them...so we were 'checked out'.

Steve and I had one unused certificate (for $100)...how about that, we didn't spend all of our 'presentation credit'! So we decided to all go out for a nice breakfast before Gordon and Esther caught their shuttle.
We went up to The Bistro and had a lovely table on the deck overlooking the resort and ocean...awesome! Steve's last wish was to see another whale breach before we left. We had been watching whales in the distance when all of a sudden his wish came true...twice!


After breakfast, we saw Esther and Gord off...so very good spending time with you! Big Hugs to you both!

Then it was our turn to get our suitcases packed and ready to go. We were on the 10:45 shuttle to the airport.

Steve snapped some pictures from the taxi...now that's an orange building being built!

A Brewery that we never made it to :-(

The sign above the cabaret door says "Husband Daycare"

All went smoothly at the airport...we got our boarding passes, went through security...and then had a couple of hours to kill, so we stopped for lunch and a beer. As it turned out, our flight was delayed...about an hour.

But by 3:10, we were on our way...bye Los Cabos!

 Bye Baja...

And hello Phoenix...

It was about 6:30 when we finally arrived at La Quinta Inn. We went next door to Denny's and had a "senior's special"...soup and half sandwich. Then settled in for the evening watching TV...we were both tired after what seemed like a long day of travel (although the flight itself was under 2 hours!)

Friday morning, after taking advantage of breakfast in the hotel lobby, we took a taxi to Midway Chev to pick up the truck. Brian (our rep) said that a new right exhaust manifold and EGR cooler had been installed. Hopefully that takes care of the problem once and for all! Only time will tell.

After a stop at Costco  to pick up our new eyeglasses...and do a little shopping...we were on our way back to Quartzsite. It was about 4:30 when we pulled into our spot...and found everything was just fine with our fifth-wheel. Thanks Bob and Sue for keeping an eye on it for us!

Ahhhh....what a great trip, but it's nice to be home!!