Summary

We went to Mexico after a two year break from traveling
March 19 - March 26 Flew into Cabo then drove to La Paz and stayed in a Condo hosted by Francisco and Micha
March 26 - April 2 Drove across the Penisula and stayed with Amber and family
April 2 - April 7 Visited Andrew in Kayenta
April 7 - April 12 Visited Jamie in Denver
April 12 - Flew home

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La Paz

Stephen:
As I said, we are here. After what we have calculated to be a twenty-two hour day, we fell asleep and woke up today ready and raring to go. Yesterday started out waking at 2:30 in the morning to catch a 5:30 to Baltimore where we had breakfast and then board a second Southwest Air plane to Cabo in California Baja Sur in Mexico. This was our first time flying Southwest and we enjoyed its no reserved seating but reserved place in line to board the airplane. We thought that plane was going to be full, but there were a few empty seats and one of them was next to us. What a difference! It was a plane full of college students, both men and women all exuding energy and the first timedness of youth. I am afraid that the stewardess's final farewell of "Don't drink too much." fell on deaf ears.

We never travel on weekends. We never travel on holidays. Well, we can't say that anymore. As we passed the luggage carousels we saw ten flights listed. The vast passport control hall contained a very long line snaking back and forth throughout the room. We finally got through it only to get on another line for the custom line. This one went quicker.

Before getting to the car rental guys, I managed to pay $5 stupid tourist scam tax. I am not going to describe it here but if you run into me somewhere I will admit everything.

Cactus Rental are my heroes. I have never in all my life had such a positive experience. I have never had a rental guy offer me a small beer while I waited for the car to be washed and I have never ever driven out of a rental office having paid the exact price, to the penny, that I was quoted over the internet. The car itself is basic but it is an automatic which makes it easier. Being basic means there is less to learn.

We started driving about 2 hours after our plane landed. In the 2.5 hours that we drove we saw some ocean and a lot of desert. I botched the last part of the trip but we were checking in a little after five. A little unpacking, a quick shower and we were in the pool. Shortly after, we walked over to the Sea Side Restaurante and grabbed their last unreserved table. The Margaritas were great and the pizza and guac were good. More details to follow after we get back from Dawn's birthday dinner celebration on Monday.

Dawn:
It is our first time in Baja Sur. Ten flights arrived around the same time at Cabo airport, and the lines for immigration and customs were endless. There was a scattering of old folks and families amidst hordes of college students, very ready to have a good time.

Driving out of the airport, I was again struck by how much of Mexico is desert, so parched, so arid, with huge cacti thriving in this climate. After a couple of hours, we approached greater La Paz, which could be greater any city in Mexico. So many car repair places, small tiendas or shops, gas stations, mom and pop tortilla places, dust and sand. Again I am struck by how much of Mexico is a poor country, though most of the people we meet here are rich in spirit and heart.

Contrasts abound here, and I should not be surprised because everywhere we have been in this country, those contrasts exist. Of course this situation seems to be becoming more pronounced in the USA also.There is certainly a wealthy part to La Paz, with upscale stores, restaurants, etc. We are staying in a much more upscale situation than we usually do. The owner of our ground floor condo has traveled extensively and bought beautiful art, especially from Asia. Our bed is watched over by Buddhas, Boddhisatvas, Sivas, Ganeshes and several sculptural representations of deities we are not familiar with.

There are silk hanging tapestries and other fascinating objects in the house. The infinity pool is wonderful for a refreshing dip. Our place is situated beyond the city itself, at the bottom of an escarpment and overlooking part of the Sea of Cortez, so we have access to a small beach and shallow salt water swimming. There are gates everywhere as security is a huge issue. The exclusiveness that such security provides makes me feel a bit uncomfortable, but that's the way it is here.

Today (Sunday) we went into town to look for desayuno and a market to buy basics. We found Delis, a little rooftop spot (50 steps up) khfor that breakfast which turned out to be not only delicious but also another cultural eye-opening moment. The owner was very friendly. When he spoke to us in English, his accent didn't sound at all Mexican. I thought European. When I asked, He said he was originally from Ukraine. So you can imagine how our conversation progressed. He was very appreciative of the small help we have sent to Ukraine. It seems his family moved to Spain when he was about five, but he still has family in Ukraine, near the Polish border. He also spent five years working in China and has an international consulting business. His lovely wife is Mexican,and so they are here. He speaks Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, English, Spanish, Turkish and Mandarin! I think he's about thirty-five. They also run a local service that helps young people deal with alcoholism.

Below is the view from our patio, where we wrote this first page of travelogue.

yoga view

A Small, Quick Event

Stephen:
Something happened at the restaurant our first night in town. Dawn was on the phone in a quick chat with Amber. Behind Dawn, there was a flurry of activity, someone moved quickly, a quick remonstration, a feeling of embarrassment, a quieting down. My interpretation after a few moments, was that one of the parents performed the Heimlich Maneuver on their young son. It is still what I think, but i am realizing that as it happened there were no words attached. I just witnessed something strange and then afterwards tried to put words to it. It was hard to put words to something that may or may have not happened. So my take away from all this is that we might live our whole lives without words but constantly explaining what just happened to ourselves. Perhaps there are two ententies, the experience and our interpretation of the experience. People sometimes speak of this as pidgeon-holing. My plan is to try to catch my self doing this. An example would be upon hearing a loud sound deciding whether it is good or bad, music or a car crash, dissonant or not.

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Hanging out and Miscellaneous

Today, I spent some time sending out the travelogue link. My apologies for any duplicates or messes that you may have received. Gmail has changed the format for multiple blind copies. After that, we listened to a long meditation/dharma talk from Plum Village and then had lunch. Now we are hanging out by the pool, Dawn doing is yoga and I am uploading pictures to this travelogue. The picture below shows our building on the right (We are on the ground floor) then behind the trees the resort/hotel that manages our building, the Cortez dive shop is next and finally, looking like a bridge, the roof of the Sea Side Restaurant where we will be tonight.

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The view from our breakfast table in the morning. It was very still and quiet; very Japanese. We are getting up early today so that Dawn can lead a yoga class for and have a chat with her gym friends back home.

Cerro de la Calavera

We climbed the southern end of the ridge with Saul, a guide we contacted through Airbnb. It was quite wonderful. We worked our way up the small mountain (250 meters) looking at and smelling,and tasting the plants that grow in this parched land.
and then waited for the sunset. He then brought out hiking sticks and headlamps to help us negotiate the steep descent.

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Dawn's review of hike with Saul for Airbnb

Saul is a delightful and knowledgeable guide. The Cerro de Calavera hike has a few challenges for folks in their 70's. Saul gave us easy, middle, and hard options for the ascent. We took the middle going up and the easy coming down, although given the sand and steep, uneven rocks, we were happy to use his hiking sticks for the descent. I was glad to be wearing hiking boots, especially as I had fractured my foot last November and was still a bit wary of walking on such uneven ground. Saul's knowledge of the geological and cultural history of the region was excellent, as was his knowledge of local flora and fauna. He also provided water and binoculars for our use. We felt very simpatico with his views about conservation, water use, etc. Also to his credit, Saul encouraged me to practice my mediocre Spanish with him, although his English was better than our Spanish. We definitely recommend this experience with Saul.

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Triunfo anf the Mineros Restaurant

The next day found us driving to, on Saul's recommendation, Triunfo, a small village that was a mining center, but now is a very small tourist mecca.The first museum we went to was the Museum of Music (but really pianos). Perhaps it was more of a graveyard for pianos, but it did have a recital hall with a nice nine-foot grand, although no schedule of events that we could see. This is all in a town of 325 people.
We went to the Museum of the Silver Road with beautiful exhibitions using projections and dioramas.We then had lunch at Restaurant Los Mineros which is semi-attached to the museum. The food was great! I had a sausage that was seasoned with mushrooms and secret spices that was so different from anything that I ever had. The two desserts that we had were fabulous, really tasty without relying on sugar. The espresso was the real deal.
On the walk back to our car, we stoped to look at the chimney. Although some have claimed that this chimney for the mining smelter was designed by Gustave Eiffel, there seems to be no proof.

Dinner, back at Delis

We got a photo at dinner from Amber expressing her readiness for her vacation. We sent this picture in return to encourage her.
Our view from dinner. It might be dreary with its wall that is all that is left of the building that is now only a parking lot. Somehow to us it carries the hope of the future.

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A Week in Todos Santos - With Family

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Stephen:
As we were driving down route 19 toward Todos Santos we started getting texts from Amber - We just touched down - We will arrive by 12:30 - etc. - We can not get in until the cleaners leave - Where shall we might for lunch. We decided to meet at restaurant Esquina to have lunch and wait for them to be done. It is a large restaurant that is mostly a patio as we will find in many other places in town. We found a table for six shared the excitement of our travel day.

When we got into Casa Chiquita, our Airbnb place, we found a small place with beautiful outdoor spaces including a pool (see below) and the rooftop terrace.

Dawn:
t was great to be with the San Francisco family in Todos Santos. Amber found an Airbnb that accommodated all six of us comfortably. The roof deck was a favorite spot as was hanging out around the small pool. We went to several different beaches, one especially good for boogie boarding, although the air and water were cold enough that I didn't get in. I seem to be less of an ocean freak as I get older. When I was a kid, I remember my brother and me staying in the waves until we were blue, and our parents had to drag us out! One day, after an hour-plus drive, we got to a beach with amazing snorkeling. You could just walk in up to your waist, look down and see schools of various fish all around you! With a mask, and my wetsuit vest, you could swim around and see several varieties.

Yoga on the Roof Terrace

Somehow I always manage to get my yoga travel mat into my carry-on suitcase. Amber is the person who first introduced me to yoga, about 25 years ago. A highlight of our time together in Todos Santos was a three-generation yoga session on the roof. Lily does not really practice yoga, but she gave it a whirl and did great. Amber and I took turns leading the practice. Amber is an amazing yogini. She does poses I can no longer do,like Bird of Paradise and arm balances. It was a sweet, special time.

Second Trip to Playa Cerritos

We went to a different part of the beach, discovered a dead eel, watched the turkey buzzards come in warily and do their thing. The boys took over the football game. At some point a 4 year old mexican boy joined in. He could not catch but could throw and displayed a dazzling smile at every success. He seemed parentless, but later, as we left the beach, we did see him playing soccer with his parents.
The surfing beach Pastora, looking one way and then the other. Just north of this beach is the Green Room Restaurant, named, not for the room in which actors wait to go onstaqge, but the tube the surfers ride in when it is lit through the back of the wave at sunset.

The Pacifico is a good place. You order food before you go in and then walk into the courtyard to find a table. The fish is great, the staff is warm and friendly, the margaritas are ok.

Patrick's and Cole's ATV Trip

Patrick found a place where they would rent them an ATV for a couple of hours, and they suggested a trip up to the dam. Patrick said they got semi lost a couple of times but enjoyed their trip through the flora and fauna of the Baja desert.

Art in Todos Santos

Dawn:
Todos Santos has attracted many artists over the years, but it's no longer a little, sleepy town. In fact, it seemed a bit more tourist-filled to me than La Paz. Also prices in Baja Sur are higher than in other parts of Mexico where we have had some longer stays. Although I enjoy Mexican food, it was nice to have some other options in Todos Santos, like a sushi place and a very nice Italian restaurant for our last night there, il Jardino.

The most stunning aspect of Baja Sur is the topography. It has a unique combination of desert and mountains, all in close proximity to the ocean or Sea of Cortez.

One day we visited some galleries and chatted with a couple of artists. One of them, Pablo Marquez did some beautiful work that for me really captured the flavor of the region. He liked my comment about the "sabor de Baja", and we got into a long conversation. He lived in the states for several years, LA, New York, and loved being there. Recently though, he wanted to return to his homeland and chose Todos Santos over the metropolis of Mexico City where he was born. Like many people we spoke with in Oaxaca, he is a big fan of the current president, Obrador, who is really advocating "for the people." and anti-corruption. In fact, I heard that early in the Putin invasion of Ukraine, Señor Obrador flew a plane load of Ukrainians to Mexico for refuge.

Cachora Beach and Il Giardino - Final Evenings

Dawn and I took a short drive down a one lane road to see the sunset. We passed more farms and a horse stable, pulling into turnouts to let the cars and trucks leaving the beach pass us. It was a wild beach, not for swimming, but for walkng and watching the sunset. We had a little difficulty finding Il Giardino, our restaurant for our final meal. Google maps was off by a street but also off by 50' in elevation. We were helped by a nice gentleman in the neighborhood who pointed it out on the top of the cliff above us. We came onto the terrace just as the sun was setting. The restaurant had a great view. Italian cooking for me feels like home cooking and the place had a relaxing atmosphere to it. It was a great place to have our last dinner together on this trip.
Dawn:
My brother's partner of thirty years, Linda, sadly passed in February from lung cancer. Their home is imbued with her beauty, art, and spirit. The two of them created a warm, inviting, artistic space, featuring Native American art as well as their own. We had planned to see them early in 2020 on our return trip from Mexico, but that was canceled because of covid. Now we are here to be with my brother, Andrew. Wherever we go in this community, people express how much they miss and loved her. This photo from a few years ago expresses her energy and spirit.

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Stephen:
We are now in Kayenta, a community of houses, outside of St. George, with Dawn's brother Andrew, at the end of an long travel day. We got up at 6 AM to make coffee and drive to the airport. After reading about how the gas stations near the airport preyed on rental car returners by making them pay in cash and then cheating them with sleight of hand tricks, we stopped at a Chevron station at the other end of the toll road and filled up the normal way. The end of the rental was as promised. After we arrived at Cactus Rentals, Daniel walked around the car, checked the mileage and gas level and then got in and drove us to our terminal, making it very quick tranfer and eliminating one round of baggage handling. We picked up our boarding passes at the airport kiosks and were good to go.

We fly carry-on most of the time and we were now approaching the moment of weakness in that stategy, going through security. Everyone seems to be in a hurry and the craziness seems to be infectious. Documents need to be available but then there is no time to put them away safety. Ipads come out, wallets and phones go in, belts comes off and almost possessionless you go through the machine. I did find a ten peso coin in my pocket at the last minute which they told me just to hold in my hand as I took the pose. Dawn no longer has to take her shoes off and can go through the old fashioned x-ray machine. It is hard to go slow when everyone around you seems to be about to miss their flight. We have two more attempts on our trip home to practice going through this with serenity.

After waiting along time for our flight to Los Vegas, we got ourselves on the plane back to row 36 only to realize that I had left my hat at the gate. Dawn told me to speak to the flight attendant. The attendant told me that if I wanted to leave the plane I needed to take all my stuff with me. I couldn't imagine going against the stream of boarding passengers with all my stuff. And she also said that she was not allowed to leave the plane. But one of the pilots might be able to go back to the gate and look for my hat. she called to the flight deck and told me they would do what they could do. Later she came back and said they had found my hat but there was a $10 finder fee. I said I would give the pilot the hat if he would take a selfie wearing it and give it to me. After all this bantering I went back to my seat and waited to see what would happen. Just before we backed away from the gate to begin our flight, the flight attendant came down the aisle with my hat and the two of us were reunited.

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St. George Museum of Art

Before going to an appointment, Andrew dropped us off at the St. George Museum of Art. They had two ongoing exhibitions. One concerned the life and art of Glen Blakley, and the other was a touring exhibition from the United States Marines. The ceramics were great. For many years he was the soul of the arts in St George. He died in 2020.

From his Obituary:
Glen attended BYU and graduated with an masters of fine arts in 1973. In 1976 Glen moved to St. George, Utah where he became a professor of fine arts at Dixie State University, only ending his illustrious career upon his death. Beloved by students and faculty alike, Glen taught freely both in and out of the classroom for over four decades. He led hundreds of students and community members on art-focused trips around the globe. As founder of the St. George Art Museum, first director and frequent judge of the St. George Art Festival, and chairman and committee member of numerous local arts education programs, Glen worked tirelessly to enrich the culture of art in St. George and throughout Southern Utah.

One could do worse. This was an intriguing exhibition with work of Army artists. The subjects were all named rather than being just characters. No talk about glory, but much about mission. The work was uneven but all heartfelt. War is ugly as we keep learning everyday.

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More Kayenta

We are in our last day here in Kayenta. Beautiful days and great company. After lunch, Andrew took us to the airport and we arrived in Denver a little after 5PM.

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With Jamie and his Family

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Dawn:
We took a fairly small plane from Phoenix to Denver with outdoor boarding and deplaning. Just as I told Stephen to hold on to his hat because it was very windy, mine blew off my head and landed near the nose of the airplane. A young man kindly retrieved it for me.

Stephen's nephew Jamie and his wife Wendy completely spoiled us. Jamie had been a barrista, among many other jobs, so made fabulous coffee with steamed milk for us every morning. We ate out a couple of times, had great sushi takeout one night, grilled chicken takeout another, and delicious fresh spring rolls handmade by Wendy for our last night's dinner, not to mention gelato which we have not indulged in for a very long time!

Their daughter Piper will be twelve in a week. She attends a new arts magnet school and plays piano beautifully. Like our 13-year old East Coast Chloe, she is a huge Harry Potter fan. Not having seen Piper in five years, because of a covid-cancelled visit, she is now quite poised and grown up. It was fun to get to know her a bit more.

Kai is their 90 lb. rescue dog who looks like a pinto pony and is a sweetheart. He likes to lean into you with affection. This habit may have knocked Wendy and Piper over a couple of times because they are not very big! We enjoyed his presence.



Stephen:
The flight was easy. We arrived nearly simultaneously with Jamie near the baggage carousels. We grabbed dinner the first night at a Mexican restaurant, Billies. The tacos were surprisingly good. It was a neighborhood place and even early on a Thursday evening was a boisterous, convivial place.

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Meow Wolf: Convergenge Station

In their own words:

Meow Wolf: Convergence Station is a massive, 90,000 square foot narrative art exhibition built around the concept of quantum travel. Guests will explore four floors and more than 70 immersive, interactive installations designed by more than 300 creatives, including more than 110 Colorado-based artists. There's also a gift shop and an in-world fast-casual restaurant called HELLOFOOD café, whose menu features items from local businesses like Raices Brewing Company. At night, Meow Wolf will host events and concerts out of the Perplexiplex, a 488-person immersive performance venue outfitted with interactive tech and projection equipment.

"Meow wolf's mission is to inspire creativity in people's lives," said Meow Wolf co-founder Sean Di Ianni. "This is really a major milestone for Meow Wolf. It's a huge milestone in our mission of inspiring creativity in people's lives, and I really think that this project and all of the others that we've created so far are proving out the power of the imagination to transform our words."


All the music in this room was created mechanically, the drums on the right wall, the piano hung on the far wall and the tubular bells that are hanging on the ceiling, which you canmnot see. It was our favorite room, I think because it took pauses between the playing of the music and then it took breaths in the music itself and also because the sound itself was the result of a mallet hitting a drumhead or piano string or a metal tube. The sound throughout the rest of the exhibition was electronic and somewhat drone like.
On the left, you can just see the back of a boat where we climbed up to the bridge. The front half of the boat itself disappears into the wall.

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The Alley

We took walks in the neighborhood and alleys were everywhere. They are an important architectual part of the neighborhood.What are we seeing that are not part of the streetscape. Well, power lines and garages. Dawn and I notice how pretty the houses are, and certainly not having to build garages with their doors into the front of the house and then put electric poles on the street and run cable into the house is also a plus. A minus might be the street people that now convene in the alleys and give them their bad reputation. Also, you have to teach your children to look out for cars as they exit.

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Denver Art Museum

Stephen:
The thing that I learned here was that Cortez had help from Meso-Americans who were under the thumb of the Aztecs. I'm afraid it didn't work out for them very well. Malinche was a very powerful woman and thus she became an icon when people needed an inspiration. They made a lot of stuff up, but created beautiful strong images to carry their ideas through.

After seeing the exhibition, I went out to the front to wait for Dawn who was talking to a young women volunteer. I was stopped by an older, siver-haired volunteer who asked if my hat was leather. My first impression was that I might be escorted from the Museum. After a pause, I replied that it was microfiber.Then she asked if she could touch it. She said she was interested in buying one. At this moment I was rescued by Dawn's appearance and some hat talk about my hat having been left at the gate and hers being blown toward the jet we had just gotten off.

After a coffee, We wandered about the European Painting Gallery and this painting caught our attention. One doesn't think of the impressionists ever painting in cold weather. Not just cold but really cold.

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The Denver Airport

Stephen:
I forgot to tell Jamie what time we were flying back to Boston, so he had to drop us a little early. It turned out to be an interesting afternoon. First, we got some help from a volunteer who just seem to hang around waiting for a person who looks lost to wander by. Then, there was no one in the security line that could hold five hundred people. We are working on our serentity as we go through security and it went well. She said I could hold my belt as I went through the machine and that allowed me to retain more of my dignity as I could get my belt on before I dealt with my bags and coats.


What came next was the best part of the day which was our lunch at "Pour La France". It was relaxed, the food was good, the beer was good. The waitress worked on her French with Dawn. She was coming from Haitian Creole, which made for interesting discussions. We ate leisurely and didn't worry about the time. By the time we got to the gate and visited the toilets boarding had started. At home, Dawn and I don't watch action so I took the opportunity to watch "No Time to Die". Lots of action and some nice parts. We flew fast and were over Boston before we knew it and we bumped down to a smooth landing and the cab driver took us home avoiding the Ted Williams Tunnel for reasons unsure, and the trip was almost over.

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A Thought

Stephen:
We are at the last station of this trip and I am taking the opportunity to do some wrap up of the whole trip.

During this trip we have been talking with various family members about aging. It is easy to see ourselves as diminished. Perhaps we are not as competent as we were or we cannot walk as far or as fast as we could at one time. This is a trap. We are trapped by the idea that we are less than we were, that we are failing some test. We are digging ourselves a hole from which we cannot move forward.

Can we see ourselves simply as who we are today without any comparison to who we were? Or allow ourselves to be aware of other things in ourselves that are better than they were before'? For myself, I am thinking about my listening skills and my patience. What I am doing here is trying to build myself a little hill here from which I can push off, like a pitcher's mound, into the future that I want. Rather than correcting or fixing the past, I want to be attracted by a future.

All this must be done with a little smile. One needs to recognize habitual thinking and just do something else. It also helps me to get away from myself to have a future that has a little more compassion. To see whatever situation that I am in a little more through the eyes of others. Not all the time, just a little more of the time, all with a sense of curiosity.

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See You Next Time

Dawn:
Back home to blooming forsythia, daffodils and tulips. We joined my son Adam and family, including Noelle's mom and her brother and his family for a wonderful Easter dinner. Especially given the chaos in the world, I have deep gratitude for the family and good fortune that is ours. May Easter, Passover, Ramadan or simply the miracle of springtime bring you hope and joy.

Stephen:
With our Easter dinner with Adam and family, this family trip and this travelogue are now finished. It has been a pleasure for us to write these few words and thank you for reading.