Los Cabos: Loafing and La Paz

Glorious sunshine streamed through the double deck doors and woke me up. So, the following day in Los Cabos became nothing more than a beach and pool day. The sand was warm on the feet and the bartenders were very attentive. By the end of the day, the skin was warm and the brain was relaxed. Just what I ordered!

We finished the day by wandering the streets of San Jose Del Cabo. This time, we did find the downtown and a very intriguing art district. The plaza was wide open with locals wandering in and across the roads. School children roamed the streets freely and we wondered about the school timetable. The vendors were inviting us in but laughed with us as we refused their almost free offers. Cheapo Phillipo was charming and fun, despite being over priced for our lowly budgets. Eventually we wound up at the Baja Brewery for supper after enjoying the street life. Fabulous food and a great outdoor eating area. What’s not to like?

Cheapo Phillipo (he tattooed himeself with the nickname)

Main Plaza

The following day we managed to snag a rental car for the day. Lesson learned: Either rent from the airport or the concierge. Do not rent from the travel desk as they were unreliable and not even apologetic. The concierge got us a great car price and size quickly and in the meantime, we had a cup of coffee.

The car was brought right to the hotel so we were able to complete all the paperwork from there. That was very convenient and so we set off for La Paz. Now, driving there was not that difficult. First thing to note is that speed limits seem to be guidelines, as are the stop signs and even traffic lights. In addition, with all of the construction they sometimes use real people and sometime cut out men with flags. The only road issues that were taken seriously were the Mexican military check stops.

In the meantime, we drove north through Cabo San Lucas on highway 19 through to Todo Los Santos. The rolling highway with the scenic blue ocean views added in with the mountains and tall cacti were spectacular. There were construction detours that required a bit of an adventurous spirit and I swear that neither of us saw the Hotel California (seriously – how did we miss it?).

The road to La Paz took about 2.5 hours. Once there, we decided to stop at Serpentario de La Paz. Outside the gates, we had some lunch and then wandered it. This place is volunteer run and can definitely use the visitation and funding to rescue animals. There were turtles and snakes, birds and an alligator, bunnies and more tortugas. I enjoyed the aviary where you could feed the birds. They were so trusting and landed willingly on arms and fingers. The bunnies were quite happy to be petted and even the large tortoise tried to get his share of the attention. However, the place isn’t that large so we headed out for more exploring.

 The little car bounced through the roads and we found ourselves down on the waterfront. So, we parked the car and walked towards the Marina and viewed the Malecon. Then, we found a delightful little museum tucked into a gorgeous building. There was art and views that took a bit of time to enjoy. From there, you can easily walk to the Cathedral Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Paz to take in the lovely art works, the ambience and Lady’s chapel. I was amused to see a day of the dead Halloween style display.

Next up was the Museo de Antropología  where you can get a sense of the history of the region. It seemed to have some displays that were still being redone and honestly, it doesn’t take very long to go through. We were done in under an hour. In fact, by the time we found a coffee shop and had some coffee, we were feeling like La Paz didn’t really have that much more to offer. So, more adventures of road works and bumpy roads ensued. We twisted and turned our way to Bandaros Beach and that should possibly have been our first stop as it was stunning. From rock formations, to a lovely bay and gentle breezes, you can feel like you are in the middle of nowhere.

 The only hiccup we really had was our stop there meant that we were driving home in the dark and we took an alternate way back using Highway 1. You are warned to watch for cows sleeping on the road, but I never saw an alive one until much later in the drive. What was more alarming was the crazy speed bumps that signaled a village ahead that you couldn’t see until you were pretty much impaling your head into the roof. My poor co-pilot didn’t even have anything to hang onto. In the meantime, I will say that the roads minus the speed bumps are really fun to drive. I just think that perhaps daylight might have helped. All in all, it was a great day.