I'm Just Sayin

Based on past experience, if there is anything of interest to you in Greece... you better go ahead and see it. I'm just sayin.

It's Hammer Time

At what point does a theory become fact? I have hypothesized for some time that the best days begin on a dive boat and it proved to be correct again. 84 out of 84 times - that must qualify as a fact.

This dive meant getting up at 5:30 to get to the boat by 7:00 and make an hour and a half trip to a dive spot called Gordo Banks. It's known for one thing - hammerheads. And boy did we see them! We dropped down to about 120 feet where it got pretty dark and there was only about 10-15 feet visibility. It was hard to see much there, but there was some movement in the shadows.

But between 80 - 65 feet they came a little closer and were easier to see. There must have been 20 or so swimming around. I can't describe how amazing it was to see my favorite shark!

We also found some 'Chocolate Chip' Starfish, which cannot be eaten with cold milk at 120 feet, as well as some very interestingly shaped jellyfish. It was a great dive.

After we finished off our Nitrox certification we decided to visit a spot at the southern most point of Cabo San Lucas called 'Lover's beach'. (In Spanish it is 'Lowbbers Beech'. Don't forget to roll your R.) It's a unique little spot where you can stand and see both the Sea of Cortez and the Pacific Ocean. There must be a 20 degree difference from one side to the other.

And when the last day of your vacation includes fajitas and a hotel tub full of dive equipment - well, that's the sign of a GREAT vacation!

To Do List

To do list:

Sleep in - check

Sign in at Spa - check

Convince Scott he looks good in a bathrobe - check

Convince Scott he looks good relaxing in the relaxation room - check

Have the massage of your life that sends you into a hypnotic state - check

Eat lunch poolside; Sea Bass tacos to be specific - check

Take a swim in all three hotel pools - check

Watch a movie - check

Go to bed - check

Repeat tomorrow

Killer Lobster

I have to say the last few days have given me pause to reflect on the two years that David spent in Mexico. For one, we ran into four LDS missionaries and could not keep ourselves from buying them all ice cream. I mean one gringo kid from Idaho Falls was constantly wiping a sweat drop that kept reappearing in every location across his head and the three other Mexican Elders just looked so cute! And who doesn't need ice cream?

Secondly, when I mention to people that mi hijo (yeah, I speak Spanish) lived in Guerrero and Morelos I keep getting these shocked looks. One man even got wide-eyed and said, "Wow, that is a very dangerous part of Mexico." Glad I didn't find out til now.

Another perfect day started with a combination of one dive boat and only two divers; Scott and I. Now that is a PERFECT setup.

This time we went into 'The Corridor', dove The Blowhole and another site not on the map called The Children. The children can only be found if Claudio from Argentina is your Dive Master and you can line up the antennas on land and the rock in the water...

At the blowhole we spotted the most giant lobster that lives in this world. Even the dive master got big eyed. That sucker must have been 3 1/2 feet from eyeballs to tail. It was like it grew after a nuclear exposure or something. He was so big, he didn't even have to hide!

I also love the starfish that are abundant down here. They come in all shapes and sizes and cling to everything. The rays love to munch on them.

Two morning dives deserves the Mexican platter at the Baja Cantina; taquitos, calamari, nachos, quesadillas and salsa wings. I am pleased to report that Scott found room for all of it in his empty stomach. (I'll bet Dave didn't eat like this while he was here, although I did find some Negritos at the market....)

So, if the way to start a day is on a dive boat, I'm sure you know the perfect way to end a day... on a dive boat of course - headed to a night dive.

Omelets and Ocean

Want to know the best way to start a perfect day? In my estimation it's room service for breakfast and jumping on a dive boat headed for the Sea of Cortez.

There is a natural rock formation in Cabo San Lucas called El Arco, bet you'll never guess why. It is a beautiful location, the very tip of the Baha in the Sea of Cortez where it meets the Pacific ocean. Guess the seals think it's an okay place to hang out too.

Our Dive Master selected two sites for our morning dives; Pelican Rock and The North Wall. We saw a couple stone/rock fish that are masters of disguise. Can you see them in the photos?

There is a TON of shopping and tourist attractions of course, so after enjoying the beauty of the ocean and its inhabitants, we decided to partake and add to Mr. Cowboy's boot collection by picking up a pair of turtle boots. Obviously they will have to be broken in.

A funny thing happened on the way to the beach...

The FANTASTIC hotel we are staying in in Los Cabos has three beautiful pools and a nice beach, however, swimming in the ocean along this stretch of beach is highly discouraged as the waves are quite fierce. Knowing that my husband sees any sign that says "WARNING" as a personal challenge and wanting to return home with him alive, we got information on a lovely local beach called Chileno. Just outside our hotel you can catch a local bus for $2 and it'll take you to said beach.

The recommendation turned out to be a great one. The beach was very nice and palapas are available to provide a little shade. We did a little snorkeling and saw a variety of sea life; trumpet fish, parrot fish, moorish idols and my personal favorites - a trunk fish.

(This is where the funny part comes in...) After our beach excursion we decided we wanted to go back and continue on the public bus to Cabo San Lucas and touch base with our dive shop. Not knowing for sure where we were suppose to wait for the bus, we politely asked the Mexican police. Our ability to communicate being slightly hindered, they tell us to get in the car. Scott and I climb into the back seat of the police car and the officers proceed to chase down a public bus, turn on their lights and through a broadcast to the bus driver get him to pull over and let a couple of gringo's on the bus.

Since the local economy is 100% tourist based, no one gave us any hand gestures as we entered the bus. I won't argue that we deserved it. Viva tourismo!

We connected with the dive shop which is located in the marina at Cabos San Lucas and got our dives for the week arranged. (Sorry boys, but we decided to certify for Nitrox. You can catch up later.) Dinner at the marina consisted of a large red snapper for Scott and some enchiladas suisse for me. Yum.

Just to finish off a great day - we chose to ride horseback into the sunset on the beach. Scott was right at home.

Buenos Dias!

A little 'south of the border' time was in order so we decided to come check out the scenery above and below the water in Mexico. This trip is just Scott and I, (sorry boys) although Dave's fluent Spanish would have come in handy I am sure.

We are staying at the Marquis Los Cabos Resort, which you would just HATE. It's right on the beach and our room has an ocean view.

In addition to be a perfectly fantastic room...

...they have this incredible feature which I believe should be added to my master bedroom at home. You see there is this special little door....

and when you open it some treats magically appear.

Boys, in addition to your chore list I left for you to take care of while we are away, please add: "add magic door to Mom and Dad's room". Thanks! Can't wait to see it when we get back!

We did invite a couple to come with us on this trip. They opted for something else.

Suckers.

Click your ruby slippers

It was a 27-hour day that took us from our beds at the Rome Marriott to our own beds in Pleasant View, Utah, but we made it without incident, accident or injury.

Our route took us from Rome to London - which was just a 2.5 hour flight. Then from London to New York, an additional 6.5 hours and boy did I make a GREAT seat selection on that flight. Tall boys with long legs got me to thinking about that row right behind the galley on the 747.... knee room, leg room, stand up room. I got lot's of points from the boys for that call.

Our New York to Salt Lake City leg was suppose to be 4.5 hours but turned into 5.5 due to the 'sit time' on the tarmac. I used some frequent flyer miles to upgrade to first class but we were too tired to even enjoy the attention from the stewardess or make special requests! Boy did I have some tired but very happy boys outside the SLC airport waiting for Scott to pull up!

We hit our own beds at about midnight Utah time, or 8 AM Italy time. Either time we were exhausted from the travel and malnourished from the lack of gelato.

I woke up the next morning in that super drowsy fog. You know the one. You wake up and aren't really sure where you are. I thought, 'Hey, I think this might be my own bed!' The fog clears just enough for the logical thought process that if I am in my own bed I must be in my own room! And if I am in my own room, that means the house is there too! Oh yeah! I mean, travel is great but I argue that home is greater.

Taking a cue from my (less than supportive) sister;

These things are good:

lever flush toilets

english

your own mattress

driving a car

not having to calculate exchange rates

reading from left to right

temperatures in the 90's

Just to name a few.

11 through 15

Here are a few stats for ya: we've slept in 14 hotels, flown over 20,000 miles, visited 32 cities/towns, been bused about 1,600 miles, used 5 different types of currency and eaten incalculable amounts of ice cream. (Starting Monday the budget and the diet will significantly tighten!)

This is the boys 3rd 'trip' to Rome and my 4th so we were DONE with the 'top 10 must see' sites. Today we focused on numbers 11 through 15 and managed to lose the crowds of tourists. I'll give you a little run down.

I let the boys sleep in late, as in closer to lunch than breakfast late. So first order of business was lunch. A Coke in Europe will rock you anywhere from 2 - 7 Euros. Ridiculous. And one thing that Europe does not believe in is free re-fills. So when we saw a restaurant that DID have free refills... we took a table!

It felt like being back in the States. Nacho's, Fajita's, Barbecue, steak. We succumbed to non-Italian food and didn't feel bad about it at all. The manager was from Boston and our waitress was from Texas. A little taste of home - which was really nice after 5 weeks.

There is a church called 'Saint Peter in Chains' not far from the Colosseum. (My Dad actually suggested it when I asked him for ideas of what we could do that we hadn't done before.) The church has two notable items that make it well worth a visit. Just under the alter they claim to have the actual chains that bound Peter before he was killed - we are skeptical. A painting on the ceiling tells the story.

The second notable item in the church (and the one who's authenticity is a fact) is a statue of Moses by Michelangelo. Moses is depicted with horns on his head based on a misinterpretation of scripture which Michelangelo was aware of but sculpted anyway.

The entire work was supposed to include 40 figures and be the tomb of Pope Julius, but after doing Moses Michelangelo got distracted with the Vatican and Sistine Chapel. It is assumed that students of the artist added the additional statues and Pope Julius was buried at St. Peter's.

Next we walked to the Jewish Ghetto. Jews have been in Rome for as long as Rome has been in Italy and have suffered for most of the time because of their religion. We were able to tour two synagogues and a museum dedicated to preservation of items from the ghetto. Because of a terrorist attack in 1992, photos are strictly forbidden and one woman was questioned and forced to show the guard her digital photos when he thought he saw her take one. I guess too much information could be gathered from photos posted to the internet for future attacks. This time I kept my camera in my bag! Their piazza had an interesting name:

The area was so pretty and nearly tourist free - except for us! (I wonder if people who live in Rome dislike the tourist crowds as much as we do?)

We crossed the river and wandered around the Trastevere neighborhood, also tourist free. It felt like a true snapshot of life in Rome. Crossing back over the bridge we visited Piazza Campo de' Fiori and a pizzeria that was a recommended local favorite. We picked up some slices and ate with the rest of the locals at the fountain.

We were making a big loop around all the famous sites of the city so on the way back to the hotel we passed through Piazza Navona and by the Pantheon just for a couple parting shots. The weather was fantastic - just like the whole day!

I have realized that there is one pretty big draw back to traveling with one small carryon; there is no space to pack any items you'd like to purchase. Which in the end could be a good thing.