We ended our trip on an excellent note. We headed over to Fun Baja and got fitted for our wet suits, then headed out to Isla EspÃritu Santo. I have to say I really love being on boats (“I’ve often not been on boats.”). I was worried I’d be sick because I’ve only really been on boats in Venice and Boston Harbor, and those really don’t count. But even the huge waves as we came around into open water made me happy. We skirted the coast most of the way, so I got to check things out.
We named this Poo Island because it looks as if nothing lives on it but colony of nesting boobys (you think that’s the right plural?).
Here’s the island we were headed to.
And when we got around to the tip, we found a colony of sea lions.
So now there’s a gap in photos because I was busy donning a wet suit (an aerobic activity, I assure you) and learning to snorkel. Snorkeling really, really freaked me out. The combination of the tight suit and the very strange experience of putting my face in the water and breathing took me a long time to settle into. Once I finally did, I loved it. There were sardines everywhere, trigger fish, puffers, some cormorants swimming around, and tons of starfish. But the best part was the sea lion colony, which was completely unafraid of us. The babies hopped into the water and explored us. One little female in particular loved Kris and spent a lot of time with him. She hugged him, and then moved around onto his back and he took her for a little ride. I got over there after that, and she started giving me playful little nibbles on my hands and arms, gave me a little hug around the legs. It was such an unbelievable experience.
After about an hour of this, we got back onto the boat and went to this little cove.
All of the other people waited in line to get on the dinghy to go to the beach for a picnic, but Kris and I put our snorkels and fins back on (no suits this time) and jumped right in. The water was pretty chilly, but there were a ton of anemones under the water, as well as more puffers. You can see in this shot where all of the anemones were (the dark areas on the water).
After sandwiches and beer, and a nice walk along the beach to dry, it was time to head back. I had on a rash guard, but once I got dry, the water suddenly seemed a lot colder, and I decided to take the boat back. Kris, though, struck out again with the snorkel (he’s that tiny dot in the water).
Here he is again:
Here I am back on the boat (rockin’ my rash guard).
And here’s the view leaving the cove again.
I made our divemaster, Juan, pose with me.
We got back home and prepared some ceviche for dinner later, showered, and grabbed a cab into town for some last-minute gifts. We started with a gift for ourselves, two giant ice cream cones. We walked around a bit. Here’s a statue I particularly liked.
Up to the cathedral.
There were some little sculptures on the side of the cathedral.
Here’s the interior.
Then we headed back toward the malecón. This view confused me (the Chinese characters).
Some art stations were set up for the kids.
And… Kris decided he needed another ice cream.
We sat watching people walk and kids play while we waited for the taxi.
Kris’s ice cream was a crime against ice cream. I don’t know what on Earth it was. Nothing like the delicious coconut I had. I took a bite and got strawberry and a bunch of nuts. Later I identified a raisin, and he said there were marshmallows.
The sun went down and it started to get a little chilly.
And here you go. Probably the last photo from La Paz. Me sipping a lemonade and relaxing. Sigh. I don’t want to go home tomorrow. There are so many reasons not to.
