The first day we got a ride to town with some folks who we met while out walking the night before. Right outside the marina is the most high-end RV park I’ve ever seen and a I grew up camping with my grandparents. This RV park outside the marina has a great tienda and a hotel with pool that the cruisers can use if they eat a meal in the restaurant. This RV park is a walk though and when we were walking back the first night we got in we met a couple who decided to turn around rather than walk all the way to the RV park. We got to talking with them and they told us that they had rented a car and would be willing to take us into town for a day of sight seeing. We jumped at the chance. We almost missed our free ride when to our dismay we found out that Puerto Escondido “sprung forward” on the clock and we had the wrong local time. We had to make a mad dash for the dinghy dock in order not to miss our ride.
We had a great day touring the mission, the museum and the town with Sam and Corrine from Alluvium.
We made it to the "first" mission
All of us standing in the museum's courtyard next door to the mission
Ryan in front of the mission
The alter inside the mission
The front of the mission from street level
The mission's bells
The pot used by the padres to make a porridge for the natives
Some of the early tools used by the missionaries
Ryan and I explore one of the early sailing vessels used by the local native people
The courtyard at the museum which is next door to the church
What the early cowboys would have used who worked the mission and the neighboring ranchero
We visited the mission, then spent an hour and a half in the museum next door. It's definitely worth a visit. We also spent a couple of hours combing up and down the touristo street looking at ceramics, woven blankets, jewelry, cheap trinkets, etc. It's all there. The Cap'n also continued his routine of checking out the local ferreterias (hardware stores) in search of light bulbs for the engine instruments, and various bits and pieces to finish the never-ending boat projects.
The next day was the real adventure. Given our three choices and being the irresponsible parents that we are, we introduced the kids to the time-honored tradition of hitching a ride. Don't bother to call Child Protective Services though, we merely asked one of the resident cruisers in the parking lot if we could bum a ride to town with them.
We got a ride from a great couple (Gail and Doug from Native Dancer) who have been coming here forever. They worked for themselves and had winters off, so they started cruising in their 20's and either trailered their boat down here or kept their boat in Mexico!!! Wow! Why didn't we learn that lesson when we were 20? During our 30-minute ride to town, we had a great, rambling conversation with them and learned that many of the old-time cruisers wonder about the lack of new cruisers. There are plenty of older cruisers, but they believe the lifestyle needs fresh, young blood to keep growing. Once in town, they gave us a great tour up and down the two main streets, showing us everywhere we needed to go.
The Sabbatical gang definitely marches on its stomachs, so we needed some re-provisioning. We went to the supermarket ("El Pescador") for staples and Juarez Market for fresh cut meats. There are 2 or 3 other places to get fresh fruits and vegetables, and plenty of tortillerias. You certainly won't go hungry here.
And, of course, it wouldn't be a road trip without some street tacos, would it? Our "guides," Gail and Doug gave their highest praise to "El Rey del Taco" on Juarez Street, so we had to give it a try. Wow! Are we glad we did. They serve two things, and two things only: fish tacos and beef tacos. You walk in and the owner greets you by asking how many you want of each! A couple minutes later and he brings them over to you. All the "fixin's" are on the side table: cabbage, limes, crema, avocado sauce, hot sauces, salsa, jalapenos, tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, etc. Just help yourself and heap 'em on! Washed down with a fresh limonada, it's a meal fit for a king, or at least folks out buying groceries.
We were here two years ago while on a cruise ship and couldn't help but notice the difference. Back then, cruise ships made regular stops here, and the town had plenty of folks walking around. Fast forward through the economic downturn, the H1N1 scare and it's a much quieter town today. The cruise ships have stopped coming and tourism is way down. Quite a few stores were closed. Some still had tape on their windows from a past storm warning, but it looked like the owners never came back to open the shops. Back in better economic times, a number of civic projects were started, including paving some of the dirt streets, putting in new sidewalks, and converting the "tourist street" into a pedestrian-only walking street. The projects are almost done, waiting for more tourists. We hope the improvements pay off since Loreto is such a charming, old town.
Our next stop is Puerto Ballandra on Isla Carmen.
80, Loreto mission sign; 4, Ryan in front of the mission; 2, inside church;6 front of church; 10 bells from church; 17, The pot in which the padres made the gruel for the native workers; 21, Tools used at the mission;27, canoe used by early natives at the mission; 74, courtyard at the missions museum; 65, vaqueros work room; 75 Kumpis family in front of the sculpture in the mission’s courtyard;
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