Monday, Feb. 12, 2018
Today we had part 2 of the bus tour of Ensenada, starting at 8 am. It was a wet, drizzly day so we dressed accordingly. It was interesting to note that the buses we were on had A/C, but no heat. This was the same for most of the restaurants that we visited during this trip.
The first stop on our tour was the Farmers’ Market, where we saw a variety of fruits and vegetables, mostly locally grown. It was fun looking around and identifying items that looked unusual to us. There were a few.
One of the stands featured smoothies for which you could choose the fruits and vegetables you wanted. Daisy and I shared a delicious one that had mostly tropical fruits.
As for an unidentifiable item, note the picture below. I forgot to inquire about what it is. It’s red in color, with a thick but gelatinous texture that allows it to be cut by a butcher knife. My guess is unrefined beet sugar, and they do raise sugar beets in the area. If anyone who reads this knows what it is, tell me!
Nopalitos (prickly pear cactus paddles that have been stripped of spines, cleaned, and chopped) were processed as we watched and fresh meat was cut to order. I was a butcher’s assistant as a teenager, and I marveled at the skill being demonstrated.
Next we drove through the countryside…..
…to the San Rafael winery, which is owned by the Hussong family. This is the same family that owns the oldest cantina in Mexico.
The current patriarch of the family welcomed us and told us about the history of the winery…
…followed by a wine tasting with cheese and bread. We tasted a white blend and a Malbec. We even got to keep the glasses! Our challenge was to get them back to the house intact.
I asked the attendant about the dryness of their merlot and he motioned me to follow him to a barrel in another room.
The wine gods are good.
Daisy and I do have this shared passion for good wine and food.
Ok, I had these two single pics available and decided to include our joyful expressions..Its my blog!
Our last stop for the day was the Marcelo Dairy.
We saw the cows in the fields and the dairy barns, then had a lunch of roasted duck sandwiches (called tortas) with a tangy chutney sauce and our choice of local beers.
We finished our tour of the dairy in the “cheese cave,” an underground room where the cheeses are aged.
Daisy and I shared a table with some members of our parking team and tried 7 varieties of cheese with bread and wine. In this as well as previous photos, you may have noticed our matching “Baja jackets,” which were included in the caravan package. They helped with the day’s cool temperature.
It was still rainy when we got back at the campground. I made a classic comfort food dinner of local smoked sausage, cabbage purchased at the market today, potatoes, sweet onions, and carrots. We each then settled in for the night with a good book and a cup of tea.
Tuesday, Feb. 13
Today was Mardi Gras and Charity day for our group. Part of our group’s purpose in Mexico is to visit local organizations that need a helping hand and to bring them items or cash contributions to assist in their work. We formed a committee that screened several groups to which we could be of service with our donations.
Daisy and i started our day with a block long trek to the rustic thermal salt water showers. Hey they work! We then went to the morning gathering featuring fresh muffins from the farmers market that the group had ordered the day before. Next on the list was attending a silent auction featuring donated lightly used or new items that might be of interest to other caravaners. The money made went into the fund to be donated to local charity organizations.
While we were waiting for the catered taco lunch, were were asked to volunteer with the lunch distribution. Daisy recorded the names of our caravan members while I expedited service to those in line. In other words, I told folks where to be served based on what was ready to eat. We had fish and shrimp tacos that were prepared on site and placed on flour tortillas, then each person put on their own fixings: shredded cabbage, pico de gallo, pickled onions, and sauces.
When it got close to the end of the activity, Daisy and I finally had a chance to eat and it was delicious.
We attended the live charity action for a spell and came back to the truck camper to unhook it for a ride to a local place where they would wash, dry, and fold our laundry, to be picked up the next day. We we got back I realized that the headache I had be nursing had become full blown and required my total attention. We called it an evening and hibernated for the night.
Wednesday, Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day
I still was not feeling well this morning so I stayed in bed while Daisy went with Dick and Jackie to La Bufadora (the blowhole) which is 8 miles away. The rest of this day’s documentation is from Daisy’s viewpoint.
There were some great ocean views on the way.
Of course there would be the classic photo op!
And some wildlife.
One of the views was the large rings in the ocean where they raise shrimp, lobster and tuna for export, largely to Japan.
This blowhole was similar to the one we saw at Acadia National Park in Maine, where the rock structure causes a big spray to come up when the tide is high.
We walked around some of the many vendors on the road to the observation area. I brought some anti-inflammatory medicine for Chip that he has used successfully in the past and Baja t-shirts for each of us.
We got back about 10 am and Chip got up long enough to take a shower and have a snack. We also exchanged our Valentine’s Day cards. This time I got him a humorous one and he got me a more serious one. We seem to alternate on that! We both napped a bit, then used Jerry and Judy’s car to go get our laundry. For 225 pesos plus a 20 peso tip they had washed, dried and folded what would have been about 3 loads—about $14 US. A good deal we thought.
Chip and I have an agreement that we only exchange cards on holidays instead of gifts. We spend our gift money on our travels, and being together is the best present!
On Valentine’s evening, we went to Mama Bear’s for a pizza and salad buffet with a group of our caravan friends. They also had music, which added to our enjoyment. We enjoyed visiting with Jerry and Judy, who have the only other truck camper that was on the caravan. We had originally met them at the first Texas Truck Camper Rally 5 years ago.
Chip did not really feel like going, but did anyway mostly because it was Valentine’s day. He is such a sweetie!
Thursday, Feb. 15
This was our last day at La Jolla Beach Camp and it was a rest and recuperation day. This morning I was feeling a little better. I colored Daisy’s hair, which lasted for the rest of the trip. Today was also the day for filling the propane and fresh water tanks and dumping the grey and black waste water tanks.
Fresh water fill was 115 pesos including tip.
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