San José de Cabos

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Back in November 2003 we decided it would... ... nice to go down to Mexico for E's birthday. We don't normally do the... ... all-inclusive holiday but decided to try it anyway. Just to experience the laid-back lifestyle, after all we are retired! We opted for the Intercontinental hotel in San José de Cabos. It was a good choice. The grounds were nicely maintained and landscaped. Complete with walking paths throughout. Taxis were abundant, colourful and clean. There were at least two pools - one for families and another for adults only. That was nice as it tended to get a bit noisy with the kids so you could easily escape to the adults' pool and relax. Both pools had swim-up bars and of course the drinks were gratis. If you didn't like the sun you were in trouble at the beach... ... as there wasn't a whole lot of natural shade. Horseback riding was an activity... ... as was enjoying a good book along with the ocean breeze. Life is tough! There was an estuary nearby. But it must have been the wrong season as there weren't very many birds for watching. We did find this one token egret and that was about it. There were some nice sunset scenes though. I think this little river actually went all the way into the town but there weren't any floating devices available in order to check it out. The plaza in the center of town with E sitting there contemplating her next move. The next move was a walk back to the hotel after checking out the town. The whole area was very tastefully landscaped and well maintained. Amazing what will grow with a lot sunshine,... ... decent soil and a bit of water. This guy had about a 3 to 4 inch wingspan. After a day or so of 'relaxing' it was time to do something. So we rented this little 4x4 and went exploring. We headed up the east side of the Baja Peninsula to see what was there. There were a number of fancy homes such as these. Some were there for the view. I guess others were into farming - of a sort. Desert grasses and other plants can be really pretty and colourful. There was lots of open space along the coast. Generally the road was in pretty good shape. It was quite a surprse to go from a view like this and then around the corner and find ... ... where the road had been completely washed out by a storm that had gone through here several weeeks before. This was the detour around that previous washout. I can't remember why I turned the Jeep around like that but there was probably a really good reason. Views like this abound. And then there are the necessities of life. Some colourful casas. I dunno, must have looked good at the time. How would you like to wake up here on a morning and look out at sun rising over the horizon. And if you didn't like the previous place there is this one. But it was a fair drive back to town for supplies, Back at the hotel and the view from our room. Sunset walk on the beach. From the end of the beach looking back to the hotel. This one got out of place but is looking back at the adult pool area from the estuary. Night time shot. The grounds at night, just remembered there was a third swimming pool and that's it in the centre. Restaurant closed, if you're still hungry you have to go to one of the others. The main pool after dark. A few night time pictures among the flora... ... looking for things that come out at night. No luck so far . Doesn't that just call out for you. Just like a scene from a cowboy movie - except for the spotlight! The next day we headed out with our Jeep again to discover the west coast of the peninsula. Went around the corner going in to Cabo San Lucas and lo and behold what do we see! There is no escaping! Luckily we didn't have our card with us. Somewhere on the west side. Definitely looks desert-ish. But we only had to cross that area in order to find the beach and this gorgeous babe! And here it is, the ... ... mighty Pacific! Not sure what "painted" the rocks out there. The beach wasn't too crowded. On the road again. Heading out to discover... ... another deserted beach. Little scenes like this along here. Wow! What a beauty. Anybody see anything wrong with this sign? Remember the storm I mentioned before that hit the east coast, well it came right across the peninsula and devastated this coast area as well. There was a campground here that was completely washed out to the point that it was closed down. I was amazed at the size of the cactii that were growing out of 'solid' rock. And then, due to the washout you could see the size of the tap root in the centre of this cactus. This little ridge was about 10 feet above from where I took the picture. And if that fell over and there was nobody around would it ... We started to head back to the hotel by going inland. Once again, more evidence of the storm, another washed out area. They even had to install temporary brides in some places. Still lots of water flowing. All in all, it was an enjoyable week but not the type of holiday we would do on annual basis, maybe every 3-4 years or so - unless ... That's it the close of a week in the sun.