Welcome to Cabo!
The desert wind soaked us in searing heat as we debarked the plane and stepped onto the tarmac at Los Cabos airport.
A short walk later we found ourselves in a massed line of tourists that Mickey Mouse and Disney would be envious of. Looking back, I’m surprised that hawkers aren’t allowed to pitch their wares to the trapped throng of touristas. Customs is a necessary evil of international travel, and here it was particularly mean and nasty. There, before us were a few hundred souls, all doused in sunscreen, Corona T-shirts, sunglasses. Eager to reach the beach, they were. Mary and I counted our blessings, particularly the fact that we were inside in a semi-air conditioned enviornment.
The head of the line splintered into three smaller capillaries, which ended at two Customs stations. It was not until one had made their choice that you’d discover that two of those lines led to one particularly slow Customs Official. I watched him as he appeared to ignore the heckles of several line-lingers and dutifully check the papers of those coming to him. He was a young guy, and the weight (..or, more appropriatly, wait) of promptly processing people was mounting in him.
In any case, our line went much quicker and after over an hour of patiently waiting we made it through. We had one more hurdle to cross before heading to our hotel.
As we passed nearly silently through the final custom station, we were blasted by dozens of people soliciting us for rides, trinkets and time-shares. Their ultimate goal being to sell you a timeshare. Luckily, we had pre-arranged transfers to and from the airport. Through the confusing ruckus I spotted the man with the ‘Faro Nuevo’ sign; that was our ride.
The drive to our hotel took us close to 45 minutes and lead us through scrub land, and along the gorgeous Pacific coastline. The Baja Peninsula is a dry, arid place, very reminiscent of the Southwestern US. Think Tucson by the sea. The Pacific Ocean provided the western horizon, while the Gulf of California (A.K.A. the Sea of Cortez) graced the east. Cabo San Lucas is located at the very southern tip of the Baja Peninsula, and is literally at the point where the Pacific and the Sea of Cortez meet.
Our hotel, the Finisterra, was a hacienda-style palace perched on a ridge between a golden beach and the town of Cabo San Lucas. The hotel spilled down the side of the ridge onto a huge pool complex, complete with two towering Palapa huts, beyond that was the beach. It was here that we'd spend the majority of our time in Cabo, except for our daily sorties into town, or an adventurous trip to Lover's Beach.
A panoramic shot of our resort bathed in the light a red sunset. 
My beautiful wife enjoying margaritas with me at the Whale Watcher bar.
The beautiful beach that is Playa Medano.
Who knew you could rent dorks at the marina?
The fountain in front of our hotel
Adventure at Lover's Beach
On the popular but isolated Lover’s Beach, rocks spring out from the sand, reaching towards the heavens like massive grainy fingers, only to be pounded back and sculpted by the furious Pacific Ocean surf. Their rounded, organic looks remind of the art of H.R. Giger.
One day in Cabo, Mary and I decided to hire a water taxi to take us out to Lover’s Beach. The only real way to reach Lover’s Beach is by boat. I’ve heard rumors of a land-route, but it must be very rough and dangerous. In any case, it’s isolation doesn’t keep the tourists away, as we joined dozens of others sunning themselves and enjoying the magnificent scenery and weather. Some snorkled on the relatively calm Sea of Cortez side. I had rented a snorkel mask and fins and decided to join them. I was wary at first, as the supposedly ‘calm’ Sea of Cortez side was washing ashore with a ferocity that I didn’t find very calm. The Sea of Cortez side of the beach was a narrow strip of sand with walls of rounded rock on each side, forcing incoming waves to ricochet off the walls and wash in various directions. When a strong surge would come in, it made entering or exiting the water a treacherous adventure.
After a few tries, I made it into the surf and started snorkeling. There honestly wasn’t much to see, as the fish were few. I did come upon a school of narrow, small silver trumpet fish and few other unidentifable colorful tropical fish. After awhile two blazen yellow swimmming fins came into view. Apparently someone had lost them, so I swam over to get them. As I did, this Mexican guy in a boat motored over to me letting me know that whoever had rented them would be in trouble. I surveyed the beach and didn’t see anyone motioning for me to bring them ashore, so without argument I tossed them onboard the boat.
After snorkeling for a little while, I decided to try for shore. Some large swells, like 4 feet in height or so began washing over me and crashing into Lover’s Beach and bouncing ancillary waves in various directions.I decided to let the waves wash me in naturally, while I would do my best to direct myself towards the safety of the sandy shore.
Neptune decided to throw a little wrench into my plans as two huge swells flushed me rapidly towards the rocky left side. I pushed out, forcing my body towards the sand, but a second sneaker wave knocked me squarely into the rocks. I grabbed on to the rocks to keep myself from being sucked out with the surf. I was lucky that all the sharp points on the rocks were worn down by the waves. I was left with only a couple scrapes and scratches.
When I emerged from the water, several people watched me as if I had just stepped off a flying saucer. I flashed them an ‘ok’ sign, and slyly commented to one lady “Well, that wasn’t the entrance I intended to make.”
Mary had a photographic field day at Lovers’ Beach, snapping photos of the all the fascinating sights.
The famous Cabo Arch.
Mary and I at Lover's Beach.
Intrepid photog Mary preparing to lens some of the beauty around us.
The vast expanse of Lover's Beach
Fingers of rock reaching out from the sands..
More interesting rock formations at Lover's Beach.
A cove at Lover's Beach, Sea of Cortez side. I snorkeled here, and got up close and personal with rocks in the foreground as I was shoved into them by some violent waves. I walked away with only a couple of scratches.
A flock of seagulls enjoying the cool Pacific surf at Lover's Beach.
A view to a beach
A pirate ship cruising past our beach
Mary and I under a palapa hut at the pool.
The pool area of our hotel. There were three pools to choose from, but we mainly hung out around this big pool. Mary and I came to know this area well, enjoying 2 for 1 margaritas and munching on nachos.
Another view of our pool area. In the foreground you can catch a glimpse of Mary sunning herself.
A view of a cruise ship departing Cabo San Lucas. This was taken from our hotel's pool area.
The Cabo Wabo is rocker Sammy Hagar's bar/restaurant in Cabo San Lucas. What? You've never heard of Sammy Hager?? He's only the former lead singer of Van Halen! Mary and I stopped in for dinner, which was excellent! It was here I bought a classy "Got Tequila?" t-shirt.
Full Moon over the Playa
Fun with exposure settings: Here we see me demonstrating one of my superhuman mutant powers
Mary and I making our way over to a small open market.
This fine rooster joined us for lunch at the Giggling Marlin on our last day in Cabo.
A panoramic view of Cabo San Lucas harbor, with Playa Medano beach to the center right. Taken from our hotel.
