A Taste of Cruising Mexico
| Vessel Name: | Journey |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Passport 40 |
| Hailing Port: | Ventura, Ca |
| Crew: | Jeff and Dori Beller |
| About: | We're home ported out of Ventura, California. Jeff is a software engineer and Dori is a special ed teacher. We're both on sabbatical from our carreers or early retirement. We're not too sure which and don't really care. Cruising fits us real well right now. |
| Extra: | This is our third extended cruise to Mexico. I guess we like it there! We hope you enjoy reading this journal of our cruise. |
19 March 2020 | Ventura, CA
Another Taste of Mexico
This is a photo from back in 2008, the first time Journey went cruising to Mexico. The boat was full and overflowing with guests come to wish us Bon Voyage before we set off on our travels. It is a memory we still cherish.
12 July 2012 | Ventura, CA
Home Sweet Home
Journey has been home for just over a week, after sailing into Ventura harbor on the Fourth of July.
20 June 2012 | San Diego, CA
Survivors of the Un-Bash
It seems there is no rest for the weary. (OK, after resting four days, I guess being weary isn't an excuse anymore.) Anyway, we've received a few 'gentle' hints from some impatient readers. They've noticed that our position reports show we've reached San Diego, but our blog hasn't been updated to reflect [...]
12 June 2012 | Turtle Bay
A Night at Anabel's
Last night we debated whether or not to leave Turtle Bay early this morning, but one day's rest just didn't put a dent in the sense of exhaustion we were feeling after this last week. So we put off our departure until tomorrow. Our reward for making that decision was spending this evening at Anabel's. There [...]
11 June 2012 | Turtle Bay
The Half Way Point
Arriving at Turtle Bay is a milestone because it means you've reached the half-way point in your trip up or down the Baja. Several of the boats who left Cabo with us had a little celebration by having a scrumptious potluck lunch hosted by Mary and Jack on S.V. Oriana. We also attended to mundane details [...]
04 June 2012 | Bahia San Juanico
The 'Un-bash'
With one-third of the trip north completed, the good news is that we haven't really been 'bashed' much at all. The closest we've came was the passage around Cabo Falso early Saturday AM which Jeff described in his last post. As he mentioned, once that was behind us, it was all motoring in calm seas [...]
Visiting Guadalajara
Our friends John and Barb--owners of Naida, another Passport 40--joined us for our inland adventure. The five-hour bus ride got a little long, but the first class buses here in Mexico have plenty of leg room, on-board restrooms and built-in TV's.
Guadalajara is a huge city of over three million people. Everywhere you look there are contrasts, as the historical buildings dating back to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries give way to modern shopping malls and six-lane highways.
Our charming hotel was just a block from the Catedral de Guadalajara, which was built in 1561. The sprawling plazas that grace the downtown area are filled with statues and monuments. Every evening people throng to these squares to listen to music, watch free performances and just enjoy themselves. We spent almost every evening strolling through these plazas.
We had planned on taking a bus tour of the city on Saturday, but a huge ceremony took place that morning when they added two more statues to the Rotonda de los Hombress Ilustres plaza--a monument that honors more than 16 of Jalisco's eminent citizens. The streets nearby were closed, so we couldn't board the tour buses. We did get a chance to watch some mariachis performing after the festivities.
Switching gears, we spent a few hours at a local wildlife park, then took a taxi to the suburban village of Tlaquepaque and browsed the handcraft markets there. That evening we returned to downtown and had drinks at the Plaza de los Mariachis.
On Sunday the bus tour did go as planned, and it was a great way to visit all the sights of the city. We ended up back at Tlaquepaque, and bought some really lovely souvenirs, examples of the intricate beaded work done by the indians.
Another high point was visiting the Mercado Libertad, a sprawling marketplace that has just about everything for sale under one roof: embroidered blouses, jeans and t-shirts, fruits and vegetables, every kind of electronics, caged birds and aisle after aisle of pirated copies of Hollywood's latest DVD's and CD's. Along with all this was a complete floor filled with food venders of every variety.
From the hustle and bustle of the crowded marketplace to the quiet moments sharing a croissant while watching the sun come up in the plaza, Guadalajara was a joy to behold.
When we left on Tuesday afternoon, we all agreed that it had been an enjoyable change from life on the boat.
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We've posted our favorite photos from this year's cruising in the Sea of Cortez
46 Photos
Created 8 July 2012
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Four glorious days of surfing "the longest wave" at Matanchen Bay in warm water, tropical surroundings, and no crowds.
11 Photos
Created 13 April 2012
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Dori shot these photos of a morning surf session at Barra de Navidad. She was standing on the breakwater which adjacent to the surf break, giving great access for pictures.
15 Photos
Created 22 February 2012
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This is a morning spent touring the estuary and river above Matanchen up to Tovara springs.
28 Photos
Created 27 January 2012
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Yelapa is a unique little hidden away village on the south side of Banderas Bay. No roads reach it and the only way to get there is by water.
14 Photos
Created 15 March 2011
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