One of the great things about being someplace new is that you get to see new birds and animals. Mazatlan means "Land of Deer" but so far all the deer we have seen are in a pen at our sister hotel's golf course. I don't think there are any deer around the city anymore, but there is plenty of wildlife. Yesterday we took a trip in our dinghy through a series of estuarial canals that wander off from the marina. We brought cameras and got to see some great stuff.
This goat lives on Isla De Los Chivos (Goat Island) and they are wild but seem to be pretty tame. I am sure I could get them to eat out of my hand. If our windlass was working, I would leave the marina and anchor off this island and visit the goats every day.
A blue heron of some sort - the light was not great and does not do him justice.
These are oyster catchers. Again, the light was not so good. They have brillant orange beaks and legs that contrast with their beautiful black and white feathers.
Here is a better one of the oyster catcher. They usually seem to be in small groups - this one had friends but they did not make it into the shot.
This is a puffer fish. I took it from the ramp leading down to the dock where the boat is. They are very poisonous if you try to eat one and it is not prepared properly. It is a delicacy in Japan, where the chefs need a special certificate to prepare them. Even then, people die each year from eating them. I am not planning to try it, even if I end up in Japan some day. Too risky!
There are iguanas all over the place. This one is pissed because he thinks we might come to close. (I guess he saw "Night of the Iguana" and decided not to take any chances.)
Here he is again. They sort of change color depending on where they are. I saw one on the lawn of the hotel here and he was as green as the grass. I didn't have my camera that time.
These are mullets jumping out of the water. Mike says they are not particularly good to eat, so we watched them rather than trying to catch them. This was taken in the estuarial canal.
Here are the mullet closer to the surface. One of them jumped so close to the dinghy that it almost hit my arm. I didn't see it first and it startled me so much I almost fell out of the dinghy.
So - this is another reason why I am having so much fun. We have some pictures that were taken with Mike's camera, which are much better. We also have some of dolphins that we took on the way down here, and I will post those as soon as I can figure out how to deal with his camera.
I also discovered this hotel has an incredibly wonderful swimming pool. Actually, there are two. The one nearest the docks is shallow and warm. The water aerobics and the volleyball games are held there. Then, across the way, is the really fancy one. It is actually a series of pools that are all different sizes and temperatures, ranging from a really hot hottub to a fairly cold deep one. They are all connected by fake rocks that make it look like a series of tide pools. There are waterfalls you can swim through that connect two of the deeper pools through a series of grotto-like fake rock formations. Plus - there are two water slides. I was (of course) the only grown up going down them. It was all I could do not to call to Mike "Hey, watch me do this!" I liked going from hot water to cold water and back again. I can hardly wait to go swimming again. I also want to try the water aerobics, since I need all the exercise I can get. I think it might be a great addition to the yoga I go to twice a week, and being in the water I would not get all hot and sweaty, which I hate. I will report as soon as I try it.
We are getting ready for our trip to the US (the cruisers refer to it as going over to the Dark Side) and I am looking forward to seeing all my family and hopefully some friends as well. We will be in Wisconsin and Missouri and San Diego. I hope to see as many people as I can. While I really do not miss the US, I do miss my family and friends. In an ideal world, you would all be down here with me.
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