Day 12: Acapulco, Mexico … Day at the Beach

Tuesday, 17 January 2017
Terminal Cruceros de Acapulco — Mexico
Temps: 81.1F (27.3C) @ UTC 2:30a (ship’s time 8:30p)

We wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment.
~ Hilaire Belloc ~

The veranda is in the shade … perfect for sitting outside and enjoying the not-so-hot afternoon in Acapulco for a few hours as I write about our day.  And what a great day it turned out to be.

A beach day on land is like a sea day on the ship … relaxing.  That means the story should be short … but you know mine never are.

Insignia was docked by 7:30a … welcomed to the resort city of Acapulco, Mexico with lively music blaring from the P/A system on shore.  Alas the rest of the city was asleep — and not just because of the early hour.  Acapulco’s tourism-based economy has suffered greatly due to drug-related violence.  Police presence has brought the problem under control … but once a place gains a reputation for being unsafe, changing that takes awhile.  We felt perfectly safe walking along the costera [coastal road] and using public transportation … being aware of our surroundings at all times.  In other words, using common sense vigilance that we would use anywhere in the world.

Bienvenidos à Acapulco!

We disembarked shortly after the ship was cleared at 8:00a.  Turning left out of the cruise terminal, we waved off the taxi and tour hawkers, using our feet to get us where we were going.  Walking about 5 minutes along the tree-shaded malecón [waterfront esplanade], we arrived at Playa Tlacopanocha.  A nice enough beach, but it felt almost like a marina with all the boats anchored just offshore.

So, we hopped in a cab for a five-minute ride (MXN $40 or about USD $2) in the opposite direction where I knew there was a long stretch of sand … surely we’d find the ambiance we were looking for there.  At our request, the driver dropped us off at the start of Playa Hornos, a good place to stop for a minute and watch fishermen bringing in their morning catch.  Sadly the one boat we saw had very little in its nets, so neither the men nor the pelicans were very happy.

Walking along the beach, eventually we settled on Restaurante Bar El Morrito … somewhere around Playa Hornitos.  We chose it mostly because the chairs were Adirondack style … more comfortable; and it had palapas — even if they were fake ones — for sombrillas [sun umbrellas].  The sign said use of the facilities was free with the purchase of alimentos y bebidas [food and drink] … excellent.  And smokin' hot wi-fi to boot.

We had a wonderful time.  A light breeze mitigated the heat emanating from the sun and reflecting off the sand.  The water — warm, just the way I like it — had a strong undertow, so we played close to shore when we went in.  Vendors came by hawking their wares, but a simple “No, gracias,” quickly sent them on their way … no pestering.  The wait staff was attentive, and the food was good … and inexpensive … USD $3 for fish tacos, and USD $1 for beer.  There was just one other couple and one woman on the beach with us initially, but as the noon hour approached, people started coming out of the woodwork … mostly locals and some tourists here on a land-based vacation; no one from the ship, though.

We left El Morrito around 2:00p.  Instead of taking a cab back to the cruise terminal, we hopped on one of the Costera buses … bumping along to blaring music the entire way … what fun!  The fare for the two of us … about USD .80 cents for a 10-minute ride …. priceless for the experience of local culture.

Thus ended our day … and now this blog post as well.  Let’s enjoy the sailaway.

Capilla de la Paz (Chapel of Peace)
perched 1,250 feet (380 m) above the sea, it has a 12-story high cross.

Tomorrow is another day at sea as Insignia makes its way north to our second port in Mexico.

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