GUATEMALA, HUATULCO and ACAPULCO

Greetings from GUATEMALA, HUATULCO and ACAPULCO:

With all the pills and potions I packed to protect us, I never anticipated that my back problem might resurface … but sure enough I hobbled around for 3 days doing minimal activities. Because of this we could only visit the craft market at the pier in Guatemala and weren’t able to travel inland to see Antigua, a 90 minute bus ride away. The people were mainly of Indian descent and their crafts were embroidered items, silver jewelry and some carvings.

In HUATULCO the drawing card is the beautiful sandy beaches! The shoreline curves around, and there are dozens of little beaches in sheltered coves as far as the eye could see, and the water is warm and clear, perfect for an afternoon swim. We watched a small boat feeding flocks of pelicans…They compare this town with the Acapulco of 40 years ago -- quiet, unspoiled by development, clean and inviting.

ACAPULCO was disappointing -- we haven’t been there for 40 years, and today it could be any large warm climate city i.e. Miami Beach, Honolulu, even L.A. with lots of cars and exhaust fumes, high rise hotels and the usual ‘old town’ slums. We just took a taxi ride down the main “hotel row” and went back to the ship. The harbor, though, is very pretty with lots of hills dotted with houses, and small boats on the water. We saw the cruise ship that passed through the Panama Canal beside us, already docked as we approached.

Dick celebrated his birthday yesterday and at dinner we had champagne, lots of funny cards, balloons, a silver foil crown, cake and serenade by the waiters. That was the second birthday our table had celebrated! We’re at sea today, enroute to Cabo San Lucas. Hopefully we’ll see some of the migrating whales …

The weather’s been great with only one bad storm, but it was overnight so we haven’t had to use any of our sea sick remedies (YET!). Temperatures have been in the low 80s -- no snow to shovel!!