2008-09-04

It has already been a week since our trip to Mendocino. I wanted to do a video blog but decided to just write about it this time. Maybe our next trip will be more like a travel show.We started very late on Friday and reached Dennen’s victorian farm house a few minutes after midnight. The cottage sits on a 2 acre land overlooking the pacific and also served as a model for a series of paintings done by Thomas Kinkade. The innkeeper Jo complained that a lot of his fans trespass and give themselves a walking tour. The breakfast the next morning was a feast. There was quiche and fruit with home baked flat bread and the usual orange juice and coffee. Pramida vows that we are really going to make use of our breakfast nook now. We went to the village after breakfast and I was pleasantly surprised. All the buildings here are Victorian, It was like walking in Universal’s studio lot and perhaps thats the reason why a lot of films have been shot here.The latest being Jim Carrey’s ‘The Majestic’.The main street runs along the pacific and there is a path leading to the Portuguese beach where there is a lot of drift wood.There were happy dogs chasing the waves and a few people lounging on the beach. We checked out most of the galleries and Pramida was thrilled when she discovered that her favorite photographer Lisa Kristine had a gallery here. We spent close to an hour here then checked out the Mendocino art center up the road, where there were people sculpting and a few people playing music. The exhibits were interesting but I really liked the papier mache dogs. There is a theater right next door and there we bought tickets for Rabbit Hole– a Pulitzer prize winning play for Sunday’s matinee.Later went to the beach were the Big river meets the pacific and spent some time looking at the waves and taking pictures. Then drove to Fort Bragg. The town is straight out of Bonanza. Lunch was alright, we had local rock fish with french fries at the garden bar of Mendocino hotel. We left for our B&B soon after and I spent the rest of the evening working while Pramida listened to Def Leppard and I also think I heard her listen to Scroobius Pip and Dan le Sac. Her latest obsession. We went to eat at the Albion river inn for dinner and for the first time in her life Pramida finished an entire entr√©e by herself. She got Ahi tuna and I got Mediterranean strudels. The pan seared scallops was really well done and I think I know why most good restaurants make it a point to serve these.The wine was from a local vineyard. All in all a splendid experience. Sunday’s breakfast was pancakes and melons. The syrup smelled of wild flowers or probably it was my over active imagination. Sitting right by the window looking at the woods probably alters the effect food has on you. probably even artery clogging burgers would seem like wholesome food when you are in the woods. Pramida got a massage after breakfast and I got reflexology treatment. Willow, our masseuse, was a great listener and Pramida wants to make Willow her personal therapist. The rest of the day she felt like a load was lifted off of her shoulders. The Rabbit hole was such a great play. It is about loss and how people deal with loss. After Hari passed away, we tried hard to forget the gory incident. It is impossible to forget and the play put loss into perspective for us because it was so immediate and so intense. It was really cathartic. The pain never goes away, but you learn to deal with it. I wanted to get away…forget about it and here I was right in the middle of people who made it very real for me. Spent the rest of the evening just walking along the coast. Got some food from the local grocers and took it home to eat. Pramida went overboard with wines and bought half a dozen bottles and she threatened to buy more. We spent the evening eating, drinking, talking about Willow and the play. Pramida also spent the evening obsessively stoking the fire at the fireplace which drove me crazy. We started early on Monday because Jo suggested we stop at Navarro vineyards. We took the tour of the estate and saw farm animals and I saw a llama for the first time. I will probably get to see more of them when we go to South America next year. The first time I came across this glorious animal was in a TinTin comic. The llama was in an enclosure so it didn’t get a chance to spit at me. But I am so sure he was dying to. We ate a picnic lunch at the vineyards and Pramida bought another half a dozen bottles of wine. The drive to Navarro was beautiful with red wood tree canopies, rivers and the ocean. Our long week-end came to an end I am looking forward to our next trip in December. Don’t know where yet but will keep you updated. A review of Rabbit Hole by NYT– This is a different production

2007-12-31

I Just got back from La Paz and I am very tired and fished out. For over a week I have been eating fish for every meal. The trip was brilliant. It was beyond my expectations and some more. Did everything that I had planned to. Here is a brief summary-
Day 1– we arrived in La Paz. The airport is small and the weather seems to be perfect. Took a taxi into town to the hotel. The hotel is right in front of Malecon (Bahia de La Paz). The water is so green, just like the photographs. Went for lunch to Bismarckcito, a place highly recommended by the guidebooks. We got the house special (Lobster, shrimp and sea bass) and were shocked when we finally got the check. It was 720 Pesos‚ approximately 72 USD. Pramida complained to everybody after that about the overpriced restaurant. But the food was good. Explored the city a bit after that. Went to the cathedral, checked out the local architecture and on our walk back from the inroads chanced upon the most brilliant sunset. The water turned red and the boats on the water looked liked they were planted silhouettes on a Monet seascape. Went for a drink at the La Perla after that and after a few basic Spanish lessons from the friendly waiter we ordered a few drinks. There were a few passing mariachis who sang and I felt obligated to pay up. Hell it is just a few bucks! The song was good‚ aayayayaaaaa. Found a clip on youtube but don’t know the name of the song. Will do a little more research on it but for now check out the song on youtube

Day2– Ate at La Boheme. The interiors were decorated in Toulouse-Lautrec’s reproductions. It had a courtyard restaurant with local crafts. The food wasn’t that great. I ate the sea bass and Pramida got pollo fajitas. Later walked to the museum. The top floor was under renovation and the bottom floor had paintings of saints. The one floor that did have exhibits looked like a room full of school science projects. Not impressive but the fossils were great and the skull of a Saber tooth. Walked back to the Malecon and checked with a few tour operators about the kayaking and the snorkeling trip to the Espiritu Santos island
but the wind conditions have been bad and forecast is also bad for the next two days. So it will be only after Christmas. Spent the evening exploring the town. The markets reminded me of General Bazaar in India. Electronic, hardware, luggage and clothes stores all lined up utilizing the storefronts to grab our attentions. The smell of leather from a shoe store was comforting. Reminded me of a lost memory which was just beyond the reach of my consciousness. There were a few small stands selling hotdogs with fried onions and jalapenos. Very appetizing but some other day. Went to this place called Rancho Vallejo for dinner and had tacos de pescado (fish tacos) with fingerlicking good sauces. The wind blowing from the sea and the smoke from the grill, I am coming back here. Down the road there is a restaurant called El Patron where John Turturo and Adam Sandler were shooting a dance scene recently. Good to know. Lappywood!

Day3– Took the bus to the beach at El Tecalote. Went back to Bismarckcito after getting ripped off the other day but the fish tacos were good. Especially with sour cream and some kind of fish sauce. Took the tacos to the bus stop and finished them there. Still had time for the bus so sat on a bench people watching. There were fascinating bunch of travelers taking a connection to the port at Pichilingue. Pramida wondered where the travelers got their pants. She wanted one. Finally the bus arrived and we rode in silence looking at the cobalt waters of the Sea of Cortez longing for a dip.
The beach at Tecalote was deserted. The only people were the ones on the bus and the few people who manned the bar shacks and a few locals. I went for a swim with my swimming goggles on but couldn’t see anything down there not clear enough. Walked a bit after that and Pramida collected shells. Stopped for a beer at the shack and ended up drinking a case full of beers. There were a few people playing dominoes. Met Frank and Evans there. Evans is a student of languages, studies English and German at the local university and works Sundays at the bar shack at Tecalote. Frank owns a Pizzeria in the town called Bambino. If you visit La Paz please do look them up. It was a full moon that night and the last of the visitors gone the beach looked like a line from Robinson Crusoe. As we were leaving a bunch of people came in to camp at the beach. Interesting travelers. One of them had dreads and said people in India call him Sadhu Baba, his next trip is to Israel. After exchanging stories Frank dropped us back into town. After a wash we went out to eat at Rancho Vallejo again for more taco de pescado.

Day 4– Rented a car. Renault Clio. Cute little car. Pramida wanted to drive it all the way and she did. Stopped at Todos Santos. The town is a small artists colony with interesting architecture. And then the Hotel California from the Eagles song, of course the story has no basis but still there were people buying T-shirts and souvenirs from the plaza at the hotel. Such a lovely place! Stopped at a roadside taqueria and got shrimp tacos. There was good grilled beef too. Very appetizing. Damn. Some day. The rest of the drive was uneventful with cacti dotting the landscape. The pacific was to our right and the desert to the left. Not too different from California. Reached Cabo San Lucas at about 4 and after getting directions from a friendly gas station attendant who described as well as he could that taking the road under the bridge would be the best way to get to Riu(the resort hotel), we reached Dr. No’s lair. There were a bunch of people checking in and we made it inside without attracting too much attention. We went into town that night and had very good drinks. The best Pina Colada there. Don’t remember the name of the place but it was right next to the marina. Got lost on our way back to Riu palace and finally reached the hotel after getting directions from another friendly local.
Day 5– Pramida finally got to do some para-sailing this morning and I took photographs from the boat. I didn’t go up. The last time I did was in Jamnagar with Toton. That trip was good fun. About the same time in the year 2000 and just this morning I was reminded of the Greek tragedy story of our train ride back to Hyderabad from Mumbai while watching Anthony Bourdain doing a similar trip on travel channel. It is a long story. Another post maybe.
Stopped at San Jose del Cabo. It was Goa of my imagination. Small time town, palm trees, lazy afternoon, great deep fried snapper fish and the afternoon Christmas mass at the local cathedral. The air had a strong smell of the sea. Read the story of the Padre who started the mission there, who was killed by the local Indians during a rebellion. The Mexican flag flew high. There, my impressions of the afternoon! Crossed the Tropic of cancer somewhere along the way to San Antonio. My first time on the road. Otherwise it has always been on the train in India. Stopped at San Antonio and El Triunfo. A lady dressed in all blue with a lollypop in her mouth filled up our car in San Antonio. She has been the most interesting gas station owner/attendant I have ever come across. El Triunfo was deserted. A ghost town from the wild west. A chimney designed by Gustavo Eiffel, cobbled roads and a brick bridge. The houses and the church were dilapidated. There was an old lady sitting outside one of the houses and there was a horse roaming about. It was eerie. The church was open and it was like a provincial place of worship replete with the nativity scene built with cardboard boxes and dolls.
Were stopped by cops at the junction of route 19 and route 1. Explained to him in our broken Spanish that we were on our way back to La Paz and he let us go. My cousin had warned us about corrupt policemen on the highways but we didn’t have any encounters with the cops of the other kind. We reached LA Paz and had dinner at Gonzales. You guessed right. Taco de Pescado.

Day 6– Rented a scooter and drove to balandra. Pramida was very apprehensive because Frank and Evans had warned us that it wasn’t safe to drive scooters on the highway. After numerous trucks passed us on their way to the port at Pichilingue and the incessant cross winds from the desert and the gulf tried to beat us into submission, our 150 cc scooter safely delivered us to Balandra. The first sight of the lagoon was awe-inspiring. I had never seen such clear waters in my life. Like all the pictures. Did some snorkeling at the south-end of the beach near the rocks. There were so many fish. Awesome! Met 2 Chinese PhD students from Pittsburgh now working in the bay area. Traded a few stories and spent the rest of the afternoon lounging.
Dinner at Rancho Vallejo. Standard.

Day7– Finally the wind conditions were right for the trip to Espiritu. It took Pramida forever to find fins that fit her and eventually used shoes to make the fins fit. It was an hour and half trip to the protected islands. The agenda is snorkeling with sea lions at Los Islotes and kayaking near the bay on Espiritu. We finally reached Los Islotes and were warned not to approach the male sea lions. There were two there who were busy fighting for females. There were a few adolescent pups that came close and were playful. I freaked for a second when one of the pups approached me and quickly beat a retreat but on my second sortie, I was more confident and I will never forget the image of the sea lion which came so close to me and all the fish moving about in their schools and the barks of the lions. Transcendental. Pramida panicked a little because her mask was not of the right fit. We kayaked after that for over an hour and this was my first time on the sea. It was choppy and the turn near the cliffs was almost like kayaking on river rapids. We parked our kayaks on the island and went for a swim. Two guys let Pramida and me borrow their swimming goggles and I really am thankful because the underwater fauna was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. I almost found Nemo! On our way back the boat had some problems with the gear and the boat started listing badly and then swayed wildly when a gust of wind hit us from the east. Soon we were on our way back to Pichilingue and didn’t stop for the scheduled third stop. But I wasn’t complaining. I got to snorkel with the sea lions!

Day 8-Hung out on the terrace of our hotel all morning and went to this cafe for lunch in the afternoon. Spent a few hours there eating and drinking. Tecate beer was quite good. There were these writers/musicians who were selling seashell jewelry. Pramida wanted to buy this blue choker but it was very expensive. Decided to buy other crap. Drank all day looking at the sea and made sure to catch the last amazing sunset at La Paz. I am surely coming back for more.

Day9– Bumped into the scientist couple from Fairbanks, Alaska at the airport, who were with us on the trip to Espiritu. They asked us to look them up if we ever pass their town on our way to the Arctic Circle. Possibly our next trip? Our flight from Mexico was late and after barely making it on time to terminal 8 in LA for our connection, I set off the alarm at the security check, possibly the plate in my leg. I did make it in one piece back to San Jose.

So, that was our trip in brief. I hope it will interest you enough to possibly consider La Paz as a future travel destination! I would be happy to answer questions and please do leave comments.