Loafing about in the Baja

28 Sept - 7 Oct 2006: Todos Santos, west coast, Baja California, Mexico
This is where I was staying in Todos Santos. Actually that's a complete lie, I couldn't afford it. I was in The Motel California across the street which was in a state of either being rebuilt or falling down and had a swimming pool in which they were breeding squid. I felt it had a certian rustic charm. Others may disagree. Still, free calimari mustn't be sneezed at!

It's difficult to escape the Eagles song 'Welcome to the Hotel California' in Todos Santos for the obvious reason. This would be great if you liked the song. I don't, I think it's rubbish.

There she blows THE Hotel California, apparently.

The ocean and nearest beach, Playa Lobos, were a bit of a trek from the town down avocado and mango tree lined dirt tracks but at least you could gather lunch on the way. I took to knocking the fruit out of the trees with a length of sturdy pampas grass or similar, the trick being to drop the stick and catch the fruit before it hit the ground. I had such fun there were some days I never made it to the beach!

Pelicans exercising their right to gather and talk about...errr...fish?

The beach was massive, probably two and a half miles in a southerly direction to a headland and who knows how far in the other. In all my time there I saw two other people on the entire stretch and one of those was a bloated corpse that had washed up (no it wasn't...why do I say things like that?). On one day I rather foolishly walked down the beach to the headland which was hard going on soft, scorching sand. It was harder coming back. The next day I felt like I had run a marathon in sand paper slippers.

There were loads of pelicans on the beach. This was the first time I'd seen them in the wild. They're funny looking fellows, I tell ya. They like to fly in formation cruising the breaking waves looking for fish (I would assume, probably not spiritual enlightenment!), then peel away as it breaks and hook up with the next incoming wave, a bit like aerial surfers.

So this was my routine for a few days: up, shower (although the latter wasn't always adhered to), coffee and a bun, buy some water and head off for the 2 mile flip flop to the beach gathering a fruity lunch on the way. Then read, swim, watch pelicans and repeat those exercises but perhaps in a different order for variety.

Well, that was the routine until I went to The Hotel California one evening to see a band and got chatting with Joe & Dominique, a more pleasant a couple you couldn't wish to meet. Joe, on hearing of my lack of wheels and my daily fracas with Dusty Sandals, immediately suggested I join them the following day for a journey in their jallopy to Playa Las Palmos, a wee jaunt down the road from town. Marvellous! I left Dusty Sandals in the motel sulking.

Joe restraining Dominique as he often has to.

Joe & Dominique at the slopey Sand Bar.

Me & Dominique seemingly watching the Sand Bar burn down
judging by the reflected glow.