¡Viva México!

One benefit of getting married in the middle of the semester is that you get to take two honeymoon trips. Because Phil and I got married in February, we only took our "real" honeymoon about two weeks ago. Phil's uncle Kevin was so nice to fly us out to Mexico for a week. Thanks Kevin and Monica! We debated where to go but finally settled on San Jose del Cabo, the more mild of the two Cabo locations.

Everything was so beautiful. Our hotel was quaint and we loved our stay. Here are some of the highlights.

We left on Tuesday afternoon and didn't land until late Tuesday night. We took a shuttle to the hotel (we remembered just how annoying Americans can be) and basically crashed. We woke up Wednesday, so excited to start our day. Our hotel was right in front of the Mega, the Mexican equivalent of a Walmart, so we walked over to buy ourselves some breakfast. The bakery was obviously our favorite and we got some sweet rolls called conchas (shells) and some muffins.

Love Him! And the Conchas

After breakfast, we put on our swim suits and headed over to the beach. The beaches by our hotel had really strong currents so we couldn't swim a lot that first day but had lots of fun relaxing on the beach and just hanging out.

Our Paradise

While we were relaxing, we had a lovely Mexican pirate come up to us... Okay, so maybe he wasn't a pirate but he definitely had a patch over his right eye. His name was Jorge and he chatted with Phil about his shells that he painted for a living. I fall for little things like this, plus I thought Jorge was super funny so we bought one. It matches our living room perfectly. He put our names on it, but that cost us extra because it was "más difícil".

The Final Product

 After cleaning up a bit, we talked to the concierge about the best places to eat. She recommended this local taco place called Los Claros. It was a long walk in the heat from our hotel but it was totally worth it. We got fish tacos, octopus tacos, chicken tacos and a shrimp taco. The homemade horchata was fabulous and Phil loved his Mexican Coke.

Traditional Mexican Tacos

We walked back on the beach that evening and watched the sunset. We even got punked by a mariachi band who charged us after they played a song for us. Live and learn right?

On Thursday, we decided to venture to a beach a little farther from the hotel. Our concierge recommended Playa Palmilla and we were not disappointed. We took a local bus and walked about 15 minutes to get to the beach. So breathtaking! 

Playa Palmilla

They had lots of palm umbrellas set up for shade and we camped out the entire day. Since it was during the week, we were there with other families on vacation. We swam in the water, laid on our towels and read books and magazines. I'm a big fan of the Latin lifestyle. Everyone was eating and chatting (even our on-duty lifeguard spent most of the time with his friends). It was wonderful. We even got to eat some local popsicles that reminded me so much of Brasilian geladinho. Don't mind how burned we look.

Pineapple and Fruit Punch

Friday was rough. After spending so much time in the sun, my face was super swollen (Pictures unnecessary). I told Phil that I couldn't leave in the heat of the day because it only made it worse. He was such an amazing husband and went to the store without me to get us food to eat. He made me a traditional Mexican breakfast of refried black beans on fresh bread, topped with eggs, avocado, and cream. Divine! 

Too Cute! Am I Right?

We did venture out for dinner though. We never planned where we were going and always walked around until we found a place that looked good. On Friday evening, we walked into this place that I thought was an old restaurant and found out that it was this upscale bistro. The food was incredible! It was the only night we didn't eat Mexican food. Phil got steak and I got shrimp stuffed chicken. Both were delightful. The best part was the group of Mexican men at the table next to us. All of them were watching soccer and joking around as they drank their beers. So fun to watch.

Fancy Food

After spending all day Friday resting, we were both ready to get out of the hotel on Saturday. It was a much busier day because all the locals also take the day off but it was still super fun. I was grumpy at first because I looked like the Hunchback of Notre Dame but Phil helped me be positive. We went all the way to Playa Chileno, which was closer to Cabo San Lucas. We had a bit of a mishap on the bus ride over. When we got on, we told our bus driver where we were going and asked him to drop us off when we got to the correct stop. Well, apparently he forgot so we ended up passing it and getting off in the middle of the desert. Yeah... Good thing Phil could ask some locals who told us how to get to the right place. Ah memories. 

Hunk

Saturday night was another adventure. We always came home and took a shower and then walked to downtown to find a new restaurant. Saturday Phil got carne al pastor and I got amazing fajitas. Notice how burnt I am? 

Nom, Nom, Nom... 

Please Ignore My Swollen Face

When Sunday came, we were both really excited to go to church. I had missed having Latin sacrament meetings so I was anxious to see if it was anything like Brasil. The chapel was very similar (lots of tile and no carpet) and the members were so friendly. Everyone came over and said hello to us. Phil was totally in heaven.

La Iglesia

Phil convinced me to be brave that day and try tongue tacos. I was hesitant, however, they tasted great. We were big fans of the local restaurants. It was super fun to go off the beaten path. This restaurant gave us hot sauce and guacamole in ketchup and mustard bottles, plus three different kinds of salsa. Not to mention the limes and pico de gallo they added too. 

Not as Swollen?

Monday came way too quickly. We knew we wanted to get some souvenirs for our families so we headed downtown. There were tons of shops with every trinket you could want. We checked out the Catholic Cathedral first. I loved the detail and the stained glass.

He Couldn't Resist

We meandered through the shops for awhile. I really wanted something for our house so we went to quite a few stores before finding our lovely pillow. We got some other gifts for our families too. 

Our Treasures

It rained for a bit so we took cover in a local bar to watch the Mexico-Croatia game. Nothing better than Hispanics watching soccer. 

Virgin... We Promise

Perfect Way to Cool Down

Since it was our last day, we wanted to make sure to take a picture in front of the Mexico sign by our hotel. We asked a local to take a picture for us. This is what we got. 

Fail...

We debated where to go for our last meal in Mexico, but decided that we loved Los Claros so much that we had to go back. Definitely a good choice.

My Happy Place

Notice His Mexican Pride?

We were so sad to leave our personal paradise. 

Too Good

Our flight home was long and we were so sad to leave. Not to mention that we came home to this: 

Yes, I Helped

Silly Flat Tire

Not exactly the warm welcome we anticipated but we were proud of how quickly we fixed it. So many memories. In short, I feel like the luckiest woman in the world. My husband is the greatest and there's never a dull moment for the Crepeaus.