Ensenada, Mexico (again)

Our second shore excursion was to Ensenada, Mexico (yes, again).


This time Patricia and I were Ensenada old hands so we were able to play at being tour guides for our new friends Marc and Lisa in the land of the little blue pill.



The four of us shopped as a team to negotiate improved discounts. Lisa and I became particularly good at tandem purchases and every time I shoulder my new purple backpack or wear my Ensenada T-shirt I will think of her. By the end of the day we all felt like we’d scored some cool stuff and done some good deals. After all, getting fleeced by the locals is all part of the fun and it’s somehow a pleasure to be ripped off by these friendly people with the big smiles and charming accents. The memories and shopping stories are worth far more than the premium pricing.

Marc is the most gregarious of men and, by the simple technique of referring to everyone he encountered as “amigo,” he quickly befriended a local who, along with his many cousins, was happy to direct us towards whatever we desired or, in some cases, to personally deliver it to our bar stools.

Souvenirs? “My cousin’s store. He will give you a discount.”

A cool drink? “My cousin’s bar. Best in Ensenada. Cheap.”

Farmacia? “Stay there and finish your beer. I bring for you. Best price. What you want?”

You’ll hear more about Marc and Lisa in a future posting but one of my favourite of many great moments with these guys was when a Mariachi came into the bar where we were hanging out. He wandered in with his guitar and Marc encouraged him to perform, applauded enthusiastically and tipped the guy. There’s nothing unusual about any of that. It was happening all over Ensenada. What made it a classically Marc moment is that he then borrowed the guy’s guitar and performed a song of his own composition in return.

I bought some clothes and a few more little trinkets for friends in Australia, but mostly I just enjoyed bonding with our new friends and getting into the tourist spirit. As in Disneyland, there came a time when I spotted my own silhouette and realised what I had become. This time, I had the presence of mind to capture the moment to share with my amigos.


Pretty scary, huh? The full view is even more frightening. “By day she is a mild mannered public servant, hiding her secret identity as TOURIST WOMAN!”

Mexico is a long way from Catalina in every way except geographically. Catalina brings out self-indulgent, but fairly wholesome urges to write poetry and hike around the hills. Ensenada seems inspire altogether different impulses. Some of these were on display that evening in bizarre alcoholic male bonding rituals. It has always been my view that any drinking game requiring purpose built equipment is probably best approached as a spectator. This opinion was significantly reinforced by watching a man of average size swallow 4 beers mixed with Tabasco sauce in a few continuous seconds. These guys were apparently born with abnormally large stomachs and no gag reflex.