Watching the development of a hurricane

Photo credit: NOAA - water vapor satellite shot of eastern pacific taken today - 9-30-09.

The rain that arrived today caused me to look at the sky more closely and then go to NOAA's weather site. Guess what? We have been watching the development of a hurricane all day! I've included the water vapor satellite picture and the discussion by NOAA indicates there is at least a 50% chance this will progress to a hurricane in the next 48 hours.

The red line outlines the land mass of the Baja peninsula and Mexico to the east. We are sitting almost at the tip of the peninsula watching these huge waves roll in from the west. I think they will be even bigger tomorrow.

After living in Florida and the Carolinas for the past two decades, I have a pretty good idea when I see the clouds moving forward, but with a curve to them, that something is brewing. It's no different here in the eastern Pacific area, except the general trend is for the storms to move to the west, away from land here and toward the islands and continents to the west. I hope this one won't cause anyone any harm, but as we listen to the winds howl through this resort building, I am not confident it won't grow into something impressive.

Don't be deceived into thinking the waves shown here are small... Just beyond the palms there is a fellow standing guard over the sea turtle nests and he is about 5'6", standing on the beach which seldom gets wave action but below him, where the waves are actually breaking, is about six feet lower. The sound of their crashing onshore is so loud that when walking on the beach, you cannot be heard without shouting. Impressivo, no?

Rain in Cabo

The usual amount of rain for this area is something less than 10 inches per year! And they get most of it during September and October, so no surprise that we're getting a few days of it while we are here.

What is interesting is that there is practically no rainwater accumulation device to be seen and instead of collection, it is all done by desalinization, reverse osmosis, and then either pumped or delivered by water truck to various locations. We heard from one of the salesmen for the time share that if you use up your water allotment for the week, you have to call the water truck and it's very expensive. All the little houses here have at least one black water tank on top of the roof; looks like it holds about 100 gallons.

The rebar (spiky wires on the roof) shows that the owner of the casa (house) has plans to build another level at some time. Most of the construction here is concrete block with stucco overlaying it. I was saddened to see that some of the frustrated artists marked up this house with their scribblings.

Although we have been drinking water and using the ice while here, we've been without any "Montezuma's Revenge" or "9-5 low hurdles" from digestive issues, for which I am more than a little grateful.

We have also heard that there has only been one (1!) swine flu case in the area, which further supports the theory that getting lots of Vitamin D (sunshine is the best way to get Vitamin D, by the way) is a big deterrent to the flu, which may explain why countries just north and south of the Equator tend to be less likely to have any "flu" season.

Sunday was wave day

We had to stay out of the sun for most of the day today because we didn't take into account the reflectivity of pools and the intensity of this lower latitude sun. Yesterday we both got sunburned. So Sunday about 6 p.m. we took a walk on the beach and tried to capture the 'Zen' wave along with another incredible sunset. Here is my submission (the one on the right) to be considered. Jey-hu says this one (below) is the most 'Zen' of his shots. Votes from our few readers will not create any more competition between us.

We laugh at each other's critical comments when we download the day's photo "work" and play a game of 'defend it' to justify keeping it in the saved file.

This has been a most peaceful trip for both of us, and the first time we have had a journey that wasn't involved with moving or attending a seminar since we'd met. The photo of the bird flying onto the beach after sunset is Jey-hu's; I love the serenity of it.

It's a small world

We arrived at the Pacifica Spa on Saturday morning and when you walk in, it immediately gives you the message that you are here to "relax!" The aromas they use assail the senses and with that deep breath in, all cares and concerns seem to disappear. Of course, it's an illusion and they don't really go away, but this place holds them at bay for awhile.

Later in the day we went for a swim at the Sunset resort. Jey-hu was huddled under the bridge to protect his skin from any more rays. He was just chatting with another individual shielding her skin and she said, "Oh, you need to talk to Carole; I think she's from your area." Carole was waved over. It turns out that her mother and father had a music store in Lake Stevens some 40 years ago and her son worked for the same store that Jey-hu did before it closed and he went into his electronic career. The other irony was that Carole and her son were on her way to Cabo in the early 1980's when they had a bad car accident, which Jey-hu remembered because the young man was out of work for quite awhile.

The fabric of life is filled with its flaws, but a mother's relationship with her son often stitches up those flaws to try and hold things together... so it is with Carole and other mothers I know.

Tonight we are going to try and capture the half moon shining on the ocean and the pool at approximately the same location as you see here to your right. It was elegant and breathless last night with the stars sparkling overhead and the sea quieter. We both agreed it was worth planning out the camera equipment and taking the time to try and see if we can photograph that feeling.

Who can stop the sunset?

Now that we are re-settled for one more week at the Pueblo Bonita Pacifica on Sunset Beach, we have a front-row seat to a new sunset every night.

I dedicate this one to Susie and her beloved Hamada

as I know from her poetry that they love being at the beach.

We watched the sun race to the west, sliding quickly down behind the small mountain behind the hotel. It went so fast I was barely able to get my camera set up. Jey-hu was already in place with his and so this first shot is his.

The sky was clear, save for a few streaky clouds, so the colors did not stay long, even on the few clouds that were present. And I can take credit for this second shot. But barely 10 minutes from the time the sun went behind the horizon to our last shot - and we struggled as to which one should be next (last) - to capture the last light of the day...

And if you look closely, you can see the light from the lighthouse caught in the momentary flash of warning to sailors - for me the lighthouse is a symbol of hope, the guiding light - in a way a reminder that there is a light, even in the darkest of nights.

Restaurant Review - Lorenzillo's in Cabo

Look for the giant lobster crawling up the side of a building...

Located in the heart of the Cabo San Lucas marina, the seafood restaurant called Lorenzillo’s professes to have originated somewhere around 1638 when the first Lorenzillo, a pirate, went looking for something to eat.

Unhappy with what he was served, he burned the place down and killed all the upper-class members of that society.

So, for our last night "in town." as we move over to the destination resort of Pacifica (a spa) tomorrow, we ate at this ‘historic’ place, actually re-established with the intent of keeping newer pirates happier with their meals and I will say that the service is superb - top notch!

The Perrier water was served with fresh limes - to prevent scurvy I am certain - but the bane of my personal existence, and a reason why I might be inclined to set fire to this establishment, is that the rolls were hard. Perhaps they were trying to re-create hard-tack to add to the shippy decor. Sadly what should have been a treat as sea bass is in season here, I found it dry and wrapped around lobster and shrimps that quite likely had been caught in 1638. Using a little sea salt would have corrected the sea-sick broccoli and kept it looking cheery as well as adding beneficial elements for the sailor’s diet.

The other item, identified as linguini, could have been toredo worms for all I knew. Heavily covered with something that resembled sawdust, it was slimy and mostly tasteless - sad to say it didn’t add anything to the meal.

But the piece de resistance, the dessert, redeemed some of the earlier failures. The chef went to some trouble to create a ‘signature’ chocolate ice cream treat using a familiar dutch-named product, but perhaps the freezer isn’t working as well as it should since there were ice crystals in it. Anyhow, I took a picture of it, and could recommend it - sort of.

Charm gives Lorenzillo’s a star, location gives it another star, presentation- one more - and service could push it over toward four stars. But when I have to subtract two stars for the poor quality of the outcome, Lorenzillo’s drops to a dreary two-star dining event and offering it up as a free meal as an enticement for sitting through a time-share selling endurance run only makes both experiences more painful.

CAVEAT: It is NOT my intent to destroy any business, especially in these hard economic times with so many wonderful people working so hard here in Cabo to make everyone's visit fun and pleasurable. But it is not fair to trap people to spend their time and possibly pesos or US dollars on inedible food. With a few changes, Lorenzillo's could be a fabulous place to eat....