Tidings of Joy: Do You Know The Way to San Jose

At 0917 on December 11th after 26 hours we made our way into San Jose Del Cabo. It was early and the marina wasn't answering the radio or the phone so we decided to make a pit stop at the fuel dock taking on a little fuel and asking about our reservation. The man was nice and welcoming and told us where to find our slip and sent someone over to catch lines and hook up power. Where were we? Half delirious half ecstatic we got the boat settled then had a seat in the aft deck and took in our surroundings. We sat for a little while but not long enough to realize how exhausted we were. We called an Uber and decided to stay awake and head into town for a celebratory beer and some lunch. Our friends Mike and Stacy who are regulars in both Cabo and San Jose Del Cabo gave us some great tips on where to go. Our first stop downtown was the Baja Brewery. The outdoor patio was inviting and charming and we found ourselves surrounded by gringos. I had a local dark beer and Jeff an IPA and we cheers to our successful journey down the coast of Baja. One and done we were hungry for lunch so we went went next door to the Mezcal and Tacaria La Lupita (a Mike and Stacy recommendation) and settled in at the bar. I ordered a Mezcal which came in a cute little handmade bowl along with limes and chili salt. Jeff had beer. The tacos were great - mushroom and cactus for me and fish and shrimp for Jeff. We also downed some chips and gauc too. The tortillas were handmade on site and within our vision from the bar and it was a great first meal to kick off our stay in San Jose. We ventured into the town square and looked around and shared churros for dessert. By this time I was starting to hit a wall. Only getting 3-4 hours of sleep the previous night from the overnight leg it was time to go home. Another Uber ride home and I quickly hit the couch for a nap. We had a quiet night and went to sleep early.

Cruising into San Jose Del Cabo

Sitting in the Aft Deck Taking in the View

Downtown San Jose Del Cabo

Downtown

Beers at Baja Brewery

Lunch at La Lupita

Town Square San Jose Del Cabo

Town Square

Church in Downtown San Jose

Town Square

Storefront

The next day we decided we needed to see Cabo San Lucas where we've had so many happy memories of Pollak family cruises and my 40th birthday cruise. And what better place to take in the sites but The Office. Having been there previously we didn't feel the need to do any of the typical tourist activities or walk the streets so straight to The Office it was. We had a nice table in the sand far enough away from the beach where the venders couldn't get to us but we still had a good view of what was going on. Jeff got fish for lunch and I had chips and guac along with a couple cadillac margaritas. The view was great and we reminisced about being there with the family. Jeff decided that we needed some shots and asked for the taquilla man to come over. They discussed different brands and some other non-taquilla issues. We had our shots and next thing I know Jeff bought two bottles of the house made taquilla. Whoops. Shortly after the purchase we Ubered back to the boat and face-timed our good friends Randal and Michelle. Not sure what all was discussed but I remember it being loud.

Marina Grounds

TofJ Across the Fairway

Whole Whale at Marina

Beach at the Marina

Pretty Sculptures Around Marina Grounds

Marina Artwork

The Office

Outside Table at The Office

Our View

Cruise Ship Anchored Outside Office

The Arches

Jeff's Lunch

Since we were having such as fun time we asked the marina if we could extend our stay for a few days. They said it would be no problem but we would have to move slips because another boat was scheduled to come into our slip. Not a problem and excited to stay we moved over to R dock which consisted of all sport fishing boats and us. We watched the guys work on their boats cleaning and fixing and readying them to go out and fish. We spent most of the day onboard until the evening when we took an Uber to Flora Farms for dinner. Another Mike & Stacy recommendation. This might be to date my favorite and best restaurant that we've been to. Flora Farms is a working farm where they grow and raise everything they server on their menu from herbs, to fruits and veg to eggs, cheese, cows and chickens. When we got dropped off we were greeted and told to explore a bit if we had time before heading to the restaurant. On property there is a coffee shop, a wine tasting shop, clothing stores and private cottages you can rent by the week. We were mesmerized having no idea what a complex the place was. We slowly meandered to the restaurant which was at the end of the road. There were maybe 50 tables all outdoors with a roof top. The menu was full of freshly grown vegetables, vegan items and fish and meat. We took our time having homemade cocktails with herbs from the farm and then a fish and vegan dinner. It was delicious. One of my favorite parts of the experience came after dinner when we meandered into the restaurant store which consists of farm grown fruits, vegetables, butters, cheeses, flowers, elixirs and pastries. I left with two bags full of produce and two flower crowns. It was a very memorable evening and we were glad we stayed to experience it.

Old Carriage at Marina

Evening at the Marina

Arriving at Flora Farms

Our Table Flora Farms

The Restaurant

Live Music at Flora Farms

The next day we decided we wanted to do some exploring so we rented a car for the day and took a road trip to Todos Santos which the guidebooks and locals told us was a great place to visit. It's about an hour north east of San Jose and we were excited for a land adventure. When we arrived we weren't exactly sure where to go other then downtown and we walked the few blocks looking into stores of tourist shirts, ceramics and glassware. Vanilla is also a big thing here and shops pride themselves on their organic pure vanilla. We decided on a place for lunch called La Adobes which one of our Uber drivers recommended one of the previous days. We sat outside overlooking their beautiful dessert garden. We had a couple beers, Jeff had fish and I had a bowl of vegetables in a special pot they call molcajete. After a coffee break at a local shop and taking in a little bit of the semi finals of the world cup we decided we had seen Todos Santos and started back to San Jose in order to return the rental car before dark. En route we made our way to the hiper (Spanish for giant supermarket that has clothes, food, electronics and everything all in one store) got some fresh produce, took it back to the boat, returned the car and came home. It was a long day but we were excited we got to explore the area a bit.

Lunch at La Adobes - Todos Santos

After some routine maintenance checks Jeff discovered that our intakes to the starboard main engine was loose and could easily spin around. What does this mean? Basically that if it loosens even more it could allow sea water which comes in to cool the engine to free flow into the engine room and we would be taking on water and from there (I can't even type the word) things could get really bad. So fortunately our marina also has a boat yard which has a sister company in San Diego- Marine Group- which we know really well. Jeff called and they were nice enough to get us in. The manager said had we called next week we would be looking at March before they could get to us. Wow! Besides being a total shock being hauled in Mexico all went smoothly and after 4 hours in the slings we were back in the water.

Heading to Marine Group Boat Yard

Waiting for the Lift

Putting the Straps on

Up She Goes

Hanging on the Hard While Getting Fixed

Back in She Goes

Much relieved and back at the slip we chilled a bit before the evenings activities. When we checked in at the marina the girl in the office told us be sure not to miss art walk that happens every Thursday evening in downtown San Jose that features local artist who set up all around the square and there is food and music. So that's what we did. We walked up and down each isles seeing paintings, drawing, handmade goods and watched as a man hand weave the blankets he was selling. We had a happy hour drink at a downtown restaurant that had seating right on the street to watch all the action. After we made our way to Jasmine a Mexican restaurant the marina had recommended. It felt touristy and once again I was eating chips and guac for dinner due to the lack of vegan items. A mariachi band came in and played us Besame Mucho which we always love but reminded us we were visitors here. As we were finishing our dinner we watched a group of young Aztecs in traditional costumes walking through the restaurant and onto the street. We quickly paid and headed down to the street just in time to watch them perform their fire dance. It was incredible and we had a front row seat. I was mesmerized. We watched the entire show then made our way back to the square for churros and an Uber ride home.