Our last full day here! Another nice weather day. We were pretty lucky over the trip, it's the end of rainy season and typically in October about half the days have rain. I guess there was rain most evenings which didn't really impact us; we only really needed our umbrellas one day.
We started the day at Zona Arqueológica Tlatelolco, about a 30 minute walk north from our hotel. Our path took us by the Palacio Postal, and so we gave one last try to see if it was open / accessible, and it was! We walked right in. It was one of the nicer post offices I've seen. There weren't many tourists either, possibly also discouraged by the past few days.
We continued on our walk to Tlatelolco, along a major street. The buses were mostly electric, which really cut down on the pollution that we felt on the sidewalk. The ruins at Tlatelolco are what I would call minor ruins. They aren't a destination in itself; but they are pretty cool to visit. It was very peaceful to wander around and through the restored ruins.
Just beside the ruins is a 16th century church, so we stuck our heads in for a view. It's an old church.
Abutting both the ruins and the church is the Plaza de las Tres Culturas, referring to the pre-columbian Aztec ruins, Spanish colonial (the 16th century church) and modern Mexico (1960’s urbanism). It's also the location of the Tlatelolco massacre, of which the protests had occurred in the Zócalo a couple days ago, commemorating the date.
We had thought about taking the metro to our next stop, the Museo de Arte Moderno (MAM), but ended up taking an Uber cause it was half the time and we wouldn't have to be concerned with people coughing. We've noticed an increase in people wearing masks the last couple days, so figured Uber would be safer health-wise.
The MAM was across the street from the Museo Nacional de Antropología which we had visited earlier in the week. We walked through a bit of the 1st floor, and then grabbed some lunch at the cafeteria in the gardens. There were some interesting exhibits in the gardens so we checked those out, and then the rest of the museum.
And that was it for our sightseeing in CDMX. Caught an Uber back to the hotel, relaxed and cleaned up, and had dinner downstairs.
...
Overall it was an enjoyable trip. We did see most of the things on our list, and as a bonus got to see the Inauguration celebrations. There was a lot of variety between museums and ruins and art. The food was also great, from street food to more upscale places. There's a cool artsy vibe to the city, at least in the historic center and surrounds. Definitely a good one week trip.
A Travel Blog
by Heather and Eric
Friday, October 04, 2024
Thursday, October 03, 2024
Centro Historico, CDMX, Mexico
It was a beautiful morning, sunny although still a bit cool (13C) at 8am. We got up a bit earlier to try to get to the 9am performance of the pipe organs in the Metropolitan Cathedral. The barricades were coming down so it was easy to enter the cathedral. We were a bit early (about 8:40am) so asked the police at the door about the timing. They said it was at 10am and that we should line up at 9:30.
So we went back to the hotel and had breakfast, returning to the cathedral at 9:30. We then realized our question earlier had got lost in translation (literally) and it was mass that started at 10am. Oh well. The organist was playing (presumably having started at 9am), so at least we got to hear the pipe organs, which was our main objective.
We then headed over to Miguel Lerdo de Tejada Library to check out the mural by Vlady Kibalchich Rusakov. Mexican muralism is big thing in CDMX, and I had mapped out some of the key sites to visit.
We had to show ID to enter; they were okay with viewing our passport scans on our phones. Most visitors are academics here for the library. They didn’t mind us as tourists, in fact they were super polite and keen that we were here!
Vlady’s murals are ginormous, covering three full wallls of the library, almost 1,750 m² according to the blurb onsite. We walked around and took our pics, trying not to disturb the academic folks.
A quick change of clothes at our hotel (it was about 22C now) and then we were back out touristing.
Walked over to Museo de la Secretaría de Hacienda, aka Antiguo Palacio del Arzobispada, aka SHCP Museum of Art. We were there yesterday and were thrown off by its aliases. It’s just across the Zócalo from us, much easier with the barricades removed. Anyways, it has amazing contemporary art, we were quite impressed. It was free to enter, and we only saw a handful other visitors.
Next was Secretaria de Educación Pública, aka SEP Site Museum, aka Convento de la Encarnación. This houses a lot of murals by the big three (Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiro), commissioned by the SEP. I really like the style, they could all be the cover of an Ayn Rand book. This was also free to enter and not busy at all.
We were getting hungry so had lunch at a random taco stall. The stall was really busy but they squeezed in a couple more stools for us. It was mmm good.
Tried yet again to get into the Palacio Postal. There was a long line-up to enter, filled with people waiting to do official post office stuff, so we decided to skip it.
Last stop for the day was Mercado de Artesanías La Ciudadela, for some souvenir shopping.
Had dinner at Paxia, which is atop the Hilton about a five minute walk from us. It was really good.
Walked back through the Zócalo, and called it a night.
So we went back to the hotel and had breakfast, returning to the cathedral at 9:30. We then realized our question earlier had got lost in translation (literally) and it was mass that started at 10am. Oh well. The organist was playing (presumably having started at 9am), so at least we got to hear the pipe organs, which was our main objective.
We then headed over to Miguel Lerdo de Tejada Library to check out the mural by Vlady Kibalchich Rusakov. Mexican muralism is big thing in CDMX, and I had mapped out some of the key sites to visit.
We had to show ID to enter; they were okay with viewing our passport scans on our phones. Most visitors are academics here for the library. They didn’t mind us as tourists, in fact they were super polite and keen that we were here!
Vlady’s murals are ginormous, covering three full wallls of the library, almost 1,750 m² according to the blurb onsite. We walked around and took our pics, trying not to disturb the academic folks.
A quick change of clothes at our hotel (it was about 22C now) and then we were back out touristing.
Walked over to Museo de la Secretaría de Hacienda, aka Antiguo Palacio del Arzobispada, aka SHCP Museum of Art. We were there yesterday and were thrown off by its aliases. It’s just across the Zócalo from us, much easier with the barricades removed. Anyways, it has amazing contemporary art, we were quite impressed. It was free to enter, and we only saw a handful other visitors.
Next was Secretaria de Educación Pública, aka SEP Site Museum, aka Convento de la Encarnación. This houses a lot of murals by the big three (Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiro), commissioned by the SEP. I really like the style, they could all be the cover of an Ayn Rand book. This was also free to enter and not busy at all.
We were getting hungry so had lunch at a random taco stall. The stall was really busy but they squeezed in a couple more stools for us. It was mmm good.
Tried yet again to get into the Palacio Postal. There was a long line-up to enter, filled with people waiting to do official post office stuff, so we decided to skip it.
Last stop for the day was Mercado de Artesanías La Ciudadela, for some souvenir shopping.
Had dinner at Paxia, which is atop the Hilton about a five minute walk from us. It was really good.
Walked back through the Zócalo, and called it a night.
Wednesday, October 02, 2024
Centro Historico, CDMX, Mexico
Today was the quietest morning we’ve seen on our street, what with Inauguration Day, protests against the government and busy weekends since we arrived Friday night. The quiet wouldn’t last all day though, as Oct 2 is the remembrance of the Tlatelolco massacre. The hotel said it was likely the protests would start around 3pm.
We finished our breakfast and hurried out to see stuff before the blockades went up.
First up was Templo Mayor, just off the Zócalo. The extent of this UNESCO site was discovered in 1978 by electrical workers digging a hole. It’s now an active archaeological site, with suspended walkways for tourists. It also contains an excellent museum within the grounds. It took us 90 minutes to wander through, and we skipped quite a bit. Templo Mayor is really impressive, a must-see in CDMX.
We then stumbled across Colegio de San Ildefonso, which was on my list, we just weren’t looking for it just then. It’s considered the birthplace of Mexican muralism. Its walls are filled with murals by Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and others. We had the place pretty much to ourselves.
Navigated the crowd barricades to get to Museo de la Secretaría de Hacienda, where you get tickets to the National Palace. Unfortunately the National Palace has been closed to tourists for a while with no plans to reopen :(
Later I realized the Museo is also called Antiguo Palacio del Arzobispada, aka the SHCP Museum of Art, and the SH stands for Secretaria de Hacienda. The SHCP is also on my list to see, and we were right there without knowing it :( We’ll go back there tomorrow.
We headed in the direction of Palacio de Bellas Artes, to check out a couple more places. Along the way we grabbed some excellent street food from taco vendors and some fries.
There were riot police all geared up and staging in the side street we were walking down. They just ignored us and other locals carrying on their business. It made for additional detours though.
We had an espresso and a cake in a Sanborns, which supposedly had great tiles. We had the wrong Sanborns though (they’re about as prevalent as Tim Hortons in Toronto), at least the espresso was good :)
The Palacio Postal was behind barricades and not accessible :( we did find the right Sanborns after extensive detouring. They didn’t mind us not eating and instead just looking at the tiles, just like the Moon guide suggested.
The Palacio de Mineria was also barricaded, so that will have to wait until Thursday as well.
Walked back up to the Zócalo and browsed through some side-street local markets. The police activity was increasing in advance of the protests, so we called it a day. On the way back to the hotel, stopped in at the restaurant I’d booked online for dinner, just to make sure they were actually open tonight. The restaurant is in a complex surrounded by boutique shops so we browsed around.
Our street was barricaded at the Zócalo end, which meant it was now effectively a dead-end street with low foot traffic. That made it easy for us to get through to our hotel.
Later we figured the large police presence and strategically placed barricades act as effective deterrents to crowd violence.
We were also impressed with how fast the feel of the Zócalo changes. One moment there’s 50k people protesting in the square; two hours later we looked outside and the square was empty and clean. When we went for dinner the barricades were still up between our street and the Zócalo; 90 minutes later we came back and they had vanished. It’s crazy how fast the scene changes.
We had dinner at Azul Historica, just around the corner from our hotel. It was traditional Mexican dishes, in a nice atmospheric courtyard.
We were quite full after eating so walked into the Zócalo for a few minutes. It’s nicely illuminated at night. Saw the monumental flag being lowered for the night and then getting carried away by soldiers, which was cool.
We finished our breakfast and hurried out to see stuff before the blockades went up.
First up was Templo Mayor, just off the Zócalo. The extent of this UNESCO site was discovered in 1978 by electrical workers digging a hole. It’s now an active archaeological site, with suspended walkways for tourists. It also contains an excellent museum within the grounds. It took us 90 minutes to wander through, and we skipped quite a bit. Templo Mayor is really impressive, a must-see in CDMX.
We then stumbled across Colegio de San Ildefonso, which was on my list, we just weren’t looking for it just then. It’s considered the birthplace of Mexican muralism. Its walls are filled with murals by Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and others. We had the place pretty much to ourselves.
Navigated the crowd barricades to get to Museo de la Secretaría de Hacienda, where you get tickets to the National Palace. Unfortunately the National Palace has been closed to tourists for a while with no plans to reopen :(
Later I realized the Museo is also called Antiguo Palacio del Arzobispada, aka the SHCP Museum of Art, and the SH stands for Secretaria de Hacienda. The SHCP is also on my list to see, and we were right there without knowing it :( We’ll go back there tomorrow.
We headed in the direction of Palacio de Bellas Artes, to check out a couple more places. Along the way we grabbed some excellent street food from taco vendors and some fries.
There were riot police all geared up and staging in the side street we were walking down. They just ignored us and other locals carrying on their business. It made for additional detours though.
We had an espresso and a cake in a Sanborns, which supposedly had great tiles. We had the wrong Sanborns though (they’re about as prevalent as Tim Hortons in Toronto), at least the espresso was good :)
The Palacio Postal was behind barricades and not accessible :( we did find the right Sanborns after extensive detouring. They didn’t mind us not eating and instead just looking at the tiles, just like the Moon guide suggested.
The Palacio de Mineria was also barricaded, so that will have to wait until Thursday as well.
Walked back up to the Zócalo and browsed through some side-street local markets. The police activity was increasing in advance of the protests, so we called it a day. On the way back to the hotel, stopped in at the restaurant I’d booked online for dinner, just to make sure they were actually open tonight. The restaurant is in a complex surrounded by boutique shops so we browsed around.
Our street was barricaded at the Zócalo end, which meant it was now effectively a dead-end street with low foot traffic. That made it easy for us to get through to our hotel.
Later we figured the large police presence and strategically placed barricades act as effective deterrents to crowd violence.
We were also impressed with how fast the feel of the Zócalo changes. One moment there’s 50k people protesting in the square; two hours later we looked outside and the square was empty and clean. When we went for dinner the barricades were still up between our street and the Zócalo; 90 minutes later we came back and they had vanished. It’s crazy how fast the scene changes.
We had dinner at Azul Historica, just around the corner from our hotel. It was traditional Mexican dishes, in a nice atmospheric courtyard.
We were quite full after eating so walked into the Zócalo for a few minutes. It’s nicely illuminated at night. Saw the monumental flag being lowered for the night and then getting carried away by soldiers, which was cool.
Tuesday, October 01, 2024
Chapultepec, CDMX, Mexico
Today was Inauguration Day in Mexico, a newly-created public holiday. While planning, I had read that the new president, Claudia Sheinbaum, would officially take office today, but hadn’t realized how big a deal it was until we got here.
The official ceremony was held at the Legislative Palace of San Lázaro, about 1.5km east of our hotel.
The Zócalo was the focal point of the people’s celebration. We watched tens of thousands of people stream into the Zócalo starting at 9am. Some wore their traditional clothes and danced up the street, as well as several marching bands. I couldn’t find any news reports on the crowd size, however last Sunday they had over 70k for a rebroadcast of a musical performance, and I’m sure this was more.
The large crowds in and around the Zócalo as well as it now being a public holiday meant we had to rejig our plans for the day. (Having a new holdiay created after I’d checked timeanddate.com for holidays is a new one for me).
We had tried to get into the Cathedral for their 9am daily pipe organ performance, but the Cathedral was barricaded from the public (we’ll try again later this week). I called the National Anthropology Museum (MNA) and they confirmed that they were indeed open today.
After breakfast, we watched a bit more of the incoming crowds from our balcony, and then headed out to the MNA.
We walked about four blocks away from the Zócalo and got an Uber. It was slow going due to temporary road closures for the inauguration. Took about an hour to get to the MNA, which normally would be a 20 minute drive.
The first view after entering the MNA is of El Paraguas, a giant art installation in the middle of the courtyard. It’s become a symbol of the MNA.
Decided to have lunch before seeing the rest of the museum. We’ve had good luck at museum restaurants, and it continued here. It was also fairly quick service.
We then started touring through. It’s a large museum, with 11 archeological rooms grouped by region. Our favourite was the Mexico room (ie city of Mexico), which contains the enormous Aztec Sunstone, and several other large artefacts dug up around Templo Mayor, just off the Zócalo. The Teotihuacán room was also impressive. It’s definitely a museum requiring multiple visits.
After, we caught an Uber back to the Zócalo. Traffic was still a mess so we just asked the driver to get us anywhere within a 20 minute walk. We were walking upstream the whole way back to the hotel, although it was just the last 50m that were squished.
We arrived back in time to catch the latter half of President Sheinbaum’s speech. It was pretty cool to see the size of the crowds, from the comfort of our balcony.
We were pretty much done for the day. Watched the VP debate (Canadians watching a US election debate while in Mexico), had some tacos from across the street, and called it a night. Hopefully no more sound checks tonight!
The official ceremony was held at the Legislative Palace of San Lázaro, about 1.5km east of our hotel.
The Zócalo was the focal point of the people’s celebration. We watched tens of thousands of people stream into the Zócalo starting at 9am. Some wore their traditional clothes and danced up the street, as well as several marching bands. I couldn’t find any news reports on the crowd size, however last Sunday they had over 70k for a rebroadcast of a musical performance, and I’m sure this was more.
The large crowds in and around the Zócalo as well as it now being a public holiday meant we had to rejig our plans for the day. (Having a new holdiay created after I’d checked timeanddate.com for holidays is a new one for me).
We had tried to get into the Cathedral for their 9am daily pipe organ performance, but the Cathedral was barricaded from the public (we’ll try again later this week). I called the National Anthropology Museum (MNA) and they confirmed that they were indeed open today.
After breakfast, we watched a bit more of the incoming crowds from our balcony, and then headed out to the MNA.
We walked about four blocks away from the Zócalo and got an Uber. It was slow going due to temporary road closures for the inauguration. Took about an hour to get to the MNA, which normally would be a 20 minute drive.
The first view after entering the MNA is of El Paraguas, a giant art installation in the middle of the courtyard. It’s become a symbol of the MNA.
Decided to have lunch before seeing the rest of the museum. We’ve had good luck at museum restaurants, and it continued here. It was also fairly quick service.
We then started touring through. It’s a large museum, with 11 archeological rooms grouped by region. Our favourite was the Mexico room (ie city of Mexico), which contains the enormous Aztec Sunstone, and several other large artefacts dug up around Templo Mayor, just off the Zócalo. The Teotihuacán room was also impressive. It’s definitely a museum requiring multiple visits.
After, we caught an Uber back to the Zócalo. Traffic was still a mess so we just asked the driver to get us anywhere within a 20 minute walk. We were walking upstream the whole way back to the hotel, although it was just the last 50m that were squished.
We arrived back in time to catch the latter half of President Sheinbaum’s speech. It was pretty cool to see the size of the crowds, from the comfort of our balcony.
We were pretty much done for the day. Watched the VP debate (Canadians watching a US election debate while in Mexico), had some tacos from across the street, and called it a night. Hopefully no more sound checks tonight!
Monday, September 30, 2024
Teotihuacán, Mexico
Today was our day trip to Teotihuacán! This will be the first ruin complex we’ve seen post-covid, although we did see some castle ruins in Okinawa last year. I'm big into ruins :)
The guidebooks and travel blogs all suggest leaving the city by 8am to beat the crowds at Teotihuacán. Getting up early didn’t seem to be very vacation-ish so we just had a casual morning and left the hotel at 10am.
Walked out of the pedestrian area to catch an Uber. Our driver suggested a flat rate to go there and back, which we agreed to as it just made logistics simpler. We also agreed to take the toll highway which cut travel time in half!
And so we arrived at Teotihuacán a little after 11am. Paid our entrance fees (95 MXN each, about 6.50 CAD), took a pic of our driver’s car to remember it, and then we were off!
Sat on some steps in front of Pyramid of the Sun and read the Moon Guide overview of Teotihuacán. Then we walked down Avenue of the Dead towards the Pyramid of the Moon. When I backpacked through in 1997 it was still possible to climb both pyramids, however all the ruins are now off-limits to protect them. Probably we shouldn’t have been climbing them back in the 90s either, although the number of tourists was far lower.
Near the Pyramid of the Moon is the Palace of Quetzalpapaloti. I didn’t remember the excavated palace from my first visit; it was cool to see. Also we lucked out with the timing, in a lull between tour groups. Teotihuacán is huge and can absorb a lot of people, although it didn’t seem very crowded while we were there. The small enclosed spaces in the palace can get busy though.
Next was the 2km walk down to the other end of Avenue of the Dead, to see the Temple of Quetzalcóatl and stone carvings of serpents’ heads lining a staircase. Along the way took a million pics because the lighting was great over the pyramids.
It took us just under two hours to see the main attractions in Teotihuacán, with lots of time spent stopping for pics. For me, the most impressive thing about Teotihuacán is its size. The ruins aren’t as artistic as others but it is massive.
Our driver was waiting for us at the exit, and we took off back to the city.
Had lunch at the very busy taco place across from the hotel. Every time we’ve looked out from our balcony there’s been a line-up, mostly with locals, always a good sign. Shared the special of five tacos and a Coke for 65 MXN (4.50 CAD). They were yummy and hit the spot.
Cause we used the tolls roads, we still had the afternoon for more touristing. Started with the Metropolitan Cathedral in the Zócalo. The cathedral itself is quite amazing, with two enormous pipe organs.
Somehow we found our way inside the pipe organ room in the middle of the cathedral, and were able to see them up close. It’s a 30 MXN ticket to enter, and after we were inside, the ticket person closed the door to further entrants. Still not sure how we made the cut but oh well. There’s a free daily performance of the pipe organs at 9am; we may try to see this tomorrow before breakfast.
Next checked out the interior of the Gran Hotel de la Ciudad, to see the Tiffany glass ceiling. It was pretty cool.
We were heading back to our hotel when we realized the lighting in the Zócalo was perfect, with the low sun highlighting the large Mexican flag against a dark grey sky. So we took another million pics.
Finally made it back to the hotel, just before it started raining at 5pm as forecast.
For dinner we finally ventured off campus, and ate at Limosneros. It’s a modern take on Mexican classics. We really enjoyed it.
Saw the preparations for Inauguration Day tomorrow. There’s a very loud sound system set up in the Zócalo. Last night they were doing sound checks at midnight! The sound system does have excellent bass though - it totally shook the doors to our balcony last night.
The guidebooks and travel blogs all suggest leaving the city by 8am to beat the crowds at Teotihuacán. Getting up early didn’t seem to be very vacation-ish so we just had a casual morning and left the hotel at 10am.
Walked out of the pedestrian area to catch an Uber. Our driver suggested a flat rate to go there and back, which we agreed to as it just made logistics simpler. We also agreed to take the toll highway which cut travel time in half!
And so we arrived at Teotihuacán a little after 11am. Paid our entrance fees (95 MXN each, about 6.50 CAD), took a pic of our driver’s car to remember it, and then we were off!
Sat on some steps in front of Pyramid of the Sun and read the Moon Guide overview of Teotihuacán. Then we walked down Avenue of the Dead towards the Pyramid of the Moon. When I backpacked through in 1997 it was still possible to climb both pyramids, however all the ruins are now off-limits to protect them. Probably we shouldn’t have been climbing them back in the 90s either, although the number of tourists was far lower.
Near the Pyramid of the Moon is the Palace of Quetzalpapaloti. I didn’t remember the excavated palace from my first visit; it was cool to see. Also we lucked out with the timing, in a lull between tour groups. Teotihuacán is huge and can absorb a lot of people, although it didn’t seem very crowded while we were there. The small enclosed spaces in the palace can get busy though.
Next was the 2km walk down to the other end of Avenue of the Dead, to see the Temple of Quetzalcóatl and stone carvings of serpents’ heads lining a staircase. Along the way took a million pics because the lighting was great over the pyramids.
It took us just under two hours to see the main attractions in Teotihuacán, with lots of time spent stopping for pics. For me, the most impressive thing about Teotihuacán is its size. The ruins aren’t as artistic as others but it is massive.
Our driver was waiting for us at the exit, and we took off back to the city.
Had lunch at the very busy taco place across from the hotel. Every time we’ve looked out from our balcony there’s been a line-up, mostly with locals, always a good sign. Shared the special of five tacos and a Coke for 65 MXN (4.50 CAD). They were yummy and hit the spot.
Cause we used the tolls roads, we still had the afternoon for more touristing. Started with the Metropolitan Cathedral in the Zócalo. The cathedral itself is quite amazing, with two enormous pipe organs.
Somehow we found our way inside the pipe organ room in the middle of the cathedral, and were able to see them up close. It’s a 30 MXN ticket to enter, and after we were inside, the ticket person closed the door to further entrants. Still not sure how we made the cut but oh well. There’s a free daily performance of the pipe organs at 9am; we may try to see this tomorrow before breakfast.
Next checked out the interior of the Gran Hotel de la Ciudad, to see the Tiffany glass ceiling. It was pretty cool.
We were heading back to our hotel when we realized the lighting in the Zócalo was perfect, with the low sun highlighting the large Mexican flag against a dark grey sky. So we took another million pics.
Finally made it back to the hotel, just before it started raining at 5pm as forecast.
For dinner we finally ventured off campus, and ate at Limosneros. It’s a modern take on Mexican classics. We really enjoyed it.
Saw the preparations for Inauguration Day tomorrow. There’s a very loud sound system set up in the Zócalo. Last night they were doing sound checks at midnight! The sound system does have excellent bass though - it totally shook the doors to our balcony last night.
Sunday, September 29, 2024
Alameda Central, CDMX, Mexico
We felt much better this morning, having had a day to acclimatize to the elevation. Had French toast for breakfast which was excellent. I always find literal translations of odd English food names funny, like perros caliente (hot dog) or in this case, pan frances.
We had tickets for the Symphony Orchestra at Palacio de Bellas Artes for their 12:15 performance. It’s only on Sundays that they have a mid-day performance, which we prefer.
It was about a ten minute walk down the pedestrian-only Av Francisco I. Madero. The police barricades had been taken down overnight so it made it easier to navigate the historic centre.
Every 2nd building we walked by was some amazing looking historical building that had some gallery or museum. We could easily spend another week here :)
The police barricades were still up around the Palacio de Bellas Artes so we walked 180° around to enter the grounds, and then back 270° to get to the Palacio entrance. Good thing we were way early!
Most institutions are free to the public on Sundays so it was pretty crowded inside. It was still easy though to get a good view of the floor-to-ceiling murals on the 2nd and 3rd floor. These alone were worth the visit!
It was about noon so we lined up to enter for the symphony. I had bought tickets months ago to get front row in the balcony, just to see the Tiffany glass curtain behind the stage. The only way to see the glass curtain is by going to a performance, so here we were :)
Unfortunately, for Symphony Orchestra performances, they back the stage with wood panels (I’m assuming for the acoustics?) and so there was no view to be had :( oh well
The symphony was quite good. We had a lot of things we wanted to see before the forecasted rain started at 3pm so we left at the intermission, or half time as I called it accidentally.
Unfortunately the forecast was wrong at the rain had already started :(
We tried to get into the 8th floor cafeteria in the Sears department store across the street for the classic pic of Palacio de Bellas Artes. There was a long wait that we didn’t care for. Then I realized it’s not just the cafeteria that has the great views, it’s every floor! So went to the 9th floor and leaned over some boxes of merchandise to get my pics.
Walked through Alameda Central to Museo Mural Diego Rivera, which houses just a single massive mural, Dream of a Sunday Afternoon on the Almeda Central. We had a bit of trouble finding the building, finally resorting to Google maps.
Due to the rain, there were only a handful of other visitors, so we were able to get great people-free pics. Spent about 15 minutes observing all the details in the mural.
Next up was lunch. We were in the heart of busiest tourist attractions on a Sunday and so every restaurant had a long wait. Found a busy local restaurant on a side street and had their comida corrida, a very typical 3-course meal served for lunch (chicken soup, rice, and then a choice of main). (2nd day in a row I’ve used an Oxford comma). Lunch was quite tasty!
It was pouring rain when we finished lunch, so we skipped the last couple items on the list for today (Palacio de Mineria for some more murals plus four meteorites, and Sanborn’s for the tiles) and just headed home.
We dried off a bit and then went down to the hotel restaurant for a double espresso and split a dessert. Chatted with the manager about the best way to get to Teotihuacan tomorrow (Uber). Also asked about the Pink Panther exhibition currently showing in the gallery part of the hotel. He offered us a VIP tour as guests (so we didn’t have to go with a group). The exhibition turned out to be by various prominent Mexican artists and their take on the Pink Panther. It was pretty cool, and not at all what I was expecting!
We had tickets for the Symphony Orchestra at Palacio de Bellas Artes for their 12:15 performance. It’s only on Sundays that they have a mid-day performance, which we prefer.
It was about a ten minute walk down the pedestrian-only Av Francisco I. Madero. The police barricades had been taken down overnight so it made it easier to navigate the historic centre.
Every 2nd building we walked by was some amazing looking historical building that had some gallery or museum. We could easily spend another week here :)
The police barricades were still up around the Palacio de Bellas Artes so we walked 180° around to enter the grounds, and then back 270° to get to the Palacio entrance. Good thing we were way early!
Most institutions are free to the public on Sundays so it was pretty crowded inside. It was still easy though to get a good view of the floor-to-ceiling murals on the 2nd and 3rd floor. These alone were worth the visit!
It was about noon so we lined up to enter for the symphony. I had bought tickets months ago to get front row in the balcony, just to see the Tiffany glass curtain behind the stage. The only way to see the glass curtain is by going to a performance, so here we were :)
Unfortunately, for Symphony Orchestra performances, they back the stage with wood panels (I’m assuming for the acoustics?) and so there was no view to be had :( oh well
The symphony was quite good. We had a lot of things we wanted to see before the forecasted rain started at 3pm so we left at the intermission, or half time as I called it accidentally.
Unfortunately the forecast was wrong at the rain had already started :(
We tried to get into the 8th floor cafeteria in the Sears department store across the street for the classic pic of Palacio de Bellas Artes. There was a long wait that we didn’t care for. Then I realized it’s not just the cafeteria that has the great views, it’s every floor! So went to the 9th floor and leaned over some boxes of merchandise to get my pics.
Walked through Alameda Central to Museo Mural Diego Rivera, which houses just a single massive mural, Dream of a Sunday Afternoon on the Almeda Central. We had a bit of trouble finding the building, finally resorting to Google maps.
Due to the rain, there were only a handful of other visitors, so we were able to get great people-free pics. Spent about 15 minutes observing all the details in the mural.
Next up was lunch. We were in the heart of busiest tourist attractions on a Sunday and so every restaurant had a long wait. Found a busy local restaurant on a side street and had their comida corrida, a very typical 3-course meal served for lunch (chicken soup, rice, and then a choice of main). (2nd day in a row I’ve used an Oxford comma). Lunch was quite tasty!
It was pouring rain when we finished lunch, so we skipped the last couple items on the list for today (Palacio de Mineria for some more murals plus four meteorites, and Sanborn’s for the tiles) and just headed home.
We dried off a bit and then went down to the hotel restaurant for a double espresso and split a dessert. Chatted with the manager about the best way to get to Teotihuacan tomorrow (Uber). Also asked about the Pink Panther exhibition currently showing in the gallery part of the hotel. He offered us a VIP tour as guests (so we didn’t have to go with a group). The exhibition turned out to be by various prominent Mexican artists and their take on the Pink Panther. It was pretty cool, and not at all what I was expecting!
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Coyoacán, CDMX, Mexico
Our flight from Toronto to Ciudad de Mexico (CDMX) yesterday evening was really smooth, considering we flew over the hurricane. Immigration was fully automated - scanned our passports, took a pic and we were in Mexico! Customs just waved tourists through the Nothing to Declare line.
We were a bit rusty with our travel and took a taxi not from the official taxi line up. Oh well. The price was similar to what I read it should be. Our driver was friendly, apologizing when he hit a pothole.
Our hotel was just off the Zócalo (the main square in the historical centre), accessible via a pedestrian-only road. There were police checkpoints due to the recent protests against the government, and we had to show our hotel reservation to enter the street. Normally we won’t be getting back to the hotel at midnight so probably won’t need to again.
This morning, we were feeling the effects of being at an altitude. CDMX is at an elevation of 2,240m, enough to wind us after climbing the stairs to our room on the 3rd floor.
The hotel manager gave us a warm greeting when we went down for breakfast. (I’d been corresponding a bit with Emanuel while planning the trip.) Breakfast was excellent, Heather was able to practice her Spanish.
We had reservations at the Frida Kahlo museum for timed entry at 1:30pm. Took an Uber and had about an hour to kill so wandered up to Jardín del Arte Allende. There was some really good quality art, we ended up buying a print. The artist, Enrique Mañón, doesn’t title his art but instead asks the buyer to name them. We called ours Mujer Pensada, which was our maybe incorrect translation of Woman Thinking.
Across the street was Coyoacán Market so we checked it out. Bought a couple items on my list for the key stand - a molinillo (used to whisk hot chocolate) and a couple Otomi dolls (dolls made from fabric ends).
We still had some time before our entry to Frida Kahlo so tried the squeeze in a quick bite at a coffee shop. Their coffee was quite good (so were our cappuccinos at breakfast) but we had to eat our food quickly, and if you know how slow we eat, you can guess it didn’t end well. Had about half a sandwich each and then rushed over to Frida Kahlo’s.
The museum was excellent. My favourite was where they showed pieces from around her house and how they were inspiration in some of her art.
There were some very dark clouds in the distance but my iPhone said it wouldn’t rain until 6pm so we walked over to Díaz de Cossio Experimental Ceramics Workshop but it closed at 2pm so we just caught another Uber back to the centro.
Walked in the last 20 minutes cause the traffic was really bad. There’s lots of street food, I tried a popular taco stand which was amazing. We passed by another hole in the wall (literally, it was sandwiched between two buildings and about the size of a broom closet) which smelled amazing and was super popular. Anyways looks like we’ll have no shortage of food options on this trip.
Walked through the Zócalo to get to our hotel. Some access points were blockaded in case of protests and so we took a circuitous route back. It had just started to rain so we pulled out our umbrellas. We were lucky with the weather today - we got to do everything we wanted under beautiful sunny skies. A pretty successful start to our little vacation!
We were a bit rusty with our travel and took a taxi not from the official taxi line up. Oh well. The price was similar to what I read it should be. Our driver was friendly, apologizing when he hit a pothole.
Our hotel was just off the Zócalo (the main square in the historical centre), accessible via a pedestrian-only road. There were police checkpoints due to the recent protests against the government, and we had to show our hotel reservation to enter the street. Normally we won’t be getting back to the hotel at midnight so probably won’t need to again.
This morning, we were feeling the effects of being at an altitude. CDMX is at an elevation of 2,240m, enough to wind us after climbing the stairs to our room on the 3rd floor.
The hotel manager gave us a warm greeting when we went down for breakfast. (I’d been corresponding a bit with Emanuel while planning the trip.) Breakfast was excellent, Heather was able to practice her Spanish.
We had reservations at the Frida Kahlo museum for timed entry at 1:30pm. Took an Uber and had about an hour to kill so wandered up to Jardín del Arte Allende. There was some really good quality art, we ended up buying a print. The artist, Enrique Mañón, doesn’t title his art but instead asks the buyer to name them. We called ours Mujer Pensada, which was our maybe incorrect translation of Woman Thinking.
Across the street was Coyoacán Market so we checked it out. Bought a couple items on my list for the key stand - a molinillo (used to whisk hot chocolate) and a couple Otomi dolls (dolls made from fabric ends).
We still had some time before our entry to Frida Kahlo so tried the squeeze in a quick bite at a coffee shop. Their coffee was quite good (so were our cappuccinos at breakfast) but we had to eat our food quickly, and if you know how slow we eat, you can guess it didn’t end well. Had about half a sandwich each and then rushed over to Frida Kahlo’s.
The museum was excellent. My favourite was where they showed pieces from around her house and how they were inspiration in some of her art.
There were some very dark clouds in the distance but my iPhone said it wouldn’t rain until 6pm so we walked over to Díaz de Cossio Experimental Ceramics Workshop but it closed at 2pm so we just caught another Uber back to the centro.
Walked in the last 20 minutes cause the traffic was really bad. There’s lots of street food, I tried a popular taco stand which was amazing. We passed by another hole in the wall (literally, it was sandwiched between two buildings and about the size of a broom closet) which smelled amazing and was super popular. Anyways looks like we’ll have no shortage of food options on this trip.
Walked through the Zócalo to get to our hotel. Some access points were blockaded in case of protests and so we took a circuitous route back. It had just started to rain so we pulled out our umbrellas. We were lucky with the weather today - we got to do everything we wanted under beautiful sunny skies. A pretty successful start to our little vacation!
Friday, September 27, 2024
Toronto, Canada
We're almost off on our next vacation, this time a week to Mexico City. Oddly, this is the first time Heather will be traveling to Mexico! I backpacked through Mexico on my longer trips in the mid-90's (from San Diego through to Belize, eventually down to Panama City). It's also our first time back to a Spanish-speaking country since 2011, so my Spanish is definitely rusty! Heather's been studying on Duolingo and has picked up quite a bit.
We're flying Air Canada and so were glad when the labour dispute settled. There's also a hurricane sort of in between Toronto and Mexico City. I checked on FlightAware this morning and it showed the flight path taking a bit of a detour west. Maybe I'll skip the hot beverages on this flight in case of turbulence.
Mexico City is somewhat like Rome -- there are ruins right in the heart of the city, and lots of museums and art galleries and history. We've pre-booked just a couple things: our visit to the Frida Kahlo Museum (it's timed entry), and the Sunday morning performance of the Symphonic Orchestra at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. The rest will depend on the weather.
We're off to the airport shortly, ¡hablamos luego!
We're flying Air Canada and so were glad when the labour dispute settled. There's also a hurricane sort of in between Toronto and Mexico City. I checked on FlightAware this morning and it showed the flight path taking a bit of a detour west. Maybe I'll skip the hot beverages on this flight in case of turbulence.
Mexico City is somewhat like Rome -- there are ruins right in the heart of the city, and lots of museums and art galleries and history. We've pre-booked just a couple things: our visit to the Frida Kahlo Museum (it's timed entry), and the Sunday morning performance of the Symphonic Orchestra at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. The rest will depend on the weather.
We're off to the airport shortly, ¡hablamos luego!
Monday, March 25, 2024
Toronto, Canada
Dominica was a nice place to go for a week. It's the first time we've traveled in the same time zone, which was nice. There was enough variety between hiking, snorkeling and birdwatching to keep it interesting. Staying in two locations allowed us to see the north and the south end of the island, without having to spend too much time driving around.
The highlights included:
It's not that easy to get to Dominica, which is probably why we enjoyed it so much. They don't have an airport that can handle larger jets, so you either need to take a ferry or fly from a neighbouring island. Dominica was listed in a recent Conde Nast article on how new airports will make it easier to reach bucket list places, so we were lucky to get there before the airport gets built.
It was pretty easy to avoid the cruise ship crowds. Aside from seeing the 18-deck cruise ships in the distance, docked at Roseau, we wouldn't even have known when the cruise ships were in port. (Also I had googled when planning the trip so knew exactly when ships were in port, and how large, it was in our itinerary). I always find it odd how the most popular sites are super-crowded yet equivalent sites are empty. For example, Champagne Beach is a very popular destination with cruise ship folks because of the bubbles that come up from underwater geothermal activity. Bubbles Beach, five minutes down the road from Champagne Beach, with the same geothermal activity, was completely empty. Anyways it worked for us, as we saw turtles and an octopus at Bubbles Beach.
A few other random observations: We used snorkel hoods for the first time, and they were great! Kept our hair out of our eyes, and protected our heads and back of necks from the sun. We picked these up at MEC. The road conditions weren't too bad, the internet had suggested otherwise. Mosquitoes weren't an issue either -- maybe it was too windy.
On the flight from Dominica to Port of Spain we had a great cloudless view of a number of other Caribbean islands, which got us thinking about future trips. Most of them are on the cruise ship circuit, and almost all have decent road infrastructure (also, they are mostly flatter than Dominica) so there's not really any off-the-beaten path places on these other islands, although it's all relative.
Overall it was an excellent week-long vacation!
The highlights included:
- Snorkeling in Soufriere Bay and seeing turtles, squid and octopi
- Birdwatching with Dr Birdy in Syndicate Nature Trail
- Lunches at local snackettes and restaurants
- View from Manicou River Resort
It's not that easy to get to Dominica, which is probably why we enjoyed it so much. They don't have an airport that can handle larger jets, so you either need to take a ferry or fly from a neighbouring island. Dominica was listed in a recent Conde Nast article on how new airports will make it easier to reach bucket list places, so we were lucky to get there before the airport gets built.
It was pretty easy to avoid the cruise ship crowds. Aside from seeing the 18-deck cruise ships in the distance, docked at Roseau, we wouldn't even have known when the cruise ships were in port. (Also I had googled when planning the trip so knew exactly when ships were in port, and how large, it was in our itinerary). I always find it odd how the most popular sites are super-crowded yet equivalent sites are empty. For example, Champagne Beach is a very popular destination with cruise ship folks because of the bubbles that come up from underwater geothermal activity. Bubbles Beach, five minutes down the road from Champagne Beach, with the same geothermal activity, was completely empty. Anyways it worked for us, as we saw turtles and an octopus at Bubbles Beach.
A few other random observations: We used snorkel hoods for the first time, and they were great! Kept our hair out of our eyes, and protected our heads and back of necks from the sun. We picked these up at MEC. The road conditions weren't too bad, the internet had suggested otherwise. Mosquitoes weren't an issue either -- maybe it was too windy.
On the flight from Dominica to Port of Spain we had a great cloudless view of a number of other Caribbean islands, which got us thinking about future trips. Most of them are on the cruise ship circuit, and almost all have decent road infrastructure (also, they are mostly flatter than Dominica) so there's not really any off-the-beaten path places on these other islands, although it's all relative.
Overall it was an excellent week-long vacation!
Sunday, March 24, 2024
Trincity, Trinidad & Barbados
The only thing with taking our own snorkeling gear is that we have pack all our snorkeling gear. Fins & masks in containers are bulky. I did a better job fitting everything around the fins yesterday evening compared to when we left Toronto. The suitcases zipped up rather easily :)
We had breakfast, checked out from Jungle Bay and were on the road a little after 9am. The route to the airport took us back through Roseau before cutting northeast to Douglas Charles Airport near Marigot. I had set our destination in Google maps for the Rubis gas station in Marigot so we could fill up the rental before returning it.
First we had to get through Roseau. The AIDAperla was in port with 3286 passengers disembarking for their excursions. It wasn’t too bad though, I think they had just opened the gates (or whatever the cruise ship term is).
Outside Roseau we passed by locals dressed in their Sunday best, heading to mass with their palms (it’s Palm Sunday today). I guess in tropical climates it’s BYO palms :)
The road from Roseau to the airport looks like it was recently rebuilt. It was a full two car-width wide so no worries about passing cars in the other direction on blind corners. It’s a really scenic drive through the mountains, with the occasional rum shack and snackette. We also passed by Spanny Falls, which I had on the itinerary, but we didn’t want to get all sweaty and dirty so just continued on the airport.
The road to the airport passes through Pagua Bay on the east coast. We pulled over for a couple minutes to watch the waves crashing on the shore. I had looked at staying at Pagua Bay House when we were planning the trip. It looked like it would have been a good option, with different scenery than the two spots we stayed at.
The Rubis gas station in Marigot was closed (not sure just for Sunday, or semi-permanently?) There’s not many gas stations in Dominica so we just carried on to the airport. We were supposed to return it with 3/4 tank (presumably having filled up in Roseau) and the needle was just below that so figured on taking our chances.
The Courtesy Car folks were on-site in the car rental office. The guy just did a quick walk around, checked the gas level, said we were close enough, and good to go :) I don't even think he got off his phone the whole time. Very different from the car rental in Yasawa which ended with a 89 point inspection.
Douglas Charles is a small international airport, when we checked in they just took our suitcases right onto the cart that drove onto the tarmac. Our luggage was only checked through to Trinidad, so we'd have access to it while in transit.
Had a small lunch at the airport restaurant (we were still a bit full from breakfast) and then went through security. The departure area was larger than I had thought with two gates, two gift shops and a small coffee shop. They had three departures today! Bought some waters to fill our water bottles and spend our remaining EC.
Our plane arrived (the flight goes from Antigua - Dominica - Trinidad, it’s the same flight we took to get here). All the passengers boarding in Dominica were checked in so we boarded early. I forgot my water bottle at the gate and only realized after we were seated. Luckily one of the ground agents walked on the plane looking for the owner (me). He seemed pretty pleased to have rescued my water bottle :)
We had great views of Martinique, St Lucia and St Vincent & the Grenadines as we flew south. In particular the pilot said it’s unusual to have a cloud-free view of La Soufriere, a volcanic cone at the north end of St Vincent.
It was strange to see Port of Spain as we approached. We hadn’t seen that many houses or such a big flat area in a week :)
We were seated near the front but we exited from the rear of the aircraft so we were last in line for immigration. But it turned out we were two of the maybe five foreigners on the flight so had our own line up anyways. Everyone else just zipped through the nationals line.
The taxi drivers were very helpful and low key sales pitch. One driver suggested we go to the Tourist Info booth and ask them to call our hotel for the courtesy shuttle; another pointed out where we should stand to meet it.
On the way out passed by the local food court that my friend Ram recommended we stop for dinner. (Trinidad is also a common layover when flying from Guyana to Toronto). It was too early though so we just went to our hotel (Holiday Inn Express).
Later we went for dinner at Popeye’s next door. Neither of us had ever eaten at a Popeye’s before. It wasn’t too bad.
On the walk back we saw some birds in the trees on the hotel property (some kind of dove, and a couple Saffron finches). We then had an ice cream and a drink in the hotel lobby. So, birdwatching, a sundowner, it was just like we were on vacation:)
Set our alarms for 4am *gasp* and went bed.
We had breakfast, checked out from Jungle Bay and were on the road a little after 9am. The route to the airport took us back through Roseau before cutting northeast to Douglas Charles Airport near Marigot. I had set our destination in Google maps for the Rubis gas station in Marigot so we could fill up the rental before returning it.
First we had to get through Roseau. The AIDAperla was in port with 3286 passengers disembarking for their excursions. It wasn’t too bad though, I think they had just opened the gates (or whatever the cruise ship term is).
Outside Roseau we passed by locals dressed in their Sunday best, heading to mass with their palms (it’s Palm Sunday today). I guess in tropical climates it’s BYO palms :)
The road from Roseau to the airport looks like it was recently rebuilt. It was a full two car-width wide so no worries about passing cars in the other direction on blind corners. It’s a really scenic drive through the mountains, with the occasional rum shack and snackette. We also passed by Spanny Falls, which I had on the itinerary, but we didn’t want to get all sweaty and dirty so just continued on the airport.
The road to the airport passes through Pagua Bay on the east coast. We pulled over for a couple minutes to watch the waves crashing on the shore. I had looked at staying at Pagua Bay House when we were planning the trip. It looked like it would have been a good option, with different scenery than the two spots we stayed at.
The Rubis gas station in Marigot was closed (not sure just for Sunday, or semi-permanently?) There’s not many gas stations in Dominica so we just carried on to the airport. We were supposed to return it with 3/4 tank (presumably having filled up in Roseau) and the needle was just below that so figured on taking our chances.
The Courtesy Car folks were on-site in the car rental office. The guy just did a quick walk around, checked the gas level, said we were close enough, and good to go :) I don't even think he got off his phone the whole time. Very different from the car rental in Yasawa which ended with a 89 point inspection.
Douglas Charles is a small international airport, when we checked in they just took our suitcases right onto the cart that drove onto the tarmac. Our luggage was only checked through to Trinidad, so we'd have access to it while in transit.
Had a small lunch at the airport restaurant (we were still a bit full from breakfast) and then went through security. The departure area was larger than I had thought with two gates, two gift shops and a small coffee shop. They had three departures today! Bought some waters to fill our water bottles and spend our remaining EC.
Our plane arrived (the flight goes from Antigua - Dominica - Trinidad, it’s the same flight we took to get here). All the passengers boarding in Dominica were checked in so we boarded early. I forgot my water bottle at the gate and only realized after we were seated. Luckily one of the ground agents walked on the plane looking for the owner (me). He seemed pretty pleased to have rescued my water bottle :)
We had great views of Martinique, St Lucia and St Vincent & the Grenadines as we flew south. In particular the pilot said it’s unusual to have a cloud-free view of La Soufriere, a volcanic cone at the north end of St Vincent.
It was strange to see Port of Spain as we approached. We hadn’t seen that many houses or such a big flat area in a week :)
We were seated near the front but we exited from the rear of the aircraft so we were last in line for immigration. But it turned out we were two of the maybe five foreigners on the flight so had our own line up anyways. Everyone else just zipped through the nationals line.
The taxi drivers were very helpful and low key sales pitch. One driver suggested we go to the Tourist Info booth and ask them to call our hotel for the courtesy shuttle; another pointed out where we should stand to meet it.
On the way out passed by the local food court that my friend Ram recommended we stop for dinner. (Trinidad is also a common layover when flying from Guyana to Toronto). It was too early though so we just went to our hotel (Holiday Inn Express).
Later we went for dinner at Popeye’s next door. Neither of us had ever eaten at a Popeye’s before. It wasn’t too bad.
On the walk back we saw some birds in the trees on the hotel property (some kind of dove, and a couple Saffron finches). We then had an ice cream and a drink in the hotel lobby. So, birdwatching, a sundowner, it was just like we were on vacation:)
Set our alarms for 4am *gasp* and went bed.
Saturday, March 23, 2024
Cacacrou, Dominica
We wanted to do a trek of some sort on our last day here. We decided to walk from the hotel to the top of Cacacrou and back, a round trip of about two hours.
We left around 8:45am, it was really pleasant out. Plus the walk starts by heading downhill to sea level. We walked through Soufriere and then along the boardwalk around Soufriere Bay to Scotts Head. At the isthmus we paid the marine park fee (5 EC each, about 2 USD). There’s a road all the way up to the cell phone tower, lined with cacti and snake plants. From the tower, it’s about 50m up a dirt path to the top. It was really windy at the top, we stayed away from the edge cause we thought we might get blown over. There’s actually a ridge going up another 10m or so but that seemed dangerous.
I had read that you could easily see where the Atlantic met the Caribbean, but there wasn’t much of a distinction.
We headed back down, I took a bunch of pics of the fishing boats and colourful buildings in Scotts Head. We stopped for a local juice at Chez Wen, and then carried on back to the hotel. It was closer to noon by now and it felt really hot. Our phones said the UV was 12, the highest we’ve seen.
We could see the Enchanted Princess in port down in Roseau, with 3,660 passengers. The large cruise ships do overwhelm the most popular tourist sites, but it was pretty tourist-free around Soufriere Bay.
We spent a few minutes cooling down in our villa. We then drove back down to Chez Wen for lunch. They have a nice set up with their patio in the shade, overlooking the bay. I had the ribs and Heather the coconut shrimp. Both were excellent.
On the way back we stopped off at Weefee’s Bar. Weefee was our snorkeling guide, he also owns a bar on the waterfront, which looks to be his true calling. We had a beverage under the shade of an almond tree, and then got back to the hotel.
The heat from the day wiped us out, and we napped most of the afternoon.
We got a head start on our packing before we went down for dinner. We’re not sure if our luggage will be checked all the way through to Toronto so we planned our carry-on for the layover in Port of Spain.
We weren’t really hungry for dinner after our big lunch. I tried the rabbit provençale, just cause I was impressed that they had that on the menu. Heather had the blackened catch of the day, which here generally is mahi mahi. Both were really good.
And that was it for the official part of the vacation! We have a couple transit days to get home.
We left around 8:45am, it was really pleasant out. Plus the walk starts by heading downhill to sea level. We walked through Soufriere and then along the boardwalk around Soufriere Bay to Scotts Head. At the isthmus we paid the marine park fee (5 EC each, about 2 USD). There’s a road all the way up to the cell phone tower, lined with cacti and snake plants. From the tower, it’s about 50m up a dirt path to the top. It was really windy at the top, we stayed away from the edge cause we thought we might get blown over. There’s actually a ridge going up another 10m or so but that seemed dangerous.
I had read that you could easily see where the Atlantic met the Caribbean, but there wasn’t much of a distinction.
We headed back down, I took a bunch of pics of the fishing boats and colourful buildings in Scotts Head. We stopped for a local juice at Chez Wen, and then carried on back to the hotel. It was closer to noon by now and it felt really hot. Our phones said the UV was 12, the highest we’ve seen.
We could see the Enchanted Princess in port down in Roseau, with 3,660 passengers. The large cruise ships do overwhelm the most popular tourist sites, but it was pretty tourist-free around Soufriere Bay.
We spent a few minutes cooling down in our villa. We then drove back down to Chez Wen for lunch. They have a nice set up with their patio in the shade, overlooking the bay. I had the ribs and Heather the coconut shrimp. Both were excellent.
On the way back we stopped off at Weefee’s Bar. Weefee was our snorkeling guide, he also owns a bar on the waterfront, which looks to be his true calling. We had a beverage under the shade of an almond tree, and then got back to the hotel.
The heat from the day wiped us out, and we napped most of the afternoon.
We got a head start on our packing before we went down for dinner. We’re not sure if our luggage will be checked all the way through to Toronto so we planned our carry-on for the layover in Port of Spain.
We weren’t really hungry for dinner after our big lunch. I tried the rabbit provençale, just cause I was impressed that they had that on the menu. Heather had the blackened catch of the day, which here generally is mahi mahi. Both were really good.
And that was it for the official part of the vacation! We have a couple transit days to get home.
Friday, March 22, 2024
Soufriere, Dominica
Another day of snorkeling! Had a filling breakfast, watching the cloud cover over Scotts Head and Cacacrou, where we were snorkeling this morning. My iPhone forecasted the clouds to clear at 9am just in time for our excursion.
It’s a short 10 minute drive to the isthmus separating Cacacrou from Scotts Head on the mainland. We stored our towels etc on a ledge and then backed into the water.
The cloud cover was starting to break over us, although we could see it pouring rain over the resort.
Almost immediately we saw some baby squid! Another good start to a snorkeling day! We swam out to the drop off and then followed that to the edge of Cacacrou. The lighting was amazing especially in the shallow water near the edge. I thought there might be waves or currents dashing us against the rocks but there was nothing at all. It’s one of the smoothest bodies of water to snorkel in ever.
We came close to the Atlantic side of Cacacrou where the water became choppier, so we turned around.
On the way back we came across dozens of reef squid, about 20cm each in length. They were all in a row, facing the slight current so they could filter for food. It was really cool. We were too busy to watching the squid to notice that our guide was calling us. We finally heard him, and swam over.
Our guide (Weefee) had spotted a reef octopus which had scurried under a rock. He explained that it was just watching us, and after it got comfortable it would swim out.
So we waited about five minutes, treading water, watching the octopus. Finally it came out, moving itself along the bottom sort of half swimming / crawling. This was cool!
We followed it for about 3-4 minutes, before it disappeared under another rock. I got a few pics, although none with all eight arms. It changes colour to blend into the background so the pics aren’t that picturesque - just beige over beige. But still, an octopus!
That ended another successful snorkeling excursion. We were glad we had booked a guide rather than just heading out our own, as we would have missed the squid and octopus.
We stopped in at the same snackette in Soufriere for a chicken roti and then drove back to the hotel.
The rest of the day was similar to yesterday, relaxing, watching the birds etc.
It’s a short 10 minute drive to the isthmus separating Cacacrou from Scotts Head on the mainland. We stored our towels etc on a ledge and then backed into the water.
The cloud cover was starting to break over us, although we could see it pouring rain over the resort.
Almost immediately we saw some baby squid! Another good start to a snorkeling day! We swam out to the drop off and then followed that to the edge of Cacacrou. The lighting was amazing especially in the shallow water near the edge. I thought there might be waves or currents dashing us against the rocks but there was nothing at all. It’s one of the smoothest bodies of water to snorkel in ever.
We came close to the Atlantic side of Cacacrou where the water became choppier, so we turned around.
On the way back we came across dozens of reef squid, about 20cm each in length. They were all in a row, facing the slight current so they could filter for food. It was really cool. We were too busy to watching the squid to notice that our guide was calling us. We finally heard him, and swam over.
Our guide (Weefee) had spotted a reef octopus which had scurried under a rock. He explained that it was just watching us, and after it got comfortable it would swim out.
So we waited about five minutes, treading water, watching the octopus. Finally it came out, moving itself along the bottom sort of half swimming / crawling. This was cool!
We followed it for about 3-4 minutes, before it disappeared under another rock. I got a few pics, although none with all eight arms. It changes colour to blend into the background so the pics aren’t that picturesque - just beige over beige. But still, an octopus!
That ended another successful snorkeling excursion. We were glad we had booked a guide rather than just heading out our own, as we would have missed the squid and octopus.
We stopped in at the same snackette in Soufriere for a chicken roti and then drove back to the hotel.
The rest of the day was similar to yesterday, relaxing, watching the birds etc.
Thursday, March 21, 2024
Soufriere, Dominica
We woke up from the sunrise before our 7am alarm. The hummingbirds were busy flitting about the flowering trees around our front deck. We had a snorkeling excursion this morning though so had no time to birdwatch and instead got cleaned up and headed to the restaurant for breakfast.
The restaurant was pretty empty except for other guests who also had morning excursions. We were seated by the window with a great view of Soufriere Bay where we were snorkeling later this morning. There was a nice breeze coming in from the ocean. (There’s no actual glass window, just wooden louvres).
It’s a buffet breakfast, with mostly local Dominica / Creole options such as saltfish, smoked herring and callaloo, as well as fresh fruit from their gardens: passionfruit, guava, soursop, bananas, pineapple, papaya and custard apple. They also had scrambled eggs for my provincial breakfast tastes :) the coffee was the same local Dominica coffee that we had yesterday afternoon! Although I stuck with my black tea (Liptons).
We got back to our room and got our snorkeling gear together. Luckily we were in one of the closest rooms to the main lodge - otherwise it’s up to a 10 minute walk or a wait for the golf cart shuttle.
We met up with Weefee, our snorkeling guide, right at 9am. We loaded our gear into the hotel van for the short five minute drive into Soufriere.
We were about to gear up when I realized I’d forgotten my camera in the van. So sort of ran back best I could in my dive boots to get it. On my way back I ran into one of the local characters who chatted me up for a few minutes. Heather and Weefee were wondering what was taking me so long, until me and my new friend rounded the corner and Weefee figured it out.
Anyways we entered the water from the shore at Bubble Beach. Soufriere Bay is a submerged volcano from which geothermal activity still bubbles to the top. The bubbles are more prevalent at the nearby Champagne Beach, but so are the cruise ship tourists.
Weefee led us around the bay, generally heading north. Almost immediately we spotted a couple leatherback turtles, and stingray, and some other type of ray. Not a bad start at all!
We turned back towards land and snorkeled alongside a wall where the rocky outcrop drops straight down into the water. Soufrière Bay has the calmest water in which I’ve ever snorkeled - perfect for taking pictures. Unfortunately it was an overcast day so the lighting wasn’t that great.
Towards the end, we saw an octopus! Neither of us had seen an octopus previously. It was really cool.
Just before we got back to shore, we warmed up by snorkeling through the bubbles. Haven’t done that before either :)
We had been out in the water for over 90 minutes and worked up an appetite. Weefee stopped in at a snackette in town for freshly made chicken roti, and then to another place for a local juice.
We drove back to the resort and had a very tasty lunch :)
That was it for our day, the rest of the afternoon we relaxed in our lodge, had a local coffee and ice cream, watched the birds closer to sunset.
For dinner I had the stewed goat and Heather had a plantain lasagna. Both were quite good. We’re preferring the a là carte menus here as opposed to the three-course set menu at Manicou River which was too much food for us. They also have Kubuli on tap (the local beer) so I had a couple :)
The restaurant was pretty empty except for other guests who also had morning excursions. We were seated by the window with a great view of Soufriere Bay where we were snorkeling later this morning. There was a nice breeze coming in from the ocean. (There’s no actual glass window, just wooden louvres).
It’s a buffet breakfast, with mostly local Dominica / Creole options such as saltfish, smoked herring and callaloo, as well as fresh fruit from their gardens: passionfruit, guava, soursop, bananas, pineapple, papaya and custard apple. They also had scrambled eggs for my provincial breakfast tastes :) the coffee was the same local Dominica coffee that we had yesterday afternoon! Although I stuck with my black tea (Liptons).
We got back to our room and got our snorkeling gear together. Luckily we were in one of the closest rooms to the main lodge - otherwise it’s up to a 10 minute walk or a wait for the golf cart shuttle.
We met up with Weefee, our snorkeling guide, right at 9am. We loaded our gear into the hotel van for the short five minute drive into Soufriere.
We were about to gear up when I realized I’d forgotten my camera in the van. So sort of ran back best I could in my dive boots to get it. On my way back I ran into one of the local characters who chatted me up for a few minutes. Heather and Weefee were wondering what was taking me so long, until me and my new friend rounded the corner and Weefee figured it out.
Anyways we entered the water from the shore at Bubble Beach. Soufriere Bay is a submerged volcano from which geothermal activity still bubbles to the top. The bubbles are more prevalent at the nearby Champagne Beach, but so are the cruise ship tourists.
Weefee led us around the bay, generally heading north. Almost immediately we spotted a couple leatherback turtles, and stingray, and some other type of ray. Not a bad start at all!
We turned back towards land and snorkeled alongside a wall where the rocky outcrop drops straight down into the water. Soufrière Bay has the calmest water in which I’ve ever snorkeled - perfect for taking pictures. Unfortunately it was an overcast day so the lighting wasn’t that great.
Towards the end, we saw an octopus! Neither of us had seen an octopus previously. It was really cool.
Just before we got back to shore, we warmed up by snorkeling through the bubbles. Haven’t done that before either :)
We had been out in the water for over 90 minutes and worked up an appetite. Weefee stopped in at a snackette in town for freshly made chicken roti, and then to another place for a local juice.
We drove back to the resort and had a very tasty lunch :)
That was it for our day, the rest of the afternoon we relaxed in our lodge, had a local coffee and ice cream, watched the birds closer to sunset.
For dinner I had the stewed goat and Heather had a plantain lasagna. Both were quite good. We’re preferring the a là carte menus here as opposed to the three-course set menu at Manicou River which was too much food for us. They also have Kubuli on tap (the local beer) so I had a couple :)
Wednesday, March 20, 2024
Mero Beach, Dominica
It was warmer this morning at Manicou River cause the winds had died down. We were glad we were moving to a place with a/c for the next few days.
We had breakfast, packed up and drove down the steep driveway one last time.
The road south follows the coast, about 90 minutes from tip to tip. The road was in pretty good condition and well-marked. It gets a bit of traffic, as you might expect between the two largest towns in the country.
We stopped for lunch in Mero Beach, based on a recommendation from Kayola, our host at Manicou River. Mero Beach is a cute little beach community, hidden from the main road. We parked at the first place we saw, Vena’s Snackette. Snackettes are typically take-out places, but Vena’s had a few tables in the shade. Got our food (fried chicken, plantain and a deep fried dough) and asked Vena what she had for drinks. She asked us if we wanted a local juice, sure! She ran over to her home across the street and got us two cherry drinks, made from cherries from the tree in her front yard. Later we figured out ‘local’ means homemade.
Anyways the food and local juice were excellent. Washed our hands using the tap on the street, and paid up. For some reason, Vena gave Heather a free package of cashews :)
Got back on the road continuing south. It got progressively busier as we approached the capital, Roseau. Google maps showed some of our route as red! This is normal in a capital, just a bit of a shock compared to the north.
The stop-and-go traffic in the heart of Roseau allowed me to sightsee from the car. It’s a very lively city, with brightly painted colonial buildings and busy sidewalks.
The road becomes narrower about 10 minutes south of Roseau, no longer a major thoroughfare. We passed through Loubière and Pointe Michel (cute little communities) before cutting inland, winding up and down a rocky outcrop. Finally we reached Jungle Bay! It was about 90 minutes driving time from Portsmouth, just as Google maps had predicted.
We checked in, and sorted out our snorkeling excursions over the next couple days. We had originally tried to book with Nature Island Dive, but they were swamped with divers. It was easier all around for us to just organize with the hotel. So they texted Simon at Nature Island and it was all good.
Our room was available so we got ourselves situated and relaxed for a bit. Caught up on laundry. Manicou River is a truer eco lodge and had a limited water supply based on rainfall, so we held off on doing our laundry there. We could have got laundry service but we’re nervous about our dryfit and merino wool stuff getting shrunk.
We went down to the restaurant in the main building for a coffee around 3pm. They had local Dominica coffee on the menu, from beans in nearby Giraudel. It was slightly muddy and excellent.
There’s lots of birds in the trees outside our front deck. I took a lot of pics. I started tracking our sightings in the Merlin app. We recognized a few based on our birdwatching excursion a couple days ago.
Later we went down for dinner. It was packed in the restaurant, with a lot of groups chit chatting away. Quite a difference from the last place where we were the only guests!
We went to bed early-ish. We heard some wings flapping in the dark and thought maybe a bird had flown in earlier. When it flew around it sounded like a bat. Turned out to be a black witch moth, with a wing span of 7" (!) Set up the mosquito net to keep it away from us.
The a/c was nice :)
We had breakfast, packed up and drove down the steep driveway one last time.
The road south follows the coast, about 90 minutes from tip to tip. The road was in pretty good condition and well-marked. It gets a bit of traffic, as you might expect between the two largest towns in the country.
We stopped for lunch in Mero Beach, based on a recommendation from Kayola, our host at Manicou River. Mero Beach is a cute little beach community, hidden from the main road. We parked at the first place we saw, Vena’s Snackette. Snackettes are typically take-out places, but Vena’s had a few tables in the shade. Got our food (fried chicken, plantain and a deep fried dough) and asked Vena what she had for drinks. She asked us if we wanted a local juice, sure! She ran over to her home across the street and got us two cherry drinks, made from cherries from the tree in her front yard. Later we figured out ‘local’ means homemade.
Anyways the food and local juice were excellent. Washed our hands using the tap on the street, and paid up. For some reason, Vena gave Heather a free package of cashews :)
Got back on the road continuing south. It got progressively busier as we approached the capital, Roseau. Google maps showed some of our route as red! This is normal in a capital, just a bit of a shock compared to the north.
The stop-and-go traffic in the heart of Roseau allowed me to sightsee from the car. It’s a very lively city, with brightly painted colonial buildings and busy sidewalks.
The road becomes narrower about 10 minutes south of Roseau, no longer a major thoroughfare. We passed through Loubière and Pointe Michel (cute little communities) before cutting inland, winding up and down a rocky outcrop. Finally we reached Jungle Bay! It was about 90 minutes driving time from Portsmouth, just as Google maps had predicted.
We checked in, and sorted out our snorkeling excursions over the next couple days. We had originally tried to book with Nature Island Dive, but they were swamped with divers. It was easier all around for us to just organize with the hotel. So they texted Simon at Nature Island and it was all good.
Our room was available so we got ourselves situated and relaxed for a bit. Caught up on laundry. Manicou River is a truer eco lodge and had a limited water supply based on rainfall, so we held off on doing our laundry there. We could have got laundry service but we’re nervous about our dryfit and merino wool stuff getting shrunk.
We went down to the restaurant in the main building for a coffee around 3pm. They had local Dominica coffee on the menu, from beans in nearby Giraudel. It was slightly muddy and excellent.
There’s lots of birds in the trees outside our front deck. I took a lot of pics. I started tracking our sightings in the Merlin app. We recognized a few based on our birdwatching excursion a couple days ago.
Later we went down for dinner. It was packed in the restaurant, with a lot of groups chit chatting away. Quite a difference from the last place where we were the only guests!
We went to bed early-ish. We heard some wings flapping in the dark and thought maybe a bird had flown in earlier. When it flew around it sounded like a bat. Turned out to be a black witch moth, with a wing span of 7" (!) Set up the mosquito net to keep it away from us.
The a/c was nice :)
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
Calibishie, Dominica
We finally had a day to sleep in, so of course we were up shortly after sunrise at 6:11. We’re west of Tete Montagne (301m) and Morne Balvine (303m) so the sun doesn’t hit Portsmouth until an hour later, and almost 8am before our hotel was in the sun. It was really pleasant in the shade.
We had a leisurely breakfast, including oatmeal which was really good. We then packed up for our day’s excursion to the north east of Dominica, in and around Calibishie.
The road from Portsmouth to Calibishie cuts through the mountains and is constant blind turns and narrow roads. It’s not for inexperienced drivers, that’s for sure. It does get very scenic once the road gets back to oceanside - driving through Bense and Calibishie is really atmospheric, one of the prettiest drives I’ve done. The buildings are painted a mishmash of bright colours, with hand painted signs for grocery stores and restaurants and the like.
Our first activity for the day was a trek to Chaudiere Pool. Various blogs had described it either as a 15 min walk, or a 45 min trek, depending on how far you drove in. We chose the 45 min trek, parking where the paved road ended. We were glad we did as the dirt road is in terrible shape, I’m not sure our little RAV4 would have made it. Also I could enjoy the view atop the ridge as we walked instead of focusing on the road.
There were a few friendly goats along the way, munching on grass. It took us about 30 minutes to walk to the cutoff to Chaudiere Pool, it’s well marked.
From the cutoff it’s a somewhat steep descent down for about 10 minutes. There was vehicle parked at the bottom, probably a guided tour & local driver. It’s then about a 5 minute walk through the forest over a maintained path to Hampstead River, where the crossing on big rocks is marked with painted arrows.
At first we thought we had to cross the 2nd half of the river as well, but the pool is just 50m further upstream. It’s a nice little destination. Most people have a swim in the pool, but we were just in it for the walk and the view.
It’s not busy at all at Chaudiere Pool. We ran into less than 10 people in total, including a couple with a driver/guide who were the ones with the vehicle we’d seen at the bottom. On our way out we saw a solo traveler who had also driven all the way in.
On the walk out along the ridge, the couple and guide passed by in their vehicle. One the goats had crossed the road with their rope around their neck, blocking the road. Heather had to help herd the goat back across so the vehicle could pass. The goat gave Heather a nice friendly look after.
We made it back to our car, about 1h30 walking in total. We weren’t quite hungry yet so headed for Red Rocks. As you might guess from the name, these are rock formations in varying shades of red, eroded by the ocean and rain. There’s lots of signage but still a bit confusing to get to. It’s a 5 EC (about 2 USD) per person to enter, as the access path cuts through private property.
It’s cool to see, different from the other sights here. The red rocks contrast nicely with the blue ocean. We ran into the same couple & guide from Chaudiere Pool.
We then headed back into Calibishie for lunch. We had planned to eat at Unique Seaview which gets great reviews, but it wasn’t open for lunch :( so we went next door to Coral Reef, which has a restaurant tucked in behind their grocery store. It has great views of the ocean, and is literally right beside Unique View, which makes me wonder about their name.
Anyways it got really busy just after we ordered, including our favourite couple and guide. It’s a common itinerary so it’s not unusual to run into the same people again and again.
Our food came out very quickly, and it was excellent. The restaurant was mostly filled with locals, which was nice. Calibishie is probably the furthest you can get away from the cruise ship port, and so one of the least touristed areas in Dominica.
For dessert we drove back towards Red Rock, to visit Pointe Baptiste Chocolate Factory. The tour itself (20 EC / 10 CAD for a group) was short yet informative, and covered from cocao pods to grinding the nibs to packaging. We got multiple samples cause we were just a group of two; my favourite was the chocolate with lemon grass (it’s commonly seen growing here). We bought a bar for later.
Last on our itinerary for the day was Batibou Beach. They charged 5 USD per person to access it and we just wanted a quick view, so instead called it a day and drove back to Manicou River.
Back at the hotel, we cooled down as best we could without a/c. It was less windy today and felt warmer. The forecast called for low winds the rest of the week so good thing we were moving south to Jungle Bay for the rest of the week.
We had dinner enjoying the view one last time, and then called it a night.
We had a leisurely breakfast, including oatmeal which was really good. We then packed up for our day’s excursion to the north east of Dominica, in and around Calibishie.
The road from Portsmouth to Calibishie cuts through the mountains and is constant blind turns and narrow roads. It’s not for inexperienced drivers, that’s for sure. It does get very scenic once the road gets back to oceanside - driving through Bense and Calibishie is really atmospheric, one of the prettiest drives I’ve done. The buildings are painted a mishmash of bright colours, with hand painted signs for grocery stores and restaurants and the like.
Our first activity for the day was a trek to Chaudiere Pool. Various blogs had described it either as a 15 min walk, or a 45 min trek, depending on how far you drove in. We chose the 45 min trek, parking where the paved road ended. We were glad we did as the dirt road is in terrible shape, I’m not sure our little RAV4 would have made it. Also I could enjoy the view atop the ridge as we walked instead of focusing on the road.
There were a few friendly goats along the way, munching on grass. It took us about 30 minutes to walk to the cutoff to Chaudiere Pool, it’s well marked.
From the cutoff it’s a somewhat steep descent down for about 10 minutes. There was vehicle parked at the bottom, probably a guided tour & local driver. It’s then about a 5 minute walk through the forest over a maintained path to Hampstead River, where the crossing on big rocks is marked with painted arrows.
At first we thought we had to cross the 2nd half of the river as well, but the pool is just 50m further upstream. It’s a nice little destination. Most people have a swim in the pool, but we were just in it for the walk and the view.
It’s not busy at all at Chaudiere Pool. We ran into less than 10 people in total, including a couple with a driver/guide who were the ones with the vehicle we’d seen at the bottom. On our way out we saw a solo traveler who had also driven all the way in.
On the walk out along the ridge, the couple and guide passed by in their vehicle. One the goats had crossed the road with their rope around their neck, blocking the road. Heather had to help herd the goat back across so the vehicle could pass. The goat gave Heather a nice friendly look after.
We made it back to our car, about 1h30 walking in total. We weren’t quite hungry yet so headed for Red Rocks. As you might guess from the name, these are rock formations in varying shades of red, eroded by the ocean and rain. There’s lots of signage but still a bit confusing to get to. It’s a 5 EC (about 2 USD) per person to enter, as the access path cuts through private property.
It’s cool to see, different from the other sights here. The red rocks contrast nicely with the blue ocean. We ran into the same couple & guide from Chaudiere Pool.
We then headed back into Calibishie for lunch. We had planned to eat at Unique Seaview which gets great reviews, but it wasn’t open for lunch :( so we went next door to Coral Reef, which has a restaurant tucked in behind their grocery store. It has great views of the ocean, and is literally right beside Unique View, which makes me wonder about their name.
Anyways it got really busy just after we ordered, including our favourite couple and guide. It’s a common itinerary so it’s not unusual to run into the same people again and again.
Our food came out very quickly, and it was excellent. The restaurant was mostly filled with locals, which was nice. Calibishie is probably the furthest you can get away from the cruise ship port, and so one of the least touristed areas in Dominica.
For dessert we drove back towards Red Rock, to visit Pointe Baptiste Chocolate Factory. The tour itself (20 EC / 10 CAD for a group) was short yet informative, and covered from cocao pods to grinding the nibs to packaging. We got multiple samples cause we were just a group of two; my favourite was the chocolate with lemon grass (it’s commonly seen growing here). We bought a bar for later.
Last on our itinerary for the day was Batibou Beach. They charged 5 USD per person to access it and we just wanted a quick view, so instead called it a day and drove back to Manicou River.
Back at the hotel, we cooled down as best we could without a/c. It was less windy today and felt warmer. The forecast called for low winds the rest of the week so good thing we were moving south to Jungle Bay for the rest of the week.
We had dinner enjoying the view one last time, and then called it a night.
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