Happy New Year to everyone, a little late I know but better than nothing, right?? I have learnt my lesson and I will stay on top of this blogging job! I have been glued to my laptop for hours (days actually) trying catch myself up and feeling thankful for all of my pictures. As I go through them, I find a nice timeline of what we have been up to and thankfully I have a good memory to keep my thoughts in line. New Years day started earlier for the men in our family than for the rest of us. Doug, Joe and Dan went out on a fishing trip at 6:30 while we stayed back. Rhett really wanted to go but it can be a really long day out on the water, not sure if he is ready for that and we had a feeling the men would be out until they caught. Luckily, a Mahi Mahi was pulled into the boat shortly after they started but then not much else was caught the rest of the day. It was huge and we all ate very well that night and we just finished the last of the frozen stuff last night, Jan 21st! YUM!! We all enjoyed some beach and ocean fun over at Jamee's hotel until the men got back and then we went snorkelling at their secret beach on their resort. Great day!!
There was no rest for us, the next day was the day we booked our amigo, Luis to take us all up to the waterfalls and all of the stops along the way. I know we had already done the tour but I knew my family would enjoy it as well. When I posted pictures last time of the waterfalls, they all were instructed to ignore the FB posts and look past them in hopes they would be surprised the day we went. Not sure it worked but even if it didn't I think they still enjoyed it. Nothing like seeing the beauty of the mountains and the waterfall in person, so amazing I think! The first stop at Luis's friends farm was great and different this time because they took us up the hillside to see some of their gardens and livestock. I still find it fascinating how they farm in these countries, no machinery and they plant wherever they can in hopes to grow something. Such hard workers!
We didn't waste any time showing Mom and Joe around, we had plenty of places to go to before they had to fly home. Playa La Entegra is the first beach we took them to because I wanted my mom to try to snorkel and that is a beach where they rent the boards with the looking glass in them. It's great for those who are not so comfortable in the water and want to go out snorkelling. It was awesome for my mom, she actually got to see all of the wonderful fish and underwater life that day! She is far from a water person but she went out there with no complaints or fears, well that I could tell anyway! lol I tied the board to my wrist to keep her close to me and we navigated our way around, I was so happy and proud of her! That day we took in some snorkelling, rock climbing and more tattoos!! Lol Grammy was the hippest Grandma out there that day! :)
We had been trying to go out fishing with Santiago again, this time for Red Sapper which you go out around 5:00 and then into the night. It finally worked out that we could go and Mom and Joe were able to come along, as long as we didn't go out too far my mom would be ok. Santiago did promise to stay close to the shore, he did a good job and Nate pulled in a nice big Red Snapper and a Bonita! Rhett only seemed able to catch Puffer Fish! Poor guy, no fishing luck lately! Great night!!
There was no rest for us!! The next day we made our way to the Bocana del Rio Copalita Eco-Archaeological Park, which about 10km from town center. Just a quick cab ride out and I'm sure no one knows about it because the park was pretty much empty. The park is fairly new so they were still working on parts of it and discovering new treasures but we were able to explore the museum, walking trails and the ruins that had been exposed. The views from the top of the hill, after a bit of a hot hike up, is absolutely incredible!! You see where the Copalita River meets the ocean as well as Bocana beach. So worth it!!I cant wait to go back in a few years to see what else they have discovered!!
Coming home from the beach the day after the ruins we were faced with a traffic barricade in our taxi and we had to get out and walk. The Mexican Government had increased the tax on gasoline over night, resulting in a 25% increase, which then led to a huge protest throughout our area. Protesters were walking the streets chanting, spray painting signs and the negative intense vibe was felt by all. Many of the people were wearing face masks and carrying machetes, made us feel a little uneasy. We were very thankful to get through the crowd and home to our cozy condo!! The protest only lasted for that day and then that was the end of it, nothing serious happened and we were fine.
Our days with my Mom and Joe were slowly disappearing on us and we were panicking that we wouldn't get everything done we wanted too. Oh well, I guess we need to do this again! The boys, meaning Doug, Joe and Rhett, were able to book a time with Santiago to go fishing again before Joe left. I was crossing my fingers all day that Rhett and Joe would catch, they both had been skunked before!! Not only did they come home with some big Tunas, they came home with the excitement of seeing whales, dolphins and turtles. Rhett also finally caught and reeled in a fish on his own!! YAH! With all of the fish we had been catching we were eating really good, we tried once to cook Red Snapper in our condo and it stunk terribly for days. We decided to try out a few of the restaurants around us and see if they would cook it for us and they all were willing to for only a few Pesos. Totally worth it and so yummy!!
Our last day with Mom and Joe we spent it down by the beach and then we went into La Cucecita for a dinner out, our last meal together. BOO!! All good things come to an end and we loved our time with them so much we will never forget the amazing time we had!! Our night ended with a surprise birthday cake for me, my birthday was the next day, so sweet! Happy Birthday to me!
Saying good bye is always hard, so we like to say "see you later," not sure if that really helps or not but I like to think I trick my heart and brain to not be so sad. Being away from family and friends for so long is not easy but it is part of the package when it comes to this adventure, we will just appreciate everyone so much more when we get back to Canada. Mom and Joe left on a jet plane just after lunch and then the whole Steel family crashed!! We had been going non stop for quite a few weeks and so when we were finally left on our own we were tired. We actually stayed tired for a few days!! Haha We stayed in and powered through a ton of school work, the boys worked on their hockey shots and Adison did her back tuck workouts into the pool. We slowly caught ourselves up on sleep, work and then we were getting the itch to explore again. We always seem to have the need to get out into the community and see what we can find. What we did find was probably a few of the most beautiful quiet beaches in Huatulco!! We sure wished we knew about them when we had family with us to share these incredible places with them, next time!! First beach we went to was Playa Arrocito, which is located just before Tangolunda Bay and it was perfect for snorkeling. Small beach with very few people but had tons of fish to see, rocks were awesome for the kids to climb as well. Made it there twice before we left Huatulco!
We made our way to another beach called Playa Punta Arena, which is just before Secrets, there we had to hike in from the main road for about 10 min. Not bad going in because it was early and cooler
but when we left the heat had arrived and hit us hard!! We sure felt it, it was like a desert out there! Not a soul was on the beach that day for hours and the kids loved the rock climbing, so peaceful! Eventually a couple of fishermen showed up and another group of people, very secluded. We only discovered this beach because of some friends we met and made from our condo unit, they have been coming to this area for 8 years and know the ins and outs! We also hit up Playa de Bocana that day as well, bit off a rougher beach but the food at the restaurant we ate at was incredible!! If you ever go there make sure you go to the restaurant to the left if you are facing the ocean and make sure you order their fish burger or fish tacos! So good!!
We had a great day hanging out with Trevor, Nerissa and cutie Evan!!
One of last new beaches we went to was called Playe la Violin, thanks to Trevor and Nerissa again, a hidden little gem just before La Entegra. You would never know where it was or how to get there unless you had a connection to a local person or a recommendation from someone who had been there already.but the super steep hike down was worth it. There are no services there, just a few locals, fishermen and the beautiful scenery. Snorkelling was pretty good but it was a bit rough that day on the water so we didn't stay out too long. What we did do was, we hit the jackpot finding Sea Glass!! We have started to collect it and I plan to do some crafty things with it when we get home. Came home with 91 pieces that day, so many beautiful pieces!!
Had a wonderful evening catching up with a wonderful lady, Claudia! We met her years ago when we came here and stayed at Binniguenda where she was a dancer. We have stayed in contact with her over the years and even though she doesn't live in Huatulco anymore she was home from Oaxaca City for a bit so we got to see her. What a kind, sweet and wonderful person, so happy we got to spend some time with her this trip!!
In our condo we also met a wonderful couple from B.C and they were telling us about a couple of things that we could do with them to get involved in the community. We loved the idea of being able to help so we jumped on the incredible opportunities we were faced with. Doug spent the day with Martin helping a local family build their home that was being funded by a Canadian organization. Doug went and basically carried gravel in buckets up and down a hill all day to help them out, he came hot, dirty and tired. I couldn't have been more proud of him for helping, so awesome!! Later that day we as a family then joined Carol and Martin at the local library to help some students studying English with their conversation skills. We spent time with 2 university students and 3 girls who were 13 years old. It was a great night full of learning and lots of laughs! Thanks Martin and Carol for the invite, it was a wonderful night!!
Huatulco was a really hard place to say good bye to, we have loved our time there so much and it really feels like home to us. It's a place that is so safe, beautiful and so full of things to do. The weather is so consistent, the people are kind and so very happy. Its a place that makes us happy!! The time was upon us to move on, we were probably getting to comfortable and lazy there we needed a move to spark the adventurous side to us again. Could have been the heat too!! Haha
Farewell Huatulco, we love everything about you and we will meet again, maybe sooner than later!! We have met so many wonderful people in the time we have spent there and we now leave with many new friends we hold so dear to our hearts!! So sorry for the long Blog, I need to do a better job in keeping up with it!! Now onto the next phase of our travel adventure!! ;)
We are all safe, happy and hearts are full!!
Love from the Steel family!!!
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