February 1, 2022

The one thing consistent with Captain Steve is early mornings. The start to this adventure was no different and we were off the dock at 6 am sharp. We cruised out of San Diego Bay past the Navy fleet with the rising sun. The clouds made for nice scenery and some great views.

Out in the open ocean it was a bit choppy with some cross winds. The time quickly came to raise the Mexico courtesy and quarantine flags as we crossed the border into Mexican waters.

We arrived in Ensenada just after 4 PM and was greeted by the very nice and helpful marina staff. After securing lines we were instructed to stay on the boat until the health inspector could come by and make sure we weren’t infectious. We figured it would take a while, but no, the inspector arrived in 15 minutes and after a bunch of paperwork and getting our temperatures taken, we were cleared to leave the boat. The first question on the list they asked was did anyone die on the voyage. I understand wanting to know this but I’m pretty sure we would not be there if someone had died on the way. Just saying.

The marina we stayed at shared the area with the cruise ships, so we were in somewhat of a gated community next to the waterfront tourist restaurants and shops. As we started our walk, we could hear a band playing. It turned out to be an orchestra playing in the nearby park. We stayed and watched them play a few songs. It was interesting to see their uniforms and the crowd gathered around. Not sure how often they do it, but it was nice for a Tuesday night. They also had a ginormous flagpole they I guess they use for special occasions.

After another block we were called over by the shop keepers and one of the guys promised Steve tacos, so we were off to the restaurant next store. We pretty much had the place to ourselves. This was the start to the quest for the best Tacos and Margaritas. I would say they were the best tacos I ever had in Mexico. And so far, only Tacos I’ve had in Mexico. While munching and sipping, a local Mariachi band yelled to us and wanted to know if we wanted them to play a song. And of course, they wanted money to do so. Barbara dug out a few dollars and it was enough for a quick song. After that, it was evident that the city was closing, and we found out that everything in the area closed at 6 pm. Good to know.

We did a bit more walking and determined that the area was gated off from the rest of the town. Apparently, we were in a health quarantine area of town.  The walk only lasted a few more minutes and we were back to the boat to call it an early night.

February 2, 2022

We awoke on the second day and Steve made some wonderful coffee. The expectation was we would go to immigration around 9 given all the information we’d read. However, at 7:55 the dockmaster came down and said we should be in the marina office at 8 to do paperwork. We scrambled to get everything together and rushed up. We spent the next 3.5 hours doing paperwork, busing over to the official offices, and getting cleared. The marina was very helpful and did almost all the work for us. Steve just had to sign a lot of papers and give them his credit card at every window.

With all the paperwork done, we realized that we were ready to continue the quest for Tacos and Margaritas. This time we didn’t head to the tourist district and walked further into town. After a few blocks, we found a nice main street and found a good-looking restaurant. The tacos and margaritas were mighty tasty. A bonus was we had 3 times the food and it was the same price as the night before.

We relaxed for the rest of the day and unfortunately, I had a call I needed to attend to that night so that took up most of the evening. Barbara cooked a wonderful rice and veggie meal and one of Barbara’s son’s friends stopped by to chat and sample the Captain Steve Manhattans.