Christmas Day

Christmas day was how it should be, quiet and peaceful. We arrived at the pool around 10:30 and “settled in” for the day. I had met Donna, Susan, and Jerri when “staking out” lounge chairs. They had changed plans yesterday and didn’t make it downtown. Instead, they had gone to Senor Frog’s for dinner. Neither, Angel or I have been to Senor Frog’s, so I cannot report on the food, atmosphere, or entertainment from our perspective. However, Donna and her family have been to the restaurant two or three times this trip, and have loved it. It sounds like it’s a bit raucous and fun, with good food and balloons! Note: Generally, in Mexico, if your experience includes balloons, you are having a blast!

Today the girls were lying low; Donna had scheduled a pedicure at the spa, Susan and Jerri were looking at painting up a storm at the pottery booth. Also, this morning Donna had continued her commitment to exercise at the gym. The gym facility is beautiful and as I may have stated previously, free for time share owners at Emerald Bay.

Most of the morning, I read, while Angel swam a few laps. Once or twice, I joined her in the pool for a brief dip, after heating up in the intense morning sun. Donna returned from her pedicure around noon and reported that she done a little “horse trading” at the spa, exchanging a hat for a “shampoo and blow”.

At lunch, Angel and I split a mango margarita and a Cobb salad from the pool grill. Chris, our wonderful server, recommended pineapple vinaigrette for dressing. The drink and salad were perfect, and provided a light lunch. Donna and the girls chose to go to La Cordeliere for lunch. I think they had Angelo’s Special Salad (not sure of the exact menu item name). Their report on the salad was “thumbs up”.

We all had plans to be together this evening, as Donna had invited us to Christmas dinner at Angelo’s, at the Pueblo Bonito Mazatlan. Angel suggested that since we would all be “dressed up”, that tonight would be a good time for me to take photos. Donna and the girls agreed to meet us near the beach at 4:45 for a photo shoot.

At around 3:30, Angel and I “quit” the pool and went up to our suite to prepare for the evening. We met Donna, Jerri, and Susan for photos at 4:45. I first shot them on the grass with the ocean in the background, and then moved to the beach for a few shots. The light was good and I managed to get a few catches that they should enjoy. After shooting at the beach we walked up to the lobby, taking a few “keeper shots” along the way. The girls posed by the Christmas tree, and in the veranda seats at Kelly’s bar, for a few additional photos. Susan snapped a couple of pictures of Angel and me, with my camera; then it was off to the Villa to have a little pre-dinner vino.

At the Villa, Donna offered us a nice glass or two of chard and zin. Marco arrived at the Villa mid-way through the “wine tasting”. As usual, he was in good spirits and ready to go. Yesterday, and today, he had been busy with cruise ship passengers and family medical concerns, but still managed to have the energy to deal with us “Gringos” on Christmas night. Marco is a tireless worker and a good fellow. He is highly recommended as a tourist guide when you visit Mazatlan. I will post Marco’s contact information later, if he approves.

At some point, we all loaded into the van, and headed off to Angelo’s. Arriving at the restaurant, we hop out of the van. Donna invites Marco to dinner. He graciously declines the offer, and tells her that he will meet us outside the restaurant in about an hour and a half. Marco missed a wonderful dinner.

Inside Angelo’s, we were immediately seated at beautifully arranged table for five. On this night, the entrée options were limited to turkey, Chilean salmon, or New Zealand lamb chops. The usual menu has a nice selection of Italian dishes, as the restaurant name might imply. Donna, Susan, and Jerri ordered the salmon; Angel and I ordered the lamb. Our servers first brought bread and a small aperitif on toast. This was followed by a delicious pumpkin soup, and then the main course. The presentation was wonderful, and the food exquisite. The dinner included a fancy apple tart and ice cream as dessert. After the meal, Donna and Jerri ordered Spanish coffee. I opted for a “high octane” regular. We all chatted, laughed, and just “enjoyed” being in the company of one another. As this Christmas Day in Mexico came to a close, we were “family”. I’m hoping that your day was as wonderful as ours.

The Minnesota

We split nachos and Pacifico for lunch at the pool yesterday. The weather is holding while most everyone else is in the “deep freeze” in el norte. Emerald Bay is significantly less crowded this Christmas week than I remember from the past years. The economy is showing. Our afternoon was spent on the beach or at the pool, snapping photos, walking and swimming, and talking with Donna and her friends. Angel and I left the pool about 3:30 for another walk, and then hit the suite for a siesta. About 5:00, we went to the Deli to pick up some milk and cheese, and then returned to get ready for our evening out. Exciting stuff!

We caught the 7:00 shuttle to PB Mazatlan. The bus was less than half-full, and Ernesto, the driver was hot to stay on schedule, so we were at the Pueblo Bonito by 7:15. After arriving at the PB Mazatlan, we went inside and looked at the Holiday menus offered at Angelo’s restaurant, on premises. Angelo’s offers very nice dinners on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Years Day. We will be sharing Christmas dinner with Donna, Jerri, and Susan, at Angelo’s, so photos of the “event” and my “unbiased” opinion of the service, presentation, and quality of the meal, will follow. Angelo’s is a classy place, so I’m expecting my report will be a “glowing” one.

Angel and I left PB Mazatlan and walked toward Zona Dorada until we reached the Fiesta Inn and Fat Fish where we veered hard left, walking past the Minnesota Hotel and Restaurant. We walked down the street two blocks through a residential area, and then turned left into a large plaza. We were now on the grounds of a large cathedral. We had attended mass at this church in past years, and wanted to find out when the church offered their English service on Christmas Eve. The place was dark, and initially, there were no signs posted, that we could see, listing services. We wandered around the building a bit, and finally found a sign in espanol, that with a little careful interpretation told us English mass was at 6:00. With that chore behind us, we decided to walk back to the Minnesota for dinner.

The Minnesota is another “funky” and “very authentic” establishment. It consists of a small hotel, with pool, and a restaurant. The clientele consists of expats, Canadian and American “Snowbirds”, a few tourists, and Mexican families. I’m not sure what you pay for a room there, but I’m guessing somewhere in the $45 to $65 a night range. Nothing fancy, but the place is clean and well-kept. Angel and I discovered the restaurant a few years ago when we arrived in Mazatlan on Christmas Eve and there were few places open for dinner. We wandered through the doors of the Minnesota and found it to be a pleasant surprise! The inside seating consists of about eight tables. The décor is interesting and could be described as “Mexican gift shop eclectic” as everything on the walls or shelves surrounding you is for sale. Last night, there were a couple of male expat types seated at one table, and we were across the room at another. Shortly after we were seated and ordered our appetizer, a tourist family of five arrived, and they were seated between us and the expats. The atmosphere was quiet, fairly private, and pleasant.

Angel and I ordered the shrimp ceviche as an appetizer. We both then ordered marlin tacos. I had a Pacifico. Angel ordered a bottled water. The ceviche arrived on a large plate, accompanied by warm chips and saltines in a separate bowl. The presentation was not fancy, but the stuff wasn’t just thrown on the plate. The ceviche consisted of small ice cold pieces of raw fresh shrimp, diced onion, diced jalapeno, diced red pepper, diced cucumber, and chopped cilantro, all drenched in lime juice. The acid in the lime juice “cooks” the shrimp. The flavors blend together perfectly, and man oh man, is this stuff good on chips! The ceviche is a meal in itself, so Angel and I were thinking that maybe we had overdone it just a bit … and we had … but what the hey!

We finished up the ceviche and were licking our lime soaked fingers, when the marlin taco plates arrived. Once again, nice presentation, functional, but not overly fancy. Here’s the good part … all this stuff is made from scratch at the Minnesota. Nuttin’ out of the package at this place … very authentic … very good! Our marlin plates each had three marlin tacos in soft corn tortillas. The tacos are served “naked”, no goodies, but stuffed with cooked marlin. On this you squeeze fresh lime. Mmmmmm! Next to the tacos on the plate were two additional “from scratch” items, fresh quacamole and fresh refried frijoles. Both with a perfect consistency and temp, cool for the quacamole and warm for the beans. “Mixers” can add these to their tacos. You can also ask for fresh salsa, if you’d like. I like my tacos “traditional” when I’m in this place, so I just squeeze on the lime, and then dab away at the stuff on the side with chips.

What a great meal! And, by the way, the Minnesota keeps their 20 peso beer ice cold. The total for our meal at the Minnesota was 240 pesos (about $20 US). That included my customary 20% tip. Feliz Navidad!