Hi Guys,
Acapulco - 28 March 2011
(Latitude: 16 51’North Longitude: 99 53’ West)
(Time -6 GMT)
We pull into Acapulco, a city that I have known for the last 40 years when American friends of ours used to come down for a summer vacations or honeymoon. The feel of the place has not changed that much as it is all about sun, sea and sand. The original area has grown but perhaps not for the better.
Old Acapulco and Acapulco lay on opposite sides of Bahia de Acapulco, it is sad to see that the new beaches in Acapulco are separated from the main road by the bevy of new hotels that have sprung up. We are constantly told by our tour guide that the beaches are public, yet I cannot see any way of getting onto the beaches through the fences and the armed guards into the hotels. In fact, since we left the dock we have passed at least a dozen guards armed with sub machine guns and they seem to go around in groups, however, when asked why they need to be so safe, the threat is not identified. We wind our way up into the hills passed the house of Sylvester Stallone and other of the rich and famous.
There were several options with the excursions including the cliff divers at Quebrada, but there is only so much that you can do in one day.
Over the hill, we come to another beautiful bay and our venue. The place is laid out with open rotundas and steps leading in layers down to the beach. There is one rotunda built over a pool so that you can swim up to the bar. We are welcomed with a soft drink and we sit around listening to the turtle experts telling us about the release of baby turtles into the wild. We are all handed one of these little critters which are about 2 – 3 inches long and continuously flapping their flippers to walk down the beach. I call mine Jasper but quickly return it to a basket and we walk down to the beach to an area behind a yellow, “Do not cross” line where I am given Jasper or his squiggly cousin and we are instructed to hold our little critters high to the light and then place it on the beach and watch them squiggle away, some towards the water and others away from the water, but with a little encouragement, they seem to get the idea. Only 1 in a 1000 makes it to an adult turtle. We have delicious tacos with a hot sauce and guacamole and we return towards the ship. We are dropped off along the way downtown and go bargain hunting, but there are no bargains as the cruise ship is in. The position from which they start with their pricing is too high to negotiate to a “reasonable” price, so we do a lot of looking.
As we walk along we are constantly assailed with taxi drivers, but I tell them, “Tarde” but we relent when the price gets to $3. Its been a great day but I did not get to see the, Fuerte de San Diego, a pentagon shaped 17th century fort that overlooked the ship’s berth.
Tomorrow, we reach Huatulco, another resort further down the coast.
Acapulco from the dock |
Susan in Acapulco |
Roy in Acapulco |
Sunset over Acapulco |
Behold, a turtle, or two --- |
Susan with a Leatherback |
Acapulco, the Spanish transliteration of the Indian name that was suppose to mea “Lost reeds”. Acapulco was ruled by the Toltecs for centuries and then in the 15th century by the Aztecs and later for a short period by the Tarascans. This was all a precursor to the Spanish conquest.
Sixty years after the arrival of the Spaniards, King Philip II of Spain, the husband of Mary Tudor determined that Acapulco should be the only official port for trade between America (Spanish owned) and Asia. Things went well with trade out to Mania and the Philippines until Sir Francis Drake appeared and intercepted ships coming from Manila etc and siphoned off most of the treasure. The city’s fortunes declined, was burned and drifted into insignificance until the California gold rush in the mid 19th century which provided some revival. However, it we not until wealthy Mexicans and adventuresome gringos began to arrive at the beautiful Peninsular de las Playas (old Acapulco) that new hotels began to rise and the town became the haven for the rich and famous. in 1940s and 1950s
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