Rosarito, surf and sand competition

The last weekend in September, Jess and I took the moto all the way up to Rosarito! We had been told that it was only a half hour drive, but it took us well over an hour. Anyway, we went to check out a Surf and Sand competition we had seen advertised, and I'm really glad we made the trip. The event included a surf tournament, body board tournament, as well as a sand castle building and graffiti competitions.

The waves in Rosarito were really impressive, all morning they were at least head high and clean and right around noon they got huge! There were many good surfers and body boarders, but to be honest I have no idea who won the competitions.

Jess and I went out on the pier towards the end of the competition and we able to watch the surfers from up top. It was a great view. There was also a stage set up on the beach where they had bands performing, local, young talent.

We walked into the town as well to check out what they had to offer. Rosarito is a touristy town but more like a spring break destination, a little rougher (like Mexico's version of Sea Side). We both decided we like Ensenada much better. It was a great day though, beautiful sunny weather and a great scene.

Parque Constitucion Nacional

So I'm getting a little behind on all of this. About a month ago Kyle, Joy and I went to Parque Constitucion Nacional for a little camping and hiking. It was a very desert like climate but the water you see behind us is called Laguna Hanson. Because this was the only water source around for miles it was an oasis. There was tons of animal and bird life to watch and rattle snakes to look out for!

It was an exciting adventure, we had to do a bit of off roading and even drive through a small lake! We climbed to the top of a mountain, very similar to the one you see in the picture below. Kyle and Joy had me jumping from rock to rock, scurrying through small caves and under brush. The was a "marked trail" that we either lost it or it just ended, but Kyle was insisting on blazing our own trail, which had us go over and around four peaks instead of just one.

It was very hot during the day but at night it got very cold, so cold that we couldn't even sleep. So we decided to only stay for one night instead of two, which was our original plan. Even so, it was a beautiful part of the country, and we are really glad to have made it out there.

Down at the Port

Down at the port in Ensenada there is tons of wild life to view. Its my new favorite place to go. There are at least 50 sea lions that take over a floating dock in the middle of the port. Pelicans swarm and hunt from above for fish in the water. You can here the sea lions' "barking" from the top of our hill by our house. Kyle and I knew the sea lions were there but we couldn't find them. One day we finally came upon this dock and couldn't believe that we had actually had to search for them.


Its really neat to listen and watch all the animal life in their natural habitat, free from cages, glass walls and tanks. The number of the sea lions alone is impressive and the pelicans, lets just say I have a new found obsession :) This is a place I hope to take anyone who comes to visit.

Colegio Argentino

I know these pictures were promised to many people awhile ago, I finally got a hold of some of the school photos and yes of course, the famous picture of Kyle and I in uniform. Its actually a picture of the whole crew of English teachers!

The picture to the right is of Kyle and his students during the morning line up. Every morning the students line up by grade on the basketball court. They say a prayer together led by Mrs. Alejandra (the one speaking to the students) and review daily announcements etc. Notice how Kyle matches his students :)

The other picture to the left is Kyle's cuties again. 3rd grade...I'll have to get some pictures of my students soon although I don't think they'll be as willing to have photos taken. I'll have to do a sneak shot!

The final picture is of students at recess, I thought it was a good picture. Ralph, Matilda's husband took all of these photos. Matilda teaches 6th and 9th grade. They're from Canada, Ralphs a real neat guy, very supportive of his wife, he comes to school some days to help with planning or making copies, hence his photos. Hope this gives you a better idea of what the school is like. I'll take some pictures soon of the actual school and of my "little ones."

La Bufadora y Acampar

Last weekend Kyle and I went to see La Bufadora. Its a natural ocean geyser aka blowhole. It was really neat, definitely a huge tourist attraction, but we found a way to hang with some locals and get our own personal lookout spot of the Buffadora! The picture up top is taken from where we were camping. It was a beautiful lookout point, not a camp ground which was perfect for us. We had tried to go to La Joya beach campground and found it to be very displeasing. Hundreds of Mexicans with tents all pushed together in a huge rock hard dirt pit separated from the beach by a fence. There was loud music (that wasn't good), various different smells or different food and not a tree in sight. Needless to say this was not our ideal place so we packed up and headed further down the peninsula towards La Bufadora.

Down at the point we met this guy Ernesto who redirected us to his uncle Nacho's look out point, which is where we ended up
staying. There was nothing there but a clear patch of land to post a tent up on. The view was beautiful and there were plenty of little trails to walk out on, one of which went right down to La Bufadora. We got a clear view without having to be with the crowd of tourists.

At night we decided to head out to dinner. We were able to start a fire at our camp ground but we had no room to bring pots or cooking utensils with us on the scooter. The restaurant was really neat, it had indoor and outdoor seating, and a section that was technically outside but had glass around it to protect you from the ocean breeze. Kyle made friends with their cat Dora.

Right below is a picture of the Bufadora tourist zone taken from up where we were camping. It was neat to hear the music being played and watch all the activity below without actually being in the middle of it.

This last picture was taken by our new friend Ernesto. Traveling light on our little scooter, who would think you could go camping without a car!

taco stands and mexican flea markets

So kyle and I have had a great weekend so far. Friday the other teachers and ourselves decided we were way too tired to go out on the town so we decided to have a bon fire in the girls front yard. No pictures as of right now but I will work on it. It has been very chilly the past few nights so the fire felt excellent. It was a relaxing night of sharing teacher stories from the week.

Yesterday Kyle and I got up early and went searching for the gym. It's a beautiful facility downtown not far from our house. They have classes, plenty of cardio machines and weight machines.

After that we went to El mercado de los globos which was essentially a giant mexican flea market. We had a great time picking out cheap merchandise and bargaining with everyone. We got an air matress (queen, new, with a pump and for a great price) so now everyone can come visit! It was comical trying to pack everything onto the moto to head back to our home. People were smiling at us as we bungeed shelves, beds, flowers, pots etc to the back of our bike.

For the evening time I organized all the teachers to go out for fish tacos. Realizing the time, I had to change the place last minute, as some taco stands close early around here. I sent everyone on a wild goose chase across town to this little taco stand on the street that served fish or shrimp tacos. Little did I know that one of the teachers goes into anafilactic shock when exposed to shell fish! woops!

Those of us not allergic quickly ate some tacos (yes I ate a fish taco, actually two!) and then headed to a nearby restaurant to get some beers and food for Matilda. There were clowns walking all over the restaurant, we were a bit confused by the atmosphere but we quickly found out we had walked into the middle of a child's surprise birthday party. We were the only people in the restaurant who weren't part of the party. It was pretty entertaining!

I'm not sure if we'll fit anything fun in today or not, Kyle and I have a decent amount of lesson planning to do. Tomorrow we will start our first full week of school. :)

festival de vino!

This past weekend Kyle and I were very busy! We spent a lot of time working on the house, we now have some plants in the front yard which make the shredded tire much more welcoming. Kyle has been working on fixing a bench for us and a putting up a close line to increase the greatness of 95 Avenida Paris! (picture or possible video still to come).

But it wasn't a weekend of all work and no play, Kyle and I made it to the beach on Sunday where we watched men of all ages push wheel barrels and bicycle carts filled with snacks all over the beach. You could get a full meal from the comfort of your beach towel, shop for clothing, jewelry and even rent a horse without ever getting up. The weather here is perfect for the beach, strong sun, low humidity and a nice breeze.

On saturday Kyle and I went with Joy and Danielle (the other girls we teach with) to a wine festival that was being held in Ensenada. Most of the wine festivals in the surrounding areas are exclusive events but this one was open to the public. We had a great evening trying all the various assortments of wines, while listening to local bands and tasting local food.

Today we had our first day of school (without students). I completed a lot of preliminary work, and my classroom is finally starting to come together, it might be finished by tomorrow....maybe.

Kyle and I made a friend today too. He is a stray that was taken in by Ismael (our director and neighbor). Ismael is away right now so the dog took to the streets again. Kyle the girls and I befriended him and he hasn't left yet. I tried to return him to his home but he snuck out again.

I found horses!

Well I guess horses are not the focus of the trip, but I found multiple places to ride! There is a place that rents out horses on the beach (western only) for 80 pesos an hour which I thought was awesome, and then yesterday kyle and I found an equestrian barn of this dirt road on the way home from school! Its about 2 mins from our house and they give lessons for only 250 pesos. I will definitely be taking part in those activities at some point :)

Today we had an open house at the school, it was a chance for parents to come to the school and ask questions and for the students and parents to meet the teachers. I didn't take pictures (woops) but I do have some pictures from a few days earlier of the school. Its under construction as you can see but it is already looking much better than these photos so I will update soon. The students were much more proficient in english than i thought and the middle school kids were much smaller and cuter than I was imagining. I think its going to be a good year. The school really is amazing, the directors are great and so helpful!

Below is a picture of the beach just a few minutes from our house (where they have the horses). Kyle and I are hoping to make it to the beach tomorrow since we have the day off. There is also a wine festival going on this weekend in town so we are going to try and make it to that as well. We will see. I will take pictures though, talk to you all soon. <3

San Diego

Kyle and I are officially in Mexico. We had a great few days in San Diego. The weather is much
warmer here in Ensenada and the sun feels much stronger. I don't have many pictures from Ensenada yet only a few of the school so I will post pictures from our trips in San Diego. We got around very well using the buses (I was proud of us). Day 1 when we arrived we went to Balboa park and then down to the gaslamp district for dinner at the Yard House, I couldn't believe how many beers they had on tap.

Day 2 we went to the San Diego zoo. We were there by 9:30 and stayed until at least 6! We had a blast and didn't want to miss anything so we stayed until our feet ached. That night we went to whole foods for dinner, what a selection! We couldn't decide on what to eat.

Day 3 Kyle and I met up with his friends Jeff and Cayley from Utah (Cayley is originally from San Diego, Encinitas). We went to Swamis for lunch...mmmmm all natural food plently of vegetarian selections. Then we went shopping and thrift stores, used book stores etc. Eventually we went to the beach despite the cloudy weather. For dinner we went to Sushi Deli, which I highly recommend for anyone in the San Diego area. It was in the Gaslamp district and was delicious! They gave you way more food than you could possibly eat and for less than 10 dollars! They had delicious drinks too made with Sake or Sojo.

Day 4 Ismael came to get us and we crossed the border. It only took about 5 mins, apparently there's hardly any wait to get into Mexico, they didn't even check our passports! However to get into the US from Mexico...it was at least an hour and half wait, with high security. We have a nice house just to the left of where we thought we were living. There was nothing in the house to start but Kyle and I have already started to turn it into a home. It is three bedroom, no beds in the other rooms yet but plenty of room for visitors. We are thinking of buying an air mattress.