In December 2019, Debra and I went on a 14-day Panama Canal cruise. We sailed from Los Angeles to Ft. Lauderdale on the Emerald Princess, with port stops in Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, and Columbia. And, we spent a day traversing the Panama Canal through the new locks, from the Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Ocean. Click HERE to read a short introduction about this memorable cruise.
This story, which is part of a series, is about our day in Santa Cruz Huatulco, the second port of call on our cruise.
This story, which is part of a series, is about our day in Santa Cruz Huatulco, the second port of call on our cruise.
Santa Cruz Huatulco, Mexico (December 8, 2019) Debra and I spent a relaxing “day at sea” yesterday, as the Emerald Princess sailed 700 hundred nautical miles from Puerto Vallarta along the southern coast of Mexico to Santa Cruz Huatulco (pop. 50,000) in the state of Oaxaca.
We read (my book: Judgement Cometh, by Scott Pratt), ate (and ate some more!), and attended two fun and interesting Enrichment Talks: Chrome, Metal, and Glass – Great Automobiles of the 20th Century and Great TV Commercials. The latter was a nostalgic look back at the TV ads we grew up with. On cue, Debra and I joined fellow passengers to sing many of the catchy commercial jingles from the 60s (our formative years!), including these….
Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh what a relief it is!
Oh, I wish I were an Oscar Meyer Wiener,
That is what I truly wish to be,
Cause if I were an Oscar Mayer Wiener,
Everyone would be in love with me.
That is what I truly wish to be,
Cause if I were an Oscar Mayer Wiener,
Everyone would be in love with me.
You’ll wonder where the yellow went
when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent.
when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent.
As an aside, 50+ years later I still brush my teeth with Pepsodent!
After dinner in the Da Vinci dining room, Debra and I saw the Princess singers and dancers perform I Got the Music in Me. We’ve seen this production many times on past cruises, but each time is a new experience because the troupe changes. This group of 12 young women and men was talented and lively, and the show was wonderful!
Santa Cruz Huatulco, also known as Las Bahias de Huatulco (“The Bays of Huatulco”) has 16 miles of coastline, 36 sandy beaches, and nine bays. The Emerald Princess docked at the pier in Santa Cruz Bay about 7 this morning. The weather? 80 degrees and 80% humidity. With only single-digit humidity back home in central Arizona, I thought I had walked into a sauna when I stepped onto the Sun Deck to get my first look at Huatulco (as the locals call this town).
My panoramic view was grand! With the foothills of the Sierra Madre del Sur mountains in the background, the foreground was a picturesque scene of a seaside resort with sandy beaches and a small marina filled with boats, surround by tree-lined hills. As I gazed out, I imagined this scene as a beautiful (and challenging) jigsaw puzzle!
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When we planned our trip, Debra told me she would stay on board in Huatulco – another day of R & R. Me? I booked the Huatulco Highlights tour through Princess. Was it exciting? No. Was it interesting? Yes, as I got to see the scenic countryside, visit a couple of churches, and experience the culture.
There were two groups of passengers who booked the morning tour. The itinerary was the same for both tours, but the order of stops was reversed so that one tour group didn’t crowd the other. Unfortunately, our group started with a stop at a restaurant for a foodie demonstration and lunch. The problem, though – at least in terms of the lunch – was that we reached the restaurant at 9:30 a.m., which was too soon after breakfast for me to eat again. I skipped the lunch but watched a senora demonstrate the art of tortilla-making. |
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The word “tortilla” comes from the Spanish “torta,” which means “cake,” and “-illa,” which indicates “small.” While the tortilla dates back 12,000 years, the “modern” tortilla, made of corn and water, was ushered in by the Aztecs in the 16th century. In the United States, tortilla sales (recently more than $6 billion) were second only to sliced bread.
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For this demonstration, the dough (called “masa”) was already prepped (it is in the round bowl in this photo). The senora, who I will call Maria, dampened her hands and gathered a small amount of masa. Maria rolled the masa between her palms into a ball, which she then placed on a metal tortilla press (the blue object in this photo) to flatten the ball into a round shape, like a pancake. Maria then lightly toasted the masa (on a drum-like grill) for a finished tortilla. Now this I did taste, and it was delicious!
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As we made our way to the town of La Crucecita, we stopped for a photo-op high above East Conejos Bay. (“Conejos” is Spanish for rabbit. I never learned why this was called Rabbit Bay but assumed there were rabbits somewhere in the trees, or perhaps on the beach!) The view of the lush green hills, blue-water bay, and cream-colored sand was breathtaking!
There was a second photo-op nearby, which provided proof positive that I was in Huatulco!
La Crucecita (“The Small Cross”), a couple of miles inland from Santa Cruz Bay, is a “traditional” Mexican town. In its center is a square, and around the square are stores, restaurants, a hotel, and a church.
Before we reached the square, though, we stopped at Arte Cutura Y Tradicion. While it was called a handicrafts museum in the tour description, it was, IMHO, a retail arts and craft store – a place for tourists to support the local economy (if you know what I mean!). I stayed long enough to watch a craftsman demonstrate rug-weaving on an old wooden loom that he controlled by a pedal with his foot. The rug he was working on was early stage, but there was a finished rug hanging on the wall behind him. Its intricate design was a testament to his craftsmanship.
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I walked a short distance from the craft store to El Zocalo, the name of the town square. There I saw a few stately trees, shrubs with beautiful flowers, a handful of street vendors under tents, and, across the street from the square, Iglesia de la Crucecita (“Church of La Crucecita”).
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One of our joys of travel (I used the plural possessive pronoun to include Debra, as this is a shared joy) is visiting churches and cathedrals. Each one is different, and each has its own beauty.
I crossed Calle Gardenia and walked up a short flight of stone stairs to the entrance of the church. The interior was simple in design – wooden pews, two sets of square columns, a few arched doorways, and a vaulted ceiling. I was struck, though, by the multitude of rich colors I saw. The upper portion of the side walls were painted a deep blue like the sky, with white stars that seemed to twinkle. Several murals decorated in primary colors adorned the ceiling. An angel in a bright pastel robe sat atop an alabaster pedestal. This visual display was magnificent, and I thought it was the beauty of Iglesia de la Crucecita!
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We returned to Santa Cruz Bay a bit past noon. I wandered alongside the marina and through the retail market to the beach, where I snapped this photo of the Emerald Princess.
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I visited the Chapel of the Holy Cross, a small Roman Catholic church built in 1998. What was the beauty of this church? A view of the beach, for sure, but the real beauty, I would say, was the story of the Holy Cross of Huatulco, which remained unscathed despite repeated attempts by English pirate Thomas Cavendish to destroy it in 1587. Following this “miracle,” the cross was divided into pieces, which were then sent to various churches in Mexico and to the Vatican. A fragment was returned to Huatulco and inscribed into the present cross, which stands behind the altar. What a wonderful story!
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Back on the Emerald Princess, Debra and I had a buffet lunch at Horizon Court (I was finally hungry!), and then we relaxed away the afternoon. In the evening, we joined two couples for dinner in Da Vinci and saw vocalist/instrumentalist Paul Kourdouris in concert in the Princess Theater. Loved his performance! Later in the cruise, Paul posed for a photo with Debra. We wrapped up our evening listening to Topaz, who sang and played C&W music in the Explorers Lounge. It was the perfect evening to end an interesting day in Huatulco filled with new experiences and memories!
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Tomorrow is a sea day as we sail to San Juan del Sur (Nicaragua), our next port of call.