Food Feature: Cruising Los Cabos

Traveling solo in Baja brings solace not solitude

On my first solo adventure to the Southern tip of Baja California, going through customs was easy. I did, however, get slammed just outside the inspection area by a devilish hoard of salesmen. Wheedling and winking, they offered free whale watching, a booze cruise, a bottle of tequila and a blanket in exchange for hours of my precious vacation time spent touring timeshares and hotels. Avoiding that fabulous “bargain,” I climbed on the airport shuttle headed for Cabo San Lucas.

I could see Casa Rafael coming long before the bus stopped at the gate. The place was a nauseating Pepto Bismol pink, twittering with caged birds, smothered in kitschy Mexican decor and free-roaming cats.

I’d found the “luxury boutique hotel” after hours of searching bad websites for intimate lodgings. Originally a single-family home, Casa Rafael advertises a fine dining restaurant, piano and cigar bars, a library and a gym. But the biggest draw was location. The hotel is situated only 100 yards from the much-touted Médano beach.

My slightly smoky, badly furnished room featured a CD player, a dark hole of a bathroom, a loud hairdryer and aging terry robes. Even opening windows wouldn’t help my stale surroundings. Along with fresh air, in came music and voices from Cabo’s rowdy dance clubs. The sound effects were nonstop until 4 each morning, only an hour before the neighborhood cock began to crow.

For a couple of nights, I joined the raucous throng. I spent time at the Giggling Marlin bar where I watched Cabo’s mostly American visitors line up to perform the most outrageous burlesque. Another evening I danced for hours in the crowd that filled the bar and grill named El Squid Roe. I dropped in after midnight to join the one-year anniversary party at What’s Up?, the local karaoke bar. It was jammed with hip locals and Mexican tourists waiting for the star act, a Mariachi band. I’d thought of the traditional performers as a border town phenomenon, but in Cabo I found that they are essential to every celebration.

Those who indulge in Cabo’s endless nightlife hardly move by day. More ambitious travelers wake up in time to appreciate kayaking, surfing, deep-sea fishing, scuba or snorkeling excursions. They can be lured to join whale watching and sunset cruises, go horseback riding and play golf.

Sleepless in paradise, I had no energy to pursue any of those options. I was more than disappointed in my digs and the nearby Médano beach, a narrow scoop of sand edged in hotels, bars and restaurants, water sport rentals and water taxis. The gorgeous blue ocean just outside that chirping and buzzing scene made me long for a quiet space to take pleasure in it.

On a late afternoon walk, I wandered through the marina and made my way past lines of restaurants, more bars and shops, to a street that climbed the hill above the town. There I found a small inn, Cabo’s only bed and breakfast. Less expensive than the hot pink hacienda, it is simply designed and totally smoke-free. I was seduced by the airy rooms, a small heated pool beneath towering palms and the promise of a complimentary gourmet breakfast. Vegetarian, no less. The Bungalows Breakfast Inn was my salvation.

I moved hotels and made a new friend. Todd Kenney, one of the Bungalows owners, became my generous personal guide, introducing me to the coast by jeep. Kenney knew the best eats in Cabo — street-side fish taco vendors, enormous margaritas and fresh tortilla soup at Margaritavilla, stuffed peppers and homemade tortillas at Mi Casa. He took me to Mocambo, a restaurant haunted by locals, for the best grilled red snapper I’ve ever tasted. We spent an idyllic afternoon whale watching on an empty stretch of beach 20 miles away, near Migriño. Cruising further north on the Pacific coast, Kenney showed me Todos Santos, a picturesque artists’ community with a tranquil ambiance that felt like a deep sigh after Cabo.

The only solitary excursion I took was by water taxi. I went early one morning to Playa del Amor (Lover’s Beach), where I walked across the sand from the Bay of Cortez to the Pacific Ocean on what must be the narrowest strip of the Baja Peninsula. Ironically, my Mexican driver wore a University of Georgia sweatshirt covered in bulldogs. When he picked me up from the beach, we motored close to Los Cabos’ famous stone arch. A jagged-edge portal rising up from the ocean, El Arco is the area’s most wondrous landmark.

Traveling solo to Cabo was far from hazardous or lonely. In fact, being on my own invited conversation and unexpected opportunities. Alone, I didn’t need an agenda and had hours to read and rest in the sun. Now, on warm afternoons, when I steal moments to lie cradled in the bright hammock I brought home, I cling to that memory of Mexico-by-the-sea.

Bungalows Breakfast Inn, 114-3-50-35, www.cabobungalows.com $58-$105. Mocambo, at Leona Vicario and 20 de Noviembre, 114-3-60-70. Mi Casa, Town Square. 114-3-19-33. Margaritavilla, on the marina, Plaza Bonita Mall. 114-3-00-10. Pacifico Grill, Boulevard Marina, across from Plaza Bonita. The Giggling Marlin, Boulevard Marina and Matamoros, 114-3-11-82. El Squid Roe, Boulevard Marina, across from Plaza Bonita, 114-3-06-55 What’s Up?, Boulevard Marina, a few doors down from Squid Roe. Los Cabos information: www.mexonline.com/loscabos/

Cathy.byrd@creativeloafing.com??






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