Back on land

Nothing saddens me more than the end of a great vacation. Yesterday, my family returned from our cruise to Ensenada, Mexico, and once again, we had a great time.

For those of you who have never been on a cruise, it's a five-star experience from beginning to end. Considering what you pay for the cruise, you get your money's worth in food alone. Seriously.

On this particular cruise, we went from San Pedro on Friday to Ensenada on Saturday. The ship was docked in Mexico all day and my family decided to get off the boat to enjoy some genuine Mexican food. Last year, when my family took the five-day cruise to Catalina Island, San Diego, and Ensenada, we got off the boat in Ensenada to experience La Bufadora, one of the three natural blowholes in the world. Visiting La Bufadora was great and shopping in Ensenada was fun, but this year's visit to Mexico was even better. After sharing a plate of carne asada tacos at a cafe, we headed over to Tacos Locos, where we enjoyed chips and salsa, virgin pina coladas, blended margaritas, and live music. There wasn't anything in particular that was so special about this place, but it was just the atmosphere that made for a great time. The live band played a variety of music, from oldies to 80's to motown. My family knew almost every song and sang along and there was even a time my parents got up to dance together. It was just a great day all around.

Before I continue on with the rest of our trip, I think you should know about what happened before we got off the boat in Ensenada. Long story short, when I went to get a dress out of my closet, the hanger caught on to one of the room's two sprinkler heads. I tried to remove the hanger carefully, but it wasn't enough to keep water from spouting from the ceiling all over the room. So there I was yelling at one brother to get me towels from the bathroom and the other to run and get help. I was able to cover the sprinkler with towels, but before I knew it, the towels were drenched, and so was I. Finally, one of the floor's stateroom attendants came to the rescue and while he and my brother were holding towels to the ceiling, I was making phone calls to the proper people to shut off the water. Needless to say, it was an interesting morning and my parents thought - and still think - it's pretty comical how it was me - their 24-year-old daughter - who caused the incident, and not my brothers.

Moving on...

We left Ensenada on Saturday evening and spent the rest of the day and all of Sunday at sea. It's a majestic feeling standing on one of the ship's decks and seeing nothing but ocean. In many ways, it makes you realize just how big this world is and just how much there is to discover. Sunday was spent rock-climbing, swing dancing and playing a round of "Name That Classic Rock Tune." Oh, and of course, lots and lots of eating. We got airbrushed tattoos, watched the "Belly-Flop Competition" at the pool, and spotted a school of more than 100 dolphins or so while taking pictures at sunset.

And while at dinner, I noticed that the little butter packets used for the dinner rolls were from the Rockview plant located in Downey. Out of all the places in the world to import butter from, it was interesting to see they were from Downey. A little piece of home was with us right at our dinner table.

Everything from the food to the entertainment to the accommodations were great. And my parents have already booked their next cruise - a seven-night Mexican Riviera cruise that stops in Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan. I'm a little jealous...

~Brooke