Let's Meet in Cabo! Cousins Pat and Charlie; pal Dina visits!!

Joan at the Dai-ichi Bldg, U.S Army General HQ, Tokyo Japan, 1951, where she worked for Gen. MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of  the U.S. Occupation of Japan.
The building and pond still remain (2015).

Tom's mother, Joan, ran away from an unhappy home life in New Jersey at age 11. She eventually found a home with a wonderful foster family who helped raise her to adulthood. About the only relative from her blood family with whom Joan kept in contact was her first cousin Charlie. Charlie was younger, but they both shared a bond of being U.S. Army veterans. Over the years while on travel to the East Coast, Joan and husband Dick Condy had often visited with Charlie and his wife, Pat. When Joan passed away in 2011, both Tom and I reported the sad news to Pat and Charlie on the phone (they were traveling and unable to come to Joan's memorial service), and I had an instant affinity for them. I loved Pat's New York accent, and she sounded like a fun and likable person. They traveled a lot, so I figured they were probably very interesting as well. I was amazed when Tom told me he had never met his mother's favorite relatives!

We've kept in contact with Pat and Charlie (who live in Florida), and a while ago they told us they were taking a cruise from California to Florida, via the Panama Canal, which included a day stop in Cabo San Lucas. If we were around would we be able to meet them? Tom REALLY wanted to do this, and I also looked forward to meeting the infamous Pat and Charlie. So, on April 9th, we jumped into our trusty Toyota Tundra and headed down to Cabo San Lucas.

We had selected a meeting place and I instantly recognized them, even though I had never met them. There was definitely a family resemblance between Charlie and Joan! 

We finally meet Charlie and Pat!

We embraced as if we'd known each other for years, which we kind of had in a way. Luckily, Pat and Charlie, being such seasoned travelers, had zero interest in walking the tourist strip at Cabo. Pat wanted to visit some beaches and take in some views, so we all climbed into the Tundra and drove to our first destination, the scenic and luxurious Grand Solmar Land's End Resort, built right up against a large, granite mountain, right next to the famous Cabo Arch. 

Pat and I were enchanted with how the natural stone was incorporated into the landscape.

The view of the Pacific was stunning, and we were able to watch lots of whale activity out in the water. While the whale-watching boats were scrambling around trying to see the whales close-up, or at all, we had the big picture of whales breaching, spyhopping, and fluke-slapping.

Whale watching from the rock wall.

The view was so stupendous that we decided to have drinks at the poolside cafe. We spent the next couple of hours talking about Joan's family, and it was interesting to get information and genealogy that Tom had never known. It was also fun to hear stories about Pat and Charlie's excursions and fun times with Tom's parents.

Pat wanted some beach time, so we visited the big beach along Cabo's hotel row...

View of their ship, the Queen Victoria, from Cabo beach.

...and then drove up the highway to Playa Chileno.

Pat finally gets her feet wet at the beach.

We were getting hungry, so we made a pilgrimage to Baja Brewing Company's rooftop location with an outstanding view of the bay and their ship, the Queen Victoria. 

Stupendous view!!

Tom couldn't stop raving about the view.

The food and beer were excellent and we could easily have talked with Pat and Charlie for hours longer, but it was time for them to return to their ship, and time for us to retrieve our friend Dina at the Cabo airport for her long weekend in La Paz. 

Yay! Dina comes for a visit!

Dina said she needed some R&R, and with Tom being sick with a bad headcold, and Dina fighting one, that's exactly what she got. We enjoyed some local restaurants, morning walks along the Malecon, long naps, and some pool and Margarita time at the neighboring Hotel Marina.

Before she left, Dina wanted to visit a beach. Well, since that Sunday was officially the last day of the Easter holiday, Dina got the true Semana Santa experience, a beach packed with families, activities, music and food. We got to Playa Balandra early enough to rent a big umbrella (sombrilla) with chaise lounges (camastros), so we staked out our area and watched the families arrive.

Enjoying a local treat - green mango and chili

Crowded beach, last day of the Semana Santa holiday.

Balandra is a huge bay that is very shallow for a long way out. I grabbed my snorkeling gear and Dina and I started our long walk across the bay. All of a sudden she yelped and jumped about two feet high. She had stepped too close to a crab's lair and it pinched her foot! I even found the not-so-little bastard hiding in his hole waiting for his next victim. That was enough Wild Kingdom for Dina, so she returned to the beach while I went for a snorkel. NOTE: the snorkeling is not good in the bay and there are stingers, so not recommended.

Is is an election year in Baja, and the beach was filled with candidate-sponsored games and activities.

Politico-sponsored volleyball and soccer

After we'd had our fill of Balandra, we piled into the Tundra and drove up to Playa Tecolote for one of Restaurant Sr. Marlin's strong and tasty Margaritas. There was a huge Navy presence at all the beaches to help keep order during Semana Santa, so of course we couldn't resist a good photo op.

LOL, I didn't notice this random guy groping Dina during the photo!!

It only took one Margarita to get a nice buzz on (Tom was the driver so he only had a beer) before we drove back to the marina. It would be an early night since we had to pack for our airport shuttle departure the next morning. Dina would be flying home and Tom and I were scheduled to fly to Antigua for Classic Race Week. More about that adventure later.

Ready for our 3-hour shuttle trip to the airport. Thanks for visiting, Dina!!

Album: Pat, Charlie, and Dina