Las Palmas

The past couple of days have been a joy! Kids continue to be outside from wake until sleep. What a nice way to be! I had a nice session working on myself with my Yamuna balls on the rooftop deck for about 90 minutes the other day- it was so perfect to be in the sun with the ocean view in front of me. Couldn't have been nicer :) Not to mention that any aches in my body residual from the previous night sleep were completely gone!
 
It was Sunday, which is a day of rest here in this Catholic country. Mexicans take a day of rest to heart. The town closes down, there are a few things open- some touristy shops to cater to American tourists. But for the most part, it seems life slows down drastically for a day, which I found to be quite alright. We discovered a beach called "Las Palmas", which was a perfect place for the kids to play. It is called las Palmas because there is a sweet little oasis of palms there between desert and beach. There are two horses grazing amidst some bamboo, and hundreds of giant palm trees greeting you on your walk down to the beach. It is a brilliant micro-habitat for all sorts of creatures. We saw a deer bounding across and down the road yesterday on our way to the same beach. Sunday when we arrived there were quite a few cars, but still nothing compared to the busy beaches of New Jersey that I grew up going to. The beach is flat, and there is a little outlet of fresh water that runs on the south end of the beach to the ocean, making it a perfect place for the kids to play. We ended up meeting some other gringos there- two who are NOLS instructors, one also Prescott College alum (what a small world), and two others who picked up and moved to the area about 3 years ago from NYC. It was great to meet and talk to these people. Parula and Sorrel instantaneously found playmates with 2 other siblings, (older girl, younger boy), and have already had a playmate with them at their house yesterday. They seem to have a blast with these kids, (Luca and Kai), and their place in Pescadero was really cool for us to see as well!

Yesterday we returned to Las Palmas, with only one other group of people present on the beach. Sorrel was thrilled to go deep into the water (for him) and feel waves crashing into him as we walked out. I had to drag him out of the surf, only because he was getting cold! As we explored the outlet of fresh water coming out into the ocean, a Brown Pelican arrived and began walking up the stream towards us. It was a juvenile, and was quite fearless of us. It came within 3 feet of us, stopping near a rock, then proceeded to scoop water, and fish, into its pouch. What an amazing thing to see close up! The kids got to see its pouch fill with water, and we saw the fish squirming inside its pouch before it swallowed it. The pelican repeated this a few more times, then walked up stream to do the same near another rock. All of this happened with us watching just a few feet away!

Can you see the Brown Pelican?

Today is foggy (but not that Maine socked-in fog), and therefor a bit cool so far. We are hoping to go to Los Cerritos, a popular surf beach, and check out what is going on there, and perhaps visit the pool that we have been told is there to swim in!