Travel Journal March 2, 3024 Hawaii Cruise - Day 16

Saturday, March 2, 2024

Ensenada, Mexico

This afternoon we arrived at Ensenada, Mexico. This is a new port for us! I think it might be a fairly new port for cruise ships as I had never heard of it before booking this cruise.

We spent part of the morning packing our suitcases. WOW! That’s a lot of laundry! That made it somewhat easy to pack - we just had to stuff it all into our suitcases. As we approached Ensenada, we relaxed in a lounge to read and watch the ocean go by for one more time.

We got off the ship at 3pm and joined a Segway excursion. This is the 3rd or 4th time we have ridden Segways, so we considered ourselves old hands at it. There were only 6 people in our group, which made it very nice. However, the 2 guides spent way too much time giving us instructions on how to operate a Segway. Two of the people had never ridden Segways before, so perhaps they needed a little extra attention. But I have found that the best Segway training is just hopping on the thing and experiencing it! Unfortunately, by the time we actually started on our journey, it started raining heavily. We had to stop at a street market so a few of the people could purchase ponchos. The rain lasted about 30 minutes so it wasn’t too bad.

Our first stop was the famous Ensenada Fish Market, which I would have been very happy to have zipped right past at top speed, but our guides wanted to discuss this famous location with great pride. Across the street loomed a McDonald’s. I don’t know why we didn’t stop there, too.

Next we passed through the downtown area of Ensenada. If we had blinked, we would have missed it, but operating a Segway requires focus and concentration so blinking is not encouraged.

We then stopped for a 20-minute break at a famous old casino, hotel, and bar. This place was especially famous in the 1930s. It was created when prohibition was introduced in the US as a way for Americans to escape the new laws. However, its fame lasted only 2 years, because when prohibition was overthrown, there was no reason for Americans to go to this remote spot in Mexico. The place’s other claim to fame was that many famous American celebrities visited it - Lucille Ball, Desi Arnez, Jack Dempsey, Al Capone, and dozens of others made their presence here. There were photos on the wall to prove it. And we learned one more amazing fact about this bar: The margarita was invented there. Sorry, Jimmy Buffet!

We passed through other parts of the city before arriving back at the ship. All in all, it was great fun, and we all survived!

After dinner, we went to the final show in the theater. This was a tribute to all the nationalities represented by the crew on the ship. We were told that the crew came from 60 different nations. A representative from each nation entered the theater carrying the flag of their country. It was quite stirring!

Early tomorrow morning we will arrive back in Long Beach, California. In some ways, it feels like the 15 nights on the ship passed by in a snap. But in other ways, it feels like we have been cruising for months. Nevertheless, it has been wonderful! We have enjoyed delicious food, relaxing, great entertainment, and being pampered to every day and night.

So this is my last post for this trip. I hope you’ve enjoyed the ride! Thanks for joining us!

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