The Farnsworth Family: Cabo San Lucas - Mexican Riviera Cruise Day 3

Day three of our Mexican Cruise was spent in Cabo San Lucas. This place was so beautiful and we had a great time just chilling on the beach and swimming in the ocean.

When we woke up on the third morning we were so excited to see land and especially this amazing rock formation out the ship windows. We knew we were in Cabo!

The first thing we did was get in our swimsuits and then head to breakfast. The buffet on the ship had every food you would think of. Along with breakfast we grabbed some bread and peanut butter and made sandwiches for lunch because we knew we would be on shore all day. This was a smart idea I think because we had snacks for the beach. We were worried they would make us throw them away when we went through Customs but thankfully they didn't.

Next we gathered all of our beach gear and headed to the lifeboats.

The cruise ship was anchored out on the water rather than at a dock so we had to ride the water taxis or lifeboats to and from the shore. They were these orange boats. We could definitely feel the waves on these little boats.

As we boated around our cruise ship, we once again were in awe of how big our ship was!

As we got to the shore, we were walked through a little baggage check area and then led out to the streets of Cabo San Lucas. There were people everywhere trying to get us to purchase their excursions or go on their tours. I was glad we were in a big group and that Klint Hughes did the talking. He managed to finagle us a deal on a boat tour as well as a boat taxi over to the beach at Lover's Beach. I felt like we got a pretty good deal for the whole day.

The boat taxi we got had a glass bottom on some parts so we could see the fish as we cruised along. The Mexican guides were really funny and friendly to us. They were happy to have such a full boat. As we rode along, they gave us a little tour of the area. They included a lot of fun facts about the rock formations on the peninsula.

This Arch is one of the most famous points in Cabo. It is called "El Arco" or "The Arch" in Spanish. This Arch is on the very southern most tip of Mexico's Baja Peninsula of California. This area was also featured in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. It was so beautiful!! Some of the other fun rock formations around this area were the Baja California rock, The Scooby Doo rock, and Pelican Point. The guides also told some funny stories about how Lover's Beach got its name. He said that two people go into the cave at this point and come out with three. On the opposite side of Lover's Beach and the Peninsula is the Pacific Ocean. The sea is much more rough on that side so the beach there is called Divorce Beach. Because of this, the guide said that when a couple goes on that beach only one comes back alive.

The boat taxi also took us to this cove that was a home to a bunch of sea lions. They were so funny to watch because they were just laying there like "Don't bother me I'm sleeping!" After the little tour, the guides dropped us off at Lover's Beach and said he would be back in a few hours. We really hoped he was telling the truth.

The first thing the kids did when we got off the boat was jump in the water! They're whole hope of this cruise was to swim in the ocean and they were finally able to do it! The water was surprisingly warm. It was unlike any other place we have swam in the ocean before. It was so nice! The weather was so nice and warm too!

The first thing we did was walk over to the Pacific Ocean side of the Peninsula.

This beach was so beautiful as well. The water was so blue! The ocean on this side of the peninsula is really rough with undercurrents and rip tides. Because of this, the beach was closed to swimming and other recreation. According our Mexican guides, that is why this beach is called Divorce Beach.

Even though there were signs everywhere telling people swimming was not allowed, Clint decided he was not going to listen to that advice. He jumped right in the Pacific Ocean and went for a swim. We all told him he was going to die but he didn't care, he just wanted to try it out. After a swimming a few lengths, he was swam back and was good to go.

Then we walked back to the safe side of the Peninsula, Lover's Beach. This water was much more calm and safe for the kids and everyone to swim in. It was now time to get out the snorkels and try our hand at snorkeling for the first time.

The kids got two snorkel sets for Christmas so they were anxious to try them out. We found a perfect snorkeling area that was in a little cove area so that the waves were not so big. Everyone got out their snorkels and we were off to explore the depths of the ocean.

Emily and Colby did really well snorkeling for the first time. They were a little nervous at first because they had to learn how to breath through the tube. Once they mastered that though, they were like fish in the water and didn't want to get out. Logan had a good time as well looking at all of the fish underwater. These were definitely worth getting for the kids.

Charlotte also loved being outside playing in the sand. Her favorite thing to do was chase the birds all around the beach. She was trying to catch them but they kept flying away.

I am not a huge fan of snorkels because I cannot get over the claustrophobic feeling I have when I put on the mask. I also think it takes time to get used to the salt water. However, I did put on our swimming goggles and go out swimming in the ocean. With the goggles, I was able to look underwater while holding my breath and see a lot of cool looking fish and coral.

The best part of the beach though is just relaxing and sticking my toes in the sand!

From our little cove, we could see our cruise ship and the whole area of Cabo. It was an amazing site and I just like sitting back and enjoying the scenery.

The kids absolutely loved the sand too! I think there was more sand in their swimming suits than on the beach. For Christmas they also received these handy collapsible buckets to play with in the sand. With the buckets they were able to build sand castles, carry water, and dig in the sand. Emily however was much more interest in the water and stayed in almost the whole day.

We even decided to bury Charlotte in the sand. The boys thought it was pretty funny to be bury Charlotte, but she did not think it was that great. She was only buried long enough for this picture and they climbed out.

Another cool thing about the beach was finding sea life. There were a ton of crabs all over the rocks and coral. They were really camouflaged though so the only way to see them was if you were looking for them and when they moved. It looked like the rock was moving when they crawled all over it.

While Clint was snorkeling he found this starfish in the water. He swam down and grabbed it and brought it out of the water to show everyone. It was pretty cool to hold the starfish and watch him wiggle. Charlotte and Logan loved playing with it for a few minutes. After holding the starfish for a while, he started to get stiff and we felt bad for it so we put him back in the water. He swam away so fast once he hit the water.

We all had a great time hanging out on the beach all day. It was relaxing and warm and worth every minute.

By this time, it was time to head back to the place our guides said they would pick us up. We hurried back because we did not want to miss them. Thankfully, they kept their word and were there ready to pick us up. As we got back on the boat, Klint finagled another thing out of the guides. He negotiated a whale watching tour for all of us. So for a little extra money, we got to go whale watching, too.

We had to go back to the dock first though and get a different boat. Then we were back on the water with a new guide on our way to see some whales. We were kind of worried that we would not see any whales because it is really luck of the draw. It must have been our lucky day though because we did see a bunch of whales!

The whales were sooooo cool!!! We didn't see any jump out of the water or anything but we did follow them as they swam, and we got to see their tales as they dove down. The best part was when our drove right along two whales as they swam along side our boat. We could see their backs come up and out of the water as they swam along. We saw and felt the water spray out to their blowholes. It was so worth it. The kids were just enthralled with the whales. They just couldn't believe what they were seeing! Charlotte was so tired though and slept through most of the whale tour. The waves and wind were blowing so hard on this tour that we were soaked by the time we got back to the dock. It was chilly but it was worth it.

After the whale tour, we decided to head back to the ship. Some of our group wanted to stay and shop for souvenirs but we were tired and needed to go to the bathroom... By the time we got back to the ship and cleaned up, we had missed our dining time. The buffet had a lot of good choices though so we still had a good dinner. It was just not the same or as good as the dining so our group decided that we did not want to miss dining again. There are just some things that you have to make as a priority!