A: Yes, I went to Mexico on October 6 - 10, 2008 by riding in a cruise. This is my first time to see Mexico. One of my dream, which is traveling to different parts of the world will be granted. You have to be positive all the time so that your dreams will come true. This is my 3rd country that I have seen in my whole life. First, of course my homeland, in Philippines, second in United States of America, where I am living now, and third, in Mexico by taking a cruise.
Q: Where did you go to Mexico and how do you get there?
A: I went to Mexico on October 6 - 10, 2008 by taking a round-trip cruise for 5 days. I have a plan to take a cruise because I got a paid vacation in my recent work after I got a permanent position and I want to have an experience in cruise, too. I have a lot of friends that I know who are already took a cruise. I went to a website of my travel agency, which is Cruise.com. At Cruise.com, they have promotions like discounts up to 80% of the actual travel cost including the airfares if there are connecting flights. My friends were recommended me to make a reservation at Cruise.com and they are right because I saved a lot of money. Honestly, I cannot afford to take a cruise before because of the fares are really expensive and I don't have a time to take a cruise especially when I was working as a temporary position in different pharmaceutical companies and I don't have paid vacations. When I made a reservation at Cruise.com, I chose a 5-day round trip to Ensenada. Ensenada is also a popular city in Baja California Norte.
Q: What cruise line did you take and what is the name of the ship?
3. I went to the information booth of Long Beach Cruise Terminal with some of the members and officers of Carnival Cruise and US Department of Homeland Security to register and get the card pass. You should have your credit or debit card, and US Passport or Green Card ready because they need it to get your card pass. A card pass is your key for the state cabin or room deck.
4. I had a lunch buffet at Paris Restaurant and they have different kinds of dishes from different countries.
5. I went to my state room to take my rest and had a shower. The state room is so nice like in many 5 star hotels. They clean the state decks two times a day.
6. I took a swim at the pool at the front of Paris Restaurant.
7. I had a snack at the Paris Restaurant. Paris Restaurant is the main area where most of the passengers will get their foods, drinks, and snacks.
8. We had a cruise drill just like a fire drill and they gave us the information how to evacuate especially if there is an emergency or accident. Also, they taught us how to use the life jacket in case of the cruise will sunk. Life jackets are located in each state cabins. There are only 2 life jackets at each state cabins. The cruise was finally departed the Long Beach Cruise Terminal at 5:00 pm.
9. I took a nice spa at Spa Carnival and I had a hot stone massage and facial massage as well. Thanks God the massage lady is a Filipina and we talked in Tagalog. The Spa Carnival in not included when you are booking the cruise. You have to paid it in extra. You have to show your card pass and they will charge it in your credit card.
10. I had a formal dinner at Destiny Dinning Room where they are open only in dinner time. You can order dishes as many as you want for free. Also, you should have a formal attire there because it is a 5 star dinning area.
11. I had a midnight snack at Paris Restaurant and it is also a buffet type.
12. I watch some of the movies and other entertainment show at Normandie Lounge.
2. I had a nice breakfast at Paris Restaurant and I ate a lot of foods there.
3. I took a shower and had a nice tour attire.
4. We went to Santa Catalina Island in Avalon, California and had a tour there from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. We took a shuttle bus there and had a tour in the whole island. Some of my co-passengers there had a shopping and bought some souvenier items and the others had a nice lunch in the restaurants there. There are lots of wildlife animals there like deer, moose, buffalo, boar, birds, and so on.
5. After the tour, we went back to the cruise and I took a rest inside my state cabin.
6. I had a nice snack at Paris restaurant.
7. I took a swim at the pool at the front of Paris Restaurant.
8. I had a physical fitness exercise at Spa Carnival.
9. I had a window shopping at the lounges, gallerias, and boutiques of Carnival Paradise and I bought some items there.
10. The cruise was finally departed from Santa Catalina Island at 6:00 pm.
11. I had a formal dinner at Destiny Dinning Room.
12. I watched some of the movies and concerts at Normandie Lounge.
2. I had a nice breakfast at Paris Restaurant but I ate a light foods only because I will a lot of Mexican foods later.
3. I took a shower and had a nice tour attire.
4. We went to the Pier of Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico at 9:00 am and met the tourist guide and the shuttle bus driver. The name of the tourist guide is Brenda Sanchez and the driver of the shuttle bus is Roberto Garcia.
5. While in the bus, Brenda was discussing about the history, geography, and culture of Ensenada. We had a nice tour there and visited some of the historical sites.
6. We stopped by at the downtown of Ensenada and had a tour there and bought some souvenier items.
7. We went to Mango Mango Restaurant, a well-known restaurant in Ensenada that serves a lot of Mexican dishes. We had a cooking class there with Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata as the chefs. We ate the Mexican dishes such as nachos with nachos and guacamole, tamales, and tostadas. They are delicious because they are cooked in a native style. I also drunk Mexican beers while eating Mexican dishes.
8. I went to Santander Bank to buy some Mexican Pesos and Coins for souvenier items.
9. We continue the tour in the whole town of Ensenada up to 8:00 pm.
10. We went back to the cruise and I took a rest inside my state cabin.
11. I had a formal dinner at Destiny Dinning Room.
12. The cruise was finally departed from the pier of Ensenada at 9:30 pm while we had a dinner at Destiny Dinning Room with their Chef Master as the speaker during the short program.
13. I watched some of the movies and concerts at Normandie Lounge.
4th & 5th Day:
1. The cruise was sailing for the whole day going back to Long Beach Cruise Terminal.
2. I had a nice breakfast at Paris Restaurant and I ate a lot of foods there.
3. I had a physical fitness exercise at Spa Carnival so that I will not gain weight. I ate a lot of foods since the first day of the trip. All are buffet from breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, and even midnight snack.
4. We had a meeting at Normandie Lounge as the Captain and the Cruise Director as the speakers. He gave thanks to all passengers, crews, chefs, and to other people who are working in the cruise.
5. I took my lunch at Paris Restaurant.
6. I slept inside my state cabin. I was supposed to have a swim at the pool but the weather is not good because it was raining with winds. The wave is slightly strong because not only it is windy but also we were sailing opposite to the direction of the wave.
7. I had a formal dinner at Destiny Dinning Room. While we were eating, the Captain was giving the important procedures for check-out in the cruise such as filling the US Declaration Form, preparing for baggage check-out, and asking to leave the state cabins not after 6:30 am. Also, he gave reminders to everyone to prepare US passports or green cards because the members of US Department of Homeland Security are really very strict.
8. I slept early because I have to wake-up early around 5:00am and prepare for check-out. I am already asked for breakfast in the bed at 5:00 am.
9. I ate my breakfast inside my state room at 5:00 am and took my shower and dressed-up. I prepared my baggage and fall a line going to the check-out booth of Long Beach Cruise Terminal with some of the members of Carnival Cruise and US Department of Homeland Security.
10. I took a shuttle bus courtesy of Carnival Cruise and send us to the departure area of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
11. I took my flight going back to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) thru American Airlines.
12. I went back home and sleep for the whole day because I was really tired from my trip.
Q: How's the weather there in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico?
A: Well, the weather there is nice because it was sunny and the temperature there was 65°F. It is also a humid place and I got sweat there. Ensenada is also a crowded area like in Manila, Philippines because there are many street and sidewalk vendors, as well as food vendors.
Q: We heard that Ensenada is also a peaceful town in Baja California Norte, Mexico, isn't it?
A: Yes, it is. Ensenada is a peaceful town in Baja California Norte, Mexico because the policemen there are also strict especially when it comes to peace and order. I talked to many people and residents there that Ensenada is peaceful compare to Tijuana. They said that Tijuana is also a dangerous place because there are many holdapers, theves, snatchers, and kidnappers. There are many people that go to Tijuana for a tour especially the people from the US like in California, Nevada, and Arizona. The policemen there are very strict in order to maintain the peace and order situation there. Tijuana is a first town in Baja California after you pass the boundary of United States and California.
Q: Have you ate Mexican foods there?
A: Yes, I ate a lot of Mexican foods there. After I went to Santander Bank to buy Mexican pesos, I bought some souvenier items and ate a lot of Mexican foods there like burrito, tacos, nachos, tamales, flautas, enchiladas, menudo, pozole, horchata, tamarindo, and fresa. I also drunk Mexican Beers like Tecate, Corona, and Pacifico. The popular softdrink in Mexico is Jarritos. There are lots of street foods and restaurants there. I went also to Mango Mango Restaurant, a well-known restaurant in Ensenada to eat a lot of Mexican foods, too. Although they are most spicy, they are all delicious because of the native style in cooking there.
Q: We heard that the people of Mexico are eating cactus, isn't it?
A: Yes, it is. The people of Mexico are eating cactus. They called the cactus as nopales. Nopales is also a good appetizer and also they used it to mix in other Mexican dishes. Nopales can also be used to make a jam.
Q: Do you recommend to anyone to visit in Ensenada?
A: Yes, I will recommend to anyone to visit in Ensenada because it is also a nice place to visit. The people there are very approachable especially to the tourists. It is better if you can speak Spanish because many of the people there are not fluent in English. Their medium of instruction there is Spanish and most of newspapers, bulletin boards, and television shows are in Spanish.
