Villareno

We are camped out at the Villareno Campground in Punta Banda - it's about 25 miles south of Ensenada and has a wonderful access point to the beach.  The group had an all day winery tour but we opted out to have a day of recharging and restocking.  

We intended to start at Walmart but then realized that they open at 11 am on Sundays and it was only 10 am.  We opted instead to visit a local Costco to "kill time".  One of our caramates joined us and it was fun to see what Costco is like in another country.  It all felt very familiar -- with the exception of the prices -- but a friend taught us an easy way to estimate the conversion rate.  You remove the last number in pesos and divide what is left in half.  It may not be exact, but it helps you calculate the approximate price quickly.

Because of limited storage space, we didn't go crazy at Costco.  We found a few helpful supplies and then moved on to regular groceries at Walmart.  

Once everything was stored away, Stuart, Pradit and Lucy watched the Chiefs game in Spanish.  Jude played with his newly purchased RC car on the beach.  Once the game was over (so sad for the Chiefs!), we all went back down to the beach.  It was low tide and we played around and then wandered down the beach a bit.  We had been told about some thermal waters but had no idea what to expect.  After a short walk, the sand started getting warmer under our feet.  Some people were gathered and several holes had been dug in the sand.  

We happened upon another camper from our campground - a man from Iowa.  He had dug a series of two pools which merged to create a warm and hot pool of water.  We enjoyed the warmth and chatted with our new friend.  I would guess the water in the hotter pool was over 110 degrees.  It may even be enough for me to put a bathing suit on for tomorrow.  I'm a cat when it comes to cold water - so that's saying a lot.

A new friend named Murray gave Pradit a cowboy hat -- I borrowed it for the day and felt very assimilated into the culture wearing it. :)

We had a fun dinner outside under the stars -- a Costco rotisserie chicken with green beans and mashed potatoes.  We have yet to eat any Mexican food as many places are closed on Sundays -- but tomorrow we are promised fish tacos.  The story goes that fish tacos originated in La Bufadora -- the location we will visit tomorrow - so we'll see!  I'm sure they won't disappoint!

Tomorrow's tour starts at 8:45 am -- we will take a bus to La Bufadora and also visit a local zoo.  The following three days will all be travel days - so lots of set up and tear down - but then we will be able to be in each location for several days at a time.