Day 11: Snorkeling & Parasailing
We met our prospective tour guide, Moses, on the beach shortly after 10AM and he informed us the boat would depart at 10:30. This gave me just enough time to wawlk over and inquire about parasailing. I approached one guy setting up flags who introduced himself as Santiago. I told him we were going snorkeling bt tthat we’d like to parasail when we came back in the afternoon. He quoted me 300 pesos per person but I talked him down to 500 pesos for the both of us on the condition I gave him 50 pesos up front for a reservation. No problem.
We climbed into Moses’ boat with another older couple who introduced themselves as Teddy and Joan from LA. “What do you do in L.A.?” Julia asked.
Joan replies, “Well, I’m a producer and my husband is a director.”
Julia and I looked at each other and laughed. “Well I’m a producer and my fiancée is a director.”
Each of them started in theater in New York where they lived for many years. In recent years, they’ve relocated out to Los Angeles and made the transition to film and TV. To boot, Ted is from Hartford, CT, has worked at Stockbridge and event at StageWest in Springfield while Joan is Jewish and grew up on Long Island. Of course we quickly gave them synopses of our short careers, our backgrounds, etc. Talk however soon turned to travel. They’ve been to many more places in Mexico and raved about a most unexpected place they’d gone to recently: Havana, Cuba. They said Cuba was incredible and that we had to go. I didn’t even realize tourists were allowed to go. They conceded they got in illegally but didn’t offer more and I had no interest in prying. They were very nice and friendly though and I had a feeling they’d be pretty good people to know should our acquaintanceship develop far enough.
Soon, the boat arrived at Manzanillo Bay around the bend from Zihua and were each handed fins, masks, and snorkel tubes. Jules jumped in first and I followed soon after. The water was pretty shallow but you couldn’t really step anywhere because of all the coral reefs and sharp rocks. After accidentally gulping a mouthful of salt water, I got the hang of things and began exploring. The corals and plant life were abundant and colorful while a few fish scattered here and there. The more we swam though, the more fish we discovered. Before long, I was surrounded by these tiny red, yellow, & black fish. There were so many that I started to get intimidated by their numbers and tried to swim away. They continued to follow me wherever I want, which only enhanced my hesitation. Of course my fright climaxed when one of them bit me on my side! I freaked out and screamed, “I just got bit!” And Joan shouted back, “Yeah, Ted got bit too.” I swam away rapidly until I got some distance from them. I passed through another school of grayish & yellow fish and eventually came upon a deeper opening where I spotted a long and slithery eel! The eel was fascinating to observe as it snaked its way along the ocean floor. I stealthily followed it for a while, pointing it out to the others until it disappeared underneath some rocks.
We must’ve explored for an hour and a half before I began to tire and feel like a prune. Moses and his captain, Alex, were currently M.I.A. but we swam over to the boat anyway. I climbed into relax while Jules, Joan, and Ted swam around in the water until Moses & Alex returned from their swim a few minutes later.
We were taken to another beach, Las Playas Gatas, on the far side of Zihuatanejo Bay for some lunch. Las Playas Gatas was not nearly as beautiful as Playa Ropa where we stayed plus it was mobbed with families and young children. Directly behind where the families sat was a long strip of beachside markets and restaurants. Cute but very densely packed, much more so than our spacious and tranquil beach. Moses led the way to one restaurant where we sat under a bungalow and ordered drinks. The waiter informed us of today’s fresh specials: tuna and mahi mahi. I thought I had had mahi mahi once before when out to lunch with Everett and Gabriel and I recall it being quite tasty. So I ordered that while everyone else went with calamari. The food arrived and I devoured my dish which was cooked in a garlic and butter sautee. It was scrumptious and I voiced my satisfaction aloud, “That was some quality mahi mahi!” Jules shot me this mean look and ssshhhh’d me. “What?” I gestured and she said she’d tell me later.
When we returned to Playa Ropa and parted ways, Julia told me that mahi mahi is dolphin and that most people get offended by that. I understand why. Dolphins are among the most intelligent animals I’ve encountered. I recall playing with some when I was in Florida and found them to be delightful playmates. Had I known, I certainly never would’ve eaten it. After she told me though, I felt quite badly. I mean… they serve tuna and call it tuna. They serve salmon and they call it salmon. Eel they call eel. Even chicken they call chicken. But dolphin they call mahi mahi. And then of course I launched into this big internal debate: Why dolphin and not other mammals or fish? Just because of their intelligence? Who’s to say a chicken is dumb? Or a cow? Or a pig? “Pigs are filthy animals. I don’t eat filthy animals.” We all eat each other eventually. In some parts of the world, dogs and cats are considered delicacy but eating them in America is a travesty. Why? Because we’re drawn to their personalities? And yet in India, cows are considered sacred and horrifying to eat. But I digress…
We relaxed on the beach for a little while before searching out Santiago for our parasailing excursion. Immediately upon finding him, he summons me to follow him, then grabs the harness and begins putting it on me. He tells me one rule:
“When coming back, I blow the whistle and wave the red flag, you pull on this rope. When I blow whistle again and stop waving, we let go. You understand?”
“Sure, easy enough.”
“What do you do?” he quizzes me.
“First whistle, wave flag: I pull. Second whistle, I let go.”
“OK, good.” And he signals to the boat and yells to me, “Run!”
Woah, I’m surprised because there’s been no warning and I wasn’t even sure I’d been strapped in but here I’m running down the beach and now I’m flying! That was quick. The view is stunningly beautiful from above and the experience of parasailing is not frightening at all. You couldn’t even consider it an adrenaline adventure because it’s so calm. Unlike skydiving or something, you don’t feel like you’re flying. You’re just chilling in mid-air. I was able to take my camera with me so I snapped a couple of good shots while Jules snapped the objectives from below. The ride was pretty short – only about ten minutes – when I heard the whistle and saw the flag. I pulled the rope which was much harder than it was on the ground but by doing so, I started drifting back towards the beach where they caught me.
And then it was Julia’s turn. She was off as quickly as I was and I got some good photos of her. We both loved it but don’t feel the need to do it again right away.
