Travel to La Paz (11/5/2011)

It was another glorious morning at Ken and Ruann's! Ken made us buckwheat pancakes for breakfast, then we relaxed and finished packing.  Mom and I decided to lighten our loads and leave some gear and clothes there for the return home.

Around 11:00 they drove us into town to the bus station.  Mom had purchased our tickets the day before.  It turns out there are two buses from San Jose del Cabo to La Paz; the express bus or the local bus.

(Photo to left: Mom and I wait for our bus to La Paz)


The lady at the station had recommended to Mom that we not waste money on the express bus because there was lots of construction on the main highway to the north.  This meant the express bus would take as long to get to La Paz as the local one.  That was great advice because later we learned from Russell, Windy and Ryan their ride took over 4 hours on the express, while our trip took only 3:15!


After almost getting on the wrong bus (the porter's error, not our's!), we were on our way to La Paz.  The route was mostly inland but intersected the coast at a few places.  One such town, Buena Vista looked worthy of a future visit.  There were paved sidewalks, many boats in the harbor, nice neighborhoods, and signs of an established group of surfers.

We arrived in La Paz and caught a taxi to the Posada Luna Sol hotel (using the free ride voucher provided by our tour company).  The hotel is quaint, clean, and comfortable.  It's located about 2 blocks from the waterfront and "Malecon" or broadwalk.

After a walk along the Malecon we decided to stop and have a cold drink.

(Photo to left: Malecon, La Paz)

At La Costa restaurant we met Pam and Tony, a couple from Calgary, Canada who had just completed the Loreto to La Paz version of the trip we were about to take.  They told us of their wonderful experience, wetting our apetite for adventure!

As the sun set we began to notice mosquitos buzzing around the open air dining room.  We decided to head back to the hotel for some insect repellent.  This would be the ONLY TIME during the entire trip that we needed insect repellent of any kind.

We went back to La Costa for a great dinner of ceviche and pan fried red snapper.  Later we met a few of our fellow travelers at the hotel; Dennis, Helen, Linda, Becky, and Mo.  It was Helen's birthday and we all had cake before bed.