Today’s post is from Krista.

I’ve traveled internationally more in the past year than ever before in my life. I’m not used to it. I get anxious over airports and flying, but I’m getting better at it.

My friends, Jim and Nancy, invited me to join them for a week in Mazatlan. They extended the invitation last fall. I’ve been trying to get some of my older friends to go places with me since I retired, but it’s been like herding cats, so when Jim and Nancy invited me I accepted immediately.

I arrived at Mazatlan on Saturday afternoon. Jim provided detailed instructions, and I had them in hand, for getting through the airport, getting a taxi, and getting to their place. I was able to give the driver the address in Centro Historico in Spanish. After an exciting cab ride through the city, Jim and Nancy met me at the gate of Villa Serena. It’s a block of apartments with a maze of tiled outdoor hallways, pools, birds and trees. Their apartment was on the third floor and had more windows, fresh air, and natural light than most. They told me it was the biggest apartment in the place. I had my own room and a shared bathroom.

There were hummingbirds and orioles at a feeder hanging outside the windows. The red tiled areas in front of their white washed apartment were open to blue sky, and the tops of palm trees. It was colorful and lovely. There was a view of a central courtyard in front of a large, golden cathedral. There were bells chiming frequently throughout the day, often on the quarter hour, especially on Sunday. No one can figure out the pattern for the chiming, or the reason.

One evening, just after sunset, there was a tiny gecko on the window screen. It was only about an inch and a half long. It charmed me to my toes.

Jim and Nancy are friendly, outgoing people. They have lots of friends there. Most of the people I met were from Mexico, followed by British Columbia. There was one couple from Prince Edward Island. I didn’t meet any other Minnesotans. Some of the people who stay at Villa Serena gather for a daily happy hour. Jim and Nancy attend it sometimes, but not while I was there. I met lots of people and learned lots of card or dice games, including a fun game called Mexican Train.

We walked a lot. We walked to the Mercado several times. Nancy bought lots of fresh food there: fruits, veggies, spices, and some large pieces of red snapper. I was fascinated by all the things there were to see, including a pig head with eyes.

We walked a few miles to a beach called Stone Island one day and spent the day there. It was lovely. There were stray dogs who were friendly but so thin. It wasn’t hard to give some of my quesadilla con pollo to a sweet dog with warm brown eyes who put her chin on my lap. I wanted to bring her home with me. I looked for sand dollars but didn’t find any. Some people swam in the ocean. I didn’t swim, but I did wade a little. I identified some birds, including an American oystercatcher, an orchard oriole, and a cinnamon hummingbird.

Nancy and I walked to the “Malecon” one day and just walked along the beach. I was struck by the persistence and determination of the many people who approached us asking if we wanted refrigerator magnets or sunglasses or blankets or ball caps with visors. A young girl selling pistachios said “Pleeease?” We gave a little boy some pesos but didn’t take the candy he offered. He ran away calling, “Mama! Mama!” I learned to say, “No, gracias,” and keep walking, even though the disparity was hurting my heart.

They’re getting ready for Carnaval there. There were huge, colorful, papier-mâché statues on the Malecon. Nancy took my picture with my arm around a bronze statue of John Lennon, the other three lined up behind me. I don’t think the likenesses were very good, but it was a fun memento of the trip.

We went for gelato in the evenings. It was really beautiful walking through the squares at night. There was music and light everywhere. The gelato was delicious!

There was a lot of noise, all night, every night. There was music, people laughing and singing, dogs barking, horns honking, and roosters crowing. It took three nights before I could sleep through it.

I brought my mandolin along, packed tightly in my big checked bag, so Jim and Nancy and I played music a few times. One day we took our instruments and walked a mile or so to a friend’s apartment. He played fiddle and we had a great time playing music together.

On Friday late afternoon, we began hearing the explosions of fireworks. It was very close and loud. Jim said it was probably coming from the central square area in front of the cathedral (an area that we passed through often). There was still daylight so we couldn’t really see the fireworks, but we could certainly hear them. That was followed by some up-tempo music, then a very loud, very long and colorful parade. Nancy thought maybe they had chosen the princess for Carnaval, but we really didn’t know for sure. The festivities lasted two or three hours.

We played Yahtzee every afternoon, then played music, then went out for gelato. They told me they weren’t very exciting and had a routine they followed. It was fine for me. I’m just glad to go somewhere like that. I liked that we were in the central historic district. I got a big dose of culture, language, music, and art, and I enjoyed it very much.

What activities do you enjoy with your friends? Ever played Mexican Train? Where in Mexico would you want to visit?