Yesterday I met up with Ed and Pat for a late breakfast to decide where we were going to ride for the day (Pat is on my right, Ed to my left). Ed and I both served in VP-17 back in the early 90s. Ed and Pat both served together at some point in their careers and have remained friends, which must be quite some time if gauged by the bantering and fighting between the two! Although I was dubbed "princess" for the day (ya'll all know how high maintenance I can be!), I felt like I was waiting on a couple of women it took them so long to get themselves together for the day!With passports in hand, we decided that margaritas in Mexico were in order, so we headed south for the border. We rode Hwy 94 to Tecate where we passed through the border and rode Hwy 5 to Ensenada. The road was two-lane and windy through hills dotted with resorts, shacks, open, arid fields and vineyards. The scenery, road conditions and driving skills of fellow motorists reminded me a lot of Crete, Greece except without the random goat herds crossing the road! It got hairy in a few parts where we had to pass huge rigs with loads that were obviously a major cause of the poor road conditions. After about 50 miles of full-on attention riding, we were ready for tasty beverages and snackage when we rolled into Ensenada.
I don't remember the name of the restaurant we stopped in to and had a great margarita (with freshly squeezed limes) and fajitas, but we left the bikes parked there under the watchful eye of the proprietor as we strolled around the town. We ended up at infamous Hussong's Cantina, birthplace of the margarita! Legend has it that the salted tequila concoction was invented in 1941 by a bartender at Hussong's for Margarita Henkel, the daughter of the German ambassador to Mexico at the time (and consequently named after her!). The cantina's sawdust covered wooden floors and portrait laden walls has been a popular destination for locals and tourists alike since it was established in its present location in 1892.
After spending the afternoon walking around and processing our tasty beverages, we jumped back on the bikes and headed north on Hwy 1 back towards the border. We were thankful for the weak drinks and the time we allotted to walk around as we were stopped at a military checkpoint on the way back. After showing proper documentation and a cursory search of our bikes (I was the only one with saddlebags), we were sent on our way. As you can see in the picture, the setting sun over the Pacific ocean provided a scenic backdrop as we road the coast all the way to Tijuana.
Unlike the border crossing at Tecate, Tijuana was a circus! The picture came out blurry, but you can get a feel for the carnival like atmosphere that greets you on the Mexican side of the USA/Mexico border. The line was at least a quarter mile long, but with Ed's new air horn, we blended in with the chaos of the border crossing as we split traffic and made our way to the front of the line. In no time at all, we were back on American soil and headed back to Coronado. I can't believe summer is already about over and fall will be in full swing by the time I get back from Asia. Although only a day-trip, I had been wanting to ride my bike down into Mexico since I got here so I'm glad I got the chance to finally go.
Today will be a lazy day. Whit & Kathie are coming over and we're just going to hang out on Coronado and at the beach. I just had my cup of coffee and am heading out the door for my morning run. Have a great weekend!
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