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We spent a quiet Christmas on the boat in Mazatlan's Old Harbor. Steaks and pecan pie. It was lovely. The following day I met up with a highschool friend that came in on a cruise ship. Hadn't seen her in 25+ years and she was my best friend 9th and 10th grades. It was very cool! Our families spent the morning and afternoon together until they had to go back to their ship. It was such a magical two days that something just had to happen to rain on our parade...
 

I got a "Kiki" for Christmas. What is a Kiki?

When I was in high school, my best friend for the first several years was a girl named Wendy Katheryn Flanagan. Everyone called her Kiki. She lived in my neighborhood and we went to Arts Magnet High School at Booker T. Washington in Dallas, Texas. We were in the Theatre Cluster.

Yes, I know. I've not blogged in a while.

We arrived in Mazatlan a week ago and have been running around crazily trying to get Christmas preparations done and get back into some kind of routine. Since Jim and the kids went to visit Grandpa in Arizona over Thanksgiving, we just haven't seemed to be able to get back into the swing of school and chores... mainly because it's no fun. The travelling from Santa Rosalia to Mazatlan has made everyone tired and we're not really motivated.

After staying two nights in Topo we decided that we really like the town. Because there is very little tourism here, the ambiance is more Mexican than not. It is quiet, clean and friendly. The bays are gorgeous. We intend to do more water exploring when we return again.

After two and a half years living in Mexico, my Spanish should ROCK... but it still needs lots of help. Unfortunately, I spend more time with Canadians and Americans than I do with Mexicans. I am ashamed of this, but I suppose it's true that when in a foreign country that those people flock together that speak the same language.

For a mere 16 pesos each, you can take an old school bus from Topolobampo to Los Mochis, a city 30 minutes away. Since the kids had abandoned schoolwork since their trip to Arizona, Jim and left them behind in the marina to catch up on school while we toured the vast city life of Los Mochis. It was delightful!

Okay... Day 1  is a little disappointing, but I'm sure it's because we can't find the information we need. As with anything, spending more time in Topolobampo we might discover it's little secrets which make it a fun little town... or not.

We arrived early in the morning at the mouth of the Topolobampo channel. We couldn't see a thing... thick fog. It was cold and wet. Even the dog and cat were cold. I brought up a blanket after my 2am-4am watch. Jim was on watch and I stayed in the cockpit to help out if needed. I went down below to make some hot cocoa and when I returned my blanket had been snatched by the dog and cat.

Before reaching Topolobampo. we stayed in one of our favorite anchorages - Bahia Salina. It's located on the east side of Carmen Island nearest to Loreto or Escondido on the Baja side. We've anchored here several times in the past two years. The beach is phenomenal... white sand, clear water, great fishing or fish watching.

 We finally pulled the umbilical cord from Santa Rosalia... our dear pueblo and dear friends. It was hard, but it had to be done. After two months there and in a marina (a cheap marina) we felt it was time to move along.

We sailed down to Santa Domingo, from there to San Juanico and from there to Bahia Salina... SAILED! It was so nice! We did over 8+ knots for over 3 hours straight at one point. The hull speed is only 7.5... we were flying!