The Juarez side of Mazatlan (Sunday - May 16, 2010)

We were told by friends that we should come to this side of town... but did we listen? No. Fools are we! Every Sunday, the side of town in Mazatlan they call ‘Juarez’ is packed full of local people and stands with veggies, fruit, meat, clothes, hair doo-dads, candy... you name it... it’s in Juarez!

Where the marinas are located, it’s a good 35 minute Cerritos Juarez bus ride at a cost of 6 pesos... less than 50 cents. Once there, it is an array of colors and smells and people. The prices are what you expect in Mexico... cheap! Let me give you an example: the ‘shrimp ladies’ that sell shrimp near the touristy Old Mazatlan Mercado (which is known as the historical/old side of Mexico) charge 100 pesos for one kilo of shrimp. On the Juarez Sunday-side of town, the cost is 50 pesos. $4 dollars for 2 lbs. of shrimp???!!! CHEAP! #3 screwdrivers were a mere 16 pesos each (a mere $1.30) whereas prices are much higher on the other side of downtown. And the list goes on!

Carolyne and I left the men-folk back at the boat and took Lori and Amy from ‘Third Day’ with us on our journey to local-land. We only saw a handful of gringos the entire morning, an indication to me that we have made a wonderful discovery! There was a lot of staring as we navigated through the crowds and giggles when I spoke Spanish.

I felt like I was in real Mexico for the first time in ages!