Oops! Emergency Room Visit in La Paz (Everyone is okay!)

The Malecon in La Paz is a wonderful tiled sidewalk all along the bay. There are statues along the way and it is a wonderful place to gather for locals and tourists alike, it really is a social center for this city. Also along the Malecon are a playground and a delicious ice cream shop. To take advantage of all the Malecon has to offer, we planned a playdate with the crews of Riki Tiki Tavi and our other kid boat friends on Nomi (we met them way back in Morro Bay and Santa Barbara).

The kids were gleefully running ahead, as usual. Odin decided to try a trick and jump off a little curb on the side of the Malecon, but unfortunately he didn't stick the landing and came down hard, right on his chin. He split it wide open, and it was clear that we needed to go to the hospital to have it taken care of. He was scared, upset and hurt, but I think mostly sad about missing the playdate and planned ice cream with his friends. Tor and I didn't know where to go, hospitals aren't usually on our list of tourist sites. Fortunately we were close to a taxi stand, so while Sara (from Riki Tiki Tavi) and I tended to Odin (note to self: carry first aid supplies and be prepared like Sara!), Tor ran down to get us a taxi. They came to pick us up and the taxi driver whisked us off to the hospital. He parked the car and got out to escort us in and help us navigate the emergency room. The receptionist left her post and took Odin and me in hand and with perfect English she stayed with us and shepherded us through the whole process. I could have communicated and we would have been okay, but not having to think about the language and just focus on helping Odin feel less scared, was invaluable. The caring staff put in three stitches and with nary a piece of paperwork nor any charge, we were free to go. The taxi driver waited for us and dropped us back off where we started 63 minutes after he picked us up. Amazing care, amazingly fast, and we were able to get back to our play and ice cream date. The US could really take note. Odin is healing up quickly and well, and though he wasn't so sure about the beard-like bandage at first, he is starting to relish it a bit. The other great thing about it is how many people have a shared experience and have showed them their scars. Yet another way to make connections.

We are leaving La Paz today for some more time in the islands. We have spent enough money and purchased enough food to last for weeks. We will be out of internet and cell range for most of the time, but we will update our position on our Farkwar site with our Iridium Go satellite phone, so keep an eye on that.

The ice cream date happened! Thanks for all the love and support friends!

Pretty handsome with a beard, no?

We ran out of toothpaste...

...and clean underwear for the boys. Being the self-sufficient cruisers we are we could have been creative and made due with baking soda and peppermint tea for our teeth and actually hand washed our clothes, but La Paz was so tantalizingly close that we came back to civilization for a little top up on provisions and internet access.

We spent a very lovely ten days or so cruising Isla Ispiritu Santo and Isla Partida with our friends on Riki Tiki Tavi. We all had such a wonderful time with Sara, Pete, Liam and Neli. What a terrific family to spend 10 days bumming around those spectacular islands with. Much swimming, hiking, sea cave exploration, playmobil playing, meal sharing, card gaming, beach combing and playing, and even swimming with sea lions was done. After a brief stop in La Paz our families will have to part ways, we will head back north into the Sea of Cortez and Riki Tiki Tavi will be heading over to the mainland. It's tough to know our buddy boating is coming to an end for now, but I know we will catch up with each other in the future, our families have bonded.

The view through the portlight, it's amazing how fun a bucket
of water can be for two five year olds!

A hike with our friends from Riki Tiki Tavi as well as
Hoku Pa'a from Playa Bonanza on Isla Ispiritu Santo.
Check out that cactus man!

Swimming at Caleta Partida

Kid contingent making brownies aboard Yare

A different beach at Caleta Partida

Making faces in the pancake batter bowl

Group photo from a group hike at Ensenada Grande on Isla Partida

Buddies!

Heading out to swim with the sea lions at Los Islotes. Only
Odin made it in the water, but the intrepid crew
of Riki Tiki Tavi all made it in to swim with them.

Grandparents in La Paz

Grandma Cheryl and Grandpa Ralph came to visit us in La Paz for a week, and it was the most fun! They rented a house that all 6 of us could stay in, so we parked the boat at a marina and made the most of life on land. The house even had a pool. What could be better for Lars and Odin, Grandparents and a pool? Perfection.

We walked all over town sightseeing, ate copious amounts of delicious seafood, had a couple of social events with our sailing friends, took a day trip out on the boat, rented a van to drive to another town on the Pacific Side of the Baja Peninsula (Todos Santos) and in general just enjoyed our time together. It couldn't have been more fun.

Thank you for coming Mom and Ralph, you made our time here in La Paz magnificent!

Strolling on the Malecon in La Paz

Ice Cream at La Fuente, a must if in La Paz!

Checking out the Nativity Scene at Bravo Street Market

La Paz Zocalo fountain, checking out the model of the
Mushroom Rock (El Hongo) from Balandra Bay.  We
took Mom and Ralph to see the real one in Balandra
Bay on our boat and were able to show them a bit
of our cruising lifestyle.

Lars and Odin were great hosts and made sure Grandma
and Grandpa had all the toys to play with on our day trip to
Balandra Bay. They worked hard to inflate the SUP!

Ralph was a happy guy to use the SUP!

Odin and Lars graciously offered to help Tor recoil our stern line.
They hopped in the dingy and gleefully let it drift back across
Balandra Bay. 

Pulling the dinghy and our children back in. Grandpa Ralph
paddled out to keep them company.

Shore excursion with Grandma!

Grandma in the cockpit of Yare (it was so great to show them a
little of our cruising life!)

Headed back to La Paz, Balandra Bay was great!

Happy hour at the rental house with our sailing friends from
Konami, Anjuli and Hoku Pa'a

Pool Party! with the crew of Riki Tiki Tavi.

It was a little chilly, the adults mostly stayed out of the water,
but it didn't deter the kids. They were in the water for close
to two hours!

A little post swimming screen time

Happy hour on the roof top patio

Driving to Todos Santos, it's been awhile since we've been in a car!

Gorgeous Pacific Beach near Todos Santos

La Paz Fun

We've been having a terrific time in La Paz, but our time here is coming to a close. At least for now. Tuesday we are going to head out into the islands nearby for the next week or so with our friends on Riki Tiki Tavi. From there we don't know our plans, but we will figure them out as we go!

Here are some of our favorite pictures from our time in La Paz.

Liam took Odin sailing in their sailing dinghy. They had great
fun together, but the wind piped up and things got quite wet
and exciting. They call it the gale riding day and joke about
that being the "sailor's life." 

We had a weather day at anchor when it was just too windy to row
to shore. We made the best of it and had a fun weather day, here the
boys are making playdough. We also watched Willy Wonka and the
Chocolate Factory and popped popcorn. Perfect day (except
that the rocking boat made Tor feel slightly sea sick all day...).

Legos are always a hit. The boys and Tor made a garden for me,
including an International truck with a dump bed holding a
load of compost. Surprisingly, it made me feel quite homesick.

A Boat kid excursion on the Malecon. The youngest crew of
three different boats.

Beautiful Sunset

Using a borrowed spinnaker pole from Riki Tiki Tavi to set up a
swing on our foredeck.

Speaking of swinging, Odin can propel himself by pumping,
no more pushing needed!

Liam's 10th birthday party! After the stick broke into
3 pieces, the kids went after the pinata with bare hands.
Great birthday party!

Birthday boy opening his gifts.

Lars really wants pesos, particularly in bill form. He and Odin
came up with a plan to make art to sell to earn money (where
did they get the entrepreneurial spirit?). Odin wants to sell
it to the public, Lars just wants to sell it to Mama and Papa,
for large numbers of pesos!

Christmas Fun

La Paz was a terrific place to celebrate Christmas. Though we really missed family and friends back home, there was no shortage of merriment. We also didn't miss the Seattle weather. In La Paz it was about 80 degrees and sunny. Pretty awesome.

Odin and Lars woke up earlier than usual (surprise!) and were very excited that Santa not only found us in Mexico, but he also found our chimney. How he got those presents down the 3 inch diameter pipe, we couldn't figure out. Must be magic. Especially those big Lego sets. Total magic.

Presents were few, but very well appreciated. It was so nice for it to be low key and simple holiday. Lego building and calls home were on the agenda for most of the day until we headed over to Riki Tiki Tavi for Christmas dinner. What an absolute treat. Sara and Pete outdid themselves with the food, everything was delicious. We even got to eat turkey! They have perfected the art of cooking a large turkey in a small boat oven, they call it a puzzle turkey, and we can attest that it works! Delicious! Odin even had 3 helpings of turkey. Mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, cranberries, veggies, and KALE SALAD! What a treat. Then, pumpkin pie for dessert to top it all off? Perfect Christmas dinner.

The food was amazing, but best of all was the company. The kids all play together really well and genuinely enjoy each other, and the adults do too. We let the kids go free range on the candy for the day and things got pretty wild down below while the grownups were in the cockpit, but it was all fun and so much fun to witness. We didn't get back to our boat until 10:00pm, really late for our boys, but we didn't even have melt downs.

That was one epic Christmas, thank you so much Riki Tiki Tavi!

Christmas morning present opening in bed, cozy!

Dawn Watch a book about a girl doing the dawn watch with her father on
a sailboat doing an overnight passage. Seemed appropriate for this Christmas

Lego building morning!

The helicopter has a winch, Lars is a happy guy!

Odin ensuring his truck is at just the right angle to be photographed. 

The puzzle turkey aboard Riki Tiki Tavi!

Tor and Liam playing a never ending game of Chinese Checkers. Maybe
it had to do with an incomplete understanding of the rules written in Spanish?

Neli, Lars and Odin playing with playmobil. Horses Galore!

Riki Tiki Tavi even has a swingset on the foredeck!

Dinner! It was SO delicious!

Look at that delicious meal!