Mazatlan was wonderful.  It is the first time I've taken a trip anywhere and wanted to stay longer.  I usually am ready to go home before my time is up.  I did almost everything I wanted to do while I was there, but I would have enjoyed more time just hanging around the beach and walking the streets of downtown.

The hotel in which I stayed was right across the street from the beach.  Margaritas Hotel and Tennis Club is owned by the renowned Costa de Oro, but it costs considerably less.  It is a nice quiet place, and I enjoyed it. The arrow in the photo shows my room, and the same colored building next to the beach is the Costa de Oro.

While I was there, I rode all three types of taxis they have there, and both kinds of buses.  I rode a scooter for a couple of hours all over the city.  I walked for hours both in the tourist section of Mazatlan and downtown where the locals do much of their shopping.

The boy in the lower left corner of this photo followed me around the market for awhile after I gave him five pesos (about half a dollar US).  Each time I saw him, he gave me a thumbs up sign but wouldn't stand still long enough for a photograph.

I watched men dive off a cliff into six feet of water.  The water is so shallow that the divers must time their dive so that they splash into the top of a wave.  You can see that they have to jump out quite far from their platform.

Below is the stairway they use to reach their platform.  It is less than three feet wide and has no hand rails or side bars.  Going up is fine, but going down can be a bit daunting.

I attended a Mexican Fiesta with a live band, professional machete dancers and ladies who danced with candles balanced on their heads.  I sampled all kinds of new foods and enjoyed my favorite Mexican dish of enchiladas.  Unfortunately, the flash on my new camera isn't sufficient to capture the performances.

I sat next to the beach on the terrace of the hotel across the street and watched the sun set and the pelicans fly home each evening I was there.  I walked the beach and collected shells fully intact (something not possible at any beach I've ever seen here in the U.S.).

I sailed a catamaran one afternoon.  Next time I'll have to do it in the morning, since the water is calmer then.  The tiller was broken on this one, and so I had to lean way back to maneuver the rudder by hand.  I'll be sure to get a properly working boat next time.  Still, it was a pleasant hour.