Fortunately for us, the Ventura Isle Marina is owned by a larger company that also owns several other marinas throughout California, so we were able to get a slip at Cabrillo Isle marina through reciprocal moorage privileges. This eliminated the stress of trying to either find a place or figure out how we would hop around for the next ten days waiting for the start of the Baja Ha Ha. With this task out of the way, we settled down to dealing with the next big issue -- our motor. During my single-handed sail two months ago from Newport to Ventura, the motor died from what appeared to be a fuel problem. After a sleepless 30-hour sail, I finally limped in to Ventura after rigging up a McGyver-like system that bypassed the fuel tank using surgical tubing, duct tape, and a jerry can of diesel. Jeff spent most of Wednesday practicing some new form of yoga in the engine compartment and after several hours of troubleshooting, she finally came back to life. With this last major obstacle out of the way, it was obviously time for a beer.

We shoved off Thursday morning at 8:30 am headed for San Diego. It was a beautiful sunny day, unfortunately one without wind. The next 26 hours were spent motoring south on a windless, perfectly flat sea. Even with the lack of wind it was good to be out here again. I spent the day scrubbing Tramonto and doing bright work in the cockpit. By afternoon, we had settled into our watch schedule. Before leaving, one of Jeff's friends gave us a novel about a guy who sailed around the South Pacific with three women who shared him. It's a total trash novel but an easy read, and both of us had it finished before reaching San Diego. Friday morning as we were pulling in, there was heavy military activity so we were forced to alter course several times due to maneuvers in the area.

Surf's Up
With Tramonto safely tied into her slip, it was time to surf! Beth's Brother Mark had flown in for the weekend, and minutes after docking we had loaded the surfboards onto the car and were headed for Pacific Beach. Beth and Deb (another friend who flew down) were already sitting surf side waiting. Soon enough we were paddling out into the board breaking, body bruising beach break of Pacific Beach.

Saturday morning, Beth picked us up at the marina and we all headed off in search of a cheap board for her. Beth had been hit pretty hard by the "Widow Maker" (a notorious killer of a board that one of our friends purchased a few years ago that seems to have no less than 20 layers of glass on it) the day before, so we all thought it might not be a good idea to surf toady. After a few hours of wandering through garage sales and a swap meet with no luck, we gave in and decided to go "look" at a break Deb's friend had recommend called Garbage. We pulled up and looked over the cliff and couldn't resist surfing this perfect little reef break. Jeff and I paddled out into a very clean shoulder- to head-high set that produced some of the greatest rides of my limited surfing career.

Sad Goodbyes
Sunday came and went. And, unfortunately, it was time to say goodbye to Beth. So far, saying saying goodbye to friends has proven to be the most challenging part of this trip. Beth is as good as they come, which made this especially difficult.

Hola Mexico!
Wow, finally to today. What a great day! I finally really felt like a cruiser today — not a well organized one — but, hey, maybe tomorrow. We got up early and headed for the Mexican Fisheries Office to get our mandatory and very expensive fishing license. We hiked probably four miles to the office, filled out the paperwork, then realized we had forgotten the boat documentation. OOPS!

Well, while I was downtown, I could at least go to an exchange and get some Mexican money for the trip south. When we got to Thomas Cook, the guy tells me I could get a better rate if I hop on a trolley and go to the border. Why not? I locate the trolley and we're off to Mexico.

Tijuana is really an interesting place — not my first choice of town to visit — but certainly entertaining. While we were there, we figured we might as well wander. After several hours, we stumbled into an amazing market with some of the most incredible food. This turns out to be a major find! I love to cook and now I'm surrounded by what I love to cook best — new food. This market was overwhelming! There were dried crickets from Oaxaca, candy made from cactus, and honey-soaked sweet potatoes covered in bees. This is what this trip is about after all!

I ran from vendor to vendor trying everything I could. Finally, I ended up with two types of local cheeses, one a softer cheese with a flavor that is so fresh and earthy, and the other is a firmer more delicate cheese that will be great for quesadillas. Also, I came away with 250 grams of whole dried jumbo shrimp; the best I could gather is that they were generally served with a sauce of lime juice and chill peppers and were usually eaten with beers and 500 grams of Baha Rojo Mole. The choices of mole pastes was overwhelming —I spent 30 minutes trying to decide which one I wanted. I've never seen a mole paste before, and the sheer number of them was overwhelming.

With finds in hand, I rushed for the border but not before being sidetracked by new little-known goodies. We passed a fruit vendor who was selling little fruit that resembled miniature papaya for only 10 pesos. How could you pass that up? We got about 10 of them and started digging in. The initial flavor was very pleasant… but the aftertaste was strangely similar to Maalox. After asking around a bit, we were able to at least put a name to this odd little fruit: Oboe. We made it across the border and back to the boat, where we ended the night with a dinner of chicken mole and cheese.

After today I'm anxious to get going and explore Mexico's regional cuisines.

October 24, 2002
Going to Mexico seems like it should be an easy thing. If you're driving or walking across the border, it takes mere minutes. Sailing there, on the other hand, is a different game. You must have mandatory fishing licenses for the boat, the dinghy, and each crew member. There are tourist visas that you can obtain in San Diego. But you can't pay for them in the U.S., and once you arrive in Mexico, you still have to stand in line in your first Mexico port of call along with everyone else who didn't bother to get their visas. There are also import/export permits in case you need boat parts. Gathering all of this requires tons of legwork-literally miles of walking. None of these offices take cash, personal check, or credit card, which turns it into a multi-step process.

Step 1: Go to the office to fill out the paper work and get a price
Step 2: Leave to go to the nearest bank to get a cashier's check
Step 3: Return to the permit office, pay, receive document
Step 4: Go the next office to fill out the paper work
… and repeat Steps 1-4 as often as necessary.

It certainly gives you the opportunity to take in the city sites. Besides getting the necessary boat documents, the days have been filled with boat chores. All the stainless steel on the boat has been polished and the varnish on the rails has been touched up. Tramonto is looking good and, although none of this will make us sail faster or safer, the trip must be done with a modicum of style!