By: Jordan Luscier
From the white sandy beaches to the perfect blend of Mexican culture, Cabo San Lucas was, by far, the most beautiful place I had ever been to. It was May when my best friend and I departed from the airport in Seattle, Washington, to go to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, at 5 a.m. This trip was for both her and me to just relax before we started summer classes, and since her family normally travel to Cabo every year, they invited me to come this time.
Normally, when they would invite me, I would be busy with my high school finals. Waking up at about 3 a.m. was not my idea of a good time, but I knew right when our plane landed in Cabo that all of my problems and worries would just disappear for a couple of days.
The flight from Seattle to Cabo San Lucas took about four hours. It flew by fast because both my best friend and I slept the whole time, and when we woke up and looked out the plane window, all we could see was paradise.
Once we finally got through customs, we got on the van that would then take us to our hotel. As we were driving, we passed many different landscapes. There were both desert landscapes, as well as tropical ocean landscapes, and the weather was perfect.
The temperature was in the upper 80s with a nice, cool breeze since our hotel was located next to the ocean. It was neither a dry heat nor a humid heat ― it was right in the middle, which was perfect.
As we arrived at our hotel, my jaw hit the floor because the building was absolutely breathtaking and overlooked the ocean. As I looked to my left and my right, I saw white sand, jet-skis and parasailers who were having the time of their lives. At that point, I knew exactly what I wanted to do during this vacation. We went to our room, got our bathing suits on and hit the beach.
The next couple of days were filled with amazing food, good people and lots of adventure. The second day of our vacation, we woke up and walked down to the beach to rent jet skis. That was the first time I had ever been on one, and it was nothing but pure thrill.
Throughout the trip, we explored the culture and got a taste of the ethnic food. The food was vibrant and colorful, and the smells were outrageous. I was nervous about the food in Mexico since I am a very picky eater, but when I ate this food, I immediately fell in love with it.
The restaurants where we ate dinner were so authentic and filled with the Mexican culture. One restaurant we went to was called “Mi Casa,” and it had a stand in the middle of the restaurant where a woman was making homemade tortillas. I ordered tamales surtidos that came in a simple platter of four tamales representing different regions of Mexico: shrimp, beef, chicken and pork. This was my first time eating tamales, and it was truly amazing to be able to step foot in these restaurants and experience the little things about this country.
On the very last day of our stay, we headed to the beach and saw a tent that offered parasail tours, which is where a boat tows two people wearing a specially designed parachute/canopy over the water. My best friend and I knew from the beginning of our trip that we wanted to try this, so on the last day that is exactly what we did.
We signed up for the tour, and 15 minutes later, we were out on a boat getting ready to take flight. Both my best friend and I live for adventure, and this was so spontaneous, which made the experience that much better.
Once we were strapped in with the harness, the parasail guide asked us to stand on the rear of the boat. As we were standing there, the boat started to move, and we slowly started to float over the water. It was a little scary at first, but once we were all the way up, the view was amazing. On our tour, we saw the beautiful Cabo San Lucas horizon, a green sea turtle and a manta ray. It was such an incredible experience.
Going to Cabo San Lucas was the best vacation I have ever been on. I had experienced an entirely new culture, and I saw how individuals live and how simple their lives were. The people in Cabo were happy people who did not need much to be content. This was inspiring to see because here in the U.S., it is not necessarily a simple life for a lot of people. No matter who you are, the men and women who live in Cabo will do everything they can to make you feel welcome, and that will always stay with me.
The people, scenery, food and culture truly made this vacation that much more memorable, and I cannot wait to go back next spring.
