Renaissance Fair Part 2

Everyone who knows me probably knows that I love a good Renaissance Fair.  This year was fabulous, complete with jousting, fire performance, armored combat, and homemade cream soda.  But the overall highlight had to be the ax and knife throwing place.  

Turns out, I'm awesome at ax throwing (which was very invigorating), but knife throwing is a bit harder.  My friend may have hit the target more than me when it came to the knives.  So, I immediately insisted we wait in line so I could reclaim my title.

What can I say? I'm not competitive at all when it comes to medieval weapons.

Also, my favorite overheard lines are from when we went to use the restroom, which had about ten stalls in it.

Mom: "Are you in the bathroom?"

Daughter (who's pretty young): "Yes."

Mom: "Do you need help?"

Daughter: "Yes."

Mom: "Where are you?"

Daughter: "In the bathroom."

Me, dying of laughter, internally thinks: Aren't we all...aren't we all...

Library Humor

Because I work in a library and someone put this on our mirror in the back room.

"Self Check Out"

You know you spend too much time at the library if you get this.

Mision San Francisco Javier, Loreto

"We're in a desert, but you can see that this is the perfect example of how you can transform your
reality.  It' s a challenge, but it's worth it."  
-Guide who's name I'm thinking was Moses, but can't really remember...

While in Loreto, we took a tour to Mision San Francisco Javier.  The mission is located up in the mountains, about 30 minutes outside of Loreto.  The drive itself was really beautiful, as you get wonderful views of the rugged mountains and desert scenery.

The mission was built back in the 1700s (I'm blanking on the exact year) and has architectural influences from the Jesuits and Dominicans.  The Jesuits had brought several olive trees over and planted them, so there's a grove of olive trees behind the mission.  In that grove is the largest olive tree I've ever seen, though to be fair my experience is pretty limited.  Basically, it's just a beautiful mission and the surrounding town is wonderfully quaint.  There's a little restaurant near the mission that offers authentic food.  They had delicious homemade cheese and a mango jam that the memory of makes my mouth water.

 

My point is, if you're looking for something to do that's outside the water activities that Loreto offers, this is the stop I would recommend.

Loreto, Mexico

About three months ago I got a that urge to travel...and impulsively jumped on the bandwagon of  using my parents timeshare.  It turns out that their timeshare is only good for a couple cities in Mexico and we ended up with flights to Loreto, a little city that we knew nothing about.

Despite my excitement to be leaving the country, I put off researching Loreto until a week before. All the sites and blogs that came up were super positive, so I was pretty stoked so for this trip.  I mean, beautiful beaches, whales, whale sharks (a personal life goal for me), sea lions, dolphins, snorkeling, culture, and good food.  What could go wrong?

Well, it turns out that most of those blogs and sites are people who were paid by the resorts (actually, there's one main, giant resort) to come and stay for free, then write about Loreto.  Now, I'm not saying those blogs are lying, but they don't give great information.  So, here's some unbiased information about Loreto, and it will be particularly useful for people who are staying at THE resort (you know the one I'm talking about, the giant huge resort with five pools).

1. Don't go in the summer.  Really, don't go in the summer.  Those whales, whale sharks, sea lions, and dolphins you were promised?  Yeah, turns out there's such a thing as migration.  If you want to go to Loreto and fulfill your life dream by seeing whale sharks, go during whale season (approximately January to April).  Also, it's SO HOT in the summer.  Like you'll want to hide in your hotel room because there's air conditioning in there hot.  Of course, all that being said, we still saw an octopus while snorkeling, so that was AWESOME.
   
2. If you're staying at THE resort, be aware that it is very far from the actual city of Loreto.  Like 30-40 minute drive far.  If you want to go into town, you'll have to both hire someone to take you to town and also someone to bring you back.  There is no walking.  This means that you're going to spend a good chunk of your time at the resort.  Now, the bright side of this is that they have a fantastic buffet (hello my old friend, the international buffet) and also there are little shows at 8:00 PM so you'll still get some entertainment, etc.  

   

   That weird moment when the performer steals your phone and
   takes a selfie with a stranger

3. Speaking of how difficult it is to leave the resort, let's just recognize that if you are not specifically leaving on some kind of excursion, it really is next to impossible to get out of that valley/bay.  Rent kayaks/paddle boards - can't leave the bay.  Hikes - don't leave the valley.  Of course, the valley/bay area is beautiful.
   
4. Before going, try to set up to do an activity every day, or at least have a game plan for what activities you want to do and then make sure to set them up ASAP when you land.  Actually, even if you have stuff set up, it's a good idea to double check and make sure that it is actually set up, so check with the resort/hotel staff to ensure it is going to happen.  We had a pretty not so great experience where we had set up a kayaking/snorkeling tour before we went and we didn't double check it when we got there...and day of, found out we weren't on the list.  That being said, there are a TON of really cool things to do.  Some favorites were snorkeling/diving, a boat island tour,and  a tour of Mision San Francisco Javier.  You can also rent kayaks, paddle boards, and snorkeling gear at THE resort, but be aware that they won't let you leave the bay.
   
5. Go with good friends and/or family.  There are some trips that you can take by yourself and still have a really enjoyable, fantastic time.  I'd say this is not one of those.  There's so much down time, even while you're out doing a boat tour or driving to the Mision that you'll want people there to talk and laugh with.  Even the activities are more fun with people you like around.  Yes, you can paddle board by yourself, but it's way more fun to have people there who will laugh when you fall off while trying to do yoga or a headstand on the paddle board.  I'm just saying that my own trip to Loreto wouldn't have been nearly as enjoyable without people I cared for there.

   

   Because I was a sea lion in another life

   

   You can't see it, but there's sweat dripping down my back...it was
   about 105 degrees that day.

   

   See?  Aren't we cute? Much better to travel with people you love.

6. Lastly, take a camera, but don't rely on the camera.  This is probably the piece of advice I wish I could give every tourist for every destination.  There are going to be amazing views that you need your camera for.  Take it and take the pictures.  BUT, don't rely on your camera to make memories for you.  YOU have to make memories for yourself.  Take a picture of those beautiful sunsets.  Then sit in those comfy rocking chairs and actually enjoy that sunset, because there's never going to be another sunset just like that one.
   

Pictures that Sum Up working in a Public Library

1.  Mismatched slippers are actually not the weirdest thing that I've seen worn...yesterday there was a guy wearing four pairs of sunglasses (two on his head, one over his eyes, and a fourth on string around his neck - and yes, I also wish I was faster and sneakier at taking pictures).

2.  Instruments...and other odds and ends.  Students are always bringing in (and playing) their instruments, dioramas, art projects, and whatever other projects teachers can think up.  To be fair, sometimes adults bring in weird things too.  I've seen people bring huge backpacking packs filled with food, stuffed animals (weird, right?), and we've had several homeless patrons try to bring in their shopping carts.

3.  Patrons taking off their shoes...and sometimes other clothing items that make you go, "Sir, you must wear pants in the library.  No, we don't have a sign saying that's a rule, but I'm one hundred percent certain that it is definitely a rule."

4.  Children who are able to spend hours reading in strange and unusual positions.

5.  Animals...but really.  I burst out laughing when I read the article about the woman who tried to take a peacock onto a flight as a "therapy animal" because I hear the same thing about a plethora of species every day.  I've never had a peacock, though... #lifegoals

6.  Random notes put in books, dvds, cds, and even just on the shelves and walls.  One time we had a group of girls come through and leave 32 STICKY NOTES all over the library.  It was actually pretty adorable, because they had filled them with cute uplifting notes.  Kids: 1 Librarians:0

7.  Clothes...you'd be shocked how many people walk into the library in a costume, even when it's  not Halloween.  This picture is from a snowy day on December, because why tell your kid, "Put on your coat" when you can say, "Put on your cloak".

"I don't understand that reference"

Who doesn't want to come home on their birthday to having their room redecorated with their favorite Supernatural character?

And because, what are friends for, if not to encourage unhealthy obsessions?

Happy birthday to the girl who will run a 10K last minute,  ride a dinosaur, drink unhealthily large sodas, go to the Highland Games, run a mud run, watch jousting at the Ren Faire, and play late night tennis with me.  We always laugh together and I couldn't ask for a better friend.

#SQUASH??  #KerfuffleshouldbeKerfluffle #Let'sTravelTogether

Thoughts on Tennis Players

A few weeks ago  my sister hosted the twelfth annual McTournament (it might have been sixth or seventh...it's really hard to remember...).  I was tossed into a ring of insane tennis matches and came to the conclusion that there are four types of tennis players.

The Fun Tennis Player:

This is the person who has no idea what they're doing, but you love playing with them regardless because it's a laugh fest.

The Good Tennis Player

These are the players that I know I can hang with and if it's a good day, I can win too!

The Really Good Tennis Player

These people got mad skills.  They'll make me work up a sweat.  I probably won't win the match, but I'll make them work for it.

The Scary Good Tennis Player

These people walk onto the court with the goal of making you weep copiously as you try to hide your face behind your racket.  These are the kind of people that even when they mess up, they STILL win.  And they look good doing it, too.  Which is totally unfair.

Here's to being runner up AGAIN.  At least we got beat by a girl who definitely qualified as scary good.