Another California Adventure! – Baja Mexico & Mexican Riviera aboard the Miracle & Panorama (with pics) – October 2021.

[Jamman54]

Here are some more views of an empty Lido Marketplace….

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, it’s not completely empty. This gentleman insisted on having Patti take his picture. Welcome to the review, whoever you are!

 

 

Here is one of several beverage stations…..

 

 

They have just delivered a roast pork loin to the carving station…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[SenatorsFan]

Happy Thanksgiving to you and Patti, Jeff. I hope you have a great day! 🥰🍗

[Jamman54]

The salad bar is fully stocked for tonight’s Lido Marketplace dinner…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Patti heads back to the Tides Bar….

 

 

Looking up to Decks 11 and up……

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Patti made her way back to the cabin, and a short time later we went up to the Lido Marketplace for some dinner. Here are the Good Eats and Deli menus…..

 

 

 

Patti had a turkey wrap from the deli, and some salmon cakes from the buffet. I had the Korean BBQ sandwich from the deli, and some fried chicken from the buffet. For dessert we both had cones from Swirls…..

 

 

 

Afterwards, we decided to head down to the Lobby Bar for some drinks. Patti likes the way they make her Chocolate Mocha Getaways here. I’ll be having some double rum and colas. Patch is still keeping an eye on things…..

 

 

We watched the ever changing Dreamscapes for a while. They sure are beautiful!

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

After a couple of drinks, Patti decides to head back to the cabin. I head over to the Pig & Anchor for a few beers before I head back to the cabin. On her way back to the cabin she passes an empty Limelight Lounge. There are no Comedy shows planned for here tonight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is tonight’s towel creature. Goodnight!

 

 

Coming up next: We tour Mazatlan and dinner at Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse!

[sanmarcosman]

Happy Turkey Day. Did you taste garlic in the fried chicken? We did and in the fried rice served in the lido, too. That was weird. KFC has 11 herbs and spices and garlic is not one 🙂 

[Hogladyrider]

@Jamman54...100% agree with the drinks at the Lobby Bar as the best.  I'm a Chocolate Getaway Gal as well, they make the best at that bar.

 

We are also huge fans of the beauty of the Dreamscape....it is a wonderful addition to Carnival ships.

 

If you like swirls you would LOVE the ice cream selections on HAL....both hard and soft selections.

[Jamman54]

1 hour ago, sanmarcosman said:

Happy Turkey Day. Did you taste garlic in the fried chicken? We did and in the fried rice served in the lido, too. That was weird. KFC has 11 herbs and spices and garlic is not one 🙂 

 

Happy Thanksgiving to you as well. Actually, the fried chicken that night was pretty good. No hint of garlic that I can remember. 

[Jamman54]

Day # 19  (October 27^th)  -  Mazatlan  9:30 am – 6 pm.

 

We were up at 7 am to a beautiful day. The seas are calm as we head towards Mazatlan. Here is a view from the aft cam on the television…..

 

 

Here are today’s “Fun Times”…..

 

 

 

We get up and head to the Ocean Plaza for some breakfast. The ship has arrived early, and we are docked by 8:30 am. Our tour doesn’t leave until 10 am, so we relax, and Patti puts together two bags of laundry to send out. We, along with Jim and Pat, are doing a Carnival tour today:

 

City, Malecon, Cliff Divers & Scenic Harbor Cruise

Starting at:

$69.99 / Adult (ages 13 and over)

$59.99 / Child (ages 12 and under)

Mazatlan, Mexico

Moderate Activity Level

No Minimum Age

5.5 hours

 

DETAILS:

Discover Mazatlán by Sea: Embark on a scenic cruise observing the majestic offshore islands and one of the world’s tallest lighthouses. Admire the local wildlife, including pelicans, cormorants, frigate birds and sea lions (when in season).

 

Discover Mazatlán by Land: Board your bus for an informative, narrated tour of Old and New Mazatlán, as your bus stops for picture opportunities.

 

Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception: Drive by this towering cathedral, which sits right in the center of Old Town and across the main city square, Plazuela de la Republica.

 

Playa Norte Coastline: Drive by Playa Norte to see where local fishermen sell their catch of the day.

 

Malecón: Drive along one of the longest seafront walkways in the world.

 

Golden Zone: After the excitement of cliff diving, stroll in Zona Dorada, or Golden Zone, where you can browse for souvenirs, jewelry, and gifts amidst palm lined beaches and luxury resorts.

 

New Mazatlán: As you drive onto the Marina Yacht Club bridges, you are taken to New Mazatlán with modern condominium high-rises, the convention center, and huge malls.

 

Cliff Divers: Stop and watch divers jump from a lookout point at the Taboada Ocean front Esplanade.

 

Las Changueras: (The Shrimp Ladies): Observe how these ladies sell their fresh daily wares, mostly shrimp, right on the sidewalk of the street for a full block.

 

What’s Included: 

Select open bar (margaritas, tequila sunrise and beer), soda and water.

 

NOTES:

Accessibility: Tour is ambulatory accessible; guests must be able to take a few steps (up/down) and walk short distances. Collapsible wheelchair can be stored.

 

What to Bring: Cameras.

 

Good to Know: In order to prevent overcrowding, the sequence of stops may vary by tour.

 

We are off the ship at 9:45 am…..

 

 

Our tour busses are waiting for us…..

 

 

We are leaving the Panorama…..

 

 

Once outside the terminal, there will be plenty of Pulmonia taxis waiting to take you anywhere you want to go…..

 

 

 

The bus takes us to a nearby pier for the first part of our tour, the scenic harbor cruise…..

 

 

Here are Jim, Pat, Patti, and I aboard the boat that is going to take us around the harbor and into the Sea of Cortez. We have to wear our life jackets, but we don’t have to fasten the straps…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

There will be an open bar the entire time we are on board…..

 

 

 

 

Here we are with our first beers of the day…..

 

 

 

Here are some views as we sail out of the harbor…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Here are some views of the El Faro Lighthouse. It is the highest lighthouse in the world…..

 

 

 

 

You can see people walking up the winding road to the top…..

 

 

 

Our boat gets up close to look at the caves in the base of El Faro…..

 

 

 

 

 

Looking up the rock face towards the top…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The boat takes us to the other side of El Faro. If you look closely up at the top you can see the glass observation platform…..

 

 

 

 

Coming around the corner you can see the Malecon and the Golden Zone in the distance…..

 

 

 

We are leaving El Faro behind and heading out on the Sea of Cortez…..

 

 

We are going to head out to those white rocks which look a little bit like icebergs…

 

 

 

How appropriate that a boat named the Titanik passes us by…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Our boat is exploring the white rocks and some of the caves…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

These guys kept our cups filled the entire time…..

 

 

 

 

As we head back to the pier, and our waiting bus, Jim shows us the proper way to do the YMCA dance…..

 

 

 

 

 

We are back at the pier now, and you can see the Panorama in the background…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[MistyRo76]

On 11/4/2021 at 12:56 PM, Jamman54 said:

Day # 1 (October 9^th)  -  California here we come again!!!

 

We were up at 3 am to get ready for our 8:40 am flight from Newark (EWR) to Los Angeles (LAX). We packed up the car and then posed for our traditional “leaving the house” picture….

 

 

Just getting started on this one...excited to read another of your reviews! And you guys never seem to age! 🙂 Looking great! 

 

[Jamman54]

5 minutes ago, MistyRo76 said:

 

 

Glad you found your way here! Yep, we're not getting older, we're getting better! 

[Saint Greg]

6 minutes ago, MistyRo76 said:

Just getting started on this one...excited to read another of your reviews! And you guys never seem to age! 🙂 Looking great! 

 

Have you looked at their old albums?

[Jamman54]

Back on the bus and soon we are traveling down the Malecon…..

 

 

 

 

 

We are going to stop to watch the cliff divers, though they really just jumping from a platform. Still, very dangerous though…..

 

 

We are there just in time to watch the first diver…..

 

 

 

 

Once he comes back he solicits tips from the crowd that is watching…..

 

 

The second diver is on his way and completes his dive safely…..

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Back on the bus, we head over to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. We get about a half hour to explore here…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some views from inside the Cathedral…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Hogladyrider]

@Jamman54..wow the inside of that cathedral is beautiful!

[Jamman54]

Here are a few more outside views of the Cathedral before we head back to the bus…..

 

 

 

 

 

We are now back on the Malecon heading towards the Golden Zone…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

We have arrived in the Golden Zone so we are let off to walk around, do some shopping, have a bite to eat, etc. We have to be back on the bus in 50 minutes. Patti and I just walk around and browse the shops…..

 

 

 

 

 

We are back on the bus for the final time, as we are now heading back to the ship…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have made it back to the terminal…..

 

 

We enjoyed this excursion. Plenty of time was given at each stop to see what you wanted to see. Our guide Irma did a great job describing all of the things we were going to see. We would recommend this excursion to those who want an overall city tour.

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

After getting off the bus, Patti and I checked out a couple places and then decided to head back to the ship…..

 

 

 

 

 

We took the next tram out to the ship. Nobody checked our ID’s, ships card or anything. Very lax, security wise…..

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Once back on board, Patti and I went to the deli for a bite to eat. She had a turkey wrap, and I had a couple of chili dogs. Just enough to tide us over until the Steakhouse at 7:30!

 

We then met up with Jim and Pat at the Havana Pool area. I’m enjoying the pool and the hot tub…..

 

 

 

We watched as HAL’s Koningsdam sailed from Mazatlan. She had been docked in front of us…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jim, Pat, and I are enjoying some Angry Balls…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

It’s getting close to sailing time, so Patti goes up on the whirlpool to take pictures….

 

 

Here are some late arrivals on the last trams back to the ship…..

 

 

 

Here are a few shots taken from the Havana Pool area…..

 

 

 

 

 

The Panorama pushes away from the pier…..

 

 

 

We have to go that way to leave the harbor…..

 

 

To be continued….