Mazatlan

 Getting to Mexico for spring break was challenging, but worth it.

 Below is the view from the condo we stayed at - not quite as good from inside the room, but close. That plaza beneath turned into the busiest gathering area in town in the evenings - from vendors to clown shows to cliff divers with torches to marching bands. All for the Mexican tourists - thousands of them!

 This pool was great fun. Elsa was the only kid around so we had the place to ourselves. Looks like you could fall right off the edge and you almost could...

 We hiked up to a lighthouse one day and looked back down on Mazatlan. Our condo is on the other side of that farther hill on the left. Elsa was quite a trouper. We walked her miles every day and she only asked for a few piggy back rides.

 We spent a few days doing this:

 ...which inevitably evolved into this:

 Selling shells and rocks to Daddy to practice bartering. Wonder where in the world she got that idea? Definitely not from the folks selling their wares on the beaches...

 Who needs a bucket and shovel when you have an empty beer bottle to play with? Believe me, that one was a tough sell. The man trying to sell the bucket was a little disgusted with my logic. Or perhaps my Spanish was unclear?

 We stuck to the locals' beaches instead of the hotel ones. Joe made a buddy named Oscar. We did attract a bit of attention with our pasty white skin. One thing we noticed, and appreciated, was the lack of devices for folks to distract themselves with. The kids played and the adults chatted. With each other. What a concept!

 This is Elsa the sand monster.

 We could get used to this life...