Acapulco, Birds, and Cruisin' the Ocean

One of the best things about being on this cruise is sleeping in every single day. The last time I slept in for several days in a row was during summer break in high school, before college & gainful employment came along. These past couple of weeks have been wonderful; the sunlight wakes me up, I order freshly made coffee, hang out on the balcony until I'm really awake, and then shower and join everyone else for the day's adventuring.

Yesterday I hung out in Acapulco for a bit, but found that I couldn't keep my feet on land for very long; Amber and Clara saw signs for a Jungle Tour, which is, in fact, a boat tour. We had to catch a taxi to get up to the boat, but it was worth every penny (apparently cab fares are negotiable in Mexico; luckily Amber knew about that beforehand). The tour took us around most of the Laguna Coyuca, and even visited a bird island!

I love birds. A lot.

It was like I was a little kid again, exploring new lands and finding heretofore unknown of creatures. There were storks there- real storks! I also liked the white and black birds (Clara said that they were Avocets), that looked a little like flamingos (to me, at least). Every bird has more beauty and grace in a single feather than I do in my entire body. When the time came to catch a cab back to the ship, I was sad to go. We made it back with only a few minutes to spare, running on board with the last of the straggling passengers.

Today I'm just hanging out on deck, catching up on the news, reading the 6^th Dark Tower book, Song of Susannah, and staring out at the water. The clarity and utter blueness of the ocean here continues to amaze me; growing up in Chicago did not prepare me for seeing such vast quantities of beautiful blueness. I can't help but compare this to the Chicago River, with its fish gone belly up, trash collecting at the banks, and normal greenish hue. I love Chicago, and don't want to live anywhere else (and I LOVE dyeing the river green for St. Patrick's Day), but I would also love to see the pollution cleaned up. More on this later; for now, at least, the book calls to me.