The extended Magic Family manages to coordinate an all together escape to the tip of Baja over Spring Break. San Jose California to San Jose Del Cabo is just a 3 hour flight and we have an off the grid bungalow and "Dojo" on the East Cape. Our paradise is where the desert meets the Sea of Cortez. It does not depend on maid service or television. The 360 degree mountain and ocean views are captivating along with the company of our many friends, family and tequila sunsets.
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| Zacatitos panoramic mountain view (photo by Alisha McCormack) |
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| Arrival margarita toast with John, Alisha and Art. |
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| A hammock sundowner for John |
We spend Sunday leisurely settling into a Baja routine. Although we don't have a formal Easter Sunday celebration, the sunrise is glorious and we have a Baja style Easter egg hunt for Molly and Sterling.
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| Sunrise over the East Cape (photo by Alisha McCormack) |
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| Baja style Easter egg hunt |
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| After the Easter egg scavenger hunt. |
In the heat of Sunday afternoon, our family begins their table painting projects. Art's "Gecko Lounge" is a spacious studio space by day and often a margarita lounge bar at sunset. It's a good place to escape the heat during the day and to be creative and there are inspiring and expansive desert mountain views beyond the open garage doors.
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| Alisha sketches out her Jack Rabbit Table. |
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| John sketches his Dragon Table design |
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| Marty's paints her Octopus Table |
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| Sterling joins in the painting. |
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| Surfer and cactus rock |
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| Gecko Lounge Painting afternoon |
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| Sterling paints a meditation bench |
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| Art's beach painting of Jackie |
Sunday evening's rose buttermilk sunset is psychedelic. The close to a perfect day.
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| Sunday's rose buttermilk sunset. |
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| Father and son on top of our casita's roof. (Two Sterlings) |
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| Baja sunset bliss. |
Monday May 7th - Jitsu training and a drive to La Fortuna - My husband Art has created an off the grid Dojo for MMA. He organized a Monday noon Jitsu training at his Cactus Corner Dojo. (Burros excluded.)
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| Art's Cactus Corner Dojo, Art, Molly and Sterling |
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| Art and grandson Sterling |
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| Art and granddaughter Molly |
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| Cactus Corner Dojo and Airbnb |
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| Cactus Corner Dojo |
After Jitsu training we take a drive up the east cape to La Fortuna, a tiny Ranchero community with a single simple restaurant where we enjoy an assortment of fresh fish, chicken and carne asada tacos.
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| The road to La Fortuna, East Cape |
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| Waiting for our Tacos, La Fortuna |
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| Molly, Cow Skull |
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| Molly and Dad dancing |
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| Peacefully inhaling the view and the quiet. |
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| The beach just south of La Fortuna. Easy surfing for Molly and Sterling. |
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| Molly |
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| Molly and Sterling |
Tuesday, May 8th- A day trip to Santiago and the Santa Rita Hot Springs.
We begin our 2 hour drive towards Santiago and the Santa Rita hot springs stopping first at the Tropic of Cancer.
We have a lovely lunch in Santiago at the Palomar Restaurant.
From there, we drive the dirt road paralleling the power lines up to the Santa Rita Hot Springs. There is small fee to pay the Ranchero who manages the Hot Springs and we sign the guest book before walking down the trail to the pristine river and hot springs.
We return home after a full day out. With limited internet, Alisha and John hurry to post photos of our day out. Sunsets and margaritas are followed by an Apples to Apples game by solar lighting at Cactus Corner. Great fun!
Wednesday May 9th - A day in Zacatitos.
Thursday - May 10th - Todos Santos and the San Jose Art Walk.
Alisha, Molly and I have a girls day together in Todos Santos. We have a lovely lunch and wander the many galleries and shops of Todos Santos.
I stop into the Benito Ortega sculpture gallery each time I visit Todos Santos. Benito is always happy to visit, explain his process and talk about his work. His sculptures, like mine, are lost wax cast.
Our time in Todos Santos is too short since we are scheduled to meet the "boys" in San Jose for the Thursday night art walk.
The various art and jewelry galleries compete for business. The Sanchez family apparently owns three (or more) of the jewelry shops in town. Their P.R. woman, wearing a skirt arrayed with small servings of wine, won John's and my immediate attention. The jewelry wasn't half bad either!
Every Thursday night during the season, Frank Arnold opens his gallery and home to the public. His white dog is always coiffed and FrankArnold serve small shots of tequila to those who choose to browse his gallery. Another gallery favorite or ours is the Ida Victoria Gallery tucked away on a side street. Dan and Laurie Hennig of Camp Climax Pottery from Boulder Creek California show their work at the Ida Victoria. Like us, they spend time in Baja during their off season and have set up a studio workshop in their Baja home.
After the art walk, Sterling and Alisha treat our family to dinner at Restaurant Guacamayas. Although there are plenty of Gringo's there, it's out of the tourist district and offers a more authentic dining experience. Aside from their strong margaritas, the house specialties are huge stuffed potatoes and a variety of "volcano bowls" overflowing with meats and vegetables.
Friday - May 10th - Kicking back in Zacatitos.
We enjoy a relaxed beach day in Zacatitos. Art takes Molly and Sterling Kayaking and we all take afternoon siestas in preparation for tonight's party. Max and Nancy are hosting birthday party for Raven and the entire community is invited.
We love our eclectic community. The open mike performances are awesome and so varied and Kenny Loggins, a friend of Jeff and Mary makes a surprise appearance. It is a wonderful party with great food, good friends and rocking music. Thank you Max and Nancy.
Saturday - May 11th - A Jack Rabbit Morning and the San Jose Organic Market
Alisha manages to take this remarkable photo of two Jack Rabbits playing tag on the road in front of Cactus Corner in Zacatitos
Today is our last full day in Baja and I drive everyone into San Jose to the Saturday Organic Farmers Market. Alisha's husband, Sterling questions why we are going to an organic market the day before we fly home? I explain that it's a small craft market combined with local food vendors, entertainment and games. We begin with lunch, choosing separately from the many independent food stalls. Unlike the food booths at the California Art and Wine Festivals, all the food here is delicious and mindfully prepared in small cooked to order quantities. We drink home brewed kombucha and slather our sopas and quesadillas in sauces of freshly pureed cilantro and basil. In eight years of eating here, I have never gotten sick.
We peruse the many tiny craft stalls at the show and we sit in the shade to listen to the entertainment. This "market" reminds me of the shows that I did some 40 years ago when the arts and crafts were real and not imported from China. I am blissfully happy to share this experience with my family.
For Molly and Sterling, the best part of the market were the inflatable balls. For 50 pesos each ($3.00) they had 30 minutes of rolling time on the grass. Alisha, father Sterling and John had a great time rolling the kids around. The day was hot and everyone was exhausted at the end of 30 minutes.
Still Saturday, May 11th - A Sunset Gathering of Friends at Punta Gorda.
Our good friend Jaime is a caretaker at a property with a patio overlooking Punta Gorda. This is a magical place to be at sunset and we are fortunate (blessed) to spend our last evening here. Both the setting and the light is magical....not to forget the awesome company and the music.
After walking on the beach; Jaime plays music, we dance, kids play and everyone enjoys the sunset from above.
After walking on the beach, Jaime plays music, we dance, kids cavort and everyone enjoys the sunset.
We must leave for the airport by noon and after a week of kids and sand there is much clean up to do. Bottles and cans need recycling, trash needs corralling, sheets and towels must be changed and bathrooms cleaned. Everyone pitches in and after cleaning the Cactus Casita, Molly poses proudly for "Airbnb" shots.
After cleaning up, there is time for the kids to say good by to Van Gogh, the one eared burro. They feed him our left over carrots and veggies from the refrigerator. Van Gogh allows the kids to sit on their backs.
We caravan to the airport in two cars since our vehicle won't hold all of us and our luggage. Friends are also dropping off guests and there is room for Art and John to ride in with them. Art hugs and kisses us all before returning to Zacatitos for a final week. He will need to shut down the houses for the season. Our return flight is on time and we touch down in San Jose California at 4:00 P.M.
John's adventure will continue tomorrow morning when he flies to Thailand for 3 weeks. He is a lucky young man!
We begin our 2 hour drive towards Santiago and the Santa Rita hot springs stopping first at the Tropic of Cancer.
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| The McCormack Family at the Tropic of Cancer |
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| Lunch at the Palomar Restaurant, Santiago |
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| A rare hamburger treat for Sterling |
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| Alisha and Sterling "squabbling." |
From there, we drive the dirt road paralleling the power lines up to the Santa Rita Hot Springs. There is small fee to pay the Ranchero who manages the Hot Springs and we sign the guest book before walking down the trail to the pristine river and hot springs.
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| The extended Magic Family upstream in the river. |
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| Marty and John, Santa Rita hot springs |
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| Marty and Alisha, Santa Rita hot springs |
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| Sterling soaking at the hot springs |
We return home after a full day out. With limited internet, Alisha and John hurry to post photos of our day out. Sunsets and margaritas are followed by an Apples to Apples game by solar lighting at Cactus Corner. Great fun!
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| Alisha and John hurry to post the days photos on Facebook and Instagram. |
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| Ocean view sunset and sundowners |
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| Mountain view sunset |
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| Zacatitos mountain sunset |
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| Fun and games |
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| Fun and games |
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| A game night of Apples to Apples by solar light |
Wednesday May 9th - A day in Zacatitos.
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| Van Gogh -Zacatitos' randy one eared male burro. |
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| Burro on the beach |
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| Burro on the beach |
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| The McCormack family on top of our casita's roof. |
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| Desert sunset |
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| A Marty Magic sunset |
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| Festive flags along a Todos Santos street. |
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| Todos Santos door |
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| Todos Santos sidewalk cafe |
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| Molly loves the fresh fish |
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| Molly and Marty - Lunch in Todos Santos |
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| Todos Santos photography gallery |
Alisha, Molly and I have a girls day together in Todos Santos. We have a lovely lunch and wander the many galleries and shops of Todos Santos.
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| Benito Ortega working in his courtyard studio |
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| Benito Ortega gallery. |
I stop into the Benito Ortega sculpture gallery each time I visit Todos Santos. Benito is always happy to visit, explain his process and talk about his work. His sculptures, like mine, are lost wax cast.
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| Alisha and Molly at the Jill Logan gallery |
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| Molly playing with Todos Santos puppies |
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| Todos Santos Gallery |
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| Graffiti art on a wall outside a graphic gallery |
Our time in Todos Santos is too short since we are scheduled to meet the "boys" in San Jose for the Thursday night art walk.
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| San Jose del Cabo on a Thursday night art walk. |
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| The Magic Family, San Jose del Cabo |
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| One of three Sanchez jewelry galleries in San Jose del Cabo |
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| Marty taking a glass of wine |
The various art and jewelry galleries compete for business. The Sanchez family apparently owns three (or more) of the jewelry shops in town. Their P.R. woman, wearing a skirt arrayed with small servings of wine, won John's and my immediate attention. The jewelry wasn't half bad either!
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| Art's favorite gallery is the Frank Arnold Gallery |
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| Frank Arnold studio |
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| Frank Arnold Gallery |
Every Thursday night during the season, Frank Arnold opens his gallery and home to the public. His white dog is always coiffed and FrankArnold serve small shots of tequila to those who choose to browse his gallery. Another gallery favorite or ours is the Ida Victoria Gallery tucked away on a side street. Dan and Laurie Hennig of Camp Climax Pottery from Boulder Creek California show their work at the Ida Victoria. Like us, they spend time in Baja during their off season and have set up a studio workshop in their Baja home.
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| Night view of the old town art district. |
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| Ida Victoria Gallery |
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| Good times at the San Jose Art Walk. |
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| Waiting for our table at the Guacamayas Restaurant |
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| John at Guacamayas |
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| Good food and good times at restaurant Guacamayas. |
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| A beach day in Zacatitos |
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| Art and Molly go kayaking |
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| The rock formations at the beach. |
We enjoy a relaxed beach day in Zacatitos. Art takes Molly and Sterling Kayaking and we all take afternoon siestas in preparation for tonight's party. Max and Nancy are hosting birthday party for Raven and the entire community is invited.
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| Guests watching the open mike performances. |
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| Marshall plays the guitar. |
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| Raven's birthday cake. |
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| Molly on the diving board. |
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| Kenny Loggins makes a guest appearance. |
Saturday - May 11th - A Jack Rabbit Morning and the San Jose Organic Market
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| A Jack Rabbit morning frolic |
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| A delicious lunch at the Saturday organic market. |
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| Alisha and Sterling |
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| Which would you prefer? |
Today is our last full day in Baja and I drive everyone into San Jose to the Saturday Organic Farmers Market. Alisha's husband, Sterling questions why we are going to an organic market the day before we fly home? I explain that it's a small craft market combined with local food vendors, entertainment and games. We begin with lunch, choosing separately from the many independent food stalls. Unlike the food booths at the California Art and Wine Festivals, all the food here is delicious and mindfully prepared in small cooked to order quantities. We drink home brewed kombucha and slather our sopas and quesadillas in sauces of freshly pureed cilantro and basil. In eight years of eating here, I have never gotten sick.
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| The art and craft vendors |
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| Alisha admires and buys a pair of earrings from this artist. |
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| Waiting for entertainment |
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| View from behind the stage entertainment. |
We peruse the many tiny craft stalls at the show and we sit in the shade to listen to the entertainment. This "market" reminds me of the shows that I did some 40 years ago when the arts and crafts were real and not imported from China. I am blissfully happy to share this experience with my family.
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| Alisha and John roll the kids around in these inflatable balls |
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| Molly in an inflatable ball |
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| Inflatable ball play |
For Molly and Sterling, the best part of the market were the inflatable balls. For 50 pesos each ($3.00) they had 30 minutes of rolling time on the grass. Alisha, father Sterling and John had a great time rolling the kids around. The day was hot and everyone was exhausted at the end of 30 minutes.
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| Produce at the organic market |
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| Marty at the organic market |
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| John buying a plant at the organic market |
Still Saturday, May 11th - A Sunset Gathering of Friends at Punta Gorda.
Our good friend Jaime is a caretaker at a property with a patio overlooking Punta Gorda. This is a magical place to be at sunset and we are fortunate (blessed) to spend our last evening here. Both the setting and the light is magical....not to forget the awesome company and the music.
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| Punta Gorda nearing sunset |
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| The McCormack family Punta Gorda |
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| John and Gina, Punta Gorda sunset |
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| Alisha and Marty, Punta Gorda sunset |
After walking on the beach; Jaime plays music, we dance, kids play and everyone enjoys the sunset from above.
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| Inhaling the sunset at Punta Gorda |
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| Jaime entertaining the kids |
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| The kids entertaining themselves |
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| Jamming Jamie |
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| Art and Molly dancing |
After walking on the beach, Jaime plays music, we dance, kids cavort and everyone enjoys the sunset.
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| Fading light over Punta Gorda after a perfect evening. |
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| The Cactus Corner Casita |
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| Molly posing in the CCC. |
After cleaning up, there is time for the kids to say good by to Van Gogh, the one eared burro. They feed him our left over carrots and veggies from the refrigerator. Van Gogh allows the kids to sit on their backs.
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| Molly and burro |
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| No, this is not Mary and Joseph |
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| Sterling and burro |
John's adventure will continue tomorrow morning when he flies to Thailand for 3 weeks. He is a lucky young man!
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