Would I Return to Zihua?

I have had the opportunity to travel quite a bit in and around Mexico and I always find it is exceptional for my soul. The country calms my thoughts and recharges my spirit of travel. For all it's expected similarities, Mexico is incredibly diverse regionally. Chiapas is very different from Puebla, Oaxaca from Quintana Roo/Yucatan, and Cabo from Mexico City. Zihuatanejo was my first real trip back to the Pacific Coast since a few trips to Puerto Vallarta when I was young and reckless.  

My excitement was palpable for various reasons. For starters Mexico is always my jam. Second, it was three years since I returned from my trip to Colombia and the Yucatan (Cancun, Merida and Valladolid) and I was overdue to pull the rucksack from storage and strap it on. Finally, the last couple of years I had made plans for a couple of extended trips. One was through Africa and the second was a return to SE Asia, but each time, about a month before I was to leave, I cancelled with the excuse of saving extra money for a better trip "Next Year." Yes, I actually found myself saying I will do it "Next Year!" The idea of planning a trip was more exciting than actually taking the trip, and that is a very slippery slope indeed.

** As an aside, my elder mother was aging and her health was starting to fail. We lost her in January of 2024 and I take credence in the fact that I was here with her when she passed and not half way across the globe. Everything happens for a reason, right?

Anyways, extended trips can be a challenge at the best of times but it took this trip to Zihua to remind me that it are those challenges that create the inspiration and memories. These can be as simple as trying to find food late a night in a new place, dealing with sketchy cab drivers, hotels that say they do not have your reservation to booking train or bus tickets in a language you do not know. Somehow it always works out and when it is not totally positive you have to shrug your shoulders, curse, grab a beer or coffee and regroup. Why? Well because the universe balances everything, so what you might be struggling with today will be forgotten when something amazing unexpectedly occurs. The kindness of strangers, exception and cheap street food, an attempted conversation with a local who knows very little english that always ends with laughter. 

To that point, I am behind on my personal goal of 100 countries and the experiences I want to have. I will tell you what Zihua did for me, it has awakened the travel beast within me.

Now, back to the title of this post, "Would I Return to Zihua?" The short answer is no. However, If it came near an itinerary that I was planning (I do want to go to Acapulco) then yes, of course, but as my directed destination, no. 

A quick review; the beaches were great and the water was clean. The people were exceptional, the food was delicious and the beer was cold. The diving was meh but I adored being back in the water. I was fairly lazy on this trip and that was perfectly fine. Zihua is sold as just a small fishing village, but it is anything but that. The influx of Expats, both permanent and seasonal is obvious and not going to slow down, but I did find that there were a large number of LBH (Losers Back Home) that wandered around shitfaced and being obnoxious, usually insulting to Mexicans that were serving them. That will present its own issues in the future. 

These past 5 posts were not my best effort, but I will remedy that moving forward. I might even go back and rewrite them but for now, they are what they are. From an observational point of view, the world is rapidly changing and you need to at least keep some skin in the game. 

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it”

-- Ferris Bueller (if you don't know who this is, well get off of Tik Tok and get on Netflix

This one is for you Mucker. Travel well, Long live Rock!