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PUERTO ESCONDIDO

DAY 42: PUERTO ESCONDIDO

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In the latest instalment of Andy and Rachael Do Adventurous Things, this morning we had our first surf class.
After some vigorous stretching (not quite vigorous enough if today’s sore bum is anything to go by), we spent the next half hour or so perfecting the perfect surfing stance and the manoeuvres required to get into it.
Essentially it’s like the burpees you do in the gym – from lying down to press up to squat to lunge. Except on a narrow board, on a wave. It actually wasn’t too difficult to master, but lest we forget this was on dry land…
After getting our stances sorted, we headed down to the beach to put the theory into practice. Getting up on the board in moving water wasn’t too bad, but that all went out of the window when we progressed from waves lapping at the shore to actual rolling ones – albeit much smaller than Zicatela’s recent nine-metre ones.
The great thing about our one-on-one class was that there’s absolutely no wimping out; when he yelled ‘stand up’, you stood up. Or at least tried. We saw lots of much bigger groups out in the water and, as well as spending just about five minutes demonstrating the stance on the beach, they didn’t seem to get much attention out in the water. We definitely chose well – Puerto Surf Lessons is the name.
Anyway, after a few face-first falls into the waves, we both managed to get to grips with surfing and not only caught waves but rode to the shore – standing up and everything. It was as exhilarating as you might imagine and even when everything started to ache we kept at it, seeking that thrill of doing it right again. They may have only been small waves, but I don’t think either of us expected to be standing and surfing properly after one morning.
Everything is quite painful today, but we will definitely be putting our skills to good use again – whether it’s here in Puerto or in Hawaii.
We spent the rest of the day being lazy by the pool/sea, reading and recovering those muscles which had been probably been used for the first time in their lives.
Dinner at Cafecito again before collapsing into bed for the kind of dead-weight sleep that can only be achieved by a day of hardcore exercise.
(PS no photos from the surfing, alas, because we didn’t take anything with us and also because no-one needs to see me in a rash-guard… The top pic is the beach where we surfed though!)

DAY 41: PUERTO ESCONDIDO

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Settling into the Puerto Escondido laidback lifestyle nicely; today’s most strenuous activity was a taxi ride along to one of the other beaches, Playa Carrizalillo.
This sheltered cove – reached by 177 steps – has less dramatic waves than Zicatela, making it the ideal spot for swimming and/or lazing around doing nothing.
Although the crystal-clear green water is more placid than the other beaches in this surf town, it’s still pretty deep and the waves are just strong enough to lift you up and deposit you a few metres further along the shore – which makes for an entertaining way to pass the afternoon.
Cooked dinner and had an early night – tomorrow we have our first surfing lesson and as we’re both still suffering slightly from the horses and bus-cramp, a good sleep seemed like a sensible option.

DAY 40: PUERTO ESCONDIDO

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We survived the fabled San Cristobal de las Casas overnight bus and woke up in Puerto Escondido bang on time at 7:30am this morning. I think we both managed a fair amount of sleep, but hobbled off the bus with bad backs and shoulders anyway – even though the seats are bigger than those on planes, I think anything would be uncomfortable for 13 hours straight, especially after our horse riding adventures.
Anyway, we got a cab from the bus station to a breakfast cafe which our hostel owner suggested and recovered there for a couple of hours before checking in at Hotelito Swiss Oasis. Officially a hostel, I think it’s the best place we’ve stayed yet in terms of how little you pay and how much you get… Pool, jacuzzi (excellent for saddle sore), enormous bed, hot shower (first in weeks!) and a bar that operates on the honour system, despite everything costing 15 pesos. I.e. 75p.
The hostel is also right opposite Playa Zicatela, which is one of the many beaches in Puerto Escondido. Zicatela is home of the Mexican ‘Pipeline’ and 12-metre waves – no wonder it’s routinely voted in the world’s best surf spots. All of this means it’s not ideal for normal swimming, but there are plenty more to choose from and it’s a pretty amazing spot to sit and observe.
We are already planning on extending our stay here by a few days – everyone who stays here seems to do it… It’s so quiet and peaceful and relatively non-touristy – add in the great weather and bargain low-season prices and it becomes even more appealing. The guy who was in our room before us was booked in for one week and stayed for six – not sure we’ll make that, but we’ve decided to skip Veracruz and just head from here to Oaxaca city and then on to Mexico City. Our host, an incredibly well-travelled Swiss lady, informs us that Veracruz is an industrial harbour and nothing amazing, and it also takes us quite out of the way… It was really only thrown in because it was part of an itinerary we were roughly basing the trip on. So an easy decision really, and hopefully a few more days here will mean we’re pro surfers by the time we leave…
Didn’t do much else today – and I imagine that will be much the same for the rest of our time here – just sat on the beach, did lengths in the pool and ate; lunch at Cafecito, which is a place of local legend and which was pretty good, and dinner at the excellently-named Beer and Fish Tacos which was fantastic and chipotle-smothered.