Tag Archives: Mexico

Cozumel – Shore Visit From 2008 Cruise

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This was a cruise we did back in 2008 so I may be a bit fuzzy on the details but at least I still have the photos!  We were on Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas doing a 7 day RT Miami cruise to Labadee, Grand Cayman, Ocho Rios & Cozumel.

I do remember vividly trying to get someone to share a taxi to the Mayan ruins at San Gervasio and literally everyone from the ship just wanted to go to the beach!  So annoying!  We had to pay for the taxi ourselves, visit the ruins and had the taxi drop us at a museum afterwards.

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I really wanted to buy this but the museum wasn’t selling!

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Outside the museum was this cool exhibit of mini-ruins.

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I can’t believe we did such silly touristy things!

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We hung around the shops for awhile, this was by far the most tourist port we had been to!

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And yet another Margaritaville!

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This time I let the man talk me into a silly photo with the macaws.

100_9869 100_9874 100_9875Back to the ship one last time!

White-throated Magpie-jay (Calocitta formosa)

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The White-throated Magpie-jay (Calocitta formosa) is a large Central American species of magpie-jay. It ranges in Pacific-slope thorn forest from Jalisco, Mexico to Guanacaste, Costa Rica. Magpie-jays are noisy, gregarious birds, often traveling in easy-to-find flocks, mobbing their observers.

The first 2 pics are taken in Huatulco, last 2 were near Granada, Nicaragua.

IMG_4992a IMG_4991a IMG_5203a IMG_5204aGiven their large range from southern Mexico to mid Costa Rica, the chances are good to see these beauties.  On our cruise, we saw them in Huatulco and Granada, near San Juan del Sur.  In some resorts in Costa Rica, apparently they seek out tourists for free food (see video below).

Magpie-jay

LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS BIRD

Wikipedia

Birdlife

CornellLab

VIDEOS

Cookies aren’t the best thing to be offering to wild birds but I was really surprised at how aggressive this guy was after seeing the shy birds in Huatulco and Nicaragua.

Nice close up of a more wild bird, you also hear the call.

 

Orange-breasted Bunting (Passerina leclancherii)

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The Orange-breasted Bunting (Passerina leclancherii) is a species of bird in the Cardinalidae family.

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It is endemic to Mexico, where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It is more abundant in second growth than in undisturbed forest.  We found them easily on our shore excursion in Huatulco.  Oaxaca is also popular according to Xeno-canto.

Bunting HuatulcoLEARN MORE ABOUT THIS BIRD

Wikipedia

Birdlife

Xeno-canto

VIDEO

Orange-fronted Conure (Eupsittula canicularis)

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The Orange-fronted Parakeet or Orange-fronted Conure (Eupsittula canicularis), also known as the Half-moon Conure, is a medium-sized parrot which is a resident from western Mexico to Costa Rica.

The first photo was taken in Huatulco and the 2nd photo which is in better light shows 2 released Orange-fronted Conures hanging around the still captive birds at El Manatial Sanctuary near Puntarenas, Costa Rica.

IMG_4851IMG_5656aOrange-fronted Conures have a large range down the Pacific coastal strip between roughly Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to Puntarenas, Costa Rica.  The black dot is Huatulco which is a popular cruise ship port where we saw them.

OFC HuatulcoLEARN MORE ABOUT ORANGE-FRONTED CONURES

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

CornellLab

VIDEO

 

Bird Watching Shore Excursion In Huatulco

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We were up bright and early to join the Princess shore excursion for bird watching in Huatulco.  Princess no longer offers this excursion (they do have an eco-tour though) so I will show you a similar one from Holland America as it is likely the ships use the same tour operators.

Those interested in wildlife and tropical bird watching will discover a rich diversity in the estuary of the Copalita River and/or in a small mangrove and park and the unspoiled low-growth caducifolia jungle beauty, including cedar, mahogany, ficus, mocambos and almond. You will likely spy several of the region’s 227 bird species including orioles, woodpeckers, egrets, seagulls, falcons, sparrow hawks, parrots and eight varieties of hummingbirds. You will likely also see lizards, iguanas, deer, armadillos and squirrels. Enjoy a beverage while you take some great photos. During the journey, your guide will offer several stops to observe and comment. The total walking distance covered in this tour is approximately one mile.

The black line below indicates where the ship docks.  I wasn’t sure where they took us but we didn’t drive more than 15 minutes so I am reasonably sure it was in that big green area to the left!

HuatulcoBird List with images for Huatulco

Here are some of the birds we saw on just a 4 hour trip.  Our first stop gave us a nice look out over the bay and some Orange-fronted Parakeets who popped by to check us out.

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Here’s a bright Altamira Oriole.IMG_4871a IMG_4874

We then drove to another place, might have been near the university.

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Another Altamira Oriole.

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Citreoline Trogon

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Golden-cheeked Woodpecker

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Orange-breasted Bunting – what a beautiful little bird!

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Here’s a stunning Black-throated Magpie Jay!

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Shots not clear enough for me to find them in the book.  Any help appreciated!

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Black Vulture

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Blue-winged Teals

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If anyone knows those birds I missed, please comment below!  We were brought back to the small market just outside the wharf for some shopping.  I am still kicking myself for not buying this.  It was out of my budget, don’t remember how much but I now regret not buying it.

IMG_5077 IMG_5081 IMG_5075 IMG_5082 IMG_5080 IMG_5084 IMG_5085That evening on the ship was a formal night but we didn’t have formal clothes so stuck to the buffet.  I did get my fair share of free champagne though!  As with most cruise ships, there is some kind of show each night.  They are all included so why not check them out!

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Mexico City & Acapulco Before The Cruise

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Since the embarkation port was so far away from Australia, I wanted to allow plenty of buffer time in case of any flight delays. This is a good idea when you have something unmissable such as a cruise.  I figured 3 days would be enough.  We flew into Mexico City, did a morning trip to Teotihuacan by public bus, then picked up our bags and took a nice intercity bus to Acapulco.

We stayed at the Hampton Inn Mexico City Centro Historico as they had a special deal at the time (April 2011).  We arrived really late at night and took an official taxi and left very early in the morning so didn’t spend much time here but it was nice.  We’d gladly come back here again.

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This is the bus station to Teotihuacan, it’s the obvious one with the pyramid logo.  Coincidentally, another blogger (Point Me to the Plane) who has been there more recently posted precise directions.

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We saw this contraption with acrobats as we got off the bus.  Not sure if they are always there or if it was for something special.

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We spent a couple hours at the pyramids, then it got too hot and we didn’t want to hang around.  We also had to get a bus to Acapulco.

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Back in Mexico City, scenes from around the main plaza as we walked to the Metro station.

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The bus to Acapulco was really nice and comfortable.  We didn’t book in advance, just rocked up and asked for the next deluxe bus to Acapulco.  It was around $30 pp.

IMG_4717 IMG_4718 IMG_4719In Acapulco, we stayed at the Crowne Plaza on points and got a nice upgrade to a corner suite with fantastic views!

IMG_4769 IMG_4768 IMG_4720 IMG_4721 IMG_4722 IMG_4726 IMG_4787 IMG_4772 IMG_4786 IMG_4794 IMG_4800Since we had a couple of days, we saw most of the tourist sights – cliff divers, market, small zoo and the beach of course.

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I had to laugh seeing an Australian Budgie on a Mexican phone booth!  It’s not like Mexico doesn’t have cool parrots of their own!

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We got around using the local buses.

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Finally our ship came in.

IMG_4806a IMG_4810 IMG_4816We eagerly boarded the beautiful Coral Princess and set off to explore the ship.  I was very pleasantly surprised to see we had been given a free upgrade to a balcony cabin after only paying for the cheapest cabin.  We later found out it was because the ship was only around 2/3 full but we were thrilled to have a balcony on a Panama Canal cruise!

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They had a nice Easter egg display as we boarded on Easter Sunday!

IMG_4826 IMG_4827We went up to the top deck to wave goodbye to Acapulco and anticipate adventures to come!

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2014 Parrot Cruise: Western Caribbean

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The annual Parrot Lovers Cruise is back with an exciting new itinerary!  It will be leaving from Galveston which makes it very easy to get there using miles as Americans will only require a domestic award.  Early bird rates are available until 7 Feb so don’t miss out!

Read my series of posts about Belize to get an idea of what you can see on this cruise.

Here is the itinerary which includes several ports where you can see wild parrots:

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 Please note:

  • Prices are valid while availability lasts. Please contact Carol for current rates.
  • Prices are per person based on double occupancy. Single or 3rd/4th person occupancy is available, contact Carol for pricing.
  • Prices quoted include a donation to the World Parrot Trust and conference expenses (on-board seminars and activities).
  • Bookings must be made through Carol’s Travel Time in order for passengers to be able to participate in Parrot Lover’s Cruise seminars and acitivities.
  • Cost of transfers are $32 per person one way. Must arrive before 12:30PM and depart after 12 noon.

– See more at: http://www.parrotloverscruise.com/cruise_info.html#sthash.8OrHC1qo.dpuf