Los Cabos Magazine - Issue 8

Stress Relief South of the Border - Cabo San Lucas Style

By Karen Trepane - Article from Los Cabos Magazine - Issue #8

Incessant phone ringing. Constant interruptions. I just need to finish this memo. It’s urgent. My boss is practically waiting by the door with his running shoes on so he can hand carry it over to the execs in the building across campus. It’s all about lookin’ good you know. Never mind the employee who actually conducts the studies, compiles the research and summarizes it all, very eloquently and succinctly I might add, onto one page so the boss looks good!

Everyone needs me, now. ASAP. Can’t wait until tomorrow or next week or even one more hour, for goodness sake. It’s gotta be now. Only an hour of productivity for every two hours of work. Don’t they realize that I have to meet this deadline that’s less than an hour away? “Karen, you have a call on line one,” my assistant states over the intercom.
“Take a message please,” I reply in the most congenial voice I can muster. I wonder if she can actually hear my jaw clenching and my vocal cords tightening as I speak. A moment goes by; I think she’s gone. A short sigh of relief.
“She says it’s urgent.”
My anxiety flares like California road rage. It’s an uncontrollable feeling that makes me want to yank the phone out of the wall and heave my computer out the window to it’s shattering death. “Thank you,” I lie and take the call.
“This is Karen, may I help you?”
“KT, what are you doing this weekend?”
“Working because I can’t get a single thing done during working hours. Is there anyone on the planet who actually earns a salary for a 40 hour work week anymore?”
She chuckles, “Let’s get out of here and go to Cabo San Lucas for the weekend.”
“Leigh, there’s just no way. I have to get this memo done in under an hour and…”
“Just pack your bags and I’ll pick you up at lunchtime tomorrow,” she interrupts.
“Leigh,” I whine.
“Karen, just do it. You know you need a vacation. You’ve been overly stressed since you took that job and I’ve just planned the perfect weekend!”

From the minute the plane touch-ed down onto Mexican soil, my ex-pectations of a fabulous weekend filled with R&R escalated. Leigh, a frequent traveler to Los Cabos made all the arrangements for our lodging, rental car and spa time (upon my desperate request). My only responsibilities were to bring cash and leave my complaining at home.

Our drive to the hotel was proving that this weekend, our girls’ weekend, was just what the doctor ordered. The heat and humidity provided immediate therapy for my sun-deprived skin. The coastal landscape, alternating between rocky cliffs and sandy dunes, proved to be an ocular feast of textures. The dramatic contrasts provided a spectacular site for sore eyes, especially my sore eyes. Eyes strained by constantly staring at an over-productive computer screen—eyes trained not to squint in the unnatural, indoor, ultraviolet rays. The caramel colored sand merging into the energetic, multi-colored Sea of Cortez reminded me of refreshing whipped cream atop my favorite iced coffee drink. Waves in every imaginable shade of blue pounded on the shore as if competing for my attention. On the other side of the four-lane highway there was desolation; a baroness that reminded me of how challenging life might be without all of our modern-day conveniences.

And there it was…amidst the sand and sea, tucked away behind the attended gates and stucco walls, was a paradise filled with king palms, soothing fountains, Hacienda-style architecture with stone walkways leading to condos and cabanas. Birds I had never seen before chirped in harmony as if to welcome our arrival. Waiting eagerly to fulfill our every need and desire, a uniformed staff, who more than made up for our lack of bilingual abilities, welcomed us to the splendor of Casa del Mar Golf Resort and Spa.

Once our chores were completed—hanging our clothes and picking out “my bed” and “my side of the vanity” with a playful game of “dibs”; and by the way, the only activity that would require me lifting my delicate, worn out fingers for the rest of the weekend—we suited up and headed for the pool.

Aaaahhhh, Day one: Relaxing by the pool

And what a pool it was. Multi-shaded blue tile lined the bottom and sides of this massive, amoeba shaped structure while slides, swim-up bars and shallow landings made it impossible for sunbathers to go back inside. Five minutes after coating our bodies with sunscreen Leigh shouts, “Okay, I’m ready for a Margarita, con (with) Don Julio, of course,” her favorite tequila.

“Yo tambien (me too),” I responded, practicing my pathetic Spanish. And with that, we bellied up to the bar.

After the “wind-down” period, and a good philosophizing session with my best girl friend, we ventured out to find food. Good food. We headed west and landed at Villa Serena, a Mexican restaurant just outside of downtown Cabo San Lucas. Hidden in a trailer park of all places, we entered the giant palapa and sat down to experience a lovely meal set against a backdrop of a warm, star-filled, balmy evening.

Fresh air caressed our skin as we sipped on margaritas and nibbled on warm, homemade, tortilla chips with fresh, spicy salsa. The night was so black, but delicate, metal lanterns hung at every corner shining star-like streams of light throughout the restaurant.

We had just finished giving the waiter our order when another restaurant employee happily strolled over to welcome us. Little did we know, at the time, that it was the owner of the restaurant. He was most concerned that we enjoyed our experience while we were there. The dinner was delicious but my favorite part of it came at the end when we ordered Mexican coffee. I had never seen, or tasted, anything like it.

The waiter rolled over his “coffee cart” and proceeded to give a performance to the whole restaurant. Making Mexican coffee was his art. Making the customers happy was his career. He was into it! First he sugared the rims of the glasses. Then he added the alcohol and set the blue and clear hand blown glasses afire. He eventually added the coffee and fresh whipping cream, not like anything you’ve tasted before, to make the delicacy complete. It was one of those desserts you see one table have and, because it looks so amazing and there’s so much of a fuss made, you must also have it. The whole restaurant was watching our reaction to this concoction in the making. It was a perfect end to our perfectly relaxing day.

Day 2: A day at the spa
Imagine this. Imagine having a two-hour block of time just for yourself. No boss, no timelines, no kids, no husband/wife, just time for you. Imagine walking into an establishment where no words are needed because the caretakers know who you are and what you’ve come for. Imagine being silently escorted to your private room. Imagine lying face down on a table prepared just for you with all your favorite remedies waiting to satisfy your desire for relaxation. Imagine dozing off for a short nap while a pair of warm hands rub every knot, ache and pain completely out of your body. Imagine, with eyes closed now, that your body’s experiencing all kinds of textures; soft, rough, sharp, dull, warm, cool, prickly, wrapped, unwrapped, and then warm again. Imagine the sensations you would experience. Imagine how rejuvenated and refreshed you might feel after…a day at the spa.

Leigh and I had actually scheduled two sessions a piece at the spa. The first day was aromatherapy for me and a deep tissue sports massage for Leigh and afterwards a nice desert wrap for us both. I lay down on the massage table donned in a pair of paper thongs (okay, maybe I’m new to this whole scene but paper thongs? I’d never seen anything like it). Serene, native music played in the background. The lighting was soft. A pair of warm hands touched my feet. They massaged and massaged. I began to feel my whole body let go of the stress and tension I had built up over the past few months. We left the spa feeling like a million bucks…and ready for an evening of partying.

Dressed in our casual sundresses, we headed for one of the oldest, hippest clubs in town. El Squid Roe is a renowned hotspot, why, just driving downtown you can’t help but see it. With a barn-like building and neon lights inside and out, its loud and energetic atmosphere is more than a simple invitation inside.

We entered. Immediately we were approached by an attractive waitperson with a tray full of jello shooters. Her sales technique was so successful that we could hardly say no to her. “It’s good,” she professes. “You’ll like it. This one is just for you; here, take it.” Well, who am I to pass up a new experience. I grew up on Jello and haven’t had it since I lived with my parents. How’d she know orange was my favorite flavor? Down the hatch it went. The empty shooter cups went back on the tray and off we walked. The music was loud, the people were happy, and everybody was dancing with everybody.
What I couldn’t get over was that there were people of all ages having the time of their lives. The music was a little of everything: disco, rock, techno, oldies, movie themes, you name it; it was played. But there wasn’t one song that didn’t keep the people dancing. And just when our make-up had melted and our hair had fallen, we de-cided it was time to go. Looking back, the place was nowhere near closing down, even at 1:00 am. Although I was no different from all those people, my body was screaming for sleep. So we drove back to the hotel.

Day 3: Our last day in Cabo San Lucas

Even though we missed the sunrise, and early morning breakfast, it felt good just to sleep in and wake up slowly to crashing waves instead of an alarm clock. I was finally relaxed. I had forgotten about my real life and was a Lady of Leisure, at least for a little while longer.

We suited up and headed for the beach. Leigh and I walked along the beach, no one in sight I might mention, and found a palapa with hammocks underneath them…empty hammocks. Aaaaah, I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed the feeling of rocking in a hammock. I’m not sure how long we were there, but just listening to the crashing of the waves lulled me into a hypnotic state of relaxation that eventually lead to a bit more much needed sleep.

It was now late afternoon and feeling renewed, we cruised into town. We were on a mission to find some bargains. Shopping in Cabo was next on our lazily planned agenda. We must have walked a marathon distance looking for who knows what! But whatever we didn’t know we were looking for ended up in bags and back at our hotel room. Pictures from local artists, ironwork, “typical” souvenirs and hand blown glass were just some of the beautiful treasures we found.

Well, it was time. Time to pack up and get ready for the trip back to reality. With bags packed, and stuffed...barely zippable, we loaded them into the car and took one last trip into town. We landed at a little spot called Billygan's Island where the dining area is beachfront and the tables are in the sand.

Right next door at a place called Mango Deck, we enjoyed chicken tacos and mango margaritas while sitting high above ringside. Yes, we had front row seats to a volunteer boxing match. Where else in North America can you find boxing for beer? Two customers and compadres went head to head complete with Hawaiian swim trunks, boxing gloves and a sombrero-wearing Official. Winner takes all…all the beer he can drink that is.

Cabo San Lucas has it all and most of all, it has space and time for those go-getters that need to get away. Monday morning came too quickly but all I had to do was close my eyes to find my way back to Paradise.

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