Hola, From Mazatlan!

**Photo-John** · 05-18-2010, 08:04 PM

I'm currently in Mazatlan, on what might be my first real vacation ever. I have no mountain bike, ski or photo agenda. Well, I do have a couple of cameras with me. But that's not what this is about

**Photo-John** · 05-18-2010, 08:09 PM

Mexican food is my absolute favorite. And since moving to Salt Lake City, I have been sorely deprived. I'm doing my best to make up for it while I'm here. Yesterday I had 6 tacos - 3 al pastor (pork) and 3 steak. Today I had shrimp and marlin tacos. I have no complaints. Oh yeah - for breakfast we bought fresh oysters on the beach, right outside our hotel. No complaints.

**Liz** · 05-18-2010, 08:09 PM

Congratulations on taking a real vacation John! I'm happy for you - and I hope you have a fantastic time.

Great shots. I love that first one! Wow! She is braver that I would be.........

Liz

**Photo-John** · 05-18-2010, 08:11 PM

Thanks for the quick reply, Liz!

She wasn't so brave. She was pretty squirmy, which the iguana didn't respond to well. But after a bit of coaxing we managed to get this shot. And it is a good one

**armando_m** · 05-18-2010, 08:23 PM

Good for you!

Enjoy the food ! and the location! That is one place not so far from Guadalajara, but I have never been there

I do like tostadas with Marlin and mayonnaise , quite typical from Mazatlan

and a few ice cold Pacifico beers

in the small bottle

**Photo-John** · 05-18-2010, 08:25 PM

I posted a few days ago on the EVIL & Micro Four Thirds Cameras forum because I decided to leave my digital SLR at home and only bring the Olympus E-PL1 Pen camera. I thought this trip would be a great test of the quality and versatility of the Micro Four Thirds camera. Plus, I also thought it would be nice to travel without a big camera bag. And it is. Very nice.

Besides the E-PL1, I also brought the brand new Sony Cybershot TX5 - Sony's first waterproof camera. All of the photos I've posted here were taken with the Sony. Today I took it in the surf and the pool and it still works

**racingpinarello** · 05-19-2010, 12:50 AM

Happy Vacation John...

Looks like a good start to a great vacation. I will be curious to see how the 4/3 system works for you. I've always been curious about it.

You can never go wrong with mexican food and beaches!

Cheers,
Loren

**Old Timer** · 05-19-2010, 05:59 AM

Have a great time PJ and keep these great pics coming.

**gotrocks** · 05-19-2010, 05:34 PM

My first thought was the old song..

♪♬♪♬ South of the Border, Down Mexico Way♪♬♪♬

Some of the words,

That's where they fell in love
When stars above came out to play

The mission bells told him that he mustn't stay
South of the border, down Mexico way.

So, Captain; have a wonderful - safe time and come home with wonderful memories.
I love this site. Thank you.

**megan** · 05-20-2010, 08:01 PM

YUM. Enjoy! Looks like you're having a blast...

**Photo-John** · 05-23-2010, 09:34 AM

Thanks for the comments, folks. Glad you liked the photos. I'm back home in chilly Salt Lake with one more day of relaxation before I'm back in front of the computer all day. It was a great trip and I've got a lot more photos I'm looking forward to sharing

**Griever** · 05-23-2010, 04:53 PM

How crazy, I have been at that restaurant, about a year ago I went on a mexican riviera cruise. Mazatlan was a lot of fun, got so wasted at Senor Frogs.

**Photo-John** · 05-23-2010, 07:09 PM

Originally Posted by Griever

How crazy, I have been at that restaurant, about a year ago I went on a mexican riviera cruise. Mazatlan was a lot of fun, got so wasted at Senor Frogs.

Which restaurant? Tacos Sonora? That place is great. It was right up the street from where I was staying. I did not go to Senor Frog's. I'm too old for that kind of fun

**Griever** · 05-23-2010, 07:16 PM

Haha, never too old for any kind of fun. But yeah Taco Sonoras has some great asada tacos. I was a big fan of that place.

**raiundazan** · 05-23-2010, 11:10 PM

Oh my gosh, I am so envious! I have been waiting for a vacation! :cryin: Have fun John, and continue to post more of your photos there

**Photo-John** · 05-24-2010, 02:05 PM

Here are a few photos I took with the Olympus E-PL1 on a trip to the Mazatlan mercado. Turns out I used the Sony P&S most of the trip because it was getting the job done and because it didn't attract any extra attention. But I wanted better for my market photos. I did feel the E-PL1 was a good compromise. A full digital SLR would have made me feel very conspicuous. It's bad enough, being a white guy with long blond hair, a beard and a camera.

These obviously didn't all come from the market-proper. The church is the main city cathedral. The tequila shot was taken in a bar near the mercado. That marlin photo from the market is important because smoked marlin seems to be one of the main food items in Mazatlan. Smoked marlin tacos are all over the place and they're delicious. You can see in the photo that the smoked marlin is selling for 80 pesos a kilo. That's less than $3 a pound. And a little bit goes a long way. It's got a lot of flavor.