Travel vs Vacation

I’m very much a “go, go, go!” type of traveler — trying to eat, see and experience all the things a new place has to offer, but every once in a while a vacation will appear in the middle of my travel schedule.

Aren’t travel and vacation just synonyms for each other, though? They can be, but not according to my definition. For me, traveling is going to a new place, wanting to soak up all the culture and wisdom it has to offer, and not shying away from the unknown, while a vacation is all about sleeping in and moseying down to the dreamy infinity pool for a slow afternoon. Don’t get me wrong, I love both options, but I often find myself having a hard time slowing down to vacation level and thus not seeking vacations out as often.

This summer though, after my most strenuous semester yet — including 12 units of math/business courses, graduation, organizing my University transfer and apartment hunting — I had never craved escaping on vacation so badly. Lucky for me, my family’s bi-annual Cabo San Lucas vacation was calling!

A lot of our activities remain the same from year to year, as mentioned in previous vacation blog posts, but this year we also tried something new — a sunset sailboat cruise around the arch! Fair warning though, if you’re iffy about whether you are seasick or not…don’t risk it. Trying to enjoy an open bar with a queasy stomach is no fun.

Aside from being green around the grills, it turns out June is stingray mating season, so we were surrounded by the rays leaping out of the water and reaching three or four feet in the air before smacking back down on the ocean’s surface! Cabo may be notorious for its winter whale sightings, but a stingray breaching is still pretty enchanting.

It was my boyfriend’s first trip to Mexico so it was fun introducing him to where the Pacific and the Gulf meet. We lounged, laughed, indulged on guacamole and Pacifico, sunbathed and swam in both fresh water pools and the salt water sea. I think he only had one regret in the form of a fish bite… as clever as it is to entice fish close with tortillas while snorkeling, they will attack.

Cabo provided the perfect opportunity for me to check out and recharge mentally, as well as the ideal cure for my Vitamin D deficiency (I blame classrooms). Maybe slowing down to vacation mode isn’t so bad after all!