WheresCherie.COM Quote

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, Gorgeous talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking So that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, Our presence automatically liberates others." -- Nelson Mandela, 1994 Inaugural Speech

410--California: Death Valley, a Low Point @ CherieSpotting     Apr 14 2008 - 12:36 PST Cherie sitting in the middle of Badwater, Death Valley, the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere. cherie writes: It may be the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere, but Badwater isn’t all that bad. (But don’t drink the water!) Sure it’s hot in April, but Greg, Karem, Dean and I managed to gather some of the salt-crusted earth and build a small tribute (we called it salt art) to nature in the ninety degree heat. As the sun set, we headed to Ubehebe Crater for a stroll around its lip. Also known as marr volcanoes, Ubehebe and the surrounding craters were formed about 3,000 years ago—which explains all their wrinkles! Enjoy these photos of Badwater and Ubehebe Crater taken from Death Valley, California. more photos... read comments (0) | write comment| views: 306       printer-friendly version

409--California: Death Valley--Dunes & Devils @ CherieSpotting     Apr 08 2008 - 03:42 PST Cherie and Greg on the salt cracked Devil's Golf Course in Death Valley, California. cherie writes: Karem, Dean, Greg and I went to the Devil’s Golf Course to see if we could get a birdie. No birds there, just lots of crusty salt and a view of jagged white earth that seemed to go on forever. But we found a tiny salt cavern and tasted the salt of the earth (salty, as you might expect!) Next we headed to a sea of sand and I climbed to the top of the highest dune in Mesquite Flat Dunes (I can tell you from experience that they aren’t flat.) Dean and Karem admired the blooming flowers while Greg sprawled out on a polygon cracked ancient lakebed. We ended the day exhausted (but hydrated!) Here are some photos from Death Valley National Park. more photos... read comments (0) | write comment| views: 311       printer-friendly version

408--Mexico: Lucha Libre (Mexican Wrestling) @ Site News     Feb 18 2008 - 12:51 PST This masked Mexican wrestler (or luchador) is about to jump into the crowd. cherie writes: No trip to Mexico is complete without experiencing Lucha Libre (or free fighting.) These silly acrobats (or Mexican wrestlers) come in all shapes and sizes. There’s usually the old guy, the fat guy, the midget, and of course an entire gang of freaky guys wearing masks and colorful tights. The luchadores (wrestlers) saunter into the arena accompanied by smoke and fireworks. The crowd goes wild, as everyone puts down their snacks and cheers for their favorite masked man. Wearing costumes that seem like their grandma designed them, the worst luchadores fight first. The comedy starts early on and the fighting gets “better” as the night rolls on until finally a fighter like Mistico (by far the overall favorite) battles it out with his arch nemesis (the bad guy of the week.) The masked-wrestlers taunt the crowd, catapult themselves across the ring and pounce on each other with little remorse. Then the loser is forced into submission and “punished”. The wrestling may be “fake” but the fans are real. Here is a glimpse into the world of Lucha Libre. Prepare to enter a realm where grown men wear pink masks. This match was held in Pittial, a small town outside of Puerto Vallarta. more photos... read comments (0) | write comment| views: 664       printer-friendly version

407--Mexico: Bucerias Panga Blessing @ CherieSpotting     Feb 05 2008 - 03:47 PST Cherie and Anne at the annual "Blessing of the pangas" in Bucerias, Mexico. cherie writes: Bless that fleet! Every year the people around Banderas Bay gather in Bucerias to bless their fishing vessels called ‘pangas’. The pangas rush across the Bay loaded down with passengers, palm fronds and Papier-mâché. There’s no danger that the pangas would sink—there’s enough balloons aboard each one to keep the whole town afloat. The floats were so colorful you almost had to squint. I’m not sure what was more painful—looking directly at the sun, or at those dizzy-bright balls of latex. Suddenly the pangas approached and the beach was ablaze with flowers—plastic, paper, natural—who cares! The strong colors made you feel drunk—or was it the margaritas? Hundreds of revelers gathered on the water-front to cheer and watch as the pangas burst through the surf and thudded on the sand. The crowd was mixed—little girls in white chiffon dresses eager to take their first communion, mothers clasping the rosaries around their necks, fathers standing cross-armed and stoic with their cowboy hats, and tourists with their white sneakers and Puerto Vallarta t-shirts. Of course, there were the guys selling nuts-and-chews out of wheel-barrels. One vessel held the Virgin Mary with two young angels (complete with fluffy white wings). Once the pangas were beached, the priest escorted the passengers to the town’s church where a service was performed. Those that didn’t go into the igelsia, enjoyed the carnival rides or munched on corn-on-a-stick hot sauce. Some snacked on the fried bananas and while slurped down cold Pacificos, but one thing we stayed away from was the popular Tacos de Cabeza (brain tacos.) more photos... read comments (0) | write comment| views: 735       printer-friendly version

406--Mexico: Life in Puerto Vallarta @ CherieSpotting     Feb 02 2008 - 10:17 PST Cherie, Merie and Bonnie on the beach in Nuevo Vallarta. (I found two ladies taller than me!) cherie writes: Life is Mexico is slow and spicy: days are filled with beach walks, kayaking, and sailing. Puerto Vallarta is full of everything from balmy nights and breaching whales. You never know what you’re going to see when you walk the docks—from an alligator or turtle, to a dog or an ostrich. But if you head into Banderas Bay, you certainly see whales, rays and dolphins—the marine life are often leaping out of the water in a display of pure joy (dolphins) or scraping the barnacles off their backs (whales) or escaping predators (rays). From the stunning arches of Los Arcos to the colorful waterfront villas near La Cruz, here is a glimpse of life in Puerto Vallarta, Mexcio. more photos... read comments (0) | write comment| views: 804       printer-friendly version

405--Mexico: When the Saints go marching in @ Site News     Jan 22 2008 - 09:22 PST Cherie with two local girls from Jarretaderas, dressed in their traditional costumes. cherie writes: The small Mexican town of Jarretaderas, Jalisco, celebrates their patron saint St. Martin de Porres with a fantastic parade each year. Babies are dressed in ruffles and bows, young girls are dressed in native costumes and pre-teens are clothed as young nuns—complete with white habits. The teenagers show up banging drums and the town's ladies carry flowers. The entire town shows up, even the ones that are too young or old to walk. The "highlight" of the event is the "caballeros" which are outfitted as gallantly as their horses. Little girls step over the horse-poo with their white patent-leather shoes as relatives throw confetti and St. Martin floats by and the whole town follows the procession to church. According to the website catholic.org: "St. Martin's love was all-embracing, shown equally to humans and to animals, including vermin…." St. Martin de Porres is often shown with a broom, since he believed that no work was below him. He’s also shown with dogs, cats and mice, as he was depicted in the float in Jarretaderas, Mexico. Canonized in 1962 by Pope John XXIII, many consider St. Martin de Porres to be the first "black saint", because of Martin’s mother’s dark complexion. "His father was a Spanish gentleman and his mother a colored freed-woman from Panama," is the way the catholic.org website puts it. more photos... read comments (0) | write comment| views: 699       printer-friendly version

404--Mexico: The Vallarta Cup @ CherieSpotting     Jan 21 2008 - 07:41 PST Cherie on Chére, a Beneteau 461 owned by friends Charlie and Cathy Simon. cherie writes: The first Vallarta Cup is currently taking place in Banderas Bay off of Puerto Vallarta. A series of four races every Saturday during the month of January 2008, the Vallarta Cup attracted yachts from a tiny J80 owned by J World to the massive J160s Blue and Nova Kane. But the Vallarta Cup wasn’t just full of J-boat racers. Charlie and Cathy Simon brought out their Beneteau 461 Chére (shockingly not named after me!), Dorr Anderson skippered his Jeaneau 40 Bright Star while Jamie and Christine Tate brought out their Hylas 46 Morning Light and raced against Charissa, a Peterson Liberty 458. Which yacht won the race didn’t really matter (that means we didn’t win.) It was all about the fun in the sun and making new friends while practicing new racing strategies! If you can think of a better way to spend a Saturday, let me know. Wind and sails were made for each other, and if there’s a breeze this week--you’ll find us on the water! more photos... read comments (0) | write comment| views: 749       printer-friendly version

the older posts:

• 403--Earth: Winter & Spring 2007
  Jan 07 2008 - 02:01
  
• 402--Mexico: San Blas
  Dec 07 2007 - 02:02
  
• 401--Mexico: Cabo San Lucas
  Nov 13 2007 - 12:25
  
• 400--Mexico: Typical Travel Chaos
  Nov 13 2007 - 12:06
  
• 399: California: 2007 Buccaneer Days at Catalina Island
  Oct 31 2007 - 01:24
  
• OC Register Sailing Column
  Oct 13 2007 - 01:25
  
• 398--Nevada: Crude Awakening at Burningman 2007
  Sep 09 2007 - 10:56
  
• 397--California: A Monster Thief
  Sep 05 2007 - 09:43
  
• 396: California: Mom's 60th Birthday Party
  Aug 24 2007 - 07:11
  
• 395--California: Rancho Santa Fe Garden Sanctuary
  Aug 16 2007 - 02:32