May Destination: Cabo San Lucas

Five months strong for my New Year's Resolution! For my May destination I went abroad to Baja California! My teenage dreams came true vacationing in Cabo San Lucas just like the teenagers from one of my favorite reality shows, Laguna Beach. I watched their glamorous beachside lifestyles from my Indiana red brick home. I wished longingly to travel abroad for my Spring Break. So, here I am 10 years later finally making my dreams come true! So here are all the deets from our trip!

My Travel Companions

I was lucky enough to travel to Mexico with my three friends, Crystal, Paul and Julie. Crystal was one of my very first friends I made when I moved to Los Angeles 7 years ago. (Holy crap, its been 7 years). We worked on the same TV reality competition show called, Best Ink at Bunim/Murray Productions. I was the Post Production Assistant (PA) and she was the Post Coordinator. We've been close friends ever since. I had the honor of being one of her bridesmaids when she married Paul!

They are amazing people and I'm so lucky to have them both in my life. We've been through a lot together. Paul & Crystal visited me in the hospital multiple times when I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. They walked in with a custom made care package and watched the 2017 Oscars from my hospital room since I was unable to attend a party I was hosting with other friends. #truefriends

Since Crystal and Paul are "real adults" with a house and stuff - they host lots of fun parties. They've introduced me to many people over the years which turned into dozens of mutual friends. One of the newest ones being Julie! I met her at Crystal birthday party last year when I was, ironically, feeling sick because my body was going into DKA (and I had NO IDEA yet). Julie was only an acquaintance, but showed so much consideration and interest in how I was coping with my diagnosis. I found it so easy to talk to her. I was thrilled when she decided to join us in Cabo.
P.S. It was a HUGE bonus having a fluent Spanish speaker with us. She had our backs and paid for everything in Pesos to make sure the locals weren't ripping us off. HA!

Where We Stayed

Crystal scoured Airbnb for the perfect spot to accommodate the 4 of us. She ended up finding a 3bd/3ba condo right in the heart of Cabo. Julie and I had a hard time finding it at first, but I ended up loving that it was a safe, hidden gem. It required a key code to get through the front entrance and another code to enter our condo.

Each one looked out onto the pool area with two sliding glass doors. The condo itself was beautiful! It was fully furnished and had a kitchen to help us save some money on food. My only compliant was the slow internet. I still had to work from Cabo, so it took me longer to get my work done. Best part - It was only $129 per night! (Split 4 ways - #winning)! I highly recommend staying at this Airbnb. Book it here.

Our condo was on the ground floor making it easy access to the pool! Picture above is the view from our sliding glass door. It was our little paradise. I doubt all the condos here are rented out as Airbnbs. I have a feeling some of the older people we saw during our stay possibly owned their condo.

The area was pretty vacant so the 4 of us had the pool to ourselves 90% of the time! Perfect for taking Instagram-worthy photos!

As you can see, we definitely took advantage.

Where We Ate

In other words...where DIDN'T we eat?! I honestly cannot even remember half of the restaurants that fed us. I tried finding them on Google maps, but it looks like the last update was from 2010. (I made that up, I don't know when...but its very out of date)!

I was shocked to learn that most restaurants in Cabo DO NOT serve chips as a free appetizer. We always had to order and pay for them (between $3-5 USD). However, lots of places bring multiple salsas with the chips! It was fun to try them all and figure out which ones made my tongue fall off. Spicy.

La Pintada Brewery | Boulevar Lazaro Cardenas Lote 11 | Cabo San Lucas 23450

While in Cabo, I had my first alcoholic drink since being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. I'm not a big drinker to begin with, and learning how different drinks affect your blood sugar was a bit over whelming. However, I was brave enough to try drinking again once I started using the Dexcom G6. I can literally watch how the drink affects me and learn from it.

I've never been a big drinker, because I honestly don't care for the taste of alcohol. So, of course my go-to drinks are the more sugary ones that hide the taste. I felt safe enough to try a strawberry daiquiri while in Cabo surrounded by my supportive friends.

Just as my Endocrinologist and friends told me, my BG spiked and then dropped quickly. I went low after my drink, even after eating lunch. Honestly, I was just pumped to keep the spike below 180! ha #worthit

A friend recommended eating at "The Office." It probably is considered a tourist trap, but the location and food made it totally worth it! The restaurant recommends making a reservation, so I did, but honestly they didn't seem to even check and sat us right away. 

I think a reservation helps you snag a table down on the beach. I love eating with my toes in the sand! This is NOT a relaxing place. You are surrounded by many people, next door to another restaurant that places loud music and games, and constantly bothered by vendors trying to sell you things.

My favorite salsa I tried on the trip was from The Office. Their verde salsa was BOMB! We honestly ordered a tons of appetizers and went to town. We barely had enough room on the table. Keep in mind the fancy french bottled water costs money and that racked up our bill quick since we were always trying to stay hydrated.

The Office on the Beach | Playa El Médano, Cabo San Lucas, BCS México

Everyone (native workers) is a salesman in Cabo. I can't tell you how many times I said "No, thank you" while in Cabo. Everyone is trying to sell you somethings ALL THE TIME. We ate at Barracrudas because a extremely motivated restaurant host yelled at us down the street about a lunch deal they were having. 

The interior of the restaurant was just as fun as the exterior. It was decorated with skate boards, colorful walls, and a bar with honeycomb shaped shelves.

The lunch special included your choice of 3 tacos (mix and match), chips, and a drink. I tried 1 fish, 1 chicken, and 1 shrimp taco. I was disappointed in the fish taco, but really enjoyed the other two!

What We Did

Cabo is known for "El Arco" a rock formation at the southern most point of Baja California. Just walk towards the marina and you will be approached by people selling boat tours to see the arch. Don't be afraid to barter, because if we aren't on their boat, they aren't making money.

You can pay a little more for your boat tour to drop you off at Lover's Beach. The next boat tour will come by to pick you up!

Julie bartered with them while Crystal played the stubborn American who didn't want to pay haha. They ended up getting us a private one hour glass bottom boat for $60 USD each. Talked them down from $120 each! (that's a rip off btw). Having the boat all to us was definitely beneficially for taking photos.

The boat does require everyone to wear life jackets because the coast guard is always around. However, you can take them off when taking some photos. Can't let that bold orange vest ruin your 'gram.

The most popular beach in Cabo is called Medano Beach. It is lined with resorts, eateries (including The Office), and beach activities. The swimming areas are roped off for your safety because tour boats, jet skies, and parasailing boats are constantly coming in and out from the beach.

Sadly, this is not a relaxing beach due to the constantly vendors walking around trying to sell you food, jewelry, hats, clothing, etc. So, be prepared to be approached while sun bathing!

Travel Tips

1. Bring a pen on the airplane. You will need to fill out customs forms flying into your country destination. Our airline only provided a few pens which forced Julie and I to wait to borrow one.

2. Pay in Pesos. Cabo does accept the US Dollar, but my friend Jule (she's Mexican) suggested us to pay for everything in Pesos to keep the locals and restaurants from over-charging us. There are many places to exchange dollars to pesos. Walk around until you find the best exchange rate. BRING YOUR PASSPORT - they require it for exchanging.
Best Exchange places we found:
Exchange Stand in Puerto Paraiso Shopping Mall
Exchange Bank near Cabo Escape Tours along the Marina

3. Pack bug spray. Julie and I were eaten ALLIIIVE by the mosquitos down there.

4. Buy water bottles. Julie and I drove past a Wal-Mart and flipped a 'U-ie' to buy a bunch of water bottles on our first day in Cabo. We didn't buy enough for the 4 of us, because we were always dehydrated from the dry heat and lots of walking.

5. Use the buddy system. I had lots of people telling me to 'be careful' before my trip. I know Mexico isn't the safest place right now, but I never felt unsafe. However, I was never alone out in the city. Stick with a buddy and you'll be just fine!