they call the wind mariah

The pirate ship was awesome, but soon enough we were back on land. As I said, we had interpreted the invitation to mean there would be some sort of dinner served, but we discovered that pirates only serve alcoholic beverages. There was a small buffet that consisted of: sliced bread, salami, meatballs, chicken skewers and omelette (no, not mini quiches, like a buffet tray of scrambled egg). By the time we had caught up with our friends and gotten around to the food, there were only a few servings left. So, when we returned to the dock, His friend Gumby (yes, that's what they call him) raved about Cafe del Mar for drinks, food and general partying.

This place is actually on top of a rampart on the fortified wall of the old city. Check it out -

The DJ booth was built into the rampart outpost.

Here's a canon with the ocean in the background.
It was seriously pitch black up there with all the tables, DJ, etc.

Not only was it pitch black, but it was loud and WINDY. I couldn't hear anyone and things were literally flying everywhere. We stayed about 45 minutes, but we didn't end up eating because the service wasn't great (see the aforelinked Tripadvisor review, I believe someone mentions the lack of attentive waitstaff). As we were settling the tab, His friend Snoopy - I kid you not, Gumby and Snoopy - lost the equivalent of $20-50 ripped out of his hands by the wind. I chased down the bill and rescued it to much applause. I really can't stress how windy it was.

After a quick cab ride back it was the morning of the wedding. Breakfast at Hotel Zaguan was complimentary, and we enjoyed a tasty meal of coffee, fresh orangey-pineapple-whoknowswhat juice, bread, preserves, fresh papaya and watermelon, and scrambled egg with chunky salsa. The husband said this was the only thing he liked about the hotel, food - go figure.

Oops, this was all I got...

It was probably 9am or so, so we set out to do some exploring. And now I will subject you to the digital-age version of the vacation pictures slide-show.

This is called Las Bovedas

Back in the day it served as a prison, but has been converted to multiple shops that sell overpriced junk like t-shirts, ponchos and knick-knacks. There were a few nice things, but nothing I was particularly interested in purchasing. Except some fake Oakleys and a bottle of water...they got me. As you can see, we were "fortunate" to be sharing our sight-seeing adventure with several boatloads of cruise ship passengers.

Some nice Spanish colonial architecture.

There were new plazas around every corner.
Can't find my map to tell you who this is...

This is the interior of THE Cathedral.

A lesser cathedral. The couple in white at the altar were getting married.

And...
I like my chicken broasted. Alas I did not get a chance to try it.