Four Days in Cabo- $750. Three Girlfriends To Share The Time With-Priceless!

Last week, I packed my bags, said adios to mi familia and jetted off to Cabo for an extended weekend. If you know me (or have been following my blogs), you know that a happy Debbie is a Debbie who gets at least a few of these girl weekends a year; a chance to recharge the mommy/wife batteries and refuel myself as a person without these labels. Time with girlfriends is an essential part to making me whole and remembering who I am. That being said, Cabo seemed like the perfect destination for a November escape from the unlikely cold we have been experiencing in Southern California this season. Not only that, but how can you beat a price of $750 per person for an all-inclusive package to a 4-star resort?

I have spent quite a bit of time in Mexico, but never ventured this far south in Baja. To say the least, I was completely surprised by the ease and beauty of it. In a little under 2 ½ hours, we found ourselves in a tropical paradise with a perfect balance of mountains and a sapphire-blue sea beside a landscape lush with magenta bougainvillea, agaves and majestic king palms. The sky was set to a rhythm of white puffy clouds which lazily sauntered in and out of view, making our pulses slow to a vacation pace. Wait...maybe it wasn't the clouds, but rather the margaritas served immediately upon arrival at the Riu Palace. In either case, each of us girls found no difficulty in finding our inner senorita.

Two margies in and we were ready to explore the beach. We realized the booze came in handy for combating the onslaught of solicitors on the sand. From ceramic pitchers to parachuting Spidermans, surely there was no shortage of souvenirs however they didn't distract from the beauty of the shore or the 80 degree warmth of the setting sun. We had truly escaped to paradise!

Two margies turned to four or maybe five- not too sure. I stopped counting once we hit the beachside bar and began shooting some kind of blue kamikaze cocktails that the two Texas couples next to us peer-pressured us into. Next thing we know, we were on stage performing the cha-cha to a mostly vacant bar. I don't know why a stage holds so much appeal to me when I'm blitzed. I suppose I missed my calling to perform. Looking at the pictures, it's probably a good thing that I did!

The next morning held no causalities from the night before (apart from some questionable photos of the cha-cha incident as well as those featuring a chocolate-covered banana (all pretty harmless in the scheme of things.) We were pool-bound and ready to chill. Idle time with a trashy gossip magazine is the perfect form of relaxation for me. After consuming about four of them, I realized that I might actually be aging out of pop culture. Who the hell is Leighton Meester anyways and since when is an ass half the width of a Mini Cooper attractive? It actually made me yearn for the reckless days of the Brat Pack or the haphazard clubbing by underage 90210 celebrities. Not that I gave a damn about them either, but at least I knew why they were famous. After consuming trashy gossip magazines poolside, one has no other choice but to drink, so that is what I/we did. Pina Coladas were calling our names so it was our duty to answer. I need not elaborate more. We did what we needed to do and as the day turned to night, I can reassure my readers that, at least this time, it involved no chocolate-covered bananas.

Day three was more of the same. Lola demonstrated her fierce negotiating skills on the beach with the straw bag vendor and as a result we all agreed that the way to world peace is to conduct all peace talks in bathing suits. She also proved that scaling the wall on an infinity pool is doable although not advised. Gina discovered nirvana through the hands of a Mexican woman and spent the rest of the afternoon trying to avoid us so as not to disrupt her Zen-like disposition. Too bad that failed. She ended up at the swim up bar eventually. You can only fight the inevitable so long before it comes and grabs you. Sabrina and I wore our sombreros with pride and saluted our fellow travelers with well-intended ¡Salud's! As the sun set, we danced poolside and laughed till we thought we'd pop.

The evening concluded with a grazing from the buffet followed by some bizarre ding-dong ditching accompanied by a roll away bed and more non traditional sombrero-wearing. Suffice it to say, the evening resembled a girl version of “The Hangover”, sans sex and exotic animals. All clean fun, although mildly embarrassing when reflected upon the following day.

By Monday, our livers were shot and our stomachs were bloated from beans and sore from laughter. We were missing our families and ready to re-enter the real world. Cabo San Lucas, like a lover, left a permanent mark on each of our hearts. The sun-filled serenity of this little oasis makes this a destination not to be missed but more than that, the company of girlfriends and the laughter provided is priceless to the soul and for this I am truly grateful.