Mon, Apr 8 - Eclipse Day!!

 Bob had been watching various websites checking on where the clouds might or might not be for Eclipse Day.  The cloud situation appeared to be improving but it is so hard to tell.  We had contemplated needing to drive to Durango or heading south or north or ?  to avoid the most clouds.  We decided that staying at the hotel would be okay - fingers crossed.  The forecast was still for some clouds in the AM and increasing in the PM.  The eclipse was to start at 9:51 AM with the first bite taken out of the sun.  Totality was expected at 11:07.  

From our friend, Emily - one version of a total solar eclipse

Monday morning we got up and met at 6:45 to head down the street to have breakfast at Pancho’s - a restaurant right on the beach that Margaret, Bob and Debbie had eaten at a couple of days earlier and really liked.  They open at 7 and since it is so crowded in town, we figured early was better.  They weren’t quite open yet when we got there but opened a few minutes later.  Since we were the second group to arrive, we were able to grab an outside table right on the beach.  It started off quietly but people started to arrive on the beach and at the restaurant.  




Pancho’s starts you off with coffee and then a huge very varied menu.  Little by little we got silverware and then a small plate of biscuits and muffin.  We ordered eggs and shredded beef and orange juice since Margaret had said that it was fresh juice.  As we waited for food, we people watched and it was a worthy venture.  People were setting up tents, tables, and other paraphernalia. 

 A woman with a lovely bouquet of flowers, white dress and narrow gold band around her head arrived with some friends.  We thought that maybe there 

Mystical moments on the beach with the longest selfie stick I've ever seen!

going to be a wedding but no…… it took them some time but I looked at one point and saw that the flowers were now spread out across a cloth on the sand and she was placing votive candles amongst them.  Hmmm.  Then one man faced the cloth with his hands in a prayerful manner.  She then took a small drum and had some sort of ceremony over the flowers but not a wedding.  Something “mystical” was apparently going on.  

We also watched lots of people go out in kayaks as there is an island a short distance away with perfectly aligned beach.  A larger boat went out periodically and most sitting inside of it got a bit wet as it was pushed over the waves.

Our food arrived and it was very good albeit generous. Katy and I definitely could have shared - maybe we’ll remember this tomorrow.  We walked back to the hotel and checked out my balcony as I thought it might be a good spot for eclipse viewing.  I’m on the second floor and my balcony extends out so that the 3rd floor balcony only covers the back part of it.  We were going to have a clear view just sitting right on my balcony.  What could be easier?  

While everyone got ready - and eyes still on the clouds - I pulled out 2 more chairs from my room and we were set up.  This was also a great place from which to watch the hotel crowd on the beach and under the covered tables.  Now we just wait for 9:51.  There were telescopes set up here and there and various groups of people gathering for viewing.  





9:51 finally arrived - clouds were thin and we hoped would keep moving past. We saw first contact and the bite slowly grew bigger as about an hour passed.  We continued to worry about the clouds but there we were.  Just before 11:07 as the sliver of sun was getting smaller and smaller, there were many whoops from the crowd as excitement built.  At 11:07, bigger whoops and we put down our filters and pulled out binoculars.  We saw the diamond ring and great scarlet prominences especially at about 4 o’clock (as on a clock face).  Totality was just over 4 minutes here and that can seem like a long time but it went fast.  We saw some great sunset colors at the horizon and the temperature fell quite a bit.  The diamond ring reappeared and whew, it was over!

Wonderful photo taken by Robert Brucato a few miles from us!

 As Bob says, there is nothing so over as a total solar eclipse.  That was #10 for me and I’m 10 for 10 meaning that I’ve gotten to see all 10 and not (yet) been clouded out.



We immediately wondered what other friends and family in different geographic areas were seeing. I turned on the tv and found CNN where they were doing a place by place viewing all along the path of totality so that was cool. We saw clouds in some spots and clearing skies in others.  They had a couple hundred people getting married in Arkansas.  It looked quite good in Cleveland and great in Stowe, VT where some guy’s proposal was captured on film.  I doubt he thought that would happen when he planned his eclipse proposal- suddenly seen round the world.

Katy, Janet and I had observed quite a few different eclipse t-shirts on people wandering by.  I was wearing my shirt from 2019 in La Serena, Chile but Katy had forgotten to pack any of her old eclipse t-shirts.

 We normally get to a site at least a day ahead so that we can explore etc., but that wasn’t the case so we hadn’t been shopping yet.  We walked down the road to see if we could find any of the shirts but store after store said no, they didn’t have any left.  We must have asked at 6 or 7 places before we found one small vendor who still had a few.  We each grabbed one so at least we have a souvenir from the Mazatlán eclipse.

We wanted a snack since we hadn’t had lunch but couldn’t find satisfactory ice cream anywhere.  We thought that maybe French fries from the pool snack bar would be good instead but we don’t have the right color resort bracelets on and the snack bar is only for those with all inclusive - truly bizarre especially since no one mentioned anything when we checked in.  There are white, red and green bracelets and only the green ones are all inclusive - who knew?  I understand the concept but hadn’t ever been somewhere where there are different levels and no explanation.  But Janet went to registration and found that she could buy a voucher for French fries at the buffet and then take that to the snack bar.  Yikes.  but she was successful and we got a snack.  We got a beach side table and snacked while 1 then 2 then 3 bands played on the beach in competition - quite the cacophony.

We joined the Brucatos for a celebratory dinner at Pancho's with more bands on the beach, plus some women juggling flaming torches!