Todos Santos, Pueblo Magico
It begins one day when I am working on the computer. I do not remember now exactly what I was doing, but in the middle of what was obviously important to me at the time, my thoughts make an abrupt turn. Maybe it is the cold, grey, wet of our Washington climate that gives way to visualizing a life in Baja California. Is it an ad for vacations on my gmail page that gets my attention? I’m not sure, but for whatever reason, I think of Todos Santos in Baja Sur.
I don’t have an actual image of the town; no, I am only “seeing” where it is located (almost at the southern tip) on the map of Baja. I remember a three-day fishing trip to San Jose del Cabo about three years ago, but then the closest we got to Todos Santos was a few hours nosing around Cabo San Lucas. We’ve heard so much about this place from others, but we have never actually spent time there. I can’t conjure up any specific images—only hazy images of a house or two and the exact dot of its location on the map.
Baja Sur
This is all I am seeing in my head, and my daydreams give rise to an internet session that lasts two hours. My favorite part of the search is seeing actual photos and reading descriptions of this Pueblo Magico! The government of Mexico has identified and then designated a small number of towns in Baja as magico—magical. Not beating around the bush, they come right out with it! “Hey! This little town of ours is a magical place—let’s tell everybody!!” I follow link after link, and it is in these moments that I vow to visit and allow myself to wonder if it is a setting that can be magical for us too.
Downtown Todos Santos
Warming up!
Beach in Las Tunas
Having retired from teaching high school English a year before, I have a lot of time to dream. Every journey has step number one. My first step is to seek information. This is important on many levels. Certain situations require their own set of facts. Will this be a vacation, or will it be “throw caution to the wind and move to southern Baja?” Things happen so fast once I put it out there to my husband. “Greg you are making yourself sick and crazy working as a project manager for the boat yard. You are a heart attack waiting to happen. Your latest assignment is coming to a close; maybe the time is right for us to move to Baja.”
The Completed Ferry
It was Greg’s last project.
