the next day, we grabbed lunch at the hotel restaurant, finished up the rest of our sculpin & boarded a chartered bus for ensenada, where all the wedding festivities would take place.

we were hoping for an uneventful border crossing, with everything going on in mexico right now & it was.  but not five minutes into tijuana, right when the bus was trying to gain some speed for the upcoming steep hill, some crazy ass went running across the two lanes of traffic speeding in the other direction with THREE UNLEASHED DOGS.  the man jumped up on the concrete divider & stopped, BUT THE DOGS DIDN’T.  we were headed right for them, full speed.  i couldn’t not watch.

i don’t know how, but we didn’t hit them.  tino, our bus driver/comedian/tour guide/mexican wine enthusiast was the best.  coach america, if you’re reading, give that man a raise.

after that, the rest of our ride was blissfully uneventful, with views like this

 & this, the whole way.

once in ensenada, tino dropped everyone off at the hotel, which was…interesting.  our room had a giant electric candelabra with CFLs affixed to the {painted cinderblock} interior wall & access to a weird, enclosed alley through the closet*.  i was going to have to get drunk to sleep in that bed.  luckily, the hotel bar was located two steps to the left & 10 steps up from our room & the man who owned it declared it happy hour anytime we were there.

7 beers, $5 american dollars & a bowl of popcorn with hot sauce split 6 ways later, we were on our way to the rehearsal.  except this time, tino wasn’t there to pick us up.  our chauffeur for the weekend was martin {martine}, who didn’t speak a word of english & possessed a shock-less bus & general disregard for any stop sign, traffic rule, pedestrian, or speed limit.  he did, however, help every lady in heels down the stairs…you know, safety first.

the priest stumbled through a rehearsal**, while our stomachs growled & we got back on martin’s steel coffin & sped to the rehearsal dinner at casa de los siete patios: the house of the seven patios.  It’s a gorgeous, round house, with seven different patios {duh.} on a cliff overlooking the pacific.  breathtaking.  & bono has vacationed there. no big deal.

the six of us parked ourselves at a poolside cocktail table & the men grabbed some beers.  food passed by, but as soon as it was placed on the bar, it was devoured.  we soon realized we were at a rehearsal appetizer with 100 other starving people.

we grabbed what we could,

but this guy made it his j.o.b. to make sure none of us was without a beverage.  things got hazy.

a mariachi band*** showed up,

& everyone partied the night away.

i had no trouble sleeping in that bed.

*our friends, however had a baller room with a full size fridge with “mini” bar & no questionable outside access.
**apparently, rehearsals aren’t typical of mexican weddings.
***apparently, you just find them on the street, tell them when & where to show up & they’ll be there.