Welcome to Zihuatanejo!

This is a first time for us in Zihuatanejo and we have not been disappointed.  The only let down here in Z-Town is the water quality in the bay.  On a good day it is ok and a bad day it is an ugly brown, polluted color.  Other than water clarity being less than desirable, everything else here is a treat. Zihuatanejo has a deep history dating back to pre-hispanic times with the Cuitlatec people who were known for their agriculture, production of cotton blankets and carved scallop shells.  The Cuitlatpan people are dated here pre 1400s.  The Spanish conquistadors arrived in the early 1500s and colonized the area along with making Zihuatanejo a major port of call for ships traveling to the Phillipines.  Acapulco later took over most of that trade but Zihuatanejo remained as a quiet little fishing town into the 1900s.  In 1970 the Mexican government began developing the nearby Ixtapa into a major destination resort for tourism and the small town of Zihuatanejo grew along with it.  It is now a town of about 70,000 people which mostly populate the hills just behind the bay.  It still holds on to it's small town feel with quaint streets, shops and restaurants that are far different than the high rise "hotel rows" that you will find in larger cities along the Mexican coastline like Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta and Acapulco.

 I dont' remember the name of this tree but these flowers only live about 12 hours.  They bloom each day as it gets dark taking about 5-10 minutes to open.  By morning or mid day they have died and fallen to the ground only to be followed but new ones that evening.  Beautiful!

 The captain heading into town.

 The estuary leading inland from the bay.

"El Mercado" is always a favorite in any town we visit.  Here we are having a quick bite before getting some fresh produce and supplies.

 We couldn't pass up the opportunity to get a picture of these pollos taking an afternoon siesta.

Fresh!

 The quaint streets of Z-Town

 Looking out into the bay.

 We ate dinner here last night and HAD to come back for the best key lime pie this side of the Rio Grande!

 A mural on the malecon.

 This is the fish market where we bought a kilo (2.2 lbs) of fresh yellow fin tuna for $5.50.  This place is a hive of activity from 4am to about 9am when all of the pangas are bringing in their catch.  Tonight will definitely be a night of sushi and sashimi.  

Zijuatanejo has plenty to do and enjoy from surfing, beach walking, a trip into the Mercado Central or enjoying the nearby crystal clear, 80 degree waters of Isla Grande and Ixtapa only 5-10 miles to the north.  It was definitely worth the stop.  

SV Liahona

Bret and Marne