Travel/POI: Discovery Princess 7-Day Mexican Riviera Cruise - 3 Mazatlán, Mexico 尋夢公主號墨西哥沿岸8天遊

We arrived at Mazatlán around 9 AM on January 30, 2024. Mazatlán is a Mexican resort town along the Pacific shoreline in the state of Sinaloa. Sandy beaches line its 21km-long malecón (boardwalk), and it's renowned for big-game fishing. In its Centro Histórico, or Old Mazatlán, 19th-century landmarks include the performance hall Teatro Ángela Peralta and the towering Immaculate Conception basilica. The modern district of Zona Dorada is known for nightlife and hotels. Discovery Princess recommends the following points of interest: Cathedral Basilica and Plaza Revolucion, Teatro Angela Peralta, Golden Zone, Stone Island, Copala-Concordia, Outdoor adventure as well as recommended these excursion tours: Best of Mazatlán, Local connections: Ceviche making with renowned chef and restaurant, Salsa and Salsa (Dance and Dine).
我們於 2024 年 1 月 30 日上午 9 點左右抵達馬薩特蘭。馬薩特蘭是是太平洋沿岸墨西哥錫那羅亞州的一個度假小鎮，以兩旁是沙灘長達 21 公里長的海濱大道 (malecón)（木板散步路）及釣捕大魚活動而聞名。在歷史中心（又稱馬薩特蘭舊城），19 世紀的地標建築有安杰拉佩拉爾塔 (Teatro Ángela Peralta) 劇院表演廳和高聳的聖母無原罪大教堂 (Immaculate Conception basilica)。現代化的佐納多拉達區 (Zona Dorada) 以夜生活和酒店而聞名。尋夢公主號推薦以下景點：大教堂 (Cathedral Basilica) 和革命廣場 (Plaza Revolucion)、安吉拉·佩拉爾塔劇院 (Teatro Angela Peralta)、黃金區 (Golden Zone)、石頭島 (Stone Island)、科帕拉康科迪亞 (Copala-Concordia)、戶外探險以及推薦以下旅遊：馬薩特蘭最佳景點、與著名廚師和餐廳一起製作檸汁醃海鮮 (Ceviche) 以及和薩爾薩舞和莎莎酱 (跳舞和用餐)。

Before arriving in Mazatlan, the beauty of the morning light and the mirage-like scenery kicked off a wonderful day.
在還未到達馬薩特蘭之前，晨曦之美及海市蜃樓般的景色，揭開了一天精彩的序幕。

I saw a small boat in the distance, which looked like a fishing boat. I originally thought there were a bunch of fishing buckets or tools next to the boat, but when I zoomed in on the photo, I realized that there were a bunch of brown pelicans surrounding it. Are they waiting to be fed? It turned out that the answer, according to All About Birds, is that pelicans themselves are not good at stealing fish. They follow fishing boats and hang around docks for handouts. But, gulls on the other hand often try to steal the fish right out of Brown Pelican’s pouch — sometimes while perching on its head.
我遠遠地看到一隻小船，感覺像隻捕魚船，原本以為船旁是一堆捕魚器皿或用具，結果放大了影相才知道周圍環繞了一堆褐鵜鶘。它們在等著吃魚嗎？結果找了一下答案，根據所有關於鳥類 (All About Birds)的解釋是，鵜鶘本身並不擅長偷魚，它們跟隨漁船並在碼頭附近徘徊以贏取施捨。但是，反過來海鷗卻經常試圖從褐鵜鶘的喉囊頰袋中偷魚，甚至有時是當它們棲息在褐鵜鶘的頭頂上的時候。

There is an unobstructed view from a high up on the ship. It provided me with a rough idea of the distance and direction of the places that we are going to visit. (I am a person who has no sense of distance and direction. I usually either follow others or go in and out based on intuition, feeling, past experience or observation.) I saw the lighthouse we were going to on the hill, the large and small ships/boats in the port, the rows of import/export cars, the famous Cathedral Mazatlán Basílica de la Inmaculada Concepción and the Parroquia Cristo Rey (Christ the King Parish).
在船上有高眺一覽無遺的視野，對將要探訪的地方也大致有個距離及方向的概念 (我是個沒有距離及方向感的人，平日要不跟著別人走，不然就是憑直覺、感覺、過去的經驗或觀察出入各地)。我看到了我們將去在小丘上的燈塔、港口裏的大小船、ㄧ排排一輛輛進口/出口的汽車，有名的聖母無原罪大教堂 (馬拉特蘭大教堂)以及基督君王教區。

What amazed me was a large group of "big" birds, such as frigatebirds and brown pelicans, flying up and down the harbor. My husband thinks the way the frigatebird flies looks like a dinosaur from a certain angle, so you can imagine the size of these birds.
令我稱奇的是一大羣「大」鳥，像是軍艦鳥及褐鵜鶘，在港口飛上飛下，我先生覺得軍艦鳥飛行的樣子，從某個角度看起來像隻恐龍，所以你可想像這些鳥的大小。

Time to get off the boat! The rules of each port are different. Here you have to take a shuttle bus to get to the customs.
下船囉！每個港口的規矩不一，這裏是要坐接駁車才能到達海關。

After leaving customs, I saw a long row of taxis on the road. Interestingly, most of these cars are open-air cab with special tops, which provide shade from the sun. The four sides are empty, allowing the natural wind to blow as much as possible and the scenery to be seen at a glance, which was also a good way to protect the environment. It takes about ten minutes to drive from here to the city or to the lighthouse, so there are many taxis. We chose to take advantage of the cooler temperature in the morning so we strolled to the opposite side of the city to climb the hill first. The wind was quite strong along the way, and I was afraid of blowing my hat away.
出關後，在馬路上看到一大排出租車，有趣的是，這些車大都是加了特置篷的僞敞篷車，有了篷就可遮陽，四邊空蕩，自然風盡量享用，風景也一覽無遺，也是環保的好辦法。從這裏到城中或到燈塔都需十來分鐘的車程，所以出租車特別多。我們選擇乘早上比較涼快，先慢慢往城的反方向走去爬山。一路走來風蠻大的，好怕把帽子吹走。

Cerro del Creston (anglicized to "Creston Hill") is the highest point and southernmost hill within the city of Mazatlan. It is one of the most popular landmarks in the city and a regular sightseeing and walking destination for locals and tourists. Atop its summit is the second-highest marine lighthouse ("El Faro") in the world, only behind Gibraltar. The term "highest" is not to be confused with "tallest" as there are many marine lighthouses worldwide which have taller buildings but on lower-elevation ground. The lighthouse atop Cerro del Creston is only approximately 2.5 stories tall but the natural ground on which the lighthouse is located is the second-highest. You can visit the lighthouse during the day by taking a 745m hike up a gravel and 336 paved stairs path. Besides the lighthouse, a glass-bottomed lookout that extends out from the hill was built in 2018. It is free to walk up to the lighthouse but you need to pay 30 peso to do the glass-bottomed lookout. The path up the hill starts off with a gradual gravel path, then switches into 336 moderately steep paved stairs (over 500 foot elevation gain). It is not an easy hike. I stopped at the last lag and couldn't climb up. My husband went up and took some pictures for me. A reminder: be sure to bring plenty of water to drink on the way up. In addition to the beautiful scenery on the way, we also saw two iguanas. I also loved the iron mesh frames for the recycles that blend in with the natural landscape.
克雷斯頓山（英語為“Creston Hill”）是馬薩特蘭市的最高點和最南端的山丘。它是這城市最受歡迎的地標之一，也是當地人和遊客常去觀光和健行的目的地。它的頂峰有世界第二高的海洋燈塔（“埃爾法羅”），僅次於直布羅陀 (Gibraltar)。不要弄混了「離地最高」(highest) 與「身長最高」(tallest) 一詞，因為世界各地有許多海洋燈塔，它們的建築物高，但在低海拔處。克雷斯頓山頂的燈塔雖只有約 2.5 層樓高但燈塔所在的自然地是第二高的。您可以在白天沿著碎石路和 336 階鋪好的階梯，徒步 745 公尺來參觀燈塔。除了燈塔之外，2018年還建造了一座從山上延伸出來的玻璃底觀景台。步行上燈塔是免費的，但登上玻璃底觀景台需要支付 30 比索。上山的道路從一條平緩的碎石路開始，然後轉入 336 個中等陡度的石梯（海拔增益超過 500 英尺）。這條登山健行路並不輕鬆。我在最後一個休息處停下來，爬不上去了。我先生攻頂並幫我拍了一些照片。小小提醒：上山途中一定要帶足夠的水來喝。在路上除了漂亮的風景外，我們還看到兩隻鬣蜥。我也很喜歡收回收的鐵網架，與自然景觀融為一體。

After going down the mountain, my husband decided to call for a open-air cab and took us directly to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, which saved a lot of energy. And $10 US for two people, it’s well worth it.
下山後我先生決定叫車直接開到聖母無原罪大教堂，省了好多力氣。而且兩個人才 $10 美元，很值得。

The Cathedral Basilica de la Inmaculada Conceptión is a large 19th century baroque style catholic church located in downtown Mazatlán (the address: 21 de Marzo.). If you want to know more about the history and architecture of this temple, you can read The Cathedral, a Gothic and neoclassical architectural jewel of Mazatlan by Mexico Daily Post.
聖母無原罪大教堂 (Cathedral Basilica de la Inmaculada Conceptión) 是一座大型 19 世紀巴洛克藝術風格 (baroque) 的天主教堂，位於馬薩特蘭市中心（地址：21 de Marzo）。如果你想更了解這個教堂的歷史及建築，可以閱讀墨西哥《每日郵報》的《大教堂》，這座馬薩特蘭的哥德式和新古典主義建築瑰寶。

The Plazuela República (Plaza Revolución) is in the heart of the historic center across the street from Mazatlán's cathedral. Originally it was the main square of the port. It was the home of the municipal market from 1865 to 1900. The square was built in 1870 on an esplanade surrounded by commercial posts. In 1909, the German Melchers family donated a kiosk placed in the center. Its style is French with a Gothic tendency to balance the Cathedral. The facade hosts a plaque with the name "Plaza Revolución", referring to the plaza's reconstruction from 1945 to 1947. The base was used as a cafeteria from 1946, although it no longer provides service.
Plazuela República（革命廣場）位於歷史中心的中心地帶，與馬薩特蘭的大教堂隔街相望。最初它是港口的主要廣場。1865 年至 1900 年間，這裡是市政市場的所在地。廣場建於 1870 年，位於商業職務環繞的濱海大道上。1909年德國梅爾徹斯家族捐贈了一個位於中心的亭子。它的風格是法式的，帶有哥德式 (Gothic) 的傾向，以平衡大教堂。正面有一塊牌匾，上面寫著“革命廣場”，指的是廣場在 1945 年至 1947 年間的重建。底部從 1946 年開始被用作自助餐廳，但現在不再提供服務。

The Plaza Machado is a beautiful old square (zocalo) in the Historic Old Town of Mazatlán and it is 5 blocks from the Cathedral. It is lined with outdoor and indoor Restaurants, a theater, and a hotel. It is the most popular square in Mazatlán for dining and events and is considered the cultural center of Mazatlán.
馬查多廣場 (Plaza Machado) 是馬薩特蘭歷史悠久老城區的一個美麗古老廣場 (zocalo)，距離大教堂 5 個街區。周圍有室外和室內餐廳、劇院和酒店。它是馬薩特蘭最受歡迎的餐飲和活動廣場，被認為是馬薩特蘭的文化中心。

The Ángela Peralta Theater is a luxurious opera house that was named after a world-famous soprano, composer, harpist, and pianist whose winding life (and death) story involves a scandalous love affair, yellow fever, and a truly uncomfortable wedding. Built in 1874 as the Rubio Theater, the grand opera house that is now the city's finest performance space had fallen into decline during the 1920s when the owner decided that the ornate theater was most profitable when showing films and hosting circuses and boxing matches. By the 60s, the space was completely unusable. After being shuttered for decades, the theater was completely renovated in 1992, bringing the space back to its lush operatic roots.
安吉拉·佩拉爾塔劇院是一座豪華歌劇院，以一位世界著名的女高音、作曲家、豎琴家和鋼琴家的名字命名，她曲折的生（和死）的故事涉及醜聞、黃熱病和一場真正不舒服的婚禮。這座宏偉的歌劇院建於 1874 年，原名盧比奧劇院，現已成為馬薩特蘭最好的表演場所，但在 1920 年代開始走向衰落，當時業主認為這座華麗的劇院在放映電影、舉辦馬戲團和拳擊比賽時最有利可圖。到了 60年代，這個空間完全無法使用。這劇院在關閉數十年之後於 1992 年進行了全面翻修，使劇院恢復了它豪華歌劇的本質。

After that, we walked back to the ship and it took about 20 minutes. We probably walked over 6 miles today.
之後，我們便慢慢往回走。大概20分鐘的路程回到船上。今天大概走了超過 6 英里的路。