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Saturday, December 17, 2016

Cowboy News Network: Bubbles at Raintree Vacation's Club Regina in Los Cabos, Mexico

Bubbles


Excuse me. Which bubble is yours?

We travel a lot. We do it for many reasons. We travel because we suffer from a compulsion to see what lies beyond the next corner, ridge or ocean. Who else is out there? What do they think or do? It is a defining quality of the human condition to explore and learn. While many are quite content to spend their whole life in one place. Some of us just cannot remain put. We have an insatiable compulsion to remain on the move. To expand our horizons. We travel to learn and enrich our lives.

People live in bubbles. A bubble is a comfortable reality we create for ourselves. We construct it from the information we get. From experiences. The people with which we interact. The decisions we make. Our circumstances. It is who we are and what we believe.

So it happens that some people idealize travel and make an annual pilgrimage on a cruise ship or to a luxury resort. They are sold visions of far away places with white sandy beaches and blue oceans. Destinations stocked with Latin lovers waiting with open arms and cold Pinacoladas garnished with little umbrellas. Everything is set for their imminent arrival. This is not travelling. This is dreaming. These are theme parks that perpetuate a disconnect from reality. Fake Bubbles.

When you become a traveller you discover a universal truth: Life is a fine balance between expectation and reality tempered with perception. As you push your own boundaries the one thing that can truly set you up for success or failure is your expectation. How you set your bubble.

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." (John Lennon) To paraphrase it for the traveller, "...shit happens when you expect things." With no expectations, you are free to experience and formulate positive perceptions about reality. Free to create a nice bubble. If you do have expectations, prepare to be surprised, and not necessarily in a good way.

My Bubble


The more you travel the more you become aware of how focused people are on their own circumstances and how committed they are to their own perceptions. The first and very real discovery comes when you realize that life "back home" continues without you. The same goes for the places you visit. Life goes on regardless of your presence. Kids go to school, people go to work, mortgages get paid, birthdays celebrated and the diseased laid to rest.

It begs a profound question. How connected are we really to our reality? How much of what happens in our lives every day is also part of others? Is it within our control? How much should make it into our bubble?

Take a look at your bubble. Who is in it? How does it make you feel? Deal with it, or change it. Everyone is in a bubble. A bad bubble is filled with disempowerment and things you cannot control. Perceptions others chose for you. Disappointments. For example, your thoughts about a dumb-ass politician's statement. The maniac driver that cut you off this morning.

A good bubble is filled with perceptions of empowerment and appreciation. Another profound travel truth is that one should never travel to escape. You tend to bring yourself along for the trip. Bubbles travel with you.

This year we've seen a small part of New Zealand's North Island, Alberta, British Columbia, Maui, Oahu, and Los Cabos. We've visited and profiled more than 200 businesses and met and interviewed over 300 people in these places. We experienced temperatures from +35C to -35C. We've visited mountains and oceans. A famous traveller once said, "the more places he's been, the more he realises just how little he's seen. We agree. We've arrived at a point where every day is an adventure. Not because we expect it. Instead, because we are open to it. We brush our teeth, take a shit, put on our clothes and show up. This is the best bubble ever.

Mexican Bubble


We are signing off our year in Los Cabos Mexico at the Club Regina courtesy of a gift from my mum. Something she still wanted to do before her bubble became smaller. One thing that always surprises me about Mexico is how hard they work to sell someone else's bubble. The theme park. The cocktail. The romantic dinner. The adventure trip and the famous "complimentary breakfast" (read Timeshare Trap)."

The best way to experience Mexico, as for most places on earth is to come without expectations. Arrive. Slow down. Take it as it comes. Face reality. Find authenticity and fold in the richness of the Mexican people and their culture. If there is one ask from us this trip it is this, "Mexico, stop selling someone else' dream. Give us yours."

Club Regina has breathtaking views. It is located in Los Cabos, at the most southern part of Baja California. It rises above the shoreline where the Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific Ocean. Every unit faces the ocean and colourful sunsets and sunrises are a given. From November through March you see whales playing in front of the resort. We saw many.

We didn't come with too many expectations. We needed the rest. What we got is a view that gets better every day. Friendly staff and good facilities. A quiet place with everything you need.

We recommend you make the trip to San Jose or San Lucas for groceries. Do it for no reason other than feeling good about how much cheaper it is in Mexico and for fresh fruit and beer. Bring US$. They don't want Pesos. Don't bother with the resort's coffee. The Starbucks logo is for decoration. Remember, Mexico is outside the resort.

We are sold on Los Cabos as a destination. It is a relaxing experience with weather ideal during the winter months. Sunny days and a cool ocean breeze. Club Regina is worth a visit for the views.

Here is the golden key. Before you go to Mexico, and before you take on one more day of your life, let go of your expectations. Manage your perceptions. Appreciate the little things. Above all, make sure the bubble you live is yours. Not someone else's creation.

Hendrik van Wyk
Mexican Cowboy

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