Snell Real Estate

With its crystal blue water and expansive variety of undersea life, Cabo San Lucas is a treasure trove for SCUBA divers. While your SCUBA certification training will give you the safety information, instructions and experience you need, here are a few tips to make exploring the underwater world easier when you’re ready to take the plunge!

Equalize. Before you go under water, close your mouth, pinch your nostrils closed and gently blow through your nose to pre-pressurize your ears. Start your decent feet first, equalize when your head goes underwater, and continue every few feet.

Use weights. Since the Sea of Cortez is saltwater, its density requires more weight to dive than freshwater. On the plus side, the water temperature ranges from 61′F – 75′F, allowing for a thinner bodysuit, which adds less positive buoyancy.

Be still. Flailing around consume more air – and also frightens the fish! Instead, keep your hands to your sides or extended in front of you, and glide smoothly forward using your fins.

Stay horizontal. When you’re vertical, you encounter greater water resistance and consume more air. Position yourself horizontally, kicking to propel yourself forward, not upward.

Relax. If a sudden surge causes you to feel seasick, take a deep breath, and move with the motion of the water. If that doesn’t help, stay calm and abort the dive.

Keep diving! Practice makes perfect, and the more you dive, the more comfortable you’ll be – and the more rewarding your experience will become.

When you spend your Mexico vacation in sunny Las Cabos, at some point move the party off the beach and head into town to sample some of the amazing local food. You’ll find many down-home restaurants in the area that serve fresh, delicious, authentic Mexican fare. Here are some of our favorites, from the team at Snell Real Estate:

1) Mi Casa. As one of the longest-tenured restaurants in Cabo, this place offers you old world charm and some truly great food to go along with it. The Chicken Mole in particular comes highly recommended.

2) La Fonda. Chef Christopher Chong really knows what he’s doing here, and he is busy creating some of the most deliciously authentic Mexican dishes you are going to find anywhere in the world. This place is a little off the beaten track, but the effort to get there well worth it. Once you do arrive, start the festivities off with the Queso Fundido with Chorizo. It’s the stuff a foodie’s dreams are made of.

3) Javier’s Cantina & Grill. This is five-star Mexican dining, with exquisite gourmet food in a breathtakingly beautiful setting and an elegant atmosphere. The third of well-known chef Javier Sosa’s establishments (the others are in Southern California), Javier’s Cantina & Grill excels in every possible way. For a world-class Mexican dining experience and a night out that you won’t soon forget, Javier’s is the place to go.

Treat your family to fresh, local, organic produce in Cabo San Lucas.

Any discussion of shopping in Cabo San Lucas must include the open-air markets of Los Cabos. These community markets are spiced with Mexican flavor, hand-made goods, and bountiful produce from local, organic farms.

Thanks to the area’s rich farming history – and the hard work of the Del Cabo Cooperative (a farming cooperative founded in 1985) – Baja California Sur boasts 400 organic farms, growing the “best organic produce anywhere” (www.delcabo.com). Fruit, vegetables and herbs are grown organically and sustainably on small family farms, spanning the fertile valleys of the Baja Peninsula.

You can find these organic treats in many Cabo San Lucas restaurants and local Farmers’ Markets, some of which are open throughout the year. One of the biggest local markets is the Organic Farmers’ Market in Cabo San Lucas, at Mar Adentro Spa.

The Cabo San Lucas Organic Farmers’ Market is open on Wednesday and Saturday mornings, from 8:00 a.m. to noon. You can find everything for a tropical Cabo dinner, including fresh locally-caught fish, organic chicken and cheese from local farms, baked breads warm from the oven, pesto, hummus and of course all the organic fruit, veggies and herbs you could ask for. Bring the kids and snack on unbelievably sweet cherry tomatoes and succulent mangoes as you shop.

To learn more about events, activities and shopping in Cabo, be sure to subscribe to the Snell Real Estate blog. “Snell… The Most Trusted Name in Cabo Real Estate.”