Cruise - Acapulco and Sea DayMay 6, 2008
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Acapulco
The cliff diving site
Going down
We arrived in Acapulco at 8 am on May 5. We took a bus tour. Our first stop was Hotel Mirador where the famous cliff divers perform. Our guide told us of injuries that the divers can receive as a result of their dives from 130 feet - burst ear drums, broken ribs and blindness when they enter the water at speeds of 90 to 100 mph. We then drove around to see the views from some very high places and went down the coast a bit to see some fancy hotels and some very big yachts in marinas. One of the biggest yachts moved around so it was quite near our ship. It actually had a helipad on the back of it and we watched the helicopter land on it while we were there.
Bill Gates has a mansion here with a helipad. Sylvester Stallone also owns a mansion here as that is where he did the most of the acting of his Rambo movies.
There is also a jungle in Puerto Marquesa that has crocodiles, various birds, monkees, vines, etc, etc. This is where Johnny Weismueller (the original Tarzan) recorded all of his Tarzan movies. You can actually take an air boat through the jungle and see where his movies were recorded.
Larry asked our tour guide about the minimum wage in Acapulco. He stated that they are not paid by the hour but are paid for an 8 hour day of work. For there 8 hours of work they are paid a grand sum of $5.00 They also get medical, dental, prescriptions, education included as part of their wage. The employer has to pay 25% of what they earn into the government pension plan. Our tour guide told us that once they reach 65 years of age and have a minimum of 650 weeks of employment that they are entitled to a pension.
May 6 was a sea day. Sales are beginning to appear at the Boutique Shops with savings of 50 to 75%. A tee shirt cost $6.49. They are clearing out the Caribbean and Panama stock and making way for Alaska, which is where the ship will spend most of the summer.
