Woke up to the startling vision of an airplane in the water. Though a second look proved it to be a fishing vessel at work, the first impression was quite different!
We took to the beach again first thing, returning in time for a bite of lunch and a 3:30 pickup for a city tour (courtesy of the Mayan). Mazatlan is VERY long and thin, and we are at the far north end of things. So we worked our way through the neighborhoods, first the "Golden Zone" with many beachfront hotels, then the beginning of the Malacon, the longest of its type (over 1.5 miles!).
As Carnaval starts late next week, giant papier-mache statues were already in place every quarter-mile or so. Presenting cartoonish characters in Mardi Gras "attire," they were colorful and a striking accent.
About half-way down the Malacon is the older part of the city, which we bypassed on the southbound part of the journey. We proceeded to a stop where young men dove from high rocks into a frothing, narrow channel ... but the challenge was nothing like the divers in Acapulco. Tips were provided nonetheless -- none of US want to train for that! -- and we proceeded to some steep cliffs at the southern edge of town. 
These provided lovely vistas of the town behind us and the port area ahead.
We also got a clear view of the lighthouse, the highest working lighthouse in the world. (The lighthouse at Gibraltar is higher, but no longer a working lighthouse).
Working our way downhill, we passed the port area and cruise ship docking spaces. Then we were enroute northward, back to the Old Town. We passed interesting buildings and paused by a lovely square ... to discover that we'd be there for a while! Several vehicles ahead of us was an open-bed truck carrying a huge gondola, apparently intended to be part of a Carnaval float. To fit it into the truck, one end was high over the cab of the vehicle. Though two "minders" were standing by it (as the truck drove along) to watch out for overhead obstacles, it had just snagged a low-hanging power line of some sort (we felt it must have been telephonic, as there wasn't sparking or the level of drama we'd look for if it were a live power line). The guys were now trying to fling the wire behind the load, eventually, succeeding, and then one of them rousted confused residents from a home apparently affected by the incident. (Linda later verified that it was, in fact, a phone line.)
As we were in a fairly tall van, vehicles behind us did not enjoy much a view of the situation, and there was regular honking in an effort to get things moving. OF COURSE there were many more wires threatening any progress, but finally they went one way and we, another ... problem solved.
Our only downtown stop was at the cathedral, which had roots hundreds of years back. It was good to stretch our legs and get a view of another remarkable piece of construction for its day. The afternoon sun blazed through the stained glass...beautiful!
We passed other landmarks, including the main market street, and then were back on the Malacon and headed for a beachfront (Dutch treat) dinner. The place was north of our own hotel, literally at the end of the road, and it was packed. In fact, the second van of our tour group had to take those participants back to the hotel as they were ready for dinner and did not want to wait.
Well, our hopes were not terribly high as we perused the extensive menu, but we settled on items which seemed hard to mess up. Sad to say, the meal was entirely tasteless (including the 2-for-1 margaritas, which TOGETHER made one proper drink); at least it was cheap.
Eventually we all reassembled and got back to the hotel; we were happy to have an introduction to the town, but made a note never, EVER to darken that restaurant's door again. We got a happy lift from the day's towel origami -- a pair of charming pachyderms!
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