Mexican Navy tall ship open to public in San Diego this weekend
The Mexican ship Cuauhtémoc docked in San Diego Bay as part of a tri-continental training cruise and is open for public tours Friday through Monday
The crowd began cheering as the 41-year-old Mexican Navy tall ship approached the B Street Pier Thursday. Among them was San Diego resident Margarita García, who held a sign that read “Bienvenida a San Diego, Lupita.”
García was waiting for Cadet Lupita Barrientos, 23, the daughter of a close friend she met as a child and had not seen since. The long-awaited — and surprising — reunion took place aboard the Cuauhtémoc.
“I knew I had family here, but I hadn’t seen them since I was little,” said Barrientos, a fourth-year cadet. “It was a surprise, I wasn’t expecting visitors,” she added. Barrientos and her Aunt Mago, as she affectionately calls García, then called her mother to share the news about the reunion.
The Mexican ship — with a crew of 261, including captains, officers, cadets, class officers and sailors — docked in San Diego as part of a tri-continental training cruise. On board, the cadets learn maneuvers and maritime traditions, but at each stop, it’s all about interacting with people from other cultures, officials said.
“It is a very representative ship,” said Capt. Victor Hugo Molina. “We represent not only the Mexican Navy, but 127 million Mexicans.”
Molina said they are looking forward to visiting the Maritime Museum of San Diego and the USS Midway Museum, among other sights, which he expects to be “a great experience for the cadets.”
Fifty-three crew members are women, the most in the vessel’s history, officials said in a press release. “It’s a very positive message for both Mexico and the world,” said Alicia Kerber, Mexico’s consul general in San Diego.
The public is invited to tour the training ship, free of charge, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday through Monday at the B Street Pier.
The ship will set sail for Honolulu on Tuesday to continue its seven-month journey through 10 countries, including Japan, South Korea, China and Australia.
This is the third time the vessel has visited San Diego. It previously did so in 2005 and 2014, officials said.
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