So I was walking along Manazillo´s Centro district when, low and behold, two Japanese Kashima and Asagiri-class destroyers escorting a huge Mineyuki-class destroyer pulled into port. My grandfather used to work for port authority as a naval doctor/ sanitaion inspection (he helped treat any of the ships sick or wounded, quarentined ships if the crew had foreign diseases, etc.); as we aproached he asked one of the workers why there were Japanese DD´s in port. The guy said he thought they might be here for RIMPAC, but my grandfather says thats held in Hawaii every other year.
We later learned from some of the crew members that got off that they mearly came as new recruits for formal training with the Armada de México, because apparently the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force likes to make friendly visits with their neighbors and learn new things from time to time! The guys were pretty cool and were really anxious as it was their first time in Mexico for almost all of them. It was pretty funny to see all the people in Manzanillo reacting to all these foreigners in Naval uniform running around El Centro buying souveneers, ice cream, and taking pictures of themselves with Mexicans!
