Somehow the big crocodile had managed to escape his enclosure and was now lurking somewhere under the water on the wrong side of the fence, on the side where dozens of people were swimming and sunning.

We were vacationing at Ixtapa, our favorite place on the Mexican Riviera, just a few hours north of Acapulco. The Ixtapa beach is a great place to take it easy, without a care in the world. Until we realized that the local crocodile that normally was penned up safely behind a fence, had somehow slipped out and was now on our side of that fence.

It didn't take long for a crowd to form.