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Home >> Articles >> Life of Myden

Mexico

Tue Apr 30

Got up early to catch a 6:30 AM flight to Cancun. We had a stopover in Houston where we got on an earlier flight so we didn't have to wait for our connection. We got into Cancun 2.5 hours earlier than planned, which was good because we had to stand in a huge line for about an hour to get through customs.

Left the airport and called EasyCar rental to pick us up to get our rental car, which turned out to be a VW Gol, which was actually a decent car, except it had no radio or audio output of any kind.

Drove to Puerto Morelos, where we we checked into Rancho Sak-Ol, a B&B overlooking the beach. We rode our bikes into town, which consisted of a main square with only a couple streets, shops, and restaurants surrounding the square.

Went for margaritas and guacamole at Los Pelicanos, overlooking the beach. The little kid at the table beside us was enthralled with the mariachi band - I think she was the only one.

After that we made our way to Tacos.com for dinner (it ended up being our favorite place in Puerto Morelos). The tacos came with a really good verde sauce. Chris had delicious chicken tacos and I had shrimp. After dinner we rode our bikes back to our room, and sat in the hammocks on our porch.

Wed May 01

Had breakfast in the main palapa, which had sand in it. Tried to make some eggs but realized too late that the pan was non-stick. It was really windy out so we went back to bed. Went into town and had lunch at El Nincho. It was ok, but we thought t@cos.com was better. My sauce in my fajitas reminded me of our stir-fry sauce at home. Chris had a torta.

Then we went in search of a snorkle tour from the local fishing co-operative. I was hesitant to pay the guy in charge up front, he eventually convinced me of his legitimacy. While waiting for the tour, I shopped for a large brimmed hat to keep the sun off. Finally settled on one that didn't look too dorky.

Came back to start our snorkle tour. The water was very choppy, due to the high wind. Chris saw a turtle, while I saw very little due to the sunscreen in my eyes. But I did see some yellow/black fish, and a mini-eel. Went back to our hotel and played Phase 10 and drank some Sol beer.

Rode back into town and tried to go to I Wanna Pizza for dinner but it was closed. Instead we ended up at Tanino's Wine Lounge. We ordered off their menu but after we ordered we noticed everyone else had ordered food from the restaurant next door and was getting delicious looking empanadas - guess we missed out! At least we had the nice garden area to enjoy. It had a really busy waitress.

Rode back to our room and finished our card game while Chris watched the first game of the Penguins playoffs, which they won 5-0.

Thu May 02

Had breakfast, this time Chris improved his egg cooking skills and made them sunny-side-up. Then we packed up our stuff and headed south. We went to Akumal, where we walked up and down the beach looking for the Centro Ecological to book a night-time walking tour of the turtles that nest there. We finally found it, and were told the tours didn't start until July. Whoops.

We went and found a spot on the beach and after relaxing for a bit we put on our snorkel gear and went into the water to search for turtles. We headed in the general direction of some snorkel tours and saw about 4 or 5 turtles in total. The water was quite cloudy so the visibility wasn't very good.

Next we headed to Tulum, stopping at the supermarket to pick up some rum + pineapple + mango juice for cocktails. We checked into Hotel Posada Luna del Sur and waited for a thunderstorm to pass. When it stopped raining we went to walk around a bit. Partway through our walk it started pouring again and we ran back to the hotel where we caught up on our journal writing (well, mostly I did, and Chris took a nap.)

Finally it cleared and we went for dinner at Antojitos La Chiapaneca, a hole in the wall, popular with locals. Cheap tacos and empanadas. Saw a white guy warn another white guy about one of the sauces. Even saw a Mexican woman waving her hand in front of her mouth.

Fri May 03

Ate omelettes on the roof and headed to Dos Ojos, a cenote. Sprung for the bat cave tour with a private guide. He took us down into the caverns connecting the caves. Saw all kinds of underwater formations, and fruit bats. Tight rock formations to swim through. Stalactices and stalagmites. Some small fish. Scuba divers below us.

Drove to Coba to check out the Mayan ruins. Hot day, we walked to the top of the tallest Mayan ruin in the Yucatan (45 m). Lots of people were struggling to get up and down, with a large rope in the middle to help them.

Drove to Punta Laguna Nature Reserve. 5000 hectares with 25 spider monkeys, and 4 howler monkeys. The guide found us some spider monkeys. Saw a baby one and some teenage ones. Learned that spider monkeys can't figure out how to peele bananas. They eat elephant ears.

Came back and went to have tacos from Erik the street cart vendor (Tacos de la Fuente). Delicious. Lots of good toppings. Sat on the street and tried Mexican Coke. Went to pick up Nancy. Drove to Barcelo Mayan Colonial. Guard had to let us in. Placed looked fancy. Drove back to Tulum.

Went down to the beach area at night and ate at Restaurare, a vegetarian place. Had balloon salbutes with black beans, which was very good. Chris and Nancy had vegetarian mole.

Sat May 04

Went to the Tulum Monkey Sanctuary. Met Richard the eccentric business owner and our guide, John. He explained how the sanctuary worked and told us about 'Monkey Island' where about 10 spider monkeys live. They walk on the ground, as they've never learned how to climb. Then we met Mimi, the monkey in a cage by herself. Then we met the two fat monkeys who liked to be fed peanuts and have their backs scratched, and one of the fat monkeys liked to hold your hand.

Met a cat on our way to the crocodile lagoon. Threw some food in the water to attract the crocs. Went on a hike through the forest to reach the cenote. Swam around for a bit, got out and went to another cenote which we entered by jumping through a 10 foot drop/hole in the ground. Inside that cenote we swam to an underground cave which opened up to another pool. Convinced Nancy to enter this cenote with us, which she seemed to enjoy. Chris jumped into this cenote as well, which was shallower than he expected (touched bottom).

Left the Monkey Sanctuary, stopped and bought a whole chicken, which Chris ate as we walked up and down the beach in Tulum. We were searching for 'Ziggys' and after wandering back and forth we think we may have found it, but not really sure. There we had some frozen margaritas (tamarind was very tasty) and sat on swings at the bar. Watched a wedding ceremony (Mayan?) involving the headgear and the bride & groom walking into the ocean.

Went for a swim, the water was nice and warm. Went back to the hotel, got changed, and headed to Mezzanine, a Thai restaurant on the beach. Nice ambience.

Sat on the rooftop of our hotel and played 'No Thanks'. Managed to watch about half a period of the NHL Playoffs before the Internet died. Drank rum and coconut water with mango/coconut juice.

Sun May 05

Had Huevos Rancheros for breakfast. Went to the beach to try some stand-up paddle boarding. CM fell a lot. CB was good at it. Nancy enjoyed it as well. Definitely want to try it again.

Made our way to the Barcelo Maya Colonial. Ran into Brian and Sheryl. Brian had been talked out of the Edventures Tour by Transat. Sat down and ate at the buffet lunch in the giant, loud, glass dome. The food wasn't too great, but there was a lot to choose from!

Then we went kayaking, which was difficult because of the wind. Walked aorund the property some more, tried some really sweet drinks with large chunks of ice in them. Got ready for dinner at Don Quixotes, the Spanish restaurant. Went for some drinks at The Teatro, while the Battle of the Sexes went on in the background. Everyone was pretty tired from the night before. Checked out Jaguars the nightclub for approximately 20 seconds.

Mon May 06

Woke up early to sign up for our windsurfing lesson. Went for breakfast at a place without the glass windows echoing sound back at us, and then had our lesson. First he demonstrated on land and showed us how to lift the sail, and turn. Perpendicular board to wind.

Then we went into the crowded beach area to apply what we had learned. None of us were very succesful, either pulling too hard on the sail or not enough.

Went to the grill for lunch and chowed down on hamburgers, salsa + chips, guacamole, etc. Then we blew up our little inflatable tubs to float around the pool area. Chris had great difficulty and ended up slowly toppling over backwards, resulting in just her hat floating on top of the water.

Got ready for the wedding and headed over to the ceremony area. Beautiful wedding on the beach, on a slightly cloudy day which made for great temperatures. Manny the photographer took loots of photos on the beach, while the the wedding area was transformed into the reception area.

Had the wedding dinner, did lots of shooters (Scooby-doos and Spidermans were popular) and watched the first dance (Brad Paisley). Had some wedding cake and then headed over to the lobby area. There the shooters continued. Put on our glow bracelets. Took a break at one point for pizza, pasta, and coffee from the buffet. Went back to the lobby bar for a bit, and then for a dip in the ocean. Security chased everyone out though, so they all went into the pool, which security didn't really like either.

Tue May 07

Had a bit of breakfast at the buffet, then went and said our good-byes to everyone as we were heading to the airport, while everyone else was staying longer. Packed up our suitcases and drove back to Cancun for our flight home.






  

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