Busy Day

Happy Birthday!  After pilates and zumba, we tried our hand at golfing.  The course was busy, with the wait being two hours...we had no choice but to go for lunch and drinks.

We made three stops on the way home, eventually buying Oaxacan baskets from street vendors. They looked more like hats to some of us!  We weren't too heavy into the alcoholic beverages....just being goofy.

Sue has a bit of a surprise party for me after, with appetizers and birthday cake.  It was a very enjoyable day with lots of laughs. Thanks everyone!

Victorious

After the men won the gold medal in hockey, Canadians had a parade through the park singing our national anthem and waving the flag! My Canadian Survival Pack was getting heavy so of course, we had to lighten the load!  After all, we had been up since 5:00 am!

They Did it Again

We were blindsided once again.  Our neighbours have far too much time on their hands!!  We have had our house up for sale, had it turned into a restaurant and now I guess we are offering free beer so we can add to our beer tree.

I can imagine the giggles that went into this operation!

The tree they hung the cans from has been nicknamed the "antler"....as you can see it loses its leaves early.  Not often do we see it in full bloom.

Last Tour

We left Morelia early yesterday morning, hoping to get to Tequila in time for a tour of the tequila making process at our hotel complex. The place we booked is a four bungalow hotel situated right in the middle of a tequila factory and no expense was spared in the building of this place.

The gardens, the room and the service were immaculate.  We had a few minutes to enjoy our room before we were given a tour of the factory and the bottle making facilities. We tried 100 proof tequila that is illegal to sell because of its strength and even sampled fruit flavoured tequilas.

Of course, we had to make a few purchases at the numerous gift shops and then were shuttled into town so we could wander through this thriving area.  A tequila lover's dream....free samples everywhere.

The shuttle driver took us back to the room just in time to try supper in the resort's underground restaurant.  It served only authentic regional dishes and it took a long time to choose from the list. A meal like this only reinforces why I don't like Mexican cooking.  The stuff we eat at home is not Mexican and can only be found where there are large numbers of Americans residing.  So different from the real thing.

Our room was one of the most comfortable we have stayed in all trip. The finishing touches were there and we were surrounded by the agave plant used to make the tequila.

The spikes are not used in the process, just the "pino".  It is called that because it looks much like a pineapple plant.  The pino weighs 40 pounds, is baked and the put through the fermentation process.

Stuck

We arrived at our hotel in Orizaba, did a fast check in and were being helped to our room when the elevator quit. We were stuck between the first and second floors!

This usually doesn't bother either of us, but today we left Maggie in the car while we ran our stuff up to the room and the temperature was 32C.  I started to get really worried after one hour in the elevator...how to explain to a non English speaking staff that they must remove our dog from the car and keep her with them?

Generally, Mexicans are afraid of dogs and one of Maggie's size terrifies them.  We had a problem on our hands.

The good thing was the hotel had an elevator technician on staff, the bad news was he was stuck on the elevator with us.

He was extremely frustrated trying to give directions to the front desk staff.  They had no concept of what he was telling them.  After an hour, a gentleman showed up and manually lowered the elevator and we were free.

Fred immediately ran to Maggie...she was just fine, in the shade and sleeping.  She even refused to get out of the car, until Fred tricked her with "cats"!

Jungle Heat

Today was a devil of a drive.  We got lost three times on the drive from Campeche to Palenque and what should have been a five hour drive turn out to be a seven hour torture test.  We have been on this road many times, with the most recent being two months ago, but we couldn't figure things out!  It didn't matter what we did, we kept missing signs, taking the wrong turn or just plain driving by a turn off. On top of that, it was hot, damn hot!

When we did finally arrive at our hotel, our first thought was "we can't stay here!"  We decided to suck it up and take the room we booked months ago.  We are so glad we did...behind the jungle growth was a beautiful spa resort with all kinds of quaint ideas incorporated into the hotel setting.  Each room is a private bungalow, set back into the jungle, with our own outdoor jacuzzi and patio. Mind you, the jacuzzi didn't look too appealing, but at least the thought was there.

We rested with a cold beer on the patio before tackling the ruins of Palenque, about five km from our hotel.  Even though we have been here numerous times, we are still amazed by this ruin.  It is the most awe-inspriring ruin in Mexico and I feel it rivals Tikal in Guatemala.

The ruins are set deep into the jungle and it takes constant care to keep the jungle growth from over-running the temples and palaces. Much has changed since our last visit, with a few more temples being uncovered and added to the mix.

It was such an exhausting and extremely hot day that our bodies shut down at 6:30!  Poor Maggie needed a walk and we didn't care!

Time is Running Out

What a lazy day!  We have decided to just hang around the condo and spend time on the beach today.....tomorrow we start our seven day drive back to San Carlos.

Fred calls it a lazy day, I call it a boring day, but regardless, we need a break from all the walking we have been doing this past two months.

Part of me wants to get back to San Carlos and another part just wants to sit right where I am. There are a few regrets, on my part, that we sold our condo on Half Moon Bay.  Which is why we have been glancing [not looking] at condos for sale, fixed monthly ownership deals and even RV parks in the area.

Yesterday we went to Puerto Aventuras to see what kind of changes the marina has gone through.  There are many!  The main area where the dolphins are held hasn't changed much, but the marina has expanded and along with that come new condos. The golf course looks in half decent shape, nobody out golfing as usual.

This time Sunday,we will be on the road to Campeche, probably trying to calm Maggie down and proceeding to get lost on our drive through Merida.  We will try to keep in touch, depending on the hotel's Internet connections.  Adios!

One of the Few Remaining Beaches

Tulum beach, south of Tulum ruins, is one of the few remaining wide open beaches left in the Mayan Riviera. It's a wonder that some large corporation hasn't moved in yet.  There are a few all-inclusives near by, but nothing on this beach as of yet.

Playa Tulum has always been known as a bohemian beach, with many old hippies struggling to hang on to their memories and dreams.  The air always has a different smell here!

The accommodations are rustic to say the least...something like we might have stayed in years ago.  If you need to hide from someone or something, this is the place!

We took the combi to the beach this morning and the drive was a nightmare.  The driver had no concept of speed and safety.  He drove between 160 and 170 km/h for much of the way and while doing this he was on the radio.  The van was swaying and getting much too close to the ditch.  I was a nervous wreck and was so glad to put my feet on solid ground.

The drive home was far more pleasant and within the proper speed limits.  Much happier!

We never did get to the Tulum ruins as we have been there so many times that it was on the bottom of our list.  Nevertheless, they did look impressive from a distance.

I love the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean. So blue!

A Trip Down Memory Lane

The first time we ventured into this area, now called the Mayan Riviera, was in 1979 and we were driving a VW Westfalia.  We had no fear.  We camped wherever we happened to be on that particular day.

We camped in Cancun before it became a major resort.  We used to free camp on the point where all the hotels are now located.  We spent months by Playa del Carmen before it became a tourist zone. All that was there was a small hotel, an ice plant and a vegetable stand. Because the Westfalia just had an ice chest and not a fridge, we had to drive into Playa every third day for ice and vegetables.

Xcaret was just a walk-in cenote area with one restaurant at the corner of the highway.  Tulum was a dumpy little town with nothing other than the ruins and beach in sight.

Akumal is much the same now as it was when we first came here in '79, minus the developments on Half Moon Bay and the all-inclusives down the beach.

Over the years and throughout our travels in Mexico we kept gravitating back to the Yucatan and Quintana Roo.  We spent three winters in Mexico before my teaching career limited us to fly in vacations.  We have seen much of this country from the Belize border back up to the US.

On our first trip to this area, we camped on a beautiful beach called Paamul.  Surprisingly, Paamul is still there and not bought out by the big resorts.  There were always about ten or eleven small units camped in Paamul way back when.  Now the bigger RVs have taken over and built a small village where we used to sit in our Westfalia, just killing time!  We had to pay 75 cents a day to camp on the beach and use the very poor washrooms....all owned and run by some old Mexican and his grandson.

Back to presnt time....we took the collectivo to Paamul on Tuesday to see what was being done to our old stomping grounds and found quite a few houses for sale. I shouldn't call them houses as they are thatched coverings over the RV...some on the beach and some set farther back into the jungle.  Even so, it looks like a thriving place, but I don't see how it can remain much longer with the resorts wanting more beach area all the time.  Sorry, but he humidity was steaming up our lens so the pictures are a little blurred.

Off to the City

We made our second excursion into Playa del Carmen on Saturday to meet with Gloria and her husband.  They winter in Playa so I'm sure they get more than enough visitors from the frozen north.  It was a great visit with old friends, much like the one we had with Kathy Alexander on Wednesday.

We have always used the collectivos and like all Mexican bus systems, it works like a charm.  It is used by the locals getting to and from work so the price is reasonable.  You stand on the highway, wave them down and they will drop you off on the highway, where ever you wish.  The main reason many tourists  don't use this system is because of the 1 km walk to the highway from the beach....it is easier to call a cab.

Fred and I left Akumal early to do a wee bit of shopping in Playa.  There isn't much we want to buy, but we wanted to have a good look at a few places.  We especially wanted to wander through Playacar where we spent many holidays with Steve and Kris Mealey.  Great memories from that place. I think Steve still has the record for the earliest beer in Mexico....early morning snorkelling does that to a person!  Even though Playacar is now an all-inclusive they let us wander through the pool area without the wrist bands.

We have seen more people from home in the past month than we have for the last two years on the other coast.  Maybe our location is wrong!

Changes

Many things about Akumal have not changed in the ten years Fred has been away.  The main beach remains much the same except for the crowds.  It used to be this sleepy empty beach, but the many overcrowded resort areas have driven people to seek quieter spots and Akumal appears to have been chosen.

It is still far quieter than Playa del Carmen, but it is growing and it won't be long before people move on to even more remote beaches like Paamul.

Ocean View

Enough cooking and cleaning.....last night we ate at the restaurant right below our condo.  What a meal and what a view!

Friends?

I don't think so!  These Mexican racoon-like animals are everywhere and they are thieves.  Most new-comers try to feed the coati and that keeps bringing them in closer to the resorts and condos.

It has been reported that the coati are so brave at some of the all-inclusive resorts near Playa del Carmen that they will wander into the outdoor restaurants and steal food from your plate.  Who is going to try to stop them?

Of course, Maggie thinks they are special and would dearly love to chase them out of her territory.

Settling In

The drive that was supposed to take us 3.5 hours took 5 hours to complete, partially because we missed the turnoff to the shortcut and partially because we kept our speed relatively slow.  It is a long weekend in Mexico and there are too many drivers on the road that probably shouldn't be there!

We unloaded the car and got everything into the condo before two o'clock.  Unpacking took much longer as we kept stopping for a beer break.  We had everything in place before the Super Bowl!

The condo is located one floor below the one we used to own, but it is very similar in design.  The usual faults show up, such as the rusting of the fridge and the cracked tiles, but the view more than makes up for that.

Other than watching the game, we didn't do much yesterday as we were exhausted from the drive plus the humidity wore us down.  Something to get used to again.

Maggie is doing okay, but she hates the sound of the waves.  I have never had a dog who was so frightened of the wind.  Something for her to get used to.  We are sort of sneaking her in to the condo as we never bothered to tell Roberto we had a dog.  So far we aren't on the street looking for a new place!