| MEXICO! |
| MEXICO! |
We flew out of Boston's Logan airport on Sun Country Airlines. SC is a small outfit based in Minneapolis, MN but
they run a charter flight from Boston to Cancun. Our tour guide was GWV International. We had used GWV when
we went to Aruba 5 years ago. They provided excellent service both in Aruba and in Mexico. I would highly
recommend them to anybody considering a trip to Cancun & surrounds.
I had packed my dive regulator, camera and the camcorder in my carryon for the flight. The dive camera has small
silica packs called "Moister Moochers" which, as the name implies, absorbs moisture inside the camera and
prevents lens fogging. Wouldn't you know it, in the x-ray baggage screener, the nice inspector thought he had the
hit of the day. Those things, on the monitor, look an awful lot like nickel bags. So I had to unpack everything to
satisfy his curiosity.
The flight was about 3 1/2 hrs. At Cancun airport, we got behind 2 other planes that had just come in so we had
an hour wait in line to get through customs, get our bags, and get on the bus for our hotel. On the bus, the GWV
rep explained our check-in process and offered everybody Dos-Equis beer at $2 a bottle. The first of many. 
This resort is "all inclusive" so we had PLENTY to eat and drink. Also, the food is prepared (so they say) to
USDA standards using filtered water so we were spared the dreaded "Montezuma's revenge". There is a buffet for
breakfast, lunch, and dinner. There is a "snack bar" serving light meals and desserts all day down by the pool.
For evening meals, there is a Mexican restaurant down by the pool. Candlelight dining under the stars. Also,
there is a "Fish House" serving sea food. These two places have only ONE menu each nite. It runs five courses.
The menu is written in the five languages of the area; German, Spanish, English, French, and Italian. There are
two cantinas; one by the pool (which included a "swim-up bar") and one by the main lobby. The cervezas flowed
freely along with margaritas, Vivia Specials, and whatever you wanted. One thing I noticed was a margarita is a
frozen margarita. There was no such thing as the booze and icecubes. It all went into the blender. We only ate
out twice; at Pauncho's Backyard in Cozumel and at the Xel-Ha aquatic park. Pauncho's Backyard is a great little
place in the back of a small shopping mall. Mexican food is different that Americanized Mexican food. For
example, a quesidilla is not the "firelog" we usually get in the chain restaurants back home. I got four small flour tortillas with
stuffing. Quite a nice change. 
We went into "town" on Monday and Saturday. PDC is a large town with shops alot like you would see at
Rockport or Martha's Vinyard with one big exception; the shop owners all stand around outside and you are their
biggest amigo. Bartering was the name of the game. A $90 dollar bobble could be had for as little as $50. The
streets are being renovated as Judy found out by falling into a hole. The government puts personal responsibility on
its citizens so they don't put up barricades or anything like that. We went down by the seaside. Lots of open air
fruit and vegetable markets. If you ever got homesick, there was always the ever-present Mickey D's, Burger King,
or Diminos pizza. 
On Wednesday, we took the ferry to Cozumel. There are two ferries; a "slow" one and a "fast" one. We opted for
the fast one. The ferry dock is located in Playa del Carmen. There is a "government" ticket booth and a slick land
shark with a "ticket" booth about 10 yards in front of the legitimate ticket booth. We were almost conned into that
one but I saw the setup, called an audible at the line, and blew by it. The ferry takes 45 minutes to get to
Cozumel. We met a very nice family from San Fransico who had a little 4 yr old son; Derrick. He was my best
amigo during the ride.
On Friday, we visited the Mayan ruins at Tulum, located about 50 minutes south of Playacar. We had a very
knowleable tour guide who took us through the area. The government charges visitors 30 pesos (about $3) to use
a camcorder. Tulum is the only Mayan civilization on the seacoast.
Naturally, I was intrigued by the Temple of
the Descending (Diving) God. If you look closely at the picture on the left, there is a figure of a god carved into the stone just above the entrance; feet at the top, head at the bottom. The head is not so easy to distinguish. When this temple was made, the builders used precious metals and gemstones for the face. After the Mayans left this area, it became an easy target for looters. This god is also depicted in frescos showing sea life, turtles, sting rays, etc. Other ceremonial structures in the area are the Temple of the Wind and the Temple of the Frescos (inside are original paintings protected from the
environment). We were given about half an hour to explore on our own and then visit the shops outside the city. It
was pretty warm there but it was a very interesting tour. 
After Tulum, our tour bus took us to Xel-Ha (pronounced SHE-ha). This is an aquatic park where you can raft,
snorkel and swim with the dolphins. Swimming with the dolphins was $55 dollars extra. Our tour guide told us no
charge to swim with the crocodiles. I just stuck with the snorkeling. I was a bit disappointed in this. XEL-HA is
located on a protected bay. There are alot of suspended particles in the water due to all the plant and fish life and
the geographic nature of the bay. The visibility was not as good as when I went diving but I enjoyed it just the
same. I did see one huge parrot fish. This guy must have been about 4ft long. 
Paamul
Playacar
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