I took a cab from my hotel to a market in downtown Cancun called Mercado 28. I wasn't in the mood to shop but wanted to check it out. There were 200+ little stalls of shops in this outdoor market. It was tough to walk through. Every shop owner wanted me to go into their shop and check out their goods. It was frustrating and they tested my patience. I found myself only walking into the shops where I wasn't being bothered or talked to.
After about twenty minutes I was over it. I decided I didn't want to spend another $20 on a short cab ride. So I asked an info desk at the market how to take a bus to the hotel zone. By this time it was already dark, and I got lost trying to find the bus. Dealt with some whistling and uncomfortable moments, but the people that I asked for help with directions were nice. I'm not sure I was in the best area to be wandering around as there were no other tourists or pedestrians, but I was determined to get there the local way.
The hotel zone is a strip between the ocean and lagoon full of high-rise hotels. I didn't get to see the view unfortunately. I got a little lost trying to find my new friends and their hotel, but once I did we all hopped in a cab and headed to dinner. It was a fun night with great food and margaritas.
I miss the sun already but it's good to be home.
P.S. I didn't get sick! I ate and drank everything I wanted to. The only major precaution I took was to brush my teeth with bottled water.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Swim-up bar
Once we got back to the resort after Cozumel we had less than an hour before the wedding started. Determined to enjoy the swim-up bar before we left, and assuming that we might not want a drink before check-out in the morning, we hopped in the pool for a quick drink before getting ready for the wedding. Was fun.
The wedding was really nice, on the beach in front of the resort. Was kind of weird to have lots of random people watching and walking by, but it was pretty. The reception was on the beach as well. Was fun with lots of dancing.
I got up early today and spent a few hours laying out in the sun. It will be rough going back home to the cold and rainy weather we have been having.
The resort food was ok, but still odd that there was not a lot of traditional food. The margaritas were a bit weak and very sweet. So I was excited today when six of us went into town to have lunch before heading back to Cancun. The food was great and the the margaritas delicious.
Niki and I took a bus together to the airport. She´s headed back to SF today and I hopped onto a shuttle to my hotel. While I wanted to stay in a hotel in downton Cancun, my flight is at 6am so decided to stay as close to the airport as possible.
Am heading into downtown Cancun shortly to meet up with four of Niki´s friends for dinner. Will be nice to see the area for a night, as I don´t think I´ll ever plan a trip to Cancun. I also don´t think all-inclusive resorts are for me, but it was nice to experience it.
Random note: the only thing that I wasn´t expecting is that the taxi´s don´t have meters. So every trip you take, once you tell them the destination they tell you how much it´ll cost. I haven´t enjoyed that since I don´t like to haggle. I did however manage to bargain my way down from $100 to $25 for a nice blanket. It´s going to be a challenge stuffing it into my suitcase, but I know I´ll love it when I sit in my San Francisco parks. Or perhaps I´ll just have to buy a large tote in Cancun tonight.
The wedding was really nice, on the beach in front of the resort. Was kind of weird to have lots of random people watching and walking by, but it was pretty. The reception was on the beach as well. Was fun with lots of dancing.
I got up early today and spent a few hours laying out in the sun. It will be rough going back home to the cold and rainy weather we have been having.
The resort food was ok, but still odd that there was not a lot of traditional food. The margaritas were a bit weak and very sweet. So I was excited today when six of us went into town to have lunch before heading back to Cancun. The food was great and the the margaritas delicious.
Niki and I took a bus together to the airport. She´s headed back to SF today and I hopped onto a shuttle to my hotel. While I wanted to stay in a hotel in downton Cancun, my flight is at 6am so decided to stay as close to the airport as possible.
Am heading into downtown Cancun shortly to meet up with four of Niki´s friends for dinner. Will be nice to see the area for a night, as I don´t think I´ll ever plan a trip to Cancun. I also don´t think all-inclusive resorts are for me, but it was nice to experience it.
Random note: the only thing that I wasn´t expecting is that the taxi´s don´t have meters. So every trip you take, once you tell them the destination they tell you how much it´ll cost. I haven´t enjoyed that since I don´t like to haggle. I did however manage to bargain my way down from $100 to $25 for a nice blanket. It´s going to be a challenge stuffing it into my suitcase, but I know I´ll love it when I sit in my San Francisco parks. Or perhaps I´ll just have to buy a large tote in Cancun tonight.
Cozumel
On Saturday morning Niki, Amy, Eric, and I took a ferry to explore the island of Cozumel, which is known for its scuba diving and snorkeling. Getting certified to dive is on my list of things to do, but for now Niki and I ventured on a snorkeling trip once we got there. Amy and Eric opted to rent a scooter and explore the land.
I´ve been snorkeling many times, but this BY FAR was the coolest experience I´ve had. The water was so clear and the fish were so colorful. There were also lots of different types of fish which was nice to see. I definitely felt like I was in a big aquarium. I have no idea what types of fish we saw except for what the guide pointed out - which was a ¨very big baracuda¨. We actually saw two of them. We went to 3 different reefs, and before jumping into the water he yelled for us to hurry in so we could see the ¨very big baracuda¨. I thought he was kidding, but quickly realized he wasn´t once I jumped in.
It was a fun trip, well worth the $25. Speaking of money, the pesos to dollars conversion has definitely been testing my math skills. I just guesstimate how much I´ve been spending. Lots of the little shops and taxis take dollars which is convenient.
After a few hours on the island we had to rush back to Playa to get ready for the wedding.
I´ve been snorkeling many times, but this BY FAR was the coolest experience I´ve had. The water was so clear and the fish were so colorful. There were also lots of different types of fish which was nice to see. I definitely felt like I was in a big aquarium. I have no idea what types of fish we saw except for what the guide pointed out - which was a ¨very big baracuda¨. We actually saw two of them. We went to 3 different reefs, and before jumping into the water he yelled for us to hurry in so we could see the ¨very big baracuda¨. I thought he was kidding, but quickly realized he wasn´t once I jumped in.
It was a fun trip, well worth the $25. Speaking of money, the pesos to dollars conversion has definitely been testing my math skills. I just guesstimate how much I´ve been spending. Lots of the little shops and taxis take dollars which is convenient.
After a few hours on the island we had to rush back to Playa to get ready for the wedding.
Tulum
On Friday morning I got up early and headed to Tulum with four other wedding guests. We took a bus from downtown Playa del Carmen to Tulum. It´s then a short walk into the Mayan ruins of Tulum. Officially it´s a pre-Columbian Maya walled city. It´s right on the water so after the tour we went down to the beach for some swimming and sunbathing.
The ruins were neat to see. I was a bit bummed that you couldn´t go into any of the buildings to see some of the wall paintings. Or at least our guide didn´t take us into any. I have to admit that my favorite part of that day trip were all of the iguanas. They were everywhere. I took lots of photos.
We headed back after a few hours of enjoying the ruins and beach for a cocktail hour with all of the other wedding guests. While I only knew 3 people beforehand, everyone here has been so nice and friendly. The couple are truly great people, as are all of their friends. The groom proposed to the bride in Brasil, at Iguacu Falls which I find cool.
We tried to make it an early night on Friday to save our energy for the wedding on Saturday.
The ruins were neat to see. I was a bit bummed that you couldn´t go into any of the buildings to see some of the wall paintings. Or at least our guide didn´t take us into any. I have to admit that my favorite part of that day trip were all of the iguanas. They were everywhere. I took lots of photos.
We headed back after a few hours of enjoying the ruins and beach for a cocktail hour with all of the other wedding guests. While I only knew 3 people beforehand, everyone here has been so nice and friendly. The couple are truly great people, as are all of their friends. The groom proposed to the bride in Brasil, at Iguacu Falls which I find cool.
We tried to make it an early night on Friday to save our energy for the wedding on Saturday.
Dirty Dancing
On Thursday I slept in a bit with the early rising, long travel day, and late night on Wednesday. When I finally got up I headed straight to the beach to check out the scene. One word - Gorgeous! The sand is so perfect and fluffy and the water is so clear. The beach is so large that you don´t feel crammed into one little section of beach.
After about ten minutes of laying out I got pooped on by a seagull. Not sure what it is with me and foreign birds.
Niki and I had lunch at the buffet and then after more laying out we got ready for dinner with all of the other wedding guests that were already in town. It was fun. They actually had turkey for Thanksgiving, but that was about it. We then hung out at one of the resort bars and I called it an early night which I was very happy about the next day.
One thing I keep thinking about during this entire stay is how much the resort reminds me of the movie Dirty Dancing. This is my first time staying at an all-inclusive resort. Everyone that works here is required to have another talent, like dancing. I was part of a group that got sucked into learning a few salsa moves at the resort bar one night.
They have shows and events throughout the day and every night. The shows are stereotypical terrible but somewhat entertaining. The resort staff walk around trying to get people excited about them and flirt with all of the guests. We even had one of the wedding guests go home with one of the staff, which created lots of drama - he almost got fired! Pretty amusing and reminiscent of the drama in Dirty Dancing.
After about ten minutes of laying out I got pooped on by a seagull. Not sure what it is with me and foreign birds.
Niki and I had lunch at the buffet and then after more laying out we got ready for dinner with all of the other wedding guests that were already in town. It was fun. They actually had turkey for Thanksgiving, but that was about it. We then hung out at one of the resort bars and I called it an early night which I was very happy about the next day.
One thing I keep thinking about during this entire stay is how much the resort reminds me of the movie Dirty Dancing. This is my first time staying at an all-inclusive resort. Everyone that works here is required to have another talent, like dancing. I was part of a group that got sucked into learning a few salsa moves at the resort bar one night.
They have shows and events throughout the day and every night. The shows are stereotypical terrible but somewhat entertaining. The resort staff walk around trying to get people excited about them and flirt with all of the guests. We even had one of the wedding guests go home with one of the staff, which created lots of drama - he almost got fired! Pretty amusing and reminiscent of the drama in Dirty Dancing.
Playa del Carmen
The flights were seamless which was nice. Loved the priority treatment now that I´m back to American Airlines gold card status. I arrived into Cancun at 4pm, went through customs and waited for another wedding guest to share a ride to the hotel. My friend Niki invited me as her date to one of her friend´s wedding. She knew I´d be down with a trip like this!
A few weeks ago I was perusing Facebook and saw a high school friend´s post that she was excited for her Mexican vacation. I asked her when and where she´d be. Turned out that she was staying only 20 minutes away during the same timeframe! So we planned to meet for dinner Wednesday night. I arrived at the hotel, ran through the shower, and headed to downtown Playa del Carmen for dinner. Turns out she married another high school friend so we had a nice little reunion. Then my friend Niki and all her friends met up with us downtown for a rockin´ evening. Ended up dancing at a club on the beach, but by 3am I decided it was time to call it a night.
It took a while for me to feel like I was in a different country. We went to dinner in the tourist zone of Playa (5th Ave) which felt like a large Fisherman´s Warf. The resort that we´re all staying at is in a large gated community of other resorts. It´s all inclusive, which has been nice to not have to bring money and worry about a bill everywhere. However, there´s not a lot of Mexican food at the buffet! Which I find extremely odd. My only complaint.
A few weeks ago I was perusing Facebook and saw a high school friend´s post that she was excited for her Mexican vacation. I asked her when and where she´d be. Turned out that she was staying only 20 minutes away during the same timeframe! So we planned to meet for dinner Wednesday night. I arrived at the hotel, ran through the shower, and headed to downtown Playa del Carmen for dinner. Turns out she married another high school friend so we had a nice little reunion. Then my friend Niki and all her friends met up with us downtown for a rockin´ evening. Ended up dancing at a club on the beach, but by 3am I decided it was time to call it a night.
It took a while for me to feel like I was in a different country. We went to dinner in the tourist zone of Playa (5th Ave) which felt like a large Fisherman´s Warf. The resort that we´re all staying at is in a large gated community of other resorts. It´s all inclusive, which has been nice to not have to bring money and worry about a bill everywhere. However, there´s not a lot of Mexican food at the buffet! Which I find extremely odd. My only complaint.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Mexico
Am headed in a few hours to catch a ride from San Francisco to Dallas to eat a Tex Mex lunch. Then shortly after lunch am skipping over to Playa del Carmen, to experience the real deal.
This is my first Mexican adventure, and most likely not the last. I find it surprising that I've never been to Mexico for two reasons. First, I live so close. Second and most important, I love the food. Now, I know what you are thinking - the food there won't be like Taco Bell or Chevy's. This is true, but I know I'll still love it.
I will admit I'm a little concerned about the water and all the warnings that I will get sick. I say so be it. I will not be scared. I will enjoy the food, the margaritas, and avoid tap water. Kind of a crazy change from drinking out of every source in Italy on every street corner.
Am excited for new adventures!
This is my first Mexican adventure, and most likely not the last. I find it surprising that I've never been to Mexico for two reasons. First, I live so close. Second and most important, I love the food. Now, I know what you are thinking - the food there won't be like Taco Bell or Chevy's. This is true, but I know I'll still love it.
I will admit I'm a little concerned about the water and all the warnings that I will get sick. I say so be it. I will not be scared. I will enjoy the food, the margaritas, and avoid tap water. Kind of a crazy change from drinking out of every source in Italy on every street corner.
Am excited for new adventures!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Note to readers
I purposefully titled this blog "My Travels" to try and force myself to update it whenever I went on a trip. If Italy was all that you were interested in, no hard feelings if you unsubscribe. You'll just miss out on my wonderful anecdotes and life lessons. ;)
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