$148.00 and Here We Are!
Well, let’s start Friday morning at 7:00 A.M. when I booked an unbelievable AIR only ticket to Cancun from Edmonton for $148.00 Canadian!! I phoned Lyd (so excited I almost ran in to the car in front of me) and she decided to come too. We were on the plane Sunday morning at 9:00!
Pretty non-eventful trip – well, that’s good. Eventful plane rides can be scary. We found our hotel “El Patio” a cute little colonial Inn in downtown Cancun. Basic.
$30 each. Air Conditioned. T.V., tile floor, central courtyard, continental breakfast. Very similar to places in Greece. We walked down to Avenida Tulum, looked around a little, and found a little sidewalk café where we had quesadillas and dos margaritas. Happy Hour. We found a supermercado and bought some bollilos, cheese, munchies, and 4 beers and headed for home. To bed early (in time for a shower and to watch CSI).
Monday
We woke up pretty early (6:30 AM) and went down for toast and coffee. The fella bagged some ice for us and we set off, suitcases in hand for the bus to Isla Mujeres.
Now, why I brought my entire summer and fall wardrobe, 2 pairs of sandals, my big Spanish textbook, etc. I will never know, but I don’t have to worry about missing time at the gym – my weight training is still in progress.
We caught the bus to the ferry and then while we were waiting I met Rosario, an adorable 8 yr old girl. I took her picture and we taught each other words in Spanish and English. Very fun!!
We thought that we might be able to stay at Sabinas in Isla, but she wasn’t there, and there were towels over the balcony railing where Lyd & Dwayne had stayed, so we figure it’s already taken. We checked out 3 places – they all wanted about 200 – 250 pesos. Some had A/C, some had TV & fridge. We decided on the budget accommodation at Posada Isla Mujeres for $10 CDN each per night. Two beds, bathroom shower, fan, hammock, and balcony with 2 chairs. So for ½ price we don’t have TV, fridge, or A/C. Fridge would be nice.
Then it was ‘on to the beach’. Vamos a la Playa! The ocean is unbelievable! A magnificent shade of azure blue. The jewel turquoise cannot match the magnitude of this color to me. Yes, I know I’m a Pisces, but honest to God, this is beautiful!
Well, I guess it IS the Caribbean after all. We got VIP passes to tour the new Avalon Reef Club, but it was a timeshare come-on and we decided against the time away from the sand, and chose to buy 4 beers, half a chicken, and rice for $3.00 each. Just as we sat down to eat, it started to rain. We packed up and headed for shelter – a beach palapa bar – with all the other stranded sunbathers.
We sat with Michelle, a girl from Australia who’s been travelling the world since August. Really sweet, and she has a ‘killer tan’. She’s been staying here in Isla for 3 weeks and is actually staying in our posada, the room just below us in fact.
Once it cleared, it was back to the beach, the water, and then a few beers in the Swings Bar. We headed back to town, ‘refreshed’, and then headed out again about 6:00. We picked up Michelle and headed back to our beach bar for the end of Happy Hour. We had our dos cervesas and some snacks and then headed back to town in the dark. We stopped at a supermercado and bought supper for the terrace. Bollilos, cheese, avocados, stuff to make salsa, and beer! We ate like kings for 40 pesos each. ($6.00 CDN) Lyd sawed a water bottle in half lengthwise, and made it into a serving dish for our salsa. We set up our buffet with our fancy condiment bowls courtesy of Air Transat, and while Lyd chopped and diced the veggies for the salsa, Michelle and I helped by staying out of the way. We visited and dined, drank our beer and just had a great time. We stayed up really late. It might have been ten o’clock :)
