In scrolling through pics I have saved over the years, apparently I snap a lot of sunrises and sunsets. Here are a few of my favorites:
Cozumel, Mexico Sunset
Captiva Island, Florida Sunset
Negril, Jamaica Sunset
Riviera Maya, Mexico Sunrise
Riviera Maya, Mexico Sunrise
Lake Ozark, Missouri Sunset
Rocheport, Missouri Sunset
Guanacaste, Costa Rica Sunset
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic Sunrise
Negril, Jamaica Sunset
Grand Canyon, Arizona Sunset
Glacier Bay, Alaska Sunrise
Which one do you like best? Comment on your favorite, or share a pic of one you’ve seen.
Cozumel Mexico
A few years ago, I had the opportunity to go to Cozumel, Mexico. As a newly certified scuba diver, I was chomping at the bit to go because Cozumel is usually considered one of the top 10 places to dive. A small island, located just off the Yucatan Peninsula, Cozumel is a little more laid back than Riviera Maya. It has more of an island feel to it–a little smaller, and quieter.
To get to Cozumel from Missouri, we had two choices. We could fly non-stop to Cancun, then ride a bus for 45 minutes south, then catch a ferry for another 45 minute ride over to Cozumel or fly to Atlanta, have a quick layover, then take a second flight on to Cozumel. Since the idea of lugging our suitcases onto a ferry didn’t sound very appealing, we opted for the latter and flew into Cozumel.
We stayed at the Iberostar, which was a wonderful resort.
Our room was half of a circular-shaped bungalow. It was kind of different to stay in a room that was a semi circle–there were no corners in which to stick my suitcase. We were also located right in the middle of the resort, equal distance to the pool, dive shop, and beach and we could see all three from our porch (which had a hammock on it).
Although our accommodations were awesome and we had a lot of activities to do at the resort, we ventured into town one afternoon for a Pirate Dinner Cruise later that night, which still ranks up there as one of the funnest days ever!
We took a cab into town, which was maybe 10 minutes from our resort. We arrived at a small shopping area across the road from the pier, where we would be boarding the Jean Laffite. At the moment, we were really in search of free Wi-Fi (our resort charged in 10 minute increments), which we found at a small, unassuming restaurant named Polar. We ordered some Tecate Light beers, split some fish tacos (which hubby doused with an incredibly HOT hot sauce), and were able to access everything we needed. After sitting there for 2 and a half hours, I don’t think our total bill came up to $20US.
After leaving Polar, we did a little shopping and stocked up on souvenirs. We came across a Fat Tuesday which was a fun place to have a cocktail and people watch.
Then it was time to get to the Pier and board our pirate ship! The performers were a talented bunch of guys who had the obligation of plying you with quantity (not quality) drinks and getting you to participate in the games which were part of the show. We cruised up the coast of Cozumel with these pirates entertaining every one in the group and then our ship turned around and headed back down the coast so that we all had the most incredible view of sunset.
We were also served dinner at this time, which was your choice of steak, lobster tail, or surf and turf. I had the surf and turf and thought the dinner was unbelievably good considering it had all been prepared in the small galley of our ship. If you EVER get the chance to go on the Pirate Dinner Cruise in Cozumel, Mexico, GO! You will have really fun 3 hour tour!
2 Ways to Souvenir Shop in Riviera Maya
Recently, while in Riviera Maya, Mexico, I needed to do some souvenir shopping. I’m the kind of shopper who likes to look around and weigh my options. I’m not very splurgy, I know who I need to buy for and I usually have a good idea of what I’m looking for for each person. I quickly determined there were two basic ways to shop at our resort.
The Grand Palladium had 3 large shops that were open while we were there.. I found some items that interested me. The prices were all listed in Mexican pesos, so I had to do some calculating for my USD brain. Let me also mention, I hadn’t converted any of my money to pesos. The store would give me an exchange rate of 17:1, which wasn’t the exact exchange rate, but was better than other shops that were going on 10:1 exchange or anything in between. When calculating the prices, I realized that the gift shop prices were slightly higher than I would have paid for similar items at home. So, while I would have saved money by paying in pesos, since I didn’t have any, I would actually be paying more. AND the prices in the shops were non-negotiable.
Luckily, I quickly figured out that the Grand Palladium allowed vendors to come in each evening and sell their wares. If you’ve ever been to a craft market in another country, you already know that their prices are negotiable. I chose to shop mostly with the vendors.
My first stop was at this jewelry booth that was being worked by David Renteria. He basically had me sold on everything—it was all so shiny and beautiful! I really had focused in on a pendant that was decorated on both sides. One side had the Mayan calendar on it and the other side showed the Aztec calendar. It was so versatile with the colors on it.
Unfortunately, I hadn’t really planned on shopping that night and had limited funds with me. I had to remind myself that souvenirs for friends and family came first and it wouldn’t be smart to spend all my money at the first booth I came to. I settled on two cool identical bracelets with skulls on them for Harvey and Jasmine, two of my favorite, young English friends. I figured, even if they never wore them, the bracelets would be a funky reminder of our time in Mexico together. David sold me both for the asking price of one, which was so nice of him.
My next stop was at the booth being manned by Charlie Brown (he swore that was really his name too.) His specialty was in making pendants out of pesos.
He had quite the collection and even demonstrated some of his craft while I was making my choices. When I asked what he would sell me my picks for, he shot me a price way higher than the amount I had left. That’s what I get for shopping when it wasn’t planned.
I went to go find hubby (he hates the haggling so usually disappears when I start shopping the vendors.) I emptied the cash from his pockets and went back to see Charlie Brown. I pulled out every dollar I now had, which still wasn’t his asking price, but he was so kind to sell me the pendants I had picked out for the kids for the amount I did have.
I thought they were pretty neat looking and appropriate for each kiddo. I just hoped they would like them as much as I did. That wrapped up my shopping for that night since I had no more cash with me. But, little did I know, I wasn’t finished yet.
A couple of nights later, we walked into another gift shop located in a different part of the resort. It had a lot of the same selection as the shop we had already visited, but a few different items. I didn’t buy that night, but a couple of nights later when we had to go that direction again for dinner, I popped back into that store and picked up a quirky little handbag I had seen previously. I don’t really buy much for myself anymore—I have way too many t-shirts and refrigerator magnets, but I do try to find one unique item for myself as a reminder of places I’ve been. Now, don’t laugh or think I’m one of those weird cat ladies, but the handbag I bought DID have cats on it. And the price WAS NOT negotiable, so it was honestly a splurge.
Who knows if I’ll ever even get around to using it. In hindsight, I think I had cats on the brain. I was really missing our kittens back home by that day of the trip.
Even though I’m sure they didn’t even notice we were gone, I still considered my two different shopping methods to have been a success!
Riviera Maya—A Day at the Spa
Any travel day can be strenuous on you. Even for a “short trip”, you will likely have some changes from your daily routine that can throw you out of whack. Take our last trip to Riviera Maya Mexico, for instance. It was a 3 hour non-stop flight to get there. Should be a piece of cake, right? Not really.
Our flight was scheduled to leave at 6am. Factor in a 2-hour drive to our departure city the night before, and dinner, and it was already late when we arrived at the hotel. We got to bed, only to have to wake up at 3am so we could arrive at the airport 2 hours before our international flight. After an uneventful flight, in cramped seats (they were pre-reclined and had a 17 inch pitch though) we arrived in the Cancun, Mexico airport only to make our way through customs and immigration and find our shuttle. I had forgotten the part about the hour drive to the resort. Luckily, on our commute we only had to stop off at one other resort to drop people off on our way.
By the time we arrived at The Grand Palladium, we were starving and exhausted. We found one restaurant that was still open for lunch and then made our way to one of the adult “quiet” pools to wait for check-in. Yeah, even though we arrived early enough to enjoy the afternoon, we were too early for our room to be ready. Enter the pool area, Miguel! He was one of the Zentropia Spa staff and was taking reservations for spa appointments. Boy, if that wasn’t right on time for our tired bones! He was all booked for the day, but said he could schedule us in for the next morning for massages and use of the spa facilities for 3 days. We set it up for the next morning.
Once we did get into our room, we mustered up enough energy to go to dinner, but couldn’t stay awake long enough to even sit through the entertainment that evening. Bedtime came very early. The next morning we were more refreshed. We walked to breakfast and then headed up the beach to one of the other resorts in our complex, White Sands. They have rooms on a small lagoon and have to take gondolas to get around.
After checking out their pool and restaurants, we headed back to our resort taking a different way. We found the spa on our way, and even though we were still 2 hours early, we went in. We figured we would just hang at the spa pool until our appointment.
After putting our stuff in one of the lockers, we discovered the spa had a hydrotherapy circuit. 
Jackpot for us! We love hydrotherapy! In that 2 hours, I think we used everything but the cold immersion tub. (It was really just too cold!) The relaxing pediluvium was one of our favorites. You walked through on rocks and pebbles with cool water jets massaging your legs.
It really helped our sore and tired feet feel better. The rest of the circuit was very relaxing. By the time we finished and headed to the infinity pool we were so relaxed, we were both ready for naps.
Salma and Nicole came to get us, they said they would be our massage therapists for the next 80 minutes. They went through aromatherapy, acupressure, lomi lomi, and shiatsu. They started with us face down and then halfway through, we flipped to face up. It was so relaxing, I think I may have dozed off a couple of times. If you ever go to a resort with a spa and massage services, make that appointment. Your body will thank you!
When our massages were finished Salma and Nicole handed us each a glass of champagne and we returned to the infinity pool.
What a way to end a massage session! The best part is, our spa pass is still good for two more entries to the hydrotherapy circuit. You can bet we’ll be using those before we leave here!
Countdown Mexico
We’re headed to Mexico soon. Meeting up with our British friends, the Beards, for a replay of a vacation 7 years ago at The Grand Palladium in the Riviera Maya. Here’s a list of what I’ll need to get done before we go:
- Check cambio to see what the current exchange rate is so I can decide how much money to exchange (please be a good exchange rate, so I can shop more!)
- Gather up travel insurance info, which is already saved in my email
- Get our passports out of the safe
- Make color copies of our passports to leave behind with trustworthy friends in case they’d need to bail us out of any situation. I also keep a copy on my phone.
- Switch my phone over to Mexico calling and text package (we rarely use our phones while out of the country, but you never know when you may need more than wi-fi
- Alert my bank and credit card company of our travel dates, so they don’t think someone stole my cards and ran off to Mexico
- Bring the suitcases
up from storage, so we can start packing
- Round up a lot of small bills for tipping
up from storage, so we can start packingThings to remember to pack besides clothes:
- iPad mini
and chargers
- Water shoes or dive boots
(probably boots this time considering how many sting rays we saw in that area last time)
- Underwater camera
—I’ll make sure everything is cleaned and fully charged before packing it in my carry-on
- Ear buds and a book for the plane (I will also have a sweater and pair of socks in my carry-on in case it’s a cold flight)
- Band aids, nail polish, and polish remover pads
- Prescription meds and OTC meds–Tums, Benadryl, ibuprofen, Imodium just in case. It costs way more to buy them there
- Sunscreen and insect repellant to ward off mosquitos
- Snorkel gear
: mask, snorkel, fins—the last time we needed to borrow fins the crew could only find one fin in hubby’s size
- If we decide to dive, I can rent that gear there
- Dive log
and chargers
(probably boots this time considering how many sting rays we saw in that area last time)
—I’ll make sure everything is cleaned and fully charged before packing it in my carry-on
: mask, snorkel, fins—the last time we needed to borrow fins the crew could only find one fin in hubby’s sizeClothes wise, I will mostly pack:
- bathing suits
- Cover ups
- Dresses for dinner
- Flip flops and sandals
- One pair of tennis shoes
- Some gym/workout clothes (the resort has a pretty cool gym)
Pretty much anything else beyond that, is going to be overkill for a week-long trip. Honestly, I probably don’t need much more than the bathing suits anyway.
Should I Stay or Should I Go…To Mexico?
Just a quick nod to the old Clash song Should I Stay or Should I Go.
The US State Department has recently issued warnings for Americans traveling to Mexico. This warning is only the latest: “Gun battles between rival criminal organizations or with Mexican authorities have taken place on streets and in public places during broad daylight.” The warning goes on to mention US citizens being murdered in car-jackings and highway robberies, most frequently at night and on isolated roads. The state of Quintana Roo, which is where Cancun, Cozumel, and Playa Del Carmen are located has recently been added to the list.
Add the Zika Virus (mosquito transmitted illness) to the list along with allegations of tainted alcohol at some of the major all-inclusive resorts and now you’ve got me wondering if my upcoming vacation in the Riviera Maya will be safe enough?
We’re still going to go, but here is my list of ways I plan to stay safe:
- plan to participate in guided excursions, with other hotel guests, likely on a bus together
- cooperate if you go through a check point–government or unauthorized
- be careful not to flash large amounts of cash around (Ha, ha! That shouldn’t be a problem!)
- be prepared for pick-pockets
- keep my cell phone under my control so stolen information from it cannot be used for ransom purposes
- be aware that corruption exists everywhere
- wear insect repellant on and off the resorts (maybe this one will help prevent the Zika virus and maybe keep local pests away)
- limit outdoor activities at dusk and dawn when mosquitos are more prevalent
- avoid excessive alcohol consumption
- bring booze into the resort purchased from duty-free shopping in the airport
- stick to beers or wines at the resort
- don’t leave drinks sitting anywhere unattended
- check the resort out in advance (the resort we’re going to hasn’t had any reports of tainted alcohol)
- ask the bartender to open bottles in front of you–a sealed bottle likely hasn’t been tainted or re-filled with bootleg booze
- research medical providers in the area in advance, like before we go
- be sure you have travel insurance in place
- if you feel ill, stop and seek medical assistance
- be observant of your surroundings and aware of anything suspicious
Really, just use the same common sense you should typically use when traveling somewhere new or foreign. To keep my trip to Mexico in perspective, the current murder rate in Quintana Roo is still pretty comparable to my hometown of St. Louis, MO. I haven’t stopped traveling there because of the crime, I just use some additional sense about it.
If you have other suggestions of tips to add to the list, feel free to leave me a comment.
Otherwise, in the words of James Taylor, Mexico! (click below)
