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Trip Reviews, Ratings and Comments - Trip Review - Judi and Jerry's Third Trip to Isla Mujeres
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Our March 2000 Vacation on Isla Mujeres
Judi and I headed for Detroit Metro Airport eagerly anticipating our arrival on Isla the next day. We spent the night before our departure at Day’s Inn near the airport since this would make it much easier to catch our Saturday morning Sun Country flight to Cancun. Neither Day’s Inn nor Sun Country offers much in the way of frills, but we don’t need those things so it didn’t matter.
Shortly after checking our luggage at the airport and while walking toward the cafeteria we ran into Isla board poster Lyn and his wife Jacquie. We had printed out photos so that we could find each other on Isla, so it was a pleasant surprise to meet them earlier than planned. They were leaving on an earlier flight, though, so we soon parted company. Nice and friendly couple!
Our flight left thirty minutes late, but the pilot made up for that and we arrived Cancun only ten minutes behind schedule. Immigration was packed and took about an hour to get through, but our luggage was there for us when we got to it. Judi got the red light, which resulted in a delay of less than a minute. There were so many tourists coming in at that time that the authorities just waved me and lots of others on through, not requiring that we push the red/green button. Guess My Honey Judi looks suspicious, ‘cause they stopped her last time, too. She is so innocent and all, so you think maybe that’s what they look for?
After negotiating a $10 price per person, four of us piled into a cab (I still don’t know how they got all that luggage in there), headed directly to Puerto Juarez and caught the ferry to Isla Mujeres.
While on the ferry a lady named Jane was sitting nearby and asked if we were on the web. Turns out she doesn’t post, but had seen our pictures somewhere. We’re beginning to feel a bit odd with this recognizing business.
Mary Ann, our friend who had arrived a few days earlier, had been asked to obtain a certain room for us and was successful. We had to wait about twenty minutes before getting into the room because the window was being replaced and a mini-fridge being installed at that very moment. It was worth the wait, though, as the little fridge sure came in handy.
After getting settled in and since we had eaten only what Sun Country had provided, we decided to get a snack at what was for us a new restaurant – Don Chepo’s. We ordered Beef Nachos and ended up being served our order - and also plain Nachos - because we didn’t realize they automatically served them free just for being there. That, we thought, was a nice touch.
After snacks we checked out the town square. It was quiet, so we headed back to our room and then over to Playa Caribbean and walked up the beach until we found Emilio, a bartender who works at Nautibeach’s Chez Magaly Restaurant-Bar. This place didn’t even exist when we were there in November, but we had learned of it and Emilio during email exchanges with Todd from Maine. Todd had asked us to give special shirts to a few people, so we gave Emilio shirts for himself, Vincente and Eloy.
From there we continued north, turned right and were now on Playa Norte. While walking along this beach we noticed some friends seemingly having a fun time at Chi-Chita’s, a smaller but seemingly more popular section of Chi-Chi’s and Charlie’s (give you one guess as to what “Chi-Chi’s” are!), so we joined them for a time. We stayed here so long that it looked as though we would miss meeting an online acquaintance and her friend whom we had promised to meet at Buho’s at sundown. We arrived Buho’s at 6:25pm, well after sundown and knew we had blown it. We had visions of her being perturbed with us and she had every right to be. We had a drink there, while hoping that they would show up. They didn’t, so we headed to ZaZil-Ha’s to find, in comparison to Buho’s, a very quiet place. To us it’s just as nice as Buho’s, but it just doesn’t seem to have whatever it is that attracts the younger crowd. We inquired at ZaZil-Ha about shirts that Donna and Ed wanted, but no luck. “Maybe next week,” they said. We wouldn’t be there next week. We then headed back to town.
While slowly strolling south on Hidalgo Avenue and enjoying life in that special way we all experience while holding the hand of our Main Squeeze we suddenly hear this voice screaming, “Houston!” That had to be someone trying to get our attention (I mean, like how often do we hear people yelling that name unless they’re talking about that great city in Texas?), so we turned around and there is this beautiful blonde running out of a restaurant and heading our way. We’re thinking that she must be one of the people we’re hoping to meet on Isla, but we have no idea who she is. She introduces herself. She’s Kristi! She tells us she left Buho’s early. Hey - we’re not the guilty ones anymore! She is! (We don’t tell her we were late.) None of us were at Buho’s at the mutually agreed upon time, but here we are meeting anyway. Isn’t life the most wonderful thing there is, folks? When you make online plans to meet someone and have neither a picture nor even an idea of the age of the other person you really are sort of lost and don't know who you’re looking for. (Judi frequently tells me I’m either lost or losing it anyway, so this is nothing new to me.) We introduced ourselves to each other, shook hands and talked for a couple minutes. Then Kristi invited us into Nauti Pete’s and introduced us to Anne, her friend. Hey all you single guys out there: these are two young, intelligent and beautiful babes! These ladies are probably taken, though, so forget it. We had expected to find Anne in tatters as a result of her several unfortunate encounters with a machine and beasts (a scooter, dog and parrot) on our beloved Isla, but, no – she looked great and appeared to be in one piece. After a short conversation with these delightful ladies, we bid them “Adios” and continued on our way.
We walked through the warm and friendly town square on our way to Carmelina’s, which turned out to be closed, so continued up the street a short distance to have dinner at La Lomita’s, a restaurant highly recommended by Kristi. Judi and I had two of our most delicious meals of the visit, with Judi having Sautéed Shrimp and me having Octopus in Garlic Sauce. Eat here, folks, with no thought of being disappointed. While eating, we heard employees singing along with a song playing on the radio. Perhaps it was actually on the radio, but the singing was so bad that we suspect La Lomita employees were simply enjoying what God had given them the right to do.
Shortly after leaving La Lomita’s, we met Tom from Cleveland, his wife and a friend. They happened to recognize My Honey Judi and approached us. A short visit it was, but it was nice meeting them. There are so many wonderful folks out there with so much to offer and we hope they join us in posting to these boards, as we can all learn from each other.
While walking back through town we couldn’t help but notice how well-behaved are the children of Isla Mujeres. If we hadn’t repeatedly seen this absolutely wonderful behavior on the part of these Isla children, we would never believe someone telling us about it. So don’t believe us - go and see for yourselves. Something else we remarked about – and this turned out to hold true during the rest of our stay – is that we never once saw a Mexican smoking anything. We suppose some do, but we saw not even one.
We headed up to the Posada del Mar bar, thinking some of our friends might be there. They weren’t, but guess what? We meet a new friend! Jen from SF! She has posted here and we were looking for her. And I’ll be damned if we didn’t find her! She bought us drinks and we talked for a while. She’s leaving, I believe, the next day, so we never see her again. Thanks, Jen, for spending some time with us!
Home and to bed, for tomorrow is a new day!
Day Two:
We headed to the Red Eye Café for breakfast and got the usual warm greeting from Inge and Gus that we have come to expect. We visited with them and other friends while enjoying a delicious breakfast which included the famous potato salad. We also gave Inge and Gus messages from those who had asked us to do this.
Shortly after leaving the Red Eye Café, a he-man walking towards us quietly says, “Mr. and Mrs. Ervin.” He wasn’t asking us if we were – it was more like he was telling us we were. That was cute and we didn’t have the heart to tell him we weren’t married. We pause to talk with this gentleman named Andrew. We were looking forward to meeting him, but had expected to find him fishing up near the El Presidente. He said something about needing a license or something he couldn’t have, so he couldn’t fish. He is tall, handsome, bearded and has the appearance of a man who would be perfect playing the gentle, leading man in a movie about the backwoods. We’re once again fortunate enough to have run into another who has posted on the Isla message board. I owe Andrew a drink, but he says he’ll collect later. After a couple minutes of quiet, friendly conversation we move on.
We walk along Avenue Rueda Medina looking for a man named “50 Cents.” After searching the part of the avenue where we know he sells his shells, we find ourselves in front of the Velasquez Restaurant where Mr. Velasquez happens to be sitting and he informs us that it’s 50 Cents’ day off. We tell him thanks, walk to our hotel, get a few things and then proceed to stroll through town to the boardwalk on the other side and proceed to walk in the direction of the Media Luna and all other wonderful points north. As folks have said, the Media Luna looks real nice - and probably is - but you don’t want to swim there. But you know what? Even though there are signs all over the place indicating it’s not safe to swim, there is a man out there. His wife or significant other is lying on the beach very close to one of these signs and we walk on by thinking to ourselves that they must not much value his life. But it gets to us, so we walk back and inform her that people have died right there, that it’s not safe for him to be out there. She politely informs us that she will tell him when he comes in. Okay. We had done all we could do short of ranting and raving and dragging him the hell out of there, but what’s the point in that? We continue on our way and up near the wood bridge that people walk across to get to the El Presidente who should we see? “Mom!” Jelaine is her name. She’s a dear friend of Sami, whom we had hoped to see again during this visit. Mom informed us that Sami had already returned home and that she was cutting her vacation short, too, and would be returning home in a few days. Someone very dear to them had experienced difficulty and they just couldn’t continue vacationing on Isla at that time. During our discussion, Jelaine tells us of how disturbed she is about a conversation she has just had with a lady whose husband is in the water in front of the Media Luna…
Judi and I continue on up to the east corner of Playa Norte and there sitting on chairs and visiting in the beautiful blue, shallow water are Michigan friends who had been with us during a previous Isla trip and also our new friends, Lyn and Jacquie from London, Canada. They are all having a great time being there and enjoying each others company and we join them for a while.
We then walked over the bridge to the El Presidente, going all the way to the northernmost point where friends are preparing to snorkel on the Caribbean side. This is the dangerous side, folks, but these guys are expert at scuba diving and know what they’re doing. It’s not recommended that anyone not an expert do this. Judi and I didn’t even think about going in there. We watched and talked with others there for a time, and then headed for ZaZil-Ha for diet coke, Dos Equis, ice cream and their delicious Guacamole.
We then headed to Buho’s to talk with Ivan, but he wasn’t there so we returned to ZaZil-Ha for more Guacamole, drinks and a banana split. Aren’t vacations fun?
We then went out front and once again joined our friends in the water. Lyn in London joined us and this time he brought with him another Isla Board contributor: Mary in Colorado! He introduced us, we conversed for a while and took some photos. For those of you who don’t already know, I’m a photo nut who takes pictures of everything – even imaginary things – which explains those many pictures that don’t turn out.
We then walked these most wonderful of beaches back to our hotel, showered, and headed to Fredy’s for dinner. After a delicious dinner we walked to the town square and bought Cornetto De Chocolae ice cream at the Super Retino market. Judi and I both feel this is the best ice cream we’ve ever had anywhere. Give it a try, folks, and see what you think.
We then headed up to the Tequila Sol for drinks and to give Miguel the messages that some friends had asked us to. He was very friendly and appreciated your remembering him. (As an aside - and thanks to you folks - he remembered us from then on, too!) We tried sticking around for a while, but the music was so loud that we couldn’t stand it, so we returned to our hotel and talked with Mom for awhile there on our porch before we returned to our room and called it a day.
Day Three:
We got up late this morning, kind of normal for us on Isla. Come to think of it, staying in late is what we do everywhere if we have anything to say about it. Looking out the window we see it’s slightly overcast in contrast to the beautiful blue sky we have had up to now. That’s okay. My Honey Judi is with me, so all is well. I’m in Heaven.
While leaving our room we overhear friends on the porch talking about golf carts and it sort of sounds as though they are there RIGHT THIS MINUTE! We walk to the porch, see carts lined up on the street and here we are almost missing this opportunity! No haggling with anybody, as Our Great Leader, Mary Ann, said all we had to do was come up with 30 bucks real quick and she would have another cart delivered special just for us. There’s no way I can beat this deal and that $30 is in her hands almost before our cart arrives. I couldn’t believe how quick she was with all this! Thanks, Mary Ann – you do a terrific job for us!
We go over to the French Bistro Francais for another delicious breakfast on Isla. While awaiting our meal we look for the parrot, don’t see it, so ask our waiter, “Where’s the parrot?” He points to a chair, but we still don’t see it. He points again and, yep, there it is - apparently waiting for an unsuspecting customer to sit on top of it. We discuss about how that might be an unforgettable Isla Experience. Afterwards we stop by an Isla money exchange to take care of business; exchange rate of 9.17 to 1 at the moment.
We head south on the eastside of this tiny island and ride our little machine for several minutes enjoying everything and waving to practically everyone we see before stopping to ask, “Where is this?” We then showed several people a copy of the photo we had printed of a picture posted online. At first nobody we asked understood a word we said, but they all recognized the little building in the picture. These wonderful people did their best to tell us where to go (no wise cracks from the peanut gallery, okay?) and we did our best to get there. We did this repeatedly until we eventually met a lady who spoke very good English and who told us exactly where it was located. Following her directions was like trying to figure out how to breathe and within minutes we were there. The famous Little Yellow School House! We found it! We had made it and we felt so good! A man pulled up behind us on a motorcycle or scooter and we asked him if anyone was inside. He said there was, so we approached and as we are nearing the entrance we are greeted by a young lady who introduces herself to us as Sandra. Yes! She’s her! The lady we’re looking for – the lady in Arlene’s picture! We introduce ourselves and give her a package Arlene had asked us to deliver. Sandra is so appreciative and this almost brings tears to her eyes. Mine, too. (I’m not as emotional as Arlene, but this was something I had not expected.) She showed us around the sparsely furnished little school building and explained why the little children were not there. I don’t remember why they weren’t (perhaps sickness?), but Sandra’s explanation made sense. Sandra’s husband, Juan, then joined us. Turns out he was the man outside with whom we had spoken before entering the school. While talking with them we learned that he works on the beach in front of Buho’s. (We would meet Juan on another day.) We also learned that Sandy - one of our friends who was on Isla at the time and who volunteers to help anyone less fortunate than herself - had visited them just a short time before we got there.
Sandy feels much compassion for children attending this school. Please understand, however, that she has many times visited Mexico and volunteered to help those living there, the most recent being just a couple of weeks earlier when she stayed on Cozumel for about a month assisting people who live there. In comparison to some of the schools she has visited in Mexico, she said, the children attending Isla’s Little Yellow School didn’t have it half-bad. Sandy has assisted in schools where dirt floors were the norm and books were nonexistent. Think about what’s being said here, folks. Do you take for granted the numerous opportunities your children have in your schools? After a warm, short visit with Sandra and Juan we went around the corner where is located the Isla Mujeres Red Cross building.
Our experience here, sad to say (and hopefully it rarely happens with visitors), was not at all like our experience with Sandra at the Little Yellow School. We entered a relatively nice building, as Isla buildings go, to see a man sitting in a chair behind the counter watching television. He noticed us – after all, we were the only ones there – but he did not greet us. He didn’t speak English at all and didn’t understand anything we said. He didn’t leave his chair until I pulled out a donation and extended my hand to him. He received our donation, while I explained that it was to be used to help the beautiful children of Isla Mujeres. He nodded (I felt no confidence whatsoever in his nod), and we left. Judi and I - probably because of his overall demeanor - had the same thought, and we verbalized this to each other as we walked out: “Do you think the money will go to help the children, or is it already in his pocket and no-one will ever know about it?” Sorry to say this, folks, but that’s the way it was. For the children’s sake we hope we’re wrong.
We then headed for the most expensive hotel on Isla Mujeres – the Villa Rolandi. And who should we see traveling in the opposite direction? Andrew and his wife! They were traveling on bikes, with my recognizing him at the last moment as he hollers out, “You owe me a beer!” I thought he had yelled something like, “You have an ugly beard,” and since I didn’t know for sure what he had said and since I’m a guy, hollered back, “You, too!” (You guys will identify with that.) It wasn’t until Judi straightened me out a few seconds later that I realized I owed this guy. In my mind - and after this reminder from Andrew - it was more important than ever that he get his beer.
We parked our cart and entered the Villa Rolandi. Man, oh man, but this doesn’t even remotely resemble where we stay! Beautiful place! We walked out and seated ourselves on the deck. This place is beautiful, folks, so if nothing else stop in for a drink and look around. During an earlier visit we were surprised to learn that drinks here are no more expensive than anywhere else. Room prices are coming down, too, as we knew they would, because people who stay on Isla are not willing to pay the outrageous prices the Villa Rolandi people wanted. We predict that eventually their prices will be on a par with the NaBalam. Even then, the Villa Rolandi is in the wrong place. Between these two hotels – and were we willing to put out the bigger bucks (we’re not) – we would stay at the NaBalam on Playa Norte. Life happens on Playa Norte, and since we are barely out of our teens the Villa Rolandi is not the place for us!
After that we stopped in Playa Paraiso and Atlantis and stopped by the El Garrafon wall to take a couple pictures of what they have done to what was once beautiful. Because of a large stone wall they built, you can’t see anything until after entering this place. It resembles the wall that used to exist in Berlin but without the broken glass cemented on top.
We then drive further south to Punta Sur, park our Cadillac and begin walking to the end. Almost immediately we run into Norris, a soft-spoken guy who lives on Isla much of the time and whom we’re sure many of you have seen even if not realizing who he is. We talked a bit and then Judi and I headed for the south end for more pictures and to watch and get a picture of a very courageous(?) young lady who had walked out to the large rocks located beyond the very end of the island.
We then headed north searching for the webmaster of the Isla Mujeres Message Board and after first having passed by her home, backtracked and eventually located what we were reasonably sure was where we were attempting to be. We once again parked our cart and while approaching her home we were passed by a “blur” (a little girl?) headed to the same door. We ask, “Are you Julie’s daughter?” “No.” she says - and that’s it. She walks through the front door as though she owns the place. We don’t, so we knock. After a couple knocks we hear this voice yell to nobody in particular, “It’s Houston!” It’s a trip, folks, to hear yourself referred to in this manner when you’re not famous. Is this what it’s like to be a movie star? I must say that even though this was flattering, it wouldn’t take too much of it to drive me up the wall.
We were greeted by this beautiful, tanned, talkative and obviously energetic young lady who was as friendly as she could possible be. Julie! Here she is! We had been waiting a long time to meet this lady who up to this moment had been a fictional computer person. “Hi, Julie,” we said. “Hi Judi, Jerry,” she said, as she welcomed us into her home.
We were immediately introduced to her husband and children. Everyone in the home speaks both Spanish and English (including the little neighbor girl with whom we spoke while approaching Julie’s home) and this was nice to see. There seems to be some sort of family-neighborhood-thing going on here where everyone watches out for everyone else’s children. Got to tell you that we were very impressed with this. It sort of reminds us of when we were young way-back-when and our folks and neighbors here in Michigan did it that way. She asked if we would like some tea. We say, “sure.” So she makes tea and we discuss those things people who don’t really know each other talk about during occasions like this. We stopped just short of solving all the world’s problems.
During our entire visit Julie’s husband left his wife and us to ourselves, while he was outside playing with their children. This was very touching to us, folks – as it would be to anyone who had feelings about how important it is to be both “family” and respect the privacy of other family members at the same time. Congratulations to Julie’s husband, for he did it right! Thank you, Julie, for being a most wonderful and gracious hostess and lady. (As an aside, folks, it wasn’t until later that we learned we had showed up at Julie’s house at the most awkward of times.) Julie never once let on. After spending a very warm time talking with Julie – one of the best of webmasters - about most things under the sun, we said, “See you next time!”
We returned to town, turned in our cart and then proceeded to Rolandi’s where we had a delicious dinner. Afterwards we walked over to the “boardwalk” and headed north. Arriving at the relatively new Media Luna Hotel where we picked up brochures for a friend, we then walked by the Casa Maya Hotel, where it looked very primitive (read that to mean, “warm, out-of-the-way and, most important of all – romantic”), and then to the NaBalam office. No-one was there, so after looking for brochures we moved on.
After doing these things, we visited ZaZil-Ha’s and then headed for Buho’s suspecting Ivan would be there. He was. During conversation with him we learned he will be leaving for Colorado in about three months, as his girlfriend is in that area. His going there makes sense to us. To you, too?
After visiting with Ivan, we headed back to town and while strolling through the area ran into Tom from Cleveland and some of our friends.
We bought a couple cans of Tequila-like-stuff, a variety of Mexican beers and retired to the porch of our hotel to enjoy life and visit with some fiends who were there. Most importantly, this was another opportunity for me to enjoy being with My Honey Judi. Bill, one of our friends there at the time, had just returned from scuba diving somewhere around Isla and he said it had been a great day.
After a time, Judi and I called it a night.
Day Four:
We got up and took care of business with Mary Ann, who had gotten together with Daniela and Oliver and made plans for us to spend much of the day on his catamaran, the Lala. This adventure wouldn’t begin until 11am, so we had plenty of time to wander around and wonder where we would have breakfast on this fine day. We decide to have breakfast at M&J Cazuela, a restaurant highly recommended by many. While approaching this restaurant located right on the edge of that absolutely breathtakingly beautiful Caribbean water, we see some of our friends and acquaintances already there. We order some type of special-egg dish and it’s wonderful. We have a potential problem, however, in that although our meals are delicious, we had to wait for almost an hour to be served and are running out of time to catch the Lala. All turns out well, though, and although we’ve many times in the past missed the boat, we didn’t this time. In fairness to this restaurant, we must say that there were lots of customers already there when Judi and I arrived.
After breakfast we headed back to our hotel and caught a cab down to the pier where the Lala would come to get us. Daniela and Oliver arrived right on schedule. We boarded, and were off.
We first went into that large lagoon named Laguna Macax. Oliver and his girlfriend, Daniela, took us all around in there, all the while talking with us and answering numerous questions that I’m sure they’ve been asked millions of times. They are both very likable people and it isn’t long before we all feel like “family.” That’s the kind of folks they are.
After traveling around for awhile we leave the lagoon through a small channel and proceed south alongside Isla, heading in the direction of many of the sites on the westside of the island. We stop just outside the dolphin place and watch people being pushed around by dolphins. They seem to be having a lot of fun in there. We slowly continue on down Isla’s coast and stop just outside of El Garrafon where some of us get off and snorkel for a while. During the entire day, fruit, guacamole, nachos and drinks are provided - as much as you want - and all of this is done by Daniela and Oliver, while they are also taking care of the many things needing to be done just to keep the Lala on course. What a hard working couple they are – doing all this and making it look fun and easy!
We traveled all the way to the south end of Isla and had the water been a bit calmer would have rounded the tip and headed up the eastside of this tiny island. But Oliver, making the “Captain’s Call,” decided it was too rough on that side for us and steered toward the Cancun coastline. Anybody who wanted to do it, by the way, could steer the Lala. Judi and I both wanted … and did. We followed the Cancun coast north for a bit and then headed back toward Isla and hung loose up near Playa Norte. By this time it was getting close to 5:30 and Oliver asked whether we wanted to stay out longer or did some of us wish to get off. Judi and I were among those who felt we had had enough of this type of excitement and would prefer to call it a day out there. He dropped us off at the pier, with only about five of us leaving this fun boat. Everyone else went back out, we learned later, to a GREAT BIG TERRIFIC AND DELICIOUS DINNER on the water! Those folks who chose to stay onboard finally returned at about 7:30. Going out for a day on the Lala with Daniela and Oliver is something we feel is a “must do” for those of you staying on Isla for any length of time. We would not have waited this long to do it had we known how much fun it is. If interested, see Inge at the Red Eye Café and she will tell you what to do.
After we left the Lala, Judi felt like taking a nap (if your lady feels like a nap, guys, let her be, as it’s an easy way to make points) and I went out to enjoy walking around this quaint, lovely town.
I tried again to locate “Reise” (Fifty Cents), was told he lived nearby and so went to his home. I was told he wasn’t there but would be tomorrow, so I returned to our hotel’s porch and visited with friends.
That night Judi and I had dinner at a restaurant with an easily seen sign out front that says “Garden Restaurant.” It isn’t until looking closer that you see its name is “El Sol Dorado.” Toward the front they have a band playing Mayan-Aztec music, which is quite different from music most of us are used to hearing. This restaurant is wonderful, folks, so give it a try. You go inside and see bunnies running around all over the place. We had our usual garlic shrimp here, and it was as good as it gets. We can say this about all garlic shrimp dinners on Isla Mujeres, but where else can you eat with bunnies sitting at your feet? A fun, intimate dinner is to be enjoyed in this place.
After dinner we walked around town and while near the town square saw two police officers running through the square to the eastside of the island. Obviously something was wrong, and after recently reading on these boards about people drowning over there I had the sinking feeling that this might be a repeat. We watched as they shined their flashlights over the “boardwalk” and into the water, searching for something. While they were shining their lights there was also a vehicle in front of the Media Luna Hotel driving around shining its lights into the water. After the officers apparently gave up with their search, I asked one of them what was the problem. He said, “No problema” and moved on. A short time later the vehicle near the Media Luna also left.
After the usual walk that Judi and I take at this time of the night, we returned to our room and at the right time I said, "Nite, nite, Baby."
Day Five:
We awoke, took care of business and then Judi visited with Harry on the porch while waiting for me to get my act together (OK - so what if she beat me this time?).
We dropped off laundry, while on our way to El Sombrero de Gomar. We were a bit disappointed with breakfast here this morning. The waiter brought each of us coffee, orange juice and a menu and said he'd be right back. We talked and people-watched and after a time, since we were the only customers there, wondered why it was taking so long for him to return to take our order. We looked back and saw him eating his breakfast. It took several minutes of our looking his way and waving before finally getting his attention. The breakfasts were only okay, with the sausage not really being sausage -- it was one hot-dog cut lengthwise and fried. After finishing our meals and he was clearing our table we brought this hotdog/sausage business to his attention. He said, "Yes." So much for that. Although we have previously eaten delicious dinners here, we will not again return to Gomar's for breakfast.
We then walked to Avenue Rueda Medina, stopped in several stores and then headed back to our room to prepare for spending much of the day on Playa Norte. Shortly after leaving our hotel we found "Fifty Cents," gave him Todd's shirt and had a pleasant conversation with him. He speaks very good English. He calls himself Fifty Cents because his name (it's Riese, although I may have it spelled wrong) is very common in Mexico. "But," he proudly says, "there's only one 'Fifty Cents'!"
We continued up Playa Caribbean and stopped into the Casa Chez Magaly and visited with Emilio for a while.
Shortly after rounding the corner to Playa Norte, we ran into Lyn of London and the three of us stopped into the La Palapa restaurant-bar and enjoyed beer and conversation. While we were there, Arnoldo came by and we once again bought none of his fine jewelry. He knows Judi and me by now, is a good guy and visited with us for a few minutes even though it wouldn't put big bucks in his wallet.
We then went to Buho's and visited with Sergio. It's about 3:15 and Sergio is getting nervous about what happens at 3:30. He explains that at that time all kinds of people show up. He was right. Suddenly it's Happy Hour and all kinds of guys and Luscious Babes are all over the place, with Sergio doing his best to keep up with this sudden increase in orders. His arms are almost literally flying and he loves it!
Judi and I sat facing the beach in one of Buho's swings. While there, we saw two moms with screaming, crying toddlers walking towards us with their children. These were the only parents we saw on that beach with toddlers. It's an understatement to say these moms didn't seem to be enjoying themselves. Neither were the kids.
We just love wandering all around Playa Norte and do it frequently. On the beach in front of ZaZil-Ha's we ran into some friends and Jacquie and we talked with them for a while. Some of us then went to Chi-Chita's - the offshoot of Chi Chi and Charlie's - and enjoyed life there for a while. Lots of slow dance music was being played at the time, so Judi and I danced on Playa Norte once again. It was wonderful!
We then returned to our hotel, do what people do in hotel rooms, and then went out for dinner. Dinner this time was upstairs to El Balcon de Arriba's (Arriba's). Judi's white fish dinner, she said, was good; my shrimp dinner was delicious. We agreed the bread was stale as could be.
We then did something we always do on Isla … we walked some more. On Hidalgo Avenue we ran into Lyn, Jacquie and Mary in Colorado, who were waiting to be seated in Rolandi's. We talked for a couple, then they were seated and we continued on our lazy way. We went to the town square and picked up more of what has become our favorite ice cream - Cornetto de Chocolae. We then continued on our merry way walking around downtown Isla Mujeres, returning to have a late-night walk on the dock in front of our hotel. We sat on our porch and loved being alive in Isla, folks.
Day Six:
This morning we had breakfast with Inge and Gus at the Red Eye Café. Doesn't matter what we had for breakfast, because everything here is topnotch. During breakfast we learned that Inge's next eye surgery is scheduled for March 30 at a place other than either Isla or Cancun - probably Mexico City (I don't remember, for sure). This eye business with Inge has gotten serious, folks, so let us all pray for a successful outcome.
After breakfast we went to the city market. This market's location is presently undergoing vast remodeling and everyone there is doing the best they can with where they are.
We then returned to the city's cemetery searching for the gravesite of Fermine Mundaca. We found it - at least we found a headstone that indicated this is where he's buried. Word has it that his remains were removed from here and are now actually in Merida. So who really knows?
No matter what, it was fun after all this time locating his headstone and getting pictures of it. We don't want to hear from those who think we treated this lightly and that our behavior was awful. He's been dead a long time, folks, and doesn't care.
We then retired to our porch for a while before heading up Playa Caribbean to Playa Norte. While approaching Buho's we noticed this guy working on the beach who we thought might be Sandra's husband, Juan (it was), and we visited with him for a while. From there, while heading for Buho's, we see Eloy and visit with him for a short time before reaching Buho's and Sergio.
While at Buho's - and since this is the beach-bar of the Cabanas Maria del Mar - we decided to check out the rooms at this place. This hotel has a beautiful pool right in the middle of everything that you won't see unless you go looking for it. The grounds are well kept and the room we were shown seemed to be clean and adequate, but without extras of any kind.
We then visited with friends at ZaZil-Ha's. While there, Judi and Carla talked with each other and it turns out that there are numerous people in Alpena, Michigan who are known to them both. Sometimes it really is a small world.
Then back to Buho's where we met Paula, Mike, Dave and Jennifer. The ladies, one would think, had known each other forever, because they got along like long, lost friends! It was fun to watch them as they talked.
Then to Chi-Chita's and several more friends, among them Jacquie, Lyn and Eloy. Even though Judi and I tend to be loners, we continually run into friends on this little island. There seems to be no way to get around this on Isla. But this is fine, as we have plenty of time to be alone for doing those things most worthwhile, valuable and loving.
From there we returned to our hotel to relax on our porch prior to a bunch of us meeting for delicious dinner at the Velasquez Restaurant. After dinner, we went to Tequila Sol for drinks and entertainment. The Strawberry daiquiris were terrible, I'm told, while some drinks were overpriced. The music was much too loud and we left to call it a night.
Final Day
A fastener on Judi’s super-huge suitcase had broken and since she was somewhat uneasy about the contents of this luggage being so vulnerable to theft during our return trip we spent the early part of this morning wandering around Isla trying to find a hardware store. We couldn’t find a hardware store – or any store – that had anything that would work. So we successfully relied upon that great staple of the wonderful Red/Green show. Duct tape. Put enough of that stuff around anything and nobody monkeys with it. Tape it. Don’t worry. Be happy. We were. We’re sad, too, because this is our last day in this wonderful place.
For breakfast we decided to return to the same restaurant where we had our final breakfast during our November visit – the Miramar. This restaurant is just a few yards north of where is located the ferry pier, so during breakfast we watched pelicans, fishermen, boats and people standing in line waiting for the next ferry. Breakfast here is delicious, but seeing the people in line is a bit sad because it reminds us of how we’ll be standing there very early tomorrow morning.
We returned to our porch and visited with others there who also just wanted to visit before getting up and doing anything meaningful. We’re on vacation, you know, on this most wonderful of all islands, and don’t want to be bothered with much of anything requiring us to stand up and move. After a time, however, this got old, so we moved.
We slowly walked up the beach, eventually getting to Buho’s and surprised Sergio by getting Cokes. It’s too early, folks, for my Dos Equis and Judi’s Daiquiris. We grab the cokes and head to our favorite swing. While sitting and doing nothing Judi says, “Is that Andrew?” This big guy gets closer and we eventually see that it’s him. Now, mind you, in his own mild way he has been razzing me on and off all week about buying him a beer. This is my chance. He’s right here. This is what Buho’s is all about. “Andrew, wanna beer?” “Can’t right now.” he says. He is going to town and will catch us later. Okay. Judi and I are happy just swinging, doing nothing, figuring we will still be in that swing when he returns. Two hours or so later he returned. “How about a beer?” I ask. He mentions how he will be back in a few minutes. An hour or so later he shows up with his beautiful wife, we meet her and we all talk for awhile. He says we can get together a little later for that beer, we say okay, and that’s the last we ever saw of him. So, Andrew, if we are all down there at the same time again, I owe you a beer.
We then walked up the beach to ZaZil-Ha’s and rented our favorite palapa and two beach chairs for 60 pesos. After getting assurance from friends that they would watch our things during our absence, we walked to YaYa’s and split one of their famous hamburgers. For those of you unfamiliar with the hamburgers here, rest assured that one burger is plenty for two people. And it’s delicious! It comes with fries and costs only about $5us. We were their only customers at that time and found ourselves wondering why more people weren’t there. We decided there must be something about us that scares people away and wish that happened when we were at the back of long lines. After this delicious lunch, we returned to our spot at ZaZil-Ha’s, relaxed for a bit (we do this better than anybody), and then headed to Buho’s for fun times. From there we headed for home, but before even getting off Playa Norte we come across friends in Chi-Chita’s, so stop and enjoy life with them for awhile.
We then slowly make our way back to our hotel, clean up and relax a bit, and then go out trying to find a dress for Judi. She found one she liked fairly quickly, so we went back to our hotel and she put it on. She’s absolutely stunning in that dress, folks, but then again, she’s that way all the time. We decide to have dinner tonight at Daniel’s, but prior to getting there we are approached by and meet Gary from Mn, and have a short chat with him before moving on.
I had my preferred fish fingers at Daniel’s tonight, while Judi had an octopus dinner. In contrast to earlier meals here, there were lots less fish fingers this time and less of the other stuff, too. Judi’s octopus was very rubbery and tasted not good at all in stark contrast to the delicious and tasty octopus we had eaten at La Lomita’s. To top it all off – and this in a restaurant specializing in seafood – they had “no butter anywhere in the house.” That’s an exact quote from our waiter, folks. We will not again have dinner at Daniel’s. A seafood restaurant without butter, as far as we’re concerned, is a total waste of time.
We walked all around town this last night, fully realizing we didn’t know when we would again be on this wonderful island.
We got up at 6am Saturday morning, caught the 7am ferry to Cancun and were in the airport waiting room by 8:30.
We will again return to Isla Mujeres.
Submitted by: Houston -- DanceGuy2002@Hotmail.com
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