Journeys by Paul

Journeys by Paul

Mexico

Yucatan - March 2007

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Puerto Morelos (click on photos)

Mar 13. I'm in Puerto Morelos, south of Cancun. I left Boston at 6 am and arrived at Cancun airport at 11 am. I snorkeled in front of the hotel, then took a nap since I had to wake up at 2:30 am this morning in NH. I plan to head south to Akumal manana.

March 14-morning. Tony emailed and asked if the natives can tell me anything about Copper Canyon (in northern Mexico). Most natives around here probably don't know much about any destination over 30 kilometers from their home. I'm in Mayan country. According to the people here, this place has a great reef, so I'm staying in Morelos another night or so. There are lots of interesting characters here. Wish I could write more about them. Hopefully later.

Mar 14-evening. Did a 3 dive snorkel boat trip today out to the reef. (Only $25.) Average depth was about 6 feet. Lots of fish. I plan to scuba dive tomorrow to some spots outside the coastal barrier reef. Plan on doing a 60 ft and a 40 ft dive. Not too deep. Changed hotels because the old hotel (Ojo de Agua) was booked. I'm at Hotel Inglaterra - www.hotelinglaterra.com. The new hotel is cheaper ($40) but the room is bigger. There is A/C. And there is a major spider living in an upper corner of my shower. His (or her) inch-long legs moved, and I cut my first shower short. Ahh, the tropics! Tony, I'm still trying to find that cockfight (as in roosters) that you want me look for.

March 15. I'm discovering more about Puerto Morelos. This place is great. The scuba diving was nice; 2 dives-a 60 ft and a 40 ft. Morays, turtles, lots of coral, lots of fish. It had been 4 years, I think, since I had dived. The owner is a friendly, helpful Scottish dude named Don. He was chief engineer on some big ship in Burma a few years back, and decided to throw it all away to run a dive business with his wife, Debbie. They had a business in Thailand, then Belize, and then they arrived here about 5 months ago (I think). Here's a link to his site. http://wetset.com/indexhome.htm

To continue the spider saga, let me preface by saying that my arachnid buddy's legs were closer to 2 inches long, not one inch long. This morning he wasn't in his corner when I went to take a shower. This caused me concern. I tore the place apart looking for him. I didn't want him jumping out at me and giving me a heart attack, or sneaking into my shorts or suitcase. (I have recurring nightmares about spiders.) No spider. I carefully shook out the shower curtain. No spider. Just before I went into the shower I looked behind the mirror on the wall. Yep. And he was spread out. I didn't want to kill him, but I was uncomfortable with his moving around. I felt he was taking advantage of the situation, and, after all, he refused to chip in on the rent. He was disposed of, but he didn't go down easily. You know how spiders are. He avoided the first blow, and jumped down and avoided more attacks until he, at last, succumbed. Talk about adrenalin. Sorry.

Alan (an English chap who's here relieving stress due to his 3rd divorce) and I were eating lunch and having a beer at a corner local restaurant that opens onto the street, and who was sitting behind us with 3 other people, sweating with the rest of us common folk? None other than Jerry Van Dyke (Dick´s brother). Alan had never heard of him. I listened to Mr. Van Dyke, and after a while he was talking about his TV show Coach and a very early sitcom he did called "My Mother the Car." I glanced at him when I went to get a beer, and he looked at me almost as if he wanted me to recognize him, but I didn't bother him. I just eavesdropped on their conversation. I believe they were down from Cancun for the day. By the way, he was drinking a Coke Light. And for whoever asked about the temperature - It's in the 80s during the day but there is always a cooling wind, and the humidity is not too bad. Sweating is at a minimum.

Map Link - http://www.cancuntransfers.com/ i...iviera_maya.jpg

March 16 (I think) The evening at the Casa Azul (restaurant-bar on the beach) lasted until after 12 am. I didn't want to drink, but Al, the owner, kept authorizing free shots of tequila, and I was with some hard core drinkers. I was able to refuse most of them. Al (see picture) bought the house on the beach that is now Casa Azul 18 years ago, but only moved down full-time from Los Angeles about 5 months ago. Along with the Brit, Alan, I met Ivan, from Washington state, and his wife Melanie. After midnight, they all (with Bobbie the bartender) disappeared in the dark toward a sketchy, after-hours place. I went back to my room. Today, at noon, Alan and I drove into Playa del Carmen in search of a new digital camera for me. (After 5 years, my old one finally broke down.) We were warned about what Playa del Carmen had become, but the warning didn't foretell what we saw; huge, long, long resorts everywhere, and construction going and going, and a beach littered with sunbathers. I was later told that Guinness named it "the fastest growing city in the world." I'll have to check that out. Alan and I both prefer a quieter surrounding, so, after wandering the beach for a few minutes, taking in the human scenery, we ventured to the Wal Mart. You heard me right. And here's an example of Alan's Brit wit. We came to a statue of the god, Chac Mool (see picture), and there was a garbage can built into his stomach. I asked Alan (supposedly rhetorically), "What would the god, Chac Mool, say if he saw that he had been turned into a garbage can?" Without missing a beat, Alan responded, "He'd say, This is rubbish." So we found the Wal Mart where I bought a cheap, regular 35 mm camera, and we evacuated back to our quiet town of Puerto Morelos. Oh, by the way, Jerry Van Dyke wasn't visiting. Apparently, he has a house just south of Puerto Morelos, and lives here some of the time. I've been in Mexico four days, and am still only 16 miles from the airport. Tomorrow, I will detach myself and move south to Akumal.

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