We had been waiting over a year for this trip: we would finally be STAYING
in our condo, Colores del Viento in Villa Sacbe. We THOUGHT we would be able to stay there in March, but lack of water and plumbing made it undoable.
Everybody starts their trip report with their flight--nothing to say there, but we did try a different company for rental car this time. Avicar had what the driver Mr. Tim wanted: a Plymouth Atos. And the price was the best. The Atos is a fun car to drive, and had lots of space for our purchases. The folks at Avicar are super; we were met at the airport entrance by a driver holding a car with our names. Next comes the down side to Avicar: Their office is in downtown Cancun. So a 25-minute drive later, we had our little white car. Funny thing; we kept getting waves on the highway from folks thinking we were a collectivo!
We opened the front door to our condo with our own key and saw waiting for us a welcome from the management: a gorgeous fruit and flower basket and champagne from the Glass Bar. But the real WOW was to see the artistry of Gustavo, who we had hired to transform the condo into something special. Blue above, shading to golds and oranges, like a sunset or sunrise. There sat our futon from Muebles Lourdes--good thing too, as we had no mattress yet :wink:
We didn't have to walk far to eat at one of our favorites: El Oasis on 12th: shrimp tacos for Mr Tim, ceviche for me.
Mr Tim aspires to be a regular at Java Joe's, so that was our first stop the next morning...okay, every morning. We unpacked and set up the kitchen, then took a break to ease into Playa by trying the Villa Sacbe pools and whirlpool. Shopped at Chedraui and Telebodega for basic stuff (TV, VCR/DVD, coffee pot, and of course a mattress) and found our credit card rejected. Called Visa: Yes, they put a stop on it because it looked like we were setting up house in Mexico. Yup, that's right...we are. Problem solved.
The next problem was learning about mattresses in Mexico. First, we were amazed at how inexpensive mattresses are in Mexico, even the name brands like Sealy. But--surprise--Mexican queen size is not the same as American queen size. To make the story short, Telebodega did let us return the Mexican queen mattress and an American queen is on the way. I wouldn't have cared, but the sheets for Villa Sacbe had already been purchased--american sized. After mojitos at Babe's, Dinner was at another of our favorites: El Pastorcito on 30th. Lavonna recommended the smoked pork chops (chuletas) and they were sooo good.
The next day we went back to Cancun. At Hidalgo Artesanias in Mercado 23 we found several decorative items: baskets, gourds, blue glassware at prices better than other places we'd looked. I really liked Mercado 23. It's a real Mexican market, not just for tourists. Then we went out to Costco but discovered that Chedraui's prices on tv's were just as good.
I'm pretty proud of my success in navigating Cancun city (and proud of Mr Tim for driving it). It is not for the faint of heart! :P
Mojitos at Babe's (of course), then dinner at Bip-Bib; good, reasonably priced, large portions, fun atmosphere.
Sunday--where is the time going? My project was to paint a toucan in a spot that would surprise people. It turned out well! More running around, meeting about finishing details for the condo (just little stuff), then walking to hunt for a good comida corrida. We ended up having beer and appetizers at El Paisano on 30th near Juarez. Good cheap eats, but they play their music too loud for these baby boomers.
Monday: time for my treat: a dive with Abyss. We had, by chance, an all chick dive: Selma (super divemaster), three divers, and Anabel the videographer. We entered the water in a downpour, but saw beautiful creatures at El Jardin reef, just off the (grrrr!) new pier. It would be tragic if the new construction and boat activity did anything to hurt this reef.
We didn't want to walk far when rain threatened so we ate at Idea Pasta on 5th: excellent gnocchi, and the upstairs catches the breeze from the ocean.
Back to Cancun (groan) to Plaza las Americas to order curtains, as our window shades weren't quite private enough. There is a shop there, Kunul, that sells this great system that employs wires instead of curtain rods. And also, a futile hunt for an American Queen sized matress pad. Even Penney's and Sears struck out.
All week we had been making daily stops at a furniture store from which we had ordered items in March. On the first day, the truck would arrive on Monday (3 days). On Monday, the truck would arrive on Wednesday. On Wednesday...oh well, give us our money back, email it if they EVER arrive and we'll pay them. Maybe we'll be surprised and they will actually get there. Yes, a Mexican learning experience :wink:
We met our nextdoor neighbors: two women from Mexico City: one actually Norwegian but in Mexico for many years. They were able to shop in Mexico city and hire their own truck to bring their furniture. Much easier, I think. We had a celebratory dinner at the Glass Bar, an excellent bottle of Spanish wine, cheese plate with pecans and plum conserve, and the entrees were fabulous too. I had Ceviche de Pulpo: the thin slices of octopus fanned out like a flower. Almost to gorgeous to eat.
Our last day: finally, relaxation! Breakfast on the beach at the Alhambra, some more beach time with a book and a cool drink, then back to Cancun with the Atos, and to the airport hoping to return in August.