06-09-2006
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#1 (permalink) |
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beachaholic
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Central Jersey
Posts: 274
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NJ Honeymooners Trip Report
I want to start with a big thank you to this website and forums for all the information we used to plan our fantastic honeymoon!
I would like to do my first trip report in categories instead of day to day. We were in PDC from May 24th - June 3rd and spent six our days on the beach. So perfect! First - a picture from our wedding day! If any of you watch the Soprano's and remember when they were buying a house on the water {Dean Martin blaring from the boat to help the sellers sell..} This is that location - the beautiful Shrewsbury River in Sea Bright, NJ  At the hotel and on the beach... We stayed at the Playa Maya and are delighted with our choice! Just love the beach only access! I had a little sand on my feet for the entire trip and loved it!! After check-in, our first steps into the hallway and all I smell is .... CLEAN!!! This hotel is spic and span clean everywhere we went! Clean, clean and more clean! The entire staff is wonderful. They treated us so well, were friendly, chatty and really made our stay fantastic! The reception group were very helpful. We had a little glitch with making a tour reservation and Anna fixed us right up! The wait staff - so much fun! They are amazing at their jobs - they know just when to strike up a conversation, offer water or cocktails {and when to offer water again} and are so warm and affectionate. And as I found with all the locals - they very gently helped me with my spanish  We stayed in room 303 - we loved the room. The balcony was just right even with all of our very long limbs - we are both a bit on the tall side. Towel art for Honeymooners  We spent lots of time on the balcony - enjoying the early morning activities and having a cocktail and cigarette before and after dinner  Another shot  Our first few days were overcast, a little rain and a little cool - PERFECT!! A great chance to become acclimated to the weather and excellent for our Tulum and Beyond tour {another category}  No first day sunburn for these pale faces!  
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06-10-2006
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#3 (permalink) |
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beachaholic
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Central Jersey
Posts: 274
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We really enjoyed the food at the Playa Maya. The breakfast combos and OJ are excellent! We are both allergic to seafood so I
can't comment on those dishes {I grew into my allergy and used to eat seafood constantly} although the shrimp ceviche looked heavenly. Ray and I really enjoyed the hot cakes and I thought the scrambled eggs were perfect. Lunches were terrific too! We skipped breakfast the day we used the Playa Deal card and ate like gavones for lunch. Everything was delicious! Anytime we had lunch there, we struggled with the distance from under the palapa back to our lounge chairs...at most a 15 foot walk. We were just sooo relaxed and sated.  border="0" alt="Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting"> We really enjoyed the beach, lounge chairs and of course the spectacular water and views. By far, our favorite beach day was Sunday. We loved seeing all the families walking around, relaxing, enjoying the beach and restaurants. The real warmth and friendliness of the Mexican people was so evident! One family at the PM had set up a small plastic pool near the water's edge. Everyone walking by had big smiles on their faces seeing the pool and the adorable children enjoying it. One group of about five local men just loved it. They stopped and chatted with the boys and their parents and one man even asked if he could have his picture taken with the kids and the pool. I was a little teary-eyed over that!  border="0" alt="Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting"> The pool at the PM is just as described on their website {as is everything else!}. It was great for the smaller children and for a little cooling off for us after being on the beach. My handsome hubby and new friends in the pool  A shot from the bridge over the pool  Some thoughts about our choice of lodging: 1. This was our first vacation in four long years. Our last one was at the Royal Hideaway for four days. One day we went to town and really loved it. {The ruins near Xaman-Ha condos was not roped off and we have pics of our tall bodies hunched over in the doorway} When we were deciding on a place for our honeymoon - we looked at Saba, Grand Caymen, Virgin Islands, etc and we finally decided to return to the town where we loved the beach and the local people. We also decided to stay in a smaller hotel and get a better feel for the area. We made the right decision!! 2. There is something incredibly relaxing to be in a place where the staff seems relaxed and is dressed a little casually. We met a lovely couple who were staying at the El Dorado {I think}. The woman was commenting how sorry she felt for the staff that their uniforms were long sleeved shirts and long pants. Now, being irish-Catholic I know a thing or two about guilt and I always feel guilty about people who are serving me and do not look like they are comfortable or enjoy their job. Even at our local watering hole that we are more than "regulars" I get a little uptight if the bartenders have a bad customer or get a bad tip - mom did a good job at the guilt thing, don't you think? Anyway, the wait staff "uniform" of hotel t-shirts and shorts and the remaining staff wearing regular clothes made me feel better and the genuine smiles on their faces just made us so comfortable and relaxed. 3. It really is a very quiet hotel - when we where on the balcony in the evening we could hear a little bit of music on the wind but that was mostly drowned out by the sound of the waves. 4. There was a great outdoor shower which I loved. NJ has these on the edge of lots of beaches and I am in the habit of rinsing off after two or three jaunts in the salt water. I was so thrilled to use it and it was another great touch by the hotel. There was a computer in the managers office area with internet access - I only used it once to try and book a tour at a website I am not certain you may know - Playa.info - is anyone else familiar with this site? The hotel also had a borrowing library which was great for me. I did not want to pack too many books and thought I would buy one on 5th. Their library was diverse and had choices from Harlequin romance to Dean Koontz to Harry Potter {I happen to be a huge fan of HP}. These are just some of the little touches provided by the hotel that just made the stay really seem like you are staying with friends and not some huge conglomerate! If you are interested next time will be our days away from the Playa Maya... |
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06-10-2006
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#7 (permalink) |
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beachaholic
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Central Jersey
Posts: 274
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Our time away from the PM
We stopped at Posada Freud to pick up our deal card the day we arrived. We decided to have a few beers and immerse ourselves in people watching and vaca mode. While chatting with the bartender he is apporached by a man from Virginia who has decided he is the smartest tourist in the area. He asks for a Bud and the barkeep chuckles a litte "no gringo beer". Not to be detered Mr. VA asks how much the beers are, is told in US$ 2.50; "do you have American dollars to give me as change?"; yes he does; "You are a very smart bartender" and then Mr. VA chuckles. "Come here buddy, I want to whisper to you how much I'm going to pay for a beer so as not to make these two feel badly about paying full price" and does. The very friendly and smiley barkeep states oh - the price ia now $3.50. This exchange continues for a while; Ray and I are wondering why Mr. VA didn't go to Virginia Beach and order another round and like fools not only pay the asking price, we tipped the lovely man. The very smart tourist Mr. VA has haggled his way to $7.50 for a non-gringo beer from the smiling bartender and left after an interesting view of a pack of Marlboro's. I wanted to kiss the bartender!!
 On our first Friday we took the Tulum and Beyond tour with Mitch and 11 others. We had people from Arkansas, Oklahoma, Sweden and the Netherlands - what a great time! Fortunately it was an overcast day and the temperature was just right for walking around. The tour is just as described on their site - a tour for those who don't do tours, etc. Knowing that Mitch must have done this countless times, I was delighted he still had some questions for the guide in Tulum. He was always paying attention to what was being said {you know those guides who are so bored with their job they have that glazed expression?} and finished the tour of the ruins with his own thoughts, snacks for the critters and some stops he thinks are really cool.  The remainder of the day was unhurried with beautiful stops and a great lunch. Absolutely a great day! On Monday - {it turns out it was Memorial Day and I forgot - love that state of vacation} we decided to take the ferry to Cozumel. We wanted an early ferry as we were thinking about renting a car and driving around the island ourselves - the plans just didn't work that way. Oh well. We purchased the tickets with the company our friends at the Playa Maya suggested we do and learned it was almost two hours until the next departure. Silly us! This was the hottest day yet and we had already walked around for about three hours, so I say - "let's go get ripped off at Senor Frog's" and that's just what happened. We each had two drinks and this cost us more than any other "meal" we had our entire trip!  So we take the ferry just loving the color of the water and people watching. We successfully avoids the thousand and one people offering trips and rental and keep walking straight. I had decided that no matter what we would not end up in the Hard Rock - no way no how! It is HOT! We walk past all the stores and restaurants near the ferry  We take a break and wander around the grocery store - English translation St. Francis of Assisi which tickles us. A stop for lunch at a second floor restaurant - the name escapes me - and then we wander around the neighborhood some more. It is hot!! I wanted to find a piece of jewelry so we head back towards the ferry area. We stop in one or two stores find out that the discount is better the more spanish you know so of course I tell the sales lady in Spanish how pretty she is. Turns out she was joking about the discount so we leave empty handed. We walk along the waters edge and take a self portrait  There was absolutely no relief from the heat and I'm thirsty and we make the trek up to the world's smallest Hard Rock. Oh well! The AC was on and the wine and beer were cold! Take the ferry back and meet some great guys during the trip. Our third adventure away from the beach was a Fat Cat trip. What a great time! The staff was great, the boat was great, the sunshine punch was great and most of the views were great  I know that it is common place outside of the states that all types of women wear two piece bathing suits - but I have to wonder if some of these people and their men need to have their eyes checked...  I'd also like to meet the brave man that pierced that thing! Ray took a ride on the boom net  While he was riding I asked some of the crew if the women enjoyed this ride better because it seemed a bit like a personal small appliance some may have.... We each met and chatted with the crew and Jez {we had a discussion about not so nice names for tourists used in various places in the world} and other people on the trip again from all parts of the world. Another fantastic day! |
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06-11-2006
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#8 (permalink) | ||
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beachaholic
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Central Jersey
Posts: 274
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Quote:
Thanks for the congrats! Quote:
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06-11-2006
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#9 (permalink) | |
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aņejo
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Where the river meets the sea....
Posts: 1,873
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Quote:
 Love that story.
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06-12-2006
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#11 (permalink) |
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beachaholic
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Central Jersey
Posts: 274
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Good Eats
The restaurants we visited
The Playa Deal Card rocks! It was worth every penny! The restaurant and shop guide were fantastic. Why would anyone not have this card with them during a trip? My husband is a meat and potato, steak with ketchup kind of guy. He was a little concerned about the food for this trip since the AI we were at last time had plenty of Americanized food. Seems he forgot his favorite dishes there were the tortilla soup and skirt steak "Mexican" style. He enjoyed the food and finally learned that Mexican is not spicy "hot" unless you want it to be. He is also a little annoying as he belongs to the "eat to live" group and not the "live to eat" group as I do. I guess that is why he is skinny and me - not so much. I am going to put these in categories: The Would not try again, The Good, The Great and The Amazing! The Would not try again These are here mostly because we know there are so many more restaurants out there we never got to try that it would be a shame to waste another meal on food we found OK... We went to Karen's as Ray really wanted some pizza. A very lively, warm {temperature}, loud place. Pizza was OK. The live band inside was very good and the musicians were very talented but this would not be enough of a draw to bring us back. We stopped at Jaguar's because they had flan on the menu and I really wanted some. I did not care for the flan {lots of lime zest underneath and throughout the custard}. The rest of the menu looked very pricey too. The Good Palapa Hemingway - this was our first dinner. The food was of good quality the service was great but so many other places we ate were just so much better! Pizza Pazza - Ray liked his pizza, I thought mine tasted like fried eggs. There is a brand new Argentinean restaurant on 8th between 5th and the beach; the name escapes me. It opened on May 25th. We liked the empanadas and grilled provolone. I ordered the boneless short ribs and Ray had the skirt steak. Mine was very greasy and Ray really liked his. Ray and I switched plates since I couldn't eat it any more and had a bite or two of his. It just didn't do it for me. The wine was good and came in a beautiful glass. So I had more wine and he finished the short ribs and steak. I did taste the pickled veggies which were good and had some more wine . The waiter Alex was from the Cancun restaurant and is very enthusiastic.The Great Playa Maya - the breakfasts and lunches were all very good! We really enjoyed the tacos - beef and chicken. I just loved the chips and pico de gallo and this was my benchmark for the other restaurants. Pasta Luego - we were the only ones at the restaurant and had a great meal. Chilean wine, Homemade pasta, bruschetta - yum! I had the spinach stuffed ravioli and Ray had fettucini bolonaise which was fantastic! We spoke with the current owner or manager - not certain which after the ebay listing - and he was very nice. This was early on in our trip and we had not a bright and sunny day. He was almost apologizing for the weather. We told him we didn't care - it is our vacation! Why worry or complain about something under no ones control! He stated that the European vacationers were really complaining about the clouds and the Americans always seemed to not care and have fun anyway. Carboncitas - oh my!! Great staff! They helped us with ordering and we loved our meals! As so many have stated before, the appy with the five different salsas was great - especially the pumpkin seed! We saw the group we had been on the Tulum and Beyond tour that day walking by and told them if they had not eaten yet, they needed to stop their search - which they did and they loved it too! Then the tacos al pastor and arrechera arrived. My goodness - so delicious! I want to try and make some of these dishes at home but know it will not be as good! I ordered dessert but should not have {see "live to eat" above} - dinner was more than enough! I really wanted to visit here again, but other places got in the way... The Amazing Casa Mediterranea - if this was not on the Deal Card, I am not certain we would have found it. The courtyard/garden is beautiful and serene. We loved the art gallery across the street and kept trying to figure out how to take a painting home with us. The restaurant is so pretty and the staff was wonderful. This is the only restaurant we visited twice; the second time being the last dinner of our trip. Between the two meals we had bruschetta, spaghetti bolonaise, penne with spinach and nuts, lasagne al forno and fettucini carbonara. For the first time ever, not only did I finish everything on my plate I finished eating before Ray did - he is still telling everyone this even people on the street. The homemade pastas and sauces were so skillfully made, the presentation was pretty. Just a fabulous meal! El Fogon We went to the location at 30th and 32nd - across from the Mega. As we walked in, a smiling waiter rushed over to us invited in and then inquired how much Spanish we spoke. We covered that fairly quickly and he brought us to a table. Then he jumped up onto a chair and stated that now he was as tall was Ray  . We order beers and review the menu. I asked our waiter what one of the ingredients was in the Taco Loco - pork - so there are two types of pork and beef in one taco? - Si!. Well we have found Ray's dinner! So I order three tacos al pastor for me and three of the Taco Loco for Ray. The waiter nearly explodes! no no!! es grande es grande!! He starts laughing and making big stomach gestures No tres!- I say - even for this big guy? Si uno!! uno!! OK - he knows best we are laughing with him as we finish our order and of course he was right! The taco is huge!! Now, this is one of the best meals we have ever had! I enjoyed all the little treats on the table as well as the heaven in the flour tortilla and Ray wished he could eat another taco but can hardly move! We chit chat with the waiter throughout the meal and order another round of beer. We are stunned with the bill since we did not pay any attention to the prices while ordering. Two big meals and four beers 132 pesos. How can it be so inexpensive? I was really impressed with our waiter - very charming, so funny about our order when he could have just let us order too much food! We really want to stay until we have even a little room to eat more but know that would mean sometime the next afternoon. Amazing, amazing meal in such a friendly place. I want an El Fogon down the street from me!! |
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06-14-2006
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#12 (permalink) |
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beachaholic
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Central Jersey
Posts: 274
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A few final things from the trip...
Playa.info - amazing site with fantastic members. We will definitely use the site for future tours {the new boat one looks great!} reservations and a way to kill time while at work. I never would have thought it was possible to use only carryons for an 11 day trip - but it was! We used those plastic space saver bags too - the kind you roll and don't need a vacuum - and we actually had extra space. I still had clothes I didn't wear. Thank you all!
A few restaurants we wanted to try but couldn't: Chicago Don Jose - on vacation Manne's - they were closed the times we stopped by Beunos Aires - same as Manne's They will be on our list for our next trip! The Playa Deal Card - we never left the hotel without it! I'd like to think we will have 10 more trips to PDC and we will have one every time. There is no question if it is worth it - it is! I wish I knew more Spanish - I know a little more than the basic phrases and can understand a little more than I can speak but I was frustrated at times with my shortcoming. Although I was more frustrated by the tourists who would not even say "gracias". I will be better prepared next time and actually be able to ask - "what ingrediants are in this amazing dish?" I am now on a hunt for recipes! A final rave about the Playa Maya - we can not wait to go back to relax, enjoy the beach, get to know the staff better and the great food! {read hunt for recipes}. Thank you again to Anna and James, the moderators and fantastic members for the help and insight to this wonderful place! Nancy and Ray |
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06-14-2006
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#13 (permalink) |
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aņejo
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Playa del Carmen
Posts: 2,057
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Great report ................. come back soon
I couldn't agree more about the Casa Mediterranea .................. and such a lovely couple that own it ( Mauricio and Mari ) , you just have to feel sorry for all the people that walk past it without even knowing about the place . |
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06-14-2006
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#14 (permalink) | ||
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beachaholic
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Central Jersey
Posts: 274
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Quote:
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I agree! Ray and I have talked about it a few times with a "what if..." Anytime we return we will be there!! I am fixing a carbonara sauce tonight as I have wanted it since that night. Your art is gorgeous! There has to be a good way to ship art to NJ..... |
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