Derek & Jim visit Playa Dec. 26 to Jan. 17

[CalgaryDerek]

Derek & Jim Visit Play Dec. 26, 2008 to Jan. 17, 2009

Hi everyone.

I was going to at least start this last week, but of course, when you're away from work for three weeks, there's a lot of catching up to do. Coming home meant getting reorganized, shopping for all the supplies we deliberately used up before we left, and doing all the laundry from the trip. So here's a report of our 26 nights in paradise! As you'll see below, Dad's legs weren't in as good of shape as we thought they were, and day one was no help in that matter, so we didn't get out as far as we would have liked. However, we still had a fantastic time, and got lots of R&R, which we both badly needed. We found things to do and places to hang that weren't too far from the hotel. That made for less variety in the trip, so I apologize if things get a little boring toward the end.

Day 1: Shitshow From The Getgo!

Sorry for the language, but that's the best way I can describe our travel day!

We got up at 4:30 am, and grabbed a cab to the Calgary International Airport. We arrived at 6am, and stood in the long lineup to check in. We got our boarding passes, and then headed for security. Dad had a bottle of aftershave that was too big, so they took it away from him. When we got to our gate, we were informed that there was a Westjet plane being de-iced at our gate, and we had to change gates. No problem.

We got on the plane without further incident, and sat patiently awaiting take-off. We were first told that there was a delay, because they had to bring our luggage from the other gate to load it. No big deal. Then we were told we had to wait in line to de-ice. Shouldn't be long, they said.

Just after ten, we were finally ready to take off! At this point, I'm already thinking, "There goes our layover, but we should still be ok."

Five hours later, we landed in Mexico City. It's 4pm, and our connecting flight leaves in half an hour. Now I'm thinking, "We can still make it, but we'll have to boogie!"

When I asked about our connecting flight at the gate, we were informed that we had to go to Immigration first. Immigration, we were told, was near gate 27. We were at 18, so it shouldn't be that far. WRONG! As we walked and walked, we discovered Dad's legs weren't what they used to be, and boogying was out of the question. Had I known when we were still at the gate, I probably could have arranged a golf-cart ride for us, but we were in between gates, and the signage wasn't great. We finally found Immigration, and got our tourist visas. We finally got back to gate 9, where our connection was supposed to be, but of course, it was gone, and there was nobody there.

We had to walk across the airport one more time to get to the Mexicana office and arrange to get to Cancun. The lady in the office informed us that the next plane was not due to leave until 10:20! Oh well. We were told that our baggage would be on the same plane with us, so we could grab it at the carocel. At least that part worked, we thought.

We then went to a restaurant in the airport and had some dinner. I can't remember the name. Dad had wings, and I had the arrachera tacos. Food was about average for airport food, and pricey like any other airport. Dad asked where the baño was, and was told it was down the main corridor of the airport. It was WAY down there! He finally found it and returned to the restaurant, where I was waiting.

After dinner, we headed outside for some fresh air, and decided to go back in and locate the area where we would go through security. We found it quite easily, but we had time to kill. I thought Dad might want a smoke before we left, so we decided not to go in just yet. Dad's legs were very soar by this point, so we started looking for a seat. We looked around the general area, but there were no seats available. Dad decided to go back to the Mexicana office, where they had couches to sit on. Security wouldn't let us in unless we were doing business there. Dad convinced tha guard that he really needed to sit down because of his legs. The guard let him in, but not me. I walked the whole length of the airport, which I'm sure is several blocks. In the whole departure area, there wasn't a single seat, except in the restaurants, etc. So, I went back to Mexicana and looked for someplace close. There was a small coffee shop across the way that had some seating, so I went back and got Dad. We ordered a cup of lousy coffee, and nursed it until we decided to go out for one last smoke before heading through security.

We cleared security without incident, and went to the Mexicana holding area. We asked if our gate had been announced yet, and it hadn't. Thankfully though, there was seating in the area, so we sat until it was announced. Thankfully, the gate wasn't far. We got to our gate without incident, and waited for our plane to board. We were just boarding at the time the plane was supposed to leave. However, the trip to Cancun went without incident.

We arrived in Cancun shortly after midnight. We got to the baggace area, and watched all the baggage come off the plane. Everyone got their bags, and the conveyor shut down. Our bags weren't there! We were so tired, we just wanted to get out of there and get the vacation started! We went to the desk at the end of the conveyor, and asked about our luggage. She asked for our last name, then pointed behind her, where our bags had been sitting all along. They had come on the plane we were supposed to be on. Well, at least we had them, but it was getting later all the time.

We cleared customs without incident. I pushed the button and got the green light. The officer asked to see my baggage anyway, and when I had no objection, he opened my carry-on, had a quick look inside and let us go. We got out to the main area, and a guy approached us asking where we were going. I said we were looking for the ADO bus. He said "It's right over here." I was skeptical but followed anyway. We walked a fair ways, and stopped at a communal van. I told him that wasn't what he said he was taking us to. I wasn't going to go with him, but after much arguing, I realized that there likely were no more busses, and went anyway at a reduced price. However, the van we were at was heading to Cancun, so we had to walk across the airport to the other end to catch the van to Playa. Poor Dad. His legs were just killing him.

Since everyone else in the van was going to Playacar, we went there first. This was partly because the driver had never heard of the Posada Freud. I managed to explain where it was, and he let us off at the corner of tenth and eigth. I knew we were close, so I told Dad to wait with the luggage, and I would go and find the hotel. Yeah right! It's now 3am, and fifth is as black as the ace of spades! I walked up and down and around the area where the hotel should be, but couldn't see any signage. I saw a hotel on eighth that was open, so I went in and asked the man at the desk if he knew where it was. He didn't but came out and tried to help me find it. No luck. He even asked a cop and a cabbie, but neither knew where it was. I thanked him for trying, and tried two more times. Now, it's 5am, and we're beat! I finally decided we should just get a room in that hotel for the night, and get some sleep. We'd have an easier time with some daylight. We checked in, paid for our room, and the kind man helped us up the three flights of stairs with our luggage. I'm sure we were both snoring within seconds!

To be continued.

[Mikey]

Can't wait for more...Are there any pics?

[Sol]

Hey Derek! It was great to meet you! I can't wait to read the rest of your trip report! Say hi to your dad for me.

[CalgaryDerek]

Originally Posted by Mikey

Can't wait for more...Are there any pics?

There will be from now on. We were just too darn tired to bother on the first day. Gotta upload a bunch of pics to the net so I can send you all links. There will be for most other days.

Derek

[roni]

Originally Posted by Sol

Hey Derek! It was great to meet you! I can't wait to read the rest of your trip report! Say hi to your dad for me.

Ditto for Kathy and I

[CalgaryDerek]

Originally Posted by Sol

Hey Derek! It was great to meet you! I can't wait to read the rest of your trip report! Say hi to your dad for me.

Will do, Sol! It was great meeting you as well. Dad says hi!.

[CalgaryDerek]

Originally Posted by roni

Ditto for Kathy and I

Thanks guys! It was a trip I'll never forget. Of course, meeting peeps I've been interacting with over the Internet added a special touch which I will not forget. This TR is my way of giving back.

[maestranba]

What a day. I'm surprised your Dad didn't decide he'd rather just go back home after all of those hassles!! Looking forward to more.

I travelled with my Dad (85 years old) to my nephew's wedding in North Carolina last year and we're still talking about it. He just didn't get the "liquids" thing at security, but he convinced the TSA worker that he absolutely HAD to have the huge bottle of lotion for his "chapped legs!!" I was mortified but they let him keep it!

[January Guy]

Calgary Derek - Fantastic to meet you and your dad and I'm looking forward to the rest of your report.

JG

[CalgaryDerek]

Originally Posted by maestranba

He just didn't get the "liquids" thing at security, but he convinced the TSA worker that he absolutely HAD to have the huge bottle of lotion for his "chapped legs!!" I was mortified but they let him keep it!

Hey, whatever works . More to come real soon!.

[CalgaryDerek]

Originally Posted by January Guy

Calgary Derek - Fantastic to meet you and your dad and I'm looking forward to the rest of your report.

JG

Thanks January Guy. It was a pleasure meeting you and Tequila Girl as well.

[CalgaryDerek]

Ok. Day 2 coming soon, but first, I forgot to preface my report with the annual "Why I Go" image. This will also serve as a test for the MSN Spaces "Embed" link.

That didn't work, so let's try the direct link.

[CalgaryDerek]

Maybe it doesn't like HTTPS. We'll try again from scratch.



That does the trick, but does anyone know if there's a way to link an image to a larger one using this software?

Thanks.

[CalgaryDerek]

Day 2

We awoke about five hours later in our temporary lodging. The hotel attendant had cranked up the AC, and Dad was cold. The remote wasn't labelled, but the sun was over the balcony, so he went outside to warm up. I turned off the AC and went for a shower. Then, we went downstairs, and I asked the daytime attendent if we could leave our luggage in the room until we found our proper hotel. He agreed, so we went back to the search.

Of course, fifth was now teaming with bussling people. We stopped at Cafe Tropical for coffee. I told Dad to order a refill while I went to find the hotel. I went down to eighth to get a proper look at what was where, and a shopkeeper asked what I was looking for. I explained that I wasn't shopping right then, but was looking for the Hotel Posada Freud. He pointed at it, and much to my surprise, had I gone the other way, I would have found it almist immediately, as it was just a few doors down on the opposite side from Tropical. I went into the lobby area and saw Aldo sitting on a couch. I told him who I was, and he said he'd been expecting me. I gave him the short version of our previous-day trials, checked us in and went back to Dad. Dad grabbed the two carry-ons and I muled the bags down the stairs. We had left a tip for the cleaners, and they left us a nice show of appreciation.



We then wheeled our baggage over to Posada Freud and opened our room. It was a very well-appointed room, and had everything we needed. Best of all, especially for Dad, it was right at ground level, and right on fifth. Here are some shots of the room. I should have taken a zoomed-out picture, but I already had the big lense on, so I didn't.

This was hanging on one wall.



This little shelf became the bar. Aldo even sold us each a beer, even though the bar wasn't open yet.



The portable AC had a timer on it that worked great for cooling the place down after the maids turned off the fan at the opposite corner of the room. I'd set the timer for half an hour when we came in, and it coold the place down just nicely



On each side of the bed was a chair with a lamp on it for night tables . There was only a single king-sized bed, but Dad and I didn't mind sleeping in the same bed. There was certainly plenty of room. Aldo had offered to move us after the first week, but I didn't like the idea, so I opted to stay in the same room.



On the other side of the room was a small writing table with stools on either side, and the fan I mentioned earlier.



We even had our own little Christmas tree!



They even did little extras like shaping the face cliths and they had acorn-shaped soap in the shower.



Dinner's ready, so more later.

[CalgaryDerek]

Day 2, Continued

Ok. The hotel review's almost finished.

The toilet was raised about 6 inches off the floor, which we thought was to make room for the pipes beneath it. The shower was European style, which means it's all open and at ground level. The drain is in the middle of the bathroom floor, and there's no ledge or anything to step over to get in and out of the shower. There's not even a door into the bathroom. Instead, there's a very short narrow hall that leads into the bathroom. When the floor switches from bathroom tile to bedroom tile, the maids have placed a towel there in case there's still water on your feet.



Outside our door was a sit-down hammock. There were regular ones in the courtyard for all to use as well. You can't really tell by the picture, but our door was a piano-style door. Both it and the window off the bathroom had only screens, which was great when it cooled off at night.



Here are some pictures of the courtyard area. These chairs were made of plaster or concrete. Whatever it was, they certainly weren't moveable .



There were two of these little guys, who I believe lived with the owners. They were very cute, and had been debarked.



The courtyard had a community fridge for all of us who only had standard rooms.



There was also a water cooler for refilling the water jug they thoughtfully kept in eac room. It was never plugged in, so it was warm, but at least we knew we always had good water available.



The bar area was always set up during the day, but at night the chairs were up, and everything was dark. Added to that was the fact that there was one of those round benches with a planter in the middle that blocked about half of it. You can imagine how hard this would be to find in the dark.



Dad in front of his large tree in the middle of the courtyard.



Then Dad took one of me.



Ok. Enough about the hotel. We loved it though, and I plan to put together a slideshow of all the pics we took. It reminded Dad of the song "King of the Road" so I'm going to find an MP3 of the song, and try using Movie Maker to put it to that tune! It'll be an experiment, because I've never used Movie Maker before, but I've seen newbies do it, so I should be able to figure it out .

After unpacking some of our stuff, we decided to take a walk up fifth and get oriented. We headed North and were amazed at how busy fifth was. I've seen strips in other parts of Mexico, but none as busy as La Quinta! I was going to get a shot, but there was just too much movement to focus! We saw many things of interest in many of the windows, but this display piece really caught our eye.



We started getting hungry, so we stopped in at the End Zone Sports Bar, because their coconut shrimp caught Dad's eye. It was so good, we went back twice more to get another taste. They served it with two sauces. One was a mango lime sauce that complemented the shrimp to a tee! The other, to our amazement, was simple Soy Sauce! We had always used simple seafood sauce at home. We use Soy in a lot of things, but never thought of it as a dipping sauce for shrimp! It was very rich, but we loved it. We thought shrimp and other seafood would be cheaper in that locale, but it was pricey. However, we were after all right on fifth. The portions offset the prices though. Dad couldn't finish his, so I had to help him .





On the way back to the hotel, we got caught in a short rain storm, so we ducked into the Tequila Barrel for a drink. The average-sized drinks were a little pricey at 700 pesos but we were dry!

Day 3 was Christmas eve. That post will have to wait until after work. Gotta go make some deneros so I can go back and do it again next year!