Yucatan Peninsula Totally RELAXED

September 16th, 2008 by A World Vacationer

From our Win a Trip Contest
A travel story by - Rose D.

My husband and I have traveled to Mexico several times and decided that we wanted to experience the Yucatan Peninsula as free spirits.

We flew out of Minneapolis on a blustery January day. A direct flight to Cancun, we arrived 4 hours later to the warmth of the Mexican sun. We rented a car and headed south. Who would have thought that just hours before we were in below zero weather? We peeled off our winter clothes and we were feeling first hand the Kenny Chesney song “No shoes, No Shirt, No Problems!”

First stop, Playa del Carmen. We found a small boutique hotel with a vacancy and hit the beach immediately. There is nothing like seeing the blue waters of the Caribbean after experiencing the cold tundra of the Midwest! We spent our days meandering 5th Avenue and eating at the street vendor taco stands and drinking fresh squeezed juice. In the evening, we would stroll to a local pub where ex-pats gathered. There was an “open mic” where we had international entertainment.

Onto Tulum. We found a cabana on the endless beach of Tulum. Our days were spent lying in a hammock. The beautiful Caribbean beckoned every so often to us to come in and take a dip. The biggest decision we had to make was when to put the novel down and sit at the outdoor palapa, sand in our toes, and have a plate of fajitas. We continued our venture down the Yucatan coast, stopping along the way to snorkel in a cool cenote and purchase fruit from kids selling it along the roadside.

Our next stop was Mahahual, a small, sleepy fishing village, nearly to the Belize border. This area is known to some as Costa Maya, which is the cruise ship pier. We arrived at dusk; the chickens scattered on the dirt road as we drove through town, just a few shacks and some palapas serving simple meals. We bounced along the beach road, where pot-holes could nearly swallow our small car. Here we found a cluster of cabanas with a hand painted sign advertising “100% Relaxed”. The innkeeper, Raoul, said he had a cabana for $300 peso per night (approximately $30 US), including breakfast. We were tired and drifted off to sleep in the crisp lined-dried sheets. Raoul was an artist and had decorated the walls of the cabanas with Mayan paintings. In the morning, he brought stiff Nescafe coffee and Chaya Eggs (a Mayan spinach believed to purify your blood). Raoul arranged scuba diving for us. Just us, the boat captain and the dive master, Pedro. We witnessed untouched reefs abundant with marine life, turtles, barracuda and lobster. After two incredible dives, Pedro said that he was going harpooning for lobster. He asked my husband to join him.

I sat on the dock that stretched out into the peaceful waters of crystal blue Caribbean, watching the sun set as my husband and Pedro snorkeled to the reef. Upon their return, Raoul handed all of us a cold cervesa and took the catch of lobsters and yellow snappers to what he called his “sanctuary”, which was his kitchen. That night we feasted with our new friends in the lean-to kitchen in the back of a cabana. The Mayan Moon high in the sky, the ocean, a stone’s throw away. It was truly the best ambiance and the best meal of our lives. We were encountering the true meaning of “100% Relaxed”. From this adventure, we gained new friends and we experienced Mexico’s culture and beautiful simplicity.