Vacation to Mexico.

Maria and I traveled to Mexico March 31 to April 7, 2004.  We made all of our own reservations, rather than join an all-inclusive trip.  We had lots of adventures in driving, snorkeling, eating and breaking into autos.

We landed in Cancun in the state of Quintana Roo and drove about 90 kilometers (54 miles) south to Akumal.

  Akumal means "Place of the Turtle" in Mayan.

Our first day (Wednesday March 31) was spent touring Akumal, getting a shortie wet suit for Maria and getting ready for the week.

Day two (Thursday April 1) was a trip to Xel-ha (pronounced shell-ha) for lagoon snorkeling in a controlled environment, and Maria got to swim with the dolphins.

Day three (Friday April 2) was spent snorkeling in Akumal and riding the sea kayaks.

Day four (Saturday April 3) was spent in Tulum with dinner at the Puerto Aventuras resort.

Day five (Sunday April 4) we made a trip to tour the caves of Aktun-Chen.

Day six (Monday April 5) another fine day of snorkeling that was slightly marred by locking the keys in the car at the Yal-ku Lagoon.

Day seven (Tuesday April 6) more snorkeling and lounging.

Day eight (Wednesday April 7) was our return to Colorado.  We spent the early part of the day in Playa del Carmen shopping and eating before our final leg to the airport.

Our trip started in Cancun with a nice non-extravagant Volkswagen with no hubcaps.  The car worked great, but my big mistake was not getting or making a second key.  Once you are on the highway the rule is to pull off to the right before you turn to the left.  Different world, different rules.

Our accomodations at Las Villas Akumal were modern and comfortable.

Day two (Thursday April 1) was a trip to Xel-ha (pronounced shell-ha) for lagoon snorkeling in a controlled environment, and Maria got to swim with the dolphins.

Maria needed to adjust her glasses.

Maria (in the glasses) is petting a dolphin.

You can get streaming video of some of the events if you have Real Video on your computer.  If not, you can get  RealVideo Player free from the web.

To see Maria being launched by dolphins click here.

To see my 4 minute video of some of the events click here.

To see a compilation of clips from the professional video click here.

HIking the trails around the Xel-ha lagoon

Trying to impersonate a palm in the jungle.

Cactus snakes?

To see Maria on the hike click here.

Day 4 in Tulum

To see a pan of Tulum click here.

The iguanas love the hibiscus flowers.

Stu Boyce would have loved the Dia de Los Muertos accessories.

Shopping!

Day 5 at the caves of Aktun-chen

Tree roots extend down through the caves.

Aren't those helmets cute?  More gear for the geek.

Most of our time was actually spent snorkeling.   We didn't get any great underwater pictures, but we saw lots of fish and turtles.   The water was a little cold, cloudy and rough, but we still had a great time.   Here are some stolen pics from the internet.

The food was great and our favorite was a corn smut called huitlacoche pronounced wheat-la-coach-a, and an ice cream bar called the Magnum with cajeta (a.k.a. dulche de leche or goats milk caramel).

Will you look at that snorkler's tan!