Back in Cozumel, Mexico for Christmas
Unfortunately, I didnt make it to Thailand or anywhere in Asia so I decided to go to my next favorite place and hit up Cozumel for Christmas. I have little over two weeks off and will probably try to go to Belize or Guatemala next week. I've already heard Feliz Navidad like ten times now. Not sure how much longer I can tolerate that, haha.
Havent really updated my blog the last three times I've been to Cozumel but I figured I would try to update it this time since i'm trying to do this trip on a semi-budget.
Arrived here around 4:00PM, breezed through customs and took t 15-20 minute walk into town. Beats paying for a taxi or shuttle bus especially if you're cheap like me. Decided to go Hostelito a try instead of staying at Suites Bahia or Safari Inn this time. Hostelito is a clean little backpacker hostel about two blocks away from main square and has rooms in the dorm for about 12USD/night. Not quite as cheap as Thailand but it will do. May eventually spurge for a double room with A/C depending on how I feel. Overall, seems like a nice place. Clean beds, nice little kitchen, free wireless, etc.
There is a nice breeze coming off the coast which feels great. Temperature is about 70 degrees right now. Much better than the 10 degree weather in Boston. Should be 80s tomorrow. Booked a dive with my old friends at Aqua Safari. Hopefully the port is open tomorrow for diving. The harbor master closed it today due to high winds.
Will try to keep updating this and see where I go..
Missing my flight is always a good way to end a trip
I figured I could wake up at 9am and catch the 10am ferry to Playa Del Carmen. Big mistake. There was no 10am ferry only a 11am and 9am which I had already missed. Usually these ferries run every hour and I unfortunately incorrectly assumed they would still be running every hour. Sadly, the swine flu changed this. With little tourists the ferries were only running every 2 hours so I had no choice but to take the 11am. I got to Playa Del Carmen around 11:40 just in time to catch the 12pm Ado bus to Cancun which takes about an hour.
I got to Cancun airport around 1:05pm and rushed to make it to the Delta terminal to catch my 1:45pm. Sadly I knew my efforts were futile. I ended up missing the gate closing by about 10 minutes.
I know had two choices. Reschedule with Delta for the first flight tomorrow morning for a change fee of 175usd or find another airline home. I offered to take the latter and booked a one way flight from Cancun to Boston on American Airlines for 140USD. Cheaper than my change fee would have been on Delta but an extra 140 dollar added expense. Oh well, it still makes my entire flight only around 215USD which is still a good deal. I am not really complaining.
That's pretty much it. Hope to return again to Cozumel either in June or July for another weekend trip. This trip to Cozumel was well overdue and only reminded me again how much I love Cozumel.
Bottom line, please don't buy into the whole media frenzy about the swine flu. Go to Cozumel; You won't regret it. Local businesses are hurting right now and I would hate to see any place have to close. On the plus side, there is no better time to head to Cozumel. Airfare and hotels are cheaper than ever and most dive operators would love to see you. With no cruise ships until June they say it is like stepping back in time to 1970s Cozumel before it became a major port of call for all the cruise ships.
Cozumel, Mexico – Swine flu free
I woke at 7AM and went to a little coffee place next door to my hotel called Coffee Bean. I asked coffee con hielo (coffee with ice). Not quite sure if my Spanish was right but they understood me fine. The coffee only came to 20 pesos (about 1.5USD) They also offer espressos and cappuccinos for good prices too. Increasingly enough there is also now a Starbucks on the island which was never here before. I didn't go in but you can bet the prices were not that cheap.
Got to the Aqua Safari pier and boarded the boat. Mostly the same people except for a guy named Greg from Missouri I believe. Greg was in the restaurant business but retired early and says he comes to Cozumel almost every month. Must be a hard life.. Dove with him as a dive buddy. All and all a nice guy and good diver.
We dove Colombia Reef for the first dive at 85ft for 45 minutes and Punta Tunish for the 2nd dive at 44ft for 57 minutes Colombia Reef is always a favorite of mine since it has tons of swim-thrus. Both dives were fantastic. I am in opinion that you can never have a bad dive in Cozumel. On this dive a nice Italian girl (dont remember her name) that had gone local and worked as a video and photographer was filming us on both dives. Unfortunately I didn't buy the video since I am trying to budget but she showed it to us later on in the afternoon and it came out fantastic.
I agreed to meet the two retired guys in Florida and John from Holland at Costa Brava for dinner. The nice thing about divers is that they're all usually a friendly bunch and like to get to together to talk about diving. Costa Brava did not disappoint an will be added my favorite restaurants list in Cozumel.
After dinner the two retired guys from Florida decided to head to bed while me and John decided to check out the local scene on the island. I took him on a local tour from what I knew of the island. A new addition to the island is a superstore called Mega which can be best described as a Walmart super center on steroids. Originally there were no large stores or supermarkets on the island. Prior to Mega most specialty item needed to be purchased in Playa Del Carmen or Cancun and then brought over on the ferry. While I can't say if having Mega store changes the island feel. It is definitely a well received addition to the island with a selection better than most stores and supermarkets back home. While I am guessing Mega has brought many jobs to the island one has to wonder what will happen to all the little stores and markets on the island.
We ended up at Kelley's Sports Bar again where I was immediately recognized by the owner and bartender. Had a few beers here and paid the bill. John had commented on the bill being cheap and also be ripped off at Fat Tuesdays yesterday. Ended up venturing into the main square and stumbling upon a bar called Woody's owned by an American named Greg. The place was hopping with what seemed like a mixture of locals and tourists. The bar also had a good music selection being supplied by satellite radio. There were also a bunch if girls here which is also a plus. Didn't stay out too late and ended up leaving around midnight. Surprisingly even with Woody's Bar being in the main square the beer was cheaper than Kelley's. A great little hang out spot.
First full day in Cozumel
On the dive boat were 2 retired guys living in Florida named Courtney and Dave, a couple from DC, a guy named John from Holland on his first trip to Cozumel or Mexico for that matter. There was also a small family also diving but their names allude me; I believe they were from Colorado.
We dove Palancar Bricks the first dive at 81ft for 45 minutes and San Francisco Wall for the 2nd dive at 63ft for an hour exactly according to my dive computer. Both were fantastic dives with great visibility and lots of swim-thrus and about 4 turtles.
Unfortunately there were not enough people that wanted to do an afternoon or night dive so I couldn't partake. The dive master was Mariano whom I have dove with 3 times before. He is awesome and always knows how to find and point out the smallest things that one might not notice. His buoyancy is also incredible. He dives with barely any weight. I highly recommend Aqua Safari and Mariano as a dm if you're ever in Cozumel.
Later in the night I ate at La Choza again since it's close and you can't beat perfection. I was feeling like my adventurous self so I decided to take a walk about 5 streets back from the waterfront and I stumbled upon a nice Irish themed place called Kelley's Sports Bar and Grill owned by an American and struck up a conversation with the local bartender name Sergio. The longer I am here my limited Spanish abilities seem to improve. I told him I wanted to go to a local bar so he offered to take me to a local cantina once he closed Kelley's since there was no business tonight. The beer at Kelley's is cheap (I think 20 pesos/1.5USD) and they have about 5 flatscreen TVs to watch sporting events.
Off I went on the back of his scooter to god knows where inland on the island. I was taken on a little night tour of the island before heading to the bar. Unfortunately it was Sunday night so there weren't many locals out however the Sol and tequila were flowing like water and the bar had a nice little jukebox with a good selection of rock. Curiously - why is it that Mexicans love Metallica and Nickelback? I can never figure it out but have noticed about three times.
Anyway I didn't stay out late because I needed to dive at 8AM. For 6 beers my bill was extremely cheap. I think each Sol was around 20 pesos. (1.5USD) fairly certain I may not have been charged for some them too. We left around 1am and headed to a local taco/torta place but the name also alludes me. I'm guessing it may not even have had a name. Some of the best tacos I've ever had for around 50 pesos (Little less than 4USD) Cheap.
Oh yeah.. I'm still swine flu free.
