Time in Playa del Carmen

Wonderful program to help kids!

2013-04-28T12:16:00.000-07:00

This year while in Playa del Carmen I have had the pleasure to become involved with a group that helps the kids in my adopted second home! I attended the luncheon meeting put on by the Rotary Playa del Carmen Seaside where I met Janet. Janet explained to me that she is part of the KKIS (Keep Kids In School) Project and she immediately asked me if I would like to go the next day and help teach the children English. Well of course I was thrilled to have the opportunity to help and look forward to making this a weekly event while I am in Playa.

It was so much fun - once I got over the fact that my Spanish isn't that good; I was working with grade 2 students and I tell you those little kids sure do talk fast - there was no hope of me understanding them by talking but I was surprised that I did get the general idea. I'm sure with continued exposure to them I will find that I'm more comfortable and my ears will become more tuned in to actually hearing and understanding their words. In the meantime - it's lots of fun and I look forward to a continued involvement with this great organization while I am in Playa.

A good organization with a good cause!

2013-03-29T08:53:00.001-07:00

If you're going to be in Playa del Carmen over Easter here's something you might like to participate in.

Are you a cat lover? Coco's Cat Rescue in Playa del Carmen works to help all the stray cats in the area.

They are a non profit organization with a no kill policy, dedicated to reducing the cat population in Playa. They use a trap spay/nueter and return (TNR) program for feral cats and a rescue, spay/neuter and tame program on kittens under 3 months. They then find permanent homes for all the cats they help.

Because Coco's is a non profit organization they frequently hold fundraisers. Their 4th annual cocktail party is coming up on April 7th at the Blue Parrot. Tickets are on sale now and include 3 hours of open bar, live music, appetizers and a silent auction.

If you would like more information please check out their facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/events/403613843068976/

Mérida, the capital of Yucatán state

2013-03-27T16:03:00.000-07:00

Well so far during all our journeys to Mexico we have not made it over to Merida. We have discussed it many times but somehow just haven't been able to work it into our plans - YET! So I cannot speak from personal experience but I am told it's a beautiful part of the country to see, with a very different flavor from what you would find in a tourist destination.

This article about Merida,

http://www.latimes.com/travel/la-tr-merida-20130324,0,2537234.story

was recently shared with me and I wanted to pass it on for everyone to enjoy. When we do finally make the trip there I will be sure to post some pictures and stories about it.

A feel good Mexico story!

2013-03-16T09:10:00.001-07:00

I borrowed this from Living in Mexico's blog - as it's very indicative of the people in Mexico.

A feel good Mexico story! This just posted by Rob Birce ...owner of the bookstore in Puerto Morelos..........

We that live here do a fair amount of whining about the things that are more difficult to accomplish here in Mexico than they are where we are from. Banking, paying a bill etc.

Here is one thing that was much easier to handle here in Mexico. I came out of Sam's Club in downtown Cancun today and my truck would not start. It would only click sadly, but not turn over. A fellow shopper asked if I needed help and he offered a boost which unfortunately did not do the job.

We figured the starter was dead and he offered to call a mechanic he knew. He then did his shopping and drove away, leaving me the phone number of the mechanic and his own personal card. The mechanic showed up about 10 minutes later. He attempted a boost too, which failed, and diagnosed the starter just as we did.

Rather than tow the truck, he offered to remove the starter and repair it at his garage. He would then return and put the rebuilt starter on the truck, all for about 600 pesos.

That is exactly what happened. Took about 90 minutes from start to finish.

In Calgary, I would have called CAA (AAA) and had the truck towed to my mechanic. He would have ordered a rebuilt starter and would try to squeeze me in to have it replaced in a few days...likely Monday. Cost would be a few hundred dollars for the part and a few hundred more in labour.

Viva Mexico!

Wine & Food Tasting event.

2013-03-10T10:49:00.000-07:00

Well if you're in Playa on March 22nd and would like to support the community, here is something you might enjoy.

Rotary Club

Playa del Carmen Seaside...

is delighted to invite you to join them for an evening of fun at the

Wine & Food Tasting

Friday, March 22nd at 7pm.

LA CASA DEL AGUA
5th Ave & 2nd St.
Playa del Carmen

Cost: 400 pesos

Playa del Carmen now has English Rotary club.

2013-02-26T09:03:00.000-08:00

I would like to introduce the Rotary Playa del Carmen Seaside. Recently a group of English speaking professionals decided to start an English speaking club in Playa del Carmen and they are making great strides to be involved with their community and give back in various ways.

Their newest event in April will be a Rubber Ducky race. So if you're in town and want to participate it should be lots of fun. They also have paypal access if you're not there but would like to participate. The grand prize is a house in Cancun.

If you'd like to be there you could check out our condo which is centrally located in Playa.

Cerveza on the beach and great jazz too!

2012-11-21T15:13:00.000-08:00

Can you imagine how wonderful it would be to sit on the beach with the sound of the ocean in the background, a nice sea breeze, a cold cerveza (beer), a group of good friends and the sound of some of the best jazz you can find!! One of these years we'll actually be there to experience it for ourselves. In the meantime we hear about it each year from our family and friends and keep saying one of these years we will be there to enjoy it too.

As well at this time of the year in Playa there's the annual Taste of Playa where many of the local restaurants, hotels and bars set up tables to temp you with samples to promote their establishments. This also happens in November and is a huge event each year. This year it was on November 18th.

Hmmm - will have to add these two events to my bucket list.

If you think you'd like to be there in November one year to enjoy these events please be sure to check out our condo - it's in a great location for access to these events.

Easy to earn brownie points in Playa!

2012-10-21T15:01:00.000-07:00

We all know women LOVE to receive flowers! But we also all know how expensive it can be to buy flowers in Canada and the US especially if it's a special occasion like Mother's Day or Valentine's Day - which is a HUGE celebration in Mexico, by the way!

Well if you're in Playa del Carmen and want to earn brownie points without breaking the bank just check out any of the local florists shops in town. I'm always amazed at the beautiful arrangements that they sell for a FRACTION of the price I would pay at home.

Here is a simple example of what I mean - this beautiful bouquet was a gift from my husband on Valentine's Day - now what makes this even more special is that he walked over to a small grocer near our condo and then hand picked the flowers that he wanted to create the bouquet with. How special is that! As you can see there are exotic flowers in there such as the bird of paradise, gladiolas and large yellow lilies. Now here's the BEST part - remember he bought this on Valentine's Day which as we all know is the most expensive time to be buying flowers - well not so in Playa del Carmen - this bouquet cost 52 Peso - that's around $4 Canadian.

So guys if you want to impress your ladies don't be afraid of going into the local florists in Playa.

Jurgen and Tanya make Mom's a great hangout!

2012-09-24T08:56:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share with everyone one of our favorite places to hang out in Playa del Carmen. I must start by telling you it is a hidden jewel unknown to the tourist element of Playa. I'm talking about Mom's Bar in Playa del Carmen. You will find it on the corner of 30th Avenue and 4th. We love where it's located since it's walking distance from our condo.

If you want GREAT food - I'm talking Jim's Famous Barbeque Ribs, Chicken Fried Chicken, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Beef Stroganoff! Happy hour drinks - beer for 20 peso and mix drinks for 30 peso then this is the place to go!

We just love going there and hanging out - the owner, Jurgen comes from Germany via Belize and Tanya mans the bar and makes sure we're well cared for. They also do lots of fundraising events to support local businesses such as the SPCA of Playa.

When Jurgen wants to have a party and his home isn't big enough he will use the bar on a Sunday when it's closed for regular business and invite all his friends for a pot luck. We were in Playa during the emmy awards so there was a pot luck Emmy Night's party at Mom's and we all brought food and dressed up and sat around watching the Emmy presentations, dissing all the dresses and guessing who would win in each category! It was a night of fun!

They recently had a guest cook come in and present foods of New Orleans! I so wish I had been there for that.

We love going there - it's a great way to make new friends with others who spend a good part of their lives living in Playa rather than their native countries of Canada or the US.

Unique Spa Experience!

2012-03-18T12:39:00.000-07:00

This is one of those things that you see and think you really should do it and you know if you go home without doing it you're going to kick yourself!

If you go to the Wayan Natural Wear store on 5th Avenue - there are a few of them so you want the one between 2nd Calle and Juarez across from the ADO bus station - you will find their Fish Spa. You put your feet in the tank of water and these fish, the Garra Rufa which originate in Turkey, suction off

the dead skin cells. As you can see it really tickles - they create a vibrating feeling on your feet. This store also has a tank in the spa area where you can even have a full body treatment.

I think that now every time I have friends come to visit me at our condo in Playa del Carmen I'm going to treat us to a spa treatment!

Cozumel discoveries!

2011-08-28T08:18:00.000-07:00

When we go to Playa del Carmen we're usually quite content just to sit back, sip beer or margaritas and enjoy a day at the beach or around the pool. We've been going down for so many years now that it just feels like home. We've seen the touristy stuff that we wanted to see now it's more a matter of relaxing and enjoying our time with each other and friends in Mexico. We love having friends come to stay with us while we are there so that we can take them around and show them all the things we enjoy about Playa.

One thing that it took us a few years to get around to doing was taking the ferry over to Cozumel for the day. So we finally did that with our cousin and his lady and we made a great day out of it. We weren't interested in all the touristy shops which are right a the foot of the ferry terminal so we rented a jeep and set off on a trip around the island. Which only takes a couple hours - well that's IF you don't stop at EVERY watering hole along the way. Everywhere there was a patch of sandy beach there was a little "restaurant" set up so you could stop for a beer and a bite.

I think the funniest thing we found on Cozumel were the "big name" companies in direct competition with each other, right across the street from each other vying for all the business (HAHAHA) but they were in such a remote area on the island that there was obviously no business.

If you click on the pictures to enlarge them you can check out the signs on these buildings to see what I mean.

We certainly had fun that day driving around the island. Perhaps we'll have friends we can take there on our next stay in Playa.

Are you interested in taking a trip to Playa del Carmen? We have a lovely condo available to rent. Click here for details.

Transportation like we'd never see in Canada

2011-08-08T06:49:00.000-07:00

We never cease to be amazed at the types of transportation you see around town in Playa del Carmen. Basically if it's got wheels it gets used.

There is one woman we see zooming around on a golf cart and those travelling by ATV. Others use bicycles - lots of them around and I believe the resorts have them available for their guests to use for a days outing. There are even bicycles that are built with two wheels on the front and a big metal cart type area on the front. The locals sometimes use this to move water bottles, or fresh linens going from the laundry mat to the local resorts, or supplies for their shops or some of these bikes will sometimes be built with a bench in the front area where people can sit while one person sits on the bike doing all the pedaling. Of course there are taxis everywhere. Never seems to be a problem flagging them down. There are tour buses bringing people from the Riveria Maya resorts to town for a day of shopping and beach time. There's also the local ADO bus transport system that can take you to many towns outside the Playa del Carmen area.

Then there are the many mopeds and scooters zipping in among the traffic. They make me nervous sometimes the way they zoom between cars and trucks and all sorts of tight spots. In Playa there doesn't seem to be traffic lanes like we're used to in Canada and the U.S. It seems that if you're in a vehicle, whatever it may be, and it can fit in that space then it's a lane! I think the thing that amazed and made us most nervous were the families that would travel around on mopeds or scooters. We've seen as many as 4 people on one moped. The driver was usually the Dad and standing between the
Dad's legs in the middle would be one child with the Mother on the back holding another baby or young child in her arms. Very scary sight! However scary it might look to us I must admit that I have never seen a car accident of any type while in Playa. Not to say they don't happen, I'm sure, but considering the difference in attitude about traffic control between what I'm used to and what I see in Playa I'm just surprised that we don't see a lot more problems. But I suppose the locals are all used to driving in this manner and I'm sure if we were there and driving we, too, would become accustomed to it. But for now our condo puts us in a good location so it's an easy walk to anything we may need. Therefore we will continue to wander merrily along and perhaps one day if you're ever in Playa our paths may cross and we can sit and share a beer and watch the traffic go by.

Thinking of visiting Playa del Carmen? Click here to view our condo rental.

Ahh, a day in paradise!

2011-07-21T07:55:00.000-07:00

This resort is the Bahia Principe on the Riviera Maya near Playa del Carmen. They are the sponsor of our nephew's football team, the Caballeros (which means Gentlemen of Knights). While we were in Playa they were having a fundraiser that we were really excited to get to attend. I mean really, what could be better than spending the day at an all inclusive enjoying all the amenities and then in the afternoon moving into a huge viewing area to watch the super bowl with hundreds of other vacationing fans!

We made a point of getting to the resort early in the morning to take advantage of a full day of all the amenities.

We started with a buffet breakfast then headed to the beach to claim some hammocks and soak up the sun and atmosphere of the resort. It seemed that there were endless chairs and hammocks on the beach but surprisingly we had a bit of difficulty finding any available. So my advise - head to the beach early to find the best locations still available. We spent the day alternating between lounging in the sun, wandering over to the bar to enjoy the all inclusive benefits available, swimming in the ocean or pools or having endless snacks - good thing we had our hammocks to doze off in because you know what happens when you have unlimited drinks, sun, surf and fresh air!

We had a wonderful day including buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner then watching the big game with abut 600 hundred more people! It was such a good time we're hoping to be down there at the same time next year so we can support the team again!

Interested in visiting the Playa del Carmen area? We have a condo available to rent. Click here for more details.

The Entrepreneurial spirit at work!

2011-04-25T07:29:00.000-07:00

It's so interesting the things to see and do in Mexico. And you just never know what you might find! I tell you I find the Mexican people to be very imaginative in the ways and means to create work for themselves.

I was sitting out on my deck at our condo one day and started to hear this piping sound in the neighborhood. It was a very pretty melodic type sound - much like a pan flute. I enjoyed it without thinking that it was anything more than a child playing with a toy. A few days later I again heard this pretty sound and this time curiosity got the better of me as the sound seemed to be following the same path as it had the previous time.

So I summoned the energy to get up from lounging in the sun to investigate and once I found the source I had to run to get my camera, thinking this would make an interesting blog subject. So there I was out on my deck trying to discreetly take pictures of this guy walking down the street blowing on his little blue flute and carrying this box on his back!??! I had absolutely no idea what that was all about!

Next time I got together with my brother and his family, who live in Playa, I asked him about what I had seen. Apparently this man sharpens knives and scissors using that box apparatus that he carries around. He blows his flute so everyone knows he's coming and that sound tells people that it's a knife sharpener who is coming through the neighborhood. If you need his service you just call out to him and he will sit on the side of the street and sharpen everything for you!

Condo rental available for your next trip

to Playa del Carmen. Click here for details.

Bulk food shopping Mexican style

2011-02-20T07:08:00.000-08:00

We went on an adventure the other day into Cancun. We drove through the tourist hotel district with it's beautiful beaches and big resorts surrounded on both sides by beautiful blue water.

Then we went into what I referred to as "real" Cancun. Meaning that we visited areas where the locals shop. This outdoor market was just one example of life in Mexico. You could buy everything there from fresh produce, fresh meats, plants, clothes, everything imaginable!

The pictures here are of a "bulk food" store where all the sacks of food - from dry pasta, spices, flour, grains and beans to dry dog food - are just opened up and set on the floor for people to buy from. (click on picture to enlarge it and then click your back button to return to the blog).

It was funny to see it all just out on the floor like this as there were birds landing close by just waiting for their chance to sneak in for a meal.

There was a candy store that was packed solid with bags and bags of every type of candy possible. The aisles were just one person wide and the place was packed with people trying to get past each other and trying to see and reach past each other to get at the goodies. It was lots of fun to try to shop in there.

I would look forward to going back there to shop now that I know what to expect. It would be fun to see what kind of "treasures" I could find. I still prefer the simple lifestyle I experience living in Playa del Carmen but now I know I can just drive down to Cancun for a different shopping experience.

In answer to a query to my blog: Thank you for reading my blog. As for the market in Cancun - the name of it is Mercado 28. The best thing I can suggest for telling you where it is, is this:

go to google maps, type in Mercado 28 Cancun Mexico and you will see a map showing you exactly where it is. Enjoy!

Interested in visiting Playa del Carmen? Click here to view our condo rental.

Music Festival brings good times and good tunes to Playa del Carmen

2011-01-07T05:30:00.000-08:00

It's so busy in Playa del Carmen right now! How fabulous for all the businesses!

There is a music festival happening in town right now and it looks like everyone came down for a some good music and a good time!

The 4th annual BPM Festival is an annual world class electronic music festival which takes place in the beginning of January and if you're on the beach during the day you're going to be hearing some great music. I know that the Blue Parrot is having special performances during the festival, as I'm sure will Kool and Mamita's. The weather has been excellent and attendance seems really good from what we see around town - I know that last year there were over 18,000 people attending the events.

Personally we prefer a more laid back, quiet time at the beach so we wander by all the music and party goers down further to an undeveloped part of the beach front and just contemplate nature in all it's raw beauty.

Thinking of a trip down to Playa del Carmen? Click here to view our condo rental.

Very interesting bathroom.

2010-11-06T06:58:00.000-07:00

I love this! Unfortunately I think it's been renovated since but it was so fun. This was probably the most photographed bathroom in all of Playa del Carmen. Why you ask????? Look closely behind me.............there's no wall back there. It looks over the roof tops of the buildings along 5th Avenue - which is the pedestrian shopping/restaurant street in Playa and behind that is the ocean.

Talk about having a complex trying to use that bathroom. There certainly was no one who could see into it because it is higher than everything else by quite a bit but still!!! The door, by the way, was very cool too. As you can see it's a large round door and it's hinged in the middle for ease of use.

I believe I heard that they had to put up a wall on the open side as there were new buildings that went up and were higher so it was necessary to enclose the room. Oh well, at least I had the fun of experiencing this while it was unique.

Click here to view our condo rental.

Diving on the reef in Cancun

2010-10-01T08:10:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd share some pictures from the dives I took on the reefs off the Cancun coast. (Click on the picture for a larger view).

If you're going down that way and are thinking about diving here is a link to our friends, Lisa and Jesus. Wonderful people and I was totally comfortable diving with them. For a more in depth description of my diving experience with Lisa and Jesus please read my Feb. 2009 Reef diving post.

On the left - we found a puffer fish.

The picture above is a rock fish I spotted. He's quite poisonous. He has spines on his back and if you step on him you're in big trouble. You can also see him in the picture on the left in the front. See how well he blends into his surroundings.

Need a condo in Playa del Carmen? Click here.

My favorite pottery shop

2010-09-18T08:48:00.000-07:00

I love this little pottery shop we found in Playa del Carmen. It's a bit of walk from our condo but well worth it as it's just stuffed with wonderful pottery and wall hangings of all sorts. Last time we were in Playa del Carmen we must have visited this shop about 4 or 5 times, so needless to say the shop owner has become my newest Mexican Amiga. She would give us such a warm welcome (probably because she knew we were there to buy more things) and always gave us a deal before we even asked.

The first time we went there was to get kitchen cupboard knobs made out of the pottery - it looks so pretty. But she didn't have enough to do the entire kitchen and wouldn't get more in before we were leaving. So the next year we were down in Playa del Carmen we went back to her and got the rest of them.

Then we decided that since one of the light switch covers in the condo was a nice pottery cover, it would be fun to have

all the switch covers be in the pottery and add a little more Mexican charm to the condo. We made another trek to her shop. (The great thing about all these treks is that we found the cheapest ice cream shop in town along the way. So we would make sure to give them our business as well!) We got our single covers and when we got home we checked to see how many covers we needed for the 2 and 3 switches and went to see her again but she didn't have any in stock at the time. Guess you know what we'll be doing on our next visit to Playa del Carmen. I think if we go see her as soon as we get there and tell her what we want she can have them brought in for us. I know the other times she'd said she could get things for us but we were going to be gone before they would arrive. So next time we'll just place our order early in our visit. Considering that she doesn't speak English and we have almost no Spanish it was very interesting how we managed to convey our needs and understand her responses enough to get by - but that was all thanks to my hubby, he seemed to get it!

Hhhmmmm.........wonder what other lovely pottery things I can incorporate into the condo??? Such fun!

I should mention by the way that this lady had the BEST prices - we walked from one end of Playa del Carmen to the other checking every pottery shop we could find and her's were WAY cheaper than anywhere else. If you're interested this shop is on Benito Jaurez at the corner of 25th (if I remember correctly).

Click here to view our condo rental and start planning your trip to Playa del Carmen.

Tacos anyone??

2010-07-24T08:13:00.000-07:00

It's such fun to just wander around in Playa del Carmen. You never know what you will find! Love this!

Talk about Mexican ingenuity!

This old VW van has been transformed into a taco stand - how fun. It's set into this space right next to other businesses on a side street just off of 5th Avenue.

We didn't eat there this time though as we found it (again) just after we'd had our lunch.

His business must be doing okay because when we saw him this time we recalled that we'd seen him last year when we were down to Playa.

Maybe next time we're down there we will have to stop and have something to eat here. Looks like lots of fun!

P.S. If you're thinking of a trip to Playa del Carmen we have a condo that's available to rent. Please click here for details.

Cozumel shore line

2010-06-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

Love this shot! Nothing like surf, sand, sun and suds!!

In all the years we've been going down to Playa del Carmen we have said we needed to make the trip over to Cozumel. Somehow that never happened until this year. A word of warning if you choose to make the trip - the ride over can get rough so you might want to make sure not to do too much partying the night before or you might lose your breakfast and they actually have staff going around handing out baggies in case of just such an occurance. A great way to start the day - NOT! Fortunately we didn't have any problems and weren't seated next to anyone who did. Thank goodness!

When we first docked in Cozumel it was very much like you would expect from a community that deals with the cruise ship industry. Very commercialized right near the docks. There's even the big money companies like Cartier.

Don't get me wrong there were lots of Mexican style shops too but it was just very commercial for my liking. We prefer experiencing the natural culture of the country rather than the commercial culture although I appreciate that all the cruise ship business is an essential part of life in Cozumel.

We knew that we wanted to get a car and drive around the island - which doesn't take very long, well unless you stop every few minutes to check out the "watering holes" or walk along the shore line picking up (I won't even say searching cause they're everywhere) seashells.

So we walked down from the ferry terminal a bit and rented a jeep and off we went. Once you're away from the ferry terminal area the island goes back to nature very quickly. The shore line actually surprised me quite a bit. After hearing about Cozumel for so long I was

expecting fabulous beaches everywhere and it's so totally not like that. It appears that where there's a "watering hole" there's a beach. But the rest of the island has a very rocky shore line. It was very odd - almost seemed like a lava rock type of formation. So another word of advise - if you want to walk the shoreline I suggest a good pair of shoes - barefeet and flipflops will make for difficult walking. Beautiful scenery all along the shore with the big waves coming in and crashing up over the rocks. Lots of photo opportunities to be had - just watch you don't get your camera wet in the process.

Certainly am glad we made the trip - at least now we can say been there, done that. Would I go back again?? I'm not sure - I guess if we had friends visiting who wanted to go over - then yes, I probably would. Just for an outing for myself - probably not - there are a lot of other places yet to see or that I'd prefer to see again more than Cozumel.

Interested in visiting? Click here to view our condo rental.

Jellyfish Lights - so pretty!

2010-05-17T14:20:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for a unique light for your patio you will find many shops that sell these pretty little lights on 5th Avenue, just off of Constituyentes. I'm not exactly sure what they are carved from but it seems to be some sort of a gourd. They are quite a hard shell, I guess you would call it, and each one is carved with flowers or fish or whatever the artist has been inspired to create, then colored glass balls are inset to add color and beauty to the effect, an electrical cord with a socket and light bulb are inserted and it is completed by strings of shells hanging from the bottom. They get their name from the fact that the complete effect is similar to the shape of a jellyfish. They come in many shapes and sizes and I would recommend that you shop around because the prices vary in each shop.

I have one of these beautiful lights at my home in Canada but haven't really appreciated it until I was given one by our friends when they were down staying with us at our condo in Playa del Carmen. We mounted it on the deck and enjoyed an evening outside under it's light. Not only are they a nice piece of art but the effects of the light coming through the carved sections onto the walls and floors creates another interesting pattern to be admired. (Sorry for the poor picture quality). I think I may even get another one to put on the deck just because they're so pretty! My brother says I'm a real hippy now because I have jellyfish lights - well okay I'd rather be a hippy in Playa del Carmen than a popsicle in Canada!

PS: Want to come play in Playa del Carmen?

Click here to see our condo rental.

Desperate for Tequila???

2010-04-23T07:19:00.000-07:00

I chuckle every time I see this picture come up on my computer wallpaper. We had rented a jeep to cruise around the coast of Cozumel. We would stop at all the "watering holes" we came across and at one location about half way around we found this. Needless to say neither of us girls like tequila enough to bare it for it but my cousin, Kyle, likes his tequila so he posed for a shot - but surprise, surprise - the free shot was only offered to any brave ladies - not really a surprise but I guess he figured it was worth the try and created a fun memory for all of us.

There were a couple of other girls there and they created an interesting picture. One was wearing a tube top so she stood behind the sign and positioned herself so the top was covered by the sign but the upper chest and mid drift were showing. If you didn't know otherwise you would think that she was actually topless! I'm sure they had lots of fun conversations about that picture!

It was very much an ocean front location - just a small bar and restaurant located on a coarse, rocky bit of beach.

A little further along you could see the surf crashing up against the rocks.

Thinking of taking a trip to Playa del Carmen? Click here to check out our vacation rental.

LOOK UP before you sit down

2010-04-06T17:10:00.000-07:00

It's so wonderful to be able to walk down to the beach from our condo to enjoy an afternoon. You can just pull up a piece of beach or use one of the many chairs that are available. It's never a difficult decision to have sun or shade either. Both are always readily available either in the form of umbrellas or coconut trees to provide shade. A lot of the resorts and restaurants have tables for dining set out among the trees as well. But a word of advice - look up before you sit down!

You may find it quite an experience to be able to say - yeah, I had a lounge chair or hammock under the trees on the beach. I certainly would hope that it is a pleasant experience - hence my warning. Those coconuts probably look cool up there but if you get hit by one when it falls it can do some pretty serious damage. Although they look like they have really strong stems holding them in place I have to tell you when they're ripe and ready to fall a slight wind is all it will take.

So again - enjoy your day in the sun - but please LOOK UP before you sit down.

Interested in a vacation in Playa del Carmen? Click here to check out our condo rental.

Maroma Beach on a Sunday

2010-03-24T07:32:00.000-07:00

We made another trip over to Maroma Beach and Resort while we were in Playa del Carmen this year. What a beautiful place. Going on a Sunday is so peaceful because all the activities there are closed so it seems that everyone chooses that day to go into Playa. The beach is extremely empty and quiet. It's a great day to enjoy some peace and quiet, sunshine, and a good book.

With lots of staff on hand it's never hard to have your drinks refreshed and your food brought out for you to enjoy at a table among the trees.

Although it was a beautiful, sunny day there was a very strong wind blowing - great if you wanted to be exfoliated! But not so great when you're trying to enjoy the view of the beach - the sand at this beach is extremely fine so the wind was constantly blowing it at us. The only solution to avoid the blowing sand was to turn our chairs around and have our backs to the water.

I'm sure we made a funny site to the few other people who were wandering past but at least it kept the sand out of our eyes and still allowed us to enjoy our time at the beach. Definitely a great place to come to unwind and "recharge your batteries".

Interested in visiting Playa del Carmen? Click here to see our condo rental.