HI folks --
Now that laundry is sort of finished (does it really ever end), I can proceed with the remains of the trip report. It's very, very cold here in Virginia, so I want to remember how hot we were in Mexico only last week!
We were up by 8 AM and off to Topsiders again for breakfast. I attempted to get the boys to go to Lumiere's, but DH thought it took too long.
We were scheduled for the Mayan Ruins & Beach tour at 11:45. While the DSs were partying in the clubs and I was basking in the sunny shade, DH wanted to run into town to get a lay of the land. Cozumel is great now that they have repaired the piers. No more tenders!
We were kind of confused by the shopping directions provided in the Navigator. From the map, it looked like the shopping district was 3 miles from where the ship parked at the pier. As we were leaving that night we noticed that there was another ship all the way at the end of the island. There must have been a different location to park the boat that was three miles from the shopping district. I shared that b/c in only ONE hour, DH had covered about half the shopping district, had already found a new diamond wedding band, and wanted to know if I still wanted a Tanzanite ring . . .LOL. He was amazing!!
The DSs are convinced that DH only likes to shop when he cruising. DH typically doesn't enjoy going to the mall with me. The DSs found all this very funny . . .
So at 11:45 it's time for the Mayan Ruins tour. My first choice would have been the day trip to Tulun, but DH didn't want to be gone from the ship that long. He also didn't want to run the risk of MISSING the ship b/c we were late returning (NOTE: this is an important point to remember at the END of today's story). . . .
It was pretty funny. Our Mexican guide, Patricio, came to each person in our group and placed a sticker on us with his name on it! His English was better than many of the Mexicans living in our neighborhood so we had little difficulty understanding him. He was very talkative, had lots of good info to share, and was very opinionated about Mayans history (since his grandmother and wife were Mayan). We were bussed to the ruin site. That was quite an adventure. Signs said 40 km/hr. I think we were going about 70 MPH down a single lane, nearly dirt road!!! There was a nice reception area with bathrooms and few shops when we got off the bus. It was nice to be able to leave our beach bags on our seats.
The ruins were very interesting. My DS10 is studying World History in school this year. He starts Mayan history in February. He can say he has been there! After walking around the ruins for about 45 minutes, it was time to go. We could have spent another 30 minutes readiing the signs and seeing everything, but they were on a schedule. Oh, and this is not a good tour for young children. Most of the kids under 10 were horribly bored. They basically were walking around rocks and grass that they weren't allowed to touch or run around. It was tough for them.
We herded back on the bus and began the tour around the island. It was amazing to see the beaches on the far side of the island. Since that side gets the biggest impact from the hurricanes, there is nothing builts there (including homes!). Considering most of this island was underwater from Hurricane Wilma two season ago, it has come back wonderfully! After about 45 minutes at breakneck speeds, we got to the beach resort. They had promised us we could purchase food there. We were disappointed to find a buffet that cost TWELVE DOLLARS per person. We were famished since we forgot to each lunch before leaving. It was nearly 4 PM.
Oh, did I mention that DH forgot to get more cash in Grand Cayman so we were down to our last $30!!!??. I was too sunburnt and too hungry to stay and enjoy the beach resort. It was beautiful and I'm sure in other circumstances it would have been very enjoyable. However, DH still wanted to finish his shopping, too - the ship was pulling out at 6:30!
Tip: Don't spend cash when you can use your credit card. Make sure you have more than enough cash for ports when you leave Key West.
We took a cab back to the port early (and skipped the final bus ride). The cabbie went even faster and his speedometer was still at zero . . .LOL DH took the DSs back to the ship (i.e. the clubs) so they could get something to eat. Meanwhile, I spent about 45 minutes going through the shops in the mall right outside the port. By 4 PM at night, the owners were standing outside their shops begging you come see their jewelry. It was annoying! There were 10 ships in port that day. You'd think they had a good day
I met DH at 5 PM and we used $6 of our last $9 to get to the other end of the shopping area. Yes, you calculated correctly . . .we only had $3 left. The plan was to find an ATM and get a few more pesos to use to get back to the ship. However, we got distracted by Diamonds International at the beginning of the far end of the shopping area. DH found the perfect diamond wedding band at a great price. It would take about an hour to get it sized (it was now 5:15). We looked around the store some more and found a cute starfish necklace for me. Since we still had some time, we wandered down the street in search of t-shirts. We found the coolest looking t-shirts. They had mexican animals on them. The DSs loved them! Before we knew it, it was 6:15 (remember ship leaves at 6:30). It was dark and the streets were quiet. DH was told we could get a cab back to the ship for only $2. We didn't want the walk the 5 blocks to the ATM since we didn't need cash for the rest of our trip. At 6:20, we got DH's new ring and went outside to grab a cab. The only cab we saw left with other passengers just as we walked up! While trying not to panic we started walking very quickly toward the ship. Fortunately, there was another cab waiting for us about a block away. Phew! There goes our last $3! We walked up to the ship about 6:25!!!
We met the boys, shared our island finds, and headed to dinner at Animator Palate. After dinner, the kids hung out at the clubs, DH took in a movie (it finished after midnight so we both couldn't go) and I rested in the cabin - ALONE!! What a wonderful vacation! Tomorrow would be our last day at sea & Palos!!
More soon! (although I'm not doing laundry . .. .LOL)
