Gorgeous beaches and being waited on hand and foot is not an exageration when you visit Cancun. First of all when you book your trip you want to go all-inclusive. This assures you that even if you run out of money you will at least have food and drink. Second you want an oceanside view. You will have two choices normally, bayside or oceanside. Believe me the cost difference does not seem so extravagant when you request an oceanside and look out you window every morning at the beautiful almost translucent ocean. The major issue you want to pay attention to is the airport. They are not very organized when it comes to making sure you get on the right bus to your hotel. Most of the buses have the name of the destination but sometimes they do not. Once you find your bus and you are headed to your hotel expect to learn the word OLA. Which is hello in Mexico. The tour guide is an expert at giving you tips on the valuable time you will spend in Cancun. Believe me when I say there are tons of sites to visit and water sports galore.
When I arrived in Cancun I walked into my hotel and the first thing I noticed was the open air foyer with a water fountain and tons of plants. The tile and marble were exquisite. The blues, reds, yellows were bright and what you would expect in Mexico. This made me feel as if I was walking into paradise. Not only was I walking into paradise I was a celebrity. Everyone from all around surrounded our group. They introduced themselves and gave out brochures and coupons two for one on all the adventures you could ever want to go on. There was something for everyone including kids activities.
Checking in took no more than five minutes even though there was bus load of people with me. The friendliness and atmosphere was electric. I felt like I had finally made it to the ultimate relaxation that I craved when I decided I needed a vacation.
When I entered the room my eyes were drawn to the window where the curtains made of a beautiful blue light chiffon and were drawn back. To my utter amazement the bluest ocean I have ever seen was right outside my window. I saw several interesting species swimming around that I could not quite see clear enough, but in my mind that was the first thing I was going to do.
In Mexico the colors will amaze you and your room will be no different. The vibrant colors in the room match all of Mexico's traditional bright cities. There was a stocked refrigerator, bar with stools, and even your own safe for your valuables. Although the staff at the hotels are paid very well and tipped very well, there are some, as in every country thieves that have been known to break into the rooms. On check in you can request a lock for this. If you forgot no worries just call down to the desk and ask them for one. There is a small deposit until they get it back even if you did not bring any valuables, believe me when I say you will have some before you leave.
After freshing up in the huge rest room and donning my appropriate swim wear and shorts, of course I am not taking my vacation time to unpack my bags, I went direct for the ocean. The beaches are magnificent. White sand beach chairs and umbrellas. When you sit down be prepared, you will be waited on by your hotel staff. Funny I do not remember seeing this person when I checked in. But they remember every single person that walks in that front door. I told the waiter my drink of choice. Minutes passed, or it could have been hours I did not really care, my drink was in my hand. A shadow came over me while I was relaxing. I looked up an a young gentleman with a whole bag full of jewelry walked up. He offered to give me a good price. My eye caught a beautiful silver bracelet, that I have still today. Wonderful beautiful 98.7% pure silver.
After thirty minutes of baking and I mean baking in the sun, I decided it was time to check out the hotel for some snacks. I walked up bare foot mind you to the nearest outside sitting area at the hotel and asked the bartender if they had any snacks available. "No you are not going to eat just snacks you have to have food when you are in the hot Mexican sun", I was told. I assured them that just a snack would do. Fruit, nuts,chips,and of course their famous salsa were provided while I sat in the breeze of the hotel restaurant.
Now remember I have just arrived and have spent a total of one hour in Mexico. When I get up and thank the bartender he said senorita you need an arm band the color of the hotel. I was a bit taken back but looked at him and he handed me one. The arm band is used to tell the hotel that you are all-inclusive and staying at this hotel. I asked him how do you know I stay here and all-inclusive? He explained to me that everyone that works at the hotel has to greet or have someone from your area greet all the guests that come in. If they do not get their arm band then they should give them one first chance the opportunity arises. So people make sure you have your armband!
After a fulfilling afternoon snack I decided to check out the information desk and see what I could do the rest of the day. Tons of coupons offering a variety of discounts and even free activities. The day's activities were tremendous. How do I choose? Well what would any women do? SHOPPING! You can take the bus anywhere and believe me when I say there are a ton of them. I took the bus to the local mall and went walking around to check out the prices. You can actually barter with them. They love it! Exchange ATM's are as numerous as dollar ATM's in America. Remember at this time one dollar is equal to around 11 pesos. This changes though so be up to date on the exchange rates. Even better get some money exchanged at home before you leave so you do not have to spend that valuable time at the exchange ATM.
The malls are as any American mall. The best places to go are on the main boulevard in Cancun. You have your choice and do not want for anything. You can buy anything from food to clothing to electronics. You name it they have it.
There are so many numerous things to see and do and such a short time and space to tell them all. The most memorable creatures are the iguanas. They are everywhere and believe me they are not scared of you. If you have some fruit they will take it out of your hands. But be careful, they do bite if you rile them and the locals do not like it when you feed them because they come back begging for more. I did not get to see what was in the ocean you really have to look down on them and I refused to go up in a helicopter. Sorry I am not that adventurous.
My most memorable adventure is the 1000 year old city Chichen Itza. The trip there is long but filled with awesome sites on the way. The Mayans are still on the streets selling their vegetables and wares and I believe the tallest one reaches five foot. You occasionally spot some taller but they are not Maya. They have the mixes of the latter Indians that came to live in Mexico. The houses are adobe with thatch roofs you know the kind you learn about in elementary school history. You look straight through them during the day with hammocks swinging in the breeze. No windows and no doors and yet a carefree fulfilling life. No one in a rush and always smiling (until the bus gets too close to them).
Back to Chichen Itza, I forget how many steps are on the outside of the Temple of Kukulcan but I did not try them. It was 95 degrees at 10:00 in the morning so I decided to go inside the temple where it was nice and cool. Ok so I am a whimp but at the time a cool whimp. The inside was damp and the stairs barely wide enough for you feet. Two people could not go up side by side. When you got to the top there was a sacrificial alter and even here there were carvings and color that dazzle. Be careful no flashes on the cameras. The curators want to preserve the colors and a ton of flashes will start to fade the colors.
Last but not least make sure to visit the El Castillo, the temple of the Warriors, the Observatory, the Nunnery and the Ball Court. This tour was interrupted at lunch and to my surprise the tour guide brought us to a shade tree and gave us a sacked lunch. At that point I did not care what it was so I guess I could not tell you if it was good or not. I do remember it was a sandwich, drink and chips. I was so anxious to see the rest of Chichen Itza I believe I must have inhaled the food.
After a short break we continued the tour and around 4:00 (our local time) they loaded us on the bus. On the way back they made a detour. We stopped at a restaurant with local food items and drinks. They had entertainment in the form of traditional Maya, dancing with serving trays on their heads and believe it or not some with drinks on them. We also stopped at a local place that sold the famous blankets with the beautiful bright colors. Of course I had to have one.
Chichen Itza and getting a little history of the people around Cancun enjoying the wonderous activites and always feeling rested but I believe this is about why you would like to go there on Spring Break. The night life is all the time not just at night, you have a ton of adventures and although I did not mention the water sports there are a ton of them. Beautiful women and men are honored to have Americans spend their money and they want you to come back. PERIOD!
