Isla Mujeres - beautiful aqua warm sea water

(STILL NO PHOTOS!)

Tuesday 16th October – Cancun – Isla Mujeres

We started the day at our usual - 100% Natural Cafe for brunch. We had decided that today we would head off the mainland and go to Isla Mujeres. After a quick internet session we jumped in a taxi and headed to the port and arrived just in time as the next ferry was leaving in 10mins. On route to the dock we found a Havianas rack and Leigh was stoked to be reunited with his favourite black jandals (the same pair that got stolen in Guatemala)! We had to make a mad dash to the boat as our mini shopping spree meant we were the last ones to board. The boat ride was 20mins across the most beautiful turquoise water you will ever see. We looked out across the Yucatan peninsula and the massive strip of hotels along Cancun's hotel district. It was an impressive sight in comparison to the tiny island of Isla Mujeres. We arrived into the main port and after a few minutes of being disorientated we made the short walk towards our hotel in the extremely hot temperatures of the Caribbean. We passed by the usual hoard of island markets and shop keepers trying their best to sell us everything from sunglasses to the “finest” china in town. We arrived out our hotel and were all stoked to have such a nice place. The service was very welcoming with beautiful clean rooms and excellent air conditioning to the delight of Leigh and Riff.

We explored the island before heading to the beach. Riff and Alex headed off for some admin while the two of us spent the afternoon (literally – 4 hours) bathing in the 32deg waters. The sea was very shallow even though we must have been out over 50mtrs. With the glaring sun making it almost impossible to see Leigh headed off to find a pair of knock off sunglasses. He found a pair that although not as good as his Oakley's would have to do and it didn't matter if he wore them in the sea! We chatted all afternoon about putting our favourite movies, food etc in order all while sitting in the sea... much like being in a hot tub surrounded by the bluest water imaginable. Riff and Alex joined us later and we chatted for some time in the sea. We eventually decided to head in and checked out a few beach side bars. Luckily it was happy hour, so we decided to take full advantage of it and spent the hour drinking Mojitos and beers watching the sun set. On the way back to our hotel we were all very excited to pick up lovely smelling, freshly folded laundry – how will we ever do it ourselves on our return to the real world! Later on we headed out for dinner, all pretty merry! We decided on a Cuban restaurant, which was definitely a great choice. The food was really well priced and Jo enjoyed her most favourite grilled fillet of fish washed down with a few more cocktails and a bottle of wine shared with Alex. We stayed until closing time and made the short walk to a lively late night gig and it was not to long before Jo was the star of the dance floor, with a few solo's and inviting a crowd, we enjoyed a great night out!

Wednesday 17th October – Isla Mujeres

All feeling a little worse for wear from the night before, we headed out for brunch, although Riff was already there watching football. Leigh enjoyed a fry up and Jo pancakes, while the rain poured down. It's never for too long though in the tropics and is usually quite refreshing. We decided it was about time we told our families about what happened to us in Guatemala, so Jo eventually got hold of Dad and told him about the ordeal and worked out that he would pass on the news to everyone else.

After having so much fun the day before lying in the sea, we thought we deserved more relaxation, so wandered down to the beautiful beach which has a pretty shoreline not surrounded by high rises like Cancun and totally turquoise clear water and sand under foot. We pretty much spent all afternoon chilling out before deciding to return to our favourite Cuban restaurant again for dinner, as Leigh was starting to get the taste for Mojitos and it was buy one get one free. We decided to be a bit more reserved tonight and played 500 before and after dinner at the restaurant. The boys were so gutted when the girls opened a can of whop ass and bet them. Both Alex and Jo were so excited and the boys faces were less than impressed! We decided to have an earlyish night as we had another travel day the next morning.