I felt like crap (no pun intended) all night...so I slept not at all & didn't want to get out of bed AT ALL this morning. I couldn't have cared less about any stupid island...the money we spent on the trip...the fact that even if we stayed at the hotel, so I could die...Mike wouldn't let me sleep anyway. So I reluctantly got out of bed and whined my way to my bathroom (two bathrooms is definitely the way to travel).
We had NO idea where we needed to be, but we thought we did!! The bell boy spoke pretty good English this morning, so he luckily helped out...or else we would NOT have gone to the right place. We have been told all week to take the bus for 60 pesos each, but we were both afraid to be some newspaper headline about two stupid cops that got robbed on the bus in Mexico. So instead, we've been taking taxis at $10 (American dollars) each way. The standard rate...no matter if it's 2 blocks, 2 miles, or 20 miles is $8 American dollars...plus tip & that fact that we have NO change in pesos or dollars = $10 each way...so you can imagine that going anywhere can get pricy.
Besides the fact that the bus is scary & taking on one bad guy (taxi driver) at a time seems easier than a bus full...of....um...well...you know...the buses (& the cars) drive about 100 kph...today we heard them compared to Nascar. That scares us more than the headline. Everyone hauls ass around here...with little to no care about one (let alone several) traffic laws. And what's worse...we don't think a dead pedestrian would matter much around here.
So...Being the stupid suckers that we have written on our gringo faces, we took a taxi to the port for the ferry ride to Isla Mujeras...for the standard $10. Oh well...you only live once, right? We found our way to the terminal...paid a $2o Peso coral tax per person & waited to get on the ferry. You ask what a "coral tax" is? That is something we would like to know also...
While waiting in line, I over heard a couple of people (Americans speaking English) behind us talking about hotels and food and such...so I piped in. They were all very nice, but the conversation ended when the line began to move. One of the couples ended up sitting next to us on the trip to the island...they were very nice & we had good conversation the entire time.
When we got there, we went straight to the snorkeling tour. Our new friends, again, ended up next to us. We all snorkeled and had a good time & went our own way.
The snorkeling was incredible!! It was better than any of the snorkeling I have ever done before, even in Hawaii (other than the clown fish I saw there). The water was clear and warm...the colors were undescribable!! The fish were beautiful and there were SO many of them!! We
weren't too impressed with the poorly sized & old, smelly life jackets, but the actual snorkeling was so impressive that there is just no way to comlpain!!
After the snorkeling ended, we went to lunch and then laid on the beach until it was time to get back on the ferry for the next stop. The weather was very warm, so we were okay with leaving. The island was beautiful, but a couple of hours was plenty.
Before we left, we took some pictures. Mike wanted me to pose in the water, but I had already seen a couple of creatures that made me feel like I was imposing. I stepped in a bit, and felt something touching my toe...hoping it was just a leaf...I looked down...& saw a small (4-5 inches in diameter) crab...pinching my big toe!! It did't hurt, but I think he was just giving me a warning...& if I didn't take the hint...I'm pretty sure it could have hurt...A LOT!!
We were looking for a seat on the boat, when we spotted our new friends!! There was just enough room at their table for us!! So we sat and chatted with both couples from the dock. The trip was short, but we parted reminding each other to save seats for the ride back to Cancun.
The second stop was not a good one. It was just "downtown"...flea market shopping for crap...so we didn't stay long. We walked back to the boat and snagged our same table...the other four (4) were close behind.
We ended up talking about lots of stuff...life...home...sports...prices of houses...etc. One of the couples was there for their 15th wedding anniversary...their first time away without their 3 kids...since they had kids!! They are from a small town outside of Grand Rapids, Michigan.
The other couple (that we spent most of the day with) was about our age...very cute and they looked happy. They said they had only been married for about 7 months & blah blah blah...the couple from Michigan asked what they did in Sacramento...& to our extreme surprise...she said...quietly..."we're both in law enforcement."
Mike & I weren't sure we heard them right, but we did. They work for the Sheriff's department outside of Sacramento. They met in the academy 3 years ago!! They were so fun and it was fun to trade stories about working for different departments...they both lateralled too...from the city to the county.
We ended up trusting them & rode the bus (with them) back to the hotel...for $60 pesos each!! It wasn't too bad and it sure was a heck of a lot cheaper!! They got off the stop before us, but we were glad to have the company at least pert of the way!! Neither one of us could believe that of all the people in Cancun...or even on that ferry...that we would spend our day with a coulple-a cops!!
