Riu Palace Riviera Maya All-Inclusive Playa del Carmen

... the rest of my three days diving and what superb diving it is. I see a nurse shark, octopi, manta rays and sea snakes. Over the few days I also mark up a personal best for deepest and longest dives but best off all I have my first night dive. So much life underwater at night, amazing capturing a moving octopus with the beam of your torch resulting in it glowing white and purple as it flows across the sea bed. Five of us come to ...

... a deco stop and I believe only bothered with a safety stop as Myk and I both did one. Next dive was shallow (around 12-15 metres) and while our DM didn’t bother with a safety stop, we kept under the surface for well over the three minutes since they decided not t bother with their SMB despite surfacing in a horrendously busy boat channel?? I would hate to think of nervous or inexperienced divers using this company as safety is about ...

... MBD, we decide to try the Cenotes. This time we are taken by Etienne, a tech cave diver, who briefs us on the hours drive. He explains the different rules to cave diving than sea diving, adjusts our weight for the fresh water and then we are off. Like with the lake there is little in the way of fish but that’s not what we came for. It’s the amazing rock formations, the glistening caverns and the natural ...

... as I pictured some poor person below, being whopped in the head by my wayward lime. <br><br>Not long into our meal a mariachi band approached us for a &#8220;song for the senorita&#8221;, sure why not? They played a lovely tune which we had no idea what it was all about. Paid them and they were on their way. Still very nice. We leave the restaurant and Andrew spots my lime on the sidewalk, again giggles start.<br><br>We then wander down 5th ...

... no tickets arrived later that day (and we could have exercised our right to go back into the park should we have had possession of said tickets, hence our fuss) we suspected the worst. Anyway, some heated exchanges, and 24 hours, later we got our "original" tickets, but we'd put the cat amongst the pigeons, our hotel manager assured us, the guides would not get away with this behaviour again. Allegedly. Another day in El Remate before we caught our early morning ...

... in Mexico and our room, 2 mins from the beach as really nice and only 30 USD. We spent a couple of days chilling out, I went diving, in the ocean which was pretty avaerage but also in a Cenote. These are underground rivers in the limestone of the Yucatan Peninsular where the ¨roof¨has fallen in creating sinkholes. This is cavern rather than cave ...

Today we were excited to get Jill and Sara out and about showing them everything we'd experienced before and in the coming days new things we'd all experience together. We spent the first part of the morning shopping in Playa del Carmen before heading out to Akumal Bay....and of all places, at both Sam's Club and Walmart. Aye, aye, aye.....I must say it worked out well though. I have never seen such an amazing selection of good yogurt! I will miss that at ...

... any sleep but that was ok). Straight for a hangover curing swim in the ocean. Packed my bag and said goodbye and headed off to Cancun airport. Got on my flights from Cancun to Miami to New York with no trouble at all. Mexico certainly was great appeal to me. Hearing all the tales of other places to visit in Mexico (especially the great surf on the Pacific Ocean side) will certainly lure me back again. So who wants to join me in Mexico?

... it was a really strange effect. Also...then the salt-fresh water was not disturbed..it would be possible to see where the boundary between the fresh and salt water was. Pretty cool. As well there was a difference in temperature..the fresh water was 24 degrees Celsius....and the salt water 26 degrees....still...it felt like there was a way bigger difference. The views were quite amazing as well...stalagmites and stalagtites everywhere and the water was crystalclear. Enjoyed the dive a lot.