We arrive in Cancun

Trip Start Jul 01, 2005
1
6
Trip End Jul 28, 2005


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Flag of Mexico  ,
Friday, July 1, 2005

After months of planning and saving, we left for our Mexico Expedition (the Yucatecan phase) on July 1st, 2005. The previous day had been the last one at my old job and I was almost unable to sleep for excitement and trepidation. It would be my first time abroad, though I'd been traveling around the U.S. since I was a wee girl. Neither my best friend, Sarah, or I spoke the language fluently, though I'd been through about a year of college Spanish. I thought I had everything I needed: unattractive passport photo, as many over the counter meds as I thought anyone might ever need (despite the fact I rarely get sick), yards of mosquito netting, and at least fifty pounds of crap stuffed into a never-been-used backpack I'd gotten for free at a work Christmas party. With foresight like that, how could this be anything but a success?

Since this after the fact, most of the travelogue is gleaned from various emails and diary entries I wrote in Mexico. (Spoiler warning: We make it through alive.)

On the plane
Everything's gone creepily smooth so far. Quick check-in, security check, and boarding. Heard a couple drunk guys get thrown out of first class, watched "Ice Princess," and redistributed the luggage. Just passed Veracruz. Left the coast a moment ago to head out over the gulf - the water by the coast is a beautiful color - variegated blue and turquoise.

The fellow next to us on the plane got drunk and filled out all his Customs forms in pink highlighter. I never did see him make it through.

Cancun
Arrival in Cancun went relatively well - there was a moment when the first ATM wouldn't take my card that caused brief panic, but that was it. After catching the shuttle to take us to the ADO terminal downtown, night had fallen all the way. What followed was a good 45 minutes of wandering through the alleys of Cancun. Parks littered with broken glass, old women begging with stories of their grandchildren, and a street market were our first look at Mexico. It would have been much more enjoyable, even lost, if we hadn't been carrying packs of stuff. Mental note: Do not bring so much crap.

Eventually we found our hostel, the Nest, and checked in. Other than having a bare cement floor that retained a stench of mildew, our room was okay. It was also named Dumbledore.

For dinner, we ended up at a restaurante on Coba (street) where we were nearly the only patrons. The seating was mismatched velvet couches with end-tables. An incredibly sweet waiter took care of us and we grossly undertipped due to my forgetting a decimal place in mental math. The only other patron of that weird restaurant was an elderly American fellow whose second question to us was "So where you staying?" We blinked in unison and said "I donīt remember. Somewhere....over...there," while gesturing vaguely. Dude...thatīs...weīre not THAT dumb.

A brief, yet confusing stop at the grocery store later, we were back to the hostel (Watching Sarah try to buy a lighter by repeating "Fire?" and gesturing was hilarious.)

Some fellow is currently playing a harmonica. I hope heīs enjoying it, because it has no
musical value.

Indulged my freakish email addiction for 10 pesos at the hostel, then joined Sarah in chatting with some of the other backpackers, 3 American girls and 2 British guys.

I can't actually believe we made it.
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