Isla Mujeres 2014~~Day 3

Isla Mujeres 2014

Day 3~~Sunday Feb.9

“A Quickie Tour of Mérida and then Back on the Road!”

Ding-dong, ding dong, ding dong……no, it’s not the doorbell!  Church bells….I think I counted 28 ding dongs.  And if we hadn’t gotten to bed at 2am, this would be an awesome way to wake up at 9am!  Thank you for the wake up Santa Lucia….

It was the best 7-hour sleep in quite a long time….went to bed with a smile and woke up with a smile…..dreamt of Maná!  Except the tummies are growling….when did we last eat?  It’s been a long time….like days!  Vince remembers a little store just up the street so he heads off for some juice and yogurt.  It’s another travel day so there won’t be much to eat until tonight….tonight when we arrive on Isla!

We pack up and have our bit of brekkies.  Here’s a tour of our room, Cielito at Luz en Yucatán…

The room is basic, but very clean and everything you need….

Our room was the only room on this top level so it was very private.  A wonderful private patio….

And another patio for anyone to use….

One of the stairways to our room….

The stairway from the main floor….

The main hallway that leads to the pool area and more poolside rooms….

A communal dining table.  There’s also a large full kitchen for anyone’s use…

The complimentary shot cart….yes, complimentary!  Did I say this place was awesome or what!

Sitting areas….

To the pool….

The pool area is another little oasis…..surrounded by more rooms…very serene and quiet.  You’d never know that you were in the middle of a city!

 Love the wood doors….

A gorgeous orchid in bloom….

In the front room….

Love the high ceiling which is always present in historical Mérida homes….

The façade of Luz en Yucatán.  I can’t say enough good things about this place….very laid back and casual, but so welcoming and comfortable.  The staff was great, the location was great, and the price….can’t be beat!  But….book well in advance as it is the #1 hotel on trip advisor and is very popular.   http://luzenyucatan.com 

We check out and stash our luggage in their storage room.  We’re taking a bus later this afternoon, so we can take in a few sights in centro once again.  There’s just something about Mérida….such a wonderful ‘ambiance’…the architecture, the parks and trees, the Churches….so much to see.

And across the street from Luz…a very fun cantina…stop by for some delicious botanas in the afternoon, along with musical entertainment... 

And next to Luz is the Santa Lucia Church and a pretty little park that has a market and music on Sunday mornings….

  

Check out the dancing!

Follow along on a short walking tour from the hotel to the plaza…..

This was our favourite little bar…we used to sit on that balcony for hours….sad to see that it is closed and that the lower floor is now a fast food type taco place…

 The Governor's Palace….filled with beautiful murals...

Sunday markets….

Freshly fried potato chips….now that’s lunch!

Too soon, it’s time to head for the bus station once again.  We say adios to Luz and look forward to staying there again in 2015.  A short taxi ride to CAME and I stand in line to get our tickets.  I checked online this morning and there’s a GL bus at 2:30pm.  But when I get to the wicket and want to get tickets for it, ‘lo siento, no GL’.  Are you sure?  Oh well, who needs a nap anyway!  So, we get on the regular ADO bus at 3pm where I am lucky enough to watch Silver Linings in Spanish for a second time in 2 days!  Good way to practice!

Not sure why, but the ride seems to take forever!   Finally at 7:15 we pull into the station in Cancun.  We quickly grab a taxi and head to……no, not the ferry, but Costco!  Cori from Caribbean Casa had heard that there were backpack beach chairs in stock so we were happy to go get a couple for them.  I run into Costco while Vince stays with the taxi.  I run to the section where I think they’ll be...nada….run around a bit more and then ask.   I’m having trouble explaining backpack chairs and then I think to say Tommy Bahama….ah yes!  Oh no….all gone!  Phooey!  I get the parking stub validated for the taxi driver and then dash outside.  It’s 8:10….if we hurry maybe we can catch the 8:30 ferry!  ¡Rápido por favor!  Great driver…he gets us there with a minute or two to spare.

Luggage stowed, we bounce up the stairs to sit under the stars and enjoy the warm breeze.  I’m so hungry and so tired….can’t wait to arrive at Casita Isladise and have some late dinner! 

The new ferry terminal…not yet complete, and apparently, still not officially open as I write this in August!  Sad face….so much concrete, so sterile, so not Isla.  Where’s the little rustic palapa bar? 

Too tired to walk with a maletero, we opt for a taxi.   Get me to my home sweet home!  The taxi stops and I hop out….hmmm….what’s going on?  The gate is open and as I look up the stairs, the front door is open.  But no lights are on.  Well, that doesn’t look good.  I bound up the stairs, step in…it’s dark on the main floor but I can see a bit of light coming from the upstairs.  “Hola?”  “Is someone there?”  And then I hear an Hola back…a voice I don’t recognize.  Turns out that it’s Miguel, the property manager.  Apparently there was some kind of electrical issue earlier and he’s here trying to figure it out.   There are no lights on the main floor and no water.  Upstairs, there are no lights, but there is water.  Oh boy!  We leave Miguel to see what he can figure out….he has a call into an electrician.  Luckily Vince brought along a head lamp just for things like this!  And then Jan and Bruce arrive!  Hola amigos!  We haven’t seen all our Isla friends in 2 years!  And luckily Bruce had a headlamp too, so we have a bit of light. 

By now Vince and I are seriously starving!  It’s been our tradition since 2003 to have our first dinner at Rolandi’s Pizza.  We can’t mess that up!  So, Vince and Bruce head off to get some pizza to bring back, while Jan and I visit and watch Miguel walk around scratching his head, trying to figure out the puzzle!

The electrician arrives…..poor guy getting called out on a Sunday night!....and then, yippee, Vince arrives with 2 pizzas and we devour them on our balcony, under the stars, with soft breezes blowing.  Couldn’t be more perfect!  And just as we finish, tada!  We have power again!  Gracias!

As much as I just want to crash, I always like to get settled right away and put everything away.  We are practically sleep walking but we get it all done and now it feels like we’re ‘home’ for the next 4 weeks!  Yippee….we’re home!  I look at the clock as I turn out the light…2am….what is it about all these 2am nights!  That means sunrise is only a few hours away…..