Well, we are back to the snow and cold of Minnesota, just in time for a big snow & ice storm here in Minnesota! We had a wonderful week in Playa, the people were great, our resort was beautiful, and we packed as many excursions and activities into our week as possible (and still managed to relax a bit, too!).
I am going to do my best to tell the story of our week through photos. We never go on vacation so this week was so needed! We have vowed to make it an annual tradition, or at least every other year. In 2007 we bought a time share in Las Vegas. We got a good deal on it, and we can trade it for resorts all around the world. So since we own it and it's almost paid off, now we can start taking advantage of all of the great places this world has to offer!
The first night we got into our resort around 4:30 after traveling all day. We were exhausted so rather than going into Playa del Carmen for dinner we headed to the restaurant in the resort. We sat on the patio over looking the beach. The week before we left, we just got a new Nikon D700 camera. We were a bit nervous to bring it with but I'm so glad we did. The following photo was taken at ISO 4000 (which won't mean much to most of you) and our previous camera the Nikon D300 would never be able to get shots like this in the dark.
The next day we started out at 9:00 with the resort orientation, where they tell everybody about the amenities and activities going on that week. Since we stayed in a time share everbody was there for about the same time, Saturday--Saturday (we extended ours one day, though). Then there was a welcome party on the beach.
Then, for the rest of the day, my view was this. I sipped Dos Equis while reading "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle". It was heaven :)
That evening we went in to Playa del Carmen and walked along 5th Avenue (Quinta Avenue). We ate at
Babe's. It was super yummy thai food, my favorite! Highly recommend eating there if you're in Playa. Gene'o is in the red t-shirt towards the right.
Next day, we hung out at the resort, went swimming, and went to the complimentary taco party at the resort. It was a fun way to meet people staying there, and the food was decent, too.
In the evening we went to the show at Xcaret. We heard it was good so we went to check it out. The show was 2 hours long and it was about the history of the region, beginning with the Mayans, and then the Spanish invasion. It was a well done show with great dancing and costumes, and I left with a greater understanding of the culture.
Here we are before the show.
The park is huge and many people go for the whole day.
On the walk over to the amphitheater, there were people dressed up as the ancient Mayans.
They definitely were in character and were a little bit scary!
The begining of the show.
The reenactment of a Mayan ball game.
Later on in the show.
On Tuesday we spent the day at Hidden World, which is near Tulum. It was in the jungle and had Cenote snorkeling and zip lines through the jungle canopy. It was fun!
Wednesday's highlight was a trip to the
Jungle Spa. This is a MUST do if you're in the Rivera Maya. The spa is not fancy, it consists of a screen hut with thatched roof and sheets dividing the massage tables. But it was clean and the owner, who is originally from Ohio, is very friendly. The massages themselves are done by Mayan women and the money goes to support them and their families. The massage was wonderful, and very reasonable! We also had an aloe wrap with banana leaves at the end. Heaven!
This is the spa building.
Gene'o getting his pedicure by our masseuses. The one on the left gave me my massage and the one on the right gave Gene'o his. They were great!
On Thursday we made the three hour trek to Chichen Itza, an ancient Mayan city. We both loved this and it was completely worth the trip. The first stop on the tour was at a recently discovered Cenote where you could dive if you wanted. We didn't bring our suits so we happily stayed at the top and took photos. It was 150 feet deep!
Self portrait at the Cenote.
The tour bus stopped in a tiny community for lunch before entering Chichen Itza. There were Mayan women there who did a traditional dance for us.
Then we got to the ancient city. It was awesome. The movie Apocalypse was not filmed here, but this area was the subject of part of the film. It was a very violent culture, and the temple of Kulkulkan is where many sacrifices took place.
You can see a storm coming in towards the top right of the temple. It hit us for about 20 minutes and rained pretty hard.
Archeologists have barely started to uncover all of the Mayan ruins in the jungle, and they are still restoring many of the famous sites in Chichen Itza.
This serpent is in the ball court where the Mayans would play their Pok-ta-pok ballgames. The captian of the losing team would be beheaded. This was a great honor to be sacraficed. Very small, towards the top right of this photo, you can see the hoop that they had to get the ball through using only their hips.
The Wall of Skulls depicts the many people who were beheaded during the games.
The elephant like trunks you can see on the left are the rain gods. They are on various temples throughout the complex, but they are most intact here.
All along the paths are Mayan vendors willing to negotiate their prices with you. We bought a hammock!
We almost bought one of those devils, but I didn't know where I'd put it :)
Then on Friday and Saturday we just spent the day relaxing and reading by the pool at the
Royal Haciendas. We loved our resort and highly recommend it if you're thinking of visiting the area. We got a great deal on it because we exchanged our time share week to stay there.
Here's one of the lap pools.
The main pool with swim up bar.
Palapas on the beach.
The view of the ocean from the pool. Felt like you could swim right in!
Here's the Aqua Grill, the waiters were great!
And I loved all of the detailing of the tile.
Gene'o during happy hour!
At dinner that night in Playa, we ate at El Diez, an Argentinian restaurant recommened by people at our resort.
And Gene'os racoon eyes from a day at the pool :)
Then on Saturday, our last day there, I went out at sunset to get a few last photos.
So, if you can't tell, we had a great time. We can't wait to go back, and would LOVE to shoot a wedding here someday! Playa del Carmen will always have a special place in our hearts!
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