June 2008 TR

[Dan-0]

Chetumal-Birthday Party
6/14/08

Wendy's cousin Nancy had a birthday party for her daughter, who turned 11, last night. After battling "turista" for two days, I drug myself out of bed to make an appearance at the party.

For those of you who have never been to a Mexican like this, they are a lot fun, especially if the kid's parents have the money to do it right. That means table service, open bar, and plenty of music and entertainment for both kids and adults. Unfortunately, because of my stomach condition, I nursed a Diet Coke and nibbled crackers all night long. Here are a few photos from the night's festivities:

Family photo: Celeste, Wendy, me, and Carlos


The theme was something Hawaiian or somthing tropical, I'm really not sure


Table laid out with the cake and all kinds of sweets


Presents for the honoree


The kids bar- Virgin Pina Coladas and fruity drinks


The kids' tables were designed like cocktail glasses


The adults' bar


Caterers setting up the buffet


The party's hosts and parents of the honoree, Nancy and Rodolfo


Blowing out the candles


The kiddies shook their booties all night long

[MsRubio]

Great pics...wow looks like a fun party...I love the tables designed like cocktail glasses...what a cool idea!

[lovbuds]

OMG, the tik-n-xik looks amazing! Where is El Comejen? We ate it at Playa Lancheros and it was delicious. We watched as they went into the fish house to pick out our fish and as they cleaned it and put it on to cook. It was served with a plate of rice and salad stuff and then a plate of tortillas. We went back a second time ... it was so-so good!

[Dan-0]

Chetumal-Concurso de la Escultura
6/16/08

These are few photos of a various sculptures along the boardwalk in Chetumal. Most of them are very abstract, but they're very colorful and add a lot of personality to the area. (sorry for the incorrect date on the photos, I forgot to change the camera's date)











Here are a few more statues and sculptures I added:

Monument to the Manatee- In front of the University of Quintana Roo


This sculpture is close to Calderitas, right on the water


The strangest sculpture of all- it's filled with empty beer cans!

[Dan-0]

Chetumal-Boulevard
6/16/08

Here's the second installment of some photos of the "malecon" in Chetumal:

El Palacio del Gobierno (State Capitol building)


Entrance to the municipal pier-you can drive out onto the pier


El muelle municipal (the Municipal Pier)


Club Nautico de Chetumal (Boater's Club)- the Hotel Noor is in the backgound, on the left


The Bay of Chetumal- that's Belize in the background


View of La Esplanada taken from the municipal pier


Monument to Hurricane Janet- this hurricane destroyed the city in 1957. The baby being held up represents the rebirth of the city after the storm


Monumento al Pescador (Fisherman's Monument)


View of Parque de la Esplanada


El Congreso (Quintana Roo's Congressional Building)


Cannons guarded the city from pirates


Much of the Bay of Chetumal is covered by protected mangroves


Although Chetumal has no natural beaches, there are articifial beaches. The sandbags on the right of the photo were placed to prevent erosion


The Bay of Chetumal

[shoediva]

Dan-o - You've ruined it for me. I had you pictured as looking like your avatar

[Libby]

Originally Posted by shoediva

Dan-o - You've ruined it for me. I had you pictured as looking like your avatar

OMG! Me too!!!

Thanks for posting your latest pictures, Dan. The sculptures along the waterfront really remind me of the city of Campeche, another cool place.

[Ginger]

What a fantastic report you are doing, Dan-0! I'm really liking all the pictures, it's nice to finally get acquainted with Chetumal! You have beautiful family.

I really liked those tables that were decorated like cocktail glasses! I have to remember that for bbq's and stuff...such a great idea!


Sorry to hear you have been sick. I have such a fear of one of us getting sick in July, I just have this funny feeling about it...eck. When we had our extended stay there, I caught shigella, and it was SOME nasty, let me tell you. I was very, very, very sick for quite some time. I'm hoping to be able to avoid that this time!

[SUNBABY]

Hey, I knew you wouldn't look like Chris Farley...and You are such a handsome devil. Loving your pics and report!

[MoonDollar]

Loving the trip report. I like it when people know their way around. I get to see more!

Thank you for sharing!

[Dan-0]

Thanks for all the nice comments. No, I don't look like Chris Farley, I'm just a fan of his. I guess I should change my avatar.

lovbuds- El Comejen is on the south end of Isla Mujeres- somewhere.

Libby-the boardwalk in Chetumal does remind me of Campeche. And I totally agree, Campeche is one cool place. We went there last year for the first time, and I loved it. I hope we get to go back this year. Chetumal doesn't have the colonial influence like Campeche does, and I think the boardwalk there is a little better maintained, that's probably the major difference.

Ginger- I don't know what "shingella" is but I do know I don't want it. Don't worry too much about getting sick. I have been coming down here for extended periods since 1999 and I have only gotten stomach ailments 2-3 times. It's intense for a couple of days, but then it usually passes. I bought some Lactabacilos at Farmacia Similares, which is supposed to have the antibacterial properties of yogurt, and I have been taking those every day. That may be a good, organic, preventive measure. Be careful, with street food, I blame my ailment on a street hot dog- although everyone in my family ate the same thing as me and I'm the only one who got sick.

[SUNBABY]

2-3 times???
I have been coming since 93 and only had one problem for a half a day...I knew I just swallowed a bad shrimp at an AI the night before..Well, it was a half of shrimp..I spit out the other half.

[Ginger]

Originally Posted by Dan-0

Ginger- I don't know what "shingella" is but I do know I don't want it. Don't worry too much about getting sick. I have been coming down here for extended periods since 1999 and I have only gotten stomach ailments 2-3 times. It's intense for a couple of days, but then it usually passes. I bought some Lactabacilos at Farmacia Similares, which is supposed to have the antibacterial properties of yogurt, and I have been taking those every day. That may be a good, organic, preventive measure. Be careful, with street food, I blame my ailment on a street hot dog- although everyone in my family ate the same thing as me and I'm the only one who got sick.

Shigella is a bacteria, I most likely caught it from something I ate (usually its passed through fecal matter, bad hand-washing and such). That's what Dr. Carlos in Playa told me, anyway, after he determined it was shigella from a few tests and procedures. It can be mild in some folks and just last a day or two, but it lasted over two weeks in me and then caused me to get bacillary dysentery. (this in turn caused lactose intolerance that lasted a good three years!). It wasn't a good time, that's for sure, and this is one of the reason we had to evacuate quickly and early and make our way home (we were driving). But acidopholous (the bacterial culture in yogurt) was indeed one of the regimens recommended by the doctor to help get my intestines back in order and accepting (and holding onto) solids and liquids.

[MoonDollar]

The last time I got sick was from the wings at Hooters in Puerto Vallarta. We just popped in for some air conditioning and decided to have some. ICK! They were greasy and awful and it wiped it me for the rest of the day.

Other then that, I usually get a cold or something from the recycled air on the planes.

[Dan-0]

Chetumal de noche
6/19/08

At night, locals hang out on the "Boulevard Bahia". It's THE place to see and be seen. Libby compared it to Campeche's boardwalk, and I think that's a good comparison. There are lots of places to sit outdoors and eat or drink. If you don't have money to do this, you just park your car by the water and drink beer. It's the closest thing you'll find to Playa's 5th Ave. here. Here are a few night shots we took.

There are several bars and restaurants like these with a nice view of the Bay






View of the Congressional Building at night


This is Celeste's favorite park to play in at night

[Dan-0]

Laguna Bacalar- Cenote Azul
6/21/08

Saturday, made the 1/2 hour drive up to Laguna Bacalar to hang out at a couple of nice spots on the lake. Laguna Bacalar is the 2nd largest natural lake in Mexico, right behind Lake Chapala. It's called the "lake of 7 colors" because of the different shades of blue that color the lake. Although, the area is growing, it still has a way to go in terms of development. There are parts of it that right me of Tulum a few years ago. There are a few hotels on the lake, and quite a few nice houses, too, but the little town of Bacalar is still relatively underdeveloped.

Cenote Azul is one of the biggest, and deepest, cenotes in the Yucatan peninsula. It's right next to Laguna Bacalar. The water is clean and clear and great for swimming, although there is no shallow part. The water's depth drops straight down as soon as you jump in. There's a nice little bar and restaurant that's bit right on the edge of the cenote. You can swim or just enjoy the scenery while you eat something or drink a few beverages. Here a few photos of our day:

View from the hill overlooking Cenote Azul (Laguna Bacalar is in the background) It's amazing to see a cenote so close to a natural lake


Cenote Azul is a big, deep, perfectly round cenote. It's so big it looks like a lake


The entrance to Cenote Azul


In the parking lot of Cenote Azul


Entering the bar/restaurant "Cenote Azul" that's built on the cenote's edge


View of the Cenote 1


View of Cenote 2


Except for the space occupied by the restaurant, the Cenote is lined with mangrove


There was a free diving competition going on in the middle of the Cenote- there were divers from all over competing


Since there the Cenote's so deep, there are ropes running through the water as well as lifesavers like this one. Also, life jackets are available for rental


Celeste and Wendy enjoying the water


The big, white gringo is me