Our Travels

Ok…so Libby and John finally got back from their massage and we hit the pool.

We quicky found that were the massage oils equaled some slippery pool conditions. We were sliding all over the place and leaving a greasy trail in our wake. Lovely!

After some drinking and swimming we got ready for dinner.

Tonight we had Asian cuisine from however you pronounce this place:

The appetizers…especially the spring rolls were great. But the main course was lacking, so we left and went over to the World Cafe for the dinner buffett. That was OK, but certainly left us full!

Here are some pics of the World Cafe we keep talking about:

After dinner we hung out for a little bit and called it a night. More tomorrow.

So…we all met up bright and early for some breakfast at the buffett.

We met up with our guides around 7:45am CST. The group slowly rolled in and in all there would be 12 ATV’s not including the guides….of which there were 3.

John and Libby got a 2 person ATV while Jenn and I went solo. Jenn wanted to feel like a harley girl. I wanted to feel like a biker too, so I wore my assless chaps and cowboy boots. Check out the pics:
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Just kidding…sorry Johnny.

So we took off and headed towards a cenote….which was our destination. A cenote is a cave pool. They have thousands here and they all network together and eventually make it to the sea. So each ceynote has different levels of salt vs. fresh water. THe pool we were going to was a 80/20 mix in favor of fresh water. And it stays a cool 77 degrees.

So after about a half hour ATV ride (that included Jenn’s ATV crapping out 3 times) we arrived at the ceynote. And it was like a Discovery channel special. It was AMAZING.

We got down to the cave and got into our swimwear.

The guide picked me out (Mike) to be the first one to jump into the pool. It was a 10 ft jump over rocks (don’t read this Mom). BUt I cleared the rocks and plunged into the most refreshing water I’ve ever encountered.

Jenn was the only girl to take the plunge! I was so proud! As a matter of fact…I think we were the only two stupid…errr….I mean brave…enough to do it.

The rest of the crew took a tradional ladder to the pool. I will let the pics describe the rest:

As you can see above John found a friend. A 6 month old spider monkey named Poncho. Justyce and Logan….you’re finally getting a pet. And it looks like your Dad…. 🙂

Following our little adventure we came back, showered, ate lunch and then went to a couples massage. John and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

That’s all for now….we are waiting for John and LIbby to get back from their massage (what..you thought I was serious about me and John??? Perverts.)

Today we decided to visit the Tulum ruins. This was a must-do on our list as we are only a few minutes away from the site.

We had the concierge hail a cab for us and we were on our way.

We arrived at the entrance which was full of small shops and ticket counters. The vendors were all trying to sell us, but a nice older lady got our attention.

Typically it costs 45 pesos per person to enter, and then another 600 pesos for a personal guide.

We got our guide, entrance tickets and round trip trolly fare for 610 pesos….that was for all four of us! Not too bad!

Here is a pic of the ticket counter:

Our guides name was Julia. She was very well versed and had a great sense of humor. As we drove up up to the entrance she gave us some background of what we were seeing. And what we were seeing was the perimiter wall of the ruins of Tulum. The original stones are in tact. The wall itself was impressive.

Here is a pic of one of only two entrances to the city:

The Mayans were a short people so John and I had to duck to make it through the entrance tunnel. Jenn and Libby were fine…they could pass for Mayan since they are around 4 foot. 🙂

When you come out of the entrance it is like you have walked into a paradise. The sensation is truly incredible. You walk through a cramped tunnel and emerge into a wide open valley facing a turqouise ocean. I know I’m a ‘great’ photographer, but pictures cannot do it justice. But I’ll try anway!

The ruins were amazing. But also amazingly hot! We got a taxi back to the resort and hit the pool immediatly.

After cooling off we hit the Fiesta. They turned the courtyard into a huge outdoor gathering with not only a wide variety of foods, but Tequilas! I (Mike) had quervo and something they just called 100. WOW. Lets just say I was ready for bed very soon after…which probably wasn’t a bad idea since we had to get up early for an ATV excursion in the morning! That’s all for now!

Sorry all! It’s really hard to find time to write between Coronas! But alas, we found some spare time between a massage and dinner. Don’t you feel for us?

Ok, so Day 3. There’s not a whole lot that went on. We decided to make Monday a ‘lounge’ day…and succeeded.

We got up around 8am and met up with John and Libby at the World Cafe for the breakfast buffet. We had an obligitory Mimosa and way too much food.

After breakfast we went straight to the pool. After a few hours in the pool we decided it was time to hit the beach.

After a little relaxing beachside we went in.

And we were in for a suprise.

The beach looked perfectly soft, but a few feet in the sand turned to razors…errrr….I mean rocks. There was a 10 foot stretch of rock bed before you hit soft sand again. And that is where the trampoline and rock wall reside. Check the pics out to understand what I mean:

Jenn got pretty banged up on the trampoline. She didn’t have a chance with me and John both jumping around like drunk rabbits.

I should take a moment to let you know where LIbby was during this. Libby joined us on the rock wall, and was heading back towards the beach when a wave snuck up on her and took her bathing suit with it….the bottoms anyway. Sorry folks…no pictures!

But there were plenty of 60 year old men with gold chains anxiously awaiting the outcome. 🙂

After our fun at the beach we went to lunch at the El Patio. The selection was local and it was very good. Probably our favorite lunch so far.

After lunch it was back to the pool. Here’s a pic:

And here’s one of the beach:

After a busy day of spirits and fun it was time to get ready for dinner. We went to the Seaside Grill, which is the steak restaurant. It was Muy Bien. Here’s a pic of me and Jenn:

After a long day of drinking in the sun we decided to call it a night.

We woke up around 8am and went out to the pool for a little morning workout. At least me(Mike) and John did. They have a huge ‘quiet’ pool that is great for laps. But like I said its huge! We did about 8 laps and were done!

After the pool we took care of Jenn’s pictures for her trainer. Jenn was selected by her workout facility as one of their success stories for 2007. So she is having her picture put up on their wall and website.

After our little photoshoot we went to breakfast. We went back to the World Café and were not let down. They had a huge variety of breakfast foods and cereals. We hit the pastries and bacon hard. And we of course had a Mimosa. In case you haven’t had one, a Mimosa is champagne, orange juice and pineapple juice. And it’s yummy.

After breakfast we decided to explore the resort. And let me tell you it’s huge! We are in the new section which was built a few months ago. But there is another entire set of buildings that used to be the primary resort. I must say I am very glad we are in the new section! Check out some pics:

After exploring we decided it was time for R&R&D. That’s rest, relaxation and drinking. The poolside bar is awesome. Instead of stools they have swings! What a fantastic idea! Granted, it wouldn’t happen in the states due to liability concerns, but we’re not in the states. I mean it is technically a bad equation. Person drinking lots of alcohol on a swing……over concrete. Hmmmm…..

So we naturally began drinking and swinging Before we knew it, it was time to eat again! For lunch we went to the Sea Side Grill. The name is accurate. You have a panoramic view of the ocean from any seat. We had a tasty club sandwich and more Corona.

After lunch we spent the rest of the afternoon lounging sea side and pool side. It was what vacationing is all about.

Next up….dinner! We love to eat! For dinner we decided on the Italian Restaurant. This restaurant required a specific dress code which gave us all an excuse to get a little dressed up.

There was a 45 minute wait so we went to one of the many bars on the resort for some drinks and pretzels.

About 3 Coronas later (my primary method of keeping time) the buzzer went off and we headed towards the restaurant.

The food at this place was top notch. I hot a spicy Penne dish and Jenn had Fettuccini Alfedo. John wanted to show us up so he got the Lobster ($300 pesos extra)

Initially we were going to stop in our rooms, change, and head back out…but I was soooo tired. So Jenn and I called it a night (around 10:30).

SO, after examining our rooms we were off to get food and drink! The best part of any vacation. We decided to go to the World Café, which is the buffet style restaurant. The Café was excellent. They had a large selection of food and drink and the staff was very friendly and attentive. We were pleasantly surprised for a buffet.

After dinner we visited an area of the resort which very much resembled a bustling native marketplace. There were tons of vendors selling arts and crafts as well as clothing, cigars…..all sorts of fun things! There were artist creating their works for people to see, and some of the formats they were using were pretty amazing. One artist used nothing more than spray paint to create beautiful landscapes of the Tulum ruins on tile.

We all decided to get henna tattoos from one of the vendors. We all got the same design. A Chinese symbol meaning ‘enjoy oneself’. Check out the pic:

After the marketplace we decided to call it an early night. We went back to our room and were surprised by a basket of fruit and a bottle of champagne! They did remember the Anniversary request! However, at that point we were too tired to enjoy the fruit and beverages, so it will have to wait!

Ok…so a little note. The beds here are really hard. We’re told that’s typical for Mexico, but wow. I thought there was just a sheet on a board! But surprisingly we both slept fine! One other note, we have the squeakiest bed ever constructed by man. If you breathe too hard it squeaks. That makes for some challenging………activities:)

The bellman took us (and all of our luggage) in a golf cart to our room. Again, we had slight disappointment when we found out that we would be on the first floor. Previous to coming to the resort I had requested 2nd floor if at all possible. We figured that we were probably put on the first floor because the hotel was full and that was all they had available, but when we found out John and Libby (who didn’t make a room request) were on the second floor we didn’t understand why our request for 2nd floor could not be honored. Now that we’ve settled in we are actually happy to have a first floor room. It’s close to the pool and the pool bar so we can easily run to get a drink without having to go up and down stairs.

I always get very anxious when I’m about to open the door to a hotel room for the first time. . As we were getting ready to open our door and go into our room I had my fingers crossed that it was everything like the pictures. As soon as I opened the door I knew that I was not going to be disappointed! The room looked just like the pictures, only better because I was there in person!!!

When you come in there is a full length mirror and then off to the left there is a closet and another little storage space. To the right the room opens up to the king sized bed. From there you can walk down to the sitting area where there is a desk and a little couch with a coffee table. The sliding glass door opens up to a patio area that has a small table, 2 chairs, and a lounger. The bathroom is so awesome!!! There are double sinks (which we love) a separte toilet area and a huge, open shower area with a Jacuzzi tub!!!! Check out the pics!

As soon as we pulled up to the front lobby a gentleman was there to take all of our luggage out of the van. He escorted us into the lobby where we were met with a gentleman holding a plate of cookies. Shortly thereafter a lady came by with welcoming glasses of champagne. Certainly not a bad introduction to the hotel!!!
Checking in was relatively smooth. We had originally booked just a regular deluxe garden view. After reading some reviews we decided to upgrade to the newer dreams junior suite garden view. We had faxed the resort our payment information and they had already charged the upgrade fee to our cards before we left. When we checked in she had us in the regular deluxe room. We let her know that we had upgraded and I told her that I had printed out the email correspondence if she needed to see it. She checked back on her computer and said okay and changed our rooms.

She then informed us that they would need a card to charge the upgrade fee to. We let her know that we had already been charged the fee. She said that it was just a hold that they put on until we arrived, but both Libby and I have seen the charges already taken out of our account. We offered to pull up our bank statements to show her, but she said the people who deal with that type of stuff wouldn’t be back in until Monday. We brushed it off – after all we are on vacation– and figured we’ll just deal with it later this week.

I was a little disappointed though that they hadn’t originally assigned us to the correct rooms because I had set up an “anniversary package” to surprise Mike with. Even though our anniversary was in April we have been so busy that we never actually got to celebrate it. I had contacted concierge about setting this up and putting a congratulations banner in Libby’s room for graduating nursing school. I figured some other couples were pleasantly surprised with a congratulations banner and champagne and fruit!

Since the hotel was booked our rooms were not able to be next to one another. The receptionist said that we might be able to move rooms sometime during the week if something becomes available, but once I’m settled I don’t want to have to pack everything up again, so I doubt we’ll be changing rooms! Plus, we’ll be eating so much that the exercise to and from the different building will be good!!!

I must say that the timeshare people were not as bad as I had thought they would be. Although, maybe they didn’t seem so bad because we knew to ignore them. I did see a couple poor confused people that didn’t know where to go or what to do when they started yelling out to them!

As soon as we exited the airport we saw our tour company (Amstar) holding up a sign with our name on it. It was certainly nice already having the transportation booked and taken care of. We followed the Amstar representative to the van that we had reserved and we were off. The driver put in a short video talking about all of the things that you can do in the Rivera Maya. After that he put in the movie Soul Plane. The guys were content to watch the movie while Libby and I enjoyed gazing out the window.

After about 1 hr and 20 min (which, by the way is about 1 hr 20 min too long to watch Soul Plane) we arrived at Dreams. The drive really didn’t seem that bad and it was nice getting to see a little bit more of the Rivera Maya. During the drive we had seen all of these big luxurious entrances to different resorts and we joked that with our luck Dreams would probably have a little tin sign at the edge of the freeway. Well, luckily we were completely wrong. The entrance was beautiful and when we pulled up to the lobby we were all so excited! Take a look at what we mean….

When we landed we were already over 30 minutes late in arriving because of the delay departing. When we got to the first customs area where they stamp your passport the lines were horrible. We picked what looked like was the best one and waited. After waiting about 10-15 minutes a worker came and shut down the line cutting it off right before us, so we had to find a different line.

After waiting in this second line for about another 15 min or so the person who was working for that line just got up and left! We all kind of looked at each other because we didn’t know what to do. Luckily the people behind us spoke fluent Spanish. Apparently the computer at that station had crashed so we were now being told to find yet another line! At this point I think we were all starting to get a little frustrated. The Spanish speaking people in line argued with the customs officials until they finally agreed to take one person from our line and then one person from another line. By the time we all got through customs we were a little worried that our transportation would no longer be there. Luckily we were able to quickly find our bags and we all got a green light which allowed us to quickly pass through security.

Let us tell you…customs is hilarious! There is a traffic light. Seriously. A huge yellow traffic light. You walk up, press a button, and if you get the green light you’re on your way. If you get a red light, be prepared to wait while all of your belongings are searched. Come to think of it…..why don’t we have a traffic light system? It’s random in appearance, but you could easily give the red light to suspicious people without the appearance of profiling. Interesting thought……