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Cozumel July 2008
As we packed our bags Friday night, July 18th, there was news of a tropical depression in the southern Caribbean heading west towards Yucatan. Undaunted, we caught our flight out of Tampa early Saturday morning and arrived in Cozumel in the early afternoon to sunny skies and calm seas. So far, the hurricane gods were smiling on us!
Elite tours picked us up at the airport and drove us to Cozumel Palace, an absolutely beautiful all-inclusive resort just south of town and right on the ocean. As we checked in we were met with cold washcloths and a drink (a blue lagoon ). We then found out how truly all-inclusive the Cozumel Palace is. Not only does it include all of your meals but all food and drinks at the resort, including alcohol, is rolled into the package deal. Never before have I seen full sized bottles of rum, tequila, etc in the mini-bar at no extra charge! The mini refrigerator is stocked with beer, sodas, and water again at no extra charge. And there is free wifi throughout the resort as well.
Our room was a two story luxurious place with a king sized bed downstairs and two double beds upstairs. There were two bathrooms and even a Jacuzzi in the living room. We then had a balcony which overlooked the beach and the crystal blue Caribbean.
After changing into bathing suits we headed to the pool and found out that all of the drinks and snacks at the pool are also gratis. Needless to say we had the margaritas, pina coladas, and strawberry daiquiris flowing! There is a two level pool with the top level flowing into the lower level which has a swim-up bar. Next to the pool is the beach with more lounge chairs. We, however, were perfectly content at the pool!
The resort has four restaurants Mexican, Italian, Asian, and a steakhouse. Saturday night we opted for Mexican. After all, we were in Mexico! We started out with the flautas appetizer which was very tasty. I then tried the tortilla soup which was okay, but not up to the level of the rest of the food. Carols garlic and cilantro shrimp were to die for while the kids and I opted for more traditional fajitas and enchiladas all of which were outstanding as well. Desserts, however, were another story. We tried three all of which were pretty bad. Oh well, we didnt need the calories anyway.
Monday morning I got up and met German Yanez for a cave dive. He picked me up at the front of the hotel at 8am and we drove about 10-15 minutes south of the resort to get to Aerolito. From the surface it doesnt look like much just a small pond. However, according to German it is one of the most biodiverse caves in Mexico. We saw all kinds of fresh water fish above the halocline and then below the halocline saw lots of urchins, brittle stars, and shrimp. Not to mention beautiful stalactite and stalagmite formations. We did two jumps and explored the cave until I turned the dive for thirds after about 45 minutes. German led on the way in so I was in the front on the way out. It was uneventful until I had a little trouble getting through one restriction and he had to show me the proper way to wiggle through. I felt bad but afterwards he told me someone had moved the line and that was the problem. Personally, I think he was just being nice.
After the 90 minute dive we took Germans jeep back to his house where he showed me the CCR he has been diving, a Mexican made product called the Nautilus (www.divenautilus.com). It was designed by a Mexican engineer and German is his crash test dummy . It is a fully electronic CCR with a radial scrubber and comes complete (except cylinders) for $5000 USD. It really looks like sweet little unit. He then dropped me off at my hotel but along the way we stopped by the local fill station a place that fills 2000 cylinders a day on Cozumel. I counted five rows of 30 whips each. A staggering 150 cylinders being filled simultaneously!
Lunch was poolside with hamburgers for the kids and Carol and I splitting a turkey sandwich. We then met our dive operators for the first time, Dive with Martin (www.divewithmartin.com), who picked us up at the Cozumel Palace pier for our two tank afternoon dive. Unfortunately, we got right out to the dive site with our gear ready to go and in our wetsuits when the harbor master shut down diving and called all of the dive boats back in. Remember that little tropical wave I mentioned well, it was now Tropical Storm Dolly and it was heading straight at us.
As the weather was still nice, Kim and I went snorkeling at the hotel and we all played water volleyball with other guest for an hour or so. Dinner was at the Italian restaurant. Again, the food was excellent. And the desserts were a little better go for the ice cream! The cheesecake wasnt what my daughter would call American cheese cake and my wifes tiramisu was only fair. After dinner we watched a little TV and headed to bed to see what tropical storm Dolly had in store for us.
We awoke Monday to cloudy skies, but nothing else. The wind was calm and the seas were flat. At 9am the harbor master opened the port and Dive with Martin called us to say they would pick us up at 10:20am at the Cozumel Palace pier. The original plan was for a two tank trip Monday and Tuesday morning as well as an afternoon trip Monday. Given our late start they changed to to a three tank trip Monday and another three tank trip Tuesday. These guys are great and provide outstanding service! The boat arrived right on time and the four of us shared the boat with two brothers who were newb divers. Djve with Martin puts all of your gear together brings it to you and then you backroll into the water. We were allowed to dive our computers and basically got an hour on each dive. At the end of each dive you take off your gear and they pull it into the boat. You then just climb up the ladder. What could be easier! We started out at Palancar Caves where the swim throughs were beautiful. The highlight for me, though, was our divemaster Pablo finding a pipefish. After a 45 minute surface interval we dove Delilah with its beautiful coral gardens. We then finished up on Paradise for a 60 minute dive at about 45 feet. Here I found a splendid toadfish. Unfortunately, the rest of the group was ahead of me and I was unable to get their attention. We then made it back to Cozumel Palace in time for drinks and nachos by the pool. Then it was off to our Jacuzzi.
Dinner Monday night was at the Oriental restaurant at Cozumel Palace. We had TONS of sushi rolls and dined on teriyaki chicken, beef chop suey, and green curry chicken. Everything was outstanding up until dessert again. We decided to stay safe and go with the ice cream desserts. The tempura ice cream was okay but the green tea ice cream was pretty bland. Id give the Cozumel 5 stars but they need a new pastry chef!
Tuesday we awakened to party cloudy skies and flat seas. Dive with Martin picked us up at 7:30 am for a three tank trip. Wide angle day. I put on the Tokina 10-17 and we headed south. The first dive was Santa Rosa Wall with its massive coral formations and beautiful vertical wall Alsong the way we went through a few swim throughs which were a hit with the kids. Kim brought along a light and played model for me on some wide angle shots. After about a 50 minute surface interval we dropped at Cedrals Pass. The ripping current made for a great ride but was difficult from a photography standpoint. I did manage to get in a few good shots of a couple of the SIX turtles we saw along the way as well as a couple of nurse sharks sleeping under ledges. The final dive of the trip was at Chankanaab where we spent about an hour drifting through the beautiful coral gardens.
Then it was back to the resort for a late lunch and some pool time before the night dive. We caught a cab down to the international cruise ship pier where Dive with Martin is located. It was just the four of us and our dive master Pablo. We wanted to see an octopus and a splendid toadfish so Pablo said we should head to Paradise reef. We spent about an hour drifting through the beautiful coral gardens and saw one splendid toadfish, six octopus, and tons of crabs, lobsters, and eels. We then caught a cab back to the Cozumel Palace and dinner again at the oriental restaurant.
Wednesday morning we took a cab to catch the 8am ferry to Playa del Carmen. It was a very pleasant 30 minute trip. We were met at the dock by Polo of Yucatek Divers who took us to their shop where we checked in, signed releases, etc. Then, while they took our bags to our hotel, we headed off to dive the Cenotes. Polo took us to Chac-mool where we dove Kulkulkan and then Chac-mool. Kulkulkan was a very pretty warmup dive but Chac-mool was even nicer. There were multiple decorated areas as well as air pocket where we could surface and talk with one another. There was another area that had an incredible focused beam of light coming from the ceiling and making a spot light on the floor of the cenote. It looked like someone was shining their HID light from the ceiling to the floor.
After arriving back at Yucatek Divers we walked the couple of blocks to our hotel. We had the only Master Suite at Paraiso Azul, Casa de Copala. It was a clean and nice room with air conditioning along with a king sized bed, a double bed and a single bed all in one room. There was also a small full kitchen. Yolanda and Polo had both recommended Babes restaurant (10th street between 5th and 10th avenue) for dinner. It was great Thai food and very reasonably priced. Then it was an early bedtime as we had to be ready for Thursdays whale shark trip at 3:50am !!!!!!
The van picked us up outside our hotel at 4:00am Thursday for the three hour ride to &&.., the town directly across from Holbox island. There we boarded the boat with six other snorkelers and our guide, Abraham. Please note that they do not want you to get into the water with sunblock on as the whale sharks are filter-feeders and ingesting large quantities of water. Therefore, we didnt put on sunblock until after the snorkeling was done yes, everyone was sunburned. You can, however, use biodegradable sunblock so bring that if you can.
We spent about 1 ½ hour finding a whale shark but it then stayed with us the remainder of the morning. It was a male, about 20-25 feet long and stayed very shallow. We were divided into groups of two along with the guide and rotated swimming with the shark. It was my first whale shark encounter so the first time it appeared in front of me from the green water it was magical. Unfortunately, the plankton which makes the whale sharks come to Holbox also makes for very difficult photography. But is was great fun nonetheless. We got back to the dock around 2pm and started back to Playa del Carmen. Dinner was at one of the multitude of Mexican restaurants along 5th Avenue, the main drag in Playa del Carmen.
Friday, the last full day of the trip, was spent at Tulum. We caught one of the shuttle buses that go to the Tulum ruins. It was a 45 minute drive and cost $12 USD total for the four of us. Once at the entrance to the ruins we opted for the combination trolley ride (in lieu of walking the ½ mile to the actual ruins) and a 45 minute guided tour. Total cost for four persons only $67 USD. It was very educational and something that shouldnt be missed if you are traveling to Playa del Carmen.
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