Wednesday, December 30th, 2009, Isla Holbox, Mexico

last update, December 25th, Isla Mujeres, Mexico

 

     After spending two weeks in Isla Mujeres, we are happy to be on the move again.  Christmas celebrations with just the four of us this year were a little more subdued than usual but wonderful just the same.  The Christmas party at Marina Paraiso provided loads of fun and merriment.  We even met another kid boat whose company we all cherished.  After all the festivities ended, we headed northwest on Sunday, destination Holbox, and found ourselves in a wonderful little Mexican fishing village, with fine white sand streets, golfcarts and motorcycles, loads of taquerias, a few quaint beachfront hotels, miles and miles of white sandy beaches and flocks of pink flamingos!

 

     Isla Mujeres was all decked out for the holidays, the main plaza adorned with Christmas trees and ready for the school Christmas play.  Our favorite little taco joint was also jazzed up with decorations.

We loved wandering around the island, exploring the little shops, finding the best local restaurants and ice cream.  We rented a golf cart for a couple of hours and drove around the whole island, which didn't take long.  The beach on the north end is definitely the nicest, even on a cold, rainy day.

The side of the island facing the open Caribbean is lined with fancy new holiday homes, all newly constructed after the most recent devastating hurricane four or five years ago.

There's a famous local pirate story involving unrequited love and a broken hearted but very rich pirate who spent his last years on the island and left his treasure buried somewhere in the vicinity.  The southern end of Isla Mujeres boasts a sculpture garden and lighthouse with spectacular views in all directions.  The mega hotels of Cancun can easily be seen across the channel.

     Being unprepared as usual for the holidays, we spent a couple of days going into Cancun on the ferry for our present shopping.  The first time, all four of us went.  We hired a taxi for the day, paying him 100 pesos an hour (about $8).  We did a couple of errands for the boat and then headed to Walmart.  It proved to be a marginally successful visit but at least the girls managed to find everything they wanted to buy.  Joe and I, on the other hand, decided we'd have to go in again, without the girls.  This time, we hit Plaza de las Americas.  Envisioning a big square surrounded by retail stores, kind of like Plaza Catalunya in Barcelona, it turned out to be a shopping mall.  Two days before Christmas, it wasn't nearly as crazy as a mall in the US would be, but it was crowded nonetheless.  It was also perfect.  We found some good little gifts for the girls, although their big gifts they had already picked out.  They've both been reading a lot of books by the author Tamora Pierce in which reference is made to fire opals as stones with special properties and unique value.  Well, they just so happen to mine fire opals here in Mexico.  They each picked out stones for a pendant or earrings which we had made up for them for Christmas.

     So Christmas Eve arrived and all was well.  We decided to go out for the family meal so I didn't have to spend all day in the kitchen.  It's hot and muggy sitting at the dock and we had heard lots of good things about Mango Cafe, just a fifteen minute walk away.

The set menu was delicious, although the pork a little chewy.  Even though they had been warned that Christmas wouldn't be as bountiful as they would like, the girls were cheerful, chatty and eager to get home and to bed so Christmas would come all the sooner!

     For Christmas Day, we joined in with thirty or so other folks at the marina for a shared meal and Secret Santa presents. 

The bountiful food was far overshadowed by the fun and games at the Secret Santa.  Everyone was instructed to purchase a $5 gift.  They were wrapped and placed anonymously under the tree.  We all drew numbers to determine the order of choosing and opening gifts.  Whoever went first obviously had to choose a present from under the tree.  But then the fun began.  The next person could either pick their own gift from under the tree or steal someone else's gift.  The victim would then choose a new gift from under the tree, or steal someone else's.  There were a couple of rules to keep the game moving along.  You can't steal your own gift right back and once a gift has been stolen three times, it is safe.  We were rolling on the floor laughing and tormenting each other.  The gag gifts we contributed proved popular: a whoopee cushion, hand buzzer, toy gun and lighter that squirts water. 

 

     About ten days after we arrived in Isla Mujeres, we finally found the kid boat, Melekai, about whom we had been told.  The young couple have a thirteen year old daughter and ten year old son.  Courtney takes the ferry to Cancun everyday to attend the international bilingual school there.  Joey goes to a local private, Spanish speaking school on the island.  Joe and Alex have decided to settle here for three years until Courtney graduates from high school.  It was great to meet another family in a similar situation and see how they have chosen to resolve the issue of schooling.  We managed to get together and share a couple of meals with them before we left.  I have to admit they got me thinking about what options we might have for a more permanent situation in Mexico.

       In the meantime, we were anxious to get out and see a little more of the country.  To the north is the Gulf Coast.  We didn't have a lot of information in our cruising guide, but I had purchased a regular travel guide to the Yucatan which mentioned a fishing village called Holbox on the northeast coast of the peninsula.  Aside from being described as untouched by tourism, charming and beautiful, it seemed there were also some kiting possibilities.  October in the Chesapeake Bay was the last time we went kite boarding and we were both eager to make sure we remembered how to do it.

     Pulling up to the town along its' northern beach, we dropped the anchor in calm conditions.  Around the southern side of the island is a large lagoon so we knew we could find a protected anchorage when the wind started coming out of the north, as predicted.  But for the time being, we wanted to stay close to town.  Unfortunately, we weren't picking up any open wifi signals on the boat so we packed up the kids' Net Books and went ashore.  A large wedding celebration was taking place on the beach, with a good band playing a mix of American and Latin music.  I knew we were in the right place when they started cranking out a Santana tune!

     Emails downloaded and new weather files obtained, we wandered around the town to get a feel for the place.  A few small hotels line the beach.  It seems that the Italians have found this place and built up a bit of a tourist industry.  Gregg, an American vacationing here, told us about a couple of restaurants in town that serve homemade pasta and Italian style pizzas.  I'm not sure about having Italian food in Mexico, but we might yet try it out.  Of course, there is a healthy dose of taquerias (serving tacos) and fish restaurants as one would expect. 

     As the wind picked up and moved around to the north during the evening, we knew we needed to find a new anchorage or resign ourselves to being a little uncomfortable with the swells rolling in.  Joe and I went to shore and walked to the other side of town to check out the lagoon.  With an hourly ferry traveling between the mainland and the island as well as a substantial fishing fleet coming in and out, it looked like a loud and smelly place to call home.  But, it was well protected.  I talked to a couple of local fishermen who said that we could definitely make it with our four foot draught, but we would have to be careful.  It is very shallow.

     Prudence dictated we move.  As we made our way around the western side of Holbox towards the lagoon, we decided to stop short of our goal and just anchor there.  Although there was no access to town, it was a beautiful spot right on the edge of a shallow marsh that covers and uncovers with the tides.  Huge flocks of birds wade in the sand, digging up seaweed and tasty treats just under the surface.  The most spectacular are the bright pink flamingos.  I couldn't get close enough for a good close up picture, but it was wonderful to watch them strutting through the water, chattering and digging and fighting with each other.

     You'll be happy to hear that we did get some kite boarding in here as well.  Although the main spot for kiting is just east of town, Joe and I managed to get ourselves going off the beach close to the boat.  We went out for a couple of hours on Monday and Tuesday and had a ball.  There is another blow coming on Friday that we might just have to hang around for!  We have yet to eat out in town.  Except for the lack of internet, there really is no reason for us to move along. 

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