Day one of my Cancun trip...
Too be fair I really should start on the night before...the very l-o-n-g night before.
I went by the pub to say 'hi' to a few friends and start my vacation with a pint. (we will call this mistake #1) I enjoy a pint (or two) and some good conversation, endured some teasing over the book I am reading ("Eat, Pray, Love") which by the way, I adore - thanks Liz! I am sure that my own life experiences are contributing to how I feel about it. Anyway - after a little while I decided I really had better go pack and get some sleep since I had to be at the airport at 5:00am. (for those of you who know me this IS NOT my favorite time of day and less I have stayed up all night to see it)
I will do the intelligent, smart, and practical thing (yes, I can hear you - 'gee, why start now?' yes, haha - very funny)
Is this what I did?
No, I did not. (we will call this mistake #2)
'well,' says my brain, ' you are hungry and you should eat since you only had a doughnut all day...and there is nothing at home anyway since you haven't been grocery shopping in a month!'
'good point' I answer.
So why not go to my local watering hole and grab a quick snack (and maybe a beer...maybe, yeah - right) - mistake #3
A least I did eat, this was my only saving grace all evening.
And of course, I ran into all of the usual suspects, but what makes this night unique (we will call it the perfect storm) is that we are all there at the same time...at that point I really should have picked up on how the evening was going to go...
but I didn't.
So my local is getting ready to close (which isn't as bad as it sounds...yet...) because they close at 11:00pm.
No problem, I am thinking - I have had food, it is only 11, I can go home, pack, and still get five hours of sleep before going to the airport. And then...
'the devil' (and you know who you are!!) says to me
"How much do you really need to pack anyway? Come with us we are going to _______ Place."
I pause. (mistake #4)
And think about it. (mistake #5)
'you know, he is right, I am just going to the beach' - I think to myself (#6)
Then I say, "Just for one, ok?" (#7)
This would be the reason that 'the devil' calls me trouble (ok, not the only reason but let's not go there right now.)
So we all pour out into the night to the next bar, which is...hmmm...how to say it - it has a lot of character - or perhaps it is more accurate to say it has a lot of characters!
Two hours and two beers later (mistake #8) it is soooo time for me to go home, I only have three hours left to pack and sleep before going to the airport. But that is fine, I can pack quickly, I am expert traveler, no worries.
So as ________ Place is closing, 'the devil' says "You have to come to last call with us to _________, besides you can sleep on the plane - you might as well stay awake now."
At this point, the reasonable rational side of my brain just sighs and gives up completely, as the impulsive and slightly crazy side of my brain answers... "Well, I have been up this long...what is one more hour? And I am on vacation after all." (mistake #9)
One hour and one beer later...
I have to go home!
I now have only two hours to get home, pack, and sleep - ok, no worries - I can do it...I hope.
At home I pack (latter I am not sure if I even remember to pack a bathing suit and I am certain I forgot my sunscreen), set my alarm on my phone, break my phone charger (brilliant timing! grrrrr), set out clothes to put on, and tumble into bed in a heap...
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
I groggily roll over - one eye barely open - is that daylight?
'no, surely not says' my foggy brain - still i have the coherentness to think that I better check my phone - just in case.
F__K!!!!!!
it is 6:15!!!
I was supposed to be AT the airport at 5:00!
I bolt out of bed, swearing profusly, grabbing my clothes, stuffing more random things in my suitcase and dash out the door attempting to calculate just how fast I am going to need to drive to get to my office - and from there I still have to get to the airport.!!!
Did I mention that there was A LOT of swearing, like one long string of swearing - my irish friends would have been impressed with me.
It went something like this:
"Oh f___, f___, f___ - you stupid f___ing idiot! Dammit, you f___ing f___!! Dammit if I miss this flight I am so f___ing screwed! F___, f___, f___!!"
This was my entire conversation to myself in the car, in between ferverent prayer (yes, I know it is ironic, but I believe that God understands my idosyncratic behavior and I am certain I amuse Him) that by some miracle I make my flight.
I lock my house door at 6:30am - it takes 45 min to an hour to get to my office, and another 20 min. to take a cab to the airport. Then I have to get through international security and to my gate and the plane takes off at 7:45.
'yeah, I am f___ed' - is all I can think.
So I drive...well let's just say faster than is prudent, while sucking down a pint and a half of water to try and rehydrate at least a little.
I call the cab company from my car as I am racing to my office - so that it will be waiting outside for me when I get there. I pull into the garage at a speedy 7:10 (40 min. to the office, not bad!) and walk outside to the waiting cab. I am frantic and tell the driver that I am running really late - which is a HUGE understatment, he nods and proceeds to spirit me to the airport in a record breaking 15 min. and I was in line at security at 7:30, still going between cursing my impulsive behavoir and praying feverishly. (and silently wishing every manner of ill on the TSA officer who has decided that he is going to talk to EVERYONE, in great detail...ahhhhh!!)
I squeak through security in just about 10 minutes and it is 7:40 when I am pulling on my boots, the plane leaves in five minutes. I was so swamped with adrenaline that I was litterally shaking as I was looking for my gate.
I made it!!
I actually made it!!!
Thank you God - times a million! (I really do not know how I would make it in this world if God ever stopped looking after me - so I will say 'Thank you' again.)
I stowed my bag, collapsed in the seat, and wrote to 'the devil' telling him that I would NEVER join his drinking rounds again but given my experience with 'never' (see The Never Monster) I have probably doomed myself...sigh...
I slept all the way to Philly, woke up just enough to change planes and went blissfully back to sleep before we even took off on the flight from Philly to Cancun. And a special thank you to the lovely benevolent stewardess that allowed me to change seats so I was able to stretch out over two seats!
For some reason I was startled awake and for a solid five seconds had no clue where I was - then everything came flooding back and I remembered why I am on a plane...Cancun - sweet!
I look down the isle, no drink service yet...rats, I would really like a cup of coffee. So I wait ... about 20 min. still no drink cart - hmmm. About this time the steward has come to sit beside me but he looks terribly busy - but I REALLY need a cup of coffee. Still I dont want to be too pushy and maybe the cart is on its way. I stand up and see that others have finished drinks waiting to be picked up...wow - I was out a good deal longer than I thought. Fine, I will just have to ask the steward.
"Excuse me, I seemed to have missed the cart, may I have a cup of coffee?" and since I was still feeling bad about disturbing him, "I don't mind getting it myself."
"Yes, " he said politely a little too politely and all too knowingly, "You were sound asleep - I will get you one." And he kind of smirks at me, in that 'look-at-what-the-cat-drug-in' kind of way, letting me know full well that he knows exactly why I was asleep and now need coffee.
When he brought the coffee I was seriously tempted to kiss him, just because (I refrained in a rare moment of good judgment). I down the steaming cup like it is a shot and when he walks by a minute later, he raises an amused eyebrow and asks, "Would you like another?"
I answer with such an emphatic "Yes!" that he sort of startles, then smiles. After that he kept me fully caffeinated the entire rest of the trip, he even made me a fresh pot - come to think of it, I really should have kissed him. :)
Shortly after the shots of coffee, I take the time to look out the window. My breath catches - wow, look at that water!! Such a color of turquoise that I have never seen before - gorgeous doesn't even begin to cover it. And all of my trepidation about making this trip alone just melts away into the stunning hues of blue that my eyes got to feast on.
I am so very glad that I did this!
_______________________________________
You could feel the heat pouring in as soon as they opened the plane doors, it was thick and heavy - not unlike where I came from actually. The air felt like it was actually sitting on my skin, like a tangible cloth.
The airport was far more chaotic than any other airport that I have been to but everyone was very friendly and patient when I attempt to use my barely remembered spanish (and try not to mix it with the french that I took at the same time). Attempting to secure the hotel shuttle without buying $600 worth of tour packages was quite a challenge, but after enough, 'No, thank you, I just want to get to my hotel.' they finally took me seriously and I secured a ride.
The countryside is unlike anywhere else that I have been, there were several ancient ruins dotting the highway - which reminded me of Ireland and the sudden castles that would appear, only here they are pyrmids with an antiquity that surpasses all that I have yet seen.
Once at the hotel I am delighted with my choice, everyone is so kind and puts up with my horrible attempts to speak even the simplest of spanish phrases, I am sure I sounded similar to a two year old. I am simply enchanted.
Finally I walk into my room...
oh wait - I forgot...so I get on the elevator, my room is on the 7th floor according to the young man at the front desk. I look at the buttons, 1, 14,15, 16... up through 21.
'Hmm, interesting.' I think. 'Well, there were two banks of elevators, perhaps I got on the wrong one.' So I go back down to the lobby and get on the second set of elevators...and now I am thoroughly confused because I am faced with the same set of numbers...hmmm...now what?
and then the light bulb goes off...
my room # says 1748 - so I need to choose floor "17" ah ha!
at least I did not have to go to the front desk and ask - whew!!
There is beautiful cool marble everywhere (it is worth noting that marble is slippery, especially when wet from the pool...I am sure that I do not really need to explain further.)
I walk into my beautiful room with marble everywhere and an ocean view to die for and that I have been longing to see...and...
I instantly (and quite surprising to myself actually) burst into big heart rending sobs, which I totally gave into for a full 10 seconds and then my inner voice kicks in. "What the f___ are you doing?!? Pull yourself together and look where you are dammit!"
"Okay, you are right." replys the sobbing side of myself. Breath. (yes, I do talk to myself quite a bit and yes, I even answer myself sometimes)
Deep breath and I step outside onto my balcony - more deep breaths, several pictures, and a brief pep-talk later and I am on my way to the beach. 'ok, be strong, you have come all this way, no worries. you can do this...' sort of...
Until I am on the beach having lunch and proceed to dissolve into a blubbering mass two more times - good grief - Ack!!! It got so bad that poor Enrique, my waiter, brought me more napkins and just pretended not to notice that I was crying into my water. Well, this certainly will not do!
So what is the best way to stop the water works - set up things to do with my time and stop looking at sappy, smoochy couples!
Good plan! And that is precisely what I did - I booked a boat trip for saturday and a 2 1/2 hour pampering session at the spa on sunday, bought a book and headed to the pool. After a nice relaxing swim and a little baking time, the pull of the beach is irresistable for a long walk. One of my favorite pasttimes is a long walk on the beach, the sun, the sand, the roaring sound of the ocean that manages to be wild, fierce, and soothing all at once. (sounds like what I am looking for in a partner...haha - but I am veering off topic and this trip is about learning to be on my own)
I am not quite sure how long I meandered up and down the beach, but the sun was beginning to sink when I headed back towards the hotel, I was all set to roam up to my room and shower and change for dinner - until I ran into - the cutest little jaccuzi beach bar. Well, I just had to stop...right? YES!! :) So I am sipping margaritas, on the beach, while ... wait for it ... swinging in a hammock swing. I just need to add here, oh - yeah!! It is just more fabulous than I can communicate, it is like Christmas, the Easter bunny, and Space Camp all rolled into one.
more to follow soon...
