Jan. 29 One final lunch on the beach and then off to the airport with Margo and Pam. We had such a wonderful time with them, will miss them, and welcome them back anytime. Our next visitors, Mark and Karen from Victoria, are in Cancun this week, but will arrive in Puerto Morelos on Saturday for a week.
Xcaret is a huge eco park just south of Playa del Carmen. It is a breeding/preservation place for turtles, flamingos, dolphins, manatee, parrots, all manner of indigenous trees, plants, flowers and animals, including panther, jaguar, puma, monkeys, deer, etc. Too much to try to capture with my little camera, so check out www.xcaret.com.mx for the whole picture. An amazing place which is very hard to see in only one day. One of most magical parts is an underground/above ground cenote river which you float and snorkel down for 2 hours, ending at the sea. There, you can rest in hammocks or comfortable chairs, and the grounds have any number of wonderful restaurants. The finale, of course, is the show in the evening, which showcases the Mayan history and the people of Mexico, and involves over 300 professional dancers, singers and musicians.
A day that was intended to be at Yalku was foiled by cloud and rain, so changed our plans and went to Playa del Carmen instead. Walked the beach, down 5th Avenue, and went by all the lovely resorts, had a great lunch at the Blue Parrot, and Margo and Pam found a perfect Mexican sink for their bathroom at home at a pottery place that even sells complete toilets in those wonderful Mexican colours.
Jan 25. Today we went off to show Margo and Pam a cenote - a unique underground waterway that is all over the Yucatan. Some cenotes, like this one, are open and easily accessible. Some are down narrow holes which you can access by rope, ladder or rappelling down a line. They are different colours - green, turquoise, and blue but all are crystal clear cool water, wonderful for swimming in. This one had a zip line across it, which was great fun, and as it happened, we four were the only ones here, so we had a lovely table in the shade, and hammocks to snooze in after our time in the water.
Jan. 23 We have been keeping Margo and Pam up late and out and about while they are here. The day we got back from Isla Mujeres, we went to the first of the now biweekly concerts in the town square. There are local and imported entertainers all of whom put on a fabulous free concert, where the hat is passed to collect $$$ for the children of Puerto Morelos.
Jan. 22. We boarded the aging car ferry from Punta Sam and went to Isla Mujeres for a couple of days. The beaches are lovely, the town is charming - narrow cobbled streets with shops and restaurants, full of the common form of transportation - golf carts and scooters.
Friends Pam and Margo arrived Monday night from Victoria! I was working at the bookstore, so Miki picked them up at the airport, got them settled in our casa, and then they all came to town where we met for dinner after I closed the store. Tuesday morning we were glued to the TV having breakfast and watching the Inauguration of the 44th President - dear Barack Obama. History in the making, as they say. Then we went out to John Gray's Mother In Law's for a great lunch and walk on the beach.
Just can't resist the music everywhere in PM - this group of entertainers were gathered before they wandered from restaurant to restaurant making their wonderful music. The cute part of this photo was the little boy who. when I first spotted him, looked like he was getting pointers on the fine points of playing, but one of the amigos noticed me with my camera and suddenly they were all posed.
We met with new friends Rachel and Lauren on Wednesday, getting a tour of their lovely condo and enjoying drinks and munchies on their deck. Then we all headed out for a nice dinner at the Mexican Pub, where we were properly spoiled by the owner, Luis! Poor gals go back to northern New York state yesterday into another winter storm.
Yesterday we went to Playa del Carmen to meet up with friends from Parksville, Gladys and Sandy. Had a nice dinner on 5th Avenue at the Jaguar, and did a shop at Walmart before we headed home to Puerto Morelos.
A nice evening with old friends (Gladys) and new (Sandy). They are coming to Puerto Morelos next week to see our casa and show Sandy PM, as this is her first visit to Mexico.
Jan. 11. We had a lovely mix of friends over to warm our casa. It was actually a very hot day, and despite trying to lure people to the pool patio with food and drink, everyone gathered in the house, where it was cooler. We had barbeque chicken (thanks to Guadalupe around the corner), cheeses, crackers, guacamole, salsa and to top it off, chocolate cupcakes topped with a cream cheese icing - thanks to Jill!!!
Music is everwhere in Mexico, and recently there is a group of folks playing on the streets playing a mixture of Peruvian pan flutes, guitars and drums, accompanied by some very awesome harmonies!
Jan. 2, Brenda and Mike came to see our casa, have some refreshments, and then off to John Gray's Mother In Law's for lunch, a serenade from 2 charming gentlemen, a swim and snorkel on this lovely beach, and then dinner and another blues concert in the back courtyard at David Lau's. It was a perfect ending to sharing our town with friends, and they were charmed by Puerto Morelos. 
Friends from the cottage, Brenda and Mike, arrived on Dec. 29 for 5 days. They are staying at a local beachfront resort, but we have spent New Years and a couple of fun days and evenings together. New Years Eve started out with a four course dinner at Bodo's, a local eatery, followed by drinks at the Mexican Pub, a visit to Valarie at David Lau's, tequila shots at Cantina Habernero, drinks at Spagettinos, where John Cooker was playing live blues, and finally, down to the beach, where lots of people had gathered to bring in the new year at midnight! There was fireworks and we had a leisurely beach stroll on a beautiful night back into town and home.
