Take Another Road

It was the fall of 1989 when Marie and I had stumbled upon this special vacation package Apple Vacations was promoting in the Philadelphia Inquirer to this faraway land known as Cancun Mexico.  We had only been married for a few years, still in our twenties and so excited at the prospect of traveling outside the US for the first time!   I still laugh at the thought that we were so concerned about the harsh rays of the Mexican sun, we invested in a week’s worth of sessions at the tanning salon in the local strip shopping center.  We rationalized that we needed a “base” tan before we traveled to the land of tacos and tequila.   

Our vacation was booked for early March 1990 at the Hyatt Cancun Caribe.  We then promptly ran out to the Bambergers in the Cherry Hill Mall the very next weekend and upgraded our (non-existent) summer wardrobes with OP bathing suits, Izod tennis shirts and Sperry topsiders.  We felt so sophisticated!  And since we had plans to check out some of the discos on The Point, I purchased a knock-off Sonny Crockett (aka Don Johnson) white linen sports coat and a few pastel shirts to wear underneath. 

I vividly remember arriving at Philly International Airport that morning wearing jeans and a sweatshirt since there was approximately four inches of snow on the ground at takeoff.  Three hours later we were in Mexico……changing into our t-shirts and bathing suits in the airport bathroom, converting US dollars to Mexican pesos and drinking mucho Dos Equis!

Our first real vacation!

For one week, we frolicked in the sun like only kids in their twenties can.  We rented mopeds and toured the island.  We snorkeled for the first time (first at Xel-Ha) and later in the week on Cozumel.  We dined at our first Hard Rock Cafe in Old Cancun, toured the ruins at Chichen Itza and locally at El Rey.  Everywhere we went on the Island we heard the new Fine Young Cannibals album on this new media format called a compact disc.  Still to this day, I cannot hear any of these songs and not immediately flashback to this specific vacation.

We were young and in love and traveling abroad!

All these thoughts and more came rushing back to me as I booked our recent Cancun vacation over nine months ago.  Lauren and her college roommate Meagen would be joining us.  Ever since Lauren was a young child, we have always had her invite a girl friend along to make the vacation more enjoyable for everyone concerned.  This has been extremely important through the years, especially for some of the family vacations taken during her teen years.  I’m sure all you parents out there know what I mean by that!

As I am known to do, within months of the actual trip, I had scheduled out a detailed daily itinerary of tours, events and meals.  However, since Marie and I are quite different travelers, I followed our primary rule of alternating beach days and tour days.  This criteria is mission critical to the overall trip being enjoyable for all parties concerned.  If there is an oversight in this planning phase, please refer to the Fine Young Cannibals song – “She Drives Me Crazy” for a subtle reminder!

Listen up everyone – Fun is allowed, as long as we follow my itinerary!

Day #2 – Sunday 6/26 called for our excursion to Isla Mujeres (“The Island of Women”) with my group of three lovely ladies in tow.  We had never made it to this island in 1990.  They now have a wonderful natural reef at Garrafon Park with snorkleling, zip-lining, kayaking, biking and hiking activities.  It was a home run idea!  Next to soaking up rays and sleeping, Marie loves kayaking and snorkeling.

The morning sun greeted us sleepy tourists at the bustling ferry launch in Playa Linda.  The overhead skies looked incredible and the day was filled with nothing but high expectations.  However, within a mere couple of hours of landing at Avenida Rueda Medina and after a short taxi ride to Garrafon Park, the first rain drops of the day fell on the blue Caribbean seas and our day’s planned itinerary.  No problemo….just a Florida rain, right?

Not quite.  A wicked storm was passing through.  While we would get a chance to zipline high over the Caribbean when there was a short hour break in the storm just before lunch….that would be the only time we would venture outside in the elements all day. With heavy rains forecasted for the next two days on the mainland, I really thought we could by-pass this inclement weather being on Isla Mujeres.  Besides, this weather was clearly not in my personal vacation itinerary!  I was none too happy!

Meanwhile, the girls had found a small cove with a secluded view of the Caribbean.  By the time I found them, they were one round into the drink of the day – “Welcome to the Jungle”!  I pulled up a stray chair and ordered the same orange colored cocktail.  It was just us, along with Carlos and Manuel, our two new best Mexican friends. 

They both chatted with us freely as we waited for our lunch to arrive.  Very quickly, the conversation turned to tequila and in a New York minute we had quite a few local varieties to sample.  I looked at Marie.  She looked at me.

{Editors Note – While the drinking age in Mexico is eighteen, Marie and I had previously agreed that the girls (nearly 20 years old) would be allowed to consume a poolside cocktail and possibly one more with dinner each night.  Additionally, this rule was duly cleared by Marie in conversations with Meagen’s mother in the week leading up to the trip.  In other words, the girls were not to charge beach-side drinks to our room while I was on the golf course or Marie was lounging by the pool – Capice!}

However, when on Isla Mujeres with torrential rains showing no signs of stopping (any time soon) and no rain checks are being issued to grumpy tourists….rules made back in the States were quickly about to become null and void!  In fact, the “Scott” – I Don’t Know and I Don’t Care rule was invoked!

When Carlos found out that Lauren had never done a shot of tequila, as if on cue, he quickly provided some local brand from behind the counter along with a salt shaker and some cut limes.  Like some Rider initiation challenge, she and Meagen quickly indulged.  Within mere minutes, Manuel set-up some stereo speakers on the top of the bar and was soon teaching Megan how to pour draft beer from a beer tap!  Was someone filming this scene as part of some promotional video to be shown potential tourists from other countries?

The loud reggae music must have captured the attention of some other tourists, as shortly another three small parties joined our little private party.  We moved the wet tables and chairs from outside near the water to underneath the awning.  Each table soon elected one person after another to chug the tequila shot amidst applause from the other tables of guests.  Round and round we went.  I’m not sure what anyone else was doing at this exact moment on Isla Mujeres, but we were having a blast.  Marie and I exchanged a brief smile which seemed to say “Is this really happening?”  “Was this on my itinerary?”

The rain continued to fall.  Absolutely nothing was visible on the water. We definitely would not be kayaking today!

It was at this point some random thoughts started to float through my tequila soaked brain:

(1)   Would we ever get back to Cancun? 

(2)   Are there cots behind the bar?

(3)   What was on the itinerary for Monday?

(4)   What time does the ferry depart the Island?

(5)   Does the Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS) has jurisdiction abroad?

(6)   Can we move to Isla Mujeres?

We finally said our final goodbyes to Manuel and Carlos.  We gathered our belongings and upon leaving high-fived the rest of our new friends.  We walked to the entrance, hailed a taxi and found ourselves back at the ferry. 

This adventure was far from over!

The scene on the boat was surreal.  These four college-aged dudes were pounding tequila shots at the bar standing five feet from where we were sitting.  A forty-five minute excursion lay ahead.  Suddenly we took bets on which one of the guys would hurl first!  The day long storms had made the sea choppy and amid strains of “La Bamba”, “I Saw Her Standing There” and “Sweet Home Alabama” people were singing, getting sick and taking photos of the real-time events all at once.  Strangers were singing, clapping and passing trash bags back in forth.  We sat in total disbelief our necks and faces hurting from straining and laughing simultaneously.  The music never once stopped.  Can this thing sink?

Hours later in our hotel room, I tried to make sense of the day that I just witnessed.

How was this activity omitted from my travel book?  Was something lost in translation?   Should I call the editor from Frommer’s when I get back to the States on Saturday?     

WOW - My daughter did her first shot of tequila in Mexico.  Taking off my “parent” hat for just a second, I realized that was pretty cool!  More importantly she did not get sick.  I think I did my first shot of tequila on the campus of the University of Delaware in a cramped dorm room and puked my guts up in the dirty Russell A bathroom shortly after consumption.

What I learned from this unique experience, is sometimes the best adventures in Life are off the map, when we color outside the lines and surrender to the flow of the moment. 

This was a day I would not soon forget!