Casa De Serenidad

In March it got hot. With the sun beating down it became very difficult to do anything outside, We were still running up to Playa Norte (North Beach) every couple of days, but as soon as we left the water it became uncomfortable. Deb was having difficulty coping.

We decided to give ourselves a break. We found a house on the windy side of the island that was available for four days. It was expensive but we decided to splurge. The two extra bedrooms will just have to sit empty. Here the wind is always blowing. There are shady spaces at any time of the day. The views are amazing. In the evening, Debby starts to don layers of clothing because she is getting cool. This is Casa De Serenidad.

Welcome home

From the Street

First steps in the pool

Always shady under a palapa

Lounging spaces in the sunshine

Outdoor eating and lounging spaces in the shade

Idyllic spot over the water

Living room wall opens to the outside

Open everything up if you are hot. Close everything up if you are getting cool.

Amazing artwork everywhere

Second Level has two bedrooms, a second full bath, and an amazing deck.

Debby woke up to catch the sunrise from our bedroom

The water side in the morning light

Our Neighbourhood

We are living in the centre of the island, in a neighbourhood which is mostly Mexican.

Pride of Ownership - YO Y MI CASA means "Me and my castle".

This little yellow house is just a few houses away.

Around the corner is what Debby calls "The Place With the Cats". This yard contains six or seven cats along with dogs, chickens, roosters, ducks, and who knows what else. It's hard to see how they find space amidst the junk.

Just a few doors away is a much larger, much tidier home.

In the same block is this more natural home.

This fully lit pathway encircles "Salina Grande".

Salina Grande - A salt water lake. Frigate birds are often flying overhead.

Some streets are a riot of colour.

Some houses are a riot of colour.

Then there is our place. Lool Beh means "Hidden Flower".

Playa Lonchero

Over a few weeks we visited several of our favourite restaurants and then found a few new ones.

Playa Lonchero is a beach club and it is a restaurant. Because it is on the Eastern side of the island we decided to be there at sunset. When we arrived (six-ish), the waiter explained that the kitchen was closed, so we could only order something cold. Deb ordered a shrimp salad and I ordered an octopus cocktail. Each was large enough to be a full meal and each was wonderful.

Of course a beach club has its own beach,

Beside the dock is a little enclosure with a few woebegone sharks.

The sunset was beautiful.

Deb is always getting in the way.

 Before we had finished eating, we discovered why they close early. The mosquitoes came out in masses. I discovered that I could kill two or three with one swat. We got some takeaway containers for out food and we made our escape.

We will have to go back a little earlier in the day so we can enjoy their signature tikin-xic fish (barbecued with Mexican spices)

Isla Mujeres 2019

Here we are again. This time we flew on AeroMexico and were quite impressed. It was very inexpensive. Because of the weather, we were about an hour late in leaving Toronto.

The plane was wonderful: new, roomier than usual, and we shared three seats. (We now believe it was a Boeing 737 Max 8) The first leg was to Mexico City. They gave us a full meal and offered us free drinks.

Because we were late arriving, we were quite sure we would miss our connecting flight to Cancun. Twenty minutes seemed impossible, but...

An agent met us as we deplaned. He scooted us immediately to customs and dropped us in a fast line to security. Another agent met us after we passed through security, plopped us on a cart and rushed us to our gate. We were the last to board and the plane took off on time.

In Cancun a third agent met us as we approached the luggage carousel. I'm sure he picked us out because of Debby's cane. He apologized and explained that one of our bags did not come on our plane. At this point, we hadn't even reached the baggage claimed. We filled out a form. He explained that the bag would be arriving in two hours. Within four hours it would be delivered to our condo. It was.

A taxi, a ferry and another taxi delivered us to the Lool Beh Condominos.

Graham's unit is very comfortable.

Double Sinks and a Big Walk-in Shower

Fully Equipped Kitchen

We settled in and met our new neighbours (same as the old neighbours). For all of February the weather was wonderful. It was warm, but not too hot. We spent time roaming the island and visiting the beaches. We actually found it was comfortable to just relax. We didn't have to go somewhere or do something every day. For a long time I didn't even take my camera out of the bag.