As I mentioned in the last post, I went to Mexico for Spring Break 2016, in a group of about a dozen friends, of which I had only met about half.
 |
| A picture from the interminable wait at Houston Airport, waiting for the layover. |
I arrived in Cancun on Friday morning, with a different flight than all the other friends, because I had been added to the group in a second moment and I bought a different plane ticket.
As soon as I arrived, I did my best not to get ripped off: that was my only concern. After refusing a few offers to take me to my hotel for U.S. $90, $60, $50, and $30, I found an airport shuttle that would take me to the Casa Magna Marriott Hotel for $14. I thought that was fair enough, and they even gave me a receipt, which was more than I expected! On the shuttle, I met two German girls my age who were working in LA. I was hoping they would go to my hotel, too— but they had reserved a different one… We still exchanged numbers and had a chance to go out together; they were very friendly, as most of the people I met in Cancun!
As a side note, if you were planning to go to Mexico, you may want to know that phones don't really work. You can buy a Mexican SIM card, but if you connect to the wifi of your hotel, you'll be able to communicate through WhatsApp, iMessage, or app whatever you prefer.
I arrived to my hotel around 1:30pm, and although I only got 3 or 4 hours of very poor-quality sleep the night before, I was not tired anymore.
My friends were scheduled to arrive 12 hours later than me, so I had some time for myself. I spent some of it at the swimming pool, waiting for the hotel room to be ready, and then I fell asleep for a few hours on my bed.
After dinner, I met with Siddhan, a friend of Yassin’s who already was in Cancun; he was staying at a different hotel. We decided to wait for everybody to arrive, but after greeting them, we went out!
Buses are very cheap ($10 pesos, or about US 70 cents, and just as fast as a cab— they go VERY fast!) so we got on one. Two minutes went bye, and Siddhan realized his phone was not in his pocket anymore. Ahhh karma... He had just finished bragging about having an exclusive phone that one can only get through having the right connections... We got out of the bus, ran back to the bus stop, and the phone was gone. We will never know if he left in on the bus or if somebody found it and stole it at the bus stop, but one thing is certain: he was without a phone for the rest of the week.
That was a good start! haha. We jumped on a new bus, and this one was crazy. The music was very loud, with a remarkable bass to a type of music that alternated between House and Mariachi! The lighting was white/purple, the doors would never close, and a 12-year old kid was smoking a cigarette while sticking out of the door and inciting pedestrian to jump on the bus, which would stop anywhere, completely disregarding the existence of bus stops. No tickets, no receipts, or nothing. Whoever jumped on the bus would give the driver 10 pesos, and he would pocket the money. As you can tell from this story, the bus ride was an experience in itself.
We got the the party area around 1:30am. This is usually referred to as “the strip” although its actual name is the Hotel Zone, or Zona Hotelera. Needless to say, Cancun’s nightlife is formidable, but also expensive!
Overall, Cancun was really fun! You get to relax, play beach volleyball, and take a break from school and work! As you can see from the pictures, the ocean is a wonderful light blue color, even when the weather is cloudy, and the temperature is always great, between 83 and 86 degrees Fahrenheit.
This was a great experience, where I had a lot of fun while getting an amazing opportunity to make new friends. Two weeks later, I am still seeing these friends every day, especially Yassin! So, I am very happy I took this opportunity.
A presto,
- Fede
No comments:
Post a Comment