Back To The Beginning

On March 9, 2010, we entered the Western Caribbean, making our first port of call at Isla Mujeres, Mexico. Here it is, almost three years later, and fittingly, Isla Mujeres will be our last port of call in the Western Caribbean. Since leaving the San Blas on December 1, it has been a fast-paced trip revisiting, albeit briefly, the places we got to know so well on the way to the south and west. It has, in many ways, been so much more relaxing on the return since we have been revisiting what had become something like our local neighborhoods, where everything is familiar.

More than anything, it has been a time for reflection as the memories have come surging back, especially of the people we have met, but also the places we visited and the things we did. We have necessarily spent many days and nights at sea since leaving the San Blas, so we have had plenty of time to reflect on our experiences and reminisce.

Isla Mujeres is as good as ever, and we won't mind waiting here for the weather. We are at Marina Paraiso, the same marina we stayed at three years ago. The cruising community,  at times, can be so small. After securing our dock lines, I looked over at the boat next to us and was shocked to see Nicki on Ajaya, waiting to say hello. We last saw Phil and Nicki in Providencia and thought that was our final goodbye. That is one of the great aspects of this life, that you never really know when you will see your friends again, but you usually do.

I should mention that on the way to Mexico, we did spend some time in Belize, spending a few days each in both Placencia and Caye Caulker and overnight stops at smaller cays. We like Belize and found the check-in and check-out procedures much improved, especially the fees charged, meaning they now seem uniform and aboveboard.   As we approached Isla Mujeres, we passed Cozumel at night and Cancun in the early morning hours. It was amazing to see the bright lights at both places, especially after so long in Central America, where electricity is prohibitively expensive and often unreliable.

We didn't plan it this way, but they are having Carnival in Isla Mujeres this weekend. We have never been to Carnival, and from what we have seen so far, the one here is family rated, which is what we would have expected based on our past experiences on the island.

As readers of this blog know, we have been traveling with Daragh and Cathryn on Chantey V since Providencia. It has been a great partnership as our schedules could not have been more closely aligned. We will be going our separate ways now, as they are headed for Cuba and then to the Bahamas,  and well, we are not. They are a very interesting couple, and I am sure they will have some interesting stories to share about Cuba and beyond.