Welcome Ewan Matthew

 

He was born the earl hours of this morning and weighed 8lbs!!

Uwe's Birthday

When the girls were little, we took in some foreign students for extra money. We made so many lovely friends but one stood out amongst the rest, a German lad called Uwe. He stayed with us 3 times in all and even after all these years, we still keep in touch with him. Today is his birthday, and through the power of Facebook we wished him many happy returns. His reply ... Uwe Reuter Vanda my dear. When babies would have the possibility to choose their parents you and Andrew would be my choice. Thanks for all.  Things like that just swell your heart don't they.

Happy Birthday Mr Reuter from all of us. Come visit soon xxxxx

Underwater Sea Trek, X-Caret, Mexico

The third trip included a coach ride back to X-Caret for a Sea Trek. It threw it down with rain again which we didn't mind as we were going to get wet anyway.

Our scuba diving guide showed us loads of stuff including a baby Octopus & a Sea Urchin. He had some food too that the fish went mad for. It's definitely one of the best things we've done so far. Especially for me as I can't snorkel and it's the first time I'd seen fish from that angle.

Waiting For Hurricane Rina

The hurricane that never was. The first week at our hotel we had a piece of paper put under the door saying, "Hurricane Warning. On Thursday please stay in your room all day and don't come out until someone says it's safe to do so. Food would be provided & there are plenty of drinks & bottled water inside your fridge."

The drama of it all was brill. Windows were boarded up...

the beach was cleared...

& sunbeds were tied down & put in the pool.

Thursday morning we were told that the Hurrican wasn't due to hit Tulum until 1pm in the afternoon so breakfast was being served. Off we went, via the beach of course.

Later on we were told that the Hurricane was going to hit about 7pm so please come & have lunch. It was boring staying in for the evening but we found out the next morning that, at the very last minute, it had been down graded to a tropical storm so all was well.

Chichen Itza Mexico

The second trip we booked on our holiday was a visit to Chichen Itza or Chicken Pizza as it's more affectionately known in are family. It's THE reason we went to Mexico and we weren't disappointed. I think it always helps to go to ancient ruins with a guide who can explain some of the history surrounding the place you visit. Otherwise it could end up just being a pile of stones. 

It was quite a long coach ride so we stopped half way for refreshments and to visit a flea market where Mexicans were actually making the handycrafts they sold.

By the time we reached Chichen Itza it was lunchtime so we visited a local hotel for a Mexican Buffet.

Making Tortillas

Our first glimpse of Chichen Itza was through the jungle foliage.

3 Faces

All over Chicken Pizza, the Mayan people were trying to sell their wares. They weren't a nuisance & it didn't feel like running the gauntlet like it does in other countries, but it did detract slightly from the place we were visiting. Having said that, our guide said "at least they are selling something they have made rather than begging or selling illegal substances". There's always a bright side :O)

At the end of the road was one of the Cenotes that dot the landscape of the Yucatan Penninsular.

We visited another Cenote, Ik- Kil. This time we could swim in it, well after climbing down 94 steps!

The camera on full zoom.

If you look really closely you can see Elena & Andrew swimming. Yes I did go in, I walked down all 94 steps, swam, walked to the top, took some photos, walked back down with the camera and walked back up them again! What you have to do to get the photos you want .. phew!

Some idiots brave folks, were jumping in!

The top of the Cenote.

The next few photos were taken out of the coach window on the way back to the hotel.