Mehling.org: Cozumal and Playa Palancar

March 21, 2008

Cozumal and Playa Palancar

3/21 (Friday)

Got up in the morning with plans to day trip to Cozumel. On our way out, we paid for another night in our room and headed out to the ferry pier. Nothing looked good to eat on the way so we headed straight to get tickets. On the way to the pier, we tried to change some money, but the lady in the little casa de cambio complained my signature didn't match close enough on the traveler checks. Well, of course not! I had to sign the checks standing up with no surface to write on. She even denied me after I signed again in front of her. Extremely annoying. We just barely made the 9am ferry, and unfortunately they don't let you stand outside so Hol felt crummy for the 30 minute ride and for a bit after we got to Cozumel. First order of business was to get Hol her Sprite!

After her stomach settled and we walked around for a bit, she was ready to eat. When one the guys trying to book tours (there must be one of these for every 2 meters of space in Cozumel) asked if we wanted a glass bottom boat ride/ snorkel tour / paragliding trip / scooter rental, we explained Hol was a little sick from the boat and we needed deseyuno. They tend to soften their sell when we explain she's not feeling well. He recommended "Casa Denis" at the next esquina (and asked us to come back if we needed a tour/scooter/whatever).

Hol had an egg and I had an egg sandwich w/ a jugo de watermelon. Yum. Given our in ability to change travelers checks earlier, we then hunted around for a casa de cambio which proved more difficult than we thought given it was Good Friday. We found one that would at least change US dollars for us.

Finally we were on our way down the coast to Playa Palancar (interesting movie trivia for David, a small (now ruined by hurricanes) house was used on this beach in the movie Against All Odds -- it was Rachel Ward's house where she meets with Jeff Bridges on Cozumel. More on David's obsession with Against All Odds later.). The taxi driver opened up as soon as we started asking questions. He was born and raised on Cozumel. We were nearing the off season, but today was particularly busy - although they sometimes get as many as 7 ships on weekends, today there were 5, but two of them were huge (they were docked side by side and were MASSIVE). Mondays and Tuesdays were usually 2-3, with 3-5 a day until the weekends. Because so much of the influx of tourists is from ships, logically, the majority are Americans - he judged about 70%. Where as he believed, Playa got a more continental flavor, suggesting 60% were "euros" and 40% were from the US. He pointed out buildings and areas damaged by the two recent hurricanes... Apparently the big one, Wilma, hovered for 60 hours. Cozumel was shut down (no tourists) for two months repairing buildings, roads, docks, etc. No tourists means no economy. There clearly was still plenty of work to be done... He told us his favorite spot to snorkel was in the Chankanaab National Park. He said residents have a permit that gets them in free. After 25 minutes or so we reached the beach via storm worn road. Fare was 200 pesos! As we entered the dirt road to the beach there were some wetlands, with "pink flamingos" (or a close relative) fishing for lunch. Supposedly there was a cocodrilo in there as well, but after 15 minutes of hunting we gave up.

We took a quick stroll down the beach to get the lay of the land. There were not more than eight structures here, about 5 intact. The two main activities were laying around and eating, with scuba/snorkeling a close third. We quickly got booked onto a snorkel tour going to the reef area we'd come for: Columbia Shallows. Gear, the boat ride/guide, and a locker were $30/person. Ouch.

The tour took about 90 minutes, starting with a tour of Columbia Shallows, then crossing over a narrow channel to Palancar Reef. There were lots of fish, some curious enough to follow us around while we toured their home. Hol even spotted a couple sea turtles.

After the tour we settled in under a palapa in the sand - margaritas and limonada to drink and a fruit platter to share. After relaxing and enjoying the beach for a bit, we grabbed a taxi back to the ferry dock, acquired a "security Sprite" for Hol and boarded the ferry back to Playa. Hol fell asleep on the ferry and thus didn't get sick!

In Playa we needed to call ahead to some hotels in Puerto Morelos to reserve a room. After trying to get help dialing at two places the third did the trick. We called our four possibilities and got a room reserved (under Miguel from California). A quick victory helado for Hol while we sat and relaxed. With lodging off our minds, we wandered up and down Avenida Quinta, shopping and people watching. I'd read about a jazz club at calle 14, but it was gone... We finally settled on a bar/restaurant (called Kitxen, the "x" in Mayan is pronounced like "sh" -- get it?) because it had eclectic music playing. Hol had a delicious spinach salad with champinones and tocino. She is officially sick of Mexican food :-), even guacamole. I had a bacon burger with red onions -- it was surprisingly good. We headed back to the hotel to get some rest before moving on tomorrow.

Photo Album:
http://mehling.org/gallery/v/travels/2008_mexico/Day+8/

Posted by ben at March 21, 2008 10:00 PM


« Akumal \| Main \| Puerto Morelos » March 21, 2008 Cozumal and Playa Palancar 3/21 (Friday) Got up in the morning with plans to day trip to Cozumel. On our way out, we paid for another night in our room and headed out to the ferry pier. Nothing looked good to eat on the way so we headed straight to get tickets. On the way to the pier, we tried to change some money, but the lady in the little casa de cambio complained my signature didn't match close enough on the traveler checks. Well, of course not! I had to sign the checks standing up with no surface to write on. She even denied me after I signed again in front of her. Extremely annoying. We just barely made the 9am ferry, and unfortunately they don't let you stand outside so Hol felt crummy for the 30 minute ride and for a bit after we got to Cozumel. First order of business was to get Hol her Sprite! After her stomach settled and we walked around for a bit, she was ready to eat. When one the guys trying to book tours (there must be one of these for every 2 meters of space in Cozumel) asked if we wanted a glass bottom boat ride/ snorkel tour / paragliding trip / scooter rental, we explained Hol was a little sick from the boat and we needed deseyuno. They tend to soften their sell when we explain she's not feeling well. He recommended "Casa Denis" at the next esquina (and asked us to come back if we needed a tour/scooter/whatever). Hol had an egg and I had an egg sandwich w/ a jugo de watermelon. Yum. Given our in ability to change travelers checks earlier, we then hunted around for a casa de cambio which proved more difficult than we thought given it was Good Friday. We found one that would at least change US dollars for us. Finally we were on our way down the coast to Playa Palancar (interesting movie trivia for David, a small (now ruined by hurricanes) house was used on this beach in the movie Against All Odds -- it was Rachel Ward's house where she meets with Jeff Bridges on Cozumel. More on David's obsession with Against All Odds later.). The taxi driver opened up as soon as we started asking questions. He was born and raised on Cozumel. We were nearing the off season, but today was particularly busy - although they sometimes get as many as 7 ships on weekends, today there were 5, but two of them were huge (they were docked side by side and were MASSIVE). Mondays and Tuesdays were usually 2-3, with 3-5 a day until the weekends. Because so much of the influx of tourists is from ships, logically, the majority are Americans - he judged about 70%. Where as he believed, Playa got a more continental flavor, suggesting 60% were "euros" and 40% were from the US. He pointed out buildings and areas damaged by the two recent hurricanes... Apparently the big one, Wilma, hovered for 60 hours. Cozumel was shut down (no tourists) for two months repairing buildings, roads, docks, etc. No tourists means no economy. There clearly was still plenty of work to be done... He told us his favorite spot to snorkel was in the Chankanaab National Park. He said residents have a permit that gets them in free. After 25 minutes or so we reached the beach via storm worn road. Fare was 200 pesos! As we entered the dirt road to the beach there were some wetlands, with "pink flamingos" (or a close relative) fishing for lunch. Supposedly there was a cocodrilo in there as well, but after 15 minutes of hunting we gave up. We took a quick stroll down the beach to get the lay of the land. There were not more than eight structures here, about 5 intact. The two main activities were laying around and eating, with scuba/snorkeling a close third. We quickly got booked onto a snorkel tour going to the reef area we'd come for: Columbia Shallows. Gear, the boat ride/guide, and a locker were $30/person. Ouch. The tour took about 90 minutes, starting with a tour of Columbia Shallows, then crossing over a narrow channel to Palancar Reef. There were lots of fish, some curious enough to follow us around while we toured their home. Hol even spotted a couple sea turtles. After the tour we settled in under a palapa in the sand - margaritas and limonada to drink and a fruit platter to share. After relaxing and enjoying the beach for a bit, we grabbed a taxi back to the ferry dock, acquired a "security Sprite" for Hol and boarded the ferry back to Playa. Hol fell asleep on the ferry and thus didn't get sick! In Playa we needed to call ahead to some hotels in Puerto Morelos to reserve a room. After trying to get help dialing at two places the third did the trick. We called our four possibilities and got a room reserved (under Miguel from California). A quick victory helado for Hol while we sat and relaxed. With lodging off our minds, we wandered up and down Avenida Quinta, shopping and people watching. I'd read about a jazz club at calle 14, but it was gone... We finally settled on a bar/restaurant (called Kitxen, the "x" in Mayan is pronounced like "sh" -- get it?) because it had eclectic music playing. Hol had a delicious spinach salad with champinones and tocino. She is officially sick of Mexican food :-), even guacamole. I had a bacon burger with red onions -- it was surprisingly good. We headed back to the hotel to get some rest before moving on tomorrow. Photo Album: http://mehling.org/gallery/v/travels/2008_mexico/Day+8/ Posted by ben at March 21, 2008 10:00 PM		Bookmarks Ben's Resume Ben's Lists Mehling Photo Album Flickr Photo Album Recently Archived Cozumal and Playa Palancar Akumal Desperately Seeking Lodging See you in nine days Sian Ka'an Coba Ruins Tulum Ruins Finally! 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