Desi News Corp - Index

Desi News Corp - Desi News - March 2009 - Index

going PLACES
Three birthdays and a wedding
During a recent visit to
India, my younger son
invited a lecture for
gloating over the fact that while
he was enjoying a holiday in
sunny, warm Delhi, his brother
was shovelling himself out of
yet another snowstorm back in
Toronto.
Yet, there I was on a beach
in Mexico, enjoying each e-mail
we got saying how horrendously
cold it was in Toronto, and how
much higher the snow got each
day that we were away!
In my defence, it was the infamous
“snowmageddon” that
did it. Walloped by three backto-back
snowstorms in January,
my husband and I decided it was
time we planned an escape.
Grabbing one of those unbeatable
all-inclusive deals, we found
ourselves in Mexico, a mere
three days later.
The guide on the transfer bus
warns visitors about “bandidos”
and “sharks”. “Yes, I know my
people,” he tells us.
I know what he means. At
the airport exit, a man grabbed
us and tried to sell us half-price
24 Desi News March 2009
tours to local attractions.
Back on the bus, Fernando
sells “Mexican water” or bottles
of Corona, for three dollars (US)
a bottle.
Fernando gives us a tip.
Change your dollars only at a
bank. The going rate was 12 pesos
for a US dollar and 10.90 for
a Canadian dollar. “But sometimes
a shopkeeper will offer you
Riviera Maya
Sunny Mexico with an
order of salsa, both the
relish and the dance,
on the side!
seven pesos for a dollar and you
want the beautiful thing so bad,
you take it”.
The ride to the hotel is longish,
but pleasant, the road from
Cancun airport to the resorts is
clean and well lit. Driving up to
the hotel, the long driveway is
lined with coconut trees and I’m
tempted to reach out the window
and pluck a red hibiscus.
As we leave the bus, the driver
tells us to make sure we have
everything.
“Cameras, backpacks...my
house is full! But I do need a
laptop!”
We pile out, sign in over a
welcome drink, and make our
way to a late night buffet.
The next morning, I see oleanders
and crotons in vibrant
splashes of colour, fuschialeaved
canna. Date palms, coconut
trees, cashewnut, bougainvillaea,
champaka, morning
glory that clambers over every
tree in sight, badam trees, guavas...
They use moneyplant as a
ground cover and I see a sign,
IGUANA CROSSING.
It seem almost impossible
that this tropical paradise is just
a short flight away from the
deep, frozen north.
The tour operator’s representative,
a young woman from
Ottawa, briefs us on what to
see, what to do and what to
avoid. She also tells us to exchange
our dollars at a bank.
“Everything in Mexico is
one for 10,” she says with a
wicked grin. “One dollar equals
10 pesos. One minute equals 10
minutes!”
The sun is out, the sea a gorgeous
lapis, the sand fine and
white, and more corals on the
beach than I have ever seen on
any beach. After all, we are on
what is said to be the second
largest coral reef in the world.
For two days we just soak in
the sun, letting the more adventurous
indulge in para sailing,
scuba diving, snorkelling, swimming
with dolphins and other
such energetic pursuits.
Then stirring ourselves out of
the sun-induced stupor, we head
out to explore Mayan ruins at
Chichen-Itza, the capital of the
Mayan empire, one of the richest
ancient cultures of the world.
Built in 600BC, this religious
and ceremonial
site is listed as the most
important Mayan site on the
Yucatan peninsula. It is cloudy
when we set out, but the tour
operator assures us it is better
that way. Out in the open, too
much sun gets uncomfortable,
he tells us. We follow, looking
doubtful. Is there such as thing
• • TOP LEFT: Lapis waters beckon
winter-weary Canadians. TOP
RIGHT: At the cenote. BOTTOM
RIGHT: Bougainvillaea tumbles over
a building in Playa Del Carmen.