Storms

Trying to get caught up on this trip report.

So, the tropical storm that had waited for us to have our big day was officially done waiting. The morning was cloudy and off and on sprinkling of rain, so, we hit the ocean for some snorkeling. Saw turtles almost right away, they pretty much hang out in a grassy area just beyond the moonrise beach bar, and it was just amazing to see them and cruise alongside them. We kept our distance, respecting their space, and never hovering over them. They need to be able to come up for air and we didn't want to frustrate or bother them, we just wanted to share their day for a bit and then push off to see what else was hanging around the reef.




By afternoon the dark clouds moved in, and we could see what was about to happen, so, we gathered our stuff and went back to the room to relax before lunch. The rest of the weekend was punctuated with rain here and there.

The morning after

Tim had trouble staying asleep, the events of our wedding day kept playing in his head, over and over, and he was just so happy and caught up in the emotion of the day, by the time it was almost sunrise he was up and decided to head out to catch some pictures of the sunrise. I was sleeping like a baby, very satisfied with how our day went, and just in bliss.

Here are some of his sunrise photos.

The big day!!!

It's Friday, Sept 9, and the big day has finally arrived.

As soon as we woke up, and looked outside, we knew it was going to be an amazing day. The sun was shining, just some whispy clouds in the distance, and enough breeze to be comfortable. The water was sparkling from the sunshine.

The day before we had stopped into Turtle Bay and dropped off the cake topper. Bart was there, holding court at his table on the deck. We got the itemized reciept, paid our bill for the ceremony expenses, and chatted about how he and Jennifer had renewed their vows, on their tenth anniversary I think he said. They were remarried in Vegas by an Elvis impersonator.

We spoke with Rocio, made the final decisions about when the hair and makeup person, Nora, would arrive. Rocio suggested we say 3 instead of 330, as Nora tends to run on Mexico time.

Today was meant to be as stress free as possible, so, we decided not to do anything all morning but chill out. After lunch we walked up the beach with the last of our stuff for the ceremony.

Check out our gorgeous day.

Day before the big day

We had some perfect days, great for laying on the beach and doing nothing, which was my goal from the start. I knew if I tried to go in snorkeling that with the murky water, which we had for the first two days or so due to breezy weather after hurricane Nate exited the area, I would possibly get a scrape or two on my legs from the rocks I wouldn't necessarily see. So, my gameplan for the first few days was to just kick back on the beach, do a little shallow water swimming, and wait til Saturday to really get in it. We would still have nearly a week to snorkel and play, so, chilling for the first part of the trip was perfect.

As I lay on the beach the second day, a very nice lady sitting in the palapa next to the coconut tree we were under asked, are you Teri? I was a little bit surprised, but, it was fun to have someone there know what our big event was and kind of share in the excitement. We had a great chat, got to know Judy and her husband. They were so much fun.

By today, it was time to get all set up at HAC, so we went over to check in for the next day. Im terrible with names, I think it's Jorge, not sure, but, he runs the place, and he was so nice. He said we could check in that night and just use the room as long as we needed to. He walked over to show Tim the room, saying he thought we would like a different room better, as the original room, 108, was close to Lol Ha, but, a bit of a walk to where I was planning to go for my procession. Tim and I walked the property and chose a path from the bungalows, where our room would be, to the pool, and then past Buddha Gardens Spa, through the grove of cocunut and palm trees, and then out onto the beach where I would start my procession up the beach to him.

Jorge showed Tim room 132, which was easier access and a nicer room set up, and moved us there. He was so nice. The one thing that he couldn't wrap his head around is that we were not getting married, we were renewing our vows. He kept talking about us having our last night as single people, too funny. The weird thing was, we felt a growing nervousness as if we were actually getting married tomorrow. So, maybe we gave off that vibe.

After lugging the dress (still concealed in the black garment bag to keep Tim from seeing it), all our other supplies, and Tim's wardrobe, to room 132, we made one last walk through of the path I would take. Alongside the pool at HAC is a hedge path, and it was a perfect route to the palm grove. When all was decided, we were on our way back to ABR to try to sleep. The weather was predicted to be iffy, and we were prepared to have clouds and rain, but, come what may, we were going forward as planned. As Bart kept saying, we were locked and loaded.

The night before, we had bumped into Isabel from CEA. She was on the last of the Turtle Walks for the season. We were so happy to see her, and she gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek. She invited us to join the walk, which we happily did as we hadn't seen any baby turtles yet this trip. They were digging out two nests that had already hatched out, but, a few babies were left inside buried under hatched eggs and a few unhatched that Isabel took with her back to CEA. After seeing these babies off to the ocean, we headed back to ABR for our dinner at the a la carte. It was Italian night, very yummy. It was good to see Jesus again, always funny, and I think he really did remember us based on some of the things he said. Even if he didn't, he's always fun to joke around with.

Wednesday

Tim in front of the newly remodeled Super Chomack. He quickly put that shirt on when we opened the door as the AC was on full blast. brrrr

Everything is organized, and the clothing is right at the front as you walk in. Tons of cute T shirts for just $12 for the kids, and around $18 for adult sizes. There are others of course that are pricier, but, the cheaper ones are really cute. For those looking to come down to Akumal with kids, the Super Chomack has kids sand toys, float boards, inflatable toys, lots of snack foods, ice cream, cereal, milk, everything you would need. If you're going to ABR, the buffet always has a variety of cold cereals, a choice of plain or chocolate milk, and of course all the other breakfast foods like scrambled eggs, toasts, breads, yogurts, things to mix in your yogurt, its just a huge breakfast buffet. Juices include orange, grapefruit and one of a variety of more tropical choices like mango, and yes my favorite, honeydew melon juice. yum.

I just love all the flowers growing all over the property at ABR.

Turtle Bay is the same as always, I just love how bohemian it is. We never took the time to have a meal there, and really wanted to, but, to be honest, ABR did such a great job with their menus that we figured why spend money on food when we get to eat well for free. Still, I think next time, when we won't have the vow renewal budget to worry about, we'll probably eat there and at La Cueva Pescadore.

Marriane in her new position in the excursion office. She rocks it, too. On a side note, Tim needed to have an injection of medication and I was planning on doing it, reluctantly, but, we asked Marriane and she found a guy in the kitchen, Jaime, who was medically trained, and according to Tim, he was great, never felt a thing. Once again, whatever you need, just ask, they probably can find a way to get it for you. Thanks Marriane and Jaime.

Chillin before the big day

It was Tuesday, and our rededication ceremony was set for Friday. Still some details to tie up, but, for the most part we were ready. We strolled the two minute walk up the beach to the little town of Akumal, to check in at Turtle Bay Cafe and Bakery, where Jennifer and Bart own that business, a couple of others, and the Turtle Bay Weddings. Jennifer and I had spoken before we left Utah, she was going to be in the states and would miss our ceremony, but, had arranged for her assistant Rocio to handle things. We still hadn't gotten a break down of the costs, or a final total, so, we stopped in to see if Bart was there. He wasn't, but, would be the next day, we just decided we would stop back then. We headed to the Super Chomack grocery store, and there was the same lady in the motorized wheelchair that owns the place. She's always so nice, and fun to chat with.

We picked up some snacks for the room, and poked our heads in at a few of the little shops, just to see what they had in the way of jewelry. I wanted earrings that would be from Akumal to wear on our ceremony day, and we found some really nice ones, dangly silver earrings in the shape of the Aztec calendar. We decided we would keep looking, though, just to be sure, and would come back the next day once we made up our minds.

Then it was back to the resort for a day of sun and relaxing. The weather was so beautiful, the water was soft and warm, and the beach was the color of cinnamon sugar and as soft as velvet.

Arrived in Akumal

Getting to Cancun was a breeze, but, getting out the door of the airport was another story. Six planes landed at the same time, one from Germany, one from Spain, two from Canada, and two from the US including ours. Everyone dashed to Immigration to avoid being last in line. We managed to get into a short line, or so we thought, but, our line, for some reason was going slowly, the immigration worker was just not interested in how the line was backing up in only his section. Once we were finally through, we found our luggage ok, and chose not to use a cart, as we knew we would be loading it and unloading it at Customs, and then couldn't take it outside the airport doors, so, didn't really see the point. Then, it was time to get in line for Customs. All six plane loads of people crammed into the single line roped off into about six turns. Prior to that was a crowd trying to make four lines, not sure why, but, it was a mad house, and we were nearly at the end of it. An hour and a half later, we made it to the red and green lights, yes they're still there, and all rows have them now, pushed the button, green, yes, off we went to cross the gauntlet of time share sharks.

Tim got stopped a couple times, for a second or two, because he feels the need to be polite and explain that we already have transportation waiting for us, they don't care, or don't listen, and he gets bogged down. Not me, I put on my "don't even think about it" face, and plow right past them and out the door. Tim catches up, and once outside, we easily find our USA Transfers greeter, who has all our info, including the fact that we prepaid so we didn't have to hand him cash. Our driver has to use the banos (bathroom), and then off we go to Akumal in the dark of the Mexico evening. It was about 7:30 pm by then, and we had about an hour drive to Akumal Beach Resort.

We got there just after 8:30, found out we didn't get the room at the top of the stairs on the third floor as we had asked. We were on the second floor room 534, which ended up being bigger than most rooms, with a king size bed and a second full size bed. The room was very clean, and had the usual Gecko greeter waiting on the wall over the bathroom. As soon as he saw us he quickly exited, and we had our room to ourselves. The buffet was still open, and we were starving, tired, and a bit frustrated about not getting the room we had requested. The girl working reception made it clear that it didn't matter what you request, nothing is ever guaranteed. The bell boy was no where to be found, possibly because we were late, so, we lugged all of our bags to our room on our own. After that, we were just done, and after speaking with Jeshua, who is now working the front desk, he assured us we could have the room we wanted as soon as the guests currently in it had left the next day or so. We were good with that, and just went to grab a bite to eat. Somehow after such a long day, we had forgotten that we were on vacation, until we heard that Carribean sea rolling by the buffet.

We saw the familiar faces from the wait staff, and started to slowly uncurl our frazzled nerves. After eating, we strolled out to the beach and sat on a lounge chair all curled up together. The breeze was blowing and the sea was rolling. It was perfect. We had arrived in paradise.

Akumal 2011

Our trip to Akumal in September 2011, started at 0400 am on Sept 5th, when we were up and getting ready to head out to the airport. It was a beautiful day, great for air travel, but, still dark, and after the mad last minute dash to make sure we hadnt forgotten anything, we were already dragging. Still, it was time to go on a trip of a lifetime, so, our spirits were high.

We arrived at the airport at just after 6am, when the ticket counters open up, Tim dropped me off with the luggage and drove our car to long term parking while I navigated our three large suitcases, two carryons, one laptop case, and my wedding dress in a large garment bag, to the ticket counter area. Thank goodness for luggage carts. We paid the requisite $30 for the extra checked bag, and made our way to security, sailed through, and then onto the gate. I was starving, so, we grabbed a quick bite to eat at the bagel shop by the gate. The plane was on time, and being in the first 10 rows, we thought we would be boarded at the beginning of boarding, but, no, Continental, now that it has been taken over by United, boards from the very back of the plane first. I've always thought it would be smarter to do it that way, saves a lot of blocked ailes, but, after years of waiting til the last boarding because we booked seats so far back, I was thinking, great, finally, we can get on first, get a shot at the aircraft closet to hang my wedding dress, and settle in without having to fight for overhead bin space. Nope, we were in the very last boarding. Thank goodness there was just enough room for my dress in the cabin closet, and we were lucky enough to get the last spot in the overhead bins. The couple of people after us weren't so lucky and had to gate check their carryons.

So, off we went to Houston for our connection to Cancun. We had a four hour layover, which was kind of nice, we were able to get a leisurely lunch and just chat for a while. I used the laptop to chat on facebook and on locogringo, so, it was a nice break. Then, a repeat of the last boarding, except this time the plane wasn't more than a three quarters full, and our seats had been upgraded to the bulkhead seats where no one else seemed to want to pay the extra for leg room, so we were kind of on our own. No problem with closet or bin space. Off we went, through gorgeous clouds. I just had to snap some pics, as they were so amazing, I hadn't seen formations like that in a long time.

Upcoming trip to Akumal Mexico

Tim and I are planning a trip to Akumal Mexico in September to rededicate our marriage in a private ceremony on the beach. We have been through a lot the past year, and have started this year off with a huge upheavel. Hopefully, as we navigate through the coming months, we will finally be stronger and closer than we have ever been. By September we should be ready to make a fresh start. Someone once told me that sometimes you have to burn it to the ground and start all over, and I think we've pretty much done that.

In the meantime, we have a little over 6 months to make the arrangements. Ingrid, the wedding consultant at Akumal Beach Resort (ABR) has been emailing back and forth with me, figuring out what we want to do, and how much it will cost. At this point, we are planning a ceremony on the beach late in the afternoon of September 9th. There will be just a decorated arch, the two of us, and music played on our ipod. We will have a photographer from Blue Lens Caribe taking video and pictures during and after the ceremony. We will also be doing Trash The Dress photos, since I am actually planning to wear a wedding gown for the ceremony.

After Trash The Dress, we will both get changed for our private dinner in a restaurant, with a chocolate wedding cake, and music to dance to.

We wish we had a way to share this day with our kids, but, that is money we just don't have, so, it will just be us. The video will just have to do.

I will be posting pictures of some of the arrangements we have made so far.