Friends and Isla Mujeres

Our friends, Peggy and Denny, came to visit last week bringing Christmas in February. We had loaded them up, as we tend to do, with things that we just can't get down here like an oven stone to bake bread. Peggy, as she tends to do, totally surprised us with a bread machine to go with the stone. Ed has already given it a try and the result a perfect loaf of truly whole wheat bread - a truly wonderful thing in the land of bleached white flour.
After a day out on Rita's boat snorkelling, the four of us took a "road" trip. We took thef erry to Playa Del Carmen, a bus to Cancun, a taxi to Puerto Juarez and another ferry to Isla Mujeres (the Women Island). What a fun place to spend a few days if you like beaches of perfectly white powdery sand, brilliantly turquoise water and fantastic fresh fish dinners.
We stayed in an immaculate hotel a short walk from the ferry with walls of glass and big balconies overlooking the channel between Cancun and "Isla". Outside the front door to our room, we saw the open ocean just about 25 yards away and 100 yards the other way. Now that's a skinny island! We rented a golf cart to check out the sights. The passenger couple sat facing backwards and got to fully experience the "topes" (speed bumps). Translation: some of our backs won't be the same!
We apologize in advance if you don't like pictures of blue, blue ocean and white sandy beaches!

A short break from our golf cart tour.

Peggy going for her second swim of the day at about 9:00 AM.

View from our room.

Can you believe the color of this water?

After we returned to Cozumel, Peggy and Denny joined our "Trashy Little Group" for one of our official beach clean-ups. Our group of 20 or so picked up 32 bags of trash and then had a delicious potluck brunch at our fearless leader's house. Later in the afternoon we went to a beach down south that our friends George and Merrill had recommended. Great swimming and an interesting menangerie of animals including peacocks, chickens and even some crocodiles! We took some pics of the crocs but thankfully we didn't get as close and personal as we did with the peacocks!

Thanks for coming, Peggy and Denny, treating us to delicious meals and all of our Christmas presents!