[] tulum travels []

Ahhh, vacation time! My brother, myself and 20 of his closest friends decided to travel to Tulum, Mexico for 8 days of greatness.  My brother, Andy and I have a love for the Mexican lifestyle and laid back culture.  Most of our family trips have been to this area for awhile now.  They have amazing drift diving that rivals what I've experienced in the Great Barrier Reef. 100 ft down with 100ft visibility makes for effortless elation.  It was a great trip for me for several reasons: getting to travel, spending time not only with my brother and his wife Lisa, but meeting a bunch of new people and getting to know them throughout the week.  Both the best part and weirdest part: being unplugged from the world. Unplugging from the phone, weather widgets, calls, emails, tweets, updates, texts, editing, and any other media.  This was a first for me.

If and when you travel to Mexico, you have to turn your phone off so roaming charges aren't racking up, which kinda put me off for the first day.  I didn't have instant access via text to knowing the whereabouts of friends, and when and where we were to meet.  Even not knowing what time it was bugged me a little, as I usually just look at my phone for the time and weather. But I got over it, as I'm sure anyone would.  The 10 sun filled hours of each day spent in our all inclusive resort (the only way to do Mexico!) started each morning around 9am.  I roomed by myself and since the resort phone lines between rooms didn't consistently work, I made my way to breakfast hoping to see someone from our group.  Funny enough, I ate with strangers most mornings! It would either be a couple, married for several years inviting me to join them, sensitive to my "i don't know a single person in here" look, or just the wives of the men who sleep late (sounds like a support group) that just wanted some company for the morning.  The personal selection of refried black beans, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and the perfect Mexican cappuccino made each morning a bit more special. (yes, i drank coffee this trip!) Everyone was so communal and friendly.  I'm usually the one inviting strangers to join, so being on the other end of that was nice.

Everyday followed the same wonderful, relaxing routine: Breakfast, the beach, jumping the waves in the ocean, reading, sunning, drinking, laughing, and the evening pool time with everyone (which, I found out, that I dominate in water volleyball).  The ocean there was a great mix of sugary, white sand and 80 degree rolling waves.  These waves were the kind you can either jump or ride over, or dive underneath to avoid being swished around.  I calculated that I was in the water an average of 7 hours a day! Still not enough, though...

Adventures outside of the resort were anything but relaxing, but still a blast.  Sarah and I (my smart, hilarious, scientific friend from way back), went snorkeling in a cenote and then into open water with sea turtles, rays, and other coral life.  This cenote (over 40,000 just in that area) was a spring fed, water-filled cave that you accessed climbing backwards through a small hole down a metal ladder. Once you stood at the bottom, you are looking at water that resembles glass or a mirror.  Its hard to explain, just google a cenote and you'll see what i mean.  The water is motionless, ultra reflective and ice cold.  Its the kind of water you regret getting into.  But a nice change from the boggy jungle and blankets of mosquitoes you have to tramp through to get here.  Underwater lights were set up so that you could see the formations, but it also gave you a better perception on the depth and textures of what you were looking at.  It was an odd feeling to float over a giant, deep, black crevasse that you know went several hundred feet somewhere.  Or to look where the guide shined her underwater flashlight and see a mile of the cenotes nooks and crannies.  This was by far the best experience I had while there.

The second best group date would have been the ferry ride over to the island of Cozumel (our home away from home) and then renting 4 jeeps to drive around the sunlit coastlines: that was a great experience.  It was like Andy and I got to show all of our friends our favorite non-commercialized places and the side of island that is just so beautiful. Follow here for some mexican goodness...