Justin and Paula Travel

Sunday, 9 February 2025: Miss Mary Arrived in Celestun

Back in Celestun we scrambled to get ready for our most important guest. Today, Mary arrived!

Antonio met her at the airport and brought her to our house. I was reluctant at first to not be there and have Antonio pick her up but then she reminded me, she's a world traveler. She is fine! I sent them pictures so they'd recognize each other. (Antonio's photo looks more like a mug shot. Yes, he really can smile.) She told me later he'd greeted he with a kiss on the cheek. That's a pretty good welcome.

At the top of Mary's list was flamingoes and shrimp and grits.

Lots in store for the next few days.

Work continues on the bathroom in the big apartment. Plumbing must be complete before granite.

we had to repair the tile on the sink in Steve's room. I was cleaning and I came up underneath and whacked my head and knocked off tile. Good thing I have a hard head.

Tuesday, 4 February 2025: flight back to Merida and then home to Merida

The last few days in Oaxaca were great. With COusin Mike as our tour guide, we limited our exploring to the centro area. Next time we will venture out. We ate great food and we explored churches and shops. We were busy but not so much that we didn’t enjoy nap time.

One of the highlights of the trip was reconnecting with Pedro. Pedro and his family came to visit us in Celestun when they came with Robin and Laura. That was more than five years ago. We found that our hotel was only about two blocks from the restaurant where he works. We went there for breakfast and then returned in the afternoon when he was finished. We enjoyed a beverage and a snack; he invited us to his home in his village, San Juan Teitipac. It is a small farming village, maybe 3,000 people. Next time.

Justin and I have been sharing my phone. I love this man and I’ve chosen to share a life with him and a bed and once even a toothbrush. He needs his own phone.

Back in Merida, the Apple Store was the first stop. Yes, Justin is jumping into the Apple world.

Saturday, 1 February 2025: Puerto Escondido to Oaxaca City

Time to depart this lovely beach. First stop, the airport to see about Justin’s phone. No luck there but we weren’t really expecting any. On to our hotel.

Cousin Mike had been in Oaxaca for several weeks then he went to Mexico City for a week or so. He’s returning to Oaxaca for two days on his way back to St Louis. It will be great to catch up with him again and he can be our tour guide.

We checked into the Hotel Monte Albán and then we went out to explore. Cousin Mike missed his flight; he took a bus from CDMX to return … over seven hours. It was close to midnight when we connected with him.

treasures from the beach

Friday, 31 January 2025: in the Pacific aboard “Sammy “

Happy birthday to Justin. We are in the right place to celebrate.

We explored a bit yesterday but not so much to be able to say we had a full day. We did book our boating tour for today though.

We started this morning way too early but we made our way to the playa for a whale watching and dolphin and turtles.

With only 8 other adults and two children, Captain Fernando piloted “Sammy” and we were on our way. We saw at least four whales or our way 6-8 miles off shore to a school of at least 500 spinner dolphins. We only saw two turtles and they were in the distance but it was ok since the whales and dolphins had already stolen the show. The dolphins were relatively small, typically 6 to 61/2 feet long and maybe only 150-160 pounds but simply spectacular. At one point Fernando stopped the boat ahead of the dolphins — Justin was the first one in the water. It was really quite warm for the Pacific. As many times as I wouldn’t get in the Mediterranean and as many times as I wouldn’t get into the pacific, today the water was quite warm and perfect. Plus, we had all the dolphins. Fernando certainly earned his tip for the day when he had to help me get back aboard…poor guy. Justin videoed the extraction and I need to delete that not only from my phone but also from my memory. All in all, it was so worth having to get up early.

We’d heard that the food in Oaxaca offered more variety than that in the Yucatan. We found that claim to be factual. A couple of days ago we had a ceviche that claimed to have been marinated in “leche de Tigre” — tiger milk was actually coconut milk infused with herbs. It certainly elevated the traditional ceviche. A couple of nights ago we had a tuna taco that will also go into the rotation. Seared tuna topped with sprouts, red onions, guacamole and daikon. Breakfast today was memorable. We had a Oaxacan Huevos Rancheros. I’ll need to replicate this. Dip a tortilla in enchilada sauce, top with a fried egg. Top with another tortilla dipped in enchilada sauce. Top with shredded cheese and avocado slices. Yummy!!! Oaxaca is known for their mole and while I’m usually not a fan, Justin had some a few days ago that might have me changing my mind. I’m eager to get to Oaxaca City to try more.

As nice as the ocean view is from our hotel room the location also means that we are front and center for the sounds from the street. Even on the third floor, the music was close to unbearable …and almost until 5am. We were ready for a nap by the pool when we returned from our boat trip.

Justin’s birthday dinner called for pasta and pizza. Not typical Mexican or Oaxacan fare, but that’s what the birthday boy needed.