It's already been a month since we left for a beautiful, romantic, exotic vacation in Riviera Maya! I never shared the photos, so if you're the type that hates those dinners you get sucked into accepting, and over dessert you're stuck watching a slide show of the fun someone else had, feel free to pass on by. If you're our family and friends, we thought you'd enjoy seeing them!

This is the lobby of our beautiful hotel. We were just blown away by how gorgeous it was, continually spotless. Speaking with the people at the desk was a bit of a challenge, but they were very gracious.

The main thoroughfare of the hotel. Every night we'd sit in this courtyard, enjoying a glass of wine and listening to musicians or theater performers. There were four weddings the week we visited, and it was such fun to see the bride and groom share their first dance in the middle of this gorgeous place.

Hours, hours, hours spent here. A more shallow pool, which spilled over into the larger pool, with lounge chairs built into the pool floor, and little tables and chairs if you wanted to sit there wet, eating nachos, or swim up to the poolside bar for some pretty drink with an umbrella in it. Every morning crazy vacationers did pool aerobics, then the afternoons sported volleyball games with lots of whooping and splashing.

If we got tired of the pool, we'd venture just past the gate to the beach area. Those lumps in the water are big bags of sand, put there to keep the beach from eroding. We never ventured deeper than our ankles, but it was absolutely gorgeous to take a stroll here every evening, after dinner.



Don has always wanted to go deep sea fishing. I'd jump out of the boat from the motion sickness that would surely get me, so he went alone, and this is what he caught. A dolphin, although they call it a dorado. He wanted to let it go, but the boat crew keeps all the catch to sell at the market. Of the five men who went, only two caught something, and since he'd waited so long for this adventure I was thrilled he was one of the two. I think he looks absolutely adorable here.

Another shot of the thoroughfare of our hotel. Just unbelievably beautiful.

We enjoyed a french dinner this night. Champagne at our table, and I don't even remember what we ate. It was not our favorite meal, but the atmosphere was lovely. The couple behind us was celebrating their wedding, and their table was sprinkled with rose petals.

We ate at this restaurant (all within our hotel) two nights, it was our favorite. I don't remember what we had here either, except the baked alaska dessert. I do remember the waiter kissed my hand when I thanked him for his service - how charming! I wore my hair crazy curly all week - the humidity of the tropics wreak havoc on any attempts to straighten it, so I just went with it

Poolside, waiting for somoeone to come by and ask us if we'd like anything at all. We spent hours and hours here, basting away, reading books, taking naps, when we'd get a bit warm we'd take a dip in the pool. There's a reason this photo is not zoomed in any closer - 50+ years old, you don't need to get close-ups of swimsuit shots! We did see some amazing sunbathers - thongs, on men and women! Bikinis that looked like they'd burst at the seams, truly you just saw it all. Pale, pale skin and we were sure they'd fry, people who were so tan they looked like they were a Coppertone commercial gone bad. If you want to feel good about yourself, go to a pool out of this country - there's always someone who looks so much better, then there are those wonderful people who just don't give a rip, don that bikini and enjoy life - we loved seeing that every day!

Labels: Family Affair