¿dónde está el baño?

We couldn't come up with a better way to celebrate our double graduation than to leave the country...

so the day after convocation we hopped on a plane (actually two)
and headed down to a week in paradise
in
Cancun, Mexico!

It was the ultimate vacation and I'm so glad we took advantage of the time we had to do this before entering mainstream society.
It was SO relaxing, although my brain was going through withdrawals for the first bit.
For some reason I guess I'm used to being stressed about something.

So here's a brief documentation of our trip.
(It may not seem brief, but believe me, I spared you on the photos, whether you you believe me or not)
(However, be prepared for a Cancun overload)

First night.
We ventured out to find dinner.
REAL mexican food is amazing.
And the sauces are spicy.

Second day.
Spent reading at the beach and inside our condo.
No documentation.
Just relaxation.
But here's a view from our room.

Third day.
We went to Xel Ha, an awesome snorkel park.
It was here we learned our two new favorite words.
All inclusive.
The park had three buffets-mexican, international, and fast food-that were all part of our entrance fee.
Translation: we could eat whatever we wanted for "free."
Steve was in heaven.
We saw lots of cool fish, held toucans and parrots, and chased lots of iguanas.
Unfortunately, we didn't get many pictures.
But it was gorgeous.

As part of our tour, we left Xel Ha and headed off to the ruins of Tulum.

The Mayan people picked the most gorgeous location for their sacred buildings.
It was built on a cliff to the seashore with a magnificent beach below.

Fourth day.
We took a boat out to Isla Mujeres.
It's a small island that's about a 20-minute boat ride away from Cancun.
I'm in LOVE with the Caribbean water, by the way.

On the dock.

We fell in love with the charming narrow streets.
The buildings are small and each are painted different colors.
It's so vibrant and charming and we LOVED it.
We spent the day roaming around the flea market part of the island and soaking in some Latin American culture.

And we quickly realized that horchata had to become a necessity on our trip.
We've always loved Cafe Rio's, but seriously?
This was incredible.
(We tried to make tres leches a necessity as well, but no one knew what we were talking about.
Really? Is that not a legit Mexican dessert? I feel gyped.)

Fifth day.
This was the day we headed out to Chichen Itza.
LOTS of driving (about three hours there and back).
But so worth it.
First we stopped at a cenote.
Basically it's a hole in the ground with an underground pool.
Awesome.

Outside the entrance to the cenote was a peacock.
Also awesome.

After the cenote we went to a small Mayan town and had a buffet lunch in a restaurant.
We were entertained with some traditional dances while we ate.


Then we finally made it to one of the new wonders of the world.
No words.
Except amazing. Beautiful. Unbelievable.
Okay, so there are a few words.



Days six and seven were spent mostly on the beach, per my request.
(It was so humid that my camera lens fogged up, so these pictures don't look that great.
Just imagine bright blue water and white sands, cuz that's how it was.)


We got non-alcoholic pina coladas from the hotel bar on the beach.
So good!


And we attempted to duplicate the magnificent structure we had seen the day before.
Not too shabby.
But thanks to Chichen Itza we have lovely red backs that hurt really bad.


On the last day we headed to Market 28 (kind of like the swap meet in Hawaii) for some dinner and exploration.
We still hadn't been serenaded by a mariachi band,
so luckily these guys were willing to step up to the plate.


I learned a LOT on our trip to Mexico. It was my first time traveling internationally.
(I don't count driving to Canada, sorry.)
Flying was a whole new experience.
Especially going through customs, haha.
Even though Cancun is very americanized (like their WalMart), I was still caught off guard by the language, bus system, hospitality, and overall quality of life.
We saw SO many stick huts in towns that people call their homes.
There were several times where I just thanked Heavenly Father for all my endless blessings.

Mexico is awesome.
I highly recommend it.
I felt like we could get around just fine without knowing Spanish, but the phrase that's the title of this post is one I definitely recommend knowing if you go.
Thanks for putting up with my forever long post.
Automatic ten points to whoever is still reading this.


hasta luego