Hola amigos!
Finally I have arrived in the beautiful city of Cancun. Before coming to Cancun, Mexico I had heard somewhere that people either love it or hate, there is no in between. I've been to Cancun a couple times before but I've never explored as much as I have on this trip.The most talked about reason for not liking Cancun is how Americanized it is. True, but at the same time its still very much Mexican. That being said, it doesn't change the fact that I absolutely LOVE Cancun. I'll tell you why in a bit. I feel like most people just think of Mexico on a whole as being too dangerous to visit, but really its a beautiful place and I'm sure my pictures'll definitely show that. Most people know Cancun as a perfect beach destination with its white sand, sun and blue Caribbean waters (spot on), all-you–can-eat Mexican buffets, and a place for hardcore partying. All true! To say the beaches here are beautiful is really quite an understatement. I have to say the Cancun beaches are some of the best I have seen to date! Being here after a few years it's obvious to me that a more sophisticated Cancun is on the rise. Hint nemero uno: Avantgarde Architecture. Mexico is untouchable when it comes to architecture. That's just my opinion but I invite you to visit Mexico and see for yourself.
Hint numero dos: FOOOOOD! Of course you can still get tacos, salbutes, garnaches, burritos and other delicious street food but now, thanks to an emerging upscale culinary scene, you can dine on inventive fare prepared by chefs with global cred.
Hint numero tres: Cancun has THE Best Airport in the Americas. Airports Council International (ACI) regularly ranks Cancun International Airport (CUN), Mexico’s second busiest, as the best airport in Latin America and the Caribbean. They cite a winning combination of speedy service (I can attest to this) and a functional layout. I felt as though I was whisked through Mexican Immigration and Customs. Before I had a chance to switch my phone on to change the time to local time I was already out of the airport on a bus ready to explore Cancun.
Hint numero cuatro: Where else in the whole wide world can anyone find clean streets??? Mexico is just so clean. Uncomfortably or rather noticeably clean. LOL.
Hint numero cinco: Friendly, hard working people. Ever heard that statement about Mexicans being hard working people? Well you better believe it's true.
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| Fresh off the bus from the Airport. |
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| At the ADO Bus Terminal in Cancun, Mexico. |
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| Liverpool store at Plaza Las Americas. |
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| Tulum, Mexico. |
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| View from the moving bus, hence the blurr. |
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| Bought this awesome hat from a Mexican vendor. Its made entirely of Coconut palm leaves. |
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| We decided to savour some Mexican chow on our way around the city. Here the vendor has a variety of "chow". |
Im the type of girl who loves to shop, but when in Mexico, there is only one thing better than shopping in my eyes and that’s FOOD! Chow doesn't count as food really but Mexican food on a whole is a treat for the eyes and belly!
***Chow is a Trinidadian term for a refreshing combination of fresh fruits, garlic and pepper. Consider it a "spiced up" fruit salad.
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| For the love of musical instruments. Especially electric guitars. |
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| We stumbled upon this... |
This is a fish spa, also called 'PESSPA' since "pes" is fish in Spanish.
"The Garra Rufa is a tropical warmwater fish. It belongs to the family of carp and can be found mostly in Kangal, Turkey. It measures between ¾” to 1 ¾” and can grow to 2 ¾” as adult. Local population discovered the ability of this fish to improve certain skin conditions. Garra Rufa fish is also known as Doctor Fish because of the “ kisses” that are able to procure skin benefits , wellness and relaxation. This amazing fish has many virtues that have made it famous, buth the most well-known is the natural way to remove the dead cells of the outer layer of the skin. It is completely harmless , Garra Rufa do not have teeth, they only soak up dead cells from the outer layer of the skin without touching the inner layers. As part of their natural instinct the fish generates an enzyme that regenerates the skin. It´s incredibly relaxing and enjoyable."
Source.
You can actually feel a gentle vibrating massage of the fish suctioning on your skin. These "doctor fish" as they are popularly called, do an excellent job of cleaning your skin. There are also full body fish spas in Cancun, but this spa was just the thing we needed, since we'd been on our feet for an hour until we found the fish spa. We paid $20 USD total for 15 minutes. These "doctor" fish definitely do a great job of going all over your legs and feet and it feels nothing short of pleasant.
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Of course I had to try this especially since I missed the
opportunity on my Indonesia trip last year. |
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The guy cleaned our feet before we could place them in the
water. |
You're not allowed to enter the spa with any lotion, spray or other contaminants on your skin so they "cleaned" us up before having us put our feet in the water.
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| We opted for some rest and relaxation (R&R). |
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| Fishes nibbling on our feet. Such a relaxing feeling. |
All in all, the fish spa in Cancun was a great experience and we definitely recommend doing this.
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| Who doesn't have a sweet tooth? |
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What an awesome tattoo shop. We ended up in here in search of a new nose ring
for yours truly. The tattoos are the best work I've ever seen. It was amazing seeing
live tattooing and the clients weren't even flinching. #hardcore |
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New nose ring. Well actually I ended up purchasing three new nose rings. You know those
moments when you just can't walk away with one item from a store or you'll be miserable about it?
Yeah....that exactly! #piercings |
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| Nose ring numero uno (My favourite). |
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| Nose ring numero dos. |
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| Nose ring numero tres. |
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| Cross section of the mall. |
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| At the Cinema. VIP Style. |
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| Its as though the lights are giant jelly fishes. |
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| They say this owl makes you happy. |
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| 4D Cinema. |
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| Apparently Sponge Bob the Superhero movie is a big deal in Mexico right now. |
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| Line up of movies showing. SUB means subtitles are in Spanish. |
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| Love this ride. |
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| Hooters has got some good food. That is all. :P |
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Still eating Caramel popcorn from the movies. Ive got a huge bottle of water
since I tend to get thirsty when eating popcorn. The funny thing about the size of the popcorn
was that the smallest size is what we'd consider "LARGE" in Trinidad & Tobago.
Everything is always super sized in Mexico. I'd probably get "fat" in one week if I stayed
in Mexico, but then again my genes and my metabolism wouldn't permit that.
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Outside view of Plaza Las Americas, Cancun. This mall is so incredibly huge. Its got
Ground level (pictured above), Below ground level (savy car park), a level below that (another car park)
then two storeys above Ground level, inclusive of an indoor trampoline park. Truth be told we got
sidetracked a lot and never really had time to explore the entire mall, which probably wouldn't
have happened anyway, even if we hadn't gotten sidetracked. |
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I dont know what blasphemy is this. LMAO. Stopped at this shop to pick up souvenirs for my
friends and family and these caught my eye. I found these pieces to be interesting, showed them to my husband
and we had a good laugh. Can't think of anyone I'd give this to hmmmm. Wait! I think my Brother
in law would appreciate this.
#onlyinmexico #bigpeoplething |
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| Front view of the mall....or back view perhaps, because we entered from another side. |
As with any large city, there are loads of things to do. Cancun is no different. Besides eating and shopping there are many things to do I just haven't gotten around to doing them yet, especially since I've only been here for a day. So, my first impression of Cancun? It’s fantastic! Need to know more? Keep your eyes peeled right here for posts on all the activities I will be doing on my travels to Latin America. A couple of weeks reading my posts and checking out all of my photos may make you feel like you were here yourself!
Adios! See you in my next post.
