Mckay and I just celebrated our 10 year anniversary (it was actually back in March, but remember I married a tax guy)! We took a trip to Mexico. The place that we actually stayed at was called Akumal Beach Resort and it is about 1.5 hours from Cancun. I cannot say enough about this trip and the time I got to spend with my sweetheart. It was a dream come true and more than we could have imagined. I'll be the first to admit, we were a little sad/anxious to leave behind our 4 kids for that long of a time frame...so having them left in good hands and well taken care of eased our minds once we were off and going (Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Swensen). We would get a laugh out of the kids when we did call home and they would ask first and most importantly, "Did you get me my surprise yet?", followed by a few wishes that they wanted us to bring them home. This made it clear that they were totally normal and doing fine without us, although there may have been a few countdown moments. We were gone for 6 nights and it felt like one big long date, before baby number 5 comes in October!
Warning: This post is going to be a picture overload so we can remember all the fun we had.
A view of the mountains from the plane.
Up in the clouds. After the first plane I wasn't feeling well and had to refuel with something to eat at the next airport. I think we both took turns feeling wheezy on the way there. The way home was much better!
We were a little curious how the travel to the resort would work out, but they had it all down to a T and we arrived and checked into our resort with ease.
Waiting the first morning for our LDS tour guide named Lemuel.
Let the fun begin!
Seating at our resort, I have never even seen palm trees before this trip (that I can recall) so that was neat.
The plants were unique.
Lemuel drove a car with only himself, Mckay, and I on a personal tour the whole day. It was neat asking him (he is actually a Stake President in Cancun) all sorts of questions about the area, what he worries about in the church there, and more questions about the ruins we were about to see that day and how they related to the Book of Mormon. It was such a great experience and one of the highlights of our trip.
Our first stop was Chichen Itza.
What a neat and amazingly huge structure.
Here you can see on the left...one of the snake heads. It is said that only a couple of times a year the way the sun hits the stairs creates an equinox that you can see a large snake coming down the steps. One of the days this happens thousands of tourist visit in May, but our guide also told us it also happens on April 6th (the Savior's birthday).
This is a large ball field that they used to compete in back then.
They would try to hit a ball through that ring on the wall.
A view of the highways they had back then.
A more recent discovery next to Chichen Itza.
We ran into iguanas all over the place.
This is where they watched and observed the stars
An old baptismal font.
After visiting Chichen Itza we went to lunch at a buffet and then we got to swim and jump into a cenote. It was so refreshing and fun, although we didn't get pictures there since the camera was safe in the car.
Then we headed to Ek Balam, another ancient ruin.
A local lady making a hammock.
Another smaller ball field.
Behind us is another huge structure just waiting to be uncovered.
There was so much still left here to discover.
A place where they gathered their water and Lemuel in the background.
We got to climb up that pyramid.
Half way up.
A view of how flat the area is and covered by trees.
A view from the top.
Another baptismal font.
It was such an educational day.
Meanwhile back at the resort...
Here is our beach.
Dining at the restaurant.
The food was okay, but by the end of the trip I think we were both missing our food from back home.
Looking for shells.
Here is our resort in the perfect location to snorkel.
Getting ready for the day.
So pretty.
Being silly.
Cute towel creation.
The second day we decided to swim in the ocean for the first time. We have been to the Oregon coast before, but that water is cold just putting your feet in. This was the first time either one of us had really swam in the ocean water.
Getting ready to snorkel.
We had a blast.
Trying out our underwater camera.
It was so much fun and exceeded our expectations.
Looking at the fish.
It was fun to be kids again!
Since it was so easy to float in salt water, here is Mckay trying to stay down for a picture.
It was so much fun!
A large blue fish.
The reef
We even spotted a huge sea turtle munching on the sea grass.
As well as a smaller one, and a sting ray not pictured.
This was near our resort and was a major drop off location for snorkeling with the turtles at Akumal Beach.
What a LIFE!
It was interesting how early the sun went down. Another thing that seemed different to us was that each time we got out of the water we instantly just warmed right up. Normally when we get out of the water here we are scrambling for a nearby towel to break the cold.
The following day we headed to Xcaret! This was another full day adventure from sun up till sun down.
We started out our day by eating breakfast at our resort then hoping on a bus to the park. There we got in an underground river to snorkel and explore around.
It was so cool!
Since we picked the river with more caves there were times that we could barely see what was in front of us. We kept thinking that the kids would have been freaking out by this point!
I had a great time with the love of my life!
After getting out of the river we were near the ocean. The water was so beautiful!
We had a few snacks throughout the day and tried hard to hold off as long as possible from eating our one included buffet meal (it happened to be at a seafood place and this didn't settle well with Mckay for the next week or two).
They had these really cool swimming pools that the ocean water would just flow into. It was nice to cool off when it was a little too hot at times.
Also there were neat rituals they performed.
We kept thinking about the kids and what they would think about this place.
They would have loved these dolphins doing tricks.
Or these manatees.
The plants were very pretty and thick.
I'm not sure what the girls would have thought about this iguana running wild all over, but the boys would have enjoyed them!
Baby turtle.
A nurse shark.
Another ritual ceremony.
One of these men was 65 and hanging upside down by their feet.
Neat birds.
Waterfall
Flamingos
Getting ready for the night show.
It was a major cultural event.
Well worth the wait.
It was great to sit, relax, and enjoy the show before heading back to the resort for the night.
Another day we decided to eat breakfast, and get ready to head to Playa Del Carmen for some souvenir shopping.
It was a cool place to visit and shop for great deals. It is interesting how much the people trying to sell you stuff try to go down just to get you to purchase their items. They would always say "Its free to touch".
We met this nice couple at our resort (they are from Edmonton, Canada). They seemed to know a lot of the ins and outs of the Cancun area and were super sweet to show us around/help us figure out how to catch a collective, since they have done a lot of traveling. It was a fun experience!
We even found a Walmart!
Always the best prices around!!
Then it was back to our resort for lunch and relaxing!
We spent another day snorkeling and exploring.
Trying to put my hair up while floating.
My best friend!
At the snack bar.
Our resort view.
Getting a non-alcoholic pina colada.
The morning we had to head back to reality!
One last picture on the beach. What a dream come true vacation with my best friend. Mckay now teases that he is fluent in Spanish. I would agree that we both got better at picking up certain vocabulary words and it was fun for me to recall a bit of what I learned in high school Spanish class!
For the most part we felt safe the whole trip, aside from one evening at our resort. We were both jolted awake to hear loud banging. Followed by crashing sounds like things were breaking, loud yelling and fighting, and perhaps the icing on the cake was the chilling lady's scream. This forced us to call the front desk. They took care of things pretty quickly and gave the woman another room for the night. My mind was racing and I had a hard time turning off my wild imagination and the things that could happen to us since with were the ones who told. I was hoping they wouldn't know who did and wishing at the same time that I could just be anywhere but trapped in that room, somewhere where I felt much safer. Morning brought back a peaceful feeling and that couple was told to leave the next day. Everything turned out fine.
While we were on our trip, we put Dick in charge of anything relating to our home in Kuna, as it was set to close while we were out of the country. Things all got worked out and we are officially no longer homeowners for the time being. What a relief and a blessing! We have been waiting, praying, and dreaming for this to happen for such a long time.
Dreams really do come true!
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