Moodiejeff
Contributor
I wrote up this trip report on the plane going down to Coz... I know its pretty late but what the heck, here it is anyway. Its short and to the point with some cutting and pasting from previous posts. Ill try not to wait 2 more months to get the latest one done.
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Here I sit (August 23) on the flight down to Cozumel for our third time this year... I figured it was about time to write up a quick little trip report from our last trip which we are now 2 months removed. June 20-27.
Flew down on a charter through Funjet on United, Ill tell ya, a direct flight from Chicago is sure nice! Was dismayed to see that it was pouring when we landed. Christi picked us up from the airport in her new, shiny and unfortunately wet truck Lola. She was dropping off Chris & Gina as they were flying out that day. Chris suggested lunch so we could get to know each other as they had some time to kill so we all headed to Guidos for a nice lunch of good food and great company. Chris even picked up the tab, what posessed him to buy us lunch Ill never understand but Im forever grateful. I owe ya one buddy! I hope we get the chance to dive together someday.
We stayed at The Presidente again, nothing but the best for us! We actually got the exact room that Chris & Gina had just vacated. It wasnt quite ready when we checked in... I wonder what they were doing in there As usual The Presidente didnt disappoint and it even seemed to be a little better service wise. Damn expensive though!
Diving was through Blue XT~Sea and Christis crew didnt disappoint. Most dives were with Pedro as DM but we had Javier 2 days and Christi as our DM another. All 3 provided highlights to the trip. Pedro found us 2 seahorses together, Javier found us another seahorse and Christi took us to Chun Chacab on a day where Mago called the conditions Perfecto. All in all, we did 20 dives over 7 days, I wont bore you with all the details.
We had a core group on the boat almost all week of Glen, Nicole, Dave, Mikki, Mia and Me. It was a real treat to have such a good group diving together all week. It makes a huge difference when you get a group that clicks like we did.
We got to meet a few other Scubaboarders while down there... Kent (divedoggie) and his girlfriends brother and Steve (OMalley) his wife and one of their friends. Steve I actually knew from back in the day when we worked together. What a small world.
Another thing we tried this trip was to rent a motorcycle... yes, I said motorcycle - not scooter - from Tony Rome. Granted, it was pretty small (150cc) but it sure beats those crappy scooters they have down there! It was nice to have the freedom to explore the island whenever we wanted... not that we had too much time considering all the diving we did!
Food:
1. Lobster tail at Prima was the best (again!) and the company (Christi) wasn't too bad either Mia had the seafood combo fettucine which was pretty darn good too.
2. Crab stuffed Salmon at Acuario was out of this world. I don't think of Salmon as a "tropical" fish dish but it was amazing. Mia had Mahi and that was good too.
3. Mesa 17 - Crab stuffed Grouper was a close third. Plus their cheesecake dessert is one of my favorites anywhere... yes anywhere, not just Cozumel.
4. Shrimp Zambal at Especias. A bunch of Scubaboarders met up there and we had a fantastic time.
5. The Wahoo marinated in Balsamic Vinegar over veggies at Guido's was our 1st meal on the island and was really good (and free, thanks again Chris!!!). Went there for dinner towards the end of the trip and was extremely disappointed. Was hit & miss this trip.
Wrap up:
An exceptional trip slightly marred by a few things out of or control - Way too much rain and unrelenting mosquitos.
Ahhh, were flying over the Yucatan peninsula right now... Im sure I will add to this but Im gonna end for now in preperation for our next adventure. 9 days in our little slice of Paradise!
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Here I sit (August 23) on the flight down to Cozumel for our third time this year... I figured it was about time to write up a quick little trip report from our last trip which we are now 2 months removed. June 20-27.
Flew down on a charter through Funjet on United, Ill tell ya, a direct flight from Chicago is sure nice! Was dismayed to see that it was pouring when we landed. Christi picked us up from the airport in her new, shiny and unfortunately wet truck Lola. She was dropping off Chris & Gina as they were flying out that day. Chris suggested lunch so we could get to know each other as they had some time to kill so we all headed to Guidos for a nice lunch of good food and great company. Chris even picked up the tab, what posessed him to buy us lunch Ill never understand but Im forever grateful. I owe ya one buddy! I hope we get the chance to dive together someday.
We stayed at The Presidente again, nothing but the best for us! We actually got the exact room that Chris & Gina had just vacated. It wasnt quite ready when we checked in... I wonder what they were doing in there As usual The Presidente didnt disappoint and it even seemed to be a little better service wise. Damn expensive though!
Diving was through Blue XT~Sea and Christis crew didnt disappoint. Most dives were with Pedro as DM but we had Javier 2 days and Christi as our DM another. All 3 provided highlights to the trip. Pedro found us 2 seahorses together, Javier found us another seahorse and Christi took us to Chun Chacab on a day where Mago called the conditions Perfecto. All in all, we did 20 dives over 7 days, I wont bore you with all the details.
We had a core group on the boat almost all week of Glen, Nicole, Dave, Mikki, Mia and Me. It was a real treat to have such a good group diving together all week. It makes a huge difference when you get a group that clicks like we did.
We got to meet a few other Scubaboarders while down there... Kent (divedoggie) and his girlfriends brother and Steve (OMalley) his wife and one of their friends. Steve I actually knew from back in the day when we worked together. What a small world.
Another thing we tried this trip was to rent a motorcycle... yes, I said motorcycle - not scooter - from Tony Rome. Granted, it was pretty small (150cc) but it sure beats those crappy scooters they have down there! It was nice to have the freedom to explore the island whenever we wanted... not that we had too much time considering all the diving we did!
Food:
1. Lobster tail at Prima was the best (again!) and the company (Christi) wasn't too bad either Mia had the seafood combo fettucine which was pretty darn good too.
2. Crab stuffed Salmon at Acuario was out of this world. I don't think of Salmon as a "tropical" fish dish but it was amazing. Mia had Mahi and that was good too.
3. Mesa 17 - Crab stuffed Grouper was a close third. Plus their cheesecake dessert is one of my favorites anywhere... yes anywhere, not just Cozumel.
4. Shrimp Zambal at Especias. A bunch of Scubaboarders met up there and we had a fantastic time.
5. The Wahoo marinated in Balsamic Vinegar over veggies at Guido's was our 1st meal on the island and was really good (and free, thanks again Chris!!!). Went there for dinner towards the end of the trip and was extremely disappointed. Was hit & miss this trip.
Wrap up:
An exceptional trip slightly marred by a few things out of or control - Way too much rain and unrelenting mosquitos.
Ahhh, were flying over the Yucatan peninsula right now... Im sure I will add to this but Im gonna end for now in preperation for our next adventure. 9 days in our little slice of Paradise!