Domino Safari 7/23/03
This trip was by far one of the coolest things we have ever done! We booked the Domino Safari through Blue Angel. You can see a few pictures on their website. I also took some that I hope to post soon.
We were up at 4:00 a.m., a taxi picked us up and took us to the ferry at 4:30 a.m. and we took the 5:00 a.m. taxi over to Playa del Carmen. From there we had to find this van and driver that were to take us to Chiquila. We were with two other couples from our hotel, another guy and our guide Cathy (she normally lives on Isla Holbox, but came back to Cozumel to get some clothes/do laundry!). We found the van/driver and we set out on our way. At the van we also picked up two new people who were staying in Playa del Carmen.
The van ride was no treat! This guy drove like a maniac and almost ran three different cars off the road. He also got lost and took a wrong road. If we hadnt had Cathy with us who knows if we would have made it to Chiquila! In addition to his crazy almost running people off the road driving, he also almost gave us all whiplash. There are tons of speed bumps between Playa del Carmen and Chiquila. He would floor it as fast as he could go, then slam on his brakes when he got to one, go over it and repeat the process! We also noticed that the Service Engine Soon light had been on for at least half of the way! No one in the van was pleased with the driver or the van. Luckily we made it to Chiquila just in time once we pulled over the driver opened the hood and there was a problem! Thank goodness we didnt have to go any further! I think it was around 9:30 by the time we arrived in Chiquila due to our driver taking the wrong road.
From Chiquila we boarded a boat that took us across to Isla Holbox. Our group was doing the Domino Safari as well as some people from Blue Angel that were already over there. Alejandra (owner of BA) was there along with a marine biologist and a few other people. We dropped off the two people from Playa del Carmen to go in Ales boat, so wed have fewer people in our boat. We then had a total of 7 people (only 6 were getting in the water to swim), our guide and boat captain.
From Isla Holbox we set out on a 2 ½ to 3-hour boat ride out into the middle of the ocean. We were going to where the Caribbean Sea meets the Gulf of Mexico. Thats where the whale sharks are located. We finally got to the spot and then Cathy went to the front of the boat to find one of the whale sharks. She spotted one within a matter of five minutes.
This is how it worked. Only two people could go in the water at a time. The boat would get near the whale shark in the same direction it was swimming. Then two people would slip into the water in their snorkel gear as quietly as possible. They would swim across to the whale shark and then swim along side of it for as long as their energy would take them.
I cannot even fully describe how thrilling it was to see these AMAZING gentle giants up close and personal. The first time I got in the water I was so excited that I think I was almost hyperventilating. I only lasted a few strokes next to the whale shark. It was really incredible to be swimming next to something so huge that has no interest in eating you! They look like theyre swimming really slowly with the slow swaying motion of their tail, but theyre actually going at a pretty good clip. When I stopped to poke my head out of the water to breathe a minute on my way back to the boat everyone started shouting at me to look down. I looked down and my husband said that I screamed through my snorkel there was a huge one swimming just a few feet below me. Absolutely incredible and so beautiful!
We ended up seeing around 20 of the whale sharks while we were out there. The marine biologist later told me later in the week that they saw over 100 the next day! We all got to swim with them 4 or 5 times each. It was WONDERFUL! I love the whale sharks! The thing I was most surprised about was their tiny little eyes they have for being such a large creature!
We begged to do more, but they told us it was time to go. We set off in our boat to go to another little island to stop for lunch. The other group was already there. They had some fish and were grilling it for us to eat. We hung out on this beautiful remote island (I think they said it was called Cabo something?) for about an hour and then we had to leave. We rode the boat back around Isla Holbox and back to Chiquila. We arrive in Chiquila at 5:30.
From Chiquila to Playa del Carmen the transportation was a little tricky again. Our van hadn't shown up. Cathy tried to call to find out what the deal was and they said they had come at 3:00, waited until 4:30 and then left because we were not there! Well this was ludicrous, because what did they think we walked back?! We were also not due back there until 5:30 or 6:00. We were supposed to take the 9:00 ferry back, but we knew this wouldnt happen since our van wasnt there. Cathy apologized for the bad situation and worked to correct it. She hired three taxis to drive us back to Playa del Carmen. The taxis cost $90 per taxi Cathy paid for them.
The two couples from our hotel got into one cab, the two people from Playa del Carmen got into another and myself, Ronny, and another guy got into the last cab. Our taxi driver spoke very limited English and we all spoke very limited Spanish, so it was quite interesting trying to communicate. He was a good driver though and knew the road like the back of his hand. He knew where every pothole in that road was and we didnt drive over any of them. He did drive fast, but he seemed much more together than our morning driver. We were thankful to not be in the van with him! Once we got close to the main highway I think it was near Cancun we saw the other two taxis pulled off the road. He pulled over to them, spoke some words in Spanish and then proceeded to pull down this narrow dirt road with the other two taxis following us. It was pitch black out by this time and it looked like he was taking us someplace to get robbed. We thought the banditos were going to jump us any second. Well, he must have seen that we were nervous, because he said, Its ok. Shortcut. 1 km. We were still skeptical, especially when we got to the end of the road and it was roped off. He said, Its ok. We pay a toll. Private road. Sure enough a person with a lantern came over to us and asked our driver for 10 pesos. After he paid, they dropped the rope and we were off onto the main road again. It was actually a very good shortcut, because it took a lot of time off our trip.
We arrived in Playa del Carmen at 9:40 just in time to catch the 10:00 ferry back to Cozumel. We arrived back to Caribe Blu at 11:00 p.m. and were ready for bed! We told Blue Angel about our driving experiences the next day and told them to NEVER hire that guy ever again. I dont think they will! Even though it was a huge journey to get there and we only got to actually be with the whale sharks for a few hours, it was totally worth it. It was amazing and I hope to do it again some day.
This trip was by far one of the coolest things we have ever done! We booked the Domino Safari through Blue Angel. You can see a few pictures on their website. I also took some that I hope to post soon.
We were up at 4:00 a.m., a taxi picked us up and took us to the ferry at 4:30 a.m. and we took the 5:00 a.m. taxi over to Playa del Carmen. From there we had to find this van and driver that were to take us to Chiquila. We were with two other couples from our hotel, another guy and our guide Cathy (she normally lives on Isla Holbox, but came back to Cozumel to get some clothes/do laundry!). We found the van/driver and we set out on our way. At the van we also picked up two new people who were staying in Playa del Carmen.
The van ride was no treat! This guy drove like a maniac and almost ran three different cars off the road. He also got lost and took a wrong road. If we hadnt had Cathy with us who knows if we would have made it to Chiquila! In addition to his crazy almost running people off the road driving, he also almost gave us all whiplash. There are tons of speed bumps between Playa del Carmen and Chiquila. He would floor it as fast as he could go, then slam on his brakes when he got to one, go over it and repeat the process! We also noticed that the Service Engine Soon light had been on for at least half of the way! No one in the van was pleased with the driver or the van. Luckily we made it to Chiquila just in time once we pulled over the driver opened the hood and there was a problem! Thank goodness we didnt have to go any further! I think it was around 9:30 by the time we arrived in Chiquila due to our driver taking the wrong road.
From Chiquila we boarded a boat that took us across to Isla Holbox. Our group was doing the Domino Safari as well as some people from Blue Angel that were already over there. Alejandra (owner of BA) was there along with a marine biologist and a few other people. We dropped off the two people from Playa del Carmen to go in Ales boat, so wed have fewer people in our boat. We then had a total of 7 people (only 6 were getting in the water to swim), our guide and boat captain.
From Isla Holbox we set out on a 2 ½ to 3-hour boat ride out into the middle of the ocean. We were going to where the Caribbean Sea meets the Gulf of Mexico. Thats where the whale sharks are located. We finally got to the spot and then Cathy went to the front of the boat to find one of the whale sharks. She spotted one within a matter of five minutes.
This is how it worked. Only two people could go in the water at a time. The boat would get near the whale shark in the same direction it was swimming. Then two people would slip into the water in their snorkel gear as quietly as possible. They would swim across to the whale shark and then swim along side of it for as long as their energy would take them.
I cannot even fully describe how thrilling it was to see these AMAZING gentle giants up close and personal. The first time I got in the water I was so excited that I think I was almost hyperventilating. I only lasted a few strokes next to the whale shark. It was really incredible to be swimming next to something so huge that has no interest in eating you! They look like theyre swimming really slowly with the slow swaying motion of their tail, but theyre actually going at a pretty good clip. When I stopped to poke my head out of the water to breathe a minute on my way back to the boat everyone started shouting at me to look down. I looked down and my husband said that I screamed through my snorkel there was a huge one swimming just a few feet below me. Absolutely incredible and so beautiful!
We ended up seeing around 20 of the whale sharks while we were out there. The marine biologist later told me later in the week that they saw over 100 the next day! We all got to swim with them 4 or 5 times each. It was WONDERFUL! I love the whale sharks! The thing I was most surprised about was their tiny little eyes they have for being such a large creature!
We begged to do more, but they told us it was time to go. We set off in our boat to go to another little island to stop for lunch. The other group was already there. They had some fish and were grilling it for us to eat. We hung out on this beautiful remote island (I think they said it was called Cabo something?) for about an hour and then we had to leave. We rode the boat back around Isla Holbox and back to Chiquila. We arrive in Chiquila at 5:30.
From Chiquila to Playa del Carmen the transportation was a little tricky again. Our van hadn't shown up. Cathy tried to call to find out what the deal was and they said they had come at 3:00, waited until 4:30 and then left because we were not there! Well this was ludicrous, because what did they think we walked back?! We were also not due back there until 5:30 or 6:00. We were supposed to take the 9:00 ferry back, but we knew this wouldnt happen since our van wasnt there. Cathy apologized for the bad situation and worked to correct it. She hired three taxis to drive us back to Playa del Carmen. The taxis cost $90 per taxi Cathy paid for them.
The two couples from our hotel got into one cab, the two people from Playa del Carmen got into another and myself, Ronny, and another guy got into the last cab. Our taxi driver spoke very limited English and we all spoke very limited Spanish, so it was quite interesting trying to communicate. He was a good driver though and knew the road like the back of his hand. He knew where every pothole in that road was and we didnt drive over any of them. He did drive fast, but he seemed much more together than our morning driver. We were thankful to not be in the van with him! Once we got close to the main highway I think it was near Cancun we saw the other two taxis pulled off the road. He pulled over to them, spoke some words in Spanish and then proceeded to pull down this narrow dirt road with the other two taxis following us. It was pitch black out by this time and it looked like he was taking us someplace to get robbed. We thought the banditos were going to jump us any second. Well, he must have seen that we were nervous, because he said, Its ok. Shortcut. 1 km. We were still skeptical, especially when we got to the end of the road and it was roped off. He said, Its ok. We pay a toll. Private road. Sure enough a person with a lantern came over to us and asked our driver for 10 pesos. After he paid, they dropped the rope and we were off onto the main road again. It was actually a very good shortcut, because it took a lot of time off our trip.
We arrived in Playa del Carmen at 9:40 just in time to catch the 10:00 ferry back to Cozumel. We arrived back to Caribe Blu at 11:00 p.m. and were ready for bed! We told Blue Angel about our driving experiences the next day and told them to NEVER hire that guy ever again. I dont think they will! Even though it was a huge journey to get there and we only got to actually be with the whale sharks for a few hours, it was totally worth it. It was amazing and I hope to do it again some day.
