Cozumel Oct 10th thru 15th 2005
Yet another Cozumel Trip Report :05:
Background:
Well we finally got to go to Cozumel. This trip was originally scheduled to arrive the same day that Emily struck so we canceled and rescheduled for September. Then Funjet decided that they didnt want to fly till October. So we rescheduled again this time October 10th thru the 15th. By this time Christi at Blue XT Sea was beginning to wonder if my family and I actually existed.
Getting there:
We flew out Monday morning at 8:30 AM out of DFW nonstop into Cozumel with no problems at all. The new terminal is quite nice but seemed to only have Ryan International and British Airways. Customs in Mexico was no problem and for the 7th time in a row I got the green light.
Lodging at Casa Las Flores http://www.cozumel-vacation-rentals.com/flores.htm
When we originally booked this trip we were supposed to have 6 people coming with us, but due to all the schedule changes we only had 3 people. We decided to stay at a rental home this time and we are very happy that we did. We stayed at Casa Las Flores, its a four bedroom home on the water about 3/4 of a mile north of the Reef Club. Its a lovely home on the water with a freshwater pool, kitchen, patio, and a separated apartment. Our property manager, Poncho meets us at the airport and got us onto the right van and meets us at the house. We were in a van with a group going to the Reef Club. There were a couple of surprised looks when we turned off onto a dirt road and drove through the jungle until we reached the gate.  I would recommend this house to anyone its a really nice place and best of all we had to walk only 80 feet to get on the dive boat. If ever do stay there be on the look out for Stumpy he/she is an Iguana that is missing his/her right front foot and likes to sun on the patio.
Diving http://www.bluextseadiving.com/
We dove with Christis Blue XT Sea and will never dive with anyone else in Cozumel. With all the changes to both the dates and the number of divers Christi always rebooked us without any problems. I looked forward to what seemed to be her almost daily emails. In fact as we were just about to close the aircraft door I got a call on my cell and it was from Christi, she gave me all the information that we need to meet up with Shamu that afternoon at San Francisco Beach along with Pedro the Divemasters cell phone number. We meet Pedro (DM) and Hector (Capt) later that afternoon at 2:30. They were right on time; in fact they were right on time or early the entire week and even helped us with the nuances of Spanish grammar. After hoping on board we filled out all the paperwork that we filled out in Dallas, but left it on the desk of course. Through out the week Pedro always gave us the choice of where to go. He also gave us very professional dive briefings and we always felt very safe and comfortable with him. I have come to the conclusion that good Cozumel Divemasters 1. Must have gills 2. Have excellent vision. Pedro was able to locate just about anything we wanted to see. After the first day we dove with a British couple and a diver from Chicago. Kate wanted to see a shark so we went to Delilah and looked for sharks. We werent have any luck and I saw Kate look at Pedro and give the shark sign and Pedro told her to wait a minute and two minutes later a nurse shark swam by. Later she requested Octopus and we saw 5 octopi during the night dive. Kate requested Dolphins and/or a Whale Shark the next day when we were scheduled to leave. I dont know if they appeared or not ;-) We dove Columbia, San Francisco, Punta Sur, Cedral Pass, Delilah, Palancar Bricks, Punta Tunich, Paradise, and one I cant remember. Pedro was excellent and you wont be disappointed if you ever dive with him. Hector the boat Captain was most excellent as well and was always there to lend a helping hand in and out water, fresh water rinse off, and warm dry towels! If you do meet him you have to get him to do some of his magic tricks! The surface interval was the best as well. Hector would bring out the ice chest and lay out fresh fruit, pound cake or muffins, cookies, and all the water/lemonade/strawberry juice you could drink. I believe on Wednesday we got a really neat treat. I cant remember what beach were at, but we noticed a guy was in a hole up to his chest pulling baby sea turtles out of a nesting hole and placing them in a basket. It turns out the mother turtle had laid her eggs to deep in the sand and the babies could not dig themselves out. After getting all the babies out he took the basket closer to the water and let the turtles walk down the sand and into the sea. That rocked! We also got to meet Christi that day and she is such a nice and friendly person I wish we could have talked more. Her operation is easily the best I have used in Cozumel and would whole heartily recommend Blue XT Sea without any reservations! 10 A+ 5 Stars Two Thumbs Up
Eats
1st Night Pepes Grill Mexican Sampler Plate 4.5 Stars
2nd Night La Veranda Veranda Shrimp 4 Stars
3rd Night Guidos Calzone 5 Stars
4th Night Las Palmars Shrimp/Chicken Fajitas 2 Stars
Drinks
Fat Tuesdays Happy Hour buy 1 get 1 Free 5 Stars
Carlos y Charlies I must be getting to old 3 Stars
Senor Frogs See Above
Getting Home
Flew out at 11:45 Friday Morning and got back home at 3pm. No problems at all
Be safe and good diving.
Chris Brame
PADI IDC Staff Instructor
http://www.scubaland.com
Yet another Cozumel Trip Report :05:
Background:
Well we finally got to go to Cozumel. This trip was originally scheduled to arrive the same day that Emily struck so we canceled and rescheduled for September. Then Funjet decided that they didnt want to fly till October. So we rescheduled again this time October 10th thru the 15th. By this time Christi at Blue XT Sea was beginning to wonder if my family and I actually existed.
Getting there:
We flew out Monday morning at 8:30 AM out of DFW nonstop into Cozumel with no problems at all. The new terminal is quite nice but seemed to only have Ryan International and British Airways. Customs in Mexico was no problem and for the 7th time in a row I got the green light.
Lodging at Casa Las Flores http://www.cozumel-vacation-rentals.com/flores.htm
When we originally booked this trip we were supposed to have 6 people coming with us, but due to all the schedule changes we only had 3 people. We decided to stay at a rental home this time and we are very happy that we did. We stayed at Casa Las Flores, its a four bedroom home on the water about 3/4 of a mile north of the Reef Club. Its a lovely home on the water with a freshwater pool, kitchen, patio, and a separated apartment. Our property manager, Poncho meets us at the airport and got us onto the right van and meets us at the house. We were in a van with a group going to the Reef Club. There were a couple of surprised looks when we turned off onto a dirt road and drove through the jungle until we reached the gate.  I would recommend this house to anyone its a really nice place and best of all we had to walk only 80 feet to get on the dive boat. If ever do stay there be on the look out for Stumpy he/she is an Iguana that is missing his/her right front foot and likes to sun on the patio.
Diving http://www.bluextseadiving.com/
We dove with Christis Blue XT Sea and will never dive with anyone else in Cozumel. With all the changes to both the dates and the number of divers Christi always rebooked us without any problems. I looked forward to what seemed to be her almost daily emails. In fact as we were just about to close the aircraft door I got a call on my cell and it was from Christi, she gave me all the information that we need to meet up with Shamu that afternoon at San Francisco Beach along with Pedro the Divemasters cell phone number. We meet Pedro (DM) and Hector (Capt) later that afternoon at 2:30. They were right on time; in fact they were right on time or early the entire week and even helped us with the nuances of Spanish grammar. After hoping on board we filled out all the paperwork that we filled out in Dallas, but left it on the desk of course. Through out the week Pedro always gave us the choice of where to go. He also gave us very professional dive briefings and we always felt very safe and comfortable with him. I have come to the conclusion that good Cozumel Divemasters 1. Must have gills 2. Have excellent vision. Pedro was able to locate just about anything we wanted to see. After the first day we dove with a British couple and a diver from Chicago. Kate wanted to see a shark so we went to Delilah and looked for sharks. We werent have any luck and I saw Kate look at Pedro and give the shark sign and Pedro told her to wait a minute and two minutes later a nurse shark swam by. Later she requested Octopus and we saw 5 octopi during the night dive. Kate requested Dolphins and/or a Whale Shark the next day when we were scheduled to leave. I dont know if they appeared or not ;-) We dove Columbia, San Francisco, Punta Sur, Cedral Pass, Delilah, Palancar Bricks, Punta Tunich, Paradise, and one I cant remember. Pedro was excellent and you wont be disappointed if you ever dive with him. Hector the boat Captain was most excellent as well and was always there to lend a helping hand in and out water, fresh water rinse off, and warm dry towels! If you do meet him you have to get him to do some of his magic tricks! The surface interval was the best as well. Hector would bring out the ice chest and lay out fresh fruit, pound cake or muffins, cookies, and all the water/lemonade/strawberry juice you could drink. I believe on Wednesday we got a really neat treat. I cant remember what beach were at, but we noticed a guy was in a hole up to his chest pulling baby sea turtles out of a nesting hole and placing them in a basket. It turns out the mother turtle had laid her eggs to deep in the sand and the babies could not dig themselves out. After getting all the babies out he took the basket closer to the water and let the turtles walk down the sand and into the sea. That rocked! We also got to meet Christi that day and she is such a nice and friendly person I wish we could have talked more. Her operation is easily the best I have used in Cozumel and would whole heartily recommend Blue XT Sea without any reservations! 10 A+ 5 Stars Two Thumbs Up
Eats
1st Night Pepes Grill Mexican Sampler Plate 4.5 Stars
2nd Night La Veranda Veranda Shrimp 4 Stars
3rd Night Guidos Calzone 5 Stars
4th Night Las Palmars Shrimp/Chicken Fajitas 2 Stars
Drinks
Fat Tuesdays Happy Hour buy 1 get 1 Free 5 Stars
Carlos y Charlies I must be getting to old 3 Stars
Senor Frogs See Above
Getting Home
Flew out at 11:45 Friday Morning and got back home at 3pm. No problems at all
Be safe and good diving.
Chris Brame
PADI IDC Staff Instructor
http://www.scubaland.com
