Mawg
Contributor
We arrived on August 4th. and left on August 10th. One of these days, I'm gonna stay at least 2 weeks. Maybe next May. One week is just not enough time.Cruised through the airport,jammed 14 people into a suburban and headed to the hotel. It ALWAYS amazes me how they get luggage for 14 into such a tiny space. I was also surprised that the driver took the scenic route down Melgar to the hotels rather than the back way through the Hood. I hope they continue to do this. We checked into the hotel, unpacked and relaxed for awhile. Later we planned to have dinner at a restaurant that I'd never been to on Cozumel. It would prove to be the best food I've ever eaten, anywhere.
My two nephews, both grown men, wanted lobster that evening and since Primas had moved to a different location, we thought we might go to the Lobster House which is across the street from the Playa Azul Hotel. My wife noticed another restaurant immediately adjacent to the Lobster House called " La Cabana Del Pescador" and walked over to read their menu posted outside of the establishment. She was not planning on lobster that evening and was looking for a menu with more options. Since their menu included lobster, we decided to give them a try. It was probably the most serendipitous decision of my life.
Inside it reminded me of the kind of restaurant you find near a University campus.Someone has taken an old house, knocked out a wall or two, put in a small bar in the back and voila', restaurant. The five of us sat at a table for 6 and none of the rickety,straight up, hard backed chairs matched. It was quaint,intimate,cozy and we were the only people there at 6:30 p.m.. My kind of place. Three of us ordered lobster. That meant choosing from a selection of tails in a stainless pan. My nephew Gregg picked up a large tail and asked how much. The owner weighed it and said $78.00 U.S. Gregg put it back and picked a smaller one. I had grouper and my wife had shrimp. We also ordered shrimp chowder and if that had been the only thing I ate that evening I would have been happy. It was just unbelievably good. We were all eating from each others plate saying repeatedly" Oh, try this,try this." I consistently over the years have given Primas lobster a grade of A. The bite I had that night at La Cabana was an A+. And the service we received couldnt have been better. I felt like I was in someones' home. Not since The Rincon Maya have I been made to feel so welcome. Do yourself a favor but bring cash, they dont take credit cards.
I was really looking forward to diving with Careyitos the next morning.Tony Perez was back in Cozumel. I hadn't seen my old friend in two years and I had hired him to come with us and work with my nephews on their diving since they are newbies. From the time we set foot on the boat, Tony was on them like bugs on a bumper. They started on day one with 100 foot tanks and staying down about 35 to 40 minutes on both dives. At the end of the third day of diving, they were on 80's and staying down 50 minutes. They had also made a new friend that they look forward to diving with when they return in May.
First dive was on Palancar Bricks. Good deep dive and nothing unusual until about 45 minutes in. I was cruising along at about 60 feet along the edge of the reef. I was about 15 feet above the reef when suddenly and I mean suddenly, a HUGE nurse shark swam out from the overhang of the reef right below me. I estimated him to be 13 feet and later Ricardo told me that he also felt the shark was around 13 feet as well. He was chasing a female nurse shark who was about 9 feet long. I was just amazed at how broad his head was. The shallow dive was on Delilah, one of my favorite dives. I believe that is where I got the shot of the Arrow Crab.
Day two we dove Tortugas/Columbia first and then a place Ricardo calls the Pyramid on our shallow dive. More nurse sharks,turtles and eels. Also a huge lobster that Tony estimated to be around 4 feet long. They do get big in the marine park.
Third day, three of us went to the mainland to buy pottery and see Coba. The two nephews stayed and dove with Careyitos. Being from Texas, I'm used to the heat and this summer has set all time records in Texas but in the jungle at Coba was something else. And being on bicycles didn't help much at all. I was glad to get back in the car and crank the AC up to max/hi.
Well, I hope you all enjoyed the report and pics'. Cant wait to get back to Cozumel in May 2010.
My two nephews, both grown men, wanted lobster that evening and since Primas had moved to a different location, we thought we might go to the Lobster House which is across the street from the Playa Azul Hotel. My wife noticed another restaurant immediately adjacent to the Lobster House called " La Cabana Del Pescador" and walked over to read their menu posted outside of the establishment. She was not planning on lobster that evening and was looking for a menu with more options. Since their menu included lobster, we decided to give them a try. It was probably the most serendipitous decision of my life.
Inside it reminded me of the kind of restaurant you find near a University campus.Someone has taken an old house, knocked out a wall or two, put in a small bar in the back and voila', restaurant. The five of us sat at a table for 6 and none of the rickety,straight up, hard backed chairs matched. It was quaint,intimate,cozy and we were the only people there at 6:30 p.m.. My kind of place. Three of us ordered lobster. That meant choosing from a selection of tails in a stainless pan. My nephew Gregg picked up a large tail and asked how much. The owner weighed it and said $78.00 U.S. Gregg put it back and picked a smaller one. I had grouper and my wife had shrimp. We also ordered shrimp chowder and if that had been the only thing I ate that evening I would have been happy. It was just unbelievably good. We were all eating from each others plate saying repeatedly" Oh, try this,try this." I consistently over the years have given Primas lobster a grade of A. The bite I had that night at La Cabana was an A+. And the service we received couldnt have been better. I felt like I was in someones' home. Not since The Rincon Maya have I been made to feel so welcome. Do yourself a favor but bring cash, they dont take credit cards.
I was really looking forward to diving with Careyitos the next morning.Tony Perez was back in Cozumel. I hadn't seen my old friend in two years and I had hired him to come with us and work with my nephews on their diving since they are newbies. From the time we set foot on the boat, Tony was on them like bugs on a bumper. They started on day one with 100 foot tanks and staying down about 35 to 40 minutes on both dives. At the end of the third day of diving, they were on 80's and staying down 50 minutes. They had also made a new friend that they look forward to diving with when they return in May.
First dive was on Palancar Bricks. Good deep dive and nothing unusual until about 45 minutes in. I was cruising along at about 60 feet along the edge of the reef. I was about 15 feet above the reef when suddenly and I mean suddenly, a HUGE nurse shark swam out from the overhang of the reef right below me. I estimated him to be 13 feet and later Ricardo told me that he also felt the shark was around 13 feet as well. He was chasing a female nurse shark who was about 9 feet long. I was just amazed at how broad his head was. The shallow dive was on Delilah, one of my favorite dives. I believe that is where I got the shot of the Arrow Crab.
Day two we dove Tortugas/Columbia first and then a place Ricardo calls the Pyramid on our shallow dive. More nurse sharks,turtles and eels. Also a huge lobster that Tony estimated to be around 4 feet long. They do get big in the marine park.
Third day, three of us went to the mainland to buy pottery and see Coba. The two nephews stayed and dove with Careyitos. Being from Texas, I'm used to the heat and this summer has set all time records in Texas but in the jungle at Coba was something else. And being on bicycles didn't help much at all. I was glad to get back in the car and crank the AC up to max/hi.
Well, I hope you all enjoyed the report and pics'. Cant wait to get back to Cozumel in May 2010.
