As I take my plane towards Los Angeles where I stop over in, I turn over one of the most beautiful leaf of my round-the-world trip which will have lasted almost 2 months from Fiji to Vanuatu and Hawaii. An entirely blue leaf smudged with a cluster of intoxicating ink stains like all these islands, archipelagos and atolls of the Pacific Ocean. But, unlike the blackish medallions which splashed over my leaf, these bits of lands have their history, their people, their traditions often blending exhilaration and laid-back atmosphere. Before leaving for my long trip, all these islands seemed unreachable and hard to pinpoint on a map, my view evolved and I filled up my pouch of memories for a whole life. From now on, I change scenery as I land in the tumultuous city of Cancun where I meet again Armelle after eleven weeks of separation.
During the 70's, property developers and government were seeking a place on the Caribbean coast to create the counterpart of Acapulco (seaside town on the Pacific). They set their heart on a long strip of white sand, they built roads and infrastructures, buried pipes to bring drinkable water and established Cancun. Today, despite the regular cyclones causing terrible damages, the touristic success is considerable and widely goes beyond the of-that-time property developers' forecasts. The disfigured coastline by the hideous concrete-made parallelepipeds doesn't take away the main thing in any way : a plaster-like sand watered by a turquoise-blue water.
Since we arrived, the Mexicans are really nice and very far from the caricature of the nasty Latino who haunts the Hollywood movies. However, despite the hospitality of the people, a seaside resort remains a seaside resort. That's fortunately possible to escape these horrible palaces by taking a shuttle which drops us off on the soothing isla mujeres, half an hour from mainland. On the spot, the ambiance is relaxed and to be in fashion, we must drive a golf cart. No risk to exceed the speed limit but we drive at a pleasing pace to discover all the corners of the island. At the south point, dinosaur-like iguanas warm themselves up on the sun-kissed stones. Down below, this turquoise, which printed into our retinas, invites to swim. Not the last bath for sure into an about 28°C water.
