zuki_san

Whenever I think of, or hear that Enya song (Caribbean Blue that is--and I can hear it often enough--we've got it on tape here at home) I'll likely always remember this vacation. There's something admirable to be said for a land were the sea hath a more brilliant blue than the sky. I just argued with my mom (I'm typing this out on a laptop, sometime after cruising altitude outta LA. There's another story hidden here, but I'll go into it later. Knew I shoulda made entries as I went.) about what color Azure is. She says -that-'s the color of the Caribbean, that Azure is a vibrant almost teal, brilliant blue. I hold that Azure is closer in shade to the color of the sky on a hot cloudless July noon in Boise. Actually, now that I think about it, we're both right and wrong. But then again, I"m now speaking in terms referring to the Ideal State of the Colour Azure, which is as vibrant as that Caribbean Blue, but closer in hue to that of the sky. The Ideal Indigo, on the other hand, is close in shade of that of the Aegean sea on a clear day, but with more purple. Or that of late August Early September skies at dusk, which I might add are perfectly accented by a rising Harvest September moon, low in the sky as a perfect golden ball.

But you know what else? I'm on a tangent.

The color of Caribbean Blue had impreinted itself upon my mind over the course of this vacation easilly enough. I spent--*pauses to think* the morning (No wait, it was probably afternoon by that time. Yes, it was. We'd slept in late after coming in late, and meandered downstairs and outside, intent on getting lunch. We'd waited 10 'r 15 minutes in the open-air, thatched-roof, outdoor restaurant [a lotta buildings have thatched roofs. A whole lot. They call 'em palapas. Thusly, the restaurant was "La Palapas]. During our 15-minute wait, the staff switched hats and handed us the Lunch menu. That's why we had to wait. For them to switch hats. ^_^

Aaanyways, I spent my 'morning' sailing around the bay in a little sailboat that, had I more confidence in my ability, I coulda sailed myself. As it was, Zuki-san, her younger brother, and father were all in one little boat that moved far too slowly with so much weight. But another resident of the hotel agreed to take me on as 'crew' (see previous comment about confidence in l33t s41l1ng sk1llz). We zipped around in the water for a while, the sea calm and sheltered by the nearby Isla de Mujeres (name means Island of Women, get yer mind outta tha gutta, and I'll 'splain the name later). My skipper pointed out the brightest blue patches of water, and explained that the dark bands inside them were reefs, and that people used to be able to dive for lobsters there. He talked about what this part of Cancun was like when he first came. The sprawl of the Zona Hotelera had not reached this part of shore yet, and save our condo complex, was empty, empty, sand. I turned back to look at our 'hotel,' flanked by two others larger and a public beach, and uttered an audible "Oi." Or was it a soft "Wow."? I cannot remember, but you understand. Back on shore, the old-timer (well, he wasn't that old, it seemed to me, but he'd been coming here for 30 give or take years) and my dad exchanged words. Sadly and yet to me somehow unsuprisingly, the best place to shop for groceries was the Wal-Mart (yes, Wal-Mart). He also warned us that 60 was the cab fare, and not to take more. (Ah, the joys of Gringo Tax. The first couple cabs wanted 80, and as it was, we got 45 going there and 50 going back. The real fares for the locals, likely.)

This--WalMart--was to be our evening excursion. Because this entry will be long enough once I finish, suffice to say that the store was very much a Wal-Mart, and also very much Mexican. Highlights of the trip include purchasing a packet of freshly made tortillas, and a papaya.

I love papaya; half of it was gone by the next morning, and all of it gone by that night. I'm the only one that really likes them, and I don't understand why. So easy to eat, papaya. Cut in half, get a spoon, scoop out seeds, scoop out rest, eat with same spoon. The best.

--*Yawn*-- M'm getting sleepy now, and I've only covered the first day of our trip. I suppose I'll continue the story of this vacation in later entries--Caribbean Blue, parts two, three, four, five, and six, most likely.I've got a fair amount of stuff to cover, after all. Scuba Diving for the first time (In two sentences, It's Great! You can stay underwater as long as you want to look at stuff. ^.===.^), Chichen Itza, and the truly Caribbean Blue last afternoon of Friday. 'Til I get inspired again, this Azu Azuki Zuki-san Azuki-chan, or whatever else the heck I go by to you, signing off. (to ponder sleep a good thousand miles up in the air. Geez. It's like I can't shut up. Maybe I won't sleep and I'll just ramble on a bit longer. no, that's not right. I'll work on something else, tho. And maybe ponder, but not attempt sleep. But for right now, the rhythm of the keys (my laptop is good for that--the keys get kinda stuck, so's I gotta give 'em a good hit. Wonderful clicking and clacking) is too intoxicating to stop.

*jumps onto another train of thought, waving goodbye to this one*