Monday, September 12, 2016

Mexican Treasures

Tom hosts Tuesday's Treasures.

November 1979 - Cancun Mexico

In 1979 John and I took our first trip together, Montreal to Cancun. We flew the defunct Quebecair. They operated from 1947 to 1986.
This was John's first trip that required a passport.


We went in November and I am guessing we stayed for two weeks judging by what we did.

The price per person back then was $579 for two weeks at the Bahia, located 4 km from Cancun.
We didn't go back to Cancun until 2012 and there was no resemblance to the lovely little town that we had first seen. The Bahia no longer exists.



The city began as a tourism project in 1974 as an Integrally Planned Center, a pioneer of FONATUR (Fondo Nacional de Fomento al Turismo, National Fund for Tourism Development), formerly known as INFRATUR. Since then, it has undergone a comprehensive transformation from being a fisherman's island surrounded by virgin forest and undiscovered shores to being one of the two most well-known Mexican resorts, along with Acapulco.


I remember that our flight was delayed and it was very dark when we arrived so we had no concept of our surroundings. John had his first run-in with a cockroach which he successfully flattened using his Dr. Scholl's.
The next day we discovered we were staying in a gorgeous place, the pool even had a swim-up bar serving the best ice cold coke we have ever had.

I can only guess what the hotel was replaced by, something large, tall and sprawling.






We found the market.



We went to Mauna Loa for dinner one night. It was located near the Convention Centre but is gone.




We loved going to Cancun 1900 for margaritas and popcorn, talk about salt overdose. It doesn't exist any more either.


We went to a Mexican Fiesta.






We went to Isla Mujeres then a very tranquil place.






We rented a car and drove through the jungle with a stop at Chichen Itza.

Chichen Itza is perhaps the largest, most famous and most accessible Mayan site, about 125 kilometres west of Cancun and Cozumel.



It was hot!







We stayed overnight in Merida, a lovely colonial city. Mérida is located about 300 km west of Cancun.


This was and still is an old-fashioned hacienda.




Courting benches, also called conversation benches or kissing benches (I'm guessing John did a good job considering I am writing this 37 years later) can be found all over the city of Mérida.



Oh to have had a digital camera back then!!

Relaxing before our flight home.


8 comments:

  1. Quite a difference with digital these days as opposed to then. I'd love to see Chichen Itza.

    ReplyDelete
  2. One can feel a bit superior about visiting a place before it becomes attractive to mass tourism, as we do a little about visiting Vietnam in about 2000.

    ReplyDelete
  3. How fun to have these photos and memories to look back on. :)
    You look great then and now. You really had the 70s vibe going.

    ReplyDelete
  4. absolutely loved looking back on the 70's with you...really cool that you still have your travel brochures!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jackie, thanks for sharing this look back to the '70s...seem like just yesterday. You certainly have been a traveling dual. I hope that you will return to share another of your many treasures.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Looks like a fun holiday and thank you for sharing these memories. Fun to go back on holiday photos.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Lovely memories. I visited Chichen Itza with my parents in the 1990s. it was January and it was hot then...95 and high humidity. Seeing the ruins was great though.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Wonderful memories of the holidays you had 37 years ago! I hope you get to revisit those places again! Have a lovely day!

    ReplyDelete

This blog does not allow anonymous comments.