Remembering Cancun
Cancun I called Home for the last 16 Years
From a small town of 500,000 habitants to a massive first class Vacation Paradise for travelers all around the world. If you include the Rivera Maya with Playa Carmen and down to the coastline to Tulum,the airlines bring every day 20.000 Tourists to Quintana Roo, for R&R and new adventures.
Recollecting my memories back to 1996 the old Cancun, I still remember when we walked around town-town on Tulum Street with all the vender markets, the Government Palace, with his creative decoration especial around Christmas or September for Independents day, when people waited for the major to wave from the balcony and together we celebrated the Independence day. Some days we strolled down the street to the Palapa where we visited open air shows “Danzas Folklorico, Danzon original from Cuba but very integrated to Mexico, especially in Merida and Mexico City.
Sometime the schools perform Plays, Ballet, Coros, Singers and many diverse Spectaculs we enjoy an a regular basis. Next door is the Catholic Church, the ministerio civil, where we got our marriage license in 1997.
I do not want to forget the old Movie Theater by the park but this is long long gone , replaced by the giants plazas with 10-12 rooms with 3D and 4D Shows.
Because of the increase of the Hotels in the area the population grew to 1,200,000 in Cancun and 450,000 in Playa del Carmen. Everything change with time, sadly for downtown Cancun it is not visited by the Vacationers these days, a few people come from the Hotel Zone and visit the Center,they mainly go to the Market 28 to buy some gifts and drop by next door to Walmart or Sam’s Club, which are the familiar shopping Places, that were non existing in the 90ths.
Today we have all the amenities similar to great nations with the most elegant 5 and 6 star Hotels, located at the most breath-taking Caribbean Ocean, flanked by huge Shopping Plazas decorated with all the designer things your money can buy,or you can dream of.
Of course you will find luxurious Restaurants, or your favorite fast-food places that exist in every street today.
All hotels will offer you trips to various sites, from the famous Tulum or Chichen itza pyramid as a day trip,or even some inexpensive spiritual trip to Yucatan down the Ruta Puc, if you have 2-3 days. Jungle-tours in the Ruta de Cenotes with many tempting treats or visit Xcaret with his underground Rivers and natural pools topped with the beautiful and spectacular Mayan Shows at night.
If you like a life changing experience, take a temazcal, a mayan ritual molded to your personal needs being the best gift for your self.
Dra Christina