CANCUN rocks!!!

Wow! Were Riley and I ever ready for this vacation. It's been a tuff couple of months with tax season, school, the big D, losing clothing in treadmills... The anticipation had been great, and finally this ATSP (after tax season party - thanks to my fantastic bosses at Davis and Bott) came to fruition. We started the day very early (left our house at 4:00 a.m.) and away we went on our adventure May 2008...

Hotel Catalonia Riviera Maya

When they talk about the white sandy beaches and beautiful aqua waters of Cancun, they aren't kidding. This is where we spent the next five days. I know it looks tuff, but sometimes you just have to dig in and do what's set before you. Put your imagination in gear and see if you can't feel the breeze softly swaying the grass roofs of the huts as you look at this beautiful sight.


By the time we got to our resort and checked in, it was pretty much time for dinner with the whole group. There were 28 of us. 14 bosses and employees of Davis and Bott, their spouses and my Riley. We could hardly get over the beauty of it all.



Riley had to take a picture of her dessert. That ain't no frosty from Wendy's. Haha! Actually it didn't taste oh so well, but it none-the-less is worth a picture.


It was dark by the time dinner was over. But that didn't stop us from checking out the water. Making sure its for real. Uhhh... huhhhh!!!


Then we found the beach party!! Lots of good entertainment there. Soon Dave and Annette heard the music and stopped by too. You should all get to see Dave in action. You think of him as the reserved, all-knowledgeable CPA. Now you can see... THE DISCO DAVE!!!



THE BEACH!!!

This is what we came for, and where we spent most of our time. It was so nice finding a spot and just chillin! You could lay in the sun or in the shade under a hut. You could read a book or take a nap, all while enjoying the cool breeze from the ocean against the baking hot sun. Any kind of drink you could conjure was available within a few steps. If you got too warm, you could go walk along the beach enjoying the waves, jump right in and float around for awhile, or try out one of the many pools . Paradise!

CENOTE'

The cenote' was my favorite thing we did. It’s like if you laid out the land, and took a cookie cutter and cut a deep hole. Then it fills with fresh water. I don’t know if you can get a feel for how deep down it is. Notice how clear the water is, you can actually see the people’s legs thru the water. The second picture is me – yes, I said me – going down the ladder and getting in. Can you believe it? Riley is standing at the top of the ladder next to Natalie. Fun huh!

Mexican Dinner

Check out Antonio's grille! Heehee!

ACTIVITIES

There's plenty to do just around the resort. Snorkeling, kayaking, riding the catamaran, bicycle riding, volleyball, water volleyball, on and on and on.










Lots of good drinks whenever you want. Most of the time they even come non-alcholic. (Yep - there's a story behind that one)
This is a picture looking into the water. We were trying to show the little yellow and black striped fish. They looked like bumble bees. But if you look real hard you can see the clear/silver ones. Just kidding - you can't see them cus they're clear.

This is a fun game. Scoot-ing in the sand. Ouch!

Flint & Katherine playing balloon volleyball. Sorry about speedo-man. :)

Even though we had already eaten tons, we usually seemed to converge at the Creperie. Banana splits, choc shakes, apple carmel crepes....

JAPENESE DINNER

Chopsticks!My heart beats for you!

CHICHEN ITZA

Ancient temple - most likely Book of Mormon times. There are a bunch of ruins around this area. Our guide, Helaman told us all kinds of things pertaining to their beliefs. Maybe some day we will understand more about what happened then. Helaman kept reminding us that we need to live good lives. I think because of the stuff that happened here because the people became wicked. Don't laugh your head off at those dang sexy shoes! (yikes)

First off, the guy on the right is Helaman our guide. He is of Mayan descent. He has been a tour guide since he was young, but not until he started teaching early morning seminary did he realize the similarities in the B.O.M and this area. He seems very humble as he tells what he knows about these ruins.


Secondly, this is a courtyard, a rather large one. The game they played was to put a 4 lb. ball through that little hoop you see at the top of the wall. I can hardly imagine that. Then if you won, guess what, they whacked off the head of one of your teammates for a sacrifice. It was a great honor. Your image was then etched into a wall as a remembrance. Now, that's motivation to play hard!


An observatory


Archeologists are restoring the 'inner wall of the temple'

THE END
Our friend the crab...
...riding off into the sunset

(the ending of all really great stories)