One last beach day

(In the home stretch...gotta get these last posts done while the memories are still fresh.  We've been back home for a few weeks already!)

Tuesday August 10th was really our final opportunity to squeeze in some last minute fun; the specter of our last day was looming closer, which of course would mean packing up for the return home.  I had been sick the night before, but awoke feeling mostly better, so we decided to head to Progreso for one more day of surf and sand.

We found a comfortable spot much further to the west and nearer the pier, seemingly where the locals choose to relax as well.  There were considerably fewer vendors trolling the beach here; only the occasional pastry tray paraded by from time to time.  The kids settled into their usual routine of digging in the sand at the water's edge, searching for shells and buried treasures.

Jennifer lamented that it was our last beach day and she had never gotten the opportunity for a beachside massage, which she had enjoyed during last year's trip.  Within moments, two women approached, passing out business cards for... you guessed it, massage services at the nearby hotel!  Jenn seized the chance, and got a quick 30 minute back massage for about $8 US.  What is that, about a quarter of what you would pay back home?

She returned to the blanket relaxed, and so we spent another couple of hours enjoying the beach before hunger set in.  Eladio's was just nearby, so we packed up our things to go enjoy a nice meal on the beach.  As we lifted our blanket off the sand, we realized that just underneath had been a shriveled up fish head.  I had been laying on a FISH HEAD the whole time, relaxing on the beach, oblivious.  At least there had been no smell, which means it must have been there a long, LONG time.  You'd think you would notice if you were spreading your beach blanket down on a dead fish, but no, not us!


Lunch at Eladio's was nice...
free botanas (appetizers), good food, and excellent, friendly service.  Our waiter chatted with us about the cruise ship that had been in port just the day before.  We were glad to have missed it, since the beaches and restaurants would likely have been very crowded compared to today.


After finishing their lunches, Emma and Lukas swam with some other children in the restaurant's kiddy pool, right on the beachfront.  While they swam, Jenn bought some handmade bracelets from a little girl selling jewelry.  She had such a no-nonsense demeanor that was very amusing, so we just couldn't resist.  We wound up buying four from her.  A very shrewd little business woman.

With lunch behind us, we headed back to Mérida, where the kids enjoyed some more late afternoon pool time.  Later in the evening, we got dressed and rounded out the day with a return visit to Pane e Vino. Italian food is never a bad idea.  The only strange thing about it was that all of the other patrons in the restaurant this evening were French.

There must have been some sort of French tour in town, and they had all chosen Italian food for dinner.  However, they didn't seem to be on their best behavior, because we saw one woman help herself to an extra glass of wine from the waiter's cart when he was out of the room.  And afterwards, it appeared that a young couple tried to skip out on their check; they gathered all their things and made a beeline for the door before they were intercepted by the waiter.  They pulled out their guidebook and hastily started asking him for directions as he led them back to their table.  Hmmm.  It all made for some very interesting dinner entertainment!