Mexico

Trip to Mexico

First, I am going to start off with some advice ……… DO NOT go to Mexico with your family, and especially do not go there if you are a minor.  Also, our summer is not the best time to go, as it is HOT, HOT, HOT out in Mexico.

My family and I went to Riviera Maya in Mexico the summer of 2010, when I was only sixteen, my sister Brenna was thirteen and my brother Connor was twelve.  To be honest, going to Mexico was the worst vacation I have ever been on (as bad and in-grateful as that may sound).   The beaches were beautiful, the food at our all-inclusive resort tasted delicious and the staff was extremely  friendly/helpful.   I also took some beautiful pictures.  On the flip side though, my family did not get a long AT ALL.  Most people would probably wish to stay in Mexico longer, but we were thankful to leave.  This is due to the fact that my family can be very dysfunctional, even though we love each other to death.   I think that intense heat also played a role in getting on each others nerves.   

Here is a list of some of the funny/bad things that happened in Mexico:

1. My parents were nervous about staff on the resort stealing our belongings, so my father went to Canadian tire and bought locks for all of our suitcases before our departure.  On day #2, we were getting ready to leave our room and my mother accidentally locked the master key set into her suitcase!  Luckily, my messy /disorganized sister, had left most of her belongings out of her suitcase, including  a handful of bobby pins.  My talented mother managed, no problem, to break into the lock of her suitcase, using a single bobby pin.   We thought it was hilarious, as why even have the locks if they were that easy to break into?
2. Unfortunately, my parents are quite strict, so at night, my brother, sister and I were not allowed to watch any type of drinking contest or anything fun.  I swear that we went back to our rooms at like nine or ten o’clock four out of the seven nights.  Once we arrived in our bedrooms, we would go to bed immediately, or watch a movie.  Really, who watches movies in Mexico for goodness sake!?  I must admit that for three nights we attended plays/musicals two or three night’s, which were quite enjoyable, one of them had Shrek and Fiona in them!
3. I was not allowed to walk anywhere on the resort by myself, even to go to the bathroom.  I thought that this was very unfair, but I soon realized why my parents made this rule.  At our resort, male staff would always come up to me and tell me how beautiful I was.  In one way, it was nice, as here in Calgary, no one randomly comes up to me and tells me I’m beautiful (I think it was just because of my blonde hair).  In another way though sometimes they made me uncomfortable.  For example, one night when we were out for dinner at a fancy restaurant, the waiter kept licking his lips at me in a suggestive way and even went as far to jokingly blindfold my dad with a napkin.  My dad was not happy and didn’t even give the waiter a tip at the end of our meal. :/
4. My sister Brenna, had an allergic reaction while in Mexico, and her face swelled up to almost twice its size.  Poor girl!  On top of it all, her face was burnt and peeling really badly.  We ended up having to buy medication at the resort, but since we couldn’t read the directions, we had to guess at the dosage to give.  Yikes!
5. On the hottest day of our vacation, when it was 40 degrees out, my parents planned for us to go on a hike to the Pyramids.  I am not exaggerating when I say that this was one of the worst days of my life.  The heat was way too much to handle.  I also was very sick during the hike from something I ate, and was nauseous the whole time.  I had to keep running to use the bathroom before we even boarded the bus.  Also before we went on our hike, we were bombarded by people trying to sell things, which caused my dad to become very stressed out. 
6. Our whole vacation, my family did not step foot of the resort, as my parents (bless their hearts) are worry-warts and were concerned about our safety.  Sitting on the resort all day got old fast, as I am not much of a sun bather and neither is my mother.   Instead of lathering up ourselves with tanning oil, we lathered ourselves up with 70 bloc sunscreen. ;)

 

*** Pictures above are taken by me in Mexico. Top Right, a plate of food that was probably the reason I was sick on our hike.  Top middle, my father, brother, mother and I pretending to smile after the brutal hike to the pyramids.  Top left, a bunch of people on the hike seeking shade under a big tree.  Bottom left, my sisters burnt shoulder (she didn't want me to post a picture of her face).  Bottom right, a "really cool" pyramid.

Overall, Mexico was not the greatest vacation, but at the same time, I think it brought my family closer together.  We can now laugh at many of the things that happened; things that were not so funny at the time.   I was hoping to go to Mexico after graduation, but due to insufficient funds, my friends and I went camping instead.  Not quite as good as parting on a beach in your bikini, but eating dozens of smores somewhat made up for it!  I am now hoping to make a trip to Mexico in four years, after receiving my Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.   It is going to be an all-girls trip to Mexico, when my sister is nineteen and my cousin is eighteen!

On a lighter note, these are some of the best moments from Mexico:

1. Canoeing in the ocean!
2. Swimming in the various resort pools.
3. A water aerobics/dance class every morning.
4. Drinking virgin margaritas (at least that’s what my family thought I was drinking).
5. Reading books by the poolside (I think I read at least three that week).
6. Feeling the sand in between my toes, and looking up at the gorgeous sky. 

Have any of you had a bad vacation experience?  If so, I would love to hear about it (probably just to make myself feel a little bit better)!