Day 5 - Costa Maya, Mexico

I was awake early this morning so spent about 3 hours reading a good book
and watching the sun rise while Randy snoozed.

We reached this port about 11, but we didn't leave the ship till about 12:30
after working out an hour in the gym on the ship.

Headed for the village to shop, check e-mail at an Internet Cafe (here's where we got the exciting news that Ryan had accepted the job at the Chatt. public K-5 school) and sight see

More open/hot air shopping with shop keepers descending on us mercilessly if we even LOOKED their direction as we walked by - we didn't enjoy their salesmanship.
They need a lesson from Wal Mart employees! One lady even swore at me
because I wouldn't try on one of the skirts in her shop.

These natives in their colorful costumes weren't even sweating we noticed, and we were sweating buckets in our bathing suits in the shade just watching them.

What unusual "walls" in this corridor between the two cruise ships at the pier

Another friendly tourist took our picture after lunch back on the ship when we returned
to the village to shop some more and relax in the hammocks
till we had to be back on the ship at 6:30.

This is the life, swinging in a hammock in the shade on a gorgeous Caribbean beach

The beach palapas provided welcome shade on the hot day

Carnival Liberty waiting for us at the end of the 1/4 mi. long pier

Costa Maya was totally developed just for cruise ships. They get about seven per week one man told us. There are no resorts or hotels of any kind there, just shops around the pools and swim-up bar and the beach with hammocks, chairs, and palapas for passengers to enjoy.
It's about an hour to the nearest village.

We were glad to catch the shuttle back out to the ship
after a lazy afternoon of shopping and swinging in the hammocks.

Leaving the pier we were interested in watching the little boat that came right up next to our ship.
We never found out what that was about - if we took on a stow-away
or somebody escaped to live in this gorgeous place.

Randy and the towel monkey