The start of our Mexico jaunt is a two-week dog-sitting gig on beautiful Isla Mujeres, an island that is reached by an easy twenty minute ferry ride from bustling Cancun.
Our charge is a beautiful golden retriever named Sophie. She is well known around the island and everyone comes up to her and wants to pet her, which she loves. Someone we met joked that she is so good with people that anyone walking her could run for mayor! Probably true, if the local Taxi Union also supported them.
Each day’s routine is mostly up in the air but always starts with an early morning walk along the south part of the island, which is less populated and quieter. There’s usually a golf cart ride somewhere downtown to meet some friends my wife has on the island, or visit a beach (or both). Evenings are spent watching the sunset on the beach, followed by a dinner downtown in the more touristy-area in the north, or in one of the middle sections of the island which are called the Colonias and are where most of the locals live.
Isla Mujeres is a very attractive location with an interesting year-round mix of expatriate Canadians and Americans, international tourists (lots of Israelis), and Mexicans, who are from the island but also many other parts of the country.
Visitors often end up returning year after year – it is not uncommon to meet people who first arrived 25 or 30 years ago and are brought back by the warm climate, relaxed lifestyle, friendly people, excellent and diverse food, local culture, and great beaches.
Living on the island is not paradise and it has problems like everywhere else, but it is certainly a safe travel destination in close proximity to a major tourist hub, and is therefore a good option for families (we have brought our own, with small children, on multiple occasions).
My wife has been here over a dozen times, this is my fifth trip, and it won’t be our last.
Que te vaya bien!
