Thank you, Pedro!!! One of the best days, ever! First off, let me say that our guide Pedro, is one of the most knowledgeable, fun, kind, and friendly people we have ever met. He made this the most enjoyable experience our family could have ever asked for! We learned about tequila, chocolate, guacamole, the Spanish language, turtle rescue, the history of the island, conservation, scuba diving, cenotes, salsa, and the list goes on and on what a day!
We started by meeting him in downtown, and although our ship dropped us at a different port, the business was so incredibly accommodating. We took a taxi to the original drop off location, but if we had called they would have adjusted for us. Once we met him we hopped in the jeep and were off.
Our day started with a short tour of the downtown area, with a bit of history of the Mayans, and explanation of the monuments we were seeings. Our next stop was a tequila tasting and lesson. We were traveling with my 13 and 10 year old and they even thought it was interesting. There was a chocolate tasting, so we did that as well. It was a pleasant experience, and we did end up buying some chocolate and peanut butter tequila too
We then traveled the coast where we stopped and saw the neighborhood gator, looked at some beautiful beaches and took some photos, and learned all about sea turtle rescue and island conservation. We want to go back again in the summer so we can experience the turtle hatching and help with rescue!
It was around lunchtime, so Pedro gave us the choice of where we might want to eat. We chose to wait to eat towards the end of our trip, so we kept going. We appreciated the choices and options he provided. He adjusted for our families interests, and that made the experience so nice.
Next was our trip into El Cedral and the Jade Cenote. The history and culture in El Cedral was so incredibly special. It was just a beautiful area, and we loved learning about the people that lived there and the celebrations the area holds.
When we arrived at the Jade Cenote there were a lot of tourist groups. Pedro helped us line jump and we decided to swim. My husband and son jumped off the dock, but my daughter and I decided to jump from the hole above. It was exhilarating! One of the coolest things I have ever experienced! We didn’t stay there long, but that was ok. It was all about the experience. There may have been risks with the water quality (lots of bats in the cenote- so cool to see though) and the jump, but for adventure seekers like me, it was AWESOME!
After our jump and swim, Pedro had cold beers and non alcoholic drinks waiting for us. We then did some shopping and learning in the center of El Cedral, where he took us to see the only remaining Mayan ruins on the island. We had learned about the black coral and we stopped at one of the local jewelers where we were able to purchase some beautiful pieces to remember our journey.
Next we were off to lunch and snorkeling. The water was very rough that day, so Pedro gave us a choice whether to swim in the shallows for a few or check out another cenote. We could see snorkeling would be tough, so we adjusted our trip again and did a leisurely lunch and then visited a second cenote, which much was very different from the first. Although we were really looking forward to snorkeling, you can’t determine God’s plans with the weather, so again we were grateful for Pedro adjusting to make our day an amazing experience.
We ate lunch at Tortugas, had delicious fajitas, and Pedro sat and ate with us, teaching us about food, culture, and history the whole time. He even snuck into the kitchen to get us some Habanero salsa to try!
We made it back to our port in plenty of time to do a little shopping and say goodbye. I didn’t go in for a hug, but I wanted to! It felt like we were on a day of adventure with a lifelong friend and it made for a magical and memorable experience. This was our last adventure on a 9 day trip spanning four different countries, and my 10 year old son said it was his favorite day ever because of Pedro.
If you are considering this tour, do it. We would do it again in a heartbeat! If you can request a guide, we HIGHLY recommend Pedro!
If you read this, Pedro, thank you for making this the best experience ever. As we said, we are waiting for you to come to Michigan to scuba the Great Lakes! We will have a room waiting! You’ll get used to the cold. We swear!
