The title of this blog post sounds like the title of an old black and white movie. One starring Cary Grant as the Hubby and a dark haired Doris Day as me. But that’s as far as the movie story idea goes. Usually the children in these movies are quiet and do everything their parents tell them to do. That really does not describe the Baker family – especially the quiet part! But that’s okay because Rivera Maya is definitely not a destination to be viewed in black and white!
From the moment we deplaned and walked out into the terminal at Cancun airport we were dazzled by the beautiful blue sky and all that sunshine. Once we got to our resort destination the blue sky and sun were paired with amazing sparkling aquamarine water. It was simply beautiful.
Before I go any further in this story, let me give you the back story. Hubby’s mom (Grammie) turned 80 last October. As Hubby and his brother (Boof) and sister (Tee) conferred among themselves trying to figure out how to observe this momentous occasion Grammie came to us with the answer. She did not want a party or a fancy dinner. She wanted the whole family to go on vacation together. Somewhere we would not be distracted by our day to day lives and where we could just hang out and be together. And the best part – she offered to pay!!! All we had to do was decide when and where.
There would be 12 of us.
Grammie, Boof and his lady friend, Tee and her husband and two kids ages 18 and 16, and Hubby, myself and our three kids ages 23, 20, and 19. The initial idea was to go on a cruise. That was quickly vetoed – fear of seasickness. Next suggestion, Hawaii – also vetoed – too far away – 10+ hours in flight. Next - Costa Rico – vetoed – too active for Grammie. The Caribbean islands – vetoed – too hard to get to – no direct flights. Finally we circled around and all agreed on Mexico as the destination. Now remember this was about a year and a half ago. The Mexican drug wars were not making news, the US economy didn’t need a bailout (yet) and the swine flu was just a twinkle in some lab researcher’s eye. So we agreed – to Mexico we would go.
With the help of a friend who is the Director of Sales for Barceló North America we decided to go to Rivera Maya. We stayed at Barceló Maya Palace, the newest Barceló resort recently opened in this part of the world. 
It was spectacular. The resort itself was amazing. The staff was so friendly and welcoming. The weather was incredible. The Caribbean was warm and the pools were even warmer. It could not have been more perfect. We could have stayed longer and that is the only way we could have improved our experience.
We attempted to cram as much into 7 days as we could while still leaving some down time to just relax and enjoy the fabulous resort we were staying in.
We visited Chichén-Itzá one day.
It was awe inspiring and a bit weird how the Mayans were able to build these magnificent structures without aid of machinery and tools. There is symbolism in everything and lots of events were predictors of modern day occurrences. It is all kind of freaky really. There are many stories surrounding this place. Twice a year around the equinox the sun would reflect off one side of the main pyramid to the other looking much like a snake slithering down the side of the temple. When this event occurred it was the signal to the people that they should play their game on the great ball court. The object of the game was to get a round stone ball through a hoop high up on the wall on either side of the playing field. The winning captain would present his own head to the losing captain, who would then decapitate him. While this may seem a very strange reward, the Mayans believed that this was the ultimate honor. The winning captain was getting a direct ticket to heaven instead of going through the 13 high steps that the Mayan's believed they had to go through in order to reach peaceful heaven.
“There is a certain mystical energy about the ball court that begs to be experienced first-hand. One fact worth noting is the repetition of the number seven, which was sacred to the Mayans. There were seven players on a team, the rings were seven meters high and if you clap your hands or shout in the court, the sound will echo exactly seven times. There are carvings on the stone walls that depict the ball players (some of which are remarkably intact) and after the captain was beheaded, it is said that seven serpents grew out of his neck.
But the true mystery behind the ball court at Chichén-Itzá is the Mayan prophecy that on Dec. 22, 2012, the great warrior serpent Kukulkán will rise from the ground beneath the playing field and end the world for good. Even if you're not one to believe in predictions, it's still exhilarating and eerie to stand in the middle of the court, close your eyes, and imagine.”
Another day we visited the ruins at Tulum.
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Tulum was one of five Mayan ruins discovered in the Yucatan area of Mexico; the only one on the coast. Where the grounds at Chichen Itza were considered sacred and no one actually lived within the walls, at Tulum you could see the remains of the homes of the upper class who were fortunate enough to live within the walls. There is much symbolism here as well. There are windows and portals that reflect the sun a certain way at a certain time and this would mean something. Unfortunately the day we visited Tulum was so brutally hot I didn’t pay as much attention to our guide – I was too busy trying not to succumb to heat stroke.
One morning Grammie, Tee, Caitlin, Sera and I went to the Adventura Spa Palace for girls’ day at the spa. We had back massages, facials, and pedicures. Then we went to the hydro therapy area where we did sauna, steam, hot tub, ice plunge and reflexology. After all that we were wrapped in robes and had scented hot towels placed on our faces. It was so nice to be pampered!
Another excursion involved Hubby, Jack, cousin David, and Caitlin on a deep sea fishing expedition. They caught a really big mahi-mahi
which fed all of us for dinner that night. They found a cool place called Gringo Dave's where for the paltry sum of $2 per person they cooked the fish and added veggies and rice.
Of course before the night was over we had a $200+ bar bill! They were doing kareoke at Gringo Dave's - if you sang you got a tequila shot - made for a really fun evening.
The same day that the fishermen were out catching fish, Boof, Rose, Sera and Claire went on a snorkeling adventure. They went to two different dive/snorkel sites along the reef where they saw all sorts of cool fish and crustaceans.
In additon to all the excursions away from the resort we tried to take advantage of all the activities the resort had to offer.
Like the swim-up bar.
Like the beach bar.
Like the bar at the adult pool.
Like the lobby bar.
And in case you think all we did was drink we actually did this stuff too.
Attempted wind-surfing.
Learned to sail a catamaran and went sailing.
Competed in a dance contest.
Played in the pool.
Went kayaking. Did yoga on the beach. Did aqua aerobics. Swam laps. Went shopping. Ate at 6 different really swell restaurants and several grills.
Watched people get married - every single day we were there we saw at least one wedding and on one day we saw three!
This was an amazing vacation. A trip of a lifetime. It may well be the last time the 12 of us will get to vacation together. We really enjoyed every moment of it and we thanked Grammie loud and often. And again ... thank you Grammie. We love you!
