On our cruise, Saturday was all about Cozumel.
This was my second time there, my first time being a bit of a shock. Between a disappointing excursion and trying to walk through their shopping district without getting accosted, I was a little put off by Cozumel and its people. But I was still excited to go back, to be more open and explore new parts of the city.
My mom and I booked another zip-lining excursion, after enjoying the zip-line so much in Jamaica. The weather report was pretty nasty: an 80% chance of rain and all we’d been seeing for days were gray, cloudy skies. We were hoping the zip-lining wouldn’t get canceled but with the rain and high winds, it wasn’t looking good.
Thankfully, the weather report was way off.
It sprinkled for about five seconds when we entered Cozumel but that. was. it. The rest of the time, it was simply cloudy, although the sun did make an appearance in the afternoon.
After checking in, signing our lives away, and waiting for about 20 minutes, we were off for another fun adventure in a foreign land! The ride to the zip-line was short and sweet and before I knew it, I was being fitted into the zip-line gear by an adorable Spanish guy.
We had a small group of eight, including us. There were about six tour guides, all of who would meet us at various stopping points along the zip line. We were given instructions, including how to stop. Unlike the zip-line in Jamaica, we were given work gloves where one glove was fitted with a wooden block on the palm. That was our stopping glove. We would put one hand (our less dominant hand) on our front cables and with our other hand, the one with the block glove, we would reach back as far as our arm would reach behind us and hold directly onto the line. When we wanted to slow down, we would grip the line more tightly and pull it down. When we wanted to speed up, we would loosen our grip on the line. It took me quite a few turns on the zip line to get used to stopping and I still crashed into the guides more than a few times. (Not that I was complaining… heh.)
This zip-lining experience was much, much scarier than Jamaica. I don’t think I was ever fearful in Jamaica. I enjoyed it, the tour guides made it relaxing and fun, and the only time I felt real fear was during the 30-foot drop but that was more fear of the drop than losing my life. Based on the shortness of breath and tightness in my chest, I believe I might have been having a panic attack during this experience. It really wasn’t all that fun for me. Jamaica made me want to zip-line all over the world. Cozumel made me never want to zip-line again.
What made it so much worse than my previous zip-lining experience? I think a combination of the height, having to stop myself on the line, and the tour guides. I was well aware of how high up we were since we were in more of a jungle setting than a rainforest and as we were climbing the (shaky!) stairs to each platform, it brought into focus how high up we were. I never felt 100% safe.
The tour guides were pleasant, some better than others, but they didn’t offer the same level of comfort and ease as our Jamaican tour guides. Zip-lining with them felt fun and playful. They cracked jokes and I felt completely comfortable with them. They had big personalities and I felt like I was on an adventure with them, rather than they were working for us. In Cozumel, they were very businesslike and professional. No joking around and only a few of the guides actually made an attempt at being friendly. I didn’t feel as comfortable with them and believe me, you really want to feel comfortable with someone who is locking you into a line hundreds of feet off the ground.
We went through the series of zip lines twice and I was actually very happy when our time was up. I was ready to climb down from the shaky platform, take off my equipment, and restore my equilibrium once again.
I hate to be so negative about this excursion, but I have to be honest about my own experience. My mom, on the other hand, loved it. She agreed it wasn’t as amazing as our experience in Jamaica, but she enjoyed it more than I did. We were able to buy our entire CD of photographs for just $38, which is a steal.
After zip-lining, we headed to a resort where we could enjoy a refreshing dip in the pool, a free drink, and lunch. My mom and I took a swim in the pool and then laid out for a short while before we decided to head back over to the shops and do a little shopping! I ended up with a new sling bag, a t-shirt, and a key chain. We also ended up buying my brother a t-shirt and my nephew a maraca, a tambourine, and a t-shirt. (When he was opening the bag that held the tambourine, his eyes got real big and he said, “It’s an instrument!” Cutest ever.) She also ended up buying herself a t-shirt and the cutest bag in the history of bags. Seriously. I’m jealous I didn’t see it first.
After shopping, we found our way over to Senor Frogs! The restaurant was located in the shopping district towards the front and you could tell it was a party in there! We ended up sharing a drink (and I left my souvenir glass in the restaurant! I’m still so sad about that) because the glasses were 28oz! No way could I have finished that on my own. The atmosphere there was so fun and light! The music was loud, the drinks were delicious, and the food was yummy! Sure, maybe it’s not totally authentic but we had fun and didn’t want to venture too far from the boat.
And that was Cozumel. Another excursion that I wasn’t totally happy with, but there’s something about this little island that has stolen my heart. I love the flavor of Cozumel and it’s a place I know I’ll be returning to again and again.
