Pedal to the Metal

After a couple of walking and taking cabs around Isla Mujeres, we decided to rent a golf cart to get around more easily. We did a little price shopping in advance but found that the price only varied about $5 from place to place. It was $55 to rent the cart for 24 hours from our hotel (in town you got the same deal but we would have had to taxi back and forth). The other vehicles available for rent in town were bicycles and mopeds but we opted for the more luxurious golf cart. At first we couldn't stop laughing about driving around in a golf cart, especially since the top speed was pretty tame (a swift cyclist could easily overtake us), but it really was a great way to see the island: wind blowing in our hair, a nice roof to keep the sun off and hitting speed bumps (there were MANY) was always an adventure. And so, we nipped over to the western side.


This side of the island is a jagged coral coast, the water is a deeper blue and the waves crash against the rocks while pelicans dive bomb the surface. It has a much more exposed feel compared to the tranquility of the bay on the eastern side. We went down to the water side where the ground was razor sharp and dotted with tide pools. From up close the eroded coral nooks looked like giant caves.


There were many more private homes along this side, some of them with fantastical architecture, and I was surprised to see new homes with floor to ceiling glass windows going up, Rita and Wilma seemed to have been quickly forgotten. We took a little detour off the main road down a private lane and were chased off by a feisty little dog. One of my favorite houses was the Shell House, made in the shape of a giant white conch shell standing on end, you can't see it so well in my picture but the adjoining building is in the shape of a snail shell!


We also passed a shanty town , I never got to ask anyone about it but I thought that it could be where people who came to work from the mainland lived, especially during the high season months.


At one point where we stopped, there was a large group of pelicans circling and diving for fish and then gulping down their prey. It was amazing to watch them in action. They have such grace as they soar and drop but then they hit the water with a comical splash and all of a sudden they just look silly. I never tired of seeing them skim by, flying about 5 feet above the water and looking like they had important business to take care of.