2023 in Mexico (Cozumel)

the Norwegian Joy docked in Cozumel, Mexico on April 5:

the ship rested in Cozumel at Punta Langosta Cruise Terminal:

• straight from the gangway one would find shopkeeps at Plaza Punta Langosta raring to sell to the "ship folk":
  • run-of-the-mill trip keepsakes (the shirts, the mugs, the shot glasses)
  • a Starbucks coffee hub
  • a frog-scaped alehouse called Señor Frog's

"seashore walk"

walked on own along Avenida Rafael E. Melgar instead of going on a ship-led sightseeing walk or ride:

• the main street that straddles the seashore that goes southeast to northwest
  • jam-packed with shops and alehouses
  • staff from the shops with their own twang of English truly wanted to sell and make buck
  • on the other side of street flew a great flag of Mexico
  • many crafts made of stone stood along the street
• smaller ships took some to the other side to Playa del Carmen, where they could hop on a coach to Tulum to see old Mayan "pyramid-shaped" buildings (as I did myself in 2003)
• had no qualms about walking on own on this street in 2023, as everyone here mostly behaved themselves

"place of two cultures"

stopped walking further upon reaching Plaza de las dos culturas:

• marking the Spanish and Mayan ways of life
• no fees to enter
• most from those from the ship would likely never see this
  • had they went on own, they would think of these as "the Mayan ruins"
  • all without spending so much on an "excursion"

"fifth avenue"

instead of walking back to the ship on the same "avenida" with its ever-so-keen shopkeepers:

• went left onto Antonio González Fernández
• made a right into 5a Avenida Norte

one "a-ha": Cozumel's grid layout has

• "avenida" "names" step up and down by 5
• "calle" (street) "names" step up and down by 2

(this makes it handy if they want to put in new avenidas and calles in between the old ones!)

so, this "fifth avenue" became a more welcome stroll:

• had a welcoming feeling but not as "kitschy" and "loud"
• this stiller stretch of Cozumel made it feel lighter to take in
• no feeling of getting lost since it had a straightforward street layout

"looking back"

not the best spot to go but not bad either:

• got a better insight of Cozumel than in 2003 (in my much younger days)
• coming from the sailing by way of Honduras and Belize, which were new to me, Cozumel felt like a "cool down" back to a "familiar stranger"
• felt fulfilled with walking along merely two streets to get a feel of the town, since it already was "overdone by the guests"
• so long as one stays on the main streets, one can have fun on this bit of Mexico (on an island) without any snags