2025 Cancun, Playa del Carmen – Visitors from Norway

 

2025 Cancun, Playa del Carmen – Visitors from Norway

My two Norwegian cousins Wenche Svendsen and her sister Bjørg Bowman came to visit me, it was their second time to Mexico.

Twenty years ago they visited in Mérida. On this visit I agreed to meet them in Cancun.

An all-inclusive beach front resort in Cancun was enticing to them, especially after leaving the cold land of the midnight sun.

We were very happy to have them visit, and we began researching our accommodations and bus connections.

Our daughter Grisel lives and works in nearby Playa del Carmen, so we decided to extend our visit to be with her. Jane undertook the logistics and looked at over 200 options.

We decided to make the get-together as effortless as possible. We booked at the Hotel Plaza Caribe directly across from the ADO bus terminal in downtown Cancun where we stayed previously. Jane only had to book our bus tickets and used the company's App which she had used before.

Using the ADO App Jane filled in all of the pertinent details, paid by credit card, and surprise! Some company numskull automatically fixed it so our tickets that reserved our departure date for two weeks ahead were automatically changed for a departure in less than half an hour. Another surprise! No where on the App was there a cancellation button to click. They now had our money, and tickets that would be worthless to us.

Quick thinking Jane instantly ordered a taxi to the ADO bus terminal...we had minutes to get to the terminal before the bus departure. Jane does not need another heart attack!

OMG we made it. The man at the ticket booth canceled our tickets and issued new ones for November 14. Whew! Thank you again Jane.

Ready to Roll!

Back to our Cancun adventure at the Hotel Plaza Caribe.

Even though the hotel room had no hammock hooks, it had easy access, a great location, and a restaurant that featured a Motuleños ala Yucatecan breakfast specialty that is very sustaining, plus a lovely garden shaded by tropical trees, and a tranquil pool area.

Wenche and Bjørg wanted to buy us day passes for their all-inclusive hotel, but we being octogenarians and not able to gluttonously indulge at our age plus being under therapy for skin cancer and needing to avoid the sun, found it better for them to visit us.

Downtown Cancun is NOT wheelchair friendly and crossing the street from the bus terminal to our hotel had a raised pedestrian walkway speed bump that had a gaping hole. Several people came to my aid to help me to cross. We were amazed when the hardy Viking sisters, Bjørg and Wenche, in her wheelchair, came to that gaping hole. Unaided Wenche merely did a wheelie in her wheelchair and then powered across like this was an every day event. These were surely powerful people as we also witnessed when Bjørg pushed me in my wheelchair up an inclined ramp at a speed like a rocket ship being blasted off.

Bjørg, John, Wenche

Back to our terrific family reunion:

Wenche and Bjørg asked more questions than a thousand wise men could answer.

We were amazed at their exuberance and enthusiasm. I had compiled and written many family stories and accumulated numerous photos going back in time over two hundred years. Jane and I had built up an impressive online presentation, and it was time to pass this enormous collection on to the next generation so I sent out inquiries to all of my family members to pick up the ball and carry on what I had begun.

Here we finally found two family members, Wenche and Bjørg to take up this very important project. Jane and I will be doing whatever is necessary to assure their success.

We had a wonderful time with Wenche and Bjørg. We talked and talked and laughed a lot and even shed a few tears.

We are now awaiting their next visit. This time we expect them to come to nearby Playa del Carmen. The ADO bus service from the Cancun airport departs to Playa del Carmen every fifteen minutes, and from the bus station it is then a short walk to a nice hotel with roof top swimming pool, a terrific Caribbean Sea view, plus fresh briny breezes and a convenient location.

Next our visit at Playa del Carmen with our loving Grisel:

Departing Cancun for Playa del Carmen by bus was almost too simple because of our great location across from the ADO bus terminal. There are continuous mini bus departures costing $120.00 pesos or less than seven US dollars for the both of us. In about an hour we were let off six blocks from our hotel Sofia.

We arrived early for our hotel reservation. The desk clerk was very accommodating and gave us a pass card to enter the roof top swimming pool and lounge area. What a terrific place to relax and escape the rushing commotion of the outside world with fresh clean briny Caribbean Sea breezes topped off with an extraordinary view... easy going and relaxing.

At three that afternoon our accommodations were ready. Less than a year earlier we were booked in the same studio, and we liked it a lot. Comfortable, quiet, and with one wall of plate glass overlooking a jungle garden with towering tropical trees where we could enjoy the moon and stars by night and filtered sun shine by day. Close to the Caribbean Sea, we had no use for air-conditioning.

Our favorite pizza place and liquor store were nearly next door and a super restaurant, plus grocery and sundry shops a block away. The bus terminal was only a fifteen minute walk.

Our daughter Grisel, 42 years old, with three grown children, Diego a university graduate, made Grisel a grandmother this year with a daughter Olivia, Julian, the next youngest is a university senior, also an honor student, and her youngest a daughter, Ambar at 18 years entered a university as a medical student. They all love their Mom, and she loves them.

Grisel is now happily married to a man of her own age, but had a very hard life. She has a big heart, is a gifted artist, and became the head of the artists of Tulum when she lived there. Now she works 6 days a week at a beautiful beachfront resort in Playacar.

We had many wonderful evenings with Grisel, plus beer and pizza as is our tradition.

Another amazing Caribbean Seashore trip November 14 to 26.

Our bus trip home was uneventful, and we arrived after dark in Mérida. The overwhelming traffic was astonishing. We were extremely happy to have our ecological sanctuary jungle garden to escape to.

Thirty four years ago we purchased our home and spent two years building it into our ecological refuge. At that time there were deer and rabbits hopping around and it was peaceful. Now we have cars, and more cars, all racing somewhere. The explosive expansion of Mérida has no signs of slacking.

More photos:

Jane enjoying the balcony at our hotel.

John enjoying time among the trees in Playa del Carmen.

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