Mexico 2006

A simple vacation for 10

It was a simple enough idea. Let’s go on vacation to an all-inclusive five star resort with all the kids someplace warm (that’s 5). We quickly realized that the only way this was going to feel like a vacation was if we had a babysitter or two. So we convinced my parents to come along for the ride (that’s 7). Around the same time we were planning the trip, it turned out that my grandfather was going somewhere in Mexico with his daughter and her husband so we thought, as long as nobody has any objections that’s 3 more babysitters (total 10). So we made reservations at the Grand Bahia Principe Resort located in the Mayan Riviera which is a 2 hour drive south of Cancun airport with Sunwing tours.

Preparations

As preparations go, my wife is the master and commander of the operation. She goes through the exercise of sitting down and dreaming up absolutely everything a 6 year old (oh yeah, Juliette had a birthday recently), an almost 4 year old boy and a very precious 11 month old would need. Needless to say her initial list included the kitchen sink, the bathroom sink and about 5 carry on bags. I talked her down to leaving the jackets behind, but that was about it.

Day of departure (A.K.A. the longest day of my life)

It was a simple plan. Go to sleep early, wake up at 4:30 so that we could get to the airport in time for a 7:30 departure. Arrive in Cancun 10:30 and take a 60 minute bus ride to the resort so that we arrive in time for lunch.

To begin with, my wife and I were way too excited to sleep. I slept for 5 hours while she slept for max 2. As a result, we made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Then the first sign of trouble hit us. Our plan was delayed until 9:15 and no explanation was given. The kids played in the airport for over 2 hours. This included Sophie walking everywhere (with an adult holding her hands), Nicholas playing gameboy with me and Juliette playing with Memere. By 10 we new something was very wrong and I went to the desk to ask the representatives what was going on. The first words out of her mouth were that they just got a new departure time and I wasn’t going to like it. The new departure time was given as 3:45 pm. So we had waited at the airport for 5+ hours only to be told to go home and return 4 hours later (2 pm). We came home, put the kids to bed only to wake them and return to the airport at about 2. When the plane finally showed up at 3:40, everyone waiting for the flight applauded. It was at this point that we were informed that our original plane had been grazed by something and that a new plane had to be found to take us on our trip. The kids were doing pretty well. They had played all morning, taken a mid-day nap and were excited to go on their first family vacation with Sophie. Then the plane finally took off at 4:30 and we learned the little piece of information that guaranteed we would never fly Sunwing again. The plane would be stopping in Cuba before going on to Mexico so that most of the passengers could be dropped off. This would add another 2 hours to our trip. Again the kids couldn’t really care less. Nicholas and Sophie sat with us and Juliette sat with the grandparents. Nicholas was impressed with the view during takeoff, especially with seeing clouds from the top. He spent most of the trip playing gameboy and playing with Sophie. Sophie was a bit more difficult. So I ended up doing a lot of walking up and down the aisle hunched over with my fingers in her hands as she practiced her own walking and flirting with all the other passengers. She did great; she hardly ever cried and even managed to eat a bit of the airplane food. Juliette listened to stories on her Discman and read her books. By the time we landed in Cuba we were exhausted. They still made us disembark so that they could clean the plane before departing for Mexico. By the time we landed in Mexico, we were beyond exhausted, my wife threw up from the repeated turbulent landings and take-off and the kids had finally come to their wits end. We grabbed out bags and made it to the bus which took about 2 hours to reach our resort. Most of us slept until we finally arrived. The kids were great during this entire ordeal. Nicholas and Juliette didn’t pee their pants and no-body spit up on us. Of course the first night in Mexico was cold since it was just after a rain storm which prompted my wife to say that she shouldn’t have listened to me when I told her not to bring the kids jackets. By the time our heads hit the pillow it was 2 am Ottawa time and we were more than ready to relax in a tropical paradise.

Eat, Swim, Play, Drink and repeat.
The next couple of days were amazing. The breakfasts were buffet style but the kids and I chose to have our regular Sunday breakfast everyday. 2 eggs over easy on buttered toast. Sophie didn’t have much patience for eating a preferred to spend her time practicing her walking (by the end of the trip, her slippers were black with dirt) and riding my shoulders. This hearty breakfast was usually followed by some quality time at the beach or in a nearby pool. Even though there was lots of shade. Both Juliette and I got burned on the first day. This is the first (and hopefully last) sunburn Juliette has ever had. She has the pain tolerance of a coddled princess and as a result every ache incurs cries of anguish and despair. The fun in the sun throughout the day included sandcastle building, feeding fish, drinking (banana mamba and strawberry daiquiris for the kids), and swimming. If you actually ask the kids what their favourite part about Mexico was they’ll answer their time spent playing with parents and grandparents in the pools. My least favourite part was when I saved a little 2 year old boy from drowning. When his father came to take the crying 2 year old out of my arms, I tried to explain to him that his son had left the safety of the baby pool for the turbulent waters of the whirlpool but he didn’t speak a work of English and I didn’t speak any Spanish. The swimming and playing were so exhausting that by the end of the day neither the kids or the adults had any chance of staying up past 10PM.

Romantic night with the kids

The restaurants were amazing. The kids were with us most of the time. The menu included French, Mediterranean, Steak house, Seafood and our favourite (and the kids) Japanese. The Japanese restaurant wasn’t just our favourite because of the excellent sushi and stir fry but because of the fabulous show put on by the chef right in front of us. His most impressive move was how he spun an egg, flipped it up in the air with his spatula and broke it over the edge of the same spatula on the way down. Unfortunately for most meals Sophie didn’t have the patience to wait for the 5 courses and Nicholas peed in his pants for one dinner and fell asleep on my lap in another. After dinner we caught a few shows and even attended a dance or two. The kids and the parents made the best attempt to stay up long enough to enjoy the entertainment but the sun and the swim was just too much and invariably we would fall asleep as soon as we sat down in a chair.

The trip home
The trip home was delayed thanks to a international meeting between Mexico, Canada and the U.S. which concluded in time for President Bush to shut down our airport for 1 hr while Air Force one flew him back home to the promised land. Other than that, Nicholas and Sophie slept the entire flight home while Juliette and I watch the movie Zathura.

As a result of all the trouble with the planes, I don’ t think we’ll be going somewhere warm with all the kids for another 3 years. The time at the resort was amazing but he time spent getting there was sufficiently difficult that it probably something we will avoid.