Akumal Beach Resort - Part 2

The best I can say about the food at ABR is that it was "ok" and interesting. I thought the food was a little on the bland side but that may be because it was authentic Mexican fare. I did try a lot of new foods and some I did like. Each night there was a different kind of cake but they all tended to taste about the same...and...they were all "wet". I like moist cakes but you could almost wring the liquid out of these cakes!


Had I not known that the dining room had burned down I wouldn't have realized it...the place looked exactly like it did four years ago. On our first visit I worried about eating in a place that wasn't air conditioned but with the breeze blowing in through the windows it was always pleasant.






Each meal there would be one thing done on the grill. At breakfast it was omelets or eggs and in the evening some type of meat or fish. We only made it to the lunch buffet a couple of times...it was so much easier just to eat at the snack bar. One night the grilled item was sail fish. I thought it was interesting how they just peeled back the skin and cut the fillets directly from the fish to put on the grill.





The snack bar offered hotdogs, burgers, french fries, pizza, chips and had all of the "fixins" like tomatoes, onions, pico de gallo, guacomole, hot peppers, etc. The pizza was made on homemade dough and was yummy!


The palapa right behind my hubby is where we spent most days so you can see how convenient it was to eat at the snack bar!




One night we ate at the Mexican restaurant. While we were eating the sky got dark and the wind started howling. Stuff was flying all over...dirt, sand, twigs from the roof, glassware, tablecloths, chairs, etc. The waiters scurried as fast as they could and were trying to re-set tables in the round building to get them out of the wind. Luckily we had finished our main course before the storm hit.




We encountered a little "wildlife" at ABR! One night this little (actually not so little) guy crawled up my husband's leg!



Each day we said "hello" to this iguana that lived behind our building.



And...there was no shortage of geckos...here is one that was our roommate for our week. Living in a Mexican resort sure beats selling insurance, huh?



One night as we were headed back to our room around 10 pm we saw a turtle coming on the beach to nest right by the dining room. There was a group from the CEA coming by at the same time so they ran ahead to warn people to stay away. Unfortunately someone leaned out the window of the dining room and took a flash photo and the turtle immediately turned around and headed back into the water. There were a couple of nests already marked by the dining room so they must have layed their eggs during the night when it was dark.

We had red headlamps and walked up the beach one night, but saw no other nesting turtles.



I really, really love all of the flowers and plants in Mexico. After going though the "winter that wouldn't end" just seeing the green leaves and bright colored flowers made me smile.









This banana tree was right next to building six...you don't see this in Minnesota!!

The staff at ABR always looked so happy and seem to enjoy their jobs. I love that they take the time to get to know the guests and make everyone feel so special.





One reason for choosing to visit ABR this year was so that hubby could get certified in cavern diving. Here in Minnesota he helps do cave surveying for the state and when he first experienced cenote diving four years ago he dubbed it "the most amazing experience ever!" It combined his love of caves with his love of diving! He visited Chac Mool and Car Wash cenotes for his instruction this time. Unfortunately he refuses to use a camera so we have no photos.

On the way to the cenotes on the first day his instructor wanted to stop and get some coffee in Tulum. Surprise, surprise! Bob ran into Alma, one of the staff that we had gotten to know well on our first visit to Akumal FOUR years ago!!