It’s a great feeling to leave grey skies, flurries and drizzle and be a snowbird for a change. No better time to visit Mexico than during a Canadian winter.
Years earlier I had written a nonfiction book about mobile libraries around the world: My Librarian is a Camel, How Children Around The World Get Library Books (ISBN 9781590780930, Boyds Mills Press). A few years after the book came out, I received an email from a lady in Texas who said, “I winter in Mexico and a group of volunteers and I are buildings a library for a school in a small Mayan village in the Yucatan. Will you come and share your book with the kids?” It was an exciting prospect. There was no pay involved (writers are always worried about income…). But she did offer me help with a flight and a room. Saying yes to this unexpected adventure was one of the best things we ever did.
Paamul beach
We flew to Cancun, Mexico on the Caribbean side. While Cancun is busy, with lots of high rises and tourist resorts, we had our special plan in place: walk out of the airport, board a bus and for US $15.- head south to Playa del Carmen. There we hauled our packs into a taxi and for US $17 got delivered to the door of paradise.
Paamul! I’m not sure I want to tell you how wonderful it is because I don’t want you all to go there! It’s small and quaint and quiet, unlike many other places on the Mexican coast.
Palapa’s with palm leaf roofs line the few ‘streets’, forming a horseshoe with jungle in back and the blue Caribbean out front. Paamul has one small hotel with gorgeous, breezy rooms overlooking the sea. You step right out of your room into the warm sand dotted with iguana tracks.
There is also a large mansion, Casa Paamul, where you can rent either the entire house or a floor. We have done both - we stayed in the lovely hotel and, in a subsequent year, rented a floor in the house when we took kids and grandkids along. This gave us more space, more beds, as well as a kitchen.
It was heaven for the grandkids to walk right out of the sliding doors of our living room and onto the sheltered sand in our backyard. We swam several times a day, both in the sea and in the pool. There’s a lovely open air restaurant with great food and beer. But other than that, no services. No disco dancing, no loud music. Just paradise.
US and Canadian snowbirds who winter in Paamul regularly, have adopted a small Mayan village nearby to support. For many years they have fund raised and worked hard to build a library and a preschool. They do amazing work and have even adopted a second village. No rest for these retirees. They design, pour concrete, fund raise and much more. Their work has accumulated into an organization called Paamul Services to Others.
Despite not having been able to do much during recent Covid years, PSOC pays tuitions and expenses for 12 high school students. They also provide basic school supplies for students in Chumpon and Santa Clara. If you visit and have room in your suitcase, they will love to hear from you. Any cash donations to support their worthwhile work are always welcome and needed.
To do some sightseeing while we were on this east coast of Mexico, we walked a few minutes to the main highway and hopped on a local collectivo - a small van which picks up people along the road - and which, for a few pesos, delivered us to the Mayan ruins in Tulum.
Swimming in a cenote
We also booked a one day excursion with Easy Tours to Chichen Itza, the Mayan ruins on the list of world wonders. Turned out to be a good choice. For US $50.- p.p. (half of what other companies advertise) they picked us up in a small air conditioned van. We had a great guide who taught us much about Mexico. We spent the entire day at the ruins, an exhilarating swim at a cenote, having lunch, and visiting an old colonial town. It was great to read James Michener’s Caribbean while here which brought the very same ruins, the temples and the ball courts to life.
The January weather was warm, a bit muggy and very windy right on the coast. Paamul is a community of avid scuba divers. It is known as one of the best dive sites in Mexico. Weather permitting you can go out for two dives daily with their boat. Rates are reasonable and you can spot an amazing array of wildlife at the corral reefs including eels, small sharks, large turtles and all sorts of colorful fishes. You can even get certified as a scuba diver while here. Check out the website below for details and photos.
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