Mexico Easter 2003 - Part 15: Solo in Playa del Carmen

20 April - Western Union money transfer and diving arranged in Playa del Carmen

Me and Tosh had to get the early bus to Playa del Carmen. We said goodbye to Helen, who was very sad to leave us. I carried all my crap through to Playa del Carmen through the hour’s bus. I arrived, said goodbye to Tosh at Playa del Carmen as I won’t see him again - he’s off to Xpu-Ha to finish his diving course. Toshi is a wonderful guy - he denounces every Japanese tourist (even though he’s originally Japanese), he finds exquisite things to talk about, he calls “ambitions” - “the plan”. He wants to submit his Leeds uni computing dissertation and continue his new life in Germany - a language and country he loves with all his heart. It was refreshing to live with such a fine person for over 2 weeks.

I checked in early at Hostel El-Palomar, which is deserted. Outside Hostel El-Palomar - and this is for everybody’s reference - there is two half-Indian crazy nuts selling handicrafts directly opposite the hostel - both of whom love girls and one is a diver, the other is in a wheelchair and learning diving slowly by special instruction. Jorga is the nut and Oba (I think) is the quiet guy on the wheelchair. Jorga showed me around all the diving schools, when he learned I wanted to do the open water diving course. He knows everyone (almost) has had every nationality you can name as an ex girlfriend, and right now, he was mooning angrily howling about how his Canadian woman was being rude to him last night so they didn’t smoke as usual. I signed up for one introduction dive on Monday with Tank-Ha. On Wednesday I start the course proper with an Aussie instructor called Sandra. Sandra was apparently wheelchair guy’s ex, and Jorga complained that his brother gets all the girls even though he “can’t do sex” as he’s paralysed waist down. But I detected ambition in him, imagine wanting to dive after being paralysed like that. Jorga then talked about how Mexicans suffer racism from foreign divers, etc etc. it was a long blabberation. For food, he recommended a family run place which cost a couple of pounds for unlimited fresh watermelon juice and barbequed chicken served with the usual beans, nachos, guacamole. I read a book at the beach for a while and had an afternoon siesta in the dorm. My credit card has emergency money for any loss (Barclaycard) so I took advantage and had 400 pounds worth sent to me by Western Union to 30 Ave North in central Playa over a UK collect call. After spending an hour in the sun walking to it, I got my money after first finding a rare photocopy shop for my passport round a few blocks from a bank.

I don’t need this money - I got it just for the heck of it - never know when it could be useful. So Jorga explained to me about “The Garden” - the beginners site I’m diving tomorrow. In the background, I see the high rise tourist shine-hole which is Cozumel. From talking to more locals, they hate Cozumel, just as much as Cancun. Playa del Carmen has tourists by the truckload as well, but at least it has some sense of local charm. Playa is wicked. The people are easy-going and very cool and the real deal can be seen away from Ave. 5 (which is the Las Vegas style tourist thoroughfare). But no offence to fifth avenue, it’s always heart-throbbing lively, 24/7. And you know what - I’m starting to love this place, it rocks! Time to get wild.

From this point, I didn’t have much time to write my diary. This was the turning point where I met countless new people, new girls, went mad, smoked, was regularly out like a light. So it was totally mad after this. No chance of remembering everything - but little scraps of memories remain …

Memories that stuck are in note form on the next pages.

Photos from this day

Playa del Carmen