Dear Asher,

With Granny feeling a little better and a free ride to the bus terminal from our new Mennonite friend Jacob, things were looking up for our trip to Playa Del Carmen. After all of the rickety rides, we settled in nicely on our luxury coach and after you fell asleep, we recalled the last time we were in Playa Del Carmen on our ‘Griswold’s in Mexico’ family vacation.

After the fiasco getting to Chichen Itza and back in a rental car (to read that story click here), we thought it would be best for us to take a shuttle bus from the resort to the nearby town of Playa Del Carmen. When we arrived in the sleepy fishing village, we split up with the promise of returning to catch the return shuttle to the resort. We enjoyed checking out the new stretch of sand and aggressive shop keepers, but as we all approached the meeting point for the return shuttle, we were one person short. GRANNY! Unsure of what to do, Grumpy sent us boys back on the return shuttle then scoured the town. Back at the resort, we waited for hours and when the sun set and darkness set in, we wondered if we would ever see our parents again. The patrons we befriended could not believe our luck, but later in the evening when the clapping started, we knew Granny and Grumpy had arrived safe and sound.

A few days later, our trip to Xelha and Tulum went off without a hitch until we were stuck in traffic in the middle of Playa Del Carmen on the way back to our resort. When growing up, it was not uncommon to sit down for breakfast and have a line of cards to sign for every celebration because Granny believed in good old fashioned mail. Having written a dozen post cards, she found her opportunity to mail them when she spotted a post office while we were at a stand still. She figured she would have enough time to jump out, buy stamps, then jump back in. When the traffic started moving and horns were honking behind us, Grumpy made the decision to circle back around then pick Granny back up. By the time we got back to the post office, she was gone. NOT AGAIN! The town was packed but we decided to split up and hopefully find her before she wandered off too far, then meet back up at the car. After about an hour, we tracked her down, then returned to our rendezvous point hoping to get back to the hotel so we could silence our growling bellies. This time we were waiting for Grumpy. We waited and waited for over an hour and thought he must be walking to the ends of the earth. But when he finally rounded the bend with a Big Mac in his hand, we knew what took him so long.

Asher, now as we approached the metropolis of Playa Del Carmen, we could not believe how fast it had grown since our family vacation twenty years ago, and the only thought going through our heads was, ‘if Granny got lost so easily in a fishing village, who knows what could happen in this city of 300,000.’ Asher, you did well on the four hour ride and loved playing with your toys in the tent that Granny and Grumpy made between the seats. The Yucatan Peninsula was significantly more sophisticated than the rest of Central America with frequent and visible highway signs, roads paved better than most in Canada, and when we hailed a taxi to take us to our new apartment, he refused to over-stuff the trunk which meant we all had to ride with a giant piece of luggage on our laps. But when we pulled up and saw our new place, the stuffy ride was worth it.

Our large two bedroom apartment has a great kitchen, two bathrooms, a large dining table, leather futon, and a flat screen TV complete with NETFLIX. We have the most comfortable beds we have ever slept in with duvets and fluffy pillows. The air-conditioning, wifi and pool are just icing on the cake. We wanted Granny and Grumpy to live in comfort for their last week and we decided to stay put until our return to reality three weeks later. Asher, when we awoke the next morning, we all agreed it had been the best sleep of our lives and judging by the fact that you did not budge or make a peep the entire night (other than for quick feeds), I’d say it was your best sleep as well. Now that Granny and Grumpy are pros on the road, we could all rest easy in Playa Del Carmen.