Honeymooners Part 3: We Had Adventures

So, we knew we really wanted to do something while we were in Mexico.  Some kind of excursion.  I really wanted to go swim with the dolphins, but that mess was like $200 a person.  Yeah, we passed on that one.  Instead, we booked an excursion with Aventuras Mayas with an Apple Vacations rep at the resort.  We decided on the Mayan Adventure Snorkeling Tour. 

"Live a wonderful jungle and ocean experience, discover in one day three extraordinary ecosystems of the Mayan world. Surprise yourself with Mexico´s biodiversity and join us in the snorkeling tour that will change your way of feeling nature.

We will dive into the turquoise waters of the Mexican Caribbean surrounded by exotic marine life; explore an underground river in the middle of the jungle, and discover the mystical wonders of the Mayan sinkholes (cenotes)"

Sounds innocent enough, right?  We both agreed we could handle that.  I seriously fail at swimming, but I figured it wasn't really going to be deep water swimming.  I guess when I heard "snorkeling tour" I pictured something along the lines of this:

Imagine my pure horror when our tour guide decides to tell us, once we're ALREADY en route on a bus, that this trip is very physically demanding, and requires SEVERAL MILES of swimming.

Source

I mean, I knew I would have to get in the water.  I'm fine with pools!  I love pools!  But several miles of swimming?  In the OCEAN?!  I thought we were going to be in a shallow "snorkeling" pond or something.  I'm dumb.

Fortunately for me, our guide was prepared with not only snorkeling masks, but flippers and life vests.  Thank you, guide-man!  My panic subsided.  I was ready to do this!

 

The snorkeling was definitely tiring, but really rewarding!  We honestly did go out in the middle of the ocean.  It was a really cool experience.

Next up, we were off to snorkeling in the caves.

Picture courtesy Aventuras Mayas

The ocean water was really warm.  It's Mexico, so yeah.  These freshwater caves however... were FREEZING cold.  Take-your-breath-away cold. After trying to slowly creep in, we just jumped in together.  It's the only way.

The caves were beautiful.  I pretended that the bats flying overhead weren't real. 

I've honestly never seen such clear water in nature before!

Our last adventure for the day was at a deep freshwater pool.

See that rope going across the water?  It's a zip-line.  I always wanted to zip-line!  I was really nervous though, because you zip-lined from a large drop off right into the water.  I did it anyway, because when would I ever get to do that again?  K wasn't scared.  He went first.

Ok, then me.  Awkward flail.

That wrapped up our excursion.  A few days later, it was time to say goodbye to our honeymoon.  I was tan, K was burned (poor guy), and though we were sad to leave... we wanted to get back home and see everyone.

Little did we know, it wouldn't be that easy to get back home.  Long story short, our American Airlines flight was delayed (due to mechanical problems) for four hours.  I hate Cancun airport now.  I paid $7 for a Gatorade. I'm not letting that go anytime soon.

I'm also not a fan of American Airlines.  Especially their gate agent, who acted as though my question "Are we going to miss our connecting flight?  Do we need to rebook a later flight from DFW to PIT?" was the stupidest thing she'd heard all day.  *eyeroll* "No. You'll make it."

We were supposed to have a five hour layover in Dallas, so we still had a chance to catch our connecting flight... or so the gate agent claimed.  Five hours down to one hour... but I forgot about customs.

After waiting 20 minutes for our bags to arrive, we booked it through customs, and rechecked our bags.  20 minutes to go.  We RAN to the little gate shuttle train.  Our gate was pretty much the last stop.  Of course.  WHY is DFW so HUGE?!  My dad told me that DFW is on a land mass that is bigger than Manhattan.  I tend to believe him.

The people on the shuttle were cheering us on "You can make it, run like hell!" When those doors opened, we ran.  Fast.

We were the last people on the plane to PIT.  They closed the gate after we went through.  We literally made it by a minute.  Ok, gate agent.  You were right. 

Honeymoon accomplished, and we were on our way home!  Then, I ate Mexican Frosted Flakes I took from the resort.  The end.

Did you have any intentional or unintentional adventures on your honeymoon or vacation?