After getting our condo shipshape upon our return to Mexico, we got to spend a little time getting down to the business of everyday living and having some fun: working out, massages, taking Spanish lessons, visits from friends and family, golf, and dining out. All part of Living Chapter 2, right?
Personal Training
We look forward to regular in-person time with our trainer, Jane, at our onsite gym when back in Playa del Carmen. Diana started with her three times a week about a year ago, and my sessions are twice weekly. Diana does remote sessions when possible as we travel (she’s doing one as I write this), but in-person sessions are always better. The sessions went so well for Diana, she didn’t need physical therapy after her latest surgeries.
The gym isn’t usually crowded, so Jane is able to put us through a variety of tailored exercises. For this period, it was all about ski season prep. The regimen worked really well, and we have both felt it made a difference in how our skiing has been this season. Moreover, Jane adapted workouts as needed and helped us out with life in Playa beyond the gym. We feel lucky to have her in our lives, and we consider her a dear friend.
Getting Massages
Another on-site amenity we enjoy is the massage service. We get an owner discount, so an hour-long massage at a hut on the beach is only $25 plus tip. Diana takes advantage of this weekly, and I usually join her every other week. We can’t beat the price and location.
The therapists have come to know our preferences and do a great job of working out our kinks. The massages were especially helpful for Diana, early on, to soften her post-op scars. We are already planning a visit immediately after our return from skiing.
Spanish Lessons
In addition, we started twice a week Spanish lessons. Our instructor, JaneToo, comes to our home, making it very convenient. We were able to make better progress learning French a couple of years ago during our three-month Paris residency. Because we committed to 90-minute French classes 4-5 days a week and didn’t have the home ownership distractions, this is understandable. We need to kick it up a notch in Playa to register real progress in Spanish.
One thing we learned is that Spanish can differ quite a bit depending on who is teaching it. JaneToo is from Buenos Aires, and her English is decent, but her Spanish accent sounds different than Mexicans for words with “y” and “ll”, like playa and pollo. It’s kinda like listening to a Kiwi (New Zealander) speak English. Whenever she says those sounds, I make an effort to repeat the word like how I think Mexicans would say it. My goal, after all, is for the locals to understand me.
Rotating Company
Friends and family started showing up just after Thanksgiving. We enjoyed catching up and sharing with them what’s special about our little corner of the world. It’s always nice to have visitors, but it takes a little more effort than being on our own. To keep things fresh, we ask that they plan to stay no more than a week, and we give ourselves a break between guests to catch up on life.
Playing Golf
Part of the life we catch up on is enjoying some of the golf courses in the area. A number of nearby courses give discounts to locals for specific days and times. Coming in is a tourist, golf here can be quite expensive, so we love that we can take advantage of our residence. Unfortunately, the deals don’t extend to our guests. The courses inspect the IDs of every guest, and only verified locals qualify for the discounts.
Given that Diana was coming off surgery, we chose to play at a couple of short courses in the area. Our first was a 9-hole course in Puerto Aventuras, about 30 minutes south of Playa. We reserved a round for two, including a cart, for $60 total. Unfortunately, the skies opened up when we started, and we gave up after waiting 20 minutes for the rain to stop, having played only three holes. The staff was kind enough to give us a rain check so we could do the whole nine holes another day after the course dried out. We really enjoyed take-two on this course when the weather was fine.
Visiting the Dolphins
After we finished our 2nd stab at Puerto Aventuras, we decided to cross the street and check out the scene. The shops and dining on-site wrap around a set of dolphin pens where tourists can come and experience/swim with dolphins. That day, the unoccupied dolphins were having fun playing with toys. It was cute to see, but you gotta wonder if they would have preferred playing in the waves.
Back to Golf
Another time, we ventured north 30 minutes to a Nicklaus-design 18-hole executive course at the Vidanta resort. This was a more resort course type of experience. We were directed to a place to park and then waited for a resort golf cart to take us to the course at this expansive resort. We hadn’t figured on the extra transfer time, so we barely made our tee time. Still, it was all good out on the course, except for when Diana beat me. All of the hard work in the gym has greatly improved her golf game. We had a good round, and we can’t beat the $40 total for the two of us with cart for locals.
We will return.
Other Activities
When we are not busy with all of the above, we are shopping, cooking, making pasta from scratch, hanging out by the pool, visiting local friends, visiting doctors, paying bills, tracking investments, tax planning, and travel planning. We even get in a little bird-watching on the property. As you might expect, we do a lot of travel planning. This is what life in Mexico is like for us.
How do you retired readers pass your time?
