Travelin' Tuesday: Cozumel

Cozumel, Mexico was the first stop on both our 2009 and 2012 western Caribbean cruises. In 2009 we booked a beach buggy and snorkel tour at Punta Sur, while our most recent cruise gave us the chance to learn a thing or two about Mexican cooking.

First off, our buggy excursion.

After docking, we met up with our tour group and hopped into our transportation for the day.  It's a good thing my cousin Jason came with us, because neither Chris nor I are great with driving a stick shift.

Jason loved this arrangement because it meant he was free to hit the open road without having to switch off drivers.  Our caravan made it to Punta Sur and took a little walking tour of the area which included some mini ruins and crocodiles.

We opted out of the snorkeling part and enjoyed the time relaxing on the beach.  Once the snorkelers made it back to shore we had a mini Mexican feast and then headed toward the lighthouse.

Chris has a mild fear of heights, so he stayed on the ground while Jason and I made our way up 130 steps  to the breathtaking views on the top.  After admiring the view, we were back on the road headed towards the pier where we threw back a couple of drinks on the swings of Fat Tuesdays before getting on board the ship.

Our other Cozumel experience came in the form of a Mexican cooking class which we have to thank Jason's wife, Olympia for.  She took this excursion on our last family cruise (while we were driving the buggy) and came back with rave reviews of the food and open bar.  Her excursion this time around (Salsa and Salsa) was cancelled due to a low number of confirmed guests so she joined us and cooked again.

Our chefs Roberto and Luis started off with taking our drink orders before explaining the menu to us.  We worked backwards, starting with making dessert caramelized, chocolate covered plantains.

Roberto showed us a couple of tricks for decorating our plates before we moved onto the main course of fish filet topped with veggies.

We prepped the veggies and fish in the pan, then wrapped it in foil to finish cooking in the oven.  We finished off with making our spicy shrimp appetizer.  Chris likes things spicier than I do, so I was able to pull out my half of the shrimp while he kept adding spices to his.

Once we were done, it was time for a couple more drinks and up to the dining room to enjoy our meals

After lunch we enjoyed some beach time before heading back to the pier.

My view up from my nap spot.

We had a blast cooking and hope to try out the recipes that we came home with!