Live from the Jewel! - Jan 17 - Jan 24

[Makorr]

DAY FIVE

 

 

We arrive at Maya Chan and are greeted, handed a drink and led to what will be our private area for the day. It consists of a Palapa, essentially a bed in an open hut, with a table and a couple of chairs. We also have a sun bed and chairs out in the sun down by the water. As we walk past the bar area we can see a few of our fellow passengers, who had arrived before us, checking their email on the laptops that are set up on the bar. There is free wireless Internet service so bring your laptops if you want. Maya Chan was built by a San Diego native, Mark, who runs it with his wife and son. Only 30 guests per day are allowed, and you are pampered with an open bar, delicious chips with homemade guacamole and pico de gallo and a delicious authentic Mexican fajita lunch with grilled chicken flank steak, sea bass, and all the trimmings. Servers will bring you an endless supply of drinks as you lounge on your Palapa enjoying the beautiful view. Activities include bicycle tours, kayaking and snorkeling, but unfortunately it was too windy for kayaking and the conditions were too murky for good snorkeling, although we did attempt the snorkeling as we had brought our gear and Lorraine had never tried it before. One note about the sea grass, which grows abundantly in these waters: previous guests have written complaints about it, the only negative thing I've ever read about Maya Chan. It is true, and actually the rough seas had a large quantity washing up onto the beach. Mark, the owner, addresses this as best he can, by hiring a worker who does nothing but rake up the grass… all day long! It's a Sysaphean task. Mark explained that other beaches don't do this, which actually causes an opening on his beach for the grass to accumulate even more. Today was exceptional, and usually the raking will clear the beach for the day's guests. For us it was not a big deal, it's part of nature and we appreciate the unspoiled caribbean coast in it's wild state. The day seemed to speed by, even though we did little but read our books, tan in the sun and drink our beers. Other guests hung out at the bar and partied, enjoying the top-shelf liquor and bartending skills of Mark's son. Make sure you try their house drink special, made from vodka and limes in the fashion of a mojito. There is a small gift shop, lockers and showers on the premises, and snorkel gear is provided. At the end of your day the staff will have a taxi ready for you and get you back to port safely, regardless of your state of sobriety. I highly recommend Maya Chan. The day we were there, a couple who were doing a back-to-back Jewel cruise were there for their second week. They loved it so much that they chose to come back twice.

 

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What a fabulous day this was....REALLY! We were able to just be on the beach, waited on hand and foot, eat good local food and have interesting discussions with different people. Maya Chan was CLEAN, friendly and not overcrowded. Even if our scuba dive was cancelled because of high swells... we still had a fantastic day. Thanks Mark and David!

 

PS: The return taxi ride was unlike anything I had ever experienced... :cool:

[kayehmbee]

PS: The return taxi ride was unlike anything I had ever experienced... :cool:

 

Haha, is that a good thing?

[Thor101]

It was a fun taxi ride back.We were lucky not to be kicked out.............

[tls630]

It is a nice ship from the sound of it. Looking forward to it.

[yoyocruiser]

Makorr

Thanks for confirming that about the coffee at the buffet. I felt the same thing--that the coffee in that one machine was excellent. As people have complained about the cappichino etc. being taken away, all I could think about was the wonderful coffee that came out of that ONE MACHINE ONLY!!! My families members thought I was crazy--said there was no difference. There definitely is. I don't think any of them got the RIGHT coffee. Honestly, I thought I was getting jsut a little too weird about my coffee.

[gdwoods]

LOL!!! Yep, sure was!!! ;-)

 

 

PS: The return taxi ride was unlike anything I had ever experienced... :cool:

[Makorr]

LOL!!! Yep, sure was!!! ;-)

 

I wonder if she'll ever make a rap album! LMAO! :D

 

Tim said he was there when they brought her on board the ship.... in a bucket, 4 limbs hanging on each side.... and a few assets popping out of her bathing suit.

[Makorr]

Makorr

Thanks for confirming that about the coffee at the buffet. I felt the same thing--that the coffee in that one machine was excellent. As people have complained about the cappichino etc. being taken away, all I could think about was the wonderful coffee that came out of that ONE MACHINE ONLY!!! My families members thought I was crazy--said there was no difference. There definitely is. I don't think any of them got the RIGHT coffee. Honestly, I thought I was getting jsut a little too weird about my coffee.

 

Haha...rest assured... you're not weird nor crazy! You just have a discerning palate!

[RotaryMike]

LOL!!! Yep, sure was!!! ;-)

 

thanks for posting your LIVE cruise, i enjoyed reading about it. we're doing it next month.

 

i haven't used the internet on a cruise before,

did you use there computer in the internet room, or did you bring your own?

if you brought one did you use it wireless or connected in your cabin?

 

was the connection speed ok? thanx, mike

[gdwoods]

I brought my laptop and a long cat5 cable so I could use the computer on the balcony. You can sign out a cable from the Internet Cafe if you do not bring one. There are also computers that you can use in the Internet Cafe. No wireless in our cabin although Fyzz Bar had signs indicating a wireless hotspot was available there.

[arabrab]

Makorr

Thanks for confirming that about the coffee at the buffet. I felt the same thing--that the coffee in that one machine was excellent. As people have complained about the cappichino etc. being taken away, all I could think about was the wonderful coffee that came out of that ONE MACHINE ONLY!!! My families members thought I was crazy--said there was no difference. There definitely is. I don't think any of them got the RIGHT coffee. Honestly, I thought I was getting jsut a little too weird about my coffee.

 

My husband figured this out -- unfortunately not until day 5 of the cruise. He'd been complaining that even with five cups of coffee in the morning that he was still sleepy. Then he found this one. It ought to be added to the hidden secrets list.

[gdwoods]

Our pics here: http://garthwoods.com/component/option,com_phocagallery/Itemid,300056/id,1/view,category/

[kkelle17]

Our pics here: http://garthwoods.com/component/option,com_phocagallery/Itemid,300056/id,1/view,category/

 

It asks me to log in when I click on the link?

[tug]

It asks me to log in when I click on the link?

 

me too :(

[gdwoods]

sorry! please try now

[kkelle17]

sorry! please try now

 

Thanks! Great pics!

[RotaryMike]

I brought my laptop and a long cat5 cable so I could use the computer on the balcony. You can sign out a cable from the Internet Cafe if you do not bring one. There are also computers that you can use in the Internet Cafe. No wireless in our cabin although Fyzz Bar had signs indicating a wireless hotspot was available there.

 

thanx for the info, bringing the cable is a good idea !

[Makorr]

sorry! please try now

 

Great pictures Garth! You can see ours at

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/lynndesjardins06/NorwegianJewel?authkey=Gv1sRgCP3isu7-i9n-mgE&feat=directlink

 

We probably have some similar pics!