Playa del Carmen Exploration

Time: none
Distance: none

Today the family spent most of the day out at the pool while Whitney and I walked along 5th Ave. Playa del Carmen style. Our main goal was to do a little shopping for ourselves and friends, but after walking all the way past the strip we decided to keep going and our mission changed to finding a place to get my hair cut. We ventured into the more "real" parts of Playa that weren't so touristy. We were just at the edge of town where new condos were being built and old shops would be going out of business. Whit got a few cat calls from the construction workers, but we trucked on and made our way up to another street that was more trafficked. There were quite a few launderias and some some convenient like stores that were sprinkled throughout the streets. The most interesting sites we saw were a gym that looked relatively clean and up to date and a sports complex. There was a soccer field, stands that could hold a few thousand, a dirt track (una pista), two tennis courts, two basketball courts and some other areas for other sports. It would have been cool to see a game but the field looked to be undergoing repairs.

We finally made it back to the main drag and I made my second purchase of the trip. The first purchase was made last night in a pharmacy. I was able to pick up 30 tablets of Celebrex for $120 because Glenn swears it works. I hope it does and I hope I can get it back through customs. My second purchase comprised of three woven hats that were listed at 1300 pesos (~$130) apiece. The quality was great and the owner of the store was showing me how it could be crumbled and retake its shape without concern. Most of the hats that are outside the stores are coated with some sort of substance that makes them brittle and rough to the touch. These ones are soft and flexible and worth the price but not $130. I was able to talk the guy down to $120 for 3 of them which I thought was a pretty good deal, and I was on my way. After a quick walk on the beach and Whit's purchase of ice cream it was back to the hotel for some pool time.