Return to Paradise, Isla Mujeres

My favourite - Bougainvillea flowers.

The warm, humid air, filled with the scent of tropical flowers and lush vegetation, greeted me at Cancun Airport, making me feel as though I was returning home, even if only for a few weeks.

On December 23, 2019, fifteen months after Lawrie’s passing, Sparky and I moved from Isla Mujeres to the historic city of San Miguel de Allende, nestled high in the mountains north of Mexico City. 

Known as a refuge for artists and writers, I had planned to live in San Miguel for at least ten years, but the pandemic changed those plans.

Ultramar passenger ferry.

Starting in mid-March 2020, I received several emails from the Canadian government urging me to return to Canada because borders were closing and all air travel was being suspended. The emails said the government wouldn’t be able to ‘rescue’ any remaining citizens once the lockdown was in effect. I was on my own in an unfamiliar city, with no support system. If I became ill, Sparky would have been at risk. We flew back to Canada on March 20, 2020.

This trip marked my first return to Mexico since the pandemic. As we neared Cancun airport, my seatmate, a WestJet employee, noted that the small gold emblem on the front of my Canadian passport allowed me to use the expedited customs line. With nothing to declare in my small carry-on, I cleared customs smoothly.

Gone were the customs and immigration forms that had to be filled out on the airplane after scrambling to find a working pen at the bottom of my purse. 

Gone were the massive lines at the luggage scanners, where each bag was rechecked before the owners left the security area.

Gone was the red-light, green-light lottery system that randomly (we were told) selected who would have their bags searched. That system was highlighted in an amusing illustration by my creative partner, Diego Medina, in The Adventures of Thomas the Cat: Las Aventuras de Tomás el Gato. It's a bilingual children's book that documents our cat Thomas's move to Mexico in 2007.

First photo - across from the Navy base.

Outside of Terminal 4, I quickly found the kiosk for my pre-arranged shuttle, and then we headed to the Ultramar passenger ferry. In previous years, when Lawrie and I returned from adventures abroad to our home on Isla Mujeres, we often took the inexpensive ADO bus from the airport to the bus terminal, then a local taxi to the Ultramar docks. This time, I wanted to be pampered, so I used a familiar shuttle service that included a round-trip ticket for the passenger ferry.

Arriving on Isla, I joined the line at the taxi stand and asked the driver how much it would cost to take me to my friend’s home near Maria’s Kin Kan. He quoted a price I expected, and I hopped in.

Punta Sur, a favourite spot for Sparky & I

For the next 16 days, I reconnected with many pals: permanent residents, part-timers, snowbirds, close friends from our old neighbourhood, and island friends whose great-great-grandparents had been born on Isla. We laughed, ate, shared a bottle or two of wine, and enjoyed the warmth of good friends and new acquaintances.

Different combinations of friends and I ate at several new-to-me restaurants, including the Isla Brewing Beer Garden, owned and operated by our friends Jeff, Rhett, and Anya McGahee.

Carnaval 2026. 

I searched for the tastiest tacos at Blue Ballyhoo, El Rancho, Loretta’s, Sabor de México, El Charco, also known as Deisy and Raul’s, Ulan Eatery, and Marina Bartolomé. We enjoyed tasty Italian dishes at De Nuccio’s. My friend Michelle and I dined at Rosa Sirena’s, where Debbie Crinigan de Chacon gave me a warm welcome-home hug.

The Medina family, Freddy, Eva, Diego, and Danaee, plus Carol Lawler and her cute pooch, Paloma, hosted breakfast at Sabor de México twice. On the morning of my birthday breakfast, a massive three-layer cake with a volcanic sparkler appeared at our table. Freddy and I served everyone in the restaurant a piece of cake and had plenty left over for the staff.

With permission from the owners of our beachfront home, I spread some of Sparky’s ashes on the sand. Sparky has many of his four-legged pals to keep him company: Thomas the Cat, Princess Chica, Missy, and Odd the Dog. And a little bit of his very best friend, Lawrie.

Sabor de Mexico.

On Isla, I zipped around in a rental golf cart, photographing favorite spots and comparing the photos with earlier images. I watched the always entertaining Carnaval parade. Michelle and I popped in to visit longtime friends Neil and Abbey Fox at Sac Bajo. 

My last night on Isla was spent at a successful fundraiser at my friend’s home, raising money for several worthy island causes.

Playa Norte, North Beach.

Usually, when someone has been on a tropical vacation, they come home with a tan. I am still a ghostly white. In sixteen days, I never once sat on the beach! (I did take a couple of photos of Playa Norte.) Neither Lawrie nor I were sunworshippers, even when we lived full-time on Isla Mujeres.

So, what had changed in six years? A lot. And nothing at all. There are more houses, more restaurants, more stores selling souvenir tat, and more golf carts buzzing around, but essentially, it is still Isla. 

The islanders are kind and generous. The food is delicious. The weather is perfect for this chilly Canadian. The scenery is gorgeous. Isla Mujeres is still very dear to me.

This trip was a mix of happy tears and heart-wrenching memories of my adventurous and romantic life with Lawrie. But I am glad I went. It was enjoyable to reconnect with some of my amazing pals. 

I missed seeing a few folks, but I am planning to return this winter. See you then! 

Cheers, Lynda

Top 100 Canadian Women Authors, Top 40 Mexico guides (But it's a memoir more than a guidebook.)