How do you make a living in a small community? Diversify!

Javi & Marla 

Earning a living in a small community can be daunting, but for energetic and resourceful people, it can be an interesting adventure.  When Javier Martinez Cen and Marla J. Bainbridge teamed up romantically and professionally, their world got a lot more interesting.

Javi’s family, Martinez, is one of the oldest families on Isla Mujeres. He has spent his entire life on the island, except for a few vacations to Canada, Germany and the USA. Grinning Javi added he was actually born in Mérida. He is not sure if his mother planned to have him in Mérida or if she just happened to be visiting family when Javi made his debut. 

Not long after they joined forces, Marla created a spreadsheet for Javi, with the week blocked out in one-hour segments, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. It was a simple demonstration that they would have a plan where and when they worked, as sleep was a non-negotiable line item on the spreadsheet. 

Toso, Julio, and Javi part of Banda Sin Nombre

In previous years, Javi tried a variety of jobs. He worked on the reception desk at the Cristal Mar Hotel and as a guide at the turtle farm. He also tried his hand at lobster fishing and boat cleaning, but music was always the main motivation in his life. 

Taught at an early age by his dad, Toso, Javi later expanded his music education in Mérida. His grandfather and uncle were also musicians, and his dad still plays a mean bass guitar in La Banda Sin Nombre. However, for Javi, playing a late-night gig at Fayne’s and then reporting to work at the middle school at 6:45 in the morning was not going to be successful in the long term. It doesn’t matter how young you are, eventually the body says: stop!

Javi and his bud.  

On the other hand, Marla, who was originally an Alabama girl, moved to Isla Mujeres about three and a half years ago. She has lived in several American cities and states, and enjoys the challenge of re-inventing herself when presented with new opportunities. Marla readily admits that when she was in high school, she was an awful student; she had absolutely no interest. Several years later, she decided she was bored and needed a new challenge. She enrolled in Pepperdine University in California, and breezed through her Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership.

Moving to Isla, she realized she had to cast a large net over the island to find job opportunities and business ideas. Creating websites and promotional ideas for various island businesses, plus property management for eight homes, got her started. The property management led to purchasing the web-based business Isla Mujeres Budget Rentals, offering booking services between several lower-priced properties and tourists. This has expanded to include Isla Mujeres Vacation Rentals for mid-priced properties and Isla Mujeres Luxury Rentals for the higher-end properties.  

Another one of their business ventures

Creative and restive, her mind is never still, so Marla came up with two more inventive ideas. Dinnertainment: private dinner parties hosted in your home, condo, or apartment, complete with music.  And Transportainment: Javi tours clients to the off-the-beaten-path locations of Isla Mujeres, complete with a local history lesson.

Just when I thought they had revealed all their business secrets, an early morning email informed me of their newest venture, Isla Iguana Tag, to be launched in November.  According to Marla, “it’s an updated version of a scavenger hunt where teams use their smartphones to join in the fun, and are given a list of challenges to compete for points. It’s a great way to see the island, and to visit local attractions or businesses.” 

 

With all of these enterprises rolling along, Marla realized an important fact about herself. She enjoys developing new business ideas. Her criteria for a great business venture are simple: the joy derived must be more than the time spent and the money earned.  

Javi wants to be a good husband and a good dad to his thirteen-year-old daughter, Ambar, and to lead a balanced, happy life. 

Hasta Luego 

Lynda and Lawrie

Murder. Mayhem. Revenge. Romance.

Isla Mujeres Mystery Series

Death in the Vineyards Mysteries

The Adventures of Thomas and Sparky

Summertime and the living is easy, Isla Mujeres Mexico!

Buckets of ice-cold cervesa

"How can you live in Mexico in the summertime?"  

It's a frequently asked question and has a simple answer. "Easily! It's great. The winds die down, and the temperature and humidity rise a bit, but not as much as you would think." 

Living on the Caribbean side of the island, the windward side, we typically have a cooling breeze most of the year. In the summer, it is still breezy, but not windy. The ocean flattens out, and the waves turn into ripples. 

Swimming with whale sharks on Isla Mujeres

Summertime is the only time you can swim with the benign giants, the whale sharks, the biggest fish in the world. They migrate here in May and usually stay until late September. 

It's hard to get the proper perspective on the size of the whale sharks until they slide along beside or under a 31-foot boat – then you see that they are scary big, reaching up to a 40-foot length.



Large pod of whale sharks off Isla Mujeres


And swimming towards a freaking big fish with a huge mouth that is open wide, it is spine-tingling fabulous! Even Sir Richard Branson, owner of Virgin Air, among other things, has twice produced a TV show depicting his experience of swimming with the whale sharks.  

The whale sharks are still hunted in the Philippines for Shark Fin Soup, but not in Mexico. Here they are a protected tourist attraction.



One hundred and twenty Sea Turtle eggs

Summertime is also the only time we have nocturnal visits from the sea turtles. 

The females land under the cover of dark, or in the pre-dawn hours on our beaches, digging several holes in the sand until the perfect nesting site is found. 

The beaches look like something out of a war movie by the time the ladies have finished with them.  Huge holes as if a mortar shell had hit the ground - blowing sand and debris in a wide circle. 

During the night, employees of the Turtle Farm patrol the beaches, looking for nests and gathering the eggs for hatching in a safe environment. In late September and early October, the hatchlings will be released back to the various beaches, starting the cycle all over again.

Ciro, Javier, Julio & Miguel play for singer Jen Rae.


And the other fun ways we keep ourselves amused in summer? 

Listen to live music at bars and restaurants.

Or buy a delicious Panini sandwich from Barlito's on Hidalgo Avenue to enjoy at home while taking a cooling dip in our pool.


Or gaze at the ocean, watching the fabulous sunsets, while quaffing cold, cheap beer. 



Evening sail with Induna Charters

Buckets of these icy little treats usually cost less in the summer as an inducement to patronize the various restaurants. 

Or take an evening sailing cruise around the island with Induna Charters. 

Or if I really get ambitious, I borrow a kayak from family members and paddle out to the reef in front of our house. 

Lynda, kayaking on a summer day!

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