Finding Paradise in 1993, Jackie Conlon

2005 Boat found drifting after Wilma.Sergio used as a bar

“So, you're from Wisconsin?” The woman queried, puzzled.

“No, no, I live in Oregon. I said Milwaukie, Oregon.” Jackie Conlon replied, a tiny bit frustrated that no one seemed to grasp the concept of a city named Milwaukee that was actually located in Oregon, not in Wisconsin. True, Milwaukee, Oregon, had only about 22,000 people, while Milwaukee, Wisconsin, had about 600,000, so one was definitely more famous than the other, but neither city could be considered “paradise.”

1993 Na Balam Hotel 

Jackie first discovered her version of paradise in 1993. She was looking for a new adventure, a new place to relax after a strenuous six months of commuting between Oregon and Colorado for her job in telecommunications. She was tired of the Mazatlan – Puerto Vallarta area, and suggested to her travel agent that she was ready for something new: maybe Belize. “Un-uh! No, a woman travelling alone in Belize is not a good idea,” the agent said. “I think you would like the Playa del Carmen or the Yucatan area of Mexico a lot more.”

1993 El Presidente Hotel damaged.

So her first trip to the Caribbean side of Mexico included two nights in Cancun, then ten days in Playa del Carmen, and another ten days on Isla. Unfortunately, her first visit to Isla Mujeres included breaking her toe on arrival, limiting her island experiences to the hotel, beach, and restaurant. However, the turquoise water, soft white sand, and charming locals hooked her on the island. In the next twenty-one years, she returned time and again to her island paradise, bringing family members and friends to share the experience.

1996 Garrafon Park

Now a confirmed Islahólico – a true fan of Isla Mujeres – Jackie is a longtime member of the Isla Mujeres Scholarship Group. The group was formed in 2005 to provide financial assistance to qualified students who wanted to continue on to college or university. Jackie told me that this is a personally satisfying venture, one that gives her close contact with the students and their families. She can see how her monthly contributions are improving the life of the student and of the student's family. Whenever one of the students graduates, she is happy to sign up to assist another one for the four or more years needed to complete their education.

Island youngsters

Jackie is also an avid supporter of local businesses and enjoys promoting them. She created a Facebook page for a local restaurant to help them market their business. And, if you are her personal Facebook friend, you will see a variety of “food porn” photographs, promoting various local restaurants, but she confesses, until very recently, she had never tried the wonderfully decadent Mexican specialty – marquesitas. Marquesitas are the crepe-like confections cooked on a large pan, filled with sliced bananas and chocolate sundae sauce, then rolled into a tube shape and handed to you with a small paper serviette wrapped around one end. Heavenly!

October 2005, high seas before Hurricane Wilma

Even though Milwaukie, Oregon, may not be a tropical paradise, Jackie has discovered her own paradise here on Isla Mujeres. 

She is a big-hearted addition to the island.

Hasta Luego

Lawrie & Lynda

All of the photos are from Jackie Conlon's collection 

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Sun, sand and Sol (Sol, arena y Sol)

Sol, arena y Sol  (Sun, sand and Sol beer).

A mischievous grin lit his face. Our friend Chuck recently asked, “Do you even know where North Beach is?” Okay, I get it. We are not beach people. We like sitting in the shade, by our own pool, with our own refrigerator close at hand, with a supply of snacks and cold drinks. Boring, but true. 

So, imagine my surprise when Lawrie asked me if I wanted to go to the beach. “The beach? Really, the beach? Okay.”  Then there was a long pause while I thought about it some more, adding, “I guess.”

Surfer with blue and white kite twenty feet in air

We packed up our swimsuits, towels, sunscreen, and sunglasses, then hopped in the golf cart. Parking in front of the Na Balam Hotel, we sauntered through the gardens, headed to the beach. We greeted a couple of the staff members that we knew and paid for a double lounger partially shaded by a palm tree.  

Ten minutes later, a bucket of icy cold Sol cerveza arrived compliments of our friend, Luz. Alright, maybe I could get to like this beach thing.

Third kite surfer joining the other two

Leaning back on the sunbed, we lazily watched as two very fit young guys launched their windsurfing kites into the wind. 

They made kite-surfing look ridiculously easy as they skimmed and scooted across the waves, bouncing up a good twenty feet in the air and flipping into a somersault with the awkward board strapped to their feet.  

We could do that too, if we really wanted to. 

Exercise the hard way!  Popsicle salesman. 

Then a third young guy started untangling lines and readying his black and yellow kite. We silently scoffed. He couldn’t possibly do nearly as well as the other two. He was a bit on the chubby side, with a spare tire around his waist.  However, once he got the kite airborne, he did just fine keeping up with his competition. 

I snapped dozens of photos of the action, all the while staring covetously at another photographer and his very expensive Nikon D4, or maybe it was the Nikon D3X.  Equipped with a humongous telephone lens and a tripod, I am fairly certain that the kite surfers in his photos were a lot more visible than the ones in my photos. Sigh, only in my dreams.

Regata del Sol al Sol in the background with Navy ship

Menu in hand, our waiter arrived, suggesting that with the north wind blowing, we might want to eat inside at the restaurant. He was worried our food might include a side order of sand. We decided to stay put on the lounger and enjoyed a tasty lunch, only slightly seasoned with blowing sand, while watching more of the beach action. 

In the distance, we could see the participants of the 45^th Regata del Sol al Sol were wrapping up their weeklong visit to the island with the children’s day of sailing. We watched as a dozen or so sailboats arrived loaded with children. They circled around a naval cutter, sitting offshore as a marker for the boats, and returned to the marina. This part of the Regata del Sol al Sol is hugely popular with boaters and islanders alike, giving local children a pleasant life-long memory of this annual event.

Rebuilding the weirs to stabilize the beach

Soon we were drowsy from food, sunshine, and cold beers. It was time to pack up and head back to our shady little casa. Time for an afternoon siesta. 

We do know where North Beach is. I have photos to prove it!

Hasta Luego          
Lynda and Lawrie

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