SIX DAYS IN CANCUN

SIX DAYS IN CANCUN - Day Two October 21st, Friday

I woke up from a restless sleep around 6am and tentatively made my way over the slumbering bodies to the bathroom.

Another arrival had joined us...bringing our total to seven (there was a lovely couple from Liverpool in the makeshift room when we arrived). I was relieved to see Dave, who had stayed behind on the concrete steps, had found us! Actually, he just stumbled into our area around 4am unable to deal with the rain any longer. Karma.

The day took on a frustrating rhythm. A television had been set up in the Back Porch area and was broadcasting in Spanish. All we wanted to do was to watch the picture and path of Wilma making her way, very slowly towards Cancun. Now a Category 4 with winds of 150 miles per hour.

When was it going to hit Cancun? That was the question on everyones mind. We were smashed together like sardines. It was hot, dank, sweaty and muggy. The roof was leaking. Babies were crying, the emergency medical staff had visited our gym numerous times.

A pattern was established. We were being given false information!!! The hurricane was to hit at 2am. At 2am? Nothing. Just false information to appease us.

A woman had been rushed out of the back porch area because she was overcome by the dense cigarette smoke.  Also false,  we met up with this lady at a later date and a different shelter.

The hurricane had split in two! One headed towards Cuba and the second towards Cancun!

The only thing we could trust was what we were seeing with our own eyes. Around noon, the roof above the South corner, directly above our first camp on the steps, was being lifted by the fierce winds and dropped back.

Each time a thunderous metal BAM vibrated and reverberated over us. At first it lifted one section along the seam on the edge. Light could be seen under it on each lift. It began to spread. First one section, then two, then three. Each time, the loud BAM as it slammed back down.

My heart began to beat faster. I felt the panic begin to rise from some deep part inside of me. Each BAM cause me to shudder and quickly look into the corner. In time, I could not tear my eyes away.

The wind was now lifting seven sections.

SIX DAYS IN CANCUN

DAY ONE -  TARANTULA DREAMS

We were plunged into total darkness. Immediately the Rui staff, who were interspersed throughout the gym switched on flashlights to guide our walking. Joe took off quickly with Dan and I following him through the sea of people trying to keep our feet off the pallets, blankets and bodies. It was very difficult, every inch of space was covered with only narrow paths for walking and at times, not even a path.

When he reached the steps, he gathered up the remainder of our belongings that were not sopping wet. One pallet and the plastic bag that housed our sparse belongings. He turned and headed back once again with Dan and I following him.

The kitchen area was located next to the back porch. The staff was operating from what actually was only a very large concession area, maybe 40 feet by 30 feet. Joe turned the corner and headed into the secluded area. Seven or so Mexican Rui staff were standing at the entrance to the area, located at the back end of a chest high wall. They were aware of the water problem in the South corner and immediately stepped aside to let us enter the kitchen.

We dropped our gear on the opposite side of the wall. The staff had moved the boxes of bananas and apples that were originally against the wall about eight feet giving us a small narrow room.

Dan went back and got Cindy.

We were able to lie on a floor that was a wrestling mat instead of concrete steps. We even had some ventilation!  We could see a tree through the fan. It was swaying and dancing with the strong wind.  I kept my eye on that tree, it became my barometer on how the storm was progressing.

Cindy arrived, we spread out and began the futile attempt of trying to get rest and just possibly some sleep. Everyone became very quiet. Almost peaceful.

Right before I fell asleep I heard a soft murmur coming from Cindy.....

"Tarantulas like to hide in banana's".

SIX DAYS IN CANCUN

Day One -  Good Karma

The roll of the dice.

Luck of the draw.

Being in the right place at the right time.

Pure luck.

Kismet.

How do you try to explain the things that happen to you in your lifetime? How do you understand it? Wrap your mind around it? The unanswered questions. Each one of us is such a small piece of humanity. Like a grain of sand on the beach. All of us have families, histories, dreams and this unexplained thing known as Karma.

The guiding hand.

Joe and I stumbled into the gym and the inn was full. No room existed on the floor. We were forced to find an area on the side. This was the bleacher area.  Large green concrete steps on either side of the gym.

We moved to the right hand corner and set our stuff down. Every tiny space on the floor is covered with people. It is much better on the bleachers. We have room to spread out. We had nothing but two pillows. And then we give one of those away.

We begged and wrestled away two mats from a couple who wanted them as pillows! That is where the pillow went.

Life is getting better. We move around the gym making a kind of route. To the area in the back which will soon be dubbed, "the back porch" where the bathrooms are located and the smokers congregate, past the food station, down the side wall back to the steps.

The rains came. The roof began to leak only above our area of the bleachers. We all shifted around to avoid the drips. We confiscated a large trash can to catch the worst leak. We took empty liter water bottles and cut the tops off and used the bottoms for the smaller leaks.

That is where we found Dan and Cindy. A couple from(....gasp!!!!!.....)Indianapolis! Another gentlemen was sleeping above us, he later became known as Dave. We worked together to remain relatively dry.

Anyone who has been reading my journal for any amount of time knows I have a penchant for falling down. I will not disappoint you all and now I have many more fans. My flip flop went one way and my body went the other. That large gym of 1600 people all were silenced when my scream pierced the air as I went down.

I hobbled off to the bathroom on the back porch.

I actually was hiding out. Joe can back to hold my hand and tell me is was not all that bad, there were some people on the other side of the gym on the steps over there who did not see me fall.

Dan found us and brought the following news. The rain had become worse and the ceiling leaks had become more numerous. Unfortunately, it gushed all over our sleeping area. He and Cindy moved our stuff as best they could, but it was wet.

"Can it get any worse?" I laughed. 

Then the lights went out.

SIX DAYS IN CANCUN

DAY ONE  -  Casa de la Cultura

But we just call it home.

We were one of the last groups to board the bus. That was to become our modus operandi. We took a short bus ride that was made a lot longer by the amount of people trying to escape the Hotel Zone.

We were driven into the city of Cancun and taken to an auditorium called the Casa de la Cultura, where we joined approximately 1,600 other evacuees from the Hotel group RIU. It was in their best interest to keep us all together. We were in two groups. The second group was setting up camp in the school across the street, LaSalle. I could not venture a guess how many. Hundreds. 

We arrived too late to be issued a sleeping pallet for the floor! Joe and I did not really mind, thinking that Wilma would blow through and we would resume our vacation. We even thought that maybe we would be offered extra days!

God bless us.

The day was bright and sunny. The wind was still strong, but not enough to stop the couple of thousand tourists from making a beeline to the WalMart on the adjacent street.

We purchased essentials. Sun glasses (ours were sacrificed to the Surf god the day before), bottled water, hair bands, moist towelettes, and a phone card. If only I had known then what I was facing........

On the way out there was a television set turned on CNN broadcasting in English. We were glued to the screen as the weather came on with news of Wilma. The hurricane was heading towards Cozumel. What he said next will be forever branded into my brain.

"CANCUN IS GOING TO GET HAMMERED"

SIX DAYS IN CANCUN

Day One - The Evacuation

We were handed a bulletin written in both Spanish and English outlining instructions for the evacuation. I was skimming the page and came to the part that read "From Thursday 20th at 8.00 a.m., we ask you to be prepared for the evacuation."

I read no further!!!

I began to run around the room picking up all the clothes and personal items and smashing them into suitcases. Joe took a shower, but I had showered before going to bed and decided not to waste time!!! It was 7.45 a.m. and closing in on 8.00 a.m.

What does one wear for an evacuation? I chose white Capri pants and a blue Old Navy V-neck tee. We proceeded to go down stairs to see what was going on and eat breakfast.

It was very close to 8AM. There was very little activity in the lobby. I asked at the front desk and was instructed to go eat breakfast....a good breakfast, the evacuation will take place in time.

In time. Time became our nemesis .....in time.

There was no panic. Things moved along slowly. We watched the staff climb around the balcony area and tape the windows. We watched as they took apart the heavy glass doors leading to the swimming pool area and the beach. We watched people watch people.

The bars are closed in a crisis event. Any type of alcohol sales are prohibited. People were drinking the Corona's from the refrigerators in their room.

Joe and I returned to our room and gathered what the hotel staff had instructed...pillows, passports, money, personal cosmetic items. We skipped the blankets. We were only going to be gone for 12 to 24 hours! We placed our luggage in the bathroom later to be moved to the bathtub by the hotel staff. Naturally we filled a water bottle with tequila from the bottle supplied to us in the room. Survival.

We patiently waited for buses to pick us up. All our belongings resting in the large plastic bags supplied to us by the hotel. We watched the staff begin to remove coconuts from the excessive number of trees surrounding the hotel, then some of the limbs themselves.

Out of boredom we began to chat with a couple seated with us, close to the back of the lobby. Bob and Judy.

I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

SIX DAYS IN CANCUN

Thursday Morning October 20th - Day One

We rode the bus provided to us by our vacation package company, Funjet, to the resort. The representative gave us the low down on the hurricane status. "We don't know."

A familiar refrain we would hear the entire journey.

She assured us we would have Thursday to go sightseeing, to visit the local disco's on the bus tour, go into Cancun, visit the ruins, and participate in the various excursions. She informed us that the hurricane was scheduled to arrive in our area on Friday. What category? How close? "We don't know". Wilma is expected to miss us and continue to the east.

In the meantime, Wilma is south of us, with winds of 175 miles per hour, a Category 5 hurricane....destination: unknown. She is a monster and moving slowly.

We are frolicking on the beach and playing on the foamy waves. We are taking advantage of the waning hours of a beautiful sun drenched Caribe afternoon. We are drinking Pina Colada's with the innocence of the uninformed. We are now in a third world country with limited resources to information. Soon to become no access to information.

I slept fitfully during the night. The wind was picking up speed and intensity as the hours crept into morning. I opened the sliding glass door and retrieved our wet t-shirts and towels that laid on the patio chairs.

Joe went to the front lobby at 5am. The staff shook their heads. The kitchen staff was busy making breakfast for all the guests. It would open at 7am. Joe returned to our room. We were glued to CNN. Information? Little to none.

Joe and I had dozed back to sleep after spending most the night awake. A loud knocking on our door at 730AM caused us to bolt straight out of bed.

We were evacuating.

SIX DAYS IN CANCUN

Wednesday October 19

We left on Tuesday for Chicago to spend the day before traveling on Wednesday to Cancun in the Quintana Roo area of Mexico. Also known as the Mayan Riviera on the Yucatan Peninsula.

We contacted our travel agency to get information on the storm Wilma, which was being reported on CNN and MSNBC as building to the largest and strongest hurricane ON RECORD.

No one  knew anything. Weather is like that. Fickle and unpredicable.

I could not imagine what I would do on an "all inclusive" vacation hotel. How much can you eat and drink? I took along some books and sun tan lotion (HA!!!) and looked forward to laying on the beach, sipping exotic cocktails.

The extent of my Spanish consists of the following ... Ola...gracious, Amigo....and Eye Yi Yi....

I wanted to venture out into Cancun Proper and look into the Bull Fights (please no hate mail.) I thought that the flea market would be cool. We were to be there for three nights and four days and I hoped to be able to get off the "Riviera" section into the city and take pictures.

It was  windy. The sea was choppy. The sky was ominous.  When we arrived we were able to go the beach and prance around in the surf. We tried to run them out of liquor by ordering every exotic drink we could think of. We ate several times at two restaurants in the hotel.

Then we retired to watch the very late broadcast of the last game of the Astro Cardinal series.

I fell asleep very late. In my broken and restless dreams I heard the wind howling.

 

(Kisses to Joe (AOL Journal Editor) who tells me this story is MINE. AOL can use parts of it (if they want)  because I wrote it here, but it is mine!!!)