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  • LifeAsLemonade

Mexico

Auryn and I are going to live and travel in Mexico for up to six months! Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 26, 2020
    LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Atlanta to Cancun!

    September 26, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ 🌧 30 °C

    First three or so days in Cancun! Took a flight from Atlanta to Huston to Cancun.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):

    Fights = $60 USD for each person.
    Luggage = $32 USD for each person.
    Bus from Airport to Cancun = 188 pesos
    AirBnb for 2 nights = $34 USD
    Groceries = 170 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Valladolid

    September 28, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    We went to Valladolid! A small colonial town. It’s very beautiful and colourful. A nice contrast from Cancun.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):

    Bus from Cancun to Valladolid x 2 = 268 pesos
    Hotel for two nights = $58 USD
    Groceries = 96 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    My Birthday in Valladolid!

    September 29, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    Celebrated my 24th birthday in Valladolid. Found a place with a nice pool and got some amazing tequila! We tried to go out for dinner, but with covid we found it hard to find any places open. We ended up finding a place with tamales though.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):

    Tequila = 140 pesos
    B-day Dinner = 140 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Chichen Itza (Part 1)

    October 1, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ 🌧 30 °C

    One of the seven wonders of the world! It is stunning! We got there fairly early so we missed most of the crowds.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):
    Colectivo (to and from) x 2 people = 160 pesos
    Chichén Itzá x 2 people = 497 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Headed to Tulum

    October 3, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Today we headed for Tulum not realizing that we’re headed directly into a tropical storm... oops.

    We firstly have a super wet walk to the ADO bus station in Valladolid. Then we have an intense bus ride through the storm needing to frequently stop for one lane traffic due to fallen trees on the road.

    Once we get to Tulum we have an incredibly windy and flooded walk to our Airbnb. We finally reach our Airbnb to find that our host has left us no instruction for entry and is no where to be found. We are left out in the storm for over 3 hours while Auryn bikes to the ADO bus station to access the internet (one of the only places in Tulum with power and internet at the time). I stay behind and guard our things with a neighborhood cat in a small covered area outside our Airbnb. Finally, one of the residents at the Airbnb complex contacts the host and helps us get into our apartment... which we find hasn’t been cleaned yet. Thankfully, our host puts us in a different apartment in the complex.

    When we finally get situated in our Airbnb we head to the grocery store to buy candles which proves to be more difficult than expected as the entire town is buying up all of the candles. Out of luck the person ahead of us decides to not purchase all of his candles which we buy up right away. (Apparently some customers were getting into fights over candles, but we were able to avoid that thankfully).

    After a long day we head home, eat some food, and rest.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):
    Bus tickets from Valladolid to Tulum x 2 people = 220 pesos
    Airbnb for 2 nights = $43 USD
    Groceries = 291 pesos
    Eating out (fancy) x 2 people = 215 pesos
    SIM Card and 3gb data = 230 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Tulum to Playa del Carmen

    October 5, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We decide to leave Tulum rather quickly due to our stormy welcome, the expense, and the touristy vibe. At this point we’re looking for a place to settle into for a month to begin working online. With COVID still at large we’ve also decided that traveling every few days may not be the safest idea, plus things aren’t entirely open so we are traveling to places and not really getting to experience them anyway. So we’re off to Playa Del Carmen! It seems like a fairly accessible city for us to live in because all amenities are within walking distance (including the beach). 😎

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):
    Colectivo Tickets for Tulum to PDC x 2 people = 90 pesos
    Airbnb 1 night = $24 USD    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Hurricane Número Uno

    October 6, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We find out on our second day in PDC that Hurricane Delta will be arriving the next day. 😨

    When we first heard about the hurricane it was only at category 2, so because we’ve already booked our accommodations, we decide that we’re going to hunker down and stay in PDC rather than try and take a last minute bus out of the city. As the day goes on the severity prediction crept up to category 4.

    We see tons of people boarding up the windows to their shops and houses, people are going on big grocery shops buying food, candles, and water, and stores stop selling alcohol (they aren’t allowed to sell alcohol during times of disaster, or on Sundays after 5pm).

    Auryn and I go to Walmart and stock up on a ton of food and we fill up sinks and all the bottles we have with water. Thankfully, we already have candles and a lighter from the storm in Tulum. We moved our bed away from the window. And we texted our families to tell them where we were and what was happening.

    The city becomes empty and quiet asides from the sound of the wind and the flashing lights from the odd police truck patrolling the streets.

    We hunker down in bed for a loud and scary night.

    In the last two videos you can see and hear the rain pouring into the apartment complex in the stairwell, as well as the bangs from things flying off buildings outside.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):
    Groceries = 288 pesos
    Accommodation for 1 night (average) = $23 USD    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Hurricane Delta Aftermath

    October 7, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We survived Hurricane Delta! Thankfully it diminished into a category 2 before it hit land in PDC. Many buildings were still battered, but the damage wasn’t too severe compared to what it could have been.

    Power and internet slowly returned across the city over the next week. Some areas were back up and running right away, but others not so much.    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Hotwater Heater Incident

    October 8, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    After a few days we move to a different Airbnb within PDC (we’re basically gonna keep moving around in PDC until we find a monthly rental).

    We get to this seemingly cute place and I begin to do my laundry in the sink (things ya do to save money while traveling). As I am cleaning all of my clothes, the hot water tank that is positioned above me on a concrete shelf begins to leak... everywhere... flooding our entire suite.

    We contact our host and he is incredibly unresponsive. The cleaner hadn’t finished washing the room towels yet so I use my personal microfiber towel to attempt mop up the water getting all over the floor. Finally, after two hours we are given a different suite within the same building only to find that we have no toilet paper or soap, wifi, and most of the lights do not work... 😫

    We try to contact our host to ask for supplies to which he slowly responds that he will deliver them that night. As you can probably guess with our current luck, he does not drop off our supplies and he doesn’t respond to us ever again. We booked this place for three nights so we decide to wait it out and move to a different place in a few days.

    We are both hoping that our luck will improve... but alas, it doesn’t. The next place we move to (after hotwater-incident-place) is disgusting and infested with ants. We spend an hour scrubbing everything down. We do, however, have a smart TV so we spend our time becoming addicted to Stranger Things on Netflix. 😜    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Hanging in PDC Searching for a Rental

    October 15, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We spend three weeks in PDC looking for a rental. We discover our favourite Empeñada place which is a little tarped off enclosure on one of the corners of the main streets.

    We try staying at a few hostels in the mean time where we meet some interesting characters... the first person we talked to at one hostel was a COVID denier 🙄 and we find out that the hostel owners establishment has (without his consent) become “protected” by the Mexican Cartel. Apparently they hold meetings at the hostel and occasionally kick people out for him. 😬

    We left after three nights and went to a different hostel that was really nice (even had a rooftop pool), however, the place was basically bro-city. It’s kinda hilarious hearing a middle-aged man talk about how he “stayed up until 2am” with his tinder date the previous night. Coooool story bruh. 😂

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):
    Empanadas x 3 = 35 pesos
    Hostel for two nights = 1035 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Hurricane Número Dos

    October 26, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We finally found a place to rent for a month, but it will be ready in a week, so we stay at one last Airbnb that we absolutely love! 😍

    It has hot showers (which we have found to be uncommon), a king bed, balcony, smart TV, nice kitchen. Overall a great place to hangout for a week while we wait for our monthly rental to be ready. The catch is... it’s facing the sea, which is only one block away, it has enormous sliding glass doors onto the balcony, and hurricane Zeta is coming. 😧

    This Airbnb has hurricane shutters, unlike our last Airbnb, so we’re actually feeling pretty safe. We go out for a final walk before hunkering down for the night to find everyone boarding up again. As usual the liquor sales stop and streets are becoming pretty empty. We do all the typical hurricane preparation (shop, stock up on water, candles, say our goodbyes to our families (just kidding) etc).

    We then settle in for the night and finish Stranger Things on Netflix until our power inevitably goes out.

    The first 5 pictures are of our hurricane prep and the last 5 are of the days previous when we're still loving this AirBnb.    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Hurricane Zeta is Cray

    October 27, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We feel prepared to deal with Zeta because we handled Delta just fine! We’ve got our hurricane shutters, comfy bed, food, Netflix.

    Turns out that Zeta is actually really intense. All of the doors and windows in our apartment are shaking and rattling. The wind is howling. Things are slamming around outside. We watched a straw roof on a building across from us wave around like a tarp until it blew off completely (it's hard to see, but you can kinda see it in the second video).

    We still feel safe, however, because we’ve got our fancy hurricane shutters! A few hours into the storm (about 11 pm) our sliding glass door starts shaking and banging so loudly that we become concerned enough to setup some chairs in our hallway (away from all of the windows) and position the TV so that we can continue chilling until the hurricane is over. But the slamming from the glass door keeps getting louder and louder. We decide to *carefully* open the curtain to look out the window to see what the noise is to find that bottom of our hurricane shutter has come off and the hard plastic buckles and industrial strength tethers are being continuously blown into the glass door. At this time we also discover that water is leaking into our apartment and going under the bed. 😨

    We’re afraid that the glass is going to break and the apartment will flood so we quickly grab our belongings and put them on the table in the kitchen. We then go down to reception and they move us into a room across the hallway. This room is opposite side of the ocean and is much more quiet.    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Our Monthly Rental in PDC!

    October 28, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    We finally get to move into our month long rental! 🥳

    We show up to our place and are about to walk in through the doors, excited to finally have some routine and security for a month only to find out... that they accidentally have put us in the wrong apartment! The landlord misunderstood us and put us in the apartment across from the one we wanted. We were bummed out at first, but we found out that the apartment we wanted was heavily battered from the hurricane and was unliveable for another two weeks while they completed reparations anyway.

    So we move into a different two bedroom that is still nice and works for our needs... except... the hurricane damaged the gas and internet connections. So for two weeks we have incredibly limited and spotty gas connection (which we need for cooking and hot showers), and we have limited to no wifi. 😫

    The year 2020 seems to continuously bring in unwanted surprises.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):
    Month rent = 9000 pesos
    Cleaning fee = 500 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Halloween in PDC!

    October 31, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    We don’t have costumes so we just experiment with my black eyeliner. 😂

    Downtown is pretty busy, but bars are mostly closed, or have very limited capacity due to COVID. I heard that bars might be fined if they have anyone in costumes during Halloween, however, I’m not entirely sure if this is factual.Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Tattoo or Tattwo?

    November 11, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Auryn and I were moving a couch in our apartment and we accidentally knocked off a picture frame which shattered. A couple of days later my foot found a big piece of glass that I had apparently missed while cleaning up. 😅

    A few days pass and Auryn and I are talking about how we hadn’t gone to the beach in awhile because of the open wound in the sole of my foot, and the consistent rain. I was talking to him about how I really wanted to get a couple tattoos that I had been planning for months/years. He reminded me that if I got tattoos I couldn’t go to the beach, or be in the sun and that we couldn’t do either of those things at the moment, so I should consider getting them now. So I got on Google, found a couple of artists, and got my tattoos!

    The first one is my cat and mouse tattoo. The artwork was done by my friend Iris, and the tattoo was done by a wonderful tattooer in PDC. She was very gentle and incredibly precise. We spent over an hour and a half just on tattoo placement. I’m so grateful that she wanted to get it perfect, because it definitely made a huge difference in the end result.

    The second one is of a chalk drawing my friend, Zack, drew years ago. I love this drawing and tattoo, but I will admit that I regret who I got it from. The tattooer was super rushed and rough. I’m definitely going to get it smoothed out and touched up in the future.

    Ultimately, I’m happy with my decisions! I love both of these tattoos!

    During this time we also decide to dye Auryn’s hair blue. I think that we were a little bored from being stuck in the house for so long. 😂

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):
    Tattoo 1 (cat and mouse) = $60 CAD for drawing + $294 CAD for tattooing (with tip)
    Tattoo 2 = $77 CAD    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Dice and Beer on the Rooftop!

    November 14, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Our apartment has a lovely rooftop that has lots of chairs, tables, plants, and views of the city!

    Auryn and I spend most afternoons up on the roof sipping beer and playing a dice game called Farkle.

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Online English Teaching

    November 18, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    It has been my plan for awhile now to become an online english teacher while we are situated in PDC for a month.

    I spent a week or so getting my TEFL certificate (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). Then another couple weeks going through the Palfish application process. Palfish is one of tons of companies that offer online english teaching/learning opportunities, most of which require a bachelors degree, or pay significantly less than Palfish. Most of these platforms are based in China and are intended for Chinese children between the ages of 4 and 12, but there are some platforms that are global and are more focused towards adults (but they usually pay less than half of companies like Palfish, or VIPKID).

    The application process for Palfish entails:

    -Creating a kid friendly background
    -Buying a blue shirt
    -Acquiring a TEFL
    -Passing an initial verification process (ID and TEFL check)
    -Passing a recorded mock lesson
    -Passing two training courses

    You have to promote yourself on their social media platform that kind of works like instagram, YouTube, Facebook messenger, and an online teaching platform all in one. I post “moments” on a daily basis, perform free live readings of popular children’s books, follow, like, and comment on other teacher and student profiles, and create my own personalized lecture content (there is an option to teach the platforms lesson plans for a fixed rate, or create you own lesson plans and charge your own rate, however, you are more likely to make better money teaching their planned out courses, but this limits your potential students).

    Teaching to children online requires A LOT of enthusiasm. I have to be very animated and happy, use a lot of rewards systems, repeat basic words over and over and over again. As an example:

    *Remember that you have to make grandiose physical gestures as your speaking. This is called TPR (Total Physical Response).

    Hello!!! I am Teacher Toria! What is your name???

    Apple! A-p-p-l-e. Say “a” ah ah ah-pp-le. Apple! GOOD JOB! HIGH FIVE! YOU GET A STAR!

    It can be a lot. Especially because I have to teach between 5am and 8 am.

    Anyways, I am writing this post weeks after the beginning of my ESL (English as a Second Language) “career,” and I can tell you that it has been an incredible challenge acquiring students. Because the platform requires self-promotion there are A LOT of hours that I have to work for free. I have spent an estimated 70ish unpaid hours in the last three weeks creating content for PalFish to promote myself and NOT EVEN ONE STUDENT has signed up. Apparently this is a common thing for new teachers and it can take up to six months before you see a regular schedule. I knew this going into it, but I have to say that I am quite burnt out from working so much without even a dollar to show for it.

    The first five pictures show some of my profile pictures for PalFish (I have to show that I'm friendly and have lots of props).

    The last five pictures show the covers I've made to promote my self made courses.

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):

    TEFL = $20 USD
    Supplies = 250 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    PDC's Final Highlights

    November 28, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    In our last week in PDC we:

    -Celebrate American Thanksgiving (Auryn is American).

    -See a burnt down clothing store.

    -I buy new running shoes and learn to pack my bag more efficiently

    -We move out and head to Puerto Morelos!

    The first picture is of us moving out and taking out our last bag of trash. 😂    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Puerto Morelos

    November 28, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ 🌙 25 °C

    From PDC we head to Puerto Morelos. It's a little fishing village town with a quiet beach.

    We honestly don't get up to much here because it's mostly raining and cold.

    We do however have an amazing AirBnb (private room and bathroom with a shared kitchen). It's so comfortable and has a huge smart TV that we use to binge watch the Queen's Gambit.

    During this time I get a lot of work done. I start to do live readings on PalFish (my first two are of Rainbow Fish 123, and Peppa Pig). I also use this time to two courses (Canadian Money and Sensory Words) which I included in my detailed post about PalFish earlier.

    On out final day we decided to treat ourselves to Indian takeout. The locals and reviews suggested that it was amazing (one person said that it was the most amazing Indian he's ever tasted). We were, however, vastly disappointed and have both agreed that it was the worst Indian food we had ever had. We waited the entire week for this meal! 😂

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):

    Colectivo & Taxi = 89 pesos
    Airbnb x 5 nights = 2850 pesos
    Indian Takeout = 200 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Pitstop in Cancun

    December 3, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    We left Puerto Morelos in hopes of making it to Merida. We first had to take a collectivo (basically a large taxi van) to Cancun and then take an ADO bus from Cancun to Merida. Once we got to Cancun we realized that we could save 200 pesos if we waited to take a bus the next day and I was also feeling incredibly motion sick from the collectivo ride, so we instead booked a cheap AirBnb in Cancun and waited another day to leave for Merida.

    Typically with AirBnb you have to wait until check in time (usually 3pm) and for the host to message you details (like padlock codes etc). In our experience hosts can be a bit spotty and late with communication so we didn't think much of it when we had to sit on the sidewalk outside our AirBnb for a couple of hours waiting for more information! Time kept ticking by and it started to rain. So we moved into a cafe (I had an amazing coffee) and kept trying to contact the host only to find out that the AirBnb no longer existed and we were waiting for nothing. 😩

    Thankfully, we quickly found another AirBnb and it ended up being wonderful! It was a super cute ensuite with a small kitchenette (toaster oven, mini fridge, kettle). Because we had been traveling and waiting outside all day we decided to make some easy mini pizzas for dinner, but the sauce ended up tasting like cardboard! After two days of subpar food and waiting in the rain we decided to get some real pizza delivered. 😎 The pizza comes and I'm super stoked! But it ends up being one of the worst pizzas of my life! 😂 It's super flat and dry... I think it was just a regular frozen pizza that they tried to pass off as real Italian pizza. 😅

    Moral of the story. Don't get foreign take out in Mexico unless its from a chain restaurant that you recognize! 😂

    We ended up going to bed pretty early and woke up to heavy rain on the metal roof outside. It was beautiful. 🥰

    Cost Breakdown (Approximate):

    Colectivo from Puerto Morelos for 2 people = 89 pesos
    Airbnb for 1 night = 468 pesos
    Pizza Takeout = 130 pesos    Read more

  • LifeAsLemonadeMexicoTraveler

    Mérida at Last!

    December 4, 2020 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    We finally arrive in Mérida! We took a very luxurious ADO bus from Cancun. It has huge plush recliner seats, tons of leg room, an onboard toilet that actually didn't smell (too badly), and excellent air-conditioning. Much better than the cramped collectivo from the day previous. 😅

    So far Mérida is beautiful. We arrive to an amazing sunset and stay at an Oyo hotel with plans to stay in a private ensuite in a hostel the next day. We decided to take our chances at takeout a final time because our hotel room doesn't have a kitchen. So we order from a company we know... Domino's... And it ends up being the most rich, fatty, salty, DELICIOUS pizza we've had in a long long time. Definitely worth it. 😍

    I met a grumpy looking cat who ends up being the biggest sweetheart. 🥰

    And the next day we find a hole-in-the-wall barber shop and get some cheap haircuts that turn out really well! 😊

    So far Mérida has been A+. 🥳

    Cost Break Down:

    Bus from Cancun to Merida = 992 pesos
    Oyo Hotel = 320 pesos
    Pizza (Two medium pan) = 230 pesos
    Hair Cuts x 2 with tip = 200 pesos    Read more

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