And yes that is a brandy balloon – heaps of Cognac!

Pam’s cocktail is todays special “Excellence Amanecer” – comprising Curazao Liqueur (blue stuff), white rum, vodka, strawberry syrup, orange juice, pineapple juice and coconut cream.

I decided to go Parasailing today as it is our last day before the 4 flights to get home.

The cost was $66 for about 15 minutes in the air. You got taken out in a small boat to the main boat to go on the chair.

Pam was a definite no to this one – so I had to go alone.

From the small boat being taken to the larger boat.

No safety ropes to hold me in and basically not much to hold on to.

I managed to do a couple of self snaps while up in the air.

A nice panoramic shot from up in the chair of the hotels along the beach line  (click for a larger version of the image)

Just a pipe to put your feet on

A great view from above

Notice that rope is not very large!

The reset from the air and one of the people who took photos and wanted me to buy them!

A few cocktails in the bar and then dinner in the French Restaurant Chez Isabelle.

Cocktail of the day -  Caribe Esmeralda – Curazao Liqueur, White Rum, Gin, Peach Liqueur, Banana Liqueur and coconut cream.

And a Margareta Up – Tequila, Triple sec, Orange Liqueur and Lime Juice.

A Pina Coloda and a simple Bloody Mary

An amuse bouche of Escargot (Snail) – very tender and lovely. I think first or second time I have tried snails.

A starter of Seared Tune and Steak Tar Tar and a duck pate.

Pam had and Duck – the duck had a chinese flavour which I think did not suit a French restaurant.

Seared Mahi Mahi with Rice and Prawns – and Pam finished with a Crème brûlée.

Have I mentioned that I love this all inclusive deal – amazing.

Cost of tonight $0.00

I had seen on some brochures and the hotel TV that they do cooking lessons and tours of the hotel kitchens. I looked around and ended up calling the concierge and he said there was one today but i could not find any details about it so I went to the hotel reception and spoke to the concierge there (different person) who looked up and said there was nothing until Friday/Saturday and we check out on Friday.

He said he would see if he could arrange the chef to do a special tour in the time before we leave.

Later in the afternoon the concierge rang to say that the chef was able to do the tour tonight at 5:30pm for Pam & I.

Wow – we were to meet in the Martini Bar at 5:30 so we arrived early and had a few Margaritas while we waited.

Chef Ernisto who said the tour will take 15-20 minutes

In order for us to do the tour we needed to dress up in Chefs Whites as it is a real kitchen. Pam had to have a hair net as well as the hat.

As part of the tour we venture into a lot of the kitchens that the restaurant has and seen the prep areas and people setting up for tonight's service.

There was someone dealing with Avocados who had hundreds to scoop out the flesh to make guacamole.

As part of our tour we got to cook our own dish in the real kitchen while the staff had to do the real cooking for customers.

Pam did Prawns with a Mango Sauce and I did a fillet steak.

Pam plating her disk

The chef and us with our dishes.

The finished masterpiece's – and they were lovely to eat.

The tour that was supposed to take 15-20 minutes ended up being 1.5 hours. We had a great time and appreciated the executive chef spending 1.5 hours of his day with us - amazing

These were non alcoholic drinks – about 10am.

Mine was called a Relax – a combination of Orange, Carrot, Peach and Banana.

Pams was a Energizer -  a combination of Papaya, Yogurt, Ganola and Honey.

The hotel has 9 restaurants and 11 bars – and none of them have a cash register!

You just order what you want and that is it – maybe a tip at the end of the night!

WOW

After numerous cocktails we needed food – we decided on the Tapas restaurant.

8 Restaurants + 10 bars to go…

I forgot to mention – the mini bar has some beers and soft drinks and water and is also free. Everything is free!

We have now left the Cayman Islands – we had a great time there in a wonderful location.

Overall the prices are expensive as the Cayman Dollar is worth more than the US$ – 1 USD$ = $0.80 cents, or $1 Cayman Dollar = $1.25 USD

Both currencies are accepted without issue everywhere. Even the credit card receipts are charged in Cayman but with the USD included as well.

So an early flight 7:50am to Miami and a few hours there in the airport.

After arriving we see signs that point you to passport control – we walk and walk and then catch a sky train and walk and walk and finally get to the passport control where there is long lines of people waiting.  All up about 50 minutes from the plane arriving to us being past security.

While waiting for our connecting flight we had a nice cheese platter (Blue, Camembert, Goat, and Gouda)  in one of the restaurants.

Then off to Mexico – only a 1.5 hour flight.

We had arranged transfers before we left using Cancun Shuttles and that all went all ok with us picked up quickly and drove us to our hotel – Excellence Playa Mujeres which is about 25 minutes from the airport. We had to go through 3 security areas to get to the hotel.

Upon arrival a small glass of bubbly each and they keep saying “Welcome Home”

The rooms are very nice