Cozumel Drift - March 2021

March 2021 Edition

The Cozumel Drift

Hola Amigo !

BIENVENIDOS ... or welcome to The Drift. If you are new to the Scuba Shack and Village Tan Kah family, this is our newsletter that keeps you up to date with what is happening here on COZUMEL, as well as your favorite dive shop and hotel. We sure hope that you like it!

A HUGE GRACIAS to everyone for coming to visit us recently. Even though Carnaval was cancelled this year, we are still celebrating in spirit. How cute is this puppy !!!! His name is Koffee. And he is ready and waiting for you for next year's Carnaval !

How has the Covid testing been going?

AWESOME and really convienent. Cozumel has your COVID testing needs covered!

The testing has been going very well, and easy. You walk down the street, go in, and are out in about 3 minutes pp, and within 15 minutes, you have your results. You don't even have to wait for them. They will email the results to you. It IS that easy. And again, there have been no positive test results - YEAH !!

Just a reminder - we are happy to schedule an appointment for our customers (both diving and hotel). Willy and David will make all of the arrangements for you !

Cozumel has the COVID vaccine!!!

All of the island's medical staff has been vaccinated, and now it is available for anyone over the age of 60. So, guess who has received his vaccine ???

Both Juan and Don Tomas have received their first injection of the Pfizer vaccine. In fact, 7,055 vaccines have been administered here in Cozumel, and 42,000 vaccines have been administered in all of Quintana Roo. At this point in time, all legal permanent residents over the age of 60 are eligible for the vaccine. So the island is on its way.

More direct flights to Cozumel!

WOW! The number of flights arriving to the island each day has REALLY increased recently. During the week, between 5-8 flights arrive per day from the various airlines. Saturdays, like always, are the busiest day of the week with flights, with more than 15 flights arriving!!! So consider arriving on a week day. Get an extra day or two of diving in and beat the lines.

3 days ago, Southwest Airlines restarted their daily flights from Houston Hobby direct into Cozumel. So if you live in a city served by Southwest, hop on, change planes in Houston and you are HERE!!!

Here is the Southwest flight that arrived on March 11th, the first flight back since the beginning of the pandemic.

Come snorkel with Whale Sharks

THANK YOU to Vicki and Lori Peterson for writing about a trip to see the whale sharks !

Do you have a desire to see "eye-to-eye" with a whale shark - the largest fish on earth? (YES-it is a shark and not a whale).

Would you like an "eye opening" experience with a whale shark?

Take a snorkeling trip with Roberta from Scuba Shack to Isla Holbox, off the Yucatan Peninsula, north of Cancun, where your eyes will open in awe!

There is no need to fear the whale shark just because of their immense size (18 to 33 ft long and somewhere around 15 to 20 tons). Though they have very large mouths, they are filter feeders, like many whales, and live on a diet of plankton and tiny krill or small fish. Therefore, they pose no threat to humans.

The adventure begins with taking the ferry from Cozumel to Playa del Carmen. From there you drive to Chiquila where you get on a ferry taking you to the island of Holbox, a quaint, little fishing village northwest of Cancun. Early the next morning you get on a boat which goes out to where the whale sharks are feeding. On the way keep an eye out for dolphins or bat rays! Once you get to the whale sharks, you enter the water in twos along with the guide to snorkel next to them for about 15 minutes.

You spend the day with the whale sharks until everyone has had multiple turns in the water with them. In addition, there is a chance to also see manta rays! The route back to the island may have a stopover at a lagoon to see the pink flamingoes. You will never forget this amazing adventure!!

For more information about these gentle giants, and how they live, check out the article on our website today.

Whale Shark Article

Who doesn't like a good lobster?

Whether it's on a dive or in a restaurant, lobster are a favorite here on the island. But did you know there is season for lobsters here in Cozumel? Breeding season for the Caribbean Spiny Lobster is March 1st thru July 1st. During this time it is illegal to fish or hunt for them. Of course they are protected year round with in the Marine Park. In order to support the islands "appetite" for lobster, they are flash frozen when caught in season so that restaurants have plenty to go around during this mating season. So when you are down here during this time and you ask for lobster, it will be frozen, not fresh.

It's Pandemonium here!

That's right, a flock of parrots IS called a Pandemonium. Makes sense right? Cozumel is one place where you can find the Yellow-lored Parrot, a.k.a. the Yellow Amazon Parrot. Once a thriving species here on the island, their numbers have dwindled over the years. However, we are starting to see more of them around. There had been two living around the Village Tan Kah/Casa del Mar for a few years. But this year, we are consistently seeing 4 or more of them. As a matter of fact I saw two just today. And the flock that lives by my house is also bigger.

These local parrots are smaller than a "traditional" parrot, so look you need to look closely for them. They blend in REALLY well with the green leaves. Actually, you'll usually hear them first. They make a loud squawking noise, and then you'll seem them. Want to hear them? This recording is pretty close to what we hear.

Hear their CALL

NOTE - You should have seen my cat when I was listening to the recording. She POUNCED on the computer looking for the bird ! Ha ha ha

Next time you're here, keep a sharp eye out, you may just see one, or two, or four!!!

Chichen Itza cancels spring Equinox

Even though things are getting better, we are still not able to celebrate like normal. And with that, the government has cancelled the Chichen Itza spring equinox event. What is it?

Well, the Mayans were astronomical geniuses. They dominated both science and astronomy.

Twice a year, their genius is celebrated at the El Castillo in Chichen Itza. This temple is dedicated to the serpent god KulKulkan. These 2 days in the year are when all across the globe, the day and night are almost equal. It is a fleeting moment in time, and the Mayans took advantage of it. They built this temple/pyramid as a step pyramid, similar to the ones the Egyptians have built. There are 9 platforms. It was built at a specific angle so that on those 2 days of the year, the late afternoon sun would create the illusion of a feathered serpent "crawling" down the pyramid. And these steps are what create the shadows that make the serpent to appear to undulate... or "crawl" down the pyramid.

This was created with the naked eye - how amazing. But that is not all..... On each side of the pyramid, there are 91 steps. When you multiply that by 4, that comes to 364. Plus 1 additional step for the temple platform, the total is 365, and correspond to the number of days in a solar year.

Each year about 25,000 people visit the temple on or around the equinox dates. If you don't want to spend that day with that many of your non-friends, then consider visiting Chichen Itza another time of the year. It is impressive. There is a wonderful night light show. It is an amazing experience to be next to the temple, under the stars, enjoying the view and jungle. And there are many temples in the entire Chichen Itza complex, so it will take hours to see it all. Tours can be arranged from here, or you can go on your own and take your time. From Playa del Carmen, it only takes about 1.5 hours to get there. Either way, it is an experience that you do not want to miss.

Recipe of the month ......

Have you ever tried Pozole??

Is it a stew? is it a soup? Or is it a stoup? Pozole is one of the most beloved Mayan dishes of Mexico and is the pride of the Yucatan. While there are several varieties of Pozole, all varieties contain the same base ingredients: pork, garlic, and large hominy kernels (cacahuazintle). A hybrid of stew and a soup, Pozole is often garnished with lettuce, radish, lime, and avocado.

Pozole is often served on September 15th, Independence Day in Mexico, or can be enjoyed to remedy a cold or cure a hangover. Check out this brief history of Pozole by clicking on the link below, then try it out on your own: