Day 12: The Beaches Of Tulum, Casa De Las Olas & Dinner by Chef Alexandra Iserte

I woke up today to the sounds of the crashing waves on the shores of beautiful Tulum, thanks to my room at Casa De Las Olas. There is nothing like waking up to these sounds. My only wish was that I had woken up a little earlier to witness the sunrise directly in front of my room as it rose from the sea. I’ll have to experience that some other day, I thought to myself. I had to grab some food to eat for breakfast but I had no clue where the nearest restaurant was located.

I decided to walk and after about 20 minutes, I ended up at a beach villa cluster that had a restaurant attached to it. I took a seat and enjoyed some breakfast with a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. The view was amazing! The water looked extra clear today because of the clear skies and hot sun. I sat there for about 30 minutes and then decided to walk back to Casa De Las Olas along the beach. It was a very quite walk back. I still could not believe that there was hardly anyone here. Did anyone out there even know about this area of Tulum? The people that were here seemed very different when compared to those in downtown Tulum. On the quite walk back along the shoreline in the hot sun, I noticed a young woman performing her Yoga routine right in front of my path. She came over and started talking. “Hello, I am Tania, I love this place!”, she said.

Tania is a 29 year old woman from Mexico City. “Positively explosive” is the best way to describe her personality. “can you come back? I need to be at one with nature and finish my Yoga and then we can walk together”, she said to me.  I headed back to my place to get some work done. Again, I was working out of my room with the balcony open, listening to the waves crashing against the shoreline. Within about an hour, I headed back down the beach to meet up with Tania. We walked back along the shoreline talking about her life in Mexico City and the reality which she now lives that is nothing short of magic. We headed up to my room, I poured her a glass of water and we walked over to the balcony. Tania and I shared stories about life experiences.

“I want to go talk on the beach”, she said suddenly.”I love being in front of the water” We headed back to the beach. We walked up near the water and took a seat. “I have to grab the bus back to downtown Tulum in a half hour”, I told her. We talked and I headed back to the room to grab all my stuff. I gave Leanne the key and thanked her for last night’s meal and the great conversation we had. We all stood there talking for a while and then I headed out with Tania. She dropped me off at the bus stop and agreed to meet at a later date. Tania enjoys Tulum but every now and then, she finds her way to Playa Del Carmen.

I jumped on the bus that was filled with the workers of the Sian Ka’an biosphere reserve. We headed over to downtown Tulum and I transferred on the bus to Playa Del Carmen. Maria’s friend Alexandra a popular Chef, had invited us over for dinner. I was about to get a dose of authentic Mexican food from a gourmet perspective. I arrived at Alexandra’s place and talked to Maria. Since I started this blog, I have received a number of emails and messages that came from people who have been inspired by the writings and have now taken action to come down here to share in the magic of the Mayan land in 2012. 2012 was a very significant time for the ancient Mayans. Maria is graciously helping me manage all the inquiries that have been sent to me so that my life here in Playa Del Carmen does not become overbearing with running the businesses remotely in Toronto, writing on the blog and helping everyone with travel plans. It’s good to have Maria, she has been very helpful from every aspect. From introducing me to people, to accommodations and even showing me around when she has the time. She definitely has a gift of facilitating the right connections.

Alexandra showed up and immediately started to make us dinner. There is a sense of excitement that starts to flows from her as she begins to do what she loves. Cooking is her passion and purpose in life. She made a delicious meal. Take a look at the pictures below this post. It consisted of a Mexican style rice pilaf served over Mole which is a sauce made with a number of ingredients including fresh chocolate. The dish also included other delicious sides on the plate. Maria and I sat in silence as we enjoyed Alexandra’s cooking. A traditional style meal with a gourmet touch prepared by Chef Alexandra. Alexandra’s passion for cooking was very apparent to me as I watched her making the meal. She is a Chef by trade and now spends her work days cooking meals by invite only for private dinners, resorts and events.

After the meal, we all jumped back on our laptops and started to work away. I had now turned Alexandra’s dining table into my workstation and I wired myself in. I spent an hour there and headed out. Alexandra offered to cook for me whenever I wanted and I agreed to help her with all her computer problems. We also decided to get together tomorrow night, all of us and check out the night club La Santanera. I headed back home to get a good night’s rest. Thanks for reading!