Jillapalooza

IM IN UR OCEAN. EATIN UR CARDZ.

BRK and My Shopping Extravaganza

Last Saturday, BRK and I went for a little shopping trip.

We started with lunch at Colossal Cafe. Kristen saw it on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives and was craving their pancakes or flappers or something like that. It was definitely the smallest restaurant I’d ever been in. It made me feel claustrophobic and slightly awkward. Unfortunately they were out of pancakes, despite serving breakfast all day (all day being until 3 PM when they close). BRK made due with oatmeal, while I ordered mushroom wild rice soup and a salad. We had to sit outside because there were no tables inside, which was fine by me. At least outside no one was invading our personal space. The food was good, though. I’d definitely go back again.

After we filled our bellies, we ventured to Edina. First we went to Athleta. I spent way too much money on a glass water bottle, headband, and shorts for dance.

We stopped at a store with a bunch of blingy stuff and old lady lipstick because a purse in the window caught our eyes. BRK ended up buying it. It’s pretty awesome. I don’t remember the name of the store, something with “Me” I believe. Anyway, it was across the hall from Title Nine, which was the next store we stopped in. I tried on an awesome skirt, but it didn’t fit me right. (It was actually a skort, but you’d never know. (Don’t judge, we were in an athletic clothing store, and it would have been perfect for dance.))

Oh, we also went to Sweet Retreat, a cupcake boutique we found while looking for parking. We ate cupcakes. They. Were. Awesome. I ordered Mocha, BRK ordered Lemon Lovers.

Once we had our fill of Edina, we high-tailed it to St. Louis Park to hit up Lululemon. Kristen bought a bunch of fun stuff. I bought another headband (had to test multiple brands, you know). There was a pair of shorts I really liked there as well, but the bins near the bottom were empty #ifyouknowwhatimean. It would have been nice to try them on; maybe if I knew they didn’t fit I wouldn’t be considering ordering $48 shorts online right now.

Here are my headbands. Unfortunately after testing them both, they don’t hold any better than what I’ve bought at Target. At least they are cute.

Cozumel – Saturday 12/3

It’s hard to believe we’ve been in Cozumel for a week already. The time has really flown by.

When I woke up and looked outside, I thought to myself that it was probably the calmest day we’ve had so far; the waves barely lapped the shore. So we were all very surprised to discover that the swells were too high for the boat to pick us up, and we had to take taxis to the harbor. It was mildly inconvenient, but it was nice to not have a long boat ride for once. On the way back they tried to go to the dock, but we turned around when we reached the cruise ship port and went back to the harbor.

I’m not very good at checking the time, but it seemed like we got back quite a bit earlier than previous dive days. After lunch, Kristen and I went poolside to soak up some rays. At around three we headed up to the room for a proper nap before our night dive.

For dinner we opted to walk south again instead of heading to town. We ate at Paprika’s again, just like last Saturday. Nick and I duplicated our previous meal. Kristen let me try some of her flan. I admit it was pretty good. Much better than the restaurant at the hotel. Still, something about the texture is hard for me to swallow (see what I did there?).

Also, I decided to do the 100 Burpee Challenge with BRK. It started December 1 with one burpee. We’ll be adding an additional burpee each day until the last day, when we do 100 burpees. At the time I agreed to participate, I didn’t realize they were the push-up burpees. This should be interesting. Oh well, at least the $10 entry fee goes to a good cause. I think. I’m really not sure. I may or may not make a periodic post about the challenge.

Anyway, what I’m trying to get at is that I had to do my three burpees today after dinner on a full stomach. I wouldn’t recommend doing that again. The burpees will definitely be before mealtimes from here on out!

I just realized that I took no non diving related photos today, so here’s a pic from the other day. My first authentic churro! A nice gentleman moseys about the resort selling them. He makes chocolate and vanilla, but he promised to bring us blueberry before we have to go home.

Cozumel – Friday 12/2

Ports were open again today, so we were able to enjoy our two tank dive. After lunch we opted to bask in the sunshine by the pool. The resort started filling up today. People were all up in our pool area, sitting at the lobby tables, and generally milling about. I much prefer the ghost town atmosphere. There was a lot of action on the water as well. Boats everywhere. Lots of parasailers.

Curtis, Kristen, and I basked in the sunshine again while Nick enjoyed his afternoon nap in the climate controlled environment of the room. BRK didn’t want to burn her face, so she rigged up a buff as protection, making her look like a terrorist or something. For some crazy reason beyond my comprehension, she left her roll up hat at home. In the early afternoon, we enjoyed happy hour drinks and ceviche in the lobby lounge while playing with our dive photos.

For dinner we went to Pepe’s Grill, a fancy-pants type restaurant that served steak and seafood and delicious wine. I opted for the grilled shrimp in garlic butter but would have gladly settled for the steak Nick ordered. Delicious!

We also indulged in dessert. Nick had chocolate cake, as usual. I had cheesecake, as usual. Kristen had key lime pie. I wish I had went with that too. #nexttime

Cozumel – Thursday 12/1

Nothing could have put us in a better mood than seeing boats on the water Thursday morning! The port was finally open and we were able to go diving. When we returned, we had lunch and then chilled for the afternoon. I brought my laptop down to the lobby and worked on color correcting some dive photos, all while sitting in the cool shade with a spectacular view of the ocean. A nice gentleman who was walking behind me even complimented my mad photo skillz, especially one of double queen angelfish (they’re shy little bastards).

Curtis and Kristen did a night dive from shore. I fully intended on going, but I was just too fatigued and opted for a hardcore nap instead. Hopefully I’ll have another chance before the trip is over. I woke up just as they were returning and captured a few pics that totally do not do the sight justice.

For dinner we went to La Choza. Of course Nick just happened to go there solo the night before. Fortunately he was willing to go again despite his less than stellar fajita experience. I’m so glad we went, because it’s the best meal I’ve had while here. I ordered the tropical shrimp, which came in a delicious sweet mustard sauce. They sold the sauce in bottles as well. I was tempted to buy it just so I could drink it. Kristen and I also indulged in noodle soup, which was tasty. We were also serenaded by a Mexican band!

For dessert, we stopped at El Postre Cito. Nick and I shared a chocolate cake. Kristen and Curtis had some pudding thingy with ice cream. Also, I had my first ever cafe latté. It was good. Now I know what all the fuss is about.

Cozumel – Wednesday 11/30

The ports were closed today again. Honestly, it wasn’t that windy nor did it look that rough on the water. The dive shop guy said he was surprised that they hadn’t opened them yesterday (it really had turned out beautiful). We decided, instead of scheduling a dive on Playa del Carmen again, to wait in case the ports opened later in the morning/afternoon.

They didn’t.

Nick went rogue in the afternoon, leaving Curtis, Kristen, and I to have lunch at the Blue Angel restaurant. We indulged in a few Dirty Monkeys (piña colada mix, Kahlua, rum, and bananas). After we ate, Kristen and I headed to the pool (with Dirty Monkeys to go, of course). We sunned and got our drink on. Also, there was planking and pool jumping.

For a very brief period of time, we were going to be responsible and sober up so we could do a shore dive, but then we found out that if the ports are closed, they don’t allow shore dives either. BRK was getting antsy, so we decided to walk to the Oxxo for something to do.

We never made it.

There were some shops Kristen wanted to stop at, so we did a little browsing. Then we came to the resort where MSD stays when they come here. Kristen said there was a drink called the Pink Flamingo (which we later found out from Curtis was actually called a Sea Horse (I can totally see how she could confuse the two. /sarcasm)). The bartender said he didn’t know of a Pink Flamingo, but he did have a drink that was pink. It was blended and contained a bunch of different liquors including rum, spiced rum, Malibu, and brandy. From what I can remember, we were feeling pretty good after that. We made it back to the hotel. Kristen was worried that I’d fall off the sidewalk. It’s a good thing she planked on the way there and not the way back.

Nick informed us that he had lunch at Palmeras while he was in town, which was the place Kristen wanted to try. Because he had a late lunch, the three of us went to town and ate at Palmeras. I was craving American food, so I ordered a cheeseburger. Actually, mostly I just wanted to order un hamburguesa con queso. I can’t help it. When I drink, I want to speak the Spanish. Also, I recall boring the Lahrs with talk about proper grammar. I SWEAR I’M A FUN DRUNK!

After dinner I was fading pretty fast. I crashed (passed out) immediately upon returning to the hotel room. Wait! No, that’s a lie. I tackled Kristen on the bed first. I don’t think she liked my advances. I mean, come on, it wasn’t even naked tackling! Whatever. #awkward

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