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In a Little Cafe on the Other Side of the Border, a Virtual Visitor's Blog on Cancun
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11/06/09
Stormbringer: Tropical Storm Ida Makes Move Towards the Mexican Caribbean
Filed under: Cancun Casa Blog, Cancun Tourism, Tropical Storm Ida
Posted by: Dangers @ 9:14 pm


Tropical Storm Ida, Courtesy of the NOAA

 
Updated: Saturday, November 7, 2009*
In what had become one of the calmest hurricane seasons in recent memory for the Western Caribbean, a late coming storm, Tropical Storm Ida is making waves and threatening the relative calm of the Caribbean Sea. At this point in time, Stormbringer Ida has appeared to have cleared the coast of Honduras and is starting to once again strengthen and reform itself as it moves slowly out into the Western Caribbean, southeast of the Mexican Caribbean and Belize. TS Ida is expected to remain a tropical storm according to most meteorological reports, failing to reach the level of hurricane intensity by the time the storm reaches the Mexican coast but warm water, the gasoline of all tropical storms, is prevalent in the Caribbean this early November, and there is a chance the storm fueled by warmer waters may reach low level hurricane strength by the time it reaches the Mexican Yucatan, projected right now for sometime Sunday afternoon.

*Officially as of 10 AM EST Saturday, the government of Mexico has issued a hurricane watch for Tropical Storm Ida. The latest Advisories from the NHC are available at: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCPAT1+shtml/071452.shtml

* Tropical Storm Ida is now projected by the NHC to reach low category hurricane status (Category I ) sometime within the next 24 hours, she is not expected at this time to sustain wind speed above Cat I prior to reaching the Gulf of Mexico.




	

	

	



	

	
 
Stormtracker Map, Courtesy of Weatherunderground



	

	
  Currently, the Civil Protection Agency of Mexico has issued a weather bulletin announcing a “Green Alert”* (See Update Below) in their color coded warning system for the Mexican Caribbean. The Green Alert symbolizes potential tropical weather activity is expected within 48-72 hours and is a low warning level alert that asks people to monitor the storm and to be prepared to seek shelters if necessary. Maritime interests in the area are under advisement to seek safe harbor as the storm approaches and the large Sand Dredger Kaishuu, along with other vessels involved with the Cancun Beach Restoration Project are anticipating making safe harbor offshore of Cancun at Isla Mujeres when the time comes though as of today, work continued on the project even as Tropical Storm Ida beckoned from a distance.

	
 * As of midday Saturday, the Quintana Roo State Civil Protection  Director  has issued a Yellow Alert indicating a tropical storm approach is imminent (36-28 hours) and preparation should be finalized. (Based on current reports the storm could actually now be within 24 hours of approach due to advance speed since last reports and it would not surprise us to see the Alert level advance to the Orange status in the very near future.)

 * Reports on Saturday indicate that the Kaishiuu and her two barges will likely attempt to make port at Progreso, Yucatan due to the inability of the harbors on Isla Mujeres to accommodate the ship and her sister barges. As of Saturday, the beach restoration work in Cancun has been suspended due to the impending storm and likely will not restart for the better part of week.*  

	

	

	

	

	

	


 Here at Cancun Casa, we advise travelers and locals alike to monitor the major weather reporting agencies, particularly the National Hurricane Center or NHC:Tropical Storms . We would also appreciate folks noting that Tropical Storm Ida while briefly a Category One Hurricane, is fluctuating between a tropical depression and tropical storm currently, and is not expected to reach major hurricane strength while in the Mexican Caribbean based on current reports. However, please do continue to monitor the storm and keep abreast of the latest news. Common sense would dictate that people traveling allow time for potential delays at airports and other venues. 

	
 

	


 Based on current reports from the NHC and other agencies, Tropical Storm Ida is expected to be a heavy rainmaker with high wind gusts that will help churn up the local surf and shut down most small boating craft for a period of a few days or so, damage to beach areas may be expected along with dangerous water conditions. Authorities in Quintana Roo, the home state of Cancun, Playa Del Carmen and Cozumel are expected to elevate the current Green Alert status to a Yellow Alert sometime Saturday to indicate the storms further approach.  The Q. R. State Civil Protection Director, in a report from regional newspaper, Diario de Yucatan, is stating that he anticipates Tropical Storm Ida to bring rain to the region from late Saturday through and including Wednesday of next week with the heaviest of the rainfall expected between late Sunday and Tuesday. Mexican Authorities are also opening their new Tourist Positioning System to foreign embassies and major travel agencies to allow, presumably, the quick location of foreign nationals, if necessary, visiting Cancun and other major tourist areas along the Riviera Maya during the course of the storm.  Hotel occupancy in the area is approximately 40% in the current low season.

	
*As of Saturday morning, officials in Cancun are reporting that tourist reservations are being maintained as scheduled and that occupancy is expected to increase to between 48-50% over the weekend. The Cancun International Airport reports no cancellations of flights though expects potential delays due the heavy rains expected from the storm. As per Por Esto News in Cancun, 28,000 to 30,000 tourists are expected to be vacationing in Cancun during the course of the storm. As of this update, officials in Cancun expect the effects of the storm to be minimal in Cancun and along coastal Quintana Roo’s developed Riviera Maya area, including the Islas, based on the most current information available from official weather reporting government agencies, and do not foresee the cessation of major tourist operations (Hotel, Airport,Businesses). They do however urge through the official alerting system that all people with interests, living or traveling within the region, monitor official sources until the storm clears the area. Notably, there’s no guarantees associated with tropical storms, their strengths and movements, short of the most recent official reports and people in the area should be prepared for any contingencies should the reports change.

More as it becomes available…

	
Coming out of nowhere, driving like rain, stormbringer dances on the thunder again…

	
Dangers…

	
 

	





            
			

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10/31/09
			
The Desperation Samba; Halloween in Cancun, The Day of the Dead

			

			Filed under:  Cancun Casa Blog, Cancun Tourism, Island Sounds

            Posted by: Dangers @ 5:05 pm			

			
				

(Margaritaville - Cancun, Mexico By Cancun Casa)

	
 In this version of the Cancun Casa blog, we mix up a bit of Island Sounds, add a little bit of Cancun, Mexico and a whole lot of shaking from Caribbean music maestro Jimmy Buffett and serve up the Halloween boat drinks with the music video “Desperation Samba“, alias Halloween in Tijuana, though if you listen well you’ll hear Jimmy Buffett’s references to one of  his more famous Margaritaville establishments, the one in Cancun, Mexico. 

	



(Calenda Oaxaca - Cancun, Mexico :By Cancun Casa) 

	


 In Mexico, Halloween or the more appropriate, Los Dias de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead by way of translation is a bit more subdued than in many places around the world though the Mexicans have been joining and enjoying the customary U.S. style trick or treating more and more each passing year in many places of Mexico. The three day event in Mexico features home style religious and family shrines, visits to the local cemetery with gifts for honoring deceased relatives along with decorations of graves, special meals, a special day of the angels for deceased children, and of course a bit of celebration, including decorations and costumes. In Cancun, school children will dress up for the day in many places and the same chills, thrills and spills will occur over the course of the celebrations as any where else in the world. 

	



(Xcaret- Mock Cemetery By Cancun Casa)

	
 The Mayan will celebrate their own version of Halloween via “Hanal Pixan”, a celebration of life, death and the underworld common to the regional inhabitants still honoring pre-Hispanic customs of their ancestors via meals prepared for the deceased and the living alike. 

	

(Hanal Pixan Maya Celebration Promo; Courtesy of Xcaret)

	





(Xcaret-Mock Cemetery By Cancun Casa)

	


 But, here at Cancun Casa, we’re leaning to more of a celebratory version of the holiday celebration, thus we ask you to enjoy with us, Jimmy Buffett’s Desparation Samba while toasting the Great Pumpkin of your choice, courtesy of Cookie on VIMEO.

	












Desperation Samba from Cookie on Vimeo.

	

	
(Jimmy Buffett Merchandise and Music can be purchased online and off at a variety of venues, Cancun Casa recommends http://www.margaritaville.com/ )

	
Interested in the places mentioned in our blog, please visit:

	
                                                                  http://www.margaritaville.com.mx/

	
http://www.xcaret.com/

	


	




 



            
			

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10/21/09
			
Mayhem at Mercado 28, Popular Cancun Downtown Tourist Market Scene of Trouble

			

			Filed under:  Cancun Casa Blog, Cancun Tourism

            Posted by: Dangers @ 5:30 am			

			
				


*Mercado 28, Victims Released, Ransom Paid, Captors Remain Free*
Updated: 10/21/09 
Reports out of Cancun indicate that all five men have been released by the kidnappers as of Tuesday, October 20, 2009 and are refusing to cooperate with authorities out of fear of reprisals from their former captors. Further reports indicate that one of the victims , a shop owner at Mercado 28, paid a ransom of 100,000 Pesos and 3-vehicles for his release but claims to be incapable of identifying the kidnappers…more as or if it becomes available. 

	

(Courtesy of Diario de Quintana Roo)

	
 *October 16, 2009*

	
 In a continuing sign of the times, in Cancun, Mexico and the world, a troubling incident occurred at the popular Downtown, Cancun tourist market Mercado 28 in Cancun City, where five people were abducted at gunpoint Thursday night, October 15, 2009, at around 7:00 PM, when assailants arriving in two vehicles quickly abducted the “Opal” jewelry store owner and his assistant, along with another shop owner and aide along with a taxi driver from Isla Mujeres. The surreal crime scene unfolded when the kidnappers jumped from at least two vehicles and accosted the victims at their shops at Mercado 28 while they were playing a leisurely board game early in the evening. Reports from the local press indicated that the abductors ordered nearby foreign tourists and locals in the area of the shops to lay down at gun point while they proceeded with the crime before speeding off into the night with their victims. No injuries were reported at this time by the foreign tourists or locals whom witnessed the unfortunate event.

	

(Courtesy of Cancun.travel)


 Local authorities arrived quickly on the scene and took reports from witnesses and family members while beginning a search for the victims. It’s also reported that the shop owners within the popular market gathered later for an impromptu meeting where they agreed to provide any details and assistance to authorities that they could. Early speculation by local police officials indicates a theory of either kidnapping for profit or potentially yet another in the recent surge of crime related to drug trafficking and illegal smuggling of Cubans into the region. News reports over the past year have also indicated a continuing increase in local shop owner shakedowns occurring in Cancun by organized crime. The shakedowns similar to protection rackets ran by US crime organizations in the not so distant past. 

	



(Courtesy of Por Esto)

	


 A recent follow up on this story indicates that it is believed by authorities the taxi driver from Isla Mujeres was likely an inadvertent victim having just dropped off foreign tourists as part of the taxi service to the market area, being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The story updates courtesy of both Novedades and Por Esto in Cancun also state that the family of one of the shop owners has chosen to not file a police complaint as of this date and may be negotiating with the kidnappers. Police investigators from the Federal Judicial Police are working with the remaining victim’s family members in an effort to safely recover the kidnapping victims.

	
 The Mercado 28 or Market 28 is a popular tourist shopping area in downtown Cancun where tourists often venture seeking discounted prices and sales amongst the flea market style shopping stalls in deference to the sometimes higher priced Cancun Hotel Zone shopping areas. The area is also popular with tourists and locals alike for a handful of small open air eateries that feature good food at local prices.

	
http://www.poresto.net/cgi-bin/news.cgi?f=12354 
http://www.sipse.com/noticias/15957—despues-levanton.html 
http://www.dqr.com.mx/index.php/Benito-Juarez/Nota-RojaBJ/Estaran-vivos.html

	
(Updated: 10/18/09)

	
One victim lives in tragedy, another victim stops to stare, and still another walks on by pretending not to see. - Bob Seger, No Man’s Land 

	
    
 


            
			

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10/18/09
			
Cancun Beach Restoration Update October 18, 2009

			

			Filed under:  Cancun Casa Blog, Cancun Tourism, Cancun Beach Restoration 2009

            Posted by: Dangers @ 6:05 am			

			
				
 The long awaited Cancun, Mexico beach restoration project is underway, during the last few weeks private contractors, Dutch Company Jan de Nul and their subsidiary Mexico based Dragados have been doing preparatory work for the restoration of approximately 11.1 kilometers of beach area in Cancun’s southern hotel zone, the primary area of Cancun beach restoration. 

	

(Courtesy of Sipse/Novedades)


 Large amounts of piping and machinery have been coming to Cancun every week along with barges and associated heavy equipment to be used in the project. Reports from the local media in Cancun indicate that piping to be used for sand replenishment is being assembled at various beaches with the beach area near the Bay View Grand Condominium complex established as one of the main staging areas. Additional reports indicate that piping is already in place at the area of the Le Blanc Resort beach with other areas soon to follow. 

	


 A specialized dredging vessel and sand mining equipment is expected to arrive between October 18 and October 20 to begin the actual underwater sand mining and sand filling along the beaches in Cancun in short order.

	
 Officially, it is expected, Mexican dignitaries, including high ranking Mexican officials of government will formally announce, in Cancun, the recovery of beaches in Quintana Roo, is underway later this week.  

	

(Courtesy of Por Esto)



	
The beach restoration project overall includes an area of beach recovery in Cancun from Punta Cancun to Punta Nizuc, approximately, the area just south of Dreams Cancun Resort at Punta Cancun, running 11.1 kilometers south to Club Med’s Cancun based resort at Punta Nizuc. The project also includes beach areas in the Playacar area of Playa Del Carmen and specific beaches on Isla Cozumel. 

	
 We would caution from this end that the project has been rife with delays and weather can certainly be a determining factor in the progression of work. However, the project is now set to begin it’s primary stages of restoration and work may move rapidly once underway. Also, the recovery project does not include beach areas North of Punta Cancun or the already restored popular beach at Playa Norte on Isla Mujeres.  

	
 For those looking for more in depth information, one of our previous blogs may assist in providing more detailed perspective;
Cancun : Where’s the Beach? Restoration Project Dates and Timeline

	
 The information in this issue of the Cancun Casa Blog was provided via multiple media and government based sources. Recent sources of information can be found at;

	
Novedades: http://www.sipse.com/noticias/16044-rescate-playas-unos-dias.html 
Por Esto: http://www.poresto.net/cgi-bin/news.cgi?f=12351 

	
Choose to chance the rapids and dare to dance the tides. - Garth Brooks, The River

      
 


            
			

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