JessicaL

I went to Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo in December of 2003. It was a lot of fun if you have some one who speaks Spanish. I went with my boyfriend and the time and his mother who both were full blooded Columbian and were down there visiting friends. Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo is the only place in Mexico that I have been were I actually felt comfortable walking down the street. I was not bombarded by drunks and icky guys coming up and staring at me or something. Its a not very commercialized area which makes it really nice. We stayed in a little pueblo (thats what they called it) outside of Ixtapa about 15 minutes. To me it was a neat experience! I thought it was so cool that we took a shower out of a trash can! I swear! We had our bathing suits on and they filled up this trash can with clean water. We stood outside and used a tub to scoop up the water and pour the water on ourselves. The water was so nice and refreshing in the scourching heat. I swear the moment I was done with my shower I was dry within 5 minutes. The locals were really nice and helpful…when I could understand their broken English. The food down there was delicious. My boyfriend at the time could not stand not having running water so we stayed in a small hotel in Ixtapa for our last 3 days. (Wuss!) Anyways…we found this restaurant down the street from our hotel that served the BEST Al Pastor tacos for 10 cents! I was addicted to those tacos and horchata! The downtown area was really nice!.....

Chichen Itza was really awesome! It would have been a hell of a lot better if it had not been so damn hot and humid but I guess thats Mexico for you. I went with my family in June 2005. We did a whole day thing out there and back. We had a hard time pronouncing Chichen Itza so some one told us to pronounce it kind of like “Chicken Pizza” so thats what we ended up calling it instead! Its really fascinating to see all the strutures and hear all the stories behind everything one of them! Climbing to the top was definately a challenege in the heat but my sisters and I did it. And the view from the top is amazing! beautiful! unbelievable! Going down is a little tricky. The steps are so narrow and there are so many people going up and doing…I thought it was a little scary. But overall I really enjoyed going on the tour of Chichen Itza…I would recommend it and I would do it again!

I absolutely love Dublin! I had an absolute blast there the last two times I went. I was there both times in August of 2004 and 2005. I was visiting Ireland on a horseback riding trip with my barn. We went all over Ireland and ended the trip in Dublin. We stayed down in Temple Bar on Wellington Quay. There is lots of great shopping….especially O’Carroll’s! You can find any souvenior you want there! And the Guinness Factory! It was a lot of fun especially for people my age. The night life is fantastic. Last year, our last night in Dublin we spent pub hopping. We had a blast! Fitzsimmons is a great place if you like crowds and live bands. The Ha’ Penny Bridge Pub is nice for live Irish music too! I am dying to go back and meet and socialize with all those wonderful people and walk around and see all the history behind the city and the county itself.