A few days have passed since my return from the vacation I took in the Mexican lands of the Riviera Maya. It was the first time I had left the European Union and also the first time I had taken a long trip by plane, so the nerves were evident. The fearsome reputation of customs, jet lag and strangers who put drugs in your suitcases at the first opportunity was something present in my mind at all times, but out of caution, not out of fear.
The documentation necessary to leave the European Union is a passport in order that does not expire until after our stay in the foreign country we are going to. Furthermore, it is advisable to carry photocopies of it in several places (I, for example, carried a photocopy in my bag and another in my suitcase) because you never know what can happen to you. I also got a Visa in case the need arose to pay something or if I ran out of cash.
Carrying a bottle (or two) of high-protection sun cream is essential. I, who am very white, saw myself served with 40 protection. In addition, the mosquitoes in Mexico are little sons of bitches, so it is also advisable to carry a repellent spray and a stick of Afterbite in case they bite us, to reduce the swelling.
The time difference with Mexico is 7 hours (when in Spain it is 6 in the afternoon, in Mexico it is 11 in the morning), and our plane left at 1:00 p.m. Spain time and arrived at 4:00 p.m. awake.
We traveled on a Boeing 747 from Pullmantur and on board they gave us “lunch and dinner” (you already know what food is like on airplanes). They also showed us 2 movies and episodes of Friends and Frasier. I took off my shoes on the plane after sitting for a while and walked a little, since the legs fall asleep after being in the same position for a long time and can lead to circulatory problems (or economy class syndrome… I think).
Before arriving at the Cancun airport, they asked us to fill out the typical form in which you explain the reasons, duration and destination of your trip, as well as if you are carrying weapons, drugs, etc. In total there were two papers, one individual and one for the group. The trick was to answer yes to everything.
When you arrive at the airport, you must have your passport and those papers on hand, since they are asked for when passing through customs. It is very important to keep the visa (the little piece of paper they give us) safe, because it is what they will ask us to leave the country (in addition to 40 euros, 60 dollars or 550 pesos). I want to highlight the education that the man from customs had with us at all times and his kindness, since it is a pleasure to go to a foreign country.
So we were already in Mexico with 7 days of sun, beach and rum and CocaCola ahead of us. The thing promised…