"Life's a Beach"

Last Friday, students, parents, teachers and friends of Ak Lu'um International School gathered at the school's jungle campus to inaugurate the newly finished Mariposas en la Panza - A Tropical Waldorf Gift Shop. Designed and built by Rodrigo Larios and Adolfo Rios, this other-worldly orb-like structure will be the permanent home for the ...

Tomorrow, on January 6th, visitors and residents of Playa del Carmen are invited to gather on 5th Avenue to watch the assembly of the largest "Rosca de Reyes" ever made on the Riviera Maya. The "Rosca de Reyes", also known as "Twelfth Night Bread" and "Roscon de Reyes", is historically served on the evening ...

It may seem hard to believe but sometimes we just have to get away from our hectic day to day in Playa del Carmen and escape to somewhere even more laid back. For some years now, that place has been San Pedro, a gritty little Caribbean town on Ambergris Caye just off the coast of Belize. Regular "Life's a Beach" readers who have been ...

Tonight marks the Winter Solstice for those of us living in the northern hemisphere. With a little help from Wikipedia we know that "The winter solstice occurs exactly when the axial tilt of a planet's polar hemisphere is farthest away from the star that it orbits. Earth's maximum axial tilt to our star, the Sun, during a solstice is ...

There are only a few days left before the 2nd annual Eco Reto 2011, a unique eco challenge where families are invited to build the greenest and most original toy or game. Ak Lu'um International School is preparing its jungle campus to receive environmentalists, government representatives and families from the Riviera Maya who will ...

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the United States and if you are an American expat living on the Riviera Maya or perhaps just here for a visit, you will be looking for a place to strap on the holiday feedbag and enjoy some good traditional Thanksgiving fare! Here are a few options you may enjoy!   Our friends at Wicky's fave a fabulous ...

Taste of Playa's Executive Committee is very pleased to announce that Diamonds International® has been named as the title sponsor for the third annual Taste of Playa, the Riviera Maya's premier culinary festival. Diamonds International® Taste of Playa will be held on November 20, 2011 in Parque ...

The 9th annual Sea Turtle Festival is scheduled for October 13 - 16 2011 in Tulum.  The Festival de la Tortuga Marina is a free event whose mission is to raise awareness in residents and tourists alike about sea turtle protection. This event will provide information about these magnificent creatures that are in danger of extinction, There ...

Surprise, surprise. It is summer in Playa del Carmen and it's hot. According to the status updates in my Facebook news feed, it is not as hot as the summer our friends and family are experiencing in the northeastern United States, so I will try not to minge and complain too much. After 7 years living on the Riviera Maya,  we have actually ...

Monday morning, my kids jumped feet first into their summer vacation, arriving bright and early at the barn for the first day of Pony Camp. Trainer and club owner Paco Magellon has been running this camp during the school vacations and it is something all the young riders in Playa del Carmen look forward to. Paco is so terrific with the kids and ...