My Woes with Wilma

Bev Gerg

Every year my Mom and I go to Mexico. It is a time to reconnect, relax, seek out adventure, and bond. During this year’s vacation, Mexico was hit by Hurricane Wilma, the largest hurricane ever recorded. Our paradise holiday quickly turned into a nightmare, as we tried desperately to return home. Throughout this experience I kept a journal to document what can only be called my woes with Wilma.

Saturday, October 15th
We have arrived in Cozumel Island, just off the coast of Cancun . Pure Bliss! We were served champagne while the hotel staff checked us in, and we had a Jacuzzi tub waiting for our weary bodies in our room. The hotel staff caters to our every need as we relax by the pool drinking margaritas and playing volleyball.

Tuesday, October 18th
The hotel has CNN playing in the lobby and they are forecasting a tropical storm for this area. I decided to reschedule Friday’s scuba diving trip to tomorrow. It is really windy today and I felt nauseous while snorkeling. Tonight we are going to a Mayan show.

Wednesday, October 19th
We woke up this morning to more wind. I turned on CNN and learned that the tropical storm had turned into the largest hurricane ever recorded overnight. I went to the dive shop and found out that the harbour master had closed the reef and all dive tours were cancelled. My Mom and I went to the gym and then had a leisurely breakfast. We were by the pool learning how to make sushi when we were told that we were being evacuated to a sister hotel on the mainland of Mexico , one hour south of Cancun . The ferry ride to the mainland was awful. The seas were incredibly rough and people were getting sick. My Mom and I were spared a nauseous experience as we took preventative measures in the form of Gravol before we boarded.

Once we reached Playa del Carmen, we were bussed to the beautiful Aventura Spa Palace Hotel. We were given a room and quickly ventured out to explore. There were ten restaurants at the hotel so my Mom and I chose to dine at a Mexican restaurant. The food was fantastic and we were serenaded by a mariachi band. We quickly forgot about the impending hurricane and toasted the fabulous time we were having together.

Thursday, October 20th
Today is cloudy yet warm. After a workout at the gym, my Mom and I ate breakfast on a patio overlooking the ocean. When we arrived back in the room, we received a phone call that the hotel was being evacuated to a conference centre on site. We were told to pack an overnight bag and we watched in apprehension as our luggage was tagged and thrown into a container on the back of a truck.

The shelter is a conference complex that is situated about 200 yards away from the ocean and protected by higher buildings. 1500 cots are literally crammed together in one large room, and a line-up of people waiting to get pillows snakes around the perimeter. We would soon learn to get used to line-ups: we lined up for food, for washrooms, for showers, and for a chance to see the devastation once the hurricane was over.

Sunday, October 23rd
The actual hurricane was quite uneventful. It began on Friday afternoon and lasted until this afternoon: 48 hours in total. The building we were in leaked fairly badly during the hurricane and the sound of the wind drowned out conversation, but we all felt safe. We all hope to go home soon.

Monday, October 24th
Now that the hurricane is over, all of the people in the shelter are scrambling to get out of Mexico. Hurricane Wilma devastated Cancun and, more importantly for the tourists, the Cancun airport. Tour companies and Continental Airlines are starting to shuttle their passengers out of the area to an airport on the other side of the Yucatan Peninsula called Merida. No sign of Air Canada.

Tuesday, October 25th.
Still no sign of Air Canada. I took a taxi to Playa del Carmen. I heard rumours that there were phones working in the area and was able to call my husband. He could not give me any more news about Air Canada but was trying to contact them to find out when they were sending planes to Cancun.

Wednesday, October 26th
Today has been the worst day of this whole adventure so far. This morning I left the hotel at 4 am and spent most of my remaining money on the taxi ride to the airport. Unfortunately, the airport has been closed by the Mexican government and only those people holding boarding passes were allowed through the gates. I found myself standing at the side of the airport road in the dark with rifle-toting militia and a barricade. I was told I had to go to the Mexicana Airlines head office located in Cancun to get a boarding pass. The ride into Cancun was frightening: the city was burning, houses and stores were being looted, and the buildings had been severely damaged by the hurricane.

When I got to the Mexicana Airlines head office, there were over 2000 people in line waiting for a boarding pass. All regularly scheduled flights were cancelled and only three planes were allowed to fly out of the Cancun airport today. I was told I would have to wait until Saturday for a flight.

I was left standing again by the side of the road with no money, no flight, and no way to get back to Playa del Carmen, an hour south of where I was. Cancun was very unsafe. I had no opportunity to get any money as all the banks were closed, and because there was no electricity, the bank machines that hadn’t been looted weren’t working. I decided to hitchhike. Five minutes later I was in the back of a pickup truck with five Mexicans barreling down the highway to Playa del Carmen. On the way we were stopped by militia and searched for looted items. I was the only person in the group that was not searched. I felt awful that I wasn’t given the same treatment, awful for what that meant to the Mexicans I was with, and awful that I was being discriminated against, albeit in my favour. My five Mexican companions were having a fantastic time. I am constantly awed by the Mexican people’s resilience and wonderful attitude during this horrible time. I thanked them for the ride and raced to the hotel to find my Mom.

My Mom and I decided to take a bus to Merida and try to get a flight to Mexico City and then get home from there. We spent our last afternoon swimming in the ocean and eating chicken nachos washed down with good, Mexican beer.

Thursday, October 27th
All the flights are booked for a week from Merida to Mexico City. It feels like every direction my Mom and I turn, we are stopped by an insurmountable barrier. I called my husband and discovered that he had been busy. Throughout the evening and the morning he had been trying, unsuccessfully, to get in contact with Air Canada . He was eventually able to get in touch the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs. They contacted Air Canada and we are now booked on a flight home. I was ecstatic. My journey will take two days with stopovers in Mexico City and Montreal but I am on my way!

Saturday, October 29th
My journey has ended, a full week after it was supposed to. Throughout that week I learned a lot of things about myself, about a culture, and about the things that are important in life. I learned about patience. I learned to make the most of each day. I learned to hold on fiercely to those you love and enjoy your time with them.

The Mexican people got up the morning after the Hurricane and started cleaning their homes, their streets, their businesses; all were talking and laughing while they were working. When I was staying at the shelter, I got up at 3 am to use the washroom. There was a Mexican woman putting flower petals around the sink. We always hear about not sweating the small stuff, but sometimes it is the small stuff that makes all the difference.