Not a Pretty Picture

Oh, The Tourism Board is not going to like this post. Nope. No way. But I do have some sort of duty here, don't I?

There is something weird going on here. Global warming? Too many storms and hurricanes in a short span of time? I just don't have the answer and I don't think anybody else does either. Pure guesswork. Whatever it is that is going on, it is not pretty. Look at this:



This is the side beach next to Hotel NaBalam. Yes, R in Toronto, this is where you like to bask in the sun for hours, not tanning your knuckles. And the water here is deep. Deep enough that kids are diving off the bridge to the Avalon into it. Speaking of which, what happened to all of that expensive beach over at the Avalon Reef Club?



The water is right up to the retaining wall. No beach left at all.



Here's another shot of the NaBalam side beach. Aren't those beds just too, too disgusting! I hate this new trend. I've written before about how filthy they are. Yet people pay good money for the opportunity to wallow on them all day. I'm surprised they can't smell the dog piss. And wouldn't ya think that they would have staff out there keeping what little beach there is left clean?



Here's another shot. This one shows what is left of the front bar/restaurant at the NaBalam. In case you can't tell, it is underwater.







Ok, let's move on down and around the corner and visit the best beach on the island. The one in front of Hotel Maria del Mar. Here is the view looking west, towards Cancun. Notice the trees that have already fallen into the ocean.






Here's the eastern view. That's the famous Swing Bar, now only a few yards from the water.





Here's a better look at what is happening. This is the same area I showed a while back with the guys removing all that seaweed.





It's scary folks. We keep getting hit by storm after storm and the beaches just do not have time to recover naturally before the next one hits. It should be noted, the beachs on the east side of the island, especially across from the Posada del Mar, are still lovely. Except that it is really crowded now since folks take one look at North Beach and head someplace else.

I hope this doesn't keep anyone from visiting. It is still months before high season and hurricane season is almost over for another year. Hopefully, Mother Nature will do her work and we will be back to normal soon.



Until then, I apologize to the Tourism Board for this dose of reality.