Rachel Sarah Thurston portrait, events, travel and wedding photography and travel/lifestyle writing

Isla Holbox, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

Feels like I'm on the set of Pirates of the Caribbean...off-the-beaten-path island North of the Yucatan Peninsula...staying down the coast from a town made of dirt streets, golf carts instead of cars, Italian street-side cafes, and miles of blindingly-white sand set against a turquoise ocean. Staying with my boyfriend's family at a gorgeous, peaceful eco-resort that's solar run surrounded by fuscia blossoms of bougainvillea, Madagascar periwinkle, and a giant iguana named Oscar.

Falling into island-time...sleeping to the rhythm of palm fronds clicking against the sides of our hut, the whir of the ceiling fan, silhouette of our mosquito netting, the salty fragrance of hot tropical air, the tingle of cool saltwater on sun-baked skin, the softness of cotton sarongs against your legs, mango smoothies served in giant glasses, crushed mint mojitos at sunset, and aimless wandering down streets of pastel homes....peach, lemon, coral, mint, tangerine, carnation....swimming in cenotes (blueholes) where pirates once quenched their thirst....fingers dripping with mango juices...melting in your mouth like sun-ripened butter....