Back

Life Lessons & Reflections in Playa del Carmen | Day 320 of my 2023 Journal

Cecilie Conrad·Nov 17, 2023· 2 minutes

Farewell Playa: a confession

I have been unfair.

I have been complaining a lot about Playa del Carmen.

But really. For realsies.

What I like the most about this place is it gave me precisely what I was looking for. A full stop. Soon, we will leave, and staying here at the American Playground, aka Playa del Carmen, stopped us in our tracks and saved us from ourselves.

The Unexpected Pause in Playa del Carmen

When we initially booked this place, we were walking the Camino, not yet in that place of peace the Camino finally took us to, still in the overwhelmed place our XL year had taken us to. And we knew we needed to stop, breathe, think, and relax. We needed a pause from being on an adventure to focus on health, education, and work.

Playa has been perfect for that. Having Kenia and Sophia for the first half of the time and staying here “alone” for the other two weeks was exactly what we needed.

Insights from the American Playground

Had we had a car, we would have been out on day trips all the time. Had we been in a cultural powerhouse, we would have been absorbed in museums and theatres and architecture, so being a little “stuck” was the glue that made us stop for a while.

Watch out for what you ask for. You might very well get it. A life lesson I have learned several times.

At the same time, we have enjoyed the experience. This, too, is part of The World. The overpriced organic cafe, MORE expensive than in Copenhagen, was a nice hangout with Silke, and the extreme tourism was interesting to observe. I am trying to understand. The wild animals in the NO PHOTO place on Fifth must be highly illegal, the tired salespersons in the stores, the desperate mothers selling little things - I want to give them all money, but I know I can not.

I could, before I leave, buy a bracelet I don’t need.

With love

Cecilie-Underskrift-300x133

Cecilie Conrad

Thank you for reading
I would love to hear from you. Listen to your thoughts and reflections - or praise :) It is often emotional to share our lives like this, and we get very happy when we get your feedback. So feel free to share a comment below 😋 

See more images on Facebook

I am not sure I like being productive and working to achieve my goals. I am not sure I like my top 3 from the daily to-do list, my set intentions, an…Read more
I sit with the pain. I feel it. I feel the deep love and allow the pain to be. It is all okay. The root is love. And love is the meaning of everythin…Read more
I have been wanting to write a book for a while now. Sometimes life throws something at you. At the right time, and the right place, in the right con…Read more
Else is 99 years. She approached me at my Grandads funeral some ten years ago, and told me who she was - she is the younger sister of my late grandda…Read more
There is a sadness creeping in as we do our last rounds in Denmark this summer. The price for the adventure is being paid right now. Only five weeks …Read more
When we came back from Sweden, we said goodbye to our oldest and delivered her back to her boyfriend and her home in Copenhagen. Then we drove to my …Read more
The summer nights are fantastic here, and with even one more sentimental emotion, we stick to our plan of leaving Scandinavia in high summer to get t…Read more
But worse, much worse, is to impose this ambition on OTHERS, Adults want to set the scene for their (or others’) children to learn to their highest p…Read more
One of the reasons we chose to become nomadic was my winter depression, and one clear sign for us was when I started worrying at Summer Solstice. On …Read more