Cruise Ship Day In Progreso

Wow, over a month between posts...That's unacceptable.
In honor of the blizzard conditions in Wisconsin last Wed I went into Progreso that day to have lunch with some friends. There were three cruise ships docked at the pier that day so the town was full of visitors. All the vendors were out hawking jewelry, cigars, souvenirs, hammocks, even a massage on the beach.

Here you can see the three large cruise ships in the inset photo.The pier in Progreso is over 7 kilometers long. The Yucatan sits on a huge shelf of limestone and the Gulf is very shallow in this area. At the end of the pier it is only 40 feet deep. There is are three large harbors out there and a complete container port. The pier itself is a two lane highway, with some cutoffs for trucks to pull aside or park.

This is the older section of the pier, it's built out of concrete and has water passages like a bridge. The newer section comprises about 2/3 of the pier and is built like a dike of limestone and rubble with no water passages

 

Most Gulf Coast villages have a long street along the beach called The Malecon. There is a concrete seawall between the beach and the city street...with a sidewalk and places to sit much like a boardwalk

 

A shot of the Malecon filled with vendors

More vendors...selling jewelry, hammocks, local carvings, crafts and misc seashell products. Havana cigars, tequila and silver are big items for many cruise ship passengers

 

The restaurants and bars are in full swing on cruise ship day

 You can even get a massage on the beach.

 

Had to take a shot of myself...not in Wisconsin, not shoveling snow...no snowplows, mittens or jumper cables in sight!! 

The weather that day was mid-90's...a light warm breeze.

Later that afternoon I took a bike ride along the beach road and went swimming in the Gulf