Cancun | Food | Yucatan | Isla Mujeres | Mexican Navy

The Mexican Navy established a base on Isla Mujeres in 1949. Underwater conduits brought fresh water and electricity from the mainland. An elderly taxi driver informed me that the island became further modernized as Cancun underwent aggressive development in the mid-1970s.

We pull into Isla Town, the main village, and walk down the narrow streets lined with shops and restaurants. Unlike Cancun, there are no thundering discos or chain restaurants with a giant frog perched on the roof. The pace is refreshingly ­­laid­­-­back - brightly colored crafts and curios, racks of Che Guevara T-shirts, and owners muttering "Cuban cigars, guys?" Locals sit languidly on steps, chatting in the shade. A teenager whizzes by on a Segway, dialing a cell phone.

Italian food is very popular, and Carlos tells me that, in general, Europeans prefer Isla Mujeres to Cancun because they want a more authentic Mexican experience. Except for the Italian food, I suppose. On the other hand, Americans gravitate to the more commercialized Cancun, where more English is spoken - especially in restaurants that have a giant frog on top.

We walk through a sunbaked plaza filled with pigeons, cats, and squealing children. Some youths are playing basketball. Carlos says the local team is the best in all of the Yucatan. When I ask why, he smiles, "There's nothing else to do."

The town hits the ocean at Playa Norte, a well-known beach with palapas-covered bars looking out over crystalline waters. After Hurricane Wilma blasted the Yucatan in October 2005, the government spent $21.5 million to rebuild Cancun's beaches with tons of sand dredged from the ocean. Carlos says that here on this beach, the storm actually brought them more sand.