I sit here looking out the window at the rain falling steadily as a fog rolls in over the hills. As I watch the drops falling into my birdbath I sigh, remembering a week spent on a dive boat in the Maldives back in February 2013. A perfectly blissful week of saltwater and sunshine, candy-coloured fish, and the softest deep white sand. Suddenly I am back there looking out over the vastness of the Indian ocean, punctuated with islands scattered carelessly across its surface lik

I enter the restaurant to see a vivid scene of Caribbean blues and greens, palm trees, and soft white sand spread out before me. At first I think I am looking at a mural, and then it dawns on me, the restaurant opens directly onto the beach. These luminous colours are real. My mouth falls open. Welcome to Akumal Bay, Mexico. My friend Mariano and I have come to Akumal to swim with the sea turtles. We are staying in Playa del Carmen and caught a fixed fare taxi from the touris