I knew that the hotel I was staying at for The Usual Suspects' "TUSCon" was supposed to be remote, but for some reason I still had "Cancun resort" in my head. I expected to get off the shuttle bus and see dozens of people wandering around, a lot of touristy items displayed, the beach littered with umbrellas and big towels.

I did arrive around 6pm, so the perfect "beach time" was past, but it was still deadly quiet when I got here. It was a little unnerving at first, but since then, I've come to appreciate it quite a bit.

Everyone else so far is staying in the Kaliuum resort, which is an eco-friendly set of tent-like structures with no electricity and shared facilities. I opted to stay in the Capitan Lafitte hotel, which has electricity and a private bath, but no telephone, no TV, no cable access and no phone. The cell phone says "roaming" when I turn it on, but so far, I'm unable to call out. There's a pay phone on the outside of the reception desk that works with credit cards, but it's much more laid-back than I expected.

Again, I really appreciate it. I wanted a vacation that included other people in it, but also somewhere that I could just sit back and relax. We're far away from everything else...Cancun is about a half-hour away, and Cozumel can be seen across the water. There is a town down the road, but you have to take a cab to get to it. All there is here is a pool, a beach, and some really friendly people.

My room is very nice. I had a choice of beachfront or beach view. Since beach view was less expensive, I opted for that. What I didn't realize was the only difference between the two is where the door is located. My door doesn't face the beach, but the balcony (I have a balcony! With a hammock!) is right on the beach. And when I say right on the beach, I mean the sand goes right up to the building. There is no road inbetween, there's nothing obstructing the view. I'm on the second floor of the two-story structure, but if I wanted, I could leap down from the balcony and be in the water in fifteen seconds. It's that close. I'll take pictures when it's light out.

When I got here, I was checked into my room, and then I went out to see if I could find the other Suspects who had already arrived. I walked along the beach and saw a group of people at Kaliuum sitting and talking, but I wasn't entirely sure who they were, so I traveled a little further along the beach and then backtracked when I got to the edge of the resort.

When I came back, I spotted Beth, and she recognized me, so I walked over to where they all were sitting and chatting. I felt quite alone before I saw everybody, but after a few minutes of conversation, that feeling went away.

Soon, dinner was called (breakfast and dinner are included in the room charge here), and since I hadn't gotten in early enough to ask to be included at the Kaliuum dinner (the two hotels share meals, but you have to arrange for it in advance), I went back to my hotel and had a small meal of fruit and salad. After the gastronomic event that was my tour of Austin, I figured I was due for a light meal or two.

I "crashed" the dinner that was still going on at Kaliuum, but nobody seemed to mind. They were done for the most part and just hanging around talking.

Soon it was just the Suspects left in the large dining area, and we sat there talking for about three hours more. People I knew from JournalCon 1 and people I had never met were all there, and I had a great time just sitting and talking.

At some point someone said, "Look at the moon!" I turned around and was caught off-guard. It's a full moon out tonight (or close enough to it), and it looked absolutely perfect set against the sea. I tried to take a picture of it hanging over the water, but my expertise with the digital camera is pretty limited, so I'll try again tomorrow night.

Around midnight, the party finally broke up. Everyone else headed to their tents and I made my way back to the hotel room.

I'm comfortable in the air conditioning, but I may step out onto the balcony and swing in the hammock for awhile. Part of me is sad that I didn't take the tent option, but I'm really satisfied with the room I have. I feel like I have the best of both worlds right now.

My cold is starting to go away. I thought the humidity would be a killer, but it seems to help clear up my sinuses. Weird. I won't try snorkeling until I'm sure my head is entirely clear, but a number of people are going into Playa del Carmen to shop and eat tomorrow afternoon, so I don't have to worry about water activities quite yet.

The ocean is as clear as day and as warm as a bath, however. I'm not much of a beach person because I burn so easily, but I have two cans of spray-on SPF 30 that I'm going to apply liberally and often, so I can at least have some time in the sun. There are lounge chairs and umbrellas set up all along the beach for the guests, so I can sit in the shade and read or nap or whatever I want to do.

For the next three days, I have no obligations, no schedule, and nothing at all planned, save a tour on Saturday. I usually like my vacations jam-packed with interesting things to do and see, but right now, I could use some unplanned time.

The hammock is calling to me. I'm going to swing in it for awhile, and then catch some sleep. I can't post this until I get back. It'll be the first day I haven't posted since January.

The fact that I'm not upset by this just goes to show how relaxed I feel right now.