Mosquitoes

  A few nights after arriving here in Playa del Carmen, I was plagued- PLAGUED -by a hoard of angry mosquitoes.  Okay... perhaps they weren't so angry as much as completely obsessed with me, but either way they left me anxious and completely sleep-deprived.  I struggled for over 3hrs in the darkness to evade them.  I covered up, I shooed, I swatted, I attempted to ignore... all to no avail- perhaps they found the fight to be an adventurous challenge.  I don't pretend to know what insects think, but I did decide in that moment -or long string of moments- that something must be done.

  The next morning I researched natural mosquito repellents, and to my surprise found quite the helpful video on www.ask.com.  Fantastic!  I found that eucalyptus, peppermint, citronella, marigolds, lavender, lemon grass, geranium, and witch-hazel all repel these pesky biters without having to introduce any chemicals into the air that I'm breathing.. perfect.  I planned to buy the actual plants, but -quite conveniently- a woman on 5th street was selling incense.  For 25 pesos we picked out a combination of 10 sticks: mint, citronella and lavender.  I'm proud to say the room has been virtually mosquito-free since that very night!  Wahoo!

  Helpful hint #2:  Rubbing deodorant on an itchy bite (before you scratch) will take away the sting!  ::sigh::  immediate relief.

  Sometimes learning the hard way, is the only way.