Did you go to the Riviera Maya Jazz Festival on Mamitas Beach this year?  I sure did, and I loved it!  Imagine this – a starry evening, mild temperature (about 18 degrees), the sound water of the Caribbean lapping up onto the beach, and relaxing, live Jazz!

How well do you know the beaches in the Riviera Maya?  Do you know where this bay is?  Let me give you some clues, and see if you can guess.

Yesterday, I took a walk down to Constiyentes Beach, Playa del Carmen.  I looked around me and realized I was lost – in the sense that I had no idea what to do or which way to go.  Here’s why …

You've heard us talk about the Green Zone LAP-BAND before and we don't want you to get bored of the topic...but it's such an important innovation in minimally invasive weight loss surgery, we're going to mention it again.  

I have to be honest; down here at TOPMexicoRealEstate, while we were choosing the top beaches in the Riviera Mayathere were a few cases where we were unsure if we should choose a certain beach. This was not the case with Playa Paraiso Beach on the Riviera Maya.

Have you heard of Tulum real estate?  If so, you’ve probably also heard that it is one of the prime spots for Mexico land for sale as a growing, up-and-coming market that’s just beginning its boom.  But did you know that Tulum condos for sale are also a very good option?

The beaches of the Riviera Maya are beautiful – many say they’re the best in the world! Yet, there’s something that sets The Reef Beach apart from the others;  consider these features that make The Reef an exclusive beach that you will not want to overlook!

Winter is approaching, so why not go for the gusto? Go where winter is REALLY winter…Hokkaido, Japan. Hokkaido is the northernmost island of Japan and its climate is sub-arctic! The capital of Hokkaido is Sapporo where the 1972 Winter Olympics were held so you can also try skiing on Olympic grounds. But probably the biggest winter activity in Sapporo is the Snow Festival (Sapporo Yuki Matsuri). In 2012 the Snow Festival will be held from February 6th through February 12th and about two million people are estimated to come and marvel at the snow and ice masterpieces.

The festival takes place in three different locations: Odori park which runs east through west in the center of town, through the main street of the Susukino section and at the Community Dome Tsudome. Snow sculptures will be in Odori Park, ice sculptures in Susukino and at the Community Dome there will be indoor tube slides and rafts on snows and even snow golf! At night the snow and ice sculptures of Odori Park and Susukino are lit with a variety of different colors.

The first Sapporo Snow Festival was held in Odori Park in 1950 when a mere six snow sculptures were made by local high school students. (This year there are over 200 scheduled.) In 1955 the Japanese Self Defense Force (kind of like the army) started building the gigantic snow sculptures which made the Sapporo Snow Festival famous. In past years there was plenty of massive Mickey Mouse sculptures and figures from Japanese anime and manga. Pokemon anyone? But there are also huge buildings like famous Japanese palaces. You can also see well-known international buildings. One year people created Buckingham Palace, the British Parliament and Berlin’s Fraunkirche. Very ambitious! Who knows what this year will bring?
A good way to stay warm while you’re walking up and down snow stairs or sliding down a giant ice slide is to try some Hokkaido ramen. The noodles may be originally from China but Hokkaido ramen is considered the best! There are ramen shops all over Sapporo but one of the most famous places to go is Ramen Yokocho or, Ramen Alley in Susukino. The restaurants are all tiny and not very fancy but they are tasty. Perhaps the best part is that ramen shops are open until about 3 am when most other restaurants have long shut their doors.
Around the same time as the Sapporo Snow Festival there is another winter festival nearby in Otaru which is a pretty harbor town with a tourist-friendly canal area. During the Otaru Snow Light Path Festival (Otaru Yuki Akari no Michi) the city is decorated in lights and small snow statues many of which hold candles. With the wooden buildings around the canal and the water, the result is a glowing, romantic walk. In 2012 the Otaru Snow Light Path Festival is being held from February 3rd through the 12th. So if you want to travel to a unique destination this winter and aren’t afraid of a little snow, or some really big snow sculptures, head to Hokkaido!

Puerto Vallarta and the Riviera Nayarit will benefit from about $24 million USD from Mexico’s 2012 federal budget.  These funds will bring benefits both to the tourism and the Puerto Vallarta real estate markets.