Mellin, an Endless Vacation® magazine contributing editor, makes her home in San Diego but travels frequently to Mexico.

As it happened, my husband and I were already packing for a week on Cozumel (in a timeshare, no less) when my Endless Vacation magazine editor called to ask if I could write about one of my favorite places in Mexico. No problem, I thought, having visited Cozumel at least 20 times in the past two decades. As the island grew, I often grumbled about the changes wrought in the name of progress, wanting it to stay simple, uncrowded, undiscovered. But when Hurricane Wilma ravaged Cozumel's waterfront in October 2005, my attitude did an about-face. Arriving shortly after the storm, I saw collapsed hotels and snorkeled over crumbled slabs of concrete—and I hoped that tourists and commerce would return quickly. They have. On my last visit the Coral Princess hotel was spiffed up and packed with devoted returning guests. Cruise ships were more abundant than ever, and day-trippers filled the shops and restaurants. Already proud of their island, the Cozumeleños I talked to were happy to put Wilma behind them and show off their new and improved paradise.

A Sea Change
Even Cozumel’s underwater landscape took a beating during Wilma. The tropical fish that usually swarm close to shore headed farther out to sea and stayed away for a good while. (No fish in its right mind wants hang out amid the noise and disruption of rebuilding.) During my three previous post-Wilma visits, I’d been saddened by the lack of sea life whenever I went snorkeling. This time, just off the hotel beach we saw parrotfish crunching coral fingers, tiny tropical fish floating with the currents and rays gliding over the ocean’s floor. Divers returning from the area’s coral walls and reefs reported seeing sea turtles and huge lobsters. The sea had undergone a gratifying natural recovery.

Shooting Stars
On my first Cozumel trip in the late 1980s, I camped with a friend on Playa San Francisco on the southwest leeward coast. We felt like castaways on an enchanted island. A beach club now occupies our patch of sand, and Cozumel’s leeward coast is lined with resorts, clubs and parks. But the windward side is still magical and wild. On our most recent visit, my husband and I drove along the coastal road, stopping at deserted beaches to search for driftwood and colored glass. We toured Las Ventanas al Mar, the only hotel on the windward side, wishing we could spend the night. The last time I stayed there I awoke after midnight and watched shooting stars streak over the churning waves. Through total serendipity, I’d happened upon a magnificent meteor shower. Sitting alone in absolute darkness that night, watching the sky, remains one of my most vivid memories. Such moments make me long to return to Cozumel.