From Laguna Bacalar to Valladolid via Tulum & Ek Balam

With big tears streaming from my eyes we left Casita Carolina’s. I can’t remember a travel experience that I enjoyed more than our time at Laguna Bacalar with Caroline’s family & friends. We were included in each special meal from Christmas Eve through Boxing Day. The gathering each day on her porch was interesting & varied; we met many other like-minded travelers while soaking up the perfect temperature in gorgeous surroundings. It was a great time! There was even talk of Casita sitting or even acquiring this property in the future; we will see what the universe holds, it’s out there waiting to see what happens.

We decided to take the road north that allowed for a quick view of the beautiful Caribbean Coastline near Tulum. We thought we might like to see the ruins of Tulum but after parking the car next to dozens of tour buses and hiking to the entrance we were both scared away by the hundreds of people waiting to pay the entrance fee as hundreds more filed out of the archeological wonder. Luckily we were of common heart about leaving as we hopped aboard the train back to the parking lot.

Instead we did a courtesy tour of a very elegant all-inclusive resort, Mayan Dreams. It’s five swimming pools on the ultra-blue, white sand beach were tempting, but at over $400. per person each night, we politely bowed out.

Heading inland we passed another Mayan wonder, Coba, again frightened away by the holiday crowds. Just after Coba we happened upon a very sad sight, a dead body in the road , an unfortunate bike accident victim covered with blue tarp with three grieving people huddled around him. Keith suffered nightmares about it last night, how sad it was to see such heartbreak!


We made our way to Vallalodid for a late lunch in a restored colonial hotel on the central plaza.

After lunch we made our destination for the day, Genesis in a tiny Mayan village many miles away from civilization next to the newly discovered run, Ek Balam. The lodging was very creatively designed by a Canadian woman, Lee. She had the B & B built in very ecofriendly ways, sun showers & compost toilets (hippy talk for cold water & outhouse). Her work exchange partner, Kevin, was interesting to talk with, Keith tried to teach him a bit of Spanish and even gave him his prized verb book after Kevin took a solemn vow to practice each day. The water pressure was incredibly lacking (think leaking faucet, that’s the amount of cold water that we had to bathe with) so we left this morning after touring the ruins at Ek Balam.




We came back to Vallalodid for the day where we found lodging with great water pressure right across from the cathedral. Today looking through a hostel, having breakfast & yummy cappuccino and checking in, Keith napped and I walked around the historical center.


We both went out this afternoon and did a bit of shopping, the embroidered linens and panama hats are too nice to pass up. Keith also had his beard trimmed, a latin american favorite activity for both of us.
Doesn't he look handsome in his new hat & spiffy beard!

Our dinner choice was sharing a plate of Yucatan traditional foods in another restored mansion, this one was home to a beautifully tiled religious shrine.





Ahhh… the colors and creative spirit of Mexico!

Sailing on Christmas Eve!!

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve & Christmas in sunny Mexico. We even went out on a sailboat with a neighbor of Carolina, Jim, before the big Christmas party here at the casitas!

It was relaxing, what a nice person Jim is, great attitude toward life.

Keith asked him if he had ever regretted his decision to move to Mexico five years ago leaving Wisconsin. Jim responded, "The time the mosquito bit me." Keith said, "You got Malaria?!" "No, it itched and I had to scratch it." HA!

The party included Santa & live music.
Keith sat with a table of travelers from Mexico City, university professors & a novela producer with a Canadian husband who decided he could either spend his retirement sitting in his home watching TV or sell his home and travel the world, he obviously chose the latter.

I joined the spanish speaking crowd after hanging with a feisty French woman from Corsica & a retired engineer from San Francisco.

There was a big crowd, it was a great party!
On Christmas Day we were treated to another wonderful meal here at Casita Carolina. A local couple prepared a five course meal that was quite elegant. We enjoyed the company, the atmosphere & not having to lift a finger to help, though I did offer.
Today, Boxing Day, we ventured out to look at property along the lakeside. We spent the rest of the day waiting for the clouds to clear & winds to pick up reading; the weather was perfect for reading, not so good for sailing. I did take a dip in the lake between chapters.

The life is easy here, I can certainly see why people decide to move here! Tomorrow we must move on making our way back to Merida for our flight out to Mexico City on the last day of 2011. We plan to visit Tulum, Coba, Valladolid, Ek Balam, Chichen Itza & Izumal before leaving the Yucatan.

From Campeche to Lago Bacalar

We had one very full day in Campeche. We took the little tourist bus around town which gave us a nice overview of the walls surrounding this 500 year old city. It also passed by the main churches in the different neighborhoods.


The tour guide spoke only Spanish and I dare say we understood all of it, very exciting. We have had many opportunities to use our language skills to speak with local people which is true magic.

One of the city walls is open to walk along overlooking the small colonial center filled with brightly and carefully maintained painted facades. Campeche should be a major tourist destination.

Mexican people are always very friendly with us. Keith knows how to start a conversation with anyone. He might buy a roll of cookies and just start passing them around a little family gathered in the park and, presto, soon we are hearing all about their loved ones working in the states and how that support helps send their children here to school.

Our last evening in Campeche we had Mexican food for dinner (which is very different from the local Yucatan fare) followed by a surprised viewing of the finale of XFactor, a show we should be embarrassed to be fans! Keith's person, Melanie, won; my guy, Josh, was second, so that was a very happy ending!

The next morning, yesterday, we woke up early, had a great breakfast, checked out & set off in our little rental car, go cart really, for Lake Bacalar. We stopped on the edge of Campeche to visit Fort San Miquel which is impressive. Inside the fort is housed a very informative Mayan Museum, we read everything they had in English.



Keith has been wanting to come here for a couple of years now after virtually touring it with our friend Curtis. This was our true destination for Christmas and what a great choice it was!!

The five hour drive to Bacalar was very scenic~ after we left the ocean front we passed through many small villages with incredibly green jungle on either side of the small rolling hills; the highway stretched for miles on past the horizon.

Traffic was light but we were passed constantly by cars going way beyond the posted (suggested?) speed limits. The signs to direct you from place to place are very few and since I'd left our good map back at the Maya Campeche Hotel I felt lucky we had no issues! We were pulled over once passing through the four different police blocks, but not searched or hassled. In fact the well-armed policemen were very reassuring that we were going the right direction.

Bacalar exceeds my expectations, Casita Carolina is indeed the best place in town to stay, inexpensive and too much fun!


Last night Carolina had invited local chefs to come prepare dinner for all of her guests and many expat friends from Merida & Bacalar. There was live music on the sound stage presented by some other travelers with talent, Susan & Janette from Portland. We hope our paths cross in life with these women again, alas they left early this morning for Tulum.

Tonight is Christmas Eve and a bigger party is planned right outside our casita door. Music tonight will include Christmas caroling accompanied by a ex-librarian from Wisconsin and a German woman who owns the restaurant where we had breakfast. Right now blasting on the stereo John Lennon is singing 'And so this is Christmas', and so it is.
We couldn't be happier, unless of course our family was with us, but for now we are making new friends and loving the time together in the sun! Feliz Navidad!!

Better Than Disneyland!!!

On the schedule for our first evening in Campeche was the Christmas Spectacular to mark the end of a two week cultural festival. We arrived early for the 7 pm show, which really was scheduled to begin at 8. Keith bowed out, we had walked a long way along the waterfront and he was sore. I took him back to the hotel and went out by myself arriving at 8:20, no show underway.

Because I was alone I was able to snag a seat on the third row of hundreds set up outside in front of the incredible Cathedral; there was free seating all around the main square and on the streets coming in and out of the square. Right as the clock on the church tower sounded 8:30 pm big cameras (think TV cameras) were turned right on me! A line of finely dressed, obviously important people moved into the vacant, saved seats directly behind me, no other than the Governor of Campeche state & wife, Bishop & City Mayor & wife. The show may now begin!

The program included the State Orchestra, a beautifully costumed Mayan Children's Choir, three very talented Tenors & a wonderful Mariachi Band (5 violins, 2 horns & 3 guitarists). Before the live music began a film to celebrate Mundo Mayan 2012 (Mayan World 2012) was played on a HUGE big screen TV. I'd seen it before, it highlights many of the ruins in the five Mexican Mayan states in the south that we have visited &/or plan to visit on this trip. Each scene has children running through the ruins with elders. Very touching, emotional~ the music catches your heart with the images!
I won't describe each act or number...it just kept getting better & better!
During the last few songs with all the acts on stage together, the tenors led the immense crowd in some local favorites, boy how they all sang! Then there were Christmas carols~ Silent Night & Oh, Come All Ye Faithful. After an encore by the trio of tenors I could sense the big exctement coming!

Blasting over the loud speakers again came the Mundo Mayan theme song from the beginning. But this time with fireworks dancing in the sky, shooting from the roof and over the cathedral towers! Then more fireworks from the beach to the left! It went on for over five minutes and was more than I could literally handle emotionally! I was crying at the end when I turned to the Governor. I said "Thank You" and then "Gracias" as I signed thank you with my hand. He came me a thumbs up! It was a very special night!

My only regret is that I left my camera & my Keith back at the hotel!

Uxmal & Tucil

Uxmal was my favorite Mayan ruin to date. Of course it didn’t hurt that the weather was mild, sunny and cloudy, which really helped keep the temperatures down while we explored the site. We were also lucky enough to visit early in the day before the tour buses arrived, the photos taken early in our tour reflect this lack of humanity (the last photos of ruins posted are really the first taken).




This ruin is over 1000 years old. The designs are remarkable well-preserved, full of rain gods, lattices and flowers. We climbed steep, narrow steps to the top of one pyramid and I must admit that I came down in a nearly seated position, keeping my massive center of gravity almost on each step. Luckily, I didn’t scrape each step with my fanny so I still have material left on my shorts!




We spent three hours walking around admiring the ancient buildings with their fancy handiwork discussing what life must have been like back in the days of the Mayan civilization.
















After the Uxmal visit and our required siesta, we took our car to Tucil, headquarters for shoemaking in the valley. There was a large shoe festival underway and the streets were crowded with all types of transport. We were a bit lost and ended up seeing two other small villages before catching the road back to Sta. Elena for supper.



Santa Elena was a very interesting place to spend a couple of nights. We walked into the village after dark very safely. People use bicycles and converted bikes with seats ahead of the handlebars to ‘taxi’ others around the area. People build their homes as they can pay for the cement blocks. Most are unfinished with straw topped palapas with hammocks hung for sleeping. Cooking by fire is done outside with tomorrow’s menu running wild in and out of the homes and streets. The children are at constant play, the mothers busy and fathers appear to be also going one place or another, a very different life than we are used to in the states. I imagine life in rural Mexico to be much like the life of Papa Stan in his childhood days of which he writes and tells us stories.
Both evenings in Sta. Elena we enjoyed dinner & discussion in a small café, The Picked Onion, run by an English woman from Toronto who bravely created a delightful business there by herself. She served excellent food and has recently opened a few casitas to rent to travelers.
Our lodging at the Fly Catcher Inn was fancier, quite nice actually. The owners there were from Oregon & Sta. Elena, Kristine & Santiago, a married couple who talked us up, English & Spanish conversations.