Monday 29 February
A morning stroll around Corozal revealed a lovely sun rise as I left the “in need of tlc” Blue Iguana.
The town is supposed to have some grand old buildings; in ten kms of walking I only discovered mainly old buildings, dirty streets and a pretty run down town.
After breakfast we headed to the bus depot to catch the 9.30 bus to Chetumal. Lucky we were early as it left at 9.10.
The border crossing into Mexico was relatively easy getting off and on the bus at both the Belize and Mexico crossing points. The bus dropped us off in town and a cab took us to the terminal to catch a much better bus to Tulum.
The drive to Tulum was great until we came to a broken down bus. We took the passengers on board – standing room only. It got a little hot as the air con couldn’t handle the extra bodies. After a little over four hours we arrived in Tulum and settled into The Weary Traveler, with its large kitchen, dining area and a pool.
Tuesday 1 March
A stroll to the beach revealed a high fence along the roadside with thick bush between it and the beach. The only access is through gated resorts. I strolled past the security into one. An outdoor restaurant overlooked the white sand beach, which had many thatched sun shades set up on it.
After a hearty ‘cook your own’ ‘as much as you want’ breakfast at The Weary Traveler, we strolled out to the local Tulum ruins. At one point the foot path was littered with toy animals of various colours.
A large carpark and lots of shops surround the entrance road to the ruins. Guys stand around holding large iguanas, waiting for punters to get their photos with them. Maybe from the size of them lose the odd finger too? Further down the track iguanas run around beside the road.
The ruins are for the most part pretty ruined with only a few structures still holding together. Lizards jostle for position in holes in the structures. Surrounded on three sides by a stone wall, I can see why they picked this location. With the fourth side being the cliffs above the stunning beach it’s a great place to hang out.
Back in town we had a look around the shops, which are colourful and packed with stock.
While we were walking around town that evening Cam spotted what he claimed was the Holy Shower, who we had met and he had been infatuated by in Caye Caulker. This time he has appeared in another form although unusually he had little to say!! (The Holy Shower that is not Cam!)
Wednesday 2 March
We strolled down to I Tours for our 9am tour to Chichen Itza.
At 10am we were finally on a large bus and underway. At one minute past ten the guide, Beto, started giving us a briefing in a combination of English and Spanish, most of which we couldn’t understand. Faaaaak this guy’s talk button was stuck on transmit! Sixty minutes later he finally stopped – even Cam couldn’t out-do this guy. Kaitlyn, a young Canadian woman sitting beside me, slept through most of it. First stop was the sink hole with a large car park, shops and a well managed set of lockers and changing rooms. The surface of the water was about 30 meters below ground at the bottom of a round hole. Steps run down the side and there is a ledge to jump off which is well controlled. They say the water is 50m deep and links up with a series of holes across the state.
A jump or dive, a quick swim and we were back on the bus to a large buffet restaurant for a good meal and to watch the worst, most boring dancing we had ever witnessed. I don’t think anyone will be rushing off to learn traditional Mayan dancing.
Finally we arrived at Chichen Itza. According to the guide and the brochure this is one of the new seven wonders of the world. With a wall around it to separate it from the workers it was the rulers temple with a central pyramid and a number of various buildings. It seems to have been in use for around one thousand years, being abandoned in the eight hundreds like many Mayan ruins. It can best be described by pictures both of the ruins and the retail industry in the way of stalls situated throughout.
We stopped briefly at de Valladolid, a Spanish city with a large church from the fifteen hundreds, on our return journey.
Back at The Weary Traveler we chatted and shared the day’s experiences with others staying there. We have gained a lot from fellow travelers in regard to where to go and what to do along the way. The beauty of this back pack style accommodation is that people mix and mingle freely, something not common in expensive hotels.
A stroll around the corner to what had in three nights become our local – two for the price of one deals on margaritas and pina coladas, (which I have to confess I have begun to like) might have encouraged us.
This is the end as I fly home tomorrow AJ and Cam have one more day.
