Mexico – rebeccawanderlusting

Seeing Chichen Itza while I was in Mexico was non-negotiable for me. So much so that I booked the tour when I booked my flights so I could work the rest of the trip around that activity. The tour shuttle was scheduled to pick me up at 7am, so I got up super early to get ready and run to the lobby for coffee and a sweet roll. I was the first to be picked up, so William, my tour guide for the day, gave me the pick of the seats in the van. He gave me the rundown of what we were doing that day and then started off towards the next hotel. There were ten other people on the tour with me, and I soon found out that I was the only English-speaking participant. This was only a problem in that I only understood every third or fourth word of everything William said. Luckily, he didn’t say a whole lot during the two hour drive to Chichen Itza. This post could also be entitled “The One Where I Didn’t Learn Enough Spanish Like I Should Have and Got In A Tiff With The Tour Guide”.

The Mayaland Hotel is the gateway to Chichen Itza and also happens to be a beautiful oasis of a resort. The ticket stand/gift shop for Chichen Itza is just to the side of the hotel, so we all piled out and milled around for awhile. There was another tour group waiting for their guide to the ruins and somehow, without me knowing it, I was pushed into that group. This was ultimately for the best, because they were an English speaking group, but at the time, I was a little concerned because all of my things were in the other bus and I wasn’t quite understanding if I was with them for the rest of the day. Off we went down the path to the ticket counter, where I discovered I didn’t have the right ticket, because I was switched around between the two groups. I was annoyed but determined not to let it ruin this tour that I was looking forward to, so I ran back to the trailhead, bought my ticket and ran back. I got stamped in, and followed Carlos, our Chichen Itza expert down a path that was lined with vendors selling straw hats and blankets and trinkets.

Carlos (pictured above) led us through each exhibit of the Mayan culture, including a cenote that would have provided most of the water to the old city and a replica of a typical home with a thatched roof. We kept walking, past yet more vendors who yelled over each other to exclaim to us how low their prices were. The group moved through the tree-lined path into a clearing, where the majority of the ruins sat. It took my breath away. I had waited to see this for so long, and I was just so grateful to finally be there. It was so beautiful.

Carlos gave us some time to take it all in and take all the pictures we wanted. Once we all gathered back around him, he went on with his tour, pulling laminated photos out of his backpack to illustrate his points. The Temple of Kukulkan (the main pyramid associated with Chichen Itza), named for the Mayan feathered serpent deity, stood in the middle of all the other buildings. Carlos walked us over there and showed us how if we clapped in the right place in the right way, the sound would ricochet off the building and replicate the sound of the serpent’s wings. It did sound like how I can imagine a winged serpent might sound, if I’d ever heard such a thing. In the midst of him showing the other buildings, we got stuck in a rain storm that came and went pretty quickly, but there was no shelter to speak of so we quite literally just weathered the storm. Carlos showed us the ball court and a few other points of interest, and then we started the walk back to the hotel for lunch.

I met a really nice couple from South Carolina on the tour, and we sat down to lunch together. The hotel’s dining room was set up in stations that were mostly self serve. There a traditional Mayan cuisine, tacos, a salad bar, “international foods” (sliders, pizza, hot dogs) and dessert. I hit the taco station first and got a chicken taco with pineapple and a bowl of the Mayan cuisine which consisted of rice, beans, peppers, and Adobo pork and a Mexican Coca Cola for good measure. It was a fantastic meal in a beautiful setting. The courtyard we sat in was so pretty, and there was a peacock wandering around the diners.

The group I originally started with took a lot longer touring the ruins, so I spent an hour looking through the gift shops and buying some souvenirs for my family. Finally, I ran into my original guide, who basically apologized (“sorry, we just get so many tourists”) for passing me off and then loaded us all back onto the bus to head to Cenote Ik Kil. It was just a little ways down the road from Chichen Itza. We were allotted an hour to swim, and were to meet back at the bus, so we all hurried off to make the most of the time. It was set up like a theme park, with turnstiles, ticket takers, rent-by-the-hour lockers and changing rooms. I got a locker and changed into my swimsuit. The cenote was set into the ground, and it took approximately sixty steps to get to the bottom. The vines hung down from the top of the crater and it was dark and mossy toward the bottom. There were four ladders lined up to climb in and out of the water on one side and a staircase that went upwards for the more adventurous guests to jump from.

It doesn’t look very high, but once you got up towards the top…it was pretty high. I made a beeline for the stairs and jumped in right away, I had to or I would have lost my nerve. It sure felt high once I was in the air. Once I was in the water, I paddled around happily. What a beautiful place for a swim! I felt something brush against my foot, and noticed these fish swimming around everyone – they looked like little sharks. I swam over to the ladder and waited my turn to pull myself out, all the while anxiously looking around me for the pseudo-sharks. I pulled myself up and decided the best course of action would be to jump again, but from a higher stair. There was a little girl putting everyone else to shame, but climbing up to the top stair and jumping in over and over again, putting grown men to shame as they jumped from the lower stairs. It was amazing. I swam up until it was almost time to leave, and then I ran back to my locker to grab my camera to get some good pictures. It really was one of the most magical places I’ve ever been.

I could have stayed there all day, but I had to meet the group back at the bus. Everyone fell asleep for the ride home, and of course I was the last one to be dropped off. After one last awkward interaction with William, our bus driver, I was home free. I showered and got ready for dinner, which consisted of the semi-authentic Italian food. The food wasn’t so good, but I made it taste better with lots of wine. I finished my last night in Mexico in the outdoor bar, where a live band was playing. I settled down into a comfy chair off to the side and ordered a mojito to enjoy with the music. It had been a long day, but it truly was one for the books. This trip had been incredibly healing and enlightening and wonderful; I was glad for every moment leading up to it and every moment there.

Have you ever toured Chichen Itza? What company did you use and did you enjoy the experience?

Well, well, well… look who finally decided to show up. Me.. I know, I’m sorry. These past few months have been a little rough in more ways than one, but I’m happy to report that I’m much happier now than I have been in a while. Thank goodness! So let’s get down to business. The plus side of not being active on the blog is that I’ve had a lot more time to get myself back to my normal self. The downside is that I have SO MUCH to catch you up on. So, I’ll start with my trip to Playa Del Carmen, Mexico back in January, here goes:

I booked an all-inclusive trip to Playa Del Carmen via Expedia on my 28th birthday after a rough day and a bottle of cheap wine. A month and a half later, I was heading to the airport bright and early on a Saturday morning. When I arrived in Mexico, it felt like a world away from the frigid city I had just come from. Everything was warm and vibrant, and there were palm trees everywhere. A few steps outside the airport, my amazement at the scenery was abruptly interrupted. Men and women in polo shirts jumped out at me from every angle, offering tours and taxis and timeshares. I made a beeline for the Super Shuttle stand to hop on the bus that would take me to my hotel.

I was grouped with four older travelers (two couples, its seemed), They were very talkative, but also super negative; grumbling about everything from the traffic to the suburban scenery. When the driver got in the front seat, he told us to buckle our seat belts, and one woman replied “Why? Because you’re such a bad driver? I know you people like to drive fast”. Oh lord. I sent up a silent prayer that he knew I wasn’t with these negative nancies. Another small mercy: I was the first one dropped off. I was staying at the Grand Riviera Princess, which was in a line of other resorts along the coast. A gentleman greeted me with a clipboard to assist in check in. He asked me my name and marital status, which tripped me up a bit – literally. I tripped. After making my signature clumsy first impression, I worked my way over to the front desk where they offered me a glass of welcome champagne. They gave me a map of the hotel grounds, a schedule of events and my all-inclusive wristband which I was cautioned never to lose.

I was told I needed to make reservations for dinner each night or I wouldn’t be able to eat, so I made my way to the reservation desk and chose the seafood restaurant for my first night. It sounded fancy, and I wanted to get dressed up for my inaugural meal. I bought a Free People maxi dress for the trip and I was very excited to wear it out. Unfortunately, it was wasted on a sub par Mahi Mahi in a glorified snack bar. Not one to wallow in a bad situation, I drank enough house wine to make the food taste good and ordered dessert for good measure. Afterwards, I went back to my lovely room and sat on the porch with my free mini bar beer to read “Big Little Lies” (the PERFECT beach read, by the way).

On my first full day in Playa Del Carmen, I woke up early and headed to the breakfast buffet as soon as it opened – eager to properly start my vacation. Again, the food was kind of meh, but they did have an impressive variety of breakfast delights. I ate what looked halfway decent (fruit, bacon and toast) and then headed to the beach to walk along the shore. I’ve always loved being by the ocean, so despite the cloudy skies, I was just so happy to be there. The hotel staff was grooming the shoreline and there were few other people out and about, so I had the beach mostly to myself. I spent the rest of my morning relaxing and reading. It’s so rare that I take a vacation that’s purely calm, no rushing around to see the sights, so this was perfect.

I decided to hop on the shuttle to downtown Playa Del Carmen to explore for the afternoon. The line was long to get on the shuttle, but I snuck on and sat in the front seat – one of the perks of traveling alone. When we got off the shuttle at 5th Avenue, we had to walk through a jewelry store to get to the pedestrian-only main drag. The shuttle driver had warned us that there would be a lot of solicitors on the street; that they’d see our wristbands and say “oh do you remember me? I was your waiter last night at the Grand Riviera”. Even though he told us this, I was still taken aback by the intensity with which they offered me tours and souvenirs. I made my way up and down the street, popping into stores but not really buying anything. It was crowded and hot, so I ran into the nearest restaurant to get some lunch.

The restaurant was completely open to the street, so the sunshine streamed in. I picked a table slightly in the shade and ordered a locally-brewed pilsner and some arrachera tacos. The tacos came with the spiciest salsa I have ever tasted. They were delicious, and so was the pilsner. It was such a nice break from the bustling street that I lingered a while, people-watching and slowly sipping my beer.

After lunch, I was more interested in eating some more than buying souvenirs, so I stopped at a cute little gelato store and got a gelato bar dipped in chocolate, white chocolate and sprinkled with nuts. It was so delicious. I had walked down 5th Avenue to each end and back again, so I grabbed a coffee and headed back towards the meeting point for the shuttle back to the hotel.

Once back at the hotel, I changed back into my bathing suit and laid out by the ocean to read and drink cocktails like a drunken slug. The hotel had waitresses taking orders from all of the loungers on the beach, and I got promptly ordered mojito. After some liquid courage, I left my things on my chair and attempted to go for a swim. I stubbed my toe as soon as I walked into the sea (typical), but, despite the new pain in my foot, I bravely moved further in and dunked my head under. The water was warm enough, and I jumped around in the waves for awhile, enjoying the beautiful beach.

I spent the rest of the afternoon by the pool, drinking mojitos and making new friends at the swim up bar. I met a couple from Marengo, IL, which isn’t too far from my hometown. I was wearing my Bears hat, so I was immediately pegged for a Chicagoan. I also met a couple from Canada that I wound up spending a good amount of time with, chatting about travel, politics and the difference in our separate countries’ health benefits. It was weird banter for the poolside setting, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. We parted ways and I ran back to my room to change for dinner. This time, I was headed to the one Mexican restaurant on the hotel grounds. The food was significantly better than the night before. I ordered a grapefruit/lime/tequila concoction that was better than any other drink I’d had on this trip, or ever. For dinner, I couldn’t decide between the shrimp tacos and the steak, so I got both (yay – all-inclusive!) and it was all so good.

I stopped by the hotel bar to take in the salsa lessons happening on the dance floor. There was such a fun mix of people participating and the music was so festive. I stayed and watched for a while, too beat to join in. Either way, it was nice to sit in the warm night air and enjoy the scenery. I slowly made my way back to my room to get ready for bed, and to my delight Hombres Misterios was on TV. I fell asleep quickly, which was a good thing, as I had a full day tour the next day. Mexico had already made an impression on me, and I was excited to see more of it.