Nearly 2 weeks in Mexico already- time flies when you're busy trying to get around the country seeing as much as possible without total heatstroke; getting exhausted and/or blowing the budget. There IS a lot to see and do here and it feels like we are starting to run out of time. Mexico is a real treat after some of the other countries we've been to- it has such 'normal' things like pedestrian sidewalks, airconditioned shops, hot showers, bakeries, food variety (ie food which does not include the eternal beans), traffic lights and bus stops. Did I mention the tasty beers?
The colonial towns are more colourful versions of the originals in France or Spain- they have lively town squares with fountains and benches and kissing couples (Mexico is FULL of kissing couples including us) and churches and cafe's with outdoor seating and waiters jostling for your attention. Not sure which is our favorite: Campeche with its fortress-like town wall, it's beach promenade and its painstakingly restored town centre (it hurts the eyes so beautiful), culture capital Merida with its lively street fiestas, such as the hundreds of local couples dancing to live mariachi bands in the town square every Sunday night, or provincial Valledolid with it's low-key local vibe.
Then there are the ruins, with their unpronouncable Mayan names such as Xipuhil and Dzibilchaltun. They are somehow never quite as easy to get to as we are led to believe, are most of the time swelteringly hot and full of tourists, but they are always amazing. Of course Chichen Itza is meant to be the star attraction, though it was a bit hard seeing the ruins for all the loud junk-sellers located nearly up to the ruins themselves, trying to get your attention and your dollar with their jaguar whistles, their drums and their constant ¡Hola señor!...
And a final mention to the cenotes- ie limestone caves filled with water, they are everywhere. We snorkelled at the Grand Cenote near Tikal; divers go for 2-tank cave dives here, it's so extensive and deep, but it´s still amazing even for a mere snorkeller. Bats flying overhead, fish and turtles in the water, and then the crazy light blue water and the underwater stalacmites and the scary darkness where the ground falls away into the deepness. I can truly say this was one of those once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Michel, zet dit maar op je duik to-do lijst! Voor als je wat minder druk bent...
