Days 135 Through 140: Isla Holbox

As much as I enjoy having company while traveling, it felt luxurious to be on my own for the first few days on Isla Holbox.  Just 21 square miles, this island has been the perfect place for me to unwind from my bike tour.  Slowly but surely, I've taken to island life, where a good day means I've chatted over my morning coffee with other travelers on the terrace until I decide it's time for my daily swim.  Then maybe, just maybe, I'll do something productive, like heading to the fruit market to pick up a snack for later.  I can't remember the last time I put on my flip flops.  I'm told that makes me official.  I've even contemplated the possibility of coming back to work at the hostel and give salsa lessons.

The days here have passed by in a blur of sun, sea, sand, whale sharks, flamingos, and lots of dancing.  The Milky Way winks at me as I play with the bioluminescent plankton each night.  A fleeting but beautifully romantic evening with a kindred spirit proves that I've moved on from the past.  And even though I was not interested, I was flattered by the attention given to me by the handsome local massage therapist here, whose moves are straight out of some cheesy romance novel and clearly practiced on many female tourists here.

Cloudy bike ride on the "roads" here... no pavement anywhere on the island, just compacted sand.

My daily swim spot.

Tribu Hostel organizes nightly activities for the guests... this particular night featured a drum circle which led to a night of sweaty afro-cuban dancing on my part.

Ah paradise... just a short bike ride out to where the flamingos hang out at the end of the island.

Early morning wake-up call for the flamingos flying out to their feeding grounds and for sleepy travelers heading out to swim with the whale sharks.

Vereda and Daniel from Germany... we had a lot of fun discovering the glowing plankton together.

Whale sharks are big.  Very big.  They sneak up on you in the water and all of a sudden, you have a huge (harmless) gaping mouth in your face.

On the way back in, we saw another group of whale sharks that had a few giant mantas in tow.

The good life.

Our guide was also an expert maker of ceviche.

So much deliciousness.

The mangroves.

Hanging out in the mangroves.

Paradise found.

These guys dart around your toes as you wade in the mangroves.

Time to head back for a long nap.

My new buddy for the night.

Sunset from the roof of the hostel... if only the mosquitos weren't enjoying the sunset, too.

Sometimes, a little giant Jenga is all you need to wind down the night.  For the record, I lost, but I blame the wine.  It was a valiant battle at least.

Farewell photo fun... Catharina became our Holbox partner-in-crime for the week, including cooking up some awesome quesadillas with a local green called chaya.  Gonzalo shows us who is the quesadilla boss!

Days 133 Through 134: Cancun To Isla Holbox

Oh Cancun.  Until now, I only ever knew the airport from which I made a bee line for the first bus out of Cancun.  But since Gonzalo's dad lives there and my flight leaves from Cancun, I figured I would make the best of my time there.  The nice thing is that Gonzalo's dad lives in the outskirts of Cancun town, far far far away from the Hooters and Señor Frogs in the Zona Hotalera, the infamous destination for Spring Breakers.  Out there, you forget you are in Cancun and it feels like any other small town in Mexico.  Gonzalo and I decided to do the poor man's tour of Cancun by hopping on the bus which takes you into the center and then down into the land of "it's 8 am, why are you not drunk yet."

The one public beach in the Zona Hotalera that does not have a monstrous hotel blocking its view... these are the famous blue waters that made Cancun what it is today.

Smack dab in the middle of the Zona Hotalera is a very fancy IKEA-looking museum... it was very well put together and probably the most informative museum I visited with respect to the Maya culture.

Hidden behind the museum is the tiny and unimpressive archeological site San Miguelito.  It was a nice getaway from the rest of the tourists as I was the ONLY person wandering around it.  That is, me and the huge iguana.

A mountain biker from Toluca recommended a bike shop to us where we went to chat with the guys there and get some bike boxes for the trip back home.  The bus driver didn't even really bat an eye when we lugged the boxes on board.

We had planned to spend just one day in Cancun and then bike to the ferry to Isla Holbox for a week of rest n' relaxation on the chilled out Isla Holbox.  Unfortunately, Gonzalo fell sick and so I left him in his dad's care and headed out on my own, hoping that a few days rest would allow him to come out and meet me.  I thought it might take me two days to bike the 150 km Google told me the route would be, but not only was the route a bit shorter, flat roads and no winds meant that I hauled ass in time to make the 7 pm ferry with time to spare.

Lunch in Leona Vicario... I crave veggies a lot in Mexico, mostly because they don't really eat them here.  I've found the only commonly found dish in Mexico that has a lot of veggies are the beef and chicken caldos.  This one was particularly good, with huge chunks of carrots, pumpkin, and squash.

The empty flat cloudy road to the port of Chiquilá.

I was dodging several of these guys... not sure why there were so many of them on the road.

My bike is on a boat... again!

The 7 pm ferry ride was amazing as we set out just as the sun was setting.

Not too shabby.

Dodging flooded "potholes" and mosquitos, I headed straight for the Tribu Hostal, which I had discovered from a flyer at Hostal Akumal in San Cristóbal de las Casas that bike tourists get a 25% discount.  A welcome lollipop and a shower later, I settled into the on-site bar for a night of great conversation and live music.

A few travel notes for bike tourists:

• The road isn't particularly interesting between Cancun and Chiquilá unless you keep a close eye on the road (for lots of tarantulas) or on the trees (for the dozens of cool birds, including quetzales).  It is well signed and has enough small towns that you don't need to worry about food or water, but http://tribuhostel.com/location-here.html gives a nice description of what to expect.  This is easy riding, especially when it's cloudy.  

• The ferry costs 80 pesos and they charged me 25 pesos for the bike.  There are smaller faster boats that try to get you to hire them, but I'm not sure I'd trust my bike on them. 

• Tribu Hostal (http://tribuhostel.com/) is awesome.  They run a tight ship, they anticipate all the things you would want from a hostal, the kitchen is amazing, the dorms spacious, the common areas comfy, the on-site bar sociable and it actually closes at a reasonable time, and the air-conditioned dorm is incredibly affordable.  They program something interesting every evening, from live music to giant jenga, and this shoutout to cyclists clinched the deal:  "For you crazy people, the directions are the same as for the car. Just remember that cycling by night on Mexican roads can be dangerous, with some crazy drivers! You’ll also get a 25% of discount, just because we admire you!"

Days 130 Through 132: Palenque To Chetumal To Bacalar

As the clock ticks down and the end of this particular chapter of my post-BigLaw adventures comes to a close, it's time for a bit of relaxation, sun, water, n' beaches... to have a vacation from my vacation.  It's a hard knock life.  We bid goodbye to Chiapas and headed to the bus station to take an overnight bus from Palenque to Chetumal.  From there, we groggily biked 40 km to the Laguna de Bacalar, an area not only entrenched in the true history of the pirates of the Caribbean, but may very well be the most beautiful turquoise blue lake in the world.

Sun rises as we cycle from the bus station to Bacalar.

Sixth flat of the trip.  This one was a doozy since Gonzalo rode over something that ripped a huge hole into tire.

Seventh flat of the trip, just minutes later.

And I thought my bike was heavy for my size.

A quick stop at the Cenote Azul on the way in.  It's a bit touristy, but a nice place for a dip.

Once upon a time, when Gonzalo was a wee lad, he used to come to the Laguna de Bacalar with his dad to visit a family friend.  Even though the family friend had since passed away, Gonzalo was curious to see the property again, so he knocked on the door to see if he could peek around.  Turns out that the family friend's daughter Leda lives there now with her partner Lupita.  We were welcomed with open arms to come in, treated to a lovely breakfast and then invited to stay.

The whole crew with only half the resident dogs.

An essential for beer drinkers who travel to Mexico... I knew I was going to get along with Leda and Lupita when I saw this amongst their cookbooks and wine guides in their bookshelf.  In fact, I may just need to come back to do a beer brewing workshop with them when the weather cools down a bit.

Luis.  Kind of like a man-child who doesn't talk and enjoys snuggling.

View from the porch... a lil bit o' paradise.

Gonzalo does his best beach modeling pose.

And now for an unblemished view.

Sunset from our balcony.

The fort built to protect Bacalar from pirates.

Pirates like this awesome guy... karma is a bitch, yea?

A few travel notes:

For anyone looking for an amazing bed and breakfast in this area, the room we stayed in is actually available for rent.  Since this is the only room they have for rent, you will be treated like family.  Leda and Lupita are wonderful hosts with an extensive background in the restaurant business.  We feasted on tamales made from corn that was locally grown and hand ground by them... the best tamales I have ever eaten, actually.  I highly encourage anyone who is looking for a getaway to be in touch with Leda at elrincondelvino@prodigy.net.mx and get more information at https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1195009. 

Days 126 Through 129: Palenque

Palenque is a town that was born because of the many tourist attractions nearby.  It's not particularly pretty.  The city is a perfect grid, with a decidedly functional center and an attractive leafy green tourist corridor called El Cañada just off the main road.  After our sleepless night in the hippie party haven of El Panchan, we decided to head into town and find the cheapest air conditioned room we could find.  That ended up being at the one hostal in town, Hostal Yaxkin, which has proven to be a good home for the last couple of days, and has allowed us to comfortably visit all of the various attractions this area has to offer.  That is, lots of Mayan ruins, jungle, and waterfalls.

Obligatory Palenque ruins photo... this was by far one of my least favorite sites because of the crowds, but of course, it cannot be missed.

A rare quiet and empty moment in one corner of the Palenque ruins.

We found a friend hiding in one of the ruins.

Jungle waterfall at Palenque provides a cool respite from the sun.

After a glorious night sleeping in an air-conditioned room for the first time since Baja California, we headed out for a day of waterfalls and more waterfalls at Agua Azul and Misol-Ha.  While most folks do this on a tour, we wanted to be able to sleep in and do things on our own time, so we cobbled together our trip on the public transport, and most importantly, we were able to make a stop at the carnitas taco stand we fell in love with on our way in from Ocosingo, located right at the military checkpoint before town.

During the dry season, these waterfalls are blue... but since its the rainy season, they are brown.  They are still pretty powerful, though.

If you have the patience to hike past all of the touristy restaurants and souvenir stalls, you reach lovely streams like this one, which show what the water must look like the other times of year.

My new buddy!

There are two fee booths as you enter Misol-Ha... I appreciated the fact that the second fee both apologizes for the first fee booth and at least pretends to give you a discount for it.

Misol-Ha is impressive during the rainy season... double water flow makes for a powerful waterfall.  And an itty bitty rainbow.  It's also 500 times less touristy than Misol-Ha and has a much nicer swim area and some nice cabañas.

It was pretty awesome (and refreshing) to go under the waterfall.

Oooh...

Gonzalo heads through mini-waterfalls cascading down the stairs to a cave... unfortunately, during the rainy season, it's too dangerous to get to the cave.

While I am normally not the package tour kind o' gal, sometimes time constraints force me to take one lest I never see a particular attraction.  For that reason, Gonzalo and I found ourselves on an epic day tour to the remote archeological sites of Yaxchilan and Bonampak, located 150 km and a boat ride away from Palenque.  For the record, it was absolutely worth it.  These sites are nestled in the middle of the jungle and are much less visited than mega-ruins like Palenque, which allow you to peacefully explore the grounds.

There is something kind of awesome about having to take a 20 minute boat ride to arrive to an archeological site.

Yaxchilan, a jungle paradise.

Like every other Mayan ruins, there are a bazillion stairs.

Lil Mayan building nestled in the jungle.

When I say jungle, I mean it.  These howler monkeys provided our soundtrack for our visit.  Holy crap are they loud.

Yaxchilan also requires a little jungle hiking.

Bonampak is always part of the package.  There's not much impressive about it in terms of architecture.  Kind of looks like all the other Mayan ruins.

EXCEPT... Bonampak boasts a series of ancient paintings in remarkable condition with all of the original colors in tact.  This was a first for me as the paint is faded or non-existent most other sites.

A few travel notes for cyclists:

• Hostal Yaxkin is a great option in Palenque town located at the end of the tourist strip of El Cañada just before the bridge to the town center.  It is spacious and clean, boasts a shared kitchen, great common area, and draws in just enough lovely jungle feel in its landscaping that you don't feel you've sold out too much by staying in town.  There is plenty of space for your bikes and the air-conditioned dorm was just 20 pesos more than the dorms with fans.  It's never really that busy, we had the room to ourselves for half the time, and it's a great place to connect with other travelers.  The tour company that is affiliated with the hostal also did an excellent job, no hidden fees, and the two meals provided were stellar.

• If you decide you don't want to bike the alternate route between Ocosingo and Palenque and want to brave the main road, I highly recommend you try to stay at Misol-Ha rather than Agua Azul if you are not a strong enough cyclist to make the 120 km ride in a single day.  Misol-Ha has nice cabañas and might even have camping, and looks to be much more tranquil and beautiful in my opinion.  Agua Azul looks like one huge tourist trap.

• Speaking of the main road, be prepared for a shitaculous amount of speed bumps, and little old ladies and kids holding up ropes across the road to stop cars so they can sell you whatever it is they have to sell.  Be prepared to be mobbed with plastic bags of corn, tamales, and fruit.  

• For those continuing onto Guatemala, do consider doing the border crossing at Frontera Corozal... the same boats that took us to the ruins at Yaxchilan also will take you to Bethel, Guatemala.  Border crossing formalities should be taken care of at the tiny immigration offices in each respective town.