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!