Caye Caulker

The immigration office as we entered Belize really set the tone for our stay in Caye Caulker. Sitting on a little jetty on the island of San Pedro it was quite a sight & a little different to the immigration offices we've been thru so far. When Elise mentioned that she had fruit in her bag to the customs officer, he said, "just don't show me because then I'd need to take it." Hmmm... not quite Border Security.


Caye Caulker was the type of place that looked like a movie set. Sand streets, little painted cabanas and shops and reggae music playing all day and night. We occupied ourselves with lazy days at the Split (the main swimming area on the island) where we had fun watching the island ganga farmers trying to pick-up tourists, sell some marijuana and yell at the sun bathing tourists, "man, ya'll should be arrested for being so serious on this island, man".

One of our highlights was a day sailing around the nearby reefs Caye Caulker-style. We had the chance to snorkel with sharks, stingrays & some turtles and on the way home the rum punch came out. We were sunburned and drunk by the end of the trip but all in all it was a really fun day!

Our cabana was super cute, complete with hammocks, bikes to cruise around the island and a double bed each! YAY!

Playa Del Carmen & Tulum

After a few weeks inland it was time to hit the coast for some R&R, sun and swimming! Our first stop was Playa Del Carmen, Mexico's answer to Miami.

It was definitely a bit of a treat to have access to so many yummy restaurants including our favourite after-dinner icecream stop, Haagen Dazs, as well as first class service on the beach with waiters, sun beds & unbrellas to chill-out during the day.

We had a day on the island of Cozumel, a 45 minute ferry ride from Playa which is only really accessible if you have a car or moto. We opted for the moto which provided lots of entertainment as we cruised along the coastline of the island, stopping in at beaches here & there for a drink & swim.  Despite the potholes & some crazy Mexican drivers, we made it back without a scratch!

A quick 1 hour bus trip and we were at Tulum, the sleepy beachside town just South from Playa which seemed like a world away.

Just a short ride from town were kilometres of beautiful coastline which looked a lot like the NSW South Coast!

Here we met some cute friends. These guys have the ultimate backyard to play in!

Merida

The highlight from our stay in Merida was most definitely our trip to a tiny village called Cozuma, where we had the chance to go swimming in 3 cenotes (underground caves filled with amazingly clear, blue water).

Getting there was a real adventure:

1. Bus to the town centre

2. Motorbike tuk-tuk to the start of the trail (Don't worry Mothers, we held on tightly : )

3. Bumpy horse drawn cart along rail track to each cave (they have been using this method of transport in the area for over 150 years)

  

To enter the first cenote, you have to climb down a long ladder into the dark cave. After your eyes adjust to the lack of the light, the water looks incredible and is actually a lot deeper than it looks in this photo (possibly 10 metres deep) and is lovely and warm.

We met two lovely travellers along the way, Juan from Argentina who become our personal guide and translator and fearless Yoko from Japan who was always the first to jump off a ledge or swim into the dark areas of the Cenotes. We also met one absolute nut from Canada who we tried to avoid without much luck.




Our final stop was Chichen Itza, one of the new 7 wonders of the world. We left Merida at 6am to head to the site before the crowds of tour buses arrived and heat set in. We could only bear the heat for a few hours before making tracks but enjoyed the variety of the site - pyramids, columns, carvings etc. It was definitely the most touristy and busy site!

Palenque

The Mayan ruins at Palenque were some of the most impressive we've seen with lush jungle surroundings and a very interesting history. We're very lucky as this is the last year that tourists are allowed to climb and touch the ruins. From next year it will all be roped off with audio guides and will become a very generic experience.

Half of the fun was our guide Ernesto (imagine Mexican Opa) who took the time to take us into the jungle for some monkey spotting (with snake stick and all) and to see some ruins entirely covered by vegetation off the beaten path.

We took a day trip to visit Misol-Ha and Agua Azul - 2 of the most popular waterfall sites in the state of Chiapas. Not quite as impressive as Iguassu Falls will be, but still very beautiful!

San Cristobal de las Casas

What a change in climate from Oaxaca - San Cristobal was fr-fr-freezing!!! We ended up having to get out our gear that was packed away for Patagonia!

Despite the crappy weather, the town was beautiful and offered a very authentic experience, particularly of  the indigenous population's customs & way of life which they have maintained despite those bloody Spaniards trying to change their ways : )

 We were lucky enough to have a couple of nights at a place called Bela's B&B - with 4 adorable dogs, electric blankets and great breakfasts it was very difficult to leave!

Lauren loved this restuarant so much that she decided to leave them a present.

The next couple of pics are from a tour where we had the chance to visit 2 indigenous communities not too far from San Cristobal. 

The second town that we visited was San Juan Chamula - The town enjoys unique autonomous status within Mexico. 

There are no pews in the church, and the floor area is completely covered in a carpet of green pine needles and candles. We were lucky enough to see some unique rituals in action performed by the Shamans. No cameras allowed!

Oaxaca

After the monster bus ride from hell (13 hours not including transit time) we were relieved to finally arrive in Oaxaca! The city of Oaxaca was buzzing with festivities in the lead up to the Day of the Dead festival with many street parades, artistic displays and decorations throughout the town.

 

We took two organised Day of the Dead tours during our stay. The first was to visit 2 cemeteries in a small town outside of Oaxaca where it is customary to decorate the graves of loved ones with Marigold flowers, decorations and food & drinks that they enjoyed when they were alive. Although extremely interesting, it was unfortunate that the place was completely overcrowded with tourists! 

On the 2nd night, we visited 2 towns to join in Comparsa celebrations

 

Monte Alban was the ancient capital of the Zapotecs and one of the first cities in Mesoamerica (founded around 500 B.C). The site is truly impressive in size with incredible views of the mountains and city in the distance.

 Too many stairs!!

On our final day in Oaxaca, we took a tour that included visits to a local weaver's home where we saw how wool is dyed and woven, a Mezcal factory where we sampled many different flavours of the local alcohol (yum!), the ancient town of Mitla and Hierve el Agua (a set of natural rock formations that look like waterfalls).

 

 At the end of the tour, we had a chance to visit the world's widest tree, Tule. This tree has even had DNA testing to prove it is only one tree and not many that have fused together over time.