August 12, 2006
We arrive at the Cancun Airport on August 12, 2006. Our first stop is to the Thrifty rental counter to pick up our Nissan Tsuru-basically a Sentra.
While we are waiting for our “Mexican Lexxus” as it was referred to us by one of the agents, another rental agent offer us a 50% discount if we agree to attend a 90-minute presentation at one of the new resorts in Playa del Carmen. We finally get to the final “no” with him in spite of his efforts of persuasion. At one point he makes a joke that we must be honeymooners, since Michael looks tired and happy. Another rental agent is American and Michael learns through chatting with her that she is attending a wedding in the near future in Norwood, MA.
Our car has definitely seen some travel time-dents, scratches, and no hub caps, but the essentials are working-the ac and the stereo. I make sure that every blemish is marked on the rental agreement, because I have read horror stories about how people have been charged for almost nonexistent damage. I could have basically made one big circle around the entire car on the rental form.
We start out on the toll road to Chichen Itza via Valladolid. It costs about $18 US. On the way, I kill about 25 butterflies. I feel guilty for a bit, but I can’t exactly start breaking for butterflies. The butterflies are everywhere and the windshield begins to look like an artist’s paint pallet.
We get off the toll road at Valladolid, which is a small town a couple of hours inland from Cancun in the middle of nowhere. The driving is a bit hairy even though it is Sunday. The streets are narrow and there are a lot of people on bikes and scooters. It’s looks like a downtrodden place, but not untouched by American consumerism. In the middle of the town, there is a Domino’s Pizza with about a dozen delivery bicycles in front of it. Where they are delivering to intrigues me. I do see a few tourists walking around, so even though it doesn’t look very safe, it’s probably safer than walking in downtown Boston.
Our ride from Valladolid to Chichen Itza is a narrow two-lane road that travels through some very poor towns. There are a lot of topes (speedbumps) along the way and I am very careful to watch for them. The last thing I need to create is situation requiring an auto repair. A few people along the way try to sell us something from the side of the road that look like grapes, but no one is aggressive. There are also several souvenir stands along the way including one right outside the jail. The sign in front indicates that the goods are handcrafted by the inmates. Sadly, I think that some people in the jail have it better than the locals. They may have a bed and some food on a more regular basis.
We have also encountered a lot of trucks along the way. Some of them full with workers packed in back. Some of them are full with building materials such as cement blocks and huge pipes. They don’t appear to be tied down very well and one bad bump could be the end of us.
We finally arrive at our first destination, Mayaland. We had prepaid for our visit, which came to $231 US for 2 nights. When we pull in the parking attended offers to sell us a package for entry into Chichen Itza, a buffet lunch, and parking. I decline to take it, which is a good move since we don’t have to pay for parking as a guest and the buffet lunch was not up to my liking.
We check in and are upgraded from a standard room to a bungalow, which is suppose to be $168/night. The check-in staff aren’t particularly welcoming, except for the two bellhops, who really earn their tips. One of them is an older man that looked like he is about the keel over when he picks up the biggest bag. Michael tips them well. In fact, so far we have tipped everyone we’ve been in contact with. Good thing we were advised to bring lots of $1’s.
The grounds at Mayaland are beautiful. There are a lot of trees that twist and turn and you can’t even take a photo without a panoramic camera since they stretch so far. There are also several peacocks roaming the grounds. I even saw one go into the ladies room. It was a girl peacock, so it was OK. There are a lot of bungalows with high-thatched roofs that look like huts. We are in Tikal 1. It has a cute little patio in front with rustic table and chairs. The bathroom is big, but it has kind of a funky smell. It’s not a problem with cleanliness, but the result of the remoteness of the area. Every bathroom in the area has this kind of odor. Quite frankly, I’m surprised that modern plumbing is capable in the area. However, I make sure to use bottled water for brushing my teeth and cleaning my toothbrush.
One mistake we made was not to load up on water before we came. We have to buy water at the bar and it is about $2.50 US/bottle. With the heat, we don’t have any choice but to keep buying so we don’t get dehydrated.
We head to the main building. It has a beautiful sunken courtyard with marble floors. The main hall looks onto part of the Chichen Itza ruins. A rectangular pool is next to the main building. There are several table and chair sets, but only four lounge chairs for the entire place. We take a dip and it the water is really warm. There are only a few people on the grounds.
Now we are starving since we hadn’t eaten since we began our journey this morning, but there don’t seem to be a lot of options. The cafeteria is closed and the main dining room seems to be serving a full dinner at regular prices and it is too early. We opt for an ice cream bar in the gift shop and head to our bungalow. I remember I have some caramel crème’s in my suitcase and proceed to eat almost the entire bag. I’m not starving anymore, but I do feel a little sick to my stomach.
We consult our borrowed Can Do map (which became our travel bible throughout the trip), and the writer recommends going to one of the other 2 resorts within walking distance. The writer indicates that the when the restaurants are busy, it is usually with visitors who came for the day on the tour bus.
We head off to find the other hotels. A waiter at a pavilion is calling to us, “Buffet, we have buffet!” as if he can spot the American and everybody knows we just love buffets. For a second I think he is going to come get me and physically take me to the buffet. We feel like we are sneaking to the other area, and don’t want the staff to see us heading to another restaurant with our American dollars.
A few minutes down the road we find La Hacienda. The grounds here are also beautiful, and it feels a little more private and more upscale. We check out the restaurant. It is gourmet dining, but the prices are about $13-15 US. We make a reservation with Lorenzo for the patio for about 9pm since that is when the light show ends at Chichen Itza, and maybe there will be other people in the restaurant.
We walk down the road a bit more and there is a little pack of dogs on their own just romping down the street. They are adorable and don’t bother us, but I resist going up to pat them just in case.
Our next stop is Club Med. It has its own look with bright red walls and a small courtyard pool. We find that the snacks and sandwiches are about $6.50. We get a quesadilla and a couple of Negra Modelos wishing we had known this place was there when we had opted for the ice cream lunch. If I were to return to the area, I would look at staying here if I wanted to save some money.
We head back to La Hacienda and sit on the front porch for a cocktail. We decide to chance ice cubes and get 2 margaritas. They are fantastic. Next, we are approached by three musicians with their guitars who serenade us with Yucatan and Mexican songs. They seem very enthusiastic even though I imagine they have played Guantanamera a million times for the American tourists who need a song they can recognize. But we don’t care. We are completely enjoying our private concert, and they seem to genuinely take a liking to us. I tip them well and the lead tells us that we are good people. They play for us some more as our margaritas are settling into our system. They are finished and Michael tips them again. It must have been very generous by their standards because they come back for a long encore. They tell us they have a CD and we ask to buy one. They will try to get it to us later in the evening.
Lorenzo seats us on the patio, which has a combination indoor/outdoor feeling, and we embark on an incredible dining experience. Everything was superb-the service, the food, and the atmosphere. I order chicken with a chipotle honey sauce and Michael orders the filet mignon. We share and we are in food heaven. The staff is comfortably attentive, (I usually feel uncomfortable in a restaurant when there is too much attention).
We get another round of margaritas and I have the first little buzz on that I’ve had in a long time, but I’m not over the top. We purchase our CD from our new musician friends and ask them to sign the cover. It is really homemade and we take a chance that it will actually play. We call it a night a head back to our bungalow.
August 13, 2006
The next morning we head to Club Med for a frugal breakfast and sit outside. We have a great little breakfast of huevos rancheros, fresh-squeezed orange juice and coffee to fuel us for all of the walking ahead of us.
We prep for the day with backpacks, hats, water, sunscreen and good footwear. The Chichen Itza entrance is about a one-minute walk from our room. It is a bargain at $5/person, which even includes the evening lightshow. We are offered a guided tour at the tune of $48, so we turn it down. Instead, I have Michael read the tour to me from the Can Do map for free.
The first couple of hours are great because the tour buses have not arrived yet. It is also great for taking photos without having other people in them. We follow the Can Do map route and the details of each stop give a whole other dimension to each structure.
In addition to the ruins we see some butterflies up close, iguanas, and even a tarantula. The people-watching is good too. With the heat, all fashion sense is out the window. Staying cool and comfortable is the goal. Some tourist groups use umbrellas and one lady even wore one on her head. One guy is walking around in teeny-weenie shorts.
There are a lot of vendors that set up their wares on the sides of the pathways with souvenirs. I kind of feel like I am walking through the homegoods section of Marshall’s and I don’t feel moved to buy anything.
After several hours, we head back to Mayaland. The ruins are a little crowded now, but not unmanageable. I was glad to visit in the summer even though it was hot. I imagine that it gets very crowded at other times of the year. I can finds ways to shake the heat, but I can’t shake a crowd.
We decide to swim at the second pool at Mayaland, a kidney-bean shaped pool in between a few of the bungalows. I like this pool better. Next to the pool, a tent is being prepped for a lunch group. Our private pool gets invaded by one of the tour groups, but we were done with our swim anyhow. The people speak Spanish, but they are not Mexican. They are saying the water is cold, which seems ludicrous to me.
We decide that we need to have some lunch. We go to the main cafeteria at Mayaland to check out the buffet. It is $14 so I decide to inspect it before handing over my cash. I have to agree with the Can Do map writer. It looks kind of disgusting, and the people eating it are the tour groups. I ask about getting a sandwich and they direct us to the main dining room. It appears closed, but I speak with one of the staff, Francisco. He invites us inside, tells us there is no lunch menu, but asks what we would like. We order 2 chicken quesadillas, chips and salsa, and a couple of beers. When it comes, we are psyched. Everything is very fresh and is delicious. We order two more beers to take outside and our entire meal costs us the same as the buffet.
After we finish our beer a storm begins to brew. We are ready for our siesta anyhow, so we head back to our bungalow. We now have neighbors on the other side of our bungalow. I can tell because the TV is very loud. At first I think they may have left the TV on for security purposed to make it seem like they are in. Then a man comes around to see if we need towels, and when he knocks on their door, someone answers. So I decide I will sit outside and read.
Now I am subject to what I refer to as “Dorchester crickets.” The man next door has a Nextel two-way pager phone. I am sitting on my little porch trying to absorb my book, The 110 People Who Are Screwing Up America, being constantly interrupted by the intermittent phone chirp overhearing the oh-so-unimportant things he and the other person have to talk about. My vote for 111 are the inconsiderate self-absorbed people who insist on subjecting everyone around them to all their cell phone conversations. Can you tell I am really aggravated? I have to listen to this crap at home, I don’t want it on my remote vacation. Fortunately, the storm kicks up. The heavy rain and thunder block out the guy next store.
After some rest we decide to walk around the grounds at La Hacienda and take some photos. We really liked the pool area. I think La Hacienda is a little more than Mayaland. If I went back there and had the money to spend, I would definitely stay there. I didn’t see the rooms, but I love the grounds enough to pay a little extra.
Our next adventure is to go back to Chichen Itza for the light show. We rent wireless headphones for $2.50 so we can hear the narration in English. Folding chairs are set up to watch the show. The headphones fade in an out, and I have to keep tapping mine to get it come back on. The lights are kind of cool, but they don’t change that much. It’s a little hokey, but worth going.
We decide to go back to La Hacienda for another fine dining experience. We are recognized and treated as welcomed regulars. The musicians are back, except the lead musician has a replacement. The musicians stood near me and played for the restaurant. At the end of the songs they say “Gracias” to the few dining patrons, but I am chuckling because I could hear one of them jokingly following up their words of gratitude with, “mi querido publico,” which means my loving public. At the end, I take a photo of Michael with our wonderful host Lorenzo and we say goodnight.