Maya Luna, Chacchoben, and Laguna Bacalar (Mexico - Part 4)

Friday, 30 December 2011

Our home for 4 nights.

Our first day at Maya Luna was actually the only day that I snorkeled.  The beach we’re at is “protected” by a reef that is about ¼ mile out, so although it was a bit windy, we were still able to snorkel in the waters between.  It’s not very deep and most of the bottom is covered with sea grass, so it was a bit difficult to see any creatures in the water until we actually got to the reef.  In the morning we actually tried to swim out to the reef, but I was feeling a bit tired and wasn’t sure about being able to swim back to shore, so we headed back to have some lunch and pick up some kayaks.  With the kayaks we made much better time and tried to actually go to the outside of the reef – until the waves started tossing us around too much.  So we came back to the inside and Jeff tied the kayaks to his shorts and we snorkeled around until we started getting chilly.  There were lots of sea fans and different types of corals.  We saw all sorts of fish, big and small, colorful and shiny.  Snorkeling is one of my favorite things to do – especially on a bright sunny day in crystal clear waters.  We had a mostly sunny day and mostly clear waters, so not a bad day in paradise!  We also saw an octopus!  It was about plate-sized (including tentacles).  We watched it move from one large piece of coral to another, then disappear beneath it.  So cool!

The view from our roof-top terrace.  Note the red water (explained below).

The water on this beach is interesting.  We’re downwind from a small river that pours out of a mangrove swamp.  The water in that river is literally blood red from the mangroves, so that redness/orangeness flows into sea water.  Our beach actually looks like there’s been an oil spill, but it’s just from the mangroves.  When Jeff and I were snorkeling near shore, we couldn’t even see one another from just a few feet away because the water was so dark from this mangrove water.  Kind of cool, kind of creepy.  Carolien told us she learned that the mangrove water is actually really good for the skin.  Possibly helps reduce skin cancer.  So hopefully my time out in the sun this week will be compensated for by this colorful water.

We visited the “town” of Mahahual a few times to get some different meals and to see what the locals were hawking.  I say “town” because this area wouldn’t really exist as a tourist center except for the cruise ship port that was recently installed (within the last ten years or so).  While we were here there were at least 4 giant (and I mean giant – floating cities bigger than many cities on the Caribbean coast of Mexico) cruise ships docked.  So an insta-town sprung up to cater to tourists – trying to feed them, give them massages, sell them anything, and most importantly, get them drunk.  There’s a really nice beach walkway (called the Malecon) that runs for about 2 km.  We ate at a couple of different restaurants there, enjoying the sea view and the people watching.  Seeing people getting massages on the beach was somewhat entertaining.  People of different sizes and ages with much of their bodies on display – come to think of it, I guess that’s not much different than seeing people of different sizes and ages in bathing suits.

The beach in Mahahual.  In the distance is one of the many very large cruise ships we saw.

On our third afternoon Jeff talked me into going for a late afternoon kayak off the beach at Maya Luna, before the sunset. As we got out to the reef, the sky looked impressively black off to the east. We couldn’t really figure out which way the storms were moving, and thought we’d be safe from that one. Three minutes later, we were getting dumped on. Luckily no lightning, and the rain was warm. Once back to shore, we actually went up to our terrace, stood in the rain holding each other, and watched the rain come down over the sea. It was excellent.

Our last full day in this area was spent checking out some local ruins at Chacchoben – another Mayan archeological site that is really cool and should be on everybody’s must-see list – and swimming in a cenote (see Jeff’s next post) and swimming in a large freshwater lake.  Chacchoben is a very small site, and had very few visitors.  It’s still covered in jungle with a few structures cleaned up for viewing.  It seemed so wild and so much more like finding a site (Indiana Jones-style) than Chichen Itza did.  While we were there, for the first time, I tried fresh coconut milk – we watched the guy use a machete to cut off the end so he could stick a straw in it.  It was delicious!  I don’t usually like coconut (both the flavor and the texture), but I guess that’s because I wasn’t tasting the real/fresh thing. 

One of the temples at Chacchoben.

The palm trees were huge!

We only got to climb part way up this ruin.

Man with a machete and a coconut.

Fresh coconut milk is surprisingly refreshing and yummy!

Cenote Azul was interesting, but as Jeff explains in his post, he liked it a lot more than I did.  I guess I just couldn’t get over the fact that there was 300 feet of water below me.  It was beautiful, though.

We only spent a few minutes at Laguna Bacalar.  We walked out on a dilapidated old pier and jumped into about 4 feet of fairly warm freshwater.  Turns out it was not nearly as clean as the water at the cenote.  The sun was setting by now, so we stayed in long enough to get wet and watch the sun go behind the trees.  Then it was time to head back to Maya Luna.

The waters of Laguna Bacalar as the sun sets.

We left Maya Luna this morning and made the long drive back to Cancun.  Jeff swam in the Gran Cenote (see his post), while I watched and took pictures.  (I especially don’t like the idea of swimming in anything resembling a cave, so I didn’t even go in – what can I say, I’m a wimp who has a few phobias). 

It’s been a great babymoon.  I’m sad to be leaving, but as always, I’m also looking forward to being home.  I don’t think Jeff or I got much sun – I was hoping to get back to Mass with my skin sun-kissed.  But we were diligent about sunscreen, and I suspect that the December sun is a bit weaker than the summer sun.

One of three small sting rays we saw - this one was about the size of a salad plate.

Another one of the three sting rays we saw - this one was about the size of a dinner plate.  His tail made me a bit nervous being in the water.

Bees enjoying the flowers of a palm tree.

Jeff watching as two brown pelicans slam into the water, another gets ready to dive, and the fourth flies over looking for fishy food.

Good morning Caribbean.

Saying farewell to Maya Luna.

Egypt Part V: The Red Sea

Part I: Getting There
Part II: Cairo and Pyramids

Part III: Temples
Part IV: Sailing Down the Nile

Part VI: Jeff Climbs a Mountain

Ahhhh!  Vacation.  We ended our Egyptian adventure with several days in Dahab, a Red Sea resort.  Our hotel was on the beach and we could see Saudi Arabia on the other side of the Gulf of Aqaba.  The water was crystal blue and as we found out in our several days there, was the home to so many different species of fish and coral.  

We arrived in Dahab on January 1st after a painfully long van ride from Cairo.  A ride over the Suez Canal and across the Sinai Peninsula.  Desert.  And more desert.  It was hot and dry and blinding.  Did I mention desert?  Sand as far as the eye can see.  With an occasional palm tree or sturdy desert plant.  We stopped a few times and once even in what could be called a true oasis.  But we didn't really stop for any food or for any movement, so the group of us (Jeff, Hanna, Pei Pei, and I, along with 4 other fellow travellers, Jaime and Maurizio from Columbia, and Catherine and George from Scotland) was pretty cranky by the time we got dropped off at our hotel.  But we had to meet up with Ahmed (II- a different Ahmed than the one who took us to all the temples along the Nile) who wanted to take us on a tour of the 2 streets of Dahab and to some place to have tea before we actually tried to find dinner.  We were all cranky enough that we grudgingly agreed to the tour, but broke off from the group to have dinner on our own.  Jeff and I ended up finding a great Thai restaurant and enjoyed most of our meal (Jeff had to order a second meal because the first was simply too hot (spicy) for him to be able to finish - he was literally sweating).  

Sad Jeff - Can't finish this very spicy meal.

Jeff has a New Year's Day tradition of trying to jump into the nearest natural body of water wherever he is.  For several years he was in Chicago, so Lake Michigan was the body of water of choice - often excruciatingly cold.  In fact, one year, I managed to convince him that jumping in would literally threaten his life - there was ice along the edge and large chunks of ice floating in the water - so we did snow angels next to Lake Michigan instead.  In our bathing suits.  That was cold enough!  Luckily it was not that cold in Dahab.  So we put on our Chacos and started wading out into the Red Sea.  The tide was out, so the water was only a few inches deep.  We weren't sure how far out the coral shelf was, so we decided not to go out that far (it was dark at this point and we were using our headlamps to be able to see what we were stepping on - as I said before, amazing amounts of life!).  Jeff was considering just sitting down in the water when we spotted some movement by his feet.  It was an eel!!!!!  It must have been a baby eel - it was about a foot to a foot and a half long, white body with a black fringe on it's back, and a bright yellow head.  I think it must have been a baby yellow-headed eel (http://www.grizzlyrun.com/Files/Images/Image_Gallery/yellow_headed_morey_eel_pic.jpg).  With it's jaw wide open as eels do.  It was pretty creepy to see in the water only inches from us and only lit up by our headlamps.  Unfortunately, neither one of us had a camera, so no picture.  That's when Jeff decided that a wade in the Red Sea was enough for his New Year's Day tradition.


The next several days were spent snorkeling, reading, relaxing, and enjoying the sun at the beach.  The snorkeling was amazing.  So many fish and the water was incredibly clear - we watched a lot of scuba divers and their bubbles while we enjoyed all the different fish and coral under the water.  Life everywhere!  It was beautiful!  We even saw a lionfish - we were warned not to approach these guys, so it was cool to see it (from a distance!).  After snorkeling the first day we discovered the joy of Bedouin tea.  Yum!  And warm!  Especially after being in the water for some time.  Jeff was so cold he stood in the sun shivering for at least half an hour before he even started warming up.  The tea helped a bit.  

Enjoying Bedouin tea after snorkeling.  That's Ahmed II on the left.

While there we tried all sorts of different international dinners: Thai, Mexican, Indian, Italian (pizza).  The restaurants often offered "American" breakfasts, which were varied and not usually something we Americans would have for breakfast (except for the fried eggs).  Good, but not like home.  

One day, Jeff decided to try windsurfing, while me and the girls got massages.  Hanna and Pei Pei also braved the world of a hair cut and a facial.  I have to admit that I was glad I didn't partake, especially when we saw the facial steamer they were using for Pei Pei and how it was plugged in to the outlet with _bare_ wires.  She said she felt a shock or two.  


Part of our tour package was a camel ride!  We got on the camels and were led along the beach path to an area where we saw what seemed like hundreds of kite and wind surfers.  We enjoyed a beach sunset again with Bedouin tea and Ahmed II did some card tricks for us.  The camels made interesting noises behind us - they're hard to explain, maybe Jeff can add to this.  All of us had sore thighs, stomachs, and backs after the ride.  The camel movement is really exaggerated.  You have to move your spine a lot to keep balanced.  I wasn't going to pay for a camel ride, but I was glad this came with the package so I could experience it.

On our last full day there, Jeff and Pei Pei did a hike up Mt. Sinai while Hanna and I enjoyed a very lazy day at the beach.  Jeff will hopefully write about his adventures in the mountains in the last of our Egypt travel series.  


We changed our plans at the last minute so we could fly back to Cairo rather than suffer through another road trip across the Sinai.  The fellow who picked us up to take us to the Airport was also named Ahmed (III).  Apparently Ahmed is one of the most common names in Egypt.  The crazy thing about flying out of Sharm el Sheikh was seeing the Russians in ski suits and furry boots getting ready to fly back to the cold north.  It was blazing hot outside.  Crazy juxtaposition.


Here are some pics from Dahab to end the post...

The view outside our hotel door.

Dahab at night.

Relaxing on the beach.