The bus ride from Campeche to Mérida showed we have gotten a little spoiled from the luxury buses here in Mexico. We rolled 2nd class this time to save $5 a person, and although the bus was decently comfortable, it stopped in every town on the way and each one had about 12 speed bumps. The 150 km ride took us over 4 hrs and our body's were a little sore. I had to keep reminding myself that it was still better than a chicken bus.
Arriving on the Saturday before Easter, we again prebooked a hostal using booking.com and although a little more spendy than we were used to, they were right on the central park and they did offer a free breakfast buffet. They didn't quite have the room we booked so we ended up with bunk beds at a cheaper price. Not the most comfortable and really no where to sit in the room, but a decent discount and again... breakfast buffet! On arrival, we walked the streets enjoying the energy and activity of the holiday weekend festivities. We caught the end of a Michael Jackson impersonator performing on stage and later learned that he would be doing a full show in a theatre on Thursday. Julia really wanted to stick around but our schedule is a little tight.
For dinner we found a Gordita place that cranks out a bunch of varieties and ordered 3 a piece. They basically just split open a tortilla and stuff it with the filling of your choosing. Cheap and tasty. Walking past the park stage again, this time a young band played "Sweet Child of Mine" fairly poorly and a decent rendition of Radiohead's "Creep". It is always interesting to hear Spanish speakers cover English songs and to watch the crowd.
I ordered the Chorizo Papas, Chicharron, and Asado. Julia has some others.
Sunday, after gorging on our free breakfast, we went to an English language church service that we had found online. Hosted in an old church just 2 blocks from our hostal, the congregation is formed from the decent sized expat population here in Mérida and it was interesting to hear a few of their stories. A sparse crowd since most go back to the states for the holiday, and mostly retired folk seeking a cheap life in Mexico not far from the beach and a short flight from family. One woman was a retired attorney from the Portland area who also worked for the state legislature in some capacity. Her name is Linda in case someone reading this knows her.
The service was fairly straightforward, providing the classic "Christ, the Lord is Risen Today" to kick things off. The acoustics were pretty sweet with the pipe organ and the trumpet. We wore our Sunday best and really enjoyed the break from the somewhat dirty backpacker lifestyle. It is also probably good to get a blessing; it has been 11 weeks since we last attended church and I am not really sure how long those things last.
Julia and Micah after Easter service
Easter afternoon, we strolled the city park some more, which was filled with vendors and Mexican tourists. I sampled the corn dogs, we strolled the markets to buy food to cook for dinner, we attempted to FaceTime with family, and then cooked some ramen noodles to go with the wine the hostal owner kindly shared with us.
Monday morning, we made the decision to search for cheaper (and quieter) accommodations. We haven't stayed in a true backpacker hostal in a while and weren't used to the long term residents who treat the place like their home and don't have much awareness of the ones around them. The past 2 mornings we were awoken before 6am by people talking outside our door. Combine that with the uncomfortable bunk beds, and we happily loaded up our packs and walked to a local place that charged $14 less per night and had a nice flat screen TV in the room (although we didn't get the National Championship game, which is probably good because I dislike Duke).
With extra money in our pocket, that afternoon Julia bought a cheap dress and I bought 2 more dry-fit shirts for about $6 a piece (see opening paragraph). We also decided to hit a very popular local food establishment. The past 2 days we noticed this place had 15 people always waiting for tables, no matter the time of day. The rest of the restaurants on the same block were practically empty and we knew this had to be the spot. And it definitely was. We waited less than 20 minutes for a table and proceeded to indulge ourselves. Piña Colada for the lady and a Margarita for me, followed by Cochinita Pibil (slow-cooked pork marinated in citrus and a spice made from annatto seeds) and Papadzules (diced hard-boiled eggs wrapped in tortillas and topped with pumpkin seeds and tomato sauces). Both are classic Yucatan dishes we had been wanting to try. They come with corn tortillas that are made by 3 ladies sitting around the room by griddles. After a late filling lunch like that, we decide the only thing we needed for dinner was a brownie blizzard from the first DQ we have seen all trip.
Cochinita in front, Papadzules in back.
Tuesday, we awoke very tired and sore from the extremely firm bed and pillows (at least it was cheap). Then hopped a bus bound for Valladolid, a city halfway to Cancún and a good jumping off point for some sites. Getting fairly good at finding cheap places to stay, we opened the door to room #6 at Hotel Sol Colonial and knew it was the one for us. It is big and light pours in when you open the wood doors onto a tiny balcony. Our first balcony is a special occasion and gives the feel like we live here, particularly when we hang our laundry up.
Valladolid is a nice sized town and quaint despite the constant flow of tour buses heading back to Cancún. We spent time sitting in the lovely central park, watching the buses roll in and the tourists walk around taking pictures of the cathedral and fountain. We ate at the local food court where it appears vendors are not allowed to leave their stations because they compete by yelling and practically throwing menus at you.
Wednesday, we tackled the biggest tourist draw of our trip, the Mayan ruins of Chichén Itzá, which apparently is one of the new seven wonders of the world. Large buses bring in tourists from cruise ships, but most don't roll in until around 11am. We hopped a collectivo and strolled through the gates just after they opened at 8am. It was nice. The vendors that line the paths were just starting to get setup so they left us alone. We had many areas to ourselves and felt free to attempt embarrassing selfies using my tripod.
Julia told me to think of new poses for us, it is a work in progress.
Some temple thing
A lizard of some sort on a temple thing
Stone column pillar things
In front of El Castillo
The sacred Cenote
Back in town by mid-day, we grabbed a street torta before heading over to checkout a Cenote you can swim in that is in town. It is called Cenote Zaci and it was a good break from the heat. There are varying heights to safely jump from since the hole continues another 40 meters down from the waters surface. This one is half covered by the ground up high with roots and stalactites hanging down. There were only about 10 others swimming and we enjoyed our time before a large tour group wandered in to take pictures.
We finished the day with the best Chinese food we have had so far. Their sweet-n-sour chicken was spot on and what I have been craving. Plus more people watching from the city park which gets very noisy from all of the birds up in the large trees. It is actually a little weird and exotic feeling but it is tough to have quiet conversation.
It has been fun checking things off our lists and then starting to look at what's ahead. Thursday (today), the plan is to bike out to some other more scenic cenotes on the outskirts of town. Then, we roll on in to Cancún by Saturday to check-in to our time share resort and enjoy a week of luxury and beaches.
Until next time, this has been your friend Micah.
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