Thing to Do #36: Visit Every Country-Mexico

In my previous post about our cruise, I mentioned Alex’s visit to Margaritaville in Cozumel.  That little bit is at the end, but this post is mostly about my first visit to Mexico and my visit to Tulum.

The second port of call on our 7 day cruise was Cozumel.  I booked an excursion to go to the Mayan ruins of Tulum, but Alex was not interested in going, so we decided to split up for the day. 

Tulum is not on the little island of Cozumel, but rather on the mainland Yucatan Peninsula.  To get to Tulum, this required me boarding a ferry immediately upon arriving in Cozumel to travel 45 minutes to Playa del Carmen, where I boarded a bus to take an hour long bus drive south to Tulum.  Once we arrived to the site, we still had to walk a good distance to the entrance. 

I should say at this point that while I was very much excited about seeing these ruins, I had developed a full blown summer cold our third day at sea and although it was hotter and more humid than even the summers we have here in North Carolina, I was feeling rather miserable, sneezing, coughing, and blowing my nose constantly. 

Our guide gave us a throrough overview of the site, the importance of the different buildings, and the history on the Mayan people.  Then we were allowed to go explore the site and were instructed to meet back at the bus in two hours.  Unfortunately, by October 2007, the Mexican government no longer allowed visitors to go into some of the buildings or climb the steps of the main pyramid.  I guess its my Ancient Art History background, but there is just something magical about being near something that is thousands of years old, especially seeing the pyramid and some of the other buildings still standing.  The Mayan people were exceptionally advanced and I’m intrigued by many of their ancient sites.  

After exploring the site, I returned to the area where our buses were parked, which was surrounded by a few small shops and a couple of restaurants.  I chanced eating a couple of items from the restaurant, praying I wouldn’t get sick (I didn’t) and was quite proud of myself in negotiating a cheaper price on a woven dress (I usually don’t bother and just pay what I’m asked).  We boarded our bus, and returned to Playa del Carmen to board the ferry back to Cozumel. 

The ship was set to depart at 5:00pm and I had only gotten back at 4:45 myself.  Alex wasn’t in the room when I returned but I didn’t think much of it, assuming he had gotten back on the boat and was wandering around or getting a drink at one of the bars.  I had not quite gotten into the shower yet when the phone rang.  It was someone asking whether Alex had boarded the ship.  I told him that we had spent the day apart, and I didn’t know where he was. 

I began to worry as I didn’t know what to do.  They wouldn’t let me off the ship to look for him, and even if they did, I wouldn’t know where to go to find him.  We didn’t have our cell phones with us, so I couldn’t call him.  All I could think about was that earlier that morning, he had asked whether or not he should bring his passport.  I exclaimed, “YES! You are in a foreign country!” So I was glad at least he had that with him.

It was now well after time for us to leave port and they called back two more times asking if he had yet arrived.  The cruise officials had assured us time and time again throughout our trip that if we were late arriving back to the ship from a port of call, they would leave a person behind. 

Finally, at about 5:20pm, Alex opened the door, with a sheepish grin, informing me that he almost got left.  I quickly let him know that I was well aware, as they had called several times looking for him.  As it turned out, Alex had not accounted for the time difference (although he had been reminded time and time again to stay on “ship time”) and had spent the day drinking at Margaritaville.  As it turned out, he wasn’t the only person that was almost left behind, as when he boarded, he was followed by another couple and a family.

I enjoyed my short time at Tulum and because of my interest in the Yucatan Pennisula (or the “Mayan Riviera”), we returned for a week’s stay in August 2008.  I’ve already talked a little bit about that trip with swimming with whale sharks, but I’ll save the rest of that story for later.

Anyone spent time in the Mayan Riviera?  Its grown to be quite the destination for “jet-setters” and is only more attractive to visit due to its relatively inexpensive price tag.