Celestun

We start the day with a good breakfast with eggs, protein, and fruit here at the hotel. 

Off to Celestun - On the way we stop at a town market.  The tortillaria is on the edge of the market. They are very accomodating and let us come back to really look at the machines and see the different steps in making the tortillas.  First the corn is boiled for 2 hours.  Then put into the grinding machine to make the masa. 

The masa is then fed into the machine that flattens it and cuts out perfect circles.  The same machine cooks them so they come out fresh and perfect.

 It was nice to see so many women wearing the traditional huipils.

Once in Celestun, we take a boat ride in the inlet.  It is extremely shallow so the flamingos can wade. Oh my, it's hard to pick one or two or five of the bird pictures. 

We enjoyed a great seafood meal in a restaurant right on the beach.  We could have had tables with our toes in the sand but it was a little windy so we opted for the ones just inside in the palapa.  Hmmmm.   Didn't take any pictures of the big platter of shrimp ceviche before digging into it.  Didn't take a picture of the shrimp in garlic sauce.......

Right when we finished eating, the sky opened up and down came the rain.  It was interesting to see how the color of the water changed, the horizon disappeared into a gray mist.  After 10 minutes, it stopped, out came the sun, the sea gulls started flying again.  We walked the beach a short distance, picked up some shells and then headed back to Merida.

A little time to rest before dinner.  We thought the show about the ball game started at 7:00.  We went about 6:45 and were surprised that there wasn't a crowd gathering.  Well, with a little asking, we found that the show didn't start until 8:30.  No, we're not waiting for it.  We decide to go to dinner and skip the show.  Juan picked out a great restaurant - Xtup.  A good sign when a woman is making tortillas by hand as you go in.  Juan's 3 children and spouses joined us.  Great food and company.  Gee.  I didn't take any pictures of the big combination platters that we got to share, or the queso relleno.

A full day and start of the tour

Lisa and Shultz picked me up to go to Doña Beatriz's house for lunch. She was standing in the doorway when we drove up.  I smiled at how she looked just as I remembered her being when I was a student living there.  As I got closer, I could see that she has aged in the 40 years since I was a student.  But still has the twinkle in her eyes and the quick, warm smile.  She has always been a great cook and still is.  We had cantaloupe juice, a wonderful creamy vegetable soup, rice with mushrooms and cilantro and I'm not sure what else but it was very flavorful and delicious.  Fried potato and cheese pieces, great black beans and finished with cookies with a creamy sauce  with grapes.  The time flew by and before I knew it, it was time to call a taxi to take me to the airport to meet people coming down for the tour. 

Helen came in an hour earlier than the Atlanta people.  Juan met her at the airport and I met the others.  We checked in at our hotel, Mision del Frey Diego.  It is an old convent turned into a beautiful hotel.  Only 1 1/2 blocks from the zocalo.  The zocalo is buzzing with activity, people out enjoying the evening.  We visit the cathedral where a service was being held.  Then we went to the governor's place to see the murals depicting the history of the Maya

We enjoyed a traditional dinner of cochinita pibil along with a local beer.  Ended the evening at the Parque de Santa Lucia for the traditional seranata. 

I can tell that the next 12 days will be animated and fun!

Remembering the ones who went before us

Today 4 of us went to Uxmal to scatter some ashes of one who went before us, influenced us and contributed to the richness of the world - Dr Larry Mills, my Mayan Art  and Architecture professor when I studied in Merida in 1973.  His enthusiasm and deep respect for the Maya seeped into my consciousness and that of many of his students. 

On the way to Uxmal, we stopped in Muna, the closest town to Uxmal and the town where Juan Vazquez grew up. to buy some oranges.  We always ate oranges when we went to an archeological site  with Dr Mills.  The water wasn't necessarily safe to drink and oranges quenched our thirst and were easy to transport.  In Muna, we ran into Elsa Lara who studied at Central College in the 1970's and now runs the Pemex gas station in Muna that her family has owned since before I started going to Muna.  It was fun to remember other Yucatecans from that era. 

We figured that probably the first time Dr Mills went to Uxmal was in 1954.  The year I was born.  The last time he was there was probably about 2008.  Today there were big puffy white clouds, a gentle breeze and scattered showers that always seemed to be where we weren't.  There were very few people there in the late afternoon so it was quiet and we shared the site with the iguanas sunning themselves in the doorways.  We talked about how much had been restored since our first visits to Uxmal.  How we would climb the Pyramid of the Dwarf, feel the wind on our faces and take in the view.

We walked to the cementerio portion of the site, ate our oranges, climbed to the small structure and each scattered some ashes. 

We walked across the site to the area of the old woman and scattered the remaining ashes. 

After returning to Merida, we enjoyed a leisurely meal at the Perigrino where we had shared many special meals with Dr Mills, Harriet, the Wellers and others.  An appropriate end to a precious day.  Relationships are so important!  Remembering the ones who came before us is part of the Latin culture and we felt privileged to have had the opportunity to know Larry Mills and remember him today.  I think he would have been happy that we came together to remember and enjoy a day at the ruins. 

Visiting long time friends

What a joy to be back in Merida and catch up with friends from college days and before.  Enjoyed a delicious lunch with Sonia Lucic and  long conversations around the table with her family.  How is it that I didn't take a picture?
Lunch with Lisa and Schultz that moved to chatting poolside for hours.  Wow!  Again, I didn't take a picture? 
Salbutes and panuchose with Juan and his family down by the market with great music and people dancing.  Well, at least Juan took a picture.  I'll see if he can send it to me.  This is certainly making me realize that I need to get into picture taking mode. 
This morning, I enjoyed tea while sitting in Parque de Santa Lucia, watching the relaxed pace of people enjoying the moment. 

Today, we're going to Uxmal to remember Dr Larry Mills, my professor of Mayan Art and Architecture who died last year. 

YUCATAN AWAITS!

Looking forward to sharing Yucatan with our next group of travelers.  I am going down a few days before the group to visit with long time friends. 
Here in Marietta, snow covers the ground, ice on the roads, freezing temperatures, schools closed.  The lure of sun and sand is strong!

I will try to post some pictures and a little about what we did each day so you can share in our trip. 

General itinerary:
Jan 25:   Fly into Merida.   Walking tour of downtown area.  Evening seranata.

Jan 26:  A boat ride at the Celestun Bioshpere, home to flamingos and many other birds with lunch on the beach.  Back to Merida.

Jan 27:  Visit a hacienda to see how henequen is made. Explore the post-classic Maya site of Mayapan.

Jan 28:  Sunrise at Chichen Itza.  Sunset at the ruins of Uxmal

Jan 29:  Visit several small Maya sites and the World Heritage Gulf city of Campeche

Jan 30:  Visit the classic site of Edzna in the morning and relax at the hotel on the Gulf of Mexico in the afternoon.

Jan 31: Drive to the base of the mountains in the state of Chiapas to visit the classic site of Palenque.  It contains some of the finest architecture, sculpture, roof combs and bas relief carvings that the Maya produced.  

Feb 1:  Take a boat  down the Usumacinta river which separates Mexico from Guatemala to the site of Yaxchilan.We share the site with howler monkeys as we explore the site with many beautifully carved stone stelae.

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Feb 2: Return to the Yucatan peninsula to visit the small site of ​Chicana where Rio Bec, Chenese and Puuc styles of architecture are combined.  Also visit Becan which is one of the few fortified Maya sites.

​Stay at an eco-lodge near Chicana.

Feb 3: Kohunlich is best known for the  large, well preserved faces of the sun god. Enjoy lunch at  Cenote Azul, the largest and deepest cenote on the peninsula.  The day ends with relaxing on the beautiful beaches of​ Akumal.

Feb 4: Float down a Maya man-made canal connecting a lagoon to the ocean.  Relax and enjoy!

Feb 5: Watch the sunrise, and take a take a morning walk on the beach before heading to Cancun airport for your flight home.