CITY OF DAWN
We
were up at 6 the next morning, as we had to make the 7am ferry to the
mainland. Unfortunately, we were
operating under some serious time constraints.
Friday was the only day that we could squeeze in a trip to the mainland,
and even it wasn’t ideal. Christy had to
be at a mandatory pre-race meeting at the Cozumel convention center at
5pm. For her to make it, we had to be on
the 4pm ferry back to Cozumel. Getting
the rental car and driving to Tulum was going to take
some time, and we wanted to have the opportunity to enjoy the visit. Before all of that, we still had to endure
the “mystery presentation” at a resort in Playa Del Carmen. I wasn’t actually sure what the presentation
would involve, but I was quite confident that we wouldn’t be interested.
We
took a taxi downtown, as public parking near the ferry terminal is extremely
limited. The ferry was 15 minutes late,
which was mildly surprising considering that it was the first ferry of the day. The trip across was nothing like our ride over
on Wednesday afternoon. The surf was up,
and the boat was rocking like the S.S. Minnow.
I found the ride tedious, but Christy turned green. About halfway through, she abruptly ran for
the bathroom. I didn’t see her again
until after we docked.
We
found our friends with Island Holidays at the far side, who shuttled us over to
a fancy, all-inclusive resort. There we
met Luis, who treated us to a nice buffet breakfast before tormenting us with a
3-hour tour and sales pitch for prepaid vacation packages. This is pretty much what I expected, but I
was still annoyed that the entire event took a solid hour longer than
advertised. The entire process was
remarkably similar to buying a car, except we had no intention of purchasing
anything. I’d have trouble thinking of
something I’d be less interested in spending money on than a pre-paid all
inclusive vacation package. Luis
would’ve had a better chance selling a bicycle to a fish.
We
eventually escaped. We shuttled to
another CP Rentals location, where we were given our free rental for the drive
the Tulum. In
a pleasant turn of events, this car was much nicer than the one on the
island. It still wasn’t anything
special, but at least the brakes worked, and it didn’t
appear as though someone had slaughtered a pig in the back seat. The car was a manual transmission, so I made
Christy drive. She’s better with a
clutch, and having her drive enabled me to focus on navigating and reading
Spanish road signs. Honestly, this was
in everyone’s best interest.
We
made it out of the chaos surrounding the ferry terminal and found our way to
the highway. The drive from there to Tulum was actually pretty smooth. It was a straight shot down the main highway,
and we didn’t have any trouble finding the right place. Of course, the Mayan ruins of Tulum are one of the biggest tourist destinations on the
Yucatan Peninsula.
Tulum was an important site for the Mayans. Experts believe that the city was built
around the year 1200, and it was occupied until the arrival of the Spanish in
the 1500’s. Tulum
served as both a port and a fortress. It
is situated on a high bluff overlooking the Caribbean Sea, and the entire city
is surrounded by a stone wall. Inside
the wall are well-preserved ruins of many buildings, including the central
Castillo as well as a number of palaces and temples.
We
arrived at noon, which was right about the same time all of the organized tours
from the cruise ships and area resorts arrived.
Getting there earlier would’ve been much better, but our options had
been limited. We paid a fee to park, and
dodged a local who was roaming the parking lot offering guided tours. We then waded through a sea of crap – in the
form of a variety of fast food restaurants and shops – looking for a
bathroom. We finally found one, which we
had to pay to use. Personally, I think
if you’re going to charge for people to use the facilities, you should at least
have toilets that flush. The difference
between the United States and the third world might be best summed up in four
words: “free toilets that flush”.
We
escaped the mess and found our way to a ticket booth, where we unwittingly paid
to ride a “train” (actually a tractor decorated to look like a train) to the
ruins. It turns out that the road to the
ruins is only about a half mile long, and the “train” is completely unnecessary
unless you are crippled. On the way
back, we skipped the “train” altogether, figuring – correctly – that we could
walk faster. This was a good move, as we
enjoyed walking along the edge of the jungle.
Along the way, we spotted some colorful tropical birds back in the
trees.
We
got off the train and walked to the gate.
There we discovered that we needed to buy tickets at the plaza that we’d
missed when getting off the train initially.
We backtracked, bought our tickets, and noted the presence of bathrooms
next door. These bathrooms are fee, except
for the ever-present bathroom attendants looking for tips. I dodged them, as I’ve always found the whole
concept of bathroom attendants to be somewhere between annoying and creepy.
We
finally made it into Tulum proper around 12:30. We paid three separate fees to get in, but
all together it was still less than $10 per person. For a place the magnitude of Tulum, it was a bargain.
We
walked through the jungle, before finding one of the entrances in the stone wall
that surrounds the city. Inside we saw a
vast array of stone ruins, along with some impressive trees and flowers. We also saw a lot of other tourists. Taking photos without other people in them
was quite a challenge. Tulum would be a fascinating place to visit after hours –
in the dark, even – if you could get access.
We
wandered among the ruins at leisure. We
didn’t really know what we were looking at.
There were very few informational signs, and we had no map or
guide. This was ok though. I was enjoying our visit despite my
ignorance.
For
the most part, the buildings themselves were off-limits. This is understandable. No doubt, irreparable damage would be done if
everyone was allowed to go where they pleased.
Eventually
we worked our way around to the castillo. Then we followed a path up to the top of the
cliff, and gazed out at the Caribbean Sea.
The water was impossibly blue, and white, puffy clouds added character
to the sky. Here, we found a modern
staircase leading down the cliffs to the beach below. I checked it out, and was surprised to find
quite a crowd of sunbathers down there, among the boulders and palm trees. Who goes to Tulum
just to sunbathe? Apparently a lot of
people do.
I
rejoined Christy on the cliffs, and we wandered through the rest of the
ruins. Along the way, we spotted several
Iguanas basking in the sun. We wandered
around there until after 2pm. Then, it
was time to get back to Carmen Del Playa and Cozumel. We headed out, but stopped at the Dairy Queen
at the edge of the parking lot. Hey, we
had skipped lunch, and it was a hot day!
The ice cream was refreshing, and we were treated to some fine
entertainment, too. Two locals were
dressed in costume like native Mayan warriors.
The costumes were pretty impressive, except for one flaw. One of them had a cell phone clipped onto his
hip! I would’ve killed for his phone
number. It would’ve been hysterical to
call him and ask him if he wasn’t supposed to be throwing a virgin in a volcano
or something.
I
wish we’d had more time in the area.
This part of the Yucatan Peninsula features lots of caves and cenotes (springs). I
would’ve liked to explore some of them, but our time was up.
We
made good time on the way back, even though we had to stop for gas. Christy used the bathroom there, too, and
again had to pay for the privilege. Back
at the ferry, we turned in the rental car and hurried to the dock. We were actually a few minutes early, so we
spent that time looking at sombreros.
Earlier I’d come up with a great idea.
What if Christy wore a sombrero when she crossed the finish line? I began to regret my suggestion when she
picked out a giant pink sombrero that weighed about 10 pounds. Was I going to have to carry that thing all
day while she was racing?
We
made the 4pm ferry, which departed right on time at 4:15. This guaranteed that Christy would be late
for her meeting, but she was more concerned with surviving the ride without
losing her ice cream. The ride was still
rough, but she made it without having to make another mad dash for the
bathroom.
We
caught a taxi right at 5pm, and made it down to the convention center a few
minutes later. While she was in her
meeting, I strolled across the street to enjoy a colorful sunset. I spent the rest of my time waiting for her
on the deck at Margaritaville. This was an exceptionally pleasant place to
wait. Christy caught up with me an hour
or so later, and we decided to stay for dinner.
With the race 36 hours away, Christy was in favor of avoiding spicy
foods. We decided to keep our dining simple, even if it meant that it would be less
adventurous. After dinner, we headed
back to the resort, and retired early after another long day.
The Spanish Word of the day is “vomitar”. “Vomitar”
translates to “vomit”, as in, “The ferry ride from Cozumel inspired Christy to vomitar”.
‘NORKLIN’
The
next morning, Christy did another training swim at Chakanab
while I ran. The weather was much nicer
on Saturday. It was cooler, and the wind
had died down. After she finished, she
reported that the currents were much gentler than they’d been on Thursday. Everyone was hoping that those conditions
would last for at least another day.
After
working out, we returned to the resort for some quality beach time. Between exploring and getting ready for the
race, we hadn’t had much chance to enjoy the resort. We lounged in the sun for a couple of hours,
and I attempted to watch Appalachian State’s playoff football game on the
internet. When we initially planned the
trip, I was reluctant because I knew that we would probably miss a home playoff
game. I’d never missed a home playoff
game in the years since I was a student there.
Fortunately, watching the game on my laptop worked, and the Mountaineers
won. Plus, it sure was a lot warmer on
the beach in Cozumel than it was back in Boone.
Later
that afternoon, Christy had to drop off her bike and gear at the race site at Chakanab. She rode
down there, and I picked her up so she wouldn’t have to walk back. We had the rest of the afternoon free, so we
decided to make another attempt at snorkeling.
First, we stopped at a small beach club along the old coast road north
of Chakanab.
This spot offered easy access, and the snorkeling was decent. After a bit of this, we decided to try
another spot. Ultimately we ended up
back at the resort. Surprisingly, the
resort had the best snorkeling that we found.
We saw fascinating rock formations, coral, plants, and many types of
colorful, tropical fish. The biggest
excitement though was when I spotted a small ray on the ocean floor, about 10’
down. I’m not sure what kind it was, but
it was fascinating to watch. Actually,
I’m amazed that I spotted it. The ray blended
in perfectly with the sand.
We
snorkeled until it was nearly dark. Then
we relaxed on the beach and watched another fine sunset. That evening, we discovered that we needed
reservations to dine at the resort’s restaurant. They were booked, probably because the place
was overrun with athletes. Christy
demanded pasta for her pre-race meal, so we ordered dinner from room
service. We went to bed early again, as
Christy had a big day coming up. She had
to be up at 5 for the race.
The Spanish Word of the day is “Playa”.
“Playa” translates to “beach”, as in, “We spent a good portion of
the day lounging on the playa”.
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