Negotiating the airport formalities at Cancun was no problem, after our previous experiences. It was all very well organized , as long as you didn't mind parting with a few pesos. After bundling ourselves into a mini van, we were soon at our accommodation, one standard rate for all!  After a quick look around the tourist area of downtown Cancun, we met up with our tour group (Footloose Mexican Highlights, Jan. 2002) and leader, Andrew,  the following morning and soon after were on our way to the Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza.

We spent several hours with a guide exploring the area. After all the Inca ruins in Peru and Bolivia, we might have been suffering with a case of AFR, but these ruins were enough to whet the interest of the most  jaded tourist/traveller. And having spent some time at altitude, we were able to climb the main pyramid without stopping for a breath. We took in the sacrificial sites, including the sacred well and the ball court. Some sites retained their original Inca pigments; some had features mis-interpreted by the Conquistadors. Because there was lattice-work, the Spanish assumed nuns were present, and this feature retains the name "The Nunnery" to this day. Chichen Itza was an amazing set of ruins.

Then we were on our way to our hotel at Merida. This was an old colonial house converted to a hotel, close to downtown. Merida was a lovely town, but we saw little of it except a couple of restaurants and the area around the main square and the tree-lined boulevard of Paseo de Montejo. The next day, we checked out the flamingo reserve about 50 km away at Celestun. Not only were there hundreds of flamingoes, there was a fresh-water spring (cenote) bubbling up out  amid the mangrove vegetation. Two rolls of film later, we adjourned to a local restaurant.

The next morning we were on the road again - to another cenote. These limestone water reservoirs provide wonderful underground swimming holes.  We climbed down a metal ladder into beautiful warmish water. Sunlight streamed down through the small opening. Tree roots from above dangled down into the water and stalactites and stalagmites decorated the cavern. We were well off the tourist trail and so had this special place to ourselves. This was the first of many cenotes we encountered in this part of Mexico.

The ruins at Uxmal were similar in many ways to those in Chichen Itza, but they were less restored. This site had already been abandoned by the time the Spanish found it. The countryside is much drier and this somehow accentuates the wonderful carvings. There were the pyramids, temples, the ball court but no sacrificial well. No human sacrifices had been performed at this site. Once again it was possible to climb the largest pyramid for a commanding view of the whole site.

Overnight accommodation (another converted colonial house) was at Campeche, an interesting city we would have liked more time to explore. It was just a place to rest our heads, but we managed a sunset walk along the waterfront - not really a beach. This took us past the old walls (baluartes) built to repel pirates in the 17th Century which are now back from the water's edge. 

A long day on the road took us to Palenque, where we stayed at a jungle resort and took advantage of the pool. After dinner at the resort, we went into the town of Palenque and  shopped for a hammock. The next day, it was time for the Mayan ruins of Palenque. The site is in lush jungle, making a beautiful backdrop for the ruins. Aside from that, there were the usual carved buildings and pyramids. A carving on a sarcophagus here was the basis for Eric von Danikin's theory of space travel in Chariots of the Gods. Following the tour of the ruins, we took a tour of the jungle. This showed a lot more un-excavated ruins, but not a great deal of wildlife. We had a swim at a small waterfall in the jungle, and later another in the pool at the base of the much larger and very impressive Misol-Ha waterfall.

Another long day of driving took us to the west coast and the Hotel Laguna at Laguna Bacalar. This was a breeze-block hotel in a spectacular location. Our room offered fantastic views over the clear, freshwater lagoon.  Close by was Cenote Azul, a much smaller pool whose depth has reportedly never been measured. It was a good place for a late afternoon swim. On our way in we had noticed a country fair in progress. With nothing much to do around the lagoon, we investigated the fair - and found ourselves the chief exhibit. We tried some of their food stalls and rides and listened to some local  Country and Western performers, and some of the guys in our party even tried out the mechanical bull, much to the amusement of the locals!

Mom's Hotel at Playa del Carmen was our home for the next three nights. It was home also to four Vietnam vets acting out Margaritaville on their annual vacation from the USA. But this town is fast becoming over-run by tourists and resorts are under construction everywhere. Still, we enjoyed our stay very much, though we preferred the quieter beaches around Tulum. Though we were in the middle of winter, the water temperature was perfect for swimming and the fine white sand was perfect for relaxing afterwards. We had a couple of excursions from Playa; one to the underwater reserve of Xel-Ha for snorkeling, another to dive (Bob) and snorkel (me) in a system of cenotes and a third to the Mayan ruins of Tulum. The well-preserved ruins sit on limestone cliffs and between these, a beautiful white sandy beach fronts a warm turquoise sea. Gentle waves and diving pelicans complete the picture of a tropical paradise. 

During the last couple of days, our holiday was really winding down. The second last day was spent on one of those picture-perfect beaches out of Tulum before heading back to "Go" at Cancun. After a slap-up meal with flambéed everything for our last evening in Mexico, we spent the final day on the beach at Tulum. The trip to the airport and the subsequent passage through customs proved uneventful, though our luggage was given a cursory search. As we were served our meal on the plane, I thought, "This can't have been made in Mexico. They wouldn't be able to make food taste this bad, even if they tried". I hoped this BA airline food was not typical of that in Britain, where we had two days before returning home!