El Robledal

We had a very calm night until at 06:30 people started parking next to the entrance of the National Park and walking in. But we wanted to get up around that time anyways so it didn't disturb us. We made some coffee and then waited for the park to open up. They opened up perfectly on time at 08:00 and we chatted a bit with the guard and then drove to the last (and supposedly best) viewpoint.
And the view over the canyon was magnificent with the slight morning fog still hanging in the green mountains. On the way back we stopped at the other viewpoints, one offering a nice little walk and all some other perspective on the canyon. Getting another perspective was also the plan for the next activity... Taking a boat through the canyon floor and by the crocodiles 🐊

When we arrived at the docks, there were already two other camper vans. One with a swiss (Solothurn) license plate that we had already seen in San José del Pacifico and one with Italian license plates. We didn't meet the swiss ones, but the other family is from Greece and already for 8 years on the road. The tickets for the boating trip offered a two hour tour and we stopped just after a few minutes for a golden iguana sun bathing on the steep cliffs. And the deeper we got into the canyon, the more impressive the steep rock faces became and the more you needed to tilt your head to see the top of the canyon. At the highest point it extended 1000m above the canyon 🏞️
After a little while we found two crocodiles relaxing in the morning sun, one being on the rock and hereby offering a really nice view of him (or her?)self 📸 The tour went overall for 32 kilometers into the canyon until reaching a man-made reservoir that extended widely. There was also a huge swarm of cormorants making rounds on the lake. On the way back we stopped at a monkey reservation and got some nice views of them climbing in the trees. Overall it was an exciting tour with beautiful views and worth a visit!

In the early afternoon we drove to our next and last stop of the day, the pueblo mágico San Cristobal de las Casas. What makes it unique is the setting amidst rolling hills and mountains at an elevation of 2100 metres. When we arrived it was pretty hot with 26 degrees and we used the daylight to go on an exploration through the town. We walked through the small alleys, over busy markets and visited a few of the many churches. Most of the inner city was occupied by pilgrims for the festivities for the 12th of December, the day of the Virgin of Guadalupe. They're running from their hometown to places of worship for her. The last week we've seen them occasionally on the roads all over the states. After walking for more than 10km through town we went to a restaurant for dinner. I've tried some delicious enchiladas in mole. While we were eating there was a parade with a band and people in costumes, just like the carneval at home 😊
After dinner the sun had set and the temperature had dropped down to 4 degrees, so I was a bit chilly with the tshirt and shorts. We made the 4km way home quickly to stay warm and then went to sleep because we're going to get up at 5 am... The road we're taking to Palenque, the highway 199, is supposed to be pretty dangerous with some assaults and robberies that happened this year. When asking a police officer and the tourist information today, they said that it can be dangerous but should be good if we're driving early in the morning. So that's what we're going to do ☺️Read more