San Juan

Wed 11 Oct: The plan for coming to Valladolid, was so we could visit nearby Chichen-Itza, the best of the Mayan Ruin, and now called one of the modern day Seven Wonders of the World, however after not really getting a lot out of the other 2 sites we have visited, mainly due to the hot temperatures and lack of information and also the NZ$62 entry each we have hesitantly decided not to do it, instead today we are going for a 90 km drive west to the yellow city of Izamal. There are two theories why its yellow. Firstly to honor the Maya sun god, but also the city was repainted In 1993 for the visit from Pope John Paul II. Today from what we saw the majority are still yellow with just a few houses pink, blue and other bright colours bucking the trend. On the way there I thought there was going to be a Mexican stand-off between Doug and an impatient bus driver. The road was very narrow with high jungle right up to the road edge. We were following behind another car and the bus was driving impatiently behind us. Doug normally pulls over to let faster vehicles pass however there was no where to pull over, and when the bus tried to overtake where Doug felt there just wasn't enough width to safely do so, he moved more into the centre stopping the bus from doing so. Bus driver was not happy about this. Probably drove another 500 m before there was an area to pull off on the left. With us stopped there, the bus driver stopped on the road alongside and with both drivers making angry gestures I was worried what might come next, but luckily the bus soon carried on its merry way and so did we. Once at Izamal we had a wander around the Convent of San Antonio build in 1561. Afterwards we saw on goggle maps an archeological site nearby so went there but it was fenced off and gate closed. So next we walked to the botanical gardens that showed on the map, but it looked like just someone's backyard, so we just headed back to the car as we were suffering big time in the heat. A 3.6 km drive out to the monastery was also a waste of time, but did have success with the Pyramid Kinich Kak Moo, build sometime around 400 - 600 AD, we climbed up and had views of the surrounding area, and also a very welcome breeze. We were now well and truly ready to find a Cenote so headed to the small town of Holca and Cenote Chihuan. Firstly we had some pork tacos for lunch, but when we went to pay I had no wallet in my bag - bugger must have left it back at the accommodation. I had some USA money but no where in town to change it. Luckily Doug had his wise card, however without any Mexican Pesos on it, but great thing with Wise, it will just convert out of another currency account, and she had a temperamental visa machine that luckily for us decided to work today. But the biggest disappointment about having no wallet was no cash for a cenote. When we got back to the car, Doug handed me my little bag I've been using for my swimming gear, and said to check in there. There was a big smile when I found my wallet in there, yay we can go for a swim. The cenote was another cave one but with a very low roof which made if feel quite different and as always the water crystal clear and very refreshing. Certainly enjoyed our 2 hours there swimming and photographing, although the light always makes it a challenge to get decent photos. Left there at 5.15 pm and drove the 82 kms back to Valladolid. Two more items were ticked of our favorite little restaurant, both were extremely good, have really enjoyed the food here and for between NZ$6 - 8 a night great value.Read more