Mexico by Yacht and Car. Chichén Itzá

A Holiday from the Yacht Who are real cruising sailors? People who repair their yachts in various beautiful places. Which is exactly what we spent three weeks doing after arriving in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico, in 35-degree heat. We took the engine apart (it had broken down before we even reached Cuba ), pulled out the transmission, inspected it, and dismantled it. Then we put it back together and painted it. Now we need to lower it back in and connect it to the engine—and who knows, perhaps it will work? We sent our young sailor to kindergarten for four days. On the fifth, it didn’t happen. She’d had her fill of kindergarten.... While we were settling into Puerto Aventuras, we met some great people from Ukraine, and from then on we stopped seeing Nastya in the evenings—she became very good friends with their daughter. We were ill for a little while (Lada did go to kindergarten for a whole four days, after all, and brought home a local virus 🙂 ). We recovered, and it was high time to explore Mexico. This is the Pyramid of the Magician in Uxmal. But at least one pyramid had to make an appearance here! 🙂 Mexico by Yacht and Car Maya pyramids, canyons and cenotes await us—the latter a unique natural wonder of Mexico: deep caves with intact or collapsed roofs, filled with blue water, hanging vines and the roots of sacred banyan trees. The crew packed their travelling bundles, loaded themselves into the car on the second attempt (it was only after 50 kilometres that we discovered the masks, snorkels and our young sailor’s lifejacket had been left on the boat—and without them, there was simply no way we could manage on the mainland, as you can imagine!), and set off across the Yucatán Peninsula. ? A funny little car in Valladolid, its boot chained shut Valladolid; behind the letters is the Convent of Sisal (Convento de Sisal). Valladolid Our first stop along the way was the little town of Valladolid, with one colonial street that somehow felt as cosy as a child’s world. There were hardly any cars; black-and-white portraits of the residents’ ancestors—and of the residents themselves 300 years ago—hung on the walls inside the houses, while the sound of television drifted from the windows. Aunties in white embroidered traditional dresses went out to buy bread, while an inconspicuous café (what would you call a place like that if the word were derived not from “coffee” but from “cocoa”?) served magnificent cocoa: hot, cold, with cinnamon, ginger and chilli peppers. Unpretentious interiors, a mostly spoken menu, and just one young woman playing every role. Colonial Mexico just as it is. The local cocoa is served in a delicate calabash bowl They say tequila and chocolate are made somewhere around here. Unsure of our own willpower, we skipped the factory tastings altogether and went straight to the church to atone for our sins. We did make it to a chocolate tasting later, though. Approaching Chichén Itzá The best-known Maya pyramids, in the ancient city of Chichén Itzá, are 40 km from Valladolid. In places, one stretch of the road looks like the highway approaching the Altai Republic. And the road signs are a delight. They have a stepped pyramid on them. “You’re on the right road, comrade.” Off to the pyramids! The room we had booked through Booking.com at La Casa de Las Lunas proved just as lovely as in the photos, though somewhat smaller in real life. As usual, we were first offered a room on the outskirts of the property, beside the car park. It was a good room, but we couldn’t see our young sailor in the pool from there, so we asked to see another. Beaming with a smile, the manager, Dalia, showed us the room of our dreams. A stone mushroom lamp and a path And so, to Nastya’s delight, we ended up with a beautiful, stylish room right beside the pool. We’ll head to the pyramids at dawn. For now, we’re enjoying the unfamiliar surroundings and moving on to water-based activities. That evening, the friendly Dalia came out for a walk with little Coco—the dog, named after Coco Chanel, showed us where they kept the tea and coffee included in the price, and marvelled at Lada’s Spanish :). The hotel left us with a very pleasant impression. Booking.com was right to say: here you get more for the same money. Absolutely true. They even gave us porcelain sombrero magnets, apparently in gratitude for the friendliness and pristine cleanliness we maintained in the room throughout our two-day stay. Along the way, our young sailor took on the role of presenter for a series of micro-programmes entitled “Maya Places of Power.” She began with the story of how sea children finally got their hands on a swimming pool, a shower and an air-conditioned bedroom. And still no pyramids. For dinner, we’re finishing the rice and cheese we brought from the yacht and following it with the last of the apples and mangoes. We thought we’d cool off in the pool after the heat of the Maya pyramids, but for some reason a cyclone arrived instead, bringing overcast skies and a little rain. It isn’t hot even without the pool. We’ll tell you about the pyramids in a new report. By the way, do you know who deciphered the ancient Maya script? And not while doing fieldwork, either, but like Paganel, sitting in an armchair? 🙂