Ferry ride from Cancun to Isla Mujeres
First row - Karen and Jocelyn, Second row - Burklin, Third row - Kory and Reese
First row - Karen and Jocelyn, Second row - Burklin, Third row - Kory and Reese
Kory and the Girls winding down on the foredeck after a long day of travel by car, plane, taxi, ferry, and last taxi to El Milagro on Isla Mujeres.
Off for their first snorkel trip out to the Lighthouse.
Fun in the sun on the north end of Isla Mujeres
Navigator
Time for Fishing
Watching for dolphin
Murals and Street Scenes in Isla Mujeres
Photos by Burklin
Street Scenes
The Cemetery
Beautiful blossoming tree
Little odd house with the ever prevalent wiring nightmare
Endless supply of trinkets
Fisherman Sculpture
The girls last day together as Reese and Kory fly home tomorrow.
Reese and Jocelyn and a funky wall.
Day at Punta Sur Sculpture Garden and Ixchel Temple Ruin
A previous visitors offering tucked in along the path
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Jocelyn wants to follow the iguana just ahead of her on the path.
The iguana decides otherwise
Fresa Helado Tiempo - Strawberry Ice Cream Time
Sailing Day - Looking for dolphin and fishing.
Snapper for dinner. Jocelyn is happy she caught a fish but doesn't want to hold it. Grandpa's Job
Heading into the anchorage through a different cut
Peaceful Eve
Isla Blanca and Isla Contoy
A Parasol for Portable Shade
Watching Butterflies
Burklin and Charlie
Sargasso piled on the beach here too.
There were a few turtle nests on this beach surrounded by the footprints of critters - one shown below next to my foot. Most likely from a coatimundi known in Mexico as tejon, cholugo or moncun; a member of the raccoon family. We presume the tejon had turtle eggs for their midnight snack.
Hitching a dinghy ride
Burk's Barracuda - we do not eat barracuda but the staff at El Milagro will love it.
Big Chompers
Back on the ferry and heading to Valladolid, Chichen Itza
and Rio Largatos
Hotel Marques Mesones in Valladolid - located on the square around Parque Centro
Pool Time
Off to Dinner
Performers in Parque Centro
An unusual site in Mexico; minimalism in decorating. This is the corridor leading from the front of the restaurant through to the courtyard.
A beautiful courtyard.
Serving refreshing flavors in Mojitos and ethnic Maya dishes that were delicious.
After dinner stroll to the cathedral
Dancing in the Street
Chichen Itza
Visiting Mayan Temples and Ruins is enthralling and daunting. Enthralling due to the beauty and majesty of what you are seeing. Daunting, in that it is hard to remember everything your tour guide told you. Therefore we have attached three links that can tell you more about this ancient city and its life than we can.
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/483
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/world-heritage/chichen-itza/
http://www.chichenitza.com/listingview.php?listingID=8
Should you decide to visit Chichen Itza it is advisable to arrive early, being one of the first through the gate at 8am. You will have nearly two hours of quiet before the tour buses arrive bringing an average of 50,000 visitors per day. However, most importantly you will be through the gate before the 750 vendors arrive to set their tables up along every path. According to our tour guide, Chichen Itza is the only site that allows vendors inside.
In the meantime you can meander through our photographs and live vicariously as we stroll through this fascinating World of Maya.
Temple of Kukulkan or El Castillo
Structures along the path to the Ball Court
Chaac Mool
The Wall of Skulls, a burial mound.
The Ball Court
The murals of the players - hard to make out all the carvings in this picture
The carvings throughout Chichen Itza were painted.
Another section that has retained some of the colors
Ossuary
The Osario Staircase
El Caracol - The Observatory
Las Monjas Complex
Pictured Below - The House of the Grinding Stones
Archway along the path
The Cenote - the road leading to the cenote is the original path. Worn by time and thousands of footfalls the resulting hard surface lets runoff empty into the cenote turning it green. When Charlie was here in 1973 the cenote was blue and clear.
Returning to the gate and breakfast. Note the vendors setting up.
Rio Largatos
We stopped here in Nov 2014 and thoroughly enjoyed our day of sightseeing.
Even more fun this trip sharing with Burklin and Jocelyn.
Off we go
Black Eagle - We saw several today.
The white and partially pink flamingos are the young ones, not yet having eaten enough shrimp to turn them fully pink.
Resting her eyes
The Crocodile does not want to come out today preferring the shade
Horseshoe Crab - truly pre-historic looking.
Salt flats - sea salt produced here
The sandy clay along the shore ........
........is good for the skin and provides a natural sun screen
Valladolid Stroll
Photos by Burklin
The gentleman below carved this massive sculpture out of one piece of wood. The sculpture depicts the Mayans' Sacred Animals and Sites
Turtle is the Foundation
Table base in process by the same woodcarver.
The Murals below are located in the Cultural Center
Valladolid Parque Centro - Last night
Jocelyn with Burklin seated in a Courting Settee. Burklin is wearing her Happy Birthday Maya Dress from Chichen Itza
Dinner
Cenote
Most of the cenotes are too commercial with too many people. Our taxi driver was willing to help us find a suitable remote cenote while on the way from Valladolid back to Cancun. On the roadside was hand-painted sign saying, Cenote. We turned off the highway and followed the dirt road winding through the jungle......
until we reached a very large impassable mudhole. Charlie, Burklin, Jocelyn and the taxi driver went exploring on foot.
This is the spot and the entrance is further down the road. So back to the taxi to gather up swimsuits and towels.
Yes, this is the entrance to the underground cenote
A long winding staircase leads us down to the water
The Stalactite and Stalagmite formations are impressive. The clear water a refreshing 82 degrees.
Heading back to Isla Mujeres
Whale Sharks and Turtles
Charlie and Burklin set out for the day with one of the many whale shark tour guide boats to snorkel with the whale sharks.
Waiting to board and head out.
The guide was successful at locating two, each approximately 40 ft. long. Soon it became crowded with too many people. Charlie did his best to capture a few photos and some video clips.
Charlie was able to shoot some video footage. At one point in film two he was trying to get Burklin positioned for a frame or two and she was pushed out of the way by other divers.
Here are links to our youtube videos:
Meanwhile Jocelyn and I went to visit the Turtle Sanctuary - Tortugranja
Jocelyn with her bag of turtle food pellets.
On display in surrounding aquariums and photographed by Jocelyn
Dreaded Lion Fish
Flounder
Stonefish - the most venomous fish on the planet
A pair of Clown Fish - Nemo's
Seahorse
Seahorse
Located outside the aquarium is the fenced and shaded corral housing the protected turtle eggs. The eggs are rescued from the beaches to protect them from poachers and prey. Each nest is labeled with the date, time and location of where it was found.
New hatchling dug its way out while we watched
A staff member collects the hatchlings...
and took the time to let Jocelyn and I hold it for a few moments....
before taking hatchling indoors to a tank to await its day for an ocean release.
These hatchlings are gaining strength and their day is soon coming to be released into the ocean.
The turtles enjoying the pellets from Jocelyn
This turtle would fold back its flippers before entering the feeding fray.
Last night in Isla Mujeres for Burklin and Jocelyn
Watching the sunset
Ferry ride to Cancun and taxi to the airport.
Back in Wisconsin - Kory picked Burklin and Jocelyn up at the Milwaukee Airport. They took some time to have dinner with Bryna and John and have a photo session along the lakefront before heading home.
We miss them all and anxiously await their next visit!
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