Mexico - Winter 23/24

Trip List Calendar

2023-12-02 : Planning and Useful Links


2023-12-03 : Fly to Cancun
We thought we had to take a shuttle to Terminal 2 (we landed at Terminal 4) to get the ADO bus. It took a long time for our luggage to arrive so we thought about taking a taxi instead but then we found there were bus ticket windows at Terminal 4… and the bus originated there! So we ended up taking the bus after all. It was super easy and affordable. We met a German couple who are from Marburg and will be in Merida at the same time as us. I have them my card so they can reach us. It would be nice to meet up with them in Merida.


2023-12-04 : Travel to Valladolid
Our check-out time at our AirBnB is 12:00 and our bus leaves for Valladolid at 1:00 so we had the morning to poke around Cancun
After a 2.5 hour bus ride, we arrived in Valladolid around 3pm, checked in to our AirBnB and the explored the town a little. We are staying close to the Convent de San Bernardino de Siena, which is stunning, took of photo of it with the Valladolid sign in the foreground, walked to the main square and saw the Iglesia de San Servicio, then did some grocery shopping and had a light dinner (with beers) in the outdoor patio of our AirBnB. We’ll be doing a lot of walking in Valladolid and we’re fortunate to be staying near the really pretty little street, Calzada de Los Frailes. We walked down it to get to our place, then back up to town centre, then back down again.
Neither the KeepGo SIM or the Mexican TelCel SIM work in Brent’s phone it’s probably too old. He’s using the spare/travel phone. It’s younger but the battery drains really quickly. We stopped in at a TelCel store and he bought a new SIM card. They activated it right away and we now have a phone number in Mexico: +52 998 475 5827. My TextNow number also works. It is +1-587-206-5456.


2023-12-05 : Valladolid - Mercado
We’re splitting our days into four parts in order to better deal with the heat. Morning, Siesta, Evening, Night. It won’t be easy for me as my brain is very stubborn about when it’s willing to sleep and when it’s willing to be awake. But we’ll give it a go.

This morning we walked out along C49 to scope out what will be our cycle route tomorrow to go visit some cenotes. Then we had coffee with Cheryl. Then we visited the Mercado. The Mercado here is nowhere near as interesting as the Querétaro Mercado but we did manage to get some fruit and cheese.

And now… siesta.
We walked around Valladolid this evening and we’re in the square when the Mayan dancers did a show. Very impressive.


2023-12-06 : Valladolid - Cenotes
Today we used the bikes from our Airbnb to visit three cenotes.

We rode south on C54, which Maps.me said would take us to our first Cenote, then continue south to the town of Dzitnup, where we could double back northwest to get onto a bike route to visit the other two Cenotes.

C54 has changed. It doesn’t go all the way to the Valladolid ring road, instead, it dead-ends at the dump. There was a side road that looked like it went to the Cenote, but it had a big gate on it and we didn’t want to trespass. When we got to the dump, we decided to return to town and head west to get on the bike path and go at it a different way, but when we got to the gated side road, a guy there told us that it was, in fact, the way to the Cenote, so on we went. The road was atrocious. I’m surprised our loaner bikes survived!

The first Cenote was Oxmán. It was really pretty but it had a rope swing and a lot of noisy splashy young folk. It was also sketchy to get down to the water with three rickety ladders, none of which I felt like using. Brent went for a swim about and I just watched.

After the Cenote we were going to try getting back on C54 south of the Cenote but it was a rough narrow dirt track. A hiking trail, really, so we decided to take the ring road west to Highway 180 which has a separated bike path.

We took the bike path to Cenote X-Kekén, which shares its facilities with Cenote Samula, and I’m glad it does because that one was my favorite. It was much more peaceful, and it was easy to get down to the water. I stayed at the edge for a while enjoying a fish pedicure while Brent went for a swim. Then I joined him for a swim and then had another fish pedicure.

Our final Cenote was X-Kekén and it was also very nice but harder to get in because of some treacherous rocks. I had another fish pedicure while Brent went for a swim.

After all the Cenotes we had an easy 6.1km ride back to our AirBnB, mostly on the bike path.
In the evenings they do a light show at the convent nearby that illustrates the history of the Yucatán and Valladolid.

We watched the show - first in Spanish then in English. After the show we watched a couple have fun with their projected shadows.


2023-12-07 : XKopek Bee Park
This morning we walked to the southeast end of town to the Xkopek Bee Park where we had a tour of the park. They have bees here that are native to The Yucatán and that don’t sting. We got a traditional Mayan treat, and then a honey tasting. A bee got stuck in my honey so we fished him out and then he sat on my hand while he cleaned himself off well enough to fly again. It was really cool!! .


2023-12-08 : Valladolid - Museum Day
Today was museum day for us. We visited Casa de los Venados, which actually isn’t a museum, but rather, an art collector’s home which he opens up to tours. Then we visited Museo San Roque, which focuses on the history of the Yucatán. Finally, we went to the convent and went into their museum and grounds, which was more interesting than I expected, largely because it was built over top of a Cenote.

Did you know?? The history of the piñata can actually be dated back to Chinese history, when paper figures were filled with seeds, and broken as a way to bring good luck. It is thought that Marco Pollo saw this celebration in China and brought it back to Italy.


2023-12-09 : Valladolid - Walkabout
We took another stab at trying to see the murals at the tourist bureau today but it’s still closed off. Sigh. Then we walked to the north end of town to see Iglesia de Santa Lucia, a church that we spotted on our way into town. We then walked to the Mercado to see if it was better on the weekend… not really. The highlight was seeing some really interesting and colorful buildings including a giant derelict Chinese building of some sort.


2023-12-10 : Valladolid - Sick Day
My system is rebelling against the late heavy meals and I’m just not feeling well so I’m hanging out in the AirBnB today. Brent has gone out and managed to see the murals which have been eluding us and picked me up some yogurt.
We took our laundry in on Friday but we still haven’t gotten it back. When we dropped it off the lady said Mañana. When we went back on Saturday about 11:00 it wasn’t ready yet. She said one hour, but we didn’t make it back then. Her listed hours say she’s closed for two hours in the afternoon and then opens back up in the evening so we went back in the evening to no avail. The lavanderia is closed on Sundays. Brent checked anyway just in case but nope… closed. It’s supposed to open at 8am tomorrow and I sure hope it’s open by 10:00 because we have a bus to Merida at 12:30….
A good thing about Valladolid: live salsa music and dancing in the town square. A bad thing about Valladolid: cars and bicycles endlessly circling the center of town with their Virgin of Guadalupe shrines and ear-splitting sirens.


2023-12-11 : Travel to Merida
Mérida has been on my list to visit ever since Brent and I first came to the Yucatán in 2017. Today, after collecting our delinquent laundry, and taking a ride on the ADO bus, we finally made it.

Our AirBnB is pretty cool. It’s another hostel-y kind of place with a shared kitchen. It is an old building that the proprietor is fixing up. The rooms have really cool original doors, and there’s a beautiful shared courtyard.

Mérida is much larger and bustlier than Valladolid. It will take some getting used to. Good thing there are LOTS of interesting things to see here, including lots of old buildings in interesting states of decay.

We got some praise from our Valladolid host who says we’re ‘strong, despite the years’. Hmmmm.


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