“How
about vanilla, senora! Good, Mexican vanilla extract? You want some?
Good price!”
“Christmas
ornaments? Good price? 20 dollars US” - said a grandpa in Costa
Maya on our way back to our ship.
“Senora!
Senor! A hat? How about a hat! We have great hats! Good price!”
- a teenager chased us down on our way to Tulum.
“Tacos,
senora! Good chicken tacos, senora. They are recommended, senora!
Lunch time. Would you like some tacos? Tito (that was our guide in Tulum)
said you should eat here, senora!”
We
knew that was a lie, because Tito has given us a 20 minute spiel that
if we were to eat anywhere in Tulum, we should “ONLY eat at this
place with a beautiful, authentic Mexican
name, called 'Frosty's'. This is the only place with nice, honest
people. You go somewhere else, they tell you it's chicken, and it's
actually iguana meat, or God knows what else. You should only eat at
'Frosty's'!” - so we knew the kid was lying.
Mexico
felt like we were trying to dodge a massive rain of locusts jumping
in front of us and tempting us to buy pretty much everything.
Except the locusts were humans, 5 feet tall and taller. Very
persistent and very brave to bully a pretty sizable American crowd
into buying virtually everything.
Mexico
reminded me a lot of Turkey: people live for commerce and if I were
to describe this interaction in one word, both for Turkey and for
Mexico, the word would be “haggle.” Everything is not only for
sale, but also open for discussion about how much it should cost.
Aside
from that, Mexico was a fun stop for us. The Mexican riviera in Costa
Maya, Cozumel and Playa del Carmen resounded with local music as if
the whole area was on vacation or partying for the most important
life event. It was Spring Break for many people in the States and
Canada, so it could have been an extra special time of the year, but
something told me that music is just a permanent state of living for
Mexicans.
Costa Maya
People
are friendly when they look at you as a bottomless wallet, and they
turn around pretty quickly in forgetfulness right after you say “no”
a few dozen times. Mexico was the only place where our guide himself
tried to sell us something, which left a little bit of a bitter taste
in our mouths.
But
aside from the very aggressive merchant culture, Mexico was a happy
place, sunny, delicious, full of history and natural beauty!
On
our first day, we docked in Costa Maya. After about an hour ride by
bus, we were dropped in the middle of the Mexican jungle, to see the
Mayan ruins at Chacchoben. Chacchoben is not as famous as Tulum or
Chichen Itza, so it was the least touristy journey through the
jungle.
At Chacchoben, in the jungle, we saw these two trees, one growing around the other. Our guide, Izichiel (our guide in Chacchoben), said "Only one of the trees will survive. Not both. We don't know which one. It's just like marriage."
Walking
in 95F degree weather (and 90% humidity) through the jungle, at noon,
is everything and nothing like I ever imagined. The jungle is green
and overgrown, with bushes several tens of feet high, with vines and
palm trees engrossing everything. The humidity is palpable, like you
breathe water, very warm and stagnant water, not air. The shade is
still hot and humid. It offers no reprieve from heat. There is no wind
swishing the much vegetation which seems to be closing in on
you, like moving walls. There are noises. Very sharp and loud
scream-like noises: we asked what they were and were told they could
be birds or monkeys and if they are monkeys to leave them alone,
'cause they bite.
We
were also told that we could see jaguars or pythons. I put on bug
spray because I felt like something was biting my legs, but I did not
see what it was. It was just a lot of small bites, sharp like needle
sticks all over my skin on my legs and arms. The jungle was much as
what I imagined, but multiplied by a thousand – every sensation was
so much stronger and enhanced because it was happening right then
and there.
Although
the ruins at Tulum were breathtaking, because of the whole site
sitting on this high cliff on the edge of the bluer than blue
Atlantic Ocean and because the jungle was not so much overgrown
there, the ruins of Chacchoben were amazing because of their
remoteness and in the way they were nestled in the heart of the
jungle. We walked on these dirt paths through the jungle and we saw
the “town hall” space, where the Mayans were gathering for
special events which seemed to have been built around the vegetation
of the jungle. We saw multiple buildings (in ruins, of course), and
several temples built throughout the city. We learned that the
temples were solid hard inside, not hollow – just layers and layers
of stone, cut in rectangular shape, with what, we're not sure to this
day, and stacked in pyramid-like formations.
Chacchoben
is probably as old as 200BC with the buildings having been finished
around 700AD. We climbed one of the pyramids, and it was steep with
tall steps between the levels. When we reached the top, there were
yet other temples at that elevation, still, built on top of the first
platform we just got done climbing. The whole place feels like a
conglomerate between rocks and jungle vegetation, intertwined with
each other.
Climbing a pyramid in Chacchoben.
When finished climbing, yet another pyramid atop the first one - in Chacchoben
Growing from the jungle floor, amongst the ruins - the "town hall" area in Chacchoben.
On
the second day in Mexico, we docked in Cozumel, and then took a boat
to Playa del Carmen, and then a bus onward to see the Mayan ruins in
Tulum.
Tulum
felt like the resort where the Mayans were going when they were on
vacation. It is one of the newer Mayan establishments, with its
civilization peak in the 13th and 15th
centuries. This shows from the condition the site is in: it is mostly
well preserved, with some architectural details still intact.
Temple with standing columns in Tulum.
The
site is perched on this tall cliff, on the shore of the Atlantic
Ocean. One of the temples is called “The Temple of the God who
Descends from Heaven”, and the whole place truly feels like that:
like some sort of outer world deity descended on this sun drenched
plateau and built this amazingly perfectly planned community of
temples and abodes.
Temple of the God of Wind, at Tulum.
The temples here reminded me of Greek temples –
with large columns in front and enormous porticos, only these are
made of rock, not marble.
Temple in Tulum, with portico and columns.
The
grounds are almost exclusively taken over by iguanas. It's impossible
to shoot any inch of this place and not find a creature in it. They
are everywhere, including the roofs of newer buildings.
Iguanas on the thatch roof of a public bathroom in Tulum
Really hot iguana in Tulum. We learned that they hate shade, rain, or cold, so they were soaking up the sun that day.
Driving
through the Mexican countryside offers a similar journey to the ones
we experienced in other Central American countries (Belize and
Honduras): lots of poor neighborhoods, lots of decrepit
infrastructure, but lots more opportunities for commerce which is a
Mexican trait alone. At every corner, you'll see a taqueria, a
merchant of some sort, a club, or a boutique.
Taqueria in Playa del Carmen
Gorgeous wooden bar in Costa Maya
Tito
was not right in the sense that we didn't need leather cartouches
with our name written in Mayan to feel like we visited Tulum, but he
was right about the food at Frosty's: the fish tacos were indeed
delicious. I have heard that in Mexico they do not drench every dish
(including a taco) in cheese – that this is an American thing. And
that is correct. The fish and chicken (for my husband) tacos came
with white rice and black refried beans on a plain tortilla with one
whole slice of tomato and one slice of avocado. No other 'surprises'
in there, no Spanish rice, no yellow rice. Just plain ingredients,
but the combination of it all was outstanding: fresh and tasty. They
gave us salsa fresca with our home-made corn chips, but warned
us that “this is ay-yay-yay salsa”. And indeed they were
not lying. I took one forktipfull of salsa to taste and I thought my
tongue touched sulfuric acid and the spot that touched the fork would
be a hole. I was not sure who in the whole wide world would have a
stomach for that kind of salsa. Tito, however, explained to us “that
any breakfast should have rice and beans and should be really, really
hot. This is what makes a good breakfast – the heat.”
Fish tacos at Frosty's in Tulum.
Despite
of the aggressive “buy it all” style of Mexico tourism which
could be a deterrent when you are not a shopper at all, I wanted to
stay longer, and I wanted to go back as soon as I have another
chance. There was something welcoming and friendly about it all, and
something very mysterious, in need to be discovered, little by
little, like peeling an onion, about Mexico.
I
was amazed at who the Mayans considered to be “the upper class”:
it was the warriors and the scientists. As a culture, they were
obsessed with astronomy, so their temple grounds are
all aligned with the stars and the planets, and they all have
meaningful stories behind why each building is placed where it is.
They considered astronomers, mathematicians and doctors to be the
upper class and they gave them the best homes. Amazing: 2000 years
ago, the Mayans revered science. A certain someone who has lots of
power now in our world has not gotten the memo yet that scientists
know. Made me wonder if we all lived in vain all this
time.
There
was a joie de vivre about Mexico that stayed with me days and
weeks later: everything is a party. Life is a party, although life is
very serious, too – they are very serious about their history and
about their families and making a decent living for them. But they
also play their music and make a joke or two, every chance they get.
Life,
talk, good food, history, pristine nature – this was Mexico in a
nutshell.
This pretty much summarizes our Mexican experience. Click the picture for the album depicting this trips.
