Mexico Part 3

It was a delight to welcome Max alongside me to continue my travels through Mexico. We spent a few days sorting out his SIM card, getting cash out (discovering that his WISE card did not work across Mexico??), going to the gym and taking him to enjoy one of his first of MANY tacos.

Holbox

After our time in Playa Del Carman we caught an ADO bus (only 2.5hours) roughly to a town called Chiquila. It is here that you can purchase a ferry ticket to the Island Isla Holbox. They run regularly (every 30 minutes I believe) to and from the Island. The ferry ride was pleasant. We sat on the top level of the boat and soaked in some sunshine and listened to Spanish music being performed live by a Mexican man. Max even got a selfie with him!

We had been prewarned about Holbox. To expect the taxis to be in fact golf buggies, no roads and a poor drainage system. We had no idea what we were in for... The roads were literally flooded, not ankle deep, not shin height deep but knee height! We waded through the water with no shoes on along the muddy streets of Holbox to our airbnb. It was a pleasant little room with everything that you needed. I'd highly recommend. It was a nice place to retreat to when the rains came in the afternoon.

Holbox had a lovely relaxed vibe to it. A very little amount of cops (a blessing) and the locals looked cheerful to see us.

We had only three nights in Holbox. Whilst this sounds like a short period of time - it really was a blessing in disguise. Island vibes come with Island prices...it was expensive here. On par with Australia if not more. We attempted to fill our days up by engaging in low cost/free activities; laying at the beach, treating our self to a cheeky ice cream and attempting to see a flamingo (a bird the Island is famous for!). Unfortunately the mangroves are a perfect home for mosquitos and with the heavy rainfall Holbox was experiencing meant that there were a lot of them! Imagine the worst case scenario, slapping your legs and face, wiping out in front of you with an outstretched hand and running and mosquitos STILL covering your body. We were forced to dump all of out belongs and leap into the ocean as this was the only way to escape the mosquitos! Although disgusting it was hilarious. I could not stop laughing. To top it off we had to pass thousands of iguana's on the way to the waters edge. Max did not like these...

I can imagine Holbox has the ability to be incredible. I figured we were just unlucky in regards to the rain and time of year visiting.

Valladolid

After Holbox we continued our travels to a small town called Valladolid. The Yucatan peninsula. We took again an ADO bus here arriving a little earlier than check in for our hostel. We dropped off our bags and made our way to the supermarket to get some groceries to make some lunch. It was incredibly hot. The buildings, whilst beautiful, lined the streets capturing the hot air. Not a breath of wind could be felt. Mortified that we were not close by a beach - we thought to ourselves, what have we done? It was almost a completely different world to nearby cities like Cancun and Playa Del Carmen. Much of the charm and appear of Valladolid is its slow laid-back nature.

When sunset came the temperature dropped, becoming much more comfortable. I felt comfortable to walk the streets here in the evening. In the central square you will find a large fountain surrounded by well maintained gardens. It is the perfect spot to sit down, relax and watch the goings of the city. It gave me Italy vibes. Small bud lights were strung across the street, stalls provided a quiet murmur of Spanish music whilst both locals and travellers explored the town. It was beautiful - however two days is a sufficient amount of time to spend here.

As well as being a very charming colonial city - Valladolid has many things to see and do outside of the town - including visit to cenotes, Maya ruins and more. By far the most famous thing to do when visiting Valladolid is to head to the Chichen Itza. The Chichen Itza is a large Mayan site that was occupied for roughly 600 years before being abandoned in the 1200s.The Chichen Itza is one of the seven Wonders of the World. Be sure to take your passport if you go - to get it stamped to say you have visited! I would suggest going early to avoid the crowds and the heat. We did not purchase a tour and got there via the collectivos (no more than 40 MXN one way). It cost ~580 MXN to enter the site. A must do if you are in Valladolid. It was incredible!

Spending time in the city had us both coming to the conclusion that the city life is not for us. Get us to the beach! We weighed up the pros and cons of flying Vs getting the overnight buses to Puerto Escondido. Choosing to fly cut the travel time significantly and we quickly found ourself in the dreamiest town. More to come on Puerto Escondido, a place that truly has my heart.