Three ruins in two days

The town of Palenque is not historical and not particularly pretty but we found it lively with lots of restaurants and shops and internet. We could have stayed on the road out to the ruin but didn't want to feel isolated out there and pay over the odds for a cabaña like our Tulum experience. However, in retrospect we also shouldn't have stayed at the Posada Kushul-Ha either. It was cheap at P$200 (US$19) a night but not that clean and we think they had bed bugs.

There were lots of tour agencies so we picked one for our trip to Yaxchilan and Bonampak. It was P$600 (US$57) each for the day including 2 meals. We could have done it ourselves but it would have been much harder and almost as expensive and we may have needed more than a day. We were picked up at 6 am in a minibus. There was a driver and a guide. The guide didn't take us around the sites, he just showed us where to go during the day. And he was cute. We picked up 6 other people making it a small group. And all were Mexican; 2 guys from Mexico City, a couple also from Mexico City, and 2 girls from Leon. One of the girls spoke English which was handy but we did understand most of the Spanish instructions anyway.

After an hour and a half of driving we stopped for a buffet breakfast. So did all the other white vans going our way. Many were doing the same tour, some were other tours and some were going to Flores in Guatemala. This meant a queue out the door that took half an hour to get to the front of. We expected the worst .. bad food and lots of things finished .. but there was plenty of food an it was very nice. The ladies running the show were very organised. Sitting at a table we were immediately visited by a parrot who went straight for the plates. Only giving him some banana provided us with enough peace to enjoy our long waited for breakfast.

It was another hour and a half to Frontera Corozal where we jumped in a covered 'lancha' (long boat) and sped off to Yaxchilan. Didn't see any crocs or birds or anything but it was a lovely ride. On arrival, the boatman told us to return to the boat in less than 1 and a half hours so we whipped off to see the site. The first bit involved an Indian Jones style walk through damp dark tunnels. We had our torch so no worries there. We found the rest of the site quite pleasant with moss and lichen covered ruins and some interesting sculptures. We were back at the boat on time but the 2 guys from Mexico City were 20 minutes late much to the annoyance of the boatman.

We had lunch back in town. Sitting all together we enjoyed a very pleasant and tasty meal. Dining with Mexicans we learnt it was important to say 'Buen Provecho' if you leave the table while others are still eating. And one of the guys unintentionally provided us with a demonstration of how to make a tasteless tortilla tasty. He smeared it in lemon juice and then sprinkled liberally with salt.

Then we drove an hour or so back to Bonampak. We were only given an hour but that was more than enough. The site was not huge and the one main feature was in 3 rooms holding the remains of fantastic frescoes. Luckily we arrived between large groups so we had no competition for the rooms where only 3 people were permitted at a time. Each room had a theme; ceremony, torture and ritual blood letting. Ever since reading an article in the National Geographic we were looking forward to this. It did not disappoint.

The next day we got up early and took the short ride to the Palenque ruins. So far arriving early had meant we could have sites to ourselves but this time we were wrong. Arriving at 8:30 we were horrified to see bus loads of people. While buying our tickets we saw a sign that explained all. It was Sunday and on Sunday's Mexican residents can get in for free. It was nice for people who might otherwise not be able to afford the P$45 entrance but it did make it kind of crowded. We explored the palace and took the paths to the farthest corners but avoided the temples which had lines of people walking up and down. At times it was hard to get past the hordes of tourists browsing the masses of tourist tat. But the site was pleasant and the people thinned out as we headed down to the exit where we saw a toucan. The path was steep in places and we passed a number of beautiful waterfalls. The museum down the road from the exit was included in the ticket and contained some beautiful relics, some still quite colourful.

Our visit to Palenque was quite successful and pleasant.

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