Well I left Nicola in Palenque, so coming to San Cristobal a couple of days ago was my first solo travelling since being in Mexico. Upon arrival at the hostel I joined in on a slasa class, which is my third since being in mexico, so definitely improving. I hope to do a few more as I continue to get to some sort of a standard. San Cristobal is very colonial and reminded me of the north India town of Shimla. Although here it has Spanish influences. It is very beautiful, and very cosmopolitan with lots of international style cafes and [View Full Entry]

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Before we go anywhere, I want you to cast your minds back to a distant tiime in Venus Bay, Australia, when Richard was practising baby care on a joey wombat in readiness for the arrival of our brand new niece or nephew. Well, we´re pleased to say that little Iona Jade is now safely with us. We were in the land of the Mayans when we heard the news and, as jade was the Mayan´s most precious material, her name seems most propitious. But now let us continue our journey onwards from Palenque... The jungle slipped away behind us and we [View Full Entry]

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I have the Sunny Yucatan state. We visited Isla Holbox in our first travelling from Merida, an island just off the North of Cancun. Holbox as lovely, a true paradise, except for the incessant biting of the snad flies, who make the mosquito seem saintly. We did our first bit of beaching around and enjoying a carribean blue sea. From Holbox we carried onto Tulum, where we proceeded to truely relax. Our three days there consisted of nothing but lying on the beach, snorkelling and the odd bit of sea kayaking. It felt very lazy, but wonderful. I am truely brown [View Full Entry]

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Palenque was the site of these incredible and vast Mayan ruins, a city to rival Guatamala's Tikal, which I will visit at the end of my trip. I got to explore them the first day we arrived, and although it was raining for most of the day, I was still awestruck. I'm afraid I have no words to do them justice, but I spent a good three hours exploring all the ruins and the surrounding jungle, whcih gives some idea of their vastness. I hope my photos will show them off somewhat, but I am too lazy to wait for them [View Full Entry]

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The other water features I visted were Agua Azul and Misol Ha. Misol Ha was a stunning waterfall that one could walk behind and get refreshed by the spray. Agua Azul was a series of falls that was once again set in the jungle. It was extremely dramatic due to the obvious force the river had forming the falls over huge rocks. I loved the huge trees that were groing alongside the bank, and anted to spend more time exploring the nearby jungle, but I someho acquired a friend on the bus there. A guy from Barcelone, who once he discovered [View Full Entry]

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Efter en haesblaesende bustur i bjergene naaede vi frem til det beroemte San Cristobal de las Casas, en rigtig gammel mexicansk hyggeby oppe i bjergene. Byen har vaeret omdrejningspunkt for zapatistbevaegelsen, og der har foer vaeret en del ballade. Vi oplevede dog intet farligt i den retning. Da vi ankom, travede vi rundt i gaderne for at finde et vaerelse...til sidst fandt vi dog et... ikke saerligt velduftende og uden toiletbraet. Desuden havde sengene huller i bunden, saa vi sov ikke vildt godt. Naeste dag besluttede vi os derfor for at flytte over til et skoennere vaerelse, eller det troede vi [View Full Entry]

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After being here for a little less than two weeks things are finally starting to fall into place. What is taken for granted in the U.S. cannot be in Mexico. Sometimes this is downright charming and in other cases one is left wondering what to think. Perros de la calle or Dogs of the street Mario had told Tessa and I stories about (or more correctly stated, cautioned us about) the dogs in small towns. In Mexico Cuidad other than pigeons, the only animals I noticed were the bees swarming around fruit vendors and a lone cat lurking under a VW [View Full Entry]

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Efter en 12 timers udemaerket bustur ankom vi lettere forvirrede og morgentraette til Palenque Pueblo busstation kl 7 om morgenen. Vi var naermest ikke traadt ud af bussen, foer vi blev hevet og flaaet i fra alle sider af ivirige tourguider og hotelejere, og da vi jo som sagt havde tilbragt 12 timer i en bus, var vi maaske (overraskende nok) ikke helt klare i knolden, saa vi endte med at sige ja til en 12 timers dagstur rundt i Palenque og omegn!!!! Turen var med afgang kl 8, forstaaes! Og da klokken allerede naermede sig 7.30 og vi stadig ikke [View Full Entry]

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Day 11 - Thursday 10th July: Palenque Mayan Ruins & some impressive waterfalls Booked my onward bus ticket out of Palenque for 9pm this evening - I'd been tipped off by an Austrian guy in Mexican City that there wasn't anything other than the ruins to see here, so to stay only a day at most. So when I arrived at my hostel last night to be offered a tour of the ruins and some local watefalls that finishes at 6.30pm it fits perfectly. Palenque is the first of the Mayan ruins I will be visiting which if I'm honest is [View Full Entry]

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Hola amigos and bienvenidos to the mexican leg of our cycle jaunt. We start off in Cancun and, oo it ain't 'arf 'ot. Except in our room in Casa Mexico Tipico, where it is just about sub-zero. We are staying with Hilda, her family and Pepita, the chihuahua. Hilda's mother is a music teacher and we are entertained by a parade of young pianists, percusionists and guitarists. All is not harmony, however, and I fear at one point that someone has stepped on Pepita, but it is only the violin class warming up. We liberate our bikes from the cardboard that [View Full Entry]

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