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I didn't expect to be making life or death decisions on our last day in Cancun. All I wanted was a haircut and shave for the clean look in front of Amei's ever present photography efforts. Of course, just as I was approaching the barber chair, Amei's worries about possible dull and reused HIV contaminated razor blades now concerned me. Ah what the heck, now we can't even get a clean shave without worrying. Well, we were in the back alleys of central Cancun, next to a local dilapidated outdoor market with hanging meats, dirty food carts and the offensive odors of open sewers. The $2 cost for the shave overrode my caution and I went for it. Immediately, my fear of infection was replaced by pain. The dull blade simply pulled and plucked my chin hairs as if I was a chicken. Which I now was. I heroically held back tears, paid the barber for the assault and was given toilet paper to stop the bleeding. I'm now back to shaving myself.

Besides the barber shop visit, next door was a tasty pig's feet sandwich shop. Marinated in chilies, the pork slow cooked for hours and spread genorously on a large roll, Amei and I had our best meal yet in Cancun. Hey but this entry is from Tulum, so on a comfy bus we moved about three hours south to the seaside small town of Tulum.

Tulum is famous for its Mayan beachfront ruins, temples, plazas and homes built to house the Indian elite over a thousand years ago. From our hostel, it makes for a nice four kilometer bike ride through town, along jungle forest and up to the Ruins entrance. A few pictures here and there, admiration noted about Mayan architecture and we were back on our bikes leisurely riding, but not for long. The skies darkened and dumped, or maybe it was the Mayan rain god who unleashed buckets of rain for about two hours. Ducking under a half completed building, we spent the two hours dozing, observing, talking and simply enjoying nature's refreshment. Travel plans interrupted make for spontaneous and enjoyable traveling.

The Tulum ruins wouldn't be without the Cenotes. Cenotes were the Mayans sacred watering holes, used for virgin sacrifices, fresh drinking water and probably nobility skinning dipping, not in that order. Without the fresh water, not the skinny dipping nor sacrifices, the enormous and prosperous cities built by the Mayans could not have been supported. Today they make for enjoyable day trips to float, swim and explore these unique geologic pools dotted all across the peninsula. The locals use them for family outings and picnics, tourist use them for photo opps, and because of the heat and humidity, I'm sure the fauna is freshening up there too when all of the visitors depart for the day.

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