Mexico!

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Mexico!

By Rachael

We realise we are very behind in our blog given that we have been in the States for the past month and a half so memory of events may be a little hazy...

For the majority of our time in Mexico we were lying on a beach, living the dream. We both turned 23 during our time here so I think for both of us it was a special time on our trip. Anyway, we began our Mexican experience by flying in Mexico City which was no easy feat. We were flying from Havana. At 3am in the queue for check in for our flight Jo commented 'I can't believe none of our flights have been delayed so far'. Big mistake. We got to the front desk and were told 'so you are going to a hotel'. Very confused we assumed they must be talking about when we arrived in Mexico City so replied, 'Yes, we are'. Actually they meant we were being taken to a hotel in Havana to await our flight...on the plus side of life the hotel was an amazing 5 star hotel and we were given a vast double room (with 2 double beds!!) and a TV, and free buffet dinner. Later that night we once again went to the airport where we were supposed to fly out at midnight...we ended up hanging around the airport for hours and hours without anyone informing us of what was going on. We looked around expectantly at the other passengers waiting for the moaning and complaining that would have been the norm in England. But no, the other passengers didn't seem the least bit bothered by all the delays, laughing and joking around at 3am nearly 24 hours after our flight was supposed to happen, whilst we were despairing completely. Arriving in Mexico City hours later, we were told we couldn't get through Immigration Control as there were not enough staff - our flight had arrived at the incorrect time and they were apparently unprepared. Finally our fellow passengers responded, and started shouting and eventually stormed another gate in anger. Security was called (we sat at the back lamely) but they got the message and we finally got through into Mexico City!!

We were rather apprehensive about our time in Mexico City. We had heard so much negative press about how dangerous and polluted the city is. When we had told fellow travellers we were going there they looked horrified. We imagined ourselves in all kinds of trouble - 2 blonde girls in such a violent hugely populated city. But as we have discovered countless times on this trip, you can never believe what you read or hear until you actually experience it for yourself. In reality we found Mexico City to be entirely different to the image we had built up in our minds and really enjoyed our time there. We found it to be a huge city, but the people were friendly, it had a beautiful historic area with the largest cathedral in Latin America, many green areas and also some very interesting modern architecture. We enjoyed exploring the city. We had expected to get some harassment being 2 blonde girls in a sea of Mexicans but actually we received very little unwanted attention.
Highlights - visiting the Frida Kahlo museum in the house where she lived with Diego Rivera for many years after having learnt about her at University. Eating junk food after Cuba where there is none.

Negatives - one thing the press doesn't exaggerate in regards to Mexico City is the horrendous levels of pollution. It made both Jo and I physically ill! After a few hours in the city my eyes were burning and I was sneezing profousely. I thought I was having one of my random sporadic allergic reactions so took loads of allergy pills. It dawned on me after about a day with no relief that it was the pollution.

After Mexico City we got the bus to Oaxaca. There is not that much to write about our time in this city. A few hours away, it is a pleasant colonial city with cobbled streets, a beautiful cathedral, small markets and bustling squares. We spent a couple of very pleasant days there not doing much.

Jo's 23rd birthday was approcahing and we had to think about where we wanted to be. Happily 2 of our friends, a Norwegian couple that we had met on the Inca trail, were in Mexico too and would be on Isla Mujeres for Jo's birthday so we decided to head along to the Yucatan peninsula and go join them on the island. It was a long way to go and we didn't get to see anything on the way but it was worth it!
The bus to Merida was 22 hours long, beginning at 11.30am on a Monday morning and arriving at 9.30am the next day. After having done so many long bus journeys you would think we would be experts at it now, but this one was particularly horrendous. We somehow made the error of getting seats at the back of the bus right next to the toilet. This would have been bearable except for the fact that it obviously hadn't been emptied or cleaned for a long time and absolutely stank. In the unmoving air of the bus this soon turned into my idea of hell. We alerted the driver and asked if we could move but the bus was full and he obviously didn't give a damn. We considered cracking open the miniature bottles of tequila and mezcal in our bags, but decided it would be pointless. So instead Jo sniffed at her nail varnish and I stuffed my chocolate-mint flavoured lipgloss up my nose and covered my head with a scarf...an interesting look. Many hours later Jo suggested that I let her have the window seat, marginally further away from the toilet. I am embarassed to admit her suggestion led me to have a minor breakdown involving me crying...oh dear. It was one long bus journey too many!!! Eventually some poor soul came onto the bus and cleaned the toilet, we thought we were saved, but no it still stunk. Anyway, enough about that...

Once in Merida it was another 4 hour bus to Cancun, from where we had to catch a ferry across to the island, but eventually at about 6pm that afternoon we made it!! We were staying at the only hostel on the island which is overrun with tourists. Happily our hostel was awesome, complete with hammocks, a beach bar, interesting staff and most importantly only a few metres from amazing white beaches and blue sea! Our time in Isla Mujeres was easily one of my favourite times of our trip. Our days consisted of waking up when we wanted, walking down to the beach and sunbathing and reading, with the occasional dip in the perfect waters, and in the evening drinking copious amounts of 2 for 1 frozen margeritas and just hanging out. Bliss. The added bonus was that our lovely friends were there too!

Jo's birthday arrived and freakishly for Mexico, it was raining! To be fair, it was the rainy season apparently, of course it was! We didn't let that dampen our spirits and had a fabulous day. We started the drinking at lunch time with a civilised cocktail or two each on the beach. That evening we went out for dinner with our Norwegian friends and carried on drinking. We had everything - margeritas, wine, tequila, more margeritas....it turned into an alcohol-fuelled night. Magically I didn't get particularly drunk (Nigel has left the building girls). We finished the night at the beach bar at our hostel which was a really cool place to chill out at.

The next morning I think I totally freaked Jo out. At 9am when she woke up in time for breakfast which I had insisted we go to, still in my 'we must get up early everyday and make the most of every day' mindset (which has completley diminished the further into the trip we go...) I was sitting up on my bed fully dressed ready for the beach and grinning at her expectantly while she felt completely hungover. Most hilariously our male friend didn't make it to breakfast or the beach, so hungover he was. Apparently I for once was the only one who could handle my drink!! Haha.

We extended our stay on Isla Mujeres, it was so idyllic. We could both have happily stayed there forever but eventually dragged ourselves away to our next destination, Tulum. Tulum is known for its stunning white beaches which rival those in Thailand. Eager to work on our tans this sounded perfect, and it lived up to our expectations. The hostel we picked turned out to be a great choice as we made some really good friends there, English boys 'Mandy' and an Aussie girl. We spent a couple of very contented days just going to the beach and chilling at the hostel in the evenings. The hostel was very dangerous as it had a bar and a tab system so we didn't pay for our drinks until we left. There were a couple of heavy drinking nights, especially for Jo who loved their Mango daquiris a bit too much. It was a nasty surprise when we checked-out and got our bill!! On our third day we decided to do a tour to visit Chicen Itza, famous Mayan ruins, and a cenate, or underwate cave. It was an absolutely boiling day and arriving at Chichen Itza I felt like I could faint in the sun. Very annoyingly the authorities allow locals selling all kinds of tourist rubbish into the grounds of the ruins so that during our whole visit we were constantly being bombarded by Mexicans to buy ridiculous items. We asked ourselves who would buy such rubbish...turned out it was the American tourists (for some reason the area seems to attract particularly annoying ones). After lunch (complete with Mexican dancers balancing glasses on their heads...I was beginning to tire of being a tourist here ready to be exploited at any chance by the locals) we arrived at the underwater cave which was a blessing - the cold water was delightfully refreshing in the powerful heat. We changed into our bikinis and jumped in off a high ledge...I screamed it felt so high, but looking at it from below once we were in the water it seemed very unimpressive. It was amusing to watch butch men standing at the edge looking macho and then jumping in and screaming like girls.

After Tulum our next destination was Playa del Carmen which we had decided would be the perfect location for my own birthday festivities. Not far from Cancun, it is essentially a beach town designed for tourists of which there are many. We had been told by travellers that it was the perfect place to party and hang out on the beach, just what I wanted! Happily we had roped our friends we had met in Tulum into coming, and met a couple of nice English girls in our dorm, we ended up all staying in the same room and had a great time. During the day we all lay on the beautiful beach drinking Coronas and eating guacamole and nachos. On the night of my birthday we had a few pre-drinks in true English style, then ventured out for dinner. We picked the perfect restaurant, free cocktails and they really made the most of it being my birthday. First the band serenaded me, then I was dragged to my feet by a waiter and had to dance around the restaurant. I thought my embarassment was over, but no, again I had to get up and this time was hoisted into the air by 2 waiters, it was hilarious. The final touch was being made to down a huge flaming shot of sambuca which I could not refuse! By the time we left I was feeling rather tipsy!
We headed back to the hostel, made the most of 'ladies drink free' hour, then went up onto our roof top area and drank more. Old mattresses were lieing around the area and we joked that it was like a scene from the Hangover, that tomorrow morning I would be found lieing out here burnt to a crisp. The reality was not far off... After a while we headed out to a beach-club where again, ladies drank free, and partied. The highlight was the fire-dancers who were amazing! A rather alcohol-fuelled night... The next morning at 6.30am I awoke and found myself feeling very unwell. I had to visit the toilet, a cubicle standing alone on the roof top area very bizarrely, and decided since I was feeling so unwell I may as well lie on the roof to be close by...hence the Hangover joke became true. A member of staff decided to come and speak to me at this delicate time, in Spanish, which was very unwelcome. He tried to tell me I should go to the beach at this hour as it was lovely...I gave him evils until he left me in my agony. The next day was a very hungover one where we sought refuge in our air-conditioned dorm, and only ventured out to ironically watch the Hangover 2, which was hilarious (even funnier than the first in my opinion).

Mexico was definitely one of our favourite portions of the trip - a lot of sunbathing and partying! Sadly I don't feel we got to experience much of the real Mexico as we spent most of our time in touristy beach areas. If we hadn't had such an amazing time that might have bothered me more, but there is always next time for that! Mexico was also our last destination in Latin America and for that reason it was with a mixture of sadness and excitement that we left and flew to Miami. Our time in Latin America was absolutely incredible and we will never forget all the amazing people and places.

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