Blog 1

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I arrived on a Tuesday, (I count as day 0), lacking internet, a communication tool that my life has become heavily reliant upon. Yesterday I finally gave in a jumped on the 15 minute 20 peso colectivo headed south to the magnificant town of Tulum, famous for its ruinas that bear the same name. The town is cute, busy, has good food, drinks and free wi-fi. There I found el rincon poblano, a cafe that deserves much more credit that any travel guide has given it. In fact, I have yet to see it mentioned in any guides. I left there at 9 PM only to be dropped off at the side of Hwy. 307 which connects to the main road where I am staying. The worst part, the main road where I am staying is the back end of the hotel, the other is beachside. This road is cut through a jungle and like much of the jungle, it lacks light, is infested with mosquitoes after the summer rain and for me, unpredictable. I was scared as fuck! I paid a cab $2.00 to drive me. Note to self: never arrive anywhere at night, alone, in a jungle.

That was yesterday and this is today. Day 4 of my journey to discover. Discover what? Not answers because I believe that none truely exist. The reason I am here (academically) is to do research. On a personal level, I hope to better my understanding of the pros and cons of tourism development on the community of Akumal, Quintana Roo and hopefully my understanding will be transferable to the rest of the tourism industry. . Who benefits? Who doesn't? How can I thoroughly identify the issues without my bias perspective? An issue I have yet to overcome........

I have met wonderful people, beautiful people, indigenous people, white people, and this journey begins. A two month stint may not satisfy my curiosity but I hope to do my best at delivering the message of the people. One man I met today was in a sense, a shaaman. He came to the hotel/house where I am staying to remedy up an employee in pain. Four of us got the rub down and it was amazing. In a sense, humbling. The Mayan man practiced this holistic approach to healing the inner body as he mumbled Mayan prayer-like hymns. He did a wonderful job and has been recruited to my list of interviewees. I have to admit that I haven't let a stranger rub down my naked body since..........well, never

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Photos

tulum
sopa azteca, you make my tastebuds smile