Apr 28, 2011 - Coba Maya Ruinen

ein kurzer tagesausflug ab tulum fuehrte uns zu den coba-ruinen, welche mitten im dschungel des umliegenden flachlandes aus dem dickicht ragen, und die 2.-hoechste maya-pyramide mexikos aufweisen, welche sich besteigen laesst. von oben ueberblickt man das weite land, mit den absichtlich gelegten waldbraenden zur fruchtbar-machung des landes, und in der entfernung ausmachbarer, umliegender ehemaliger maya-staedte. ausserhalb des urwaldes wartet ein kleines, zur abkuehlung einladendes feuchtgebiet. den sprung vom steg sollte man sich vorher...

Mar 9, 2011 - Coba adventure

Up at 6:30 and meet the van – only ten people in all and the driver, George. Four college students from Australia, two young couples, and a woman from Canada. We drove the back roads rather than the main highway so there were lots of small villages to see. Stopped for the start of our adventure – rappelling down the side of a cenote – but being in open air after about ten feet. Saw a turtle in the small pond at the bottom. Then up the steps and to a short zip line – across the cenote – with a stick for a break! Back in the van and off to a...

Jan 25, 2011 - Into the Mystic

And together we will flow into the mystic-Van Morrison Today we took a tour of some Mayan ruins with a personal guide. It was like having our own ambassador to the Mayan world. Gudelio Alanis is his name his company is called Excel Tours. He picked us up exactly at 7am this morning and drove us all around the local area south of Playa Del Carmen where there are some incredible ruins. After a bunch of research on TripAdvisor, I settled on his small private tour company. Booking with them is truly like having a best friend take you on a...

Jan 17, 2010 - Cobá

Cobá We decided to keep our rental car for another day, and make our first trip to the Mayan ruins of Cobá. We had been told that it was far less visited than the more touristy Chichen Itza; and that you could still climb the ruins. To reach Cobá, you follow the coast south from Playa to Tulum; another ruins site. From there you go North West, directly away from the coast into the jungle, for about 40km. The ruins of Cobá have not really been restored; the jungle has been cleared away, so the site is exposed, and that’s about it. It is...

Feb 22, 2009 - Tulum and Coba

We car pooled today, as we wanted to see several ruins. First, our group congregated at the ruins of Tulum. This turned out to be a well excavated village, built right on the water. While there is much to be done, the main ruins were well exposed. The grounds were green, and resembled an amusement park. There were even stairs down to the beach if you wanted to swim. The ruins are guarded by a troop of iguanas. The Mayans have a saying that chicken tastes like iguana! Anyway, everywhere we looked there was one or more large lizard watching...

Dec 26, 2008 - Coba ruins

Friday December 26…9:30pm We left the Suytun Cenote at about 7:30am. S&G had left before us, as they wanted to get to the Coba ruins well before the crowds. We needed gasoline, and because we weren’t sure if there was a gas station along the way, we had to backtrack into the outskirts of Valladolid to the Pemex station. It turned out that station was sold out of regular gas, and only had hi-octane. It was about 20% more expensive, so I decided we should go to the other gas station, which was all the way on the other side of town. This whole...

May 28, 2005 - Coba and Mayan Village

I was getting a little bit tired of sitting on the beach every day, so I decided to book a tour with Alltournative, which is a company that I have heard good things about. They organize adventurous, off-the-beaten track tours, with an emphasis on sustainable ecotourism. Lauren wasn't interested, so I left her to sleep in when my van picked me up at 7am this morning. We started off the day by heading to a remote Mayan village. Alltournative is the only company that goes there, and they rotate between this village and two others, so it is...

Apr 5, 2005 - Playa Del Carmen - Part Iii

Thursday, 31st of March; We drove down to Playa del Carmen and checked-in to Maya Inn then drove the car back to Tulum. We took the day OFF and relaxed at the beach. Then went for dinner at Taco Tangos and decided to go and see a scary movie - The Grudge. It was a lot of fun while we sat next to each other and the movie was getting scarier and scarier we were holding onto each other tighter and tighter, as were the rest of the couples. Friday, 1st of April; We found a more relaxed and desserted beach, Coco Beach. Had a siesta before we went...

Mar 20, 2005 - Playa Del Carmen - Part Ii

Saturday, 12th of March; Did a few things here and there. Went to the movies to see Constantine - action movie. Sunday, 13th of March; Went for a II Tank Dive with Juan Jose. Los Arcos (30mts) and Coco Beach (12mts) Monday, 14th of March; (Nics B-day) Went for a II Tank Dive to Tortuga (21mts) saw so many turtles everywhere, this is one of my favourite dive sights. Then for the second dive we went to Barracuda (15mts)and luckily we saw a few of those too. Had an appointment for a facial at the Beauty "Farm". Tuesday, 15th of March; Did as...