Mexico Part 3: Tulum and Playa again

For my last Blog post about Mexico, here are some assorted pictures from Tulum and Playa del Carmen. We spent the last week or so lounging on the beach, reading and frolicking in the waves. For two nights, we moved over to Cabanas Copal which is fancier than Papaya Playa and has a spa and, a couple nights a week, a Mayan Ritual called a Temazcal which is a 2+ hour long sweat lodge ceremony where we inhale and chant and generally meditate and sweat. That was a really great, spiritual experience despite the touristy intention of it.

On the beach, there were some really creative and talented people who made some cool sand scupltures:

Here is the view from our Cabana at Papaya Playa:

This tiny translucent crab waddled across the sand intimidatingly.

At Cabanas Copal, there were two beggar cats at every meal. The big one was blind and slow but sweet and the little one was wily and greedy.

A few days before in Playa, we ate at a mostly-vegetarian and all-healthy restaurant called 100% Natural. To show how health-conscious they were, they filled their fountain with fruit. The food was great. Instead of chips and salsa they served whole wheat bread with salsa and sour cream and chives.

The night before, I decided to bite the bullet and risk some street food. I was glad I did, because the tacos were awesome. Definitely the best mexican food I had down there!

A tiny scruffy kitten that lived near our hotel

And finally, a real live Mexican Mariachi Band roaming the streets of Playa.

Right now we are in New Orleans experiencing Mardi Gras first hand. We've already gone to a parade and toured the lower 9. More adventures to come!
Here is a taste:

Playa del Carmen and Diving in Cozumel (part one)

After we flew into Cancun, we took a bus straight for Playa del Carmen which is another hub for travellers through the Riviera Maya. Like New York, it has its Avenida 5, but it is filled with souvenir shops and tour sellers, as well as a little shop selling pictures with tiny monkeys. We decided to take advantage of its prime location on the caribbean sea and its proximity to Cozumel to go SCUBA diving, which we hadn´t done since Belize a year ago. We dove with Geofish, run by a nice guy from Denver who decided to move down here and follow his dream of owning a dive shop. Turns out it´s not exactly profitable. I guess I´ll have to reevaluate my dream of doing the same thing! Anyway, last thursday we took the ferry across the bay to Cozumel where we were picked up by an texan who ran dive shop on the island, and were soon on a boat out to our first Dive Site.
We did two dives, and on both we saw turtles, sting rays, and of course the hundreds (mas o menos) of colorful fish one finds in the caribbean.
Here are some pictures from diving, but first, our first view of the Caribbean in Playa del Carmen:

A Blenny

These lionfish are not native to the caribbean (in fact I saw one on my dive in Australia), but an aquarium broke and a few got out and mated and the rest is modern history...

The second of the two turtles we saw on our dives. He was pretty nonchalantly swimming near us, and let us get pretty close.

This lovely painted lady is a Triggerfish

A very colorful Angelfish and its entourage

I had no idea my fins were this pink

A Very Large Hermit Crab indeed, who had apparently stolen a Conch Shell

After our first dive, we had a lovely lunch of Guacamole, Pico de Gallo, and sandwiches and anchored near a beach. I dove in and Jim caught me mid-leap.

This Pelican was on the dock in Cozumel, and was very friendly, or at least tolerant. We got within a foot before the dock security told us to get away from the side.

Finally, the adorable dogs at the Hotel we stayed at in Playa (Barrio Latino).

We´re back in Playa now, and we finally got our PIN so we can get cash out at an ATM which saves us a hell of a lot of hassle. We are going back to Tulum tomorrow to finally relax on the beach for at least 5 nights. We´re having a good time, but it´s been kind of stressful with the money situation (and a bout of "Traveller´s Sickness") but I think now we´ll be able to really enjoy ourselves.

Tulum, Mexico: We found our Paradise. (days 4-7)

After a hectic few days arriving in Cancun, getting enough cash to subsist for a few days, finding lodging in Playa del Carmen, and diving, we headed south on the ADO in search of a place where we felt at home. We were hoping to find somewhere to camp on the beach, but Tulum town, where the bus dropped us off, is quite far from the beach. We found an ad for a cheap hostel near the Tulum Ruins (which we haven´t seen yet) so we took a cab there and dumped our heavy backpack. We made a system where we keep the camping supplies and clothes in the big bag and then carry all of our valuables with us wherever we go, so we took all of our cameras, ereaders, DS-es chargers, et cetera on two free bikes from our hostel. We went in search of a rumoured Subway (Jim´s favorite fast food). We missed it on the first pass and instead rode past the ruins and down onto the beach road which is lined with hotels.
On the way we saw a few cool critters such as a lovely iguana basking in the sunbaked road:

We spent the night at Hostel Los Lobos and the next day headed towards the beach. We had scoped out a few place the day before, and chose Papaya Playa because they allowed camping on the beach, and because it was right next to Cabanas Copal which was our first choice but didn´t allow camping and was all booked up. It had a pretty nice vibe and we were very happy to get down to the beach. One of the big draws of Tulum for us was that it was supposedly a nude beach and, as we discovered over the summer, we love swimming naked! It´s very liberating and refreshing. So once we set up our tent, we dove right in.
While swimming was heavenly, it turns out camping on the sand is not very comfortable (and very sandy.) After a few hours of swimming and deliberating, we decided to rent a cabana for the night. It was definitely worth the extra $16 to have a comfy bed, complete with mosquito net, that we didn´t have to share with our luggage. The added peace of mind that comes with a lock on the door helped, too. At this point we are out of cash again so we are going back to Playa del Carmen to wait for our PIN so we can spend a carefree week or so on the beach in Tulum.
Enjoy some of these pictures from Papaya Playa!