Vagabondette

Goodbye Mexico

It’s strange to think that this is my last night in Mexico for several months and maybe my last night ever in Merida.  This country, that I never intended to visit, has captured my heart.  The warmth of the people, the culture and the comfortable atmosphere has made me feel at home even though at times I’m sure I stuck out like a sore thumb.

I’ve spent the last couple days in Merida visiting my old haunts but mostly visiting with friends.  It’s been great to see everyone again even though Alex is gone and we didn’t get a chance to meet up.  I’m not sure if/when I’ll be back but I know that when I return I’ll have a home waiting here.

Tomorrow I leave for the US.  I’ll be traveling for approximately 24 hours straight and I’m not particularly looking forward to it.  My first stop is Palm Springs where I’ll spend a few days with Rob, the owner of the boat I might be sailing on early next year.  We want to spend some time getting to know each other before we set out just to make sure that we click in person.  it feels a bit like a job interview or a first date but it should be fun and I’ve never been to Palm Springs before so that will be nice.

For now I’m going to take once last walk down to the Zocalo to say goodbye to Merida.

Palenque, Mexico

I’m not sure what I expected from a visit to Palenque, but I didn’t get it.  I think I expected it to be much larger, to have more ruins and to be just generally more.  Rather than the wild, sprawling jungle ruins I anticipated what I found was a fairly small site that was manicured like a park.  I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed.

One thing that I liked was watching the families.  I went on a Sunday when entrance is free for Mexican citizens so the place was crawling with families having  picnics and climbing on the ruins.  I also enjoyed the walk through the woods to the waterfall.  It was cool and peaceful and I could have stayed in that one spot all day had it not been for the annoying teenagers who were camped out there.

I visited the ruins during a break in the trip from San Cristobal to Merida so I was just spending a day there.  Since the ruins were smaller than I anticipated I ended up with a lot of time to kill in town.  Palenque is a cute little town and, as you head away from the bus station, the streets become lined with cute little shops and restaurants.  It is clearly a tourist town but it has a nice atmosphere and I enjoyed my explorations.  I ended up camping out in a restaurant on the edge of the plaza at the end of the main road.  The bar was on the second floor and was open-air so it was nice to sit and enjoy the breeze, people watching in the plaza and the live music that started as the sun set.  It was good to relax before my last bus trip to Merida.

Posada 5, San Cristobal de las Casas, Mexico

I walked past Posada 5 several times on my way to/from Backpackers/Na Bolom before I stopped in.  I was getting sick of dorm life and since Posada 5 had gotten some good reviews I thought I’d see how much a private room was.

The Posada is fairly small with 5-6 private rooms and a dorm with 10-12 beds.  The kitchen is not as nice as the Backpackers Hostel and there really isn’t a central sitting area besides the kitchen but the prices more than make up for it.  Dorm beds (single level, not bunk) are only 50 MXN/night which is 1/2 the cost of the cheapest dorm at Backpackers.  My single room was 75 MXN/night.  It’s the cheapest because there is no window but even the one with a window was only 85 MXN/night.  If there are two it’s even cheaper.  They also allow camping for, I think, 40 MXN/night.

The bed I slept in (queen size) was very comfey though the other bed in the room (single) was NOT.

One of the best things about Posada 5 (aside from the cheap prices) was the view.  It’s situated on top of a hill and the back patio overlooks a large, grassy back yard with swing set and a couple of run-down hammocks but what really grabs you is the view.  From the top of the yard you can look over the main downtown area and across the valley to the mountains on the other side.  The view is just beautiful and I would have loved to have seen last night’s lightening storm from the patio.

The Posada seems to be more geared towards couples and families so if meeting lots of other young travelers and going out partying is your goal the Backpackers is probably a better option.  But, if you’re ready for some alone time and a private room to call your own I think Posada 5 is a great option.

I’ve Joined the Revolution

Bar Revolution is one of the most famous bars in San Cristobal - and for good reason.  I’ve been twice now and had two different, but enjoyable experiences.

The first time I went with a group from the Backpackers Hostel we saw a band called Fraktal who played some of the most unique music I’ve ever heard.  A combo of Cello, Guitar, Voice, Drum, Accordion, Keyboard and more, some of their songs had hints of Rusted Root but most were 100% unusual.  Strange as they were, the entire group loved them and we all purchased copies of their CDs.  Take a listen:

The second time I went was with my from Julio from the party in Tuxtla and there was a jazz band which was good but who I only heard for a few minutes before their set was done.

Before all the stupid swine flu crap they used to do two shows each night at Revolution but these days, since crowds are down, they only have one show a night.  Hopefully it’ll go back to normal soon when people realize that the swine flu is not really the big problem that the media has turned it into.

On the second trip to Revolution I discovered the upstairs bar which was nice (and probably a bit more quiet) and has a nice row of padded seats.  I also learned that while they close their doors at midnight, if you’re in you can continue drinking until 1 am and hang out until they kick you out.

If you’re looking for a good group of locals and tourists it’s definitely the place to be.