Croatia has some beautiful national parks. Plitvice Lakes is the most famous, but it was too far away for us to visit on our one free day in Split, so we “settled” for Krka National Park; quite a nice consolation prize. If you ever find yourself in the area, it’s well worth a visit. I enjoyed it enough that I chose the falls as my blog’s cover photo.
Date: 11/5/2011 Camera: Panasonic DMC-FZ40 Click for larger view
This series is a look back at my very first Eurotrip in 2007, during which I visited Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. I never kept a journal during that trip so I am writing this mostly from memory. All photos were taken with my old pocket camera.
April 1st, 2007: Our second day in Munich began with a guided bus tour of the city.
The Siegestor (Victory Gate)Munich Street with the Theatinerkirche and Feldherrnhalle visible in the distance.
We also stopped outside of the University of Munich to see the Monument to the White Rose, a resistance group in Nazi Germany, comprised primarily of students, many of whom were executed by the Nazis. The members of the group are now honored among Germany’s greatest heroes for their non-violent resistance against the Nazi regime. If you’d like to learn more about the White Rose, I’ve seen two excellent German-language films that are highly recommended: The White Rose and Sophie Scholl: The Final Days.
Monument to the White Rose consisting of the group’s characteristic leaflets.
Back in the Marienplatz, we saw performers all over the square, as well as a huge anti-hunting protest march.
The Rathhaus in the Marienplatz
The city tour ended with a stop at Nymphenburg Palace, which had once been the main summer residence of the rulers of Bavaria. The palace is huge, but we only had time to tour a small portion. No flash photography was allowed inside (and Nymphenburg would turn out to be the only palace we visited on this trip to allow any type of indoor photography).
Nymphenburg PalaceA wing of the palace with one of its many resident swans in the foreground.Nymphenburg InteriorGallery of Beauties, a room of paintings commissioned by King Ludwig I featuring the most beautiful women in Munich, some of whom were his lovers.Group shot in the gardens behind the palace.
Later that afternoon we visited the Dachau concentration camp memorial. After watching a documentary about the camp’s history, we toured the grounds. Walking among the barracks, crematorium, and gas chamber was a haunting experience, impossible to put into words.
This powerful sculpture commemorates the victims.“Never Again” in several languages.There were originally two columns and 30 rows of prisoner barracks. All but the first row have been torn down.The crematorium ovens.The Nazis installed fake showerheads in the gas chambers to convince victims they were entering shower rooms. This gas chamber had not been put into operation before the camp was liberated.The only window to the outside world in the gas chamber.One of the guard towers.
After leaving the camp we returned to the Marienplatz in Munich for dinner. We then headed to a brewery called the Augustiner to toast our final night in Munich before returning to the hotel. In the morning we would be departing for Vienna.
This series is a look back at my very first Eurotrip in 2007, during which I visited Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. I never kept a journal during that trip so I am writing this mostly from memory. All photos were taken with my old pocket camera.
Flash Forward: Munich
In 2007, as I approached my 36th birthday, I was given the opportunity to travel overseas for the first time in my life. Prior to that, I had never done much traveling outside of some long drives up and down the East Coast to places like Maine and Florida, and parts in between. I hadn’t been on an airplane since my high school senior trip when I was 18, and the only foreign country I’d ever visited was Canada, but that had just been a road trip over the border to Niagara Falls, so I’m not sure that even counts. The thought of traveling the world had never really crossed my mind. I did not understand what it means to be bitten by the travel bug, but that was about to change.
My uncle, Kipp, invited me to join him on a trip with his high school German class to Europe during spring break. It was a trip he made with his class every couple of years. On this occasion he had an open slot for a chaperone and asked me if I’d like to be one. My trip would be completely free except for the surcharge I would pay to guarantee a private single room. I jumped at the chance. I mean, how many times do you get offered a free trip to Europe? For me it would turn out to be twice, but I didn’t know that at the time.
At the pre-trip group meeting I met the students and other chaperones. Among the advice given was to bring a small suitcase since you would be lugging it around everywhere. I took that to heart and crammed my entire 10-day trip into a suitcase roughly the size of a carry-on with no room to spare. So of course when I got to the school on the day of the trip, everyone else had giant suitcases. 🙂
Ready to depart with my tiny suitcase.
When we went through security at the airport in Philadelphia I was pulled off to the side and searched—it would be the first of three times on this trip I would be specially searched at an airport. I can only surmise that I resembled the profile of what they deemed to be a suspicious person worthy of extra scrutiny—maybe it was the goatee.
Eventually we got on the plane for a short flight to Boston, where we would connect to Germany. I had the window seat. The man sitting in the middle seat next to me decided that it was more important for him to spread his newspaper out over three seats with his elbow hanging half over my seat than it was to give me the courtesy of my personal space. It was a short flight so I just pressed against the window and endured it, though nowadays I would probably say something.
We reached Boston and boarded a Lufthansa flight for Germany. This time I had an aisle seat, which was key for an 8.5-hour flight during which I was unlikely to sleep. It was my first experience flying international and I couldn’t believe all of the food and drinks were free, so I indulged plenty, perhaps hoping that alcohol would numb the smell of the bad B.O. guy in the seat in front of me. The in-flight movie was Rocky Balboa (this was right before they started letting you choose the movie you wanted to watch on your own screen).
When we landed in Germany I had a much easier time getting through customs than in the States. I walked around for most of the first day without being able to hear properly—I hadn’t yet mastered the art of getting my ears to pop during landing. We met up with our tour guide, a British fellow named Tom, who guided us to our bus. Our group was just large enough to warrant our own private bus, but small enough that we each had an entire row of seats to ourselves—a very comfortable way to spend nine days on the road. This trip spoiled me because when we returned in 2009, the bus was filled to the brim with three groups and everyone battling for seats during the entire trip.
Before long we were on the Autobahn headed for the city of Munich. After navigating a traffic jam we arrived at the main square in Munich, known as the Marienplatz. We were unable to check in to our hotel until later that afternoon, and I hadn’t slept on the plane, so by this point I was running on fumes. In the end, I would be awake for 32 straight hours on my first day, but none of that mattered because I was standing in Europe! I honestly never thought I’d see another continent. I had never even owned a passport until this trip. Being here was sublime.
We arrived just in time to see the famous Glockenspiel spring into action like a giant cuckoo clock.
GlockenspielCloseup of Glockenspiel figures.
After the Glockenspiel our group split up. Uncle Kipp and I had lunch at a nearby cafe, where I enjoyed my first Euro-beer, plus sausage and sauerkraut. The next day for lunch I would have essentially the same thing, except with fries instead of kraut (the fries were so tasty; they were more like crispy fried potatoes). Besides beer and water, the drink I enjoyed most on this trip was Fanta, a popular beverage over there, which tastes a bit different than in the States–not as sweet, more refreshing and natural tasting (well, as natural as soda can taste, anyway).
After lunch we did some sightseeing.
Rathhaus (Munich’s City Hall)The Feldherrnhalle (sight of the Beer Hall Putsch of 1923, Hitler’s unsuccessful first attempt to seize power).
Munich has some amazing cathedrals. Here are a couple of them:
FrauenkircheOne of the massive stained-glass windows inside the Frauenkirche.Theatinerkirche I couldn’t fit much of the cathedral into this shot, the downside of only having a pocket camera.Theatinerkirche Interior
Later we climbed 300+ steps to the top of the Peterskirche tower to enjoy some spectacular views of Munich. The inside of the tower, with its winding steps and dark, narrow corridors, really makes you feel like you’ve traveled back in time to the medieval era.
The photo at the top of this post was taken from this vantage point. Here are a few more:
I was too lazy to straighten this out. 😉The Olympic Tower. On a clear day you can see all the way to the Alps.Looking down at the Marienplatz square.
While up here we also got a birds-eye view of the Glockenspiel in action. A little later we met up with the rest of the group and headed back to the hotel to finally check in before heading out to dinner. All dinners were included in the tour, but the best meals were in Munich because we went to actual restaurants (dinner was served in the hotels of the other cities we visited).
The first night also happened to be my birthday, so Uncle Kipp arranged for the waitress to bring out a steak with a firecracker in it and the group sang Happy Birthday. My other recollection about that first restaurant was that they served the best tomato soup I ever had, almost like eating spaghetti sauce.
My birthday steak.
After dinner we headed to the famous Hofbrauhaus for drinks and I had my first Mas beer, which is a draft beer served in a full liter mug. The beer in this region is very easy to drink; it goes down much more smoothly than beer in the States (I’m not a big drinker, so it only took 2 1/2 of these Mas mugs on the second night to give me my first hangover since college).
Me with Uncle Kipp
Later that night we returned to the hotel for a much-needed night of sleep. In the morning we would be taking a tour of Munich followed by a visit to the Dachau concentration camp, which will be covered in the next installment.
Cancun . Click on any image in this post to view a larger version.
November 3, 2013: After a long day of driving from Merida to Cancun, with a visit to Chichen Itza in between, I finally checked into my hotel around 8 p.m. on a rainy evening. The hotel was one of those all-inclusive joints that are always trying to sell you a time share or vacation club or whatever they call it. I discovered just how aggressive they can be before I even made it to the elevator with my suitcase when I was intercepted by one of their marketing people. Really? Could I at least unpack before you start harassing me? I was tired and not in a sales-pitch kind of mood, so I just kind of played dumb until she let me go.
Moments later, I finally arrived in my room. I’m not picky about hotel rooms (when you do most of your traveling with a dog, you learn to take what you can get), but I was surprised by the cheap-motel feel of the room, like a leftover relic from the 50’s or 60’s, with concrete walls painted lime green. No mini-bar, which I guess is understandable in an all-inclusive place, but I missed the ability to keep my water cool (the broken ice machine on the floor didn’t help matters). There was also no free WiFi and you had to pay if you wanted to use the in-room safe (so much for all-inclusive). Minor quibbles, but I would have expected more considering how much you pay to stay in one of these resorts.
On the other hand, I had a great view of both the ocean and the bay from my window, which I was looking forward to seeing in the daylight.
Daylight view from my room. A Mayan ruin is visible to the right.
In the meantime, I ventured downstairs for dinner and then outside to take a nighttime stroll. The rain had let up so I decided to take a walk up to the nearby Mayan ruin. I had the entire ruin to myself; it was so peaceful overlooking the ocean. I could have stayed there all night.
Mayan RuinOverlooking the beach from the ruin (long exposure).
I headed back to my room and went to bed. Since I had gotten very little sleep over the long week, I decided I would sleep in the following morning so I would be rejuvenated for the rest of my stay. That idea, however, was quashed when someone from the marketing staff called me at 7 a.m. to ask me if I was going on their trip to Chichen Itza. I had just come from Chichen Itza the night before, why would I want to go back? I tried to go back to sleep, but a half-hour later someone else called to ask if I was coming to their breakfast presentation. Umm, no! I was really irritated now (I guess I should have unplugged the phone).
There was no going back to sleep now, so I got ready and then headed downstairs, sought out the first marketing person I could find, and told her I was not interested in anything they had to sell and to please make sure nobody called my room again. I’m normally not that assertive but I didn’t want to spend the rest of my brief stay dodging sales pitches. Anyway, it worked; no salesperson called me again for the rest of my stay; they just resorted to slipping things under my door.
So if you’re considering staying in one of these all-inclusive places, just know what you’re in for. It’s not the kind of place in which I would have chosen to stay if it hadn’t been a part of my tour package. While the all-inclusive aspect has its appeal (especially the unlimited mixed drinks I was able to order), it’s not really my cup of tea. I would rather not be married to eating all of my meals at the hotel buffet (which you almost feel obligated to do given that you already paid for it), and the whole Dirty-Dancing-Catskills-resort atmosphere with the scheduled events and activities doesn’t really appeal to me. It seems designed to keep you in or near the hotel for your entire stay, or to use the hotel for any excursions.
Cancun in general strikes me as a vacation destination for Americans who don’t like to travel, as it’s essentially an American resort that happens to exist in Mexico. You don’t have to learn the language or customs or venture outside of your comfort zone because you’re shielded in this self-contained luxury cocoon. There’s nothing wrong with that if that’s what you’re looking for, but for my part, when I want to spend a week at the beach I can just drive to the Jersey shore.
That being said, the beaches and waters of Cancun are stunningly beautiful. The turquoise Caribbean was like nothing I had ever seen before, and the white sand was incredibly soft and powdery, not coarse like the beaches back home. I was so taken by the comfort of the sand and the beauty of the water that I was inspired to go swimming in the ocean, which is something I almost never do at the Jersey shore.
Looking Up the BeachThe Gorgeous Water
After swimming I spent some more time on the beach and then took another walk up to the Mayan ruin to see it in daylight.
On the way up to the ruin I encountered this guy on the steps.The Mayan RuinAnother view of the ruin.View of the beach from the ruin.
I then headed to the hotel pool, which has a bar that serves drinks while you sit on a bar stool in the pool, and enjoyed some Mai Tais. So yes, despite my protestations, I did make good use of the all-inclusive package. 🙂
I also scheduled an excursion for the following day called Jungle Tour that involved driving your own motor boat through a lagoon and mangroves and out to sea to go snorkeling on the Great Mayan Reef, which is said to be the largest reef in the Western Hemisphere. I had never been snorkeling before, so I was looking forward to it. The rest of the evening was spent checking out a nearby outdoor mall and stopping by the hotel’s “Pirate Party” on the beach, which was basically a glorified high school dance, so I left quickly.
The Outdoor Mall
The next day I headed out for my snorkeling excursion. I had trouble figuring out where to pick up the bus that would take me to the tour operator and almost wound up being late, but I eventually made it. I decided to buy a disposable underwater camera in their shop and then I was off to change, pick up my gear, and report to the dock.
Me on my boat (taken with disposable camera).
We each had our own boats to drive as we headed out to the reef, which took about a half-hour. Once there, after some instruction, we jumped in. I stayed with the beginners, though I think I would have been okay following the experienced snorkelers. Despite the overcast sky, the view underwater was amazing, and nothing can prepare you for the first time a large fish appears out of nowhere to swim right in front of your face. Startling, but also exhilarating.
The underwater camera turned out to be a waste because most of the pictures did not come out, and the ones that did are not of very good quality. In fact, this is the only underwater shot that was even remotely worth sharing:
As a novice snorkeler, I kept making the mistake of turning my head to the point where the snorkel became submerged, causing me to swallow seawater. The ocean was rough as well, which led to a bout of motion sickness (I should have taken Dramamine or something). On top of that, the life vest kept scraping against my underarms until my skin was raw (next time I’ll have to wear something to prevent that). So I wound up returning to my boat about ten minutes early, with a headache and the world spinning around me. Despite all of that, it was still an amazing experience and definitely something I want to do again. I’ll be better prepared for it next time.
At the end of my snorkeling adventure.
That evening, for my final dinner of the trip, I decided to forego the buffet and make a reservation at the hotel’s fancy Italian restaurant. It was part of the all-inclusive package, which meant unlimited glasses of prosecco. The lasagna was just okay, but the antipasto and dessert buffets were great, especially the cannolis filled with chocolate mousse.
After dinner I headed upstairs to pack for my flight. I asked for an 8 a.m. wake-up call the next morning only to have the front desk call me at 7:30 to let me know when my airport transfer would be arriving—they were just determined not to let me sleep. :-
The shuttle was late because the driver had to switch vehicles after the AC broke on the first vehicle, but he eventually came and I made it to the airport with time to spare. I was a bit annoyed that I had to wait in line with the rest of the people checking their baggage when I only had a carry-on, but it was nice to go through a security checkpoint that doesn’t make you take your shoes off. Before long I was on the plane and headed back to Jersey. The flight home was very comfortable—I had sprung the extra $49 for premium economy seats and nobody else was sitting in them, so I basically had two entire rows on both sides of the plane to myself, which enabled me to get some nice sunset views like these, captured with my cell phone camera:
Before signing off, a quick word about the tour company I used, Tour By Mexico. I tried to do as much research as possible before my trip, but there was not a whole lot of info about them online in terms of reviews, so I took a bit of a gamble in booking with them. It paid off. They were very professional and organized, answered all of my questions before the trip, showed up promptly for all of my transfer pickups (save the Cancun pickup mentioned above), and they quickly resolved the issue I had with my Mexico City hotel. I would recommend them if you are looking for an organized tour in Mexico, and the Pyramid Tour in particular was a great way to visit many of Mexico’s more famous pyramid sites within the span of a week.
Well, that’s it for my Mexico journal. Before long I’ll be writing about my U.K. trip. Until then, I leave you with my Mexico trip video:
Me at Chichen Itza . Click on any image in this post for a larger view.
November 3, 2013: The longest day of my Mexico trip began in the morning with a pickup at my hotel in Merida for the drive to Chichen Itza. I would not be returning to the hotel, so I had all of my luggage with me. Fortunately, I had chosen to travel with just a carry-on, so there wasn’t much to lug around. We drove around the city picking up others until the van was full. The entire group would be moving on to Cancun after Chichen Itza, so the back of the van was piled with everyone’s luggage.
After a couple of hours of driving we arrived at Chichen Itza, home of one Mexico’s most famous pyramids, El Castillo (pictured above), but first our guide took us on an extended tour of other buildings in the complex.
El Caracol (aka, The Observatory)A building in the Las Monjas complex. Supposedly the hole on the right was blown by an overzealous archaeologist.Another building in the Las Monjas complex.
Before long I got my first view of El Castillo.
El Castillo
Unfortunately, they no longer allow you to climb this pyramid. They closed it off to public access seven years ago after an elderly woman slipped on the steps and fell to her death. From what the guide was saying, it sounds like Mexican authorities are closing off more and more ruins for both safety reasons and to preserve the ruins from human erosion, so if you want to climb the still-open pyramids in places like Teotihuacan and Uxmal, you might want to get down to Mexico sooner rather than later.
After spending some time at the great pyramid, our guide took us to some of the other nearby structures.
The Skull PlatformCloseup of some of the skulls.The Great Ball Court. Mayan nobility would have viewed the event from the tall structure on the upper left.
After the guided tour ended we were given free time to explore the rest of the complex. I headed over to the Temple of the Warriors.
Temple of the WarriorsTemple of the WarriorsStanding among the pillars near the Temple of the Warriors.
I then headed down to the other end of the complex to check out the Sacred Cenote, which supplied water to the city. On a side note, we were supposed to go swimming in a nearby underground cenote after leaving Chichen Itza but that never materialized, bummer. 😦
The Sacred Cenote
Along the way I had to run the gauntlet of vendors. They’re not as annoying as the ones in Teotihuacan because they are set up behind tables, so they don’t follow you around as much. And they’re located on side paths away from the ruins so, unlike Teotihuacan, it’s easier to avoid them, but it still adds a touristy vibe to the place that you don’t get when visiting more remote sites like Uxmal and Kabah.
After walking around the cenote I made my way back to the great pyramid for some more photos.
It was time to leave, so I headed back toward the park entrance. I had 20 pesos left in my pocket so I figured I’d see what I could get from one of the vendors before exiting. I wasn’t expecting much since 20 pesos is roughly the equivalent of $2, but I figured it couldn’t hurt to try, and maybe they’d want to unload some goods since it was near the end of the day. I stopped at a vendor, found what I thought was a cheap item and asked how much. He said, “50 pesos,” so I said, “No thanks,” and started to leave. He followed me and asked me how much I wanted to give. I said, “20.” He said, “Okay, 20.” I handed him the 20 pesos and he said, “No, 20 U.S. dollars.” So he had increased the price from $5 (50 pesos) to $20 (200 pesos) while acting like he was giving me a bargain because 20 was less than 50. He obviously was counting on my misunderstanding of the currency differences to try and swindle me. I walked away.
When I reached the end of the path I realized I was at the wrong gate, so I had to turn around and try to find my way to the correct gate (Chichen Itza is a large complex). By the time I finally reached it, I was very late. I walked around looking for my group but could not find anyone. Eventually my guide found me and led me to the dining hall where the group was having lunch. I sat near a couple from Switzerland and we had a nice conversation. I told them how much I love Switzerland and it turned out that they were from Basel, which I had just visited on my last Eurotrip.
The observatory from outside the park.
After dinner it was time to head back to the van for the long drive to Cancun. About three hours later, around 8 p.m. on a rainy evening, I checked into my Cancun hotel for the final leg of my trip, which will be covered in the next installment. In the meantime, here’s one more photo of El Castilo:
Split was the most pleasant surprise of my 2011 Eurotrip. Our primary reason for visiting Croatia had been to see Dubrovnik. We knew we would visit other places along the way but did not have anything specific in mind. A friend of my uncle’s recommended Split and when I saw it on the map, it looked like a good halfway point between Zagreb and Dubrovnik, so we booked three nights.
Built in and around the palace of the ancient Roman Emperor Diocletian, Split is one of the most remarkable cities I’ve ever visited. The old palace structure houses everything from apartments to shops and restaurants; the city is completely integrated with the usable parts of the palace. As you walk around the core of Split, inside the ancient Roman palace walls, you are often strolling on the very same roads used by the Romans, still intact and lined with ancient temples and other structures. If have plans to visit Croatia, a stay in Split should definitely be near the top of your list.
This photo was taken as we hiked up Marjan hill, which overlooks the entire city. Prominent features include the palm tree-lined Riva promenade, a great place to sit and have dinner while gazing out at the Adriatic, and the looming bell tower.
Date: 11/4/2011 Camera: Panasonic DMC-FZ40 Click for larger view
Uxmal . You can click on any image in this post for a larger view.
November 2, 2013: This was my favorite day of the trip. It began with a morning pickup at the hotel across from mine, where I met a couple from California (I met a lot of California people on this trip). The driver apparently spoke only a few words of English so we had some trouble communicating with him. However, after everyone was picked up and in the van, the driver grabbed the microphone and began speaking in perfect English. Turns out he was actually our guide and was just pranking us. 🙂
So we sat back for the long ride to Uxmal. It was literally in the middle of nowhere, as the road cut through forest with virtually nothing else around. It reminded me a bit of driving through certain portions of the Pine Barrens in New Jersey, but with even longer stretches of remoteness.
We eventually reached Uxmal and had time to do a little shopping before entering. It was a very hot day, and just as humid as the previous day. I considered buying one of those Panama hats to block the sun but instead settled for an Uxmal baseball cap since I have collected baseball caps from most of my other travel destinations. I still hadn’t managed to find any sunscreen on this trip (a store in the ground-floor mall of my hotel in Merida wanted like $35 for a little tube!), so I just used some hand lotion on my face and my Avon bug spray (which includes some sunscreen) for the rest of me. The bug spray has proven to be very effective on my two jungle-ish trips in Peru and Mexico at keeping away the insects, so I was glad I brought it.
Upon entering the Uxmal complex the first thing you see is the glorious Pyramid of the Magician. Unfortunately, this is not a pyramid they allow you to climb.
Pyramid of the MagicianPyramid of the Magician
I noticed several lizards crawling up and down the pyramid walls (I believe they were iguanas). They were everywhere and had no fear of humans, so you could walk right up to them and take a picture like this:
An Uxmal Citizen
Our guide took us through the entire complex, providing excellent background and commentary. This was easily my favorite of all the pyramid sites I visited. Because it is so remote and peaceful, with far fewer tourists than the more popular pyramid sites (and no vendors harassing you to buy stuff), it’s really easy to imagine yourself as an Indiana Jones-type of explorer stumbling onto a lost Mayan city in the middle of the jungle.
Nunnery Quadrangle (a government palace)A building of the Nunnery QuadrangleLooking through the ball court toward the Governor’s Palace.Governor’s Palace
After our tour, the guide gave us free time that I used to climb the Great Pyramid at the other end of the complex, which has only been partially restored.
The Great Pyramid
The top offers a bird’s-eye view of the entire complex and really gives you a sense of its remoteness as you gaze upon jungle stretching to the horizon in every direction.
Me on top of the Great PyramidPyramid of the Magician viewed from the Great Pyramid
After spending some time at the top I made my way to an unrestored, ruined structure called the House of the Doves. Located in an isolated area of the complex through some foliage, I was the only person there. I love having a place to myself like that; it always makes me feel as if I’m discovering something that no one else knows about. I could practically hear John Williams’ Raiders theme in my head. 😉
House of the DovesHouse of the Doves
Soon it was time to leave and head to Kabah. Here are a few Uxmal parting shots:
Looking up toward the Governor’s PalaceFront of the Governor’s PalaceView of the Uxmal complex from the Governor’s Palace hill.Pyramid of the MagicianPyramid of the Magician
Kabah is a sister site to Uxmal located about 14 miles away. The two sites are connected by an ancient Mayan causeway, though I’m not sure if you are actually able to hike the whole thing. A grand arch sits at either end of the causeway but I did not have the chance to see this at Kabah since I was unaware of it at the time.
Kabah In the distance on the upper right you can see the overgrown Great Pyramid of Kabah.
Kabah is even more remote than Uxmal, with very little in the way of facilities, which to me is a good thing because it feel much less touristy than the more popular sites. In fact, we were the only group there, so we basically had the run of the place. It’s a smaller site than Uxmal, but apparently only a portion of it has actually been excavated, so it could prove to be much larger than it appears. As I toured the various buildings I could see excavators working on structures in the woods. We didn’t have a lot of time to spend here, so I never made it to the other side of the road (where the causeway is), but from what I hear, it’s worth a hike to see structures still overgrown with forest (as well as the aforementioned arch).
Codz Poop (Palace of the Masks)Codz PoopCloseup of Codz Poop facade.El Palacio (to the right)El Palacio (may also be known as the Governor’s palace, though I’m not sure about that)Another temple.
After Kabah I was not feeling too well, mostly because I hadn’t hydrated enough to counteract the extreme humidity; I did not bring as much water as I should have, but the California couple was kind enough to give me an extra bottle of water they had. For lunch we went to an outdoor buffet at a charming hotel, though I wasn’t feeling up to eating much. After dinner, we were scheduled to go home, but another couple wanted to see a working Mayan village and the group voted to go. I would much rather have just gone back to my hotel at that point, given the way I was feeling (and the fact that there was an extra cost associated with it), but I didn’t want to ruin it for everyone else, so I went.
I think the village was just for show and that they don’t actually live there, but it was still a neat experience. We saw them make rope from leaves and enjoyed tortillas made right in front of us. We also were able to pick tasty oranges right off the trees and eat them; I had never seen oranges with green peels before.
Me with one of the Mayans. I’m holding a piece of rope he had just made.Interior of a Mayan Hut. According to my guide in Merida, many people on the Yucatan still sleep in hammocks rather than beds.
When I finally returned to the hotel that night, I skipped dinner again but found time to enjoy the hot tub, which really hit the spot. In the lobby that night there was a big Day of the Dead corporate party going on, with music loud enough that anyone who wanted to go to bed early would be screwed. Luckily, I’m a night owl anyway, and I had to pack since this was my last night in Merida. In the morning I would be headed to Chichen Itza and then on to Cancun.
In honor of this Sunday’s season premiere of Game of Thrones, here’s a bird’s-eye view of Dubrovnik, a.k.a. King’s Landing. This photo was taken from the top of Srd Hill. To the right of the walled city you can see the fort that figures prominently in many scenes. If you’d like to see more photos related to the TV series, check out Dubrovnik: A Tour of King’s Landing (and other locations).
Date: 11/8/2011 Camera: Panasonic DMC-FZ40 Click for larger view
I took this photo in November during the Croatia leg of my 2011 Eurotrip. This building, located above the main falls at Krka National Park, reminded me of something you might see in a fantasy film, the way it seemed to be one with the land and the water, like something out of Middle Earth.
Date: 11/5/2011 Camera: Panasonic DMC-FZ40 Click for larger view
November 1, 2013: A few hours after my morning pickup in Mexico City I landed in Merida. As the plane approached I got a good bird’s-eye view of the Yucatan Peninsula: lush, green, and flat. The noon sun was almost directly overhead, which resulted in the neat effect of the clouds casting shadows that looked like lakes:
The first thing that struck me when I stepped out of the airport was the humidity. I knew it would be hotter on the Yucatan Peninsula, but I was not prepared for the feeling of stepping outside into a steam room. The temperature was in the 90’s and the humidity level was over 90-percent, which meant that sweat basically began pouring off you right away. The humidity also wreaked havoc with my camera; the lens fogged up as soon as I walked outside. I had to head back inside and treat the lens with an anti-fog coating.
My Merida guide met me at the airport and took me on a tour of the city via automobile. As with my first full day in Mexico City, I was the only person in the vehicle, so it was essentially my own private tour. Merida is a very charming city full of colonial architecture and devoid of skyscrapers. I did not take pictures from the car because I figured I’d return to most of these sites on foot. Unfortunately, I was not feeling too well during my two days in Merida, so I did not see as much of the city as I would have liked.
The guide was very good, giving me lots of historical background. Regarding the heat, he told me that even at its coldest the temperature in Merida rarely dips below the 60’s, but during that time the locals can been seen walking around in sweaters and scarves, which I found amusing since those of us enduring this brutal winter in the States would consider 60 degrees practically beach weather. 😉
I was disappointed to learn that Merida had already had its big Day of the Dead celebration, complete with full parade to the cemetery, on the previous day, so I missed out on all of the festivities. I had timed my trip so that I would arrive in Merida on November 1, which I thought was the first official day of the holiday, but as my guide pointed out, the previous day was for the public while November 1st and 2nd are more for the family. Oh well, I guess I should have researched that better.
After the tour the guide dropped me at my hotel, The Fiesta Americana, and waited while I checked in. The hotel had a very cool interior, by far the nicest of the hotels in which I stayed during this trip.
Fiesta Americana Interior (vertical panorama)
After getting settled in my room I returned downstairs so my guide could drive me back into the center of town and drop me off. Although my hotel was little more than a mile from the center of town (easy walking distance), I nevertheless appreciated the ride. No sooner had I started meandering about than a man came up to me and started chatting me up. He wanted me to come eat lunch in his restaurant. I would have liked to explore my options, but I figured what the hell, I was hungry anyway. I ordered a traditional Yucatan dish, a chicken stew type of thing; it was pretty good.
After lunch, the restaurant owner offered to show me to some museum that only locals know about. Based on my experience in Mexico so far, I figured it was a ploy to get me to buy something, but I went along because he was a nice guy. He took me into a building and upstairs and then left. The “museum” turned out to just be a shop of the same type of stuff you could buy anywhere else, so I left quickly, much to the shop owner’s chagrin.
I then walked around some more and slowly made my way back to the hotel, figuring I’d come back into town around dinner time. That did not happen as I was feeling the effects of both the humidity and perhaps some food I ate, so I skipped dinner, though I did head out later that evening for a walk. After returning, I went to bed. I had an early pickup scheduled in the morning for my trip out to Uxmal, an excursion to which I was very much looking forward.
Michael Rappa 