As a warm-up to our return to Mexico, it was irresistible to book a bit of beach time near Cancun before meeting up with our tour. We decided to stay outside of the new resorts south of Tulum (my, has this area changed!), and booked three days at Mukan https://mukan.com, an ecolodge located in the Sian Ka'an Biosphere (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) about 37 km south of Tulum.
Mukan sits on a perfect white sand beach, and across the road, on its backside are freshwater mangroves where birds, crocs and other wildlife are plenty. There are free bicycles, free yoga (most of the time), good swimming (most of the time), excellent food and drink (full or half board). We were upgraded from the main building to the deluxe beach villa (a $900 value on paper), and all of our cocktails, including a mezcal tasting, were free for us. So management generously comped us for about $1000. worth of value. Management and staff were all very kind and helpful. This was a lovely, privileged experience. The only real problems with Mukan are the cost of getting to and from the resort (we suggest a taxi), and the fact that the water can be too rough for real swimming, as it was for our stay. There were no bug issues or mosquitoes.
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| View from our beach villa at Mukan |
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| Empty beach at Mukan looking north |
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| Uxmal |
We had an overnight at Cancun close to the airport before flights to Mexico City and then Villahermosa, Tabasco, where our tour started. Our travel agent suggested the JW Marriott in Cancun, and it was excellent. I'm not usually a chain hotel kind of guy, but the Marriott was new, modern, clean, convenient and had really fine amenities. We had drinks and a tasty dinner at the hotel, and heard the best mariachi band ever (the shy accordion player was a superstar!).
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| My sweetheart enjoys una canción romántica |
Onward to Villahermosa, where we met Marina and our group for a welcome dinner and the start of our tour. The Chiapas and Its Magic Tour is given by Marina once yearly. It is said to be her signature tour. It is nine days and eight nights, and travels by large van. I think the max number of people is 14 or 16. About half of one's meals are included in the price of the tour.
The highlights below are taken from Marina's website, and she kept to her promise by delivering on all the particulars:
HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS TRIP
- Visiting four archaeological sites with incomparable beauty: La Venta, Palenque, Bonampak and Yaxchilán
- Enjoying the festivals in honor of St. Sebastian and St. Ildefonso in three indigenous villages: Zinacantán, Tenejapa, and San Juan Chamula
- Visiting interesting museums specializing in textiles, traditional medicine, archaeology and history
- Staying in a beautiful colonial city for four days: San Cristóbal de las Casas
- Sharing with a local family at the Lacandon Jungle and being part of their daily lives
- Learning about different aspects of the Maya’s lives in their own context, especially during the festivals. You will enjoy every minute of this time spent with their living culture
- Visiting the Sumidero Canyon and being part of the Parachicos Festival at Chiapa de Corzo
Marina is an amazing person. She's unfailingly kind and polite, and seems to know many interesting people personally. Perhaps this is how she succeeds in delivering so much value -- she allows her tour entry into places most people cannot go. Besides this, she has her doctorate in Mayan archeology and ethnohistory. Her talks and descriptions are fact-filled but never stuffy. Above all, Marina is...soulful. It's impossible to miss; she radiates it.
The three archeological highlights --- Palenque, Bonampak and Yaxchilan are alone worth the price of admission. We were wowed and quieted by the remaining buildings, stelas and "ball courts." Palenque especially is worth one's leisurely exploration, and has its own excellent museum.
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| Inscriptions Temple, Palenque |
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| Mayan god, from wall decoration |
But beyond these sites, we were able to attend three festivals of indigenous people, and the festival in Zinacantlan was absolutely amazing. We were not allowed to take photos inside the church, but trust me --- there were chickens sacrificed, alcoholic posh, lots of incense and candles, droning bands of musicians, bright local festivewear, and Coca-Cola (to burp up evil inside you!). Below is a photo from a similar festival San Juan Chamula, where we could take photos. And below that, Don Benito prepares for a Mayan ceremony with candles, pine branches, incense and flowers.
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| Lighting candles to honor a patron saint |
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| Mayan (not Catholic) cross of flowers, with incense and candles as part of Mayan ceremony |
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| Sumidero Canyon |
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| Local Crocodile |
Marina is both well-versed and well-connected in the world of Fine Arts. She brought us to weavers who worked with the classic back strap loom, to the wonderful Textile Museum and Coop in San Cristobal de las Casas, and to the workshop of the warm and wonderful Juana Gomez Ramirez, also known as The Jaguar Lady.
Juana grew up dreaming of jaguars during her childhood. Years later, she uses the red clay from her area of Chiapas to create museum quality work and an international following. Her family is involved with the business, and they were kind enough to prepare lunch for us while Juana finished one of her cats. Everyone wanted to hug Juana. She has that kind of magnetism.
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| Juana Gomez Ramirez, dreamer of Jaguars |
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| A museum-quality cat |
A few words about San Cristobal de las Casas, the lovely colonial city where we spent the last three days of our trip. This is a fairly cosmopolitan town, with three pedestrian streets, lots of good restaurants and shopping, and a very cool artisan's market with candy shops. Marina has friends there, too, if you want to have clothing made, or if you're in the market for amber, the local semi-precious stone.
We had very good meals at Bangcook Thai Restaurant and Secreto Restaurant, located at 16 de Septiembre 24. The latter features a very special pork dish for two, which takes about a day to prepare. It was tender and delicious, with salads of cactus and red onion, fried cheese squares, black beans and a tomato/chili coulis. By the way, this dinner was our most expensive, and it cost about $54. for two of us, including a glass of wine and dessert. So worth it! Ask for Alfredo the wonderful waiter. For breakfast or a tasty sweet, please try Ooh La La, the French bakery with two locations. Their almond croissants are as good as Paris or Montreal, I promise.
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| The killer pork dish at Secreto |
There is one problem with San Cristobal. It's cold in the winter, as it's pretty high up --- over 7000 ft. So we were living in temps around the mid-40s Fahrenheit. And --- here's the kicker --- almost none of the hotels offer heat. We found out later that a handful of hotels offer electric heaters at extra cost, but ours didn't. So it's hard to get warm sometimes, and easy to get run down. We brought layers as instructed, but the damp and cold were an issue.
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| San Cristobal Cathedral |
One other comment, about group travel. You have all kinds of different people, with different physical abilities, speeds, needs and personalities. Sometimes it can be a challenge for sure. Pack your patience and leave your assumptions at home. On the other hand, you may meet some very cool folks with similar interests. It all comes with the territory, and it's all part of the journey.
I am always happy to answer questions if I can. Happy and safe travels!
Beautiful, John. You describe it so well!
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