Author: keelhauler

We left at 8 AM to drive down to see the Mayan Ruins at Tulum. Even though it is the second most visited ruin in Mexico, this was our first visit.

There are a few more pictographs carved in stone than some other Mayan sites, but they don’t photograph well, so here is an example of the carving at the Temple of the Frescoes.

Claude and Mags have a nice truck which allows us to visit the area attractions without taking public transportation. Here they are with Peggy having entered the portal through the walls surrounding the site.

Here is a view looking toward El Castillo.

A closer view of El Castillo

Tulum is not a large Mayan site but it has spectacular views.  El Castillo sits on a cliff directly above the Turquoise ocean.

You could walk down these stairs to the white sand beach called Boca Pela directly below El Castillo.

Here is a good tip. Get to Tulum early in the morning, so that you can avoid the crowds that arrive starting at around 9:30AM.

It’s also cooler in the early morning.

They average about 10,000 visitors a day during the winter months so the place is crawling with tourists by mid-day.

After our morning at Tulum we drove back toward Xpu-Ha but decided to stop at Tankah Bay where friends of Claude and Mags, Glen & Maureen from Alberta, CA, had purchased three ocean front lots and moved their 5th Wheel in while they work on improvements. Here is a view from the water of their spread.

I can’t believe that the Winter is almost over. We got here on December 7th and other than the 17 nights that we spent back home for Christmas, we enjoyed every minute here. All the friendly campers and the beautiful beach and pleasant weather made the days go fast. I especially enjoyed reading about the snow, ice and cold weather back home.

People always asking me about  safety in Mexico. Like the states, you don’t want to go into a bad neighborhoods at night. Unlike the states most crime is petty theft with no weapons. You read about all the deaths and shootouts here, but 95% of it is in the border towns. I would never camp in Texas near the border of Mexico. Far more likely to be robbed, shot or have your truck stolen.

Here on the Mayan Riviera everyone wants and treats tourists very well. The tourist bring the money that supports the hundreds of thousands of workers who have found their way here for jobs and housing. New small houses are being built everywhere.

How about crossing the border? We try to pick a place where there is no town at the border like Los Indios/Free Trade Bridge which is good for us Easterners. Those heading West have lots of safe options as well. Just stay away from Juarez, Nuevo Laredo, Reynosa or Matamoras, big cities bring more danger.

What is the biggest problem travelling? Topes, the speed bumps that control traffic whenever you are near any population. Some are huge and could really cause vehicle damage. Gas Stations, they are full serve and many attendants try to scam unsuspecting travelers. But stay at the  pump, watch that they start the pump at zero and make sure you tell them and they agree to the size of the bill that you are handing them. They will try to say you gave them a 50 peso note rather than a 500 peso note, if you let them walk away to get change. Police, I guess it’s because they are low paid and think tourists are rich, stupid and scare easily into giving them bribes. They make up infractions and then ask for huge amount of money.

Some tourists submit because they don’t want to be delayed and pay illegal bribes.

I also post this sticker on my RV, that says “No Bite”, “Don’t feed the corruption”

Below are two paragraphs written in Spanish that you could use to stop this illegal practice. If they stop you for a traffic violation. Hand them this.

(English translation)

NOTICE TO MEXICAN POLICE OFFICERS

I understand that you have stopped me for allegedly committing a traffic violation. I will obey your legal instructions by providing you with my Drivers License and vehicle registration. Without admitting guilt in this situation, I will voluntarily follow you to your local police station, where you can properly inform me of the legal procedures, and if asked, I will pay the required fine. I understand that you will issue me a receipt for these actions.

Or if they ask you to pay a fine or ask for a bribe or a gift, hand them this.

Por favor, tome nota de que:

Tengo conocimiento de que existe la Sindicatura del Ayuntamiento y que si Usted me ha pedido que le pague directamente la multa de la infracción de tránsito, le pediré que me diga su nombre y número de oficial. Es mi derecho reportar esto al a oficina del Ayuntamiento, donde una investigación oficial podría ser iniciada.

(English translation)

Please note:

I am also aware of the SINDICATURA process, and if you have asked me to pay you directly for a traffic violation fine, I will ask that you give me your name and badge number. It is my right to report this to the Mayor’s Office, where an official investigation may be undertaken.

Peggy, Claude, Mags and I headed into Playa on Thursday for haircuts, shopping and a dinner at a highly rated Mexican restaurant called El Fogon. Turns out they have three locations all along 30th street, we picked the one near Wal-Mart since that’s where we were.

The open kitchen and the menu was almost identical to the place we had visited a few times before, Los Amigos, which is also on 30th. We decided we liked Los Amigos a little better but both were very good and reasonably priced.

Fajitas

On Friday we headed back to Chemuyil for our last dinner with the whole gang at Pizza Leos. Tough saying goodbye after 3 months of good times. Everyone wants to come back again next year. Saturday morning we leave early morning for Valladolid and Izamal.

See Map 7

We got a nice early start on Saturday pulling out at 6:45AM with the help of Dierck who waved us up and on to the highway. It is a steep hill out the driveway with no visibility onto a high speed divided highway.

We took the fairly new road out of Tulum through Coba. It was smooth, wide and had no traffic all the way to Valladolid, it took us about two hours. We skipped stopping at the Cenote Suytun Campground and headed through Valladolid right to the prison. They make the most beautiful hammocks that we have seen anywhere. They are expensive, about $55. You could fit the whole family in there.

After setting up we walked to the Magical town. It’s one of 38 towns in MX proclaimed to have a special ambience. It’s a pretty little town with the large church built on an old Mayan pyramid in the 1500’s. The bishop there destroyed all the Mayan books but years later repented and tried to rewrite them as he remembered them.

Pope John Paul actually came here on his Mexico trip to make amends for the churches actions.

The Convent is next to a large Zocalo with awaiting tourist carriages. A second Pyramid can be seen a few blocks away.

We walked part way up in the 90oF heat but didn’t think it would be a very good idea to attempt to climb to the very top.

So we walked back to view the church with its large gold altar and the convent museum.

Couldn’t resist taking this picture of a cute little boy running by all by himself with no one in pursuit.

We sort of got lost walking back to camp so we  probably walked a mile out of our way before finding Calle 31 which took us back to camp. In this heat I estimated we must have walked 5 mi all around the pretty little yellow city. Either they got a really good buy on this paint color or it’s a popular paint color, as all the buildings near the town are painted with the same color.

See Map 1 I have been reading about all the drug violence in Mexico and comparing with my own central city of Cleveland, OH. They both sound bad, so we just won’t go near where the problems are.
Over the past three winters that we traveled to Mexico we ended up in the Yucatan. Xpu-Ha is not far from Cancun and has the whitest beaches in all of Mexico. We had previously moved up and down the West coast of Mexico but never found beaches as nice as those on the Caribbean side.
The campground is small but we have found friends here that also are planning on returning again this year. Claude & Mags and Gerry & Ann from Ontario. Reed & Elaine from NM, Pat & Mike from CO. Still there from last year is Vera & Dierck from Germany. So our plan is to return and again fly back home for a long holiday vacation over Christmas and New Years with our family and hometown friends.
We are looking into camping again at La Pesca in the state of Tamaulipas. This state is where all the drug violence is but La Pesca is a sleepy little beach down guarded by a Mexican Navy Base. I figured if we made an early morning drive from Los Indios at the border that we could get there safely. From there to Ciudad Valles should not have any problems that I have heard of, We usually tour around on our way down or back home. I thought it might be fun to head to the mountains near Ciudad Valles and camp along the Rio Micos river on our way down. Here is a photo of when I paddled the Rio Micos 11 years ago.

It’s in an area called La Huasteca Potosina.

However the fall is more rainy than the spring and some of the rivers could be in flood, so a last minute decision will have to be made, I looked at an alternate route entering Mexico west of Laredo at Columbia. This route consists of more turnpike driving but is more than 100 mi longer and has tolls of $70. We have gone this way several times and it is not as pretty a drive as the easterly route. It also passes the outskirts of Monterey which is where a lot of the violence has been occurring. However, I believe the fact that you are on a turnpike should make it more safe.
After an our stay near the Rio Micos it is an easy one day drive to the Emerald Coast bypassing Tampico. This is a good thing since the police there are always seeking bribes from RV’ers for trumped up traffic violations.
If any of my RV friends have any comments or updated information about my proposed route please feel free to add comments here or in the Shoutbox on the left. As I get more information our plans could change.

Today was work on the RV and make sure all systems are go.

I took the RV to Sam’s Club early this morning and had all 7 tires rotated and balanced. It cost less than $30. Two tire stores near me said they couldn’t do it even though I’m under 10′ high and will fit in their doors. A nearby truck place wanted $90 for the same job. So we drove over to Sam’s in Elyria and after 2 hours we were ready headed back home.

Our next problem, I filled the water system and everything was fine, but when I tried to dump the water that I had put into my Grey water tank I found out that my Sani-Con Macerator Pump was rusted and would not rotate. It also blew the switch from the high current draw. So a quick phone call to the RV manufacturer who for only $250 will ship a new one out tomorrow. Hopefully a switch comes with it and installation goes well.

We installed a new window awning last month to give Peggy a little more shade in the bedroom.

The rest of the packing is going well.

On Sunday we are having the whole family over for a early Thanksgiving dinner since we hope we will be on the road by late next week and will not be back until we fly back for our Christmas vacation.

In between getting the RV ready we have been raking leaves which have been coming down like rain. Don’t want the piles of leaves to matt down and kill my grass over the winter.