A Merry Band of Scuba Divers Head to the Yucatán
Let the Adventure Begin! This tale of our experience is heavily picture loaded. A few months back I'm sitting on the couch, next to my lovely wife, with my iPad in my lap cruising through Facebook and I come across a post by Cindy Sieman about a trip down to the Yucatán to do some scuba diving in a few of the (over 7,000) Cenotes found there. She had a trip planned to do so and there were a couple of open spots available. I'd met Cindy just over a year ago when I got lucky enough to meet her dad Rick, the founder of Dirt Bike Magazine. During dinner that evening I discovered that Cindy has a passion for scuba diving. Passion is actually a bit of an understatement - may be more like an obsession but in a really good way. She has an incredible resumé of underwater abilities. Hmmm... My pea brain's interest slipped into gear; I'm a diver, albeit I've been out of the water for fifteen years and I've never been to the Yucatán although I grew up ten miles from Mexico. This could be quite the trip. So I held my iPad over to my wife and pointed at Cindy's post and said "this looks interesting." Robyn looked at the post and said "Do you want to give it a shot?" I thought about it for about half a second and said "Yup." Robyn looked at me said "So go do it." It didn't take me any push or nudge, I dove off the cliff right then and there. I contacted Cindy about the trip and had my flights booked within an hour or so. I was headed to the jungles of the Yucatán to go cenote diving and have a bonus trip of heading to the Mayan Pyramid ruins at Chichén Itzá. I've seen videos of the Mayan pyramids since I was a kid with my mother. She dragged me to all the National Audubon Society presentations at the Civic Center in McAllen, Texas and I have always been fascinated by this sort of stuff. She gave me the love of nature and wonder about it. This is something I'll always be indebted to her for. |
 Floating in a Cenote |
I'd not dived in just over fifteen years. The last dive was in Gilboa Quarry in Ottawa, Ohio on July 11, 2009 to be exact. It was cold, murky and, well, not a lot of fun. Because of the time that's passed Cindy had me take an online refresher course along with one in the pool where the skills came back to me like hopping on a bicycle. She also required that I take a Nitrox class since these dives were not on normal compressed air.
Fun Fact: Most people seem to think that when you scuba dive that because you have a tank on your back you must be breathing oxygen (O2). No, that would kill ya. It's the same air we breathe every day, just a lot of it stuffed into a bottle. In the past roughly thirty years diving with Nitrox has become quite the norm. It has a slightly higher oxygen level than normal air and there are advantages to it for diving.
Classes taken.
Classes passed.
Let's get to the diving!
Monday, 11/11/2024 - I'm outta here. Time to fly south.
As the trip grew closer I did my usual wishy-washy dance of "Should I be going? Do I really want to this? Why in the world did I decide this would be fun?" Doesn't matter where I'm headed, I always get cold feet about the trip. I actually had some trepidation on this one since it's a dive trip and I've been dry for fifteen years. What the Hell are you doing??? The day I got in the pool for the refresher class that all changed. I was really stoked and ready to go. Yeah, this is good. We headed to the airport at noon since it was an international flight. It left Phoenix around 2:30p. Customs was all of an extra fifteen minutes and I now had two hours to kill. Let's see, I'm hungry and there's quite a few places to solve that issue. Time to prep for four hours of flight. Wings and a good dark* beer/ale/stout and I'm happy. |
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 What's wrong with this picture? |
I find my gate, check my watch and decide to kill a bit of boredom by making a few phone calls. I had time after all. I'm also enjoying watching the crowd go by. Airports are some of the best people watching around. I get off the phone with one friend, take a look at my watch and still have an hour left. Man the time is going by really slowly. About that time I hear my name over the intercom system "Richard Kosar, Southwest flight so and so is closing the gate. If you're still in the terminal, please make your way here."
"WHAT???" I look at my watch again and there it is in the digital section 2:15. I'm about 10 minutes late to the gate! Some idiot (that would be me) set the analog section an hour slow. I'm so used to wearing an analog watch that I paid no attention to the digits. Fortunately I'd staged myself straight across from the gate so it was a quick dash across the hallway to be greeted and sent on my merry way. Found a seat, actually a row as the plane was about one third full and settled in for the flight. Wasn't long before we were headed to the sky and the Yucatán. Headphones on, iPad in my lap and the next four hours flew on by. |
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The flight was pleasant and uneventful - the way all flights should be. We land, head through customs, head to the luggage carousel and the wait begins. I let Cindy know that I'm in the airport and she informs me that I need to just wait by the Welcome Bar and that Jaime would come find me. He was picking up Amber first at another terminal and then would come snag me.
 The Taxi Diver Invasion |
I got a kick out of the transportation people (taxi drivers, bus drivers) from the hotels and resorts waiting on recent arrivals. There they stood with little white boards and names written across them. I scanned the area and didn't see my name. As I looked around I was constantly being bombarded with "You need a taxi?", "Where are you headed?" |
 The Welcome Bar |
We arrived fairly late, the last two of the group staying in the villa. Heather from Durango, Marsha and her husband Kit from Wyoming, Jacob from Death Valley and Gina (a COMPLETE CHARACTER - this to be discovered as the week went by) from Florida were already there. Jaime helped us unload our luggage and Cindy greeted us with a smile. We were here. YAY!
The villa is pretty sweet. It's two levels with an open great room and kitchen. Off to one side is a the room of relief (of which you can flush NO toilet paper down - this took a bit to get used to. You want me to put that in the trash can? EEEK!), either three or four suites and a shower at the end of the hallway. Up the stairs are a gathering/game room two suites, another room of relief and a separate shower room. This will work just fine. Everyone has their own room. There's a patio in the back with a nice swimming pool, a seating area and a covered area with a hammock too.
 Main room |
 Main room from above |
 Game room |
 Back yard |
 The pool |
Everyone said their hellos and we all sat down to get to know each other. Cindy gave us the low down on what we were in for, how things worked a basic schedule and what times we had to be up (early... argh) to catch the two pickup trucks that took us to the dive sites. It had been a long day for a couple of people so they hit the bed not long after we arrived. It wasn't long before the rest of us headed off into night time nap land, all looking forward to the next day and our first dive.
Our cast of characters
Front Row: Gina "The Kraken", Cindy, "Herder of the Cats" (us), Heather who I kept calling Melody, Amber "Cincy".
Back Row: Jacob "It's HOT", Marsha "I'm with the Kid", Kit "the Kid" and me off on the right representing Cindy's dad Rick "Super Hunky" Sieman.
♥We couldn't have had a better group of people together on a week long adventure.♥
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The Week's Schedule: Five days of diving and one "dry" day where we played turista. Tuesday, 11/12 - Day 1: Dos Ojos Park - West Eye (the Barbie Line) & Bat Cave near Tulum, Quintana Roo ★ Wednesday, 11/13 - Day 2: Dos Ojos Park - The Pit & Nicte Ha near Tulum, Quintana Roo ★ Thursday, 11/14 - Day 3: Noh Mozon & Nah Yah ★ Friday, 11/15 - Day 4: San Antonio (2x) in the jungle somewhere near Homun, Yucatán ★ Saturday, 11/16 - Day 5: Chichén Itzá, The Mayan Pyramid in Tinúm Municipality, Yucatán ★ Sunday, 11/17 - Day 6: El Zapote & Kin Ha, in Quintana Roo ★ Sunday, 11/17 - Day 6: Dinner at Alux, in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo |
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Tuesday, 11/12 - Day 1: Dos Ojos Park - West Eye (the Barbie Line) & Bat Cave near Tulum, Quintana Roo
 The Map of Dos Ojos |
 The Map of Dos Ojos |
As per what will become the norm, we're all up before the crack of daylight getting our coffee fix and a peanut butter sandwich for breakfast down. Our drivers and dive masters, Felipe and Martin will be arriving to pick up the eight of us staying in the villa along with our diving equipment. We separated into two groups. Felipe had Kit, who rode behind the driver seat, Marsha (Kit's wife) sat shot gun, Jacob had the seat behind her and I sat in the middle bonking knees with my seat mates for the next week. Martin "Schumacher" (a few will get this) had Cindy up front and I'm not sure who sat where in back. I'm guessing Gina behind Martin, Cincy in the center and Heather on the right but they may have switched around. All I know is Martin was completely entertained with some of the conversations. |
 The Curios Shop |
Our guides drove for about an hour and we ended up at a very popular place called Dos Ojos. This means "Two Eyes" representing two cenotes - The Bat Cave and The Barbie Line. More on that in a minute. Dos Ojos has a fairly large, tourist driven sign in area. Big room with tv screens showing videos of what we're getting ready to dive into. We got signed in (or should I say Felipe and Martin signed us in?) hopped back into the trucks and headed off down to the cenote.
This was my first taste of what we're going to see this week. The jungle is lush and surrounds the recreational area. There's a small store that has a kiosk for purchasing the pictures their diver takes of everyone, the obligatory T-shirt display along with little curios, nic-nacs and a small snack and beverage area in it. Next to that is the shower/bath room/changing area. I'd forgotten what a fight it is getting a wet suit on. Off to the shower to get wet and help it slide on. The place is quite pretty.
 Down to the dive platform |
 Dive entry platform |
Felipe at the entrance into Dos Ojos |
After a dive briefing and explanation of how and where we were going to enter the cenote our two groups got into the water and prepped for our first (at least for a couple of us) experience of diving in a cenote. We were going to follow the Barbie Line on this dive. There are rope lines run throughout the cenotes as guide lines. Directions, if you will.
I don't know why there are not more pictures of Kit and Marsha. Most of the pix are from the AquaLens MX kiosk in the little shop.
 Our first view and the guide line |
 Here we go! |
 Our group |
 Cave Diver Felipe |
 Amber smiling - and not flooding her mask |
 I'm diving again! WOO HOO! |
 We go datta way |
 And now you know why it's called the Barbie Line |
Another amazing view |
We got done with our first dive and dived into lunch. The crew supplied us with really good sandwiches throughout the week. Thank you gentlemen! I'm sure that Kit and Marsha really appreciated that you went out of your way to accommodate their vegetarianism. As I've said and will probably repeat, Felipe and Martin really took care of us.
 Time for a sammich fest |
 Belly full (really bad pic of me) |
After we all filled our stomachs and chatted among one and other, getting to know who we were diving and touring with over the next few days, the time had passed and it was a go for a dive in the Bat Cave. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of the bats nor any videos of either of the dives. I was still on my first day of being back in the water and I didn't need the distraction of a GoPro. Once again, credit for the pictures goes to the guy at the AquaLens MX kiosk. I asked him if I was okay if I shared his photos and he said no problem, just give him credit. I wish he had a link to his photos as he took some incredible shots of the Dos Ojos cenote. I also wish I had more to say to fill in this large blank area next to the pictures but for once I'm kinda without words. It happens on occasion. Here, how's this for fill in? - We gathered up our stuff and headed back down to the entry of the cenote for dive number dos. Let's go see why this is called the Bat Cave. After all, it wasn't until we came up on an alligator attacking Barbie that the name of the line made sense. |
Dive two started just like dive one. We debriefed, set our diver order number. Felipe had four little ducks following along: Cincy, Duck 1, was the first behind him. Next was Duck 2, Me, Duck 3 was Marsha and Duck 4 was Kit. We waddled off of the dive platform and headed into the water.
 Amber doing her thing |
 This is the Bat Cave - there are bats in the ceiling |
 Here comes Kit |
The Bat Cave was actually really interesting. It's a shallow room that you can actually snorkel into from the entrance. As we surfaced Felipe pointed up and said take a look. Bats. Lots of the little critters, all over the ceiling. There was a small hole where they could get in and out. Felipe asked that we not shine our flashlights directly at the little guys as it was hard on their eyes. Instead he held his flashlight just under the surface so the water dispersed the light a bit while still lighting up the ceiling. We looked at them for a moment and then it was time to move on. As we were getting ready to head back under a group of turistas came snorkeling in and started shining their lights on the bats. We all kinda grumbled at them and asked that they have the same respect that Felipe had expressed to us. They were very nice about it and complied. Yay! Good people. We finished up our dive, met the other half of our group at the entry platform, gathered up our stuff and headed back to the trucks.
Day one's diving was complete. I didn't feel like a fish outta water either. I had a bit of buoyancy control issues at first (Kit noticed) but I'll attribute that to not having dived in a decade and a half along with new gear that I'd never used before. Dive two went much better and I was pretty well trimmed out.
After our dives we loaded up, hopped back into the trucks and went back to the Villa. I was very satisfied with the day's dive and was happy to be back in the water. It had been way too long since I dived.
One thing Cindy had arranged for us was to have a local teacher/biologist/geologist/cave diver/historian from France named Tristan come to the villa and give us very in depth history of the Yucatán. He explained how the cenotes formed, the different types, the history of them with the Mayan culture and their connection with them. It was like having our very own National Geographic presentation. The group found his intimate seminar for us quite impressive and fascinating. I really liked that he was very interactive with us answering questions a lot of us had. Cindy told us after Tristan's presentation that he'd been doing this for her for the past couple of years and this was by far his most in depth and best one. He's been adding to the information and Power Point display each year. Thank you Tristan. |
 Setting up the Power Point presentation |
 Tristan doing his thing |
 Captured audience |
The gang decided to wander into town and find some food. We selected a place Cindy knew of called Restlostapet Mexican Restaurant. I don't recall what I ordered as it wasn't very exciting. I know that the others were pleased with their food, though. The margaritas were good, I will say. The restaurant had the obligatory Mariachi band who of course had to come to our table and give us a show. Gina requested 'De Colores', a Mexican staple. I was surprised that they didn't know the song but did get a kick out of the lead guy pulling it up on his phone and bellowing it out VERY LOUDLY. Dinner was quite entertaining and our group was getting more and more comfortable around each other. Jacob and I discovered that we'd grown up about a hundred miles apart and both have engineering backgrounds. Jacob's an actual rocket scientist, he doesn't just play one on TV. We ate, wandered back to the villa and called it a night. More diving tomorrow. YAY!
Wednesday, 11/13 - Day 2: Dos Ojos Park - The Pit & Nicte Ha near Tulum, Quintana Roo ★
We're up early, coffee and peanut butter sandwiches for breakfast are consumed, Felipe and Martin arrive with our tanks and supplies at the villa. Everyone loads up and off we go on our hour long trip back to Dos Ojos Park. Today we're diving another couple of cenotes in the park: The Pit & Nicte Ha.
Fun Fact: "Ha" means water in Mayan and is seen on many of the cenotes names
 Cenote The Pit map |
 Facilities mentioned previously |
 Geared up |
 Jacob, Martin, Me, Marsha, Kit |
 Marsha |
 The Crew |
 Gina the Kraken |
The Pit was the deepest dive I did during the trip. I hit 106 feet and we dove for 46 minutes. The Pit has a fascinating feature called a halocline. This is where the fresh water sits on the salt water. Fresh water isn't as dense as salt so it literally floats on top of the salt. Where the two types of water come together there's a layer that's about five to six feet thick of an odd visibility. It's like looking through a mask that someone's smeared a thin layer of Vaseline over. In many lakes there are thermoclines where warm water sits on top of cold water and the visibility is similar but nothing as dramatic as the halocline.
Felipe said that this was probably his favorite cenote to dive. He laughed about "If I could buy it, I would." - almost all cenotes are on private land. After the dive I fully understood why. There was something about the place that was sort of magical. We dove down to our depth and then slowly circled along the walls as we worked our way up. There's a large overhanging area where the stalactites hang from the ceiling meaning this was a dry cave for thousands, if not millions of years.
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 Ready to dive |
 Cindy and her ducks |
After diving Cenote the Pit, we loaded up our stuff and moved to another section of the Dos Ojos park called Nicte Ha and staged for the second dive of the day. As everyone geared up and headed to the entrance Cindy and I decided to skip out. I was so satisfied with my dive in the Pit that I was done for the day. Something inside said "just stay dry" and with diving it's absolutely imperative that you follow your gut feeling. Cindy was concerned at first that I was having some sort of issue or the like but no, I just didn't feel like making dive number two for the day. Once she realized that I was good with my decision and that I wasn't in some sort of stress she relaxed and we actually had a really nice chat while everyone else was in the water.
The Nicte Ha area was absolutely beautiful. The jungle comes right up to the parking area and there are all sorts of critters and butterflies in the area. I'm a critter geek so I had a really good time watching the wildlife move about. I really wanted to get a picture of the large bright iridescent blue butterflies but they never seemed to land long enough to get a shot.
I did manage to find an interesting lizard on a Ceiba tree. Cindy had some cool info on the tree: |
 Lizard on Ceiba |
 Cute little Fox |
 Iguana doing push ups and showing us his throat - a threat |
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 Busy little critters |
 Mr. Toad's bad day - the iguanas had been trying to eat it |
Meanwhile back at the Cenote, the other divers are headed into the water. I do admit that this cenote was probably the prettiest (maybe next to Zapote?) Part of me regrets not making the dive but I also know that following my gut feeling always ends up being the correct decision so I'll just enjoy the pictures too.
 Nic Te Ha Cenote |
 the dive briefing |
 Smile everyone! |
 The surface of the cenote |
 Below the surface of the cenote |
 Below the surface of the cenote |
We gathered up our gear, loaded up the pickup trucks, hopped in and spent the next hour headed back to Playa Del Carmen for dinner. For a sport who's mantra is "relax and take it easy" diving makes you hungry. Back at the villa we all got cleaned up and then headed on out to exchange some dollars for pesos and find dinner. It was a about a fifteen minute walk or so to the downtown area of Playa Del Carmen. One of my main goals while in Mexico was to eat street tacos. I could live on street tacos. The key, at least when you find a mobile taco stand, is to find the one with the longest line. The locals know who to get their tacos from. Unfortunately I'd not seen any mobile units but I did see a couple of restaurants. We all stopped at a money exchange place to get pesos for our trip up into the northern Yucatán. From what we were told, the locals prefer pesos over anything else. Some won't even take American money. As we're standing in line to get our pesos, I'm noticing a taco shop directly across the street. I'm pointing at it muttering about wanting tacos. I guess I wasn't loud enough and Cindy announces that there's an Italian place down the street a couple of blocks. |
 Not too bad of an exchange rate |
Italian? I'm in Mexico, I want REAL Mexican food but okay, I'll eat Italian even though I want tacos. Our merry band wandered down the street and ended up at an "Italian" place. Honestly, nothing on the menu looked very good. I'm just not into fish and Italian fish doesn't work for me either. Still I was trying to be 'part of the group' so I ordered a drink and an octopus appetizer (and caught Hell from EVERYONE at the table - deservedly so. I like octopus but always feel guilty eating it. They're exceptional creatures). We all chatted and the first round of food was brought to the table. My appetizer was terrible. Fishy, rubbery and not edible. Fortunately the manager was very accommodating about me sending it back. Muchas gracias! I paid for my drink and formulated my next move - Tacos!
Being that I'd seen the taco place across the street from the money exchange I informed everyone that I was in Mexico for TACOS, politely left the table and headed on down the block to the place I'd seen across from the exchange. I looked at the menu and saw no carne (beef). What??? The menu was mainly seafood and the only tacos I saw were mainly fish. Pass! I don't like fish tacos. They're like hotdogs - you will NEVER see me eat either. Yuck! I'm just not much of a fish eater unless it's sushi. CRAP! I'm hungry and I'm not going back to the Italian place. I scan around and across the street right next to the exchange was La Taqueria Pinches Tacos Shop. It looks like a dive bar and it has a secondary sign saying "In Tacos We Trust". Yes, in tacos I trust. Time to check it out. I stepped inside and it smelled fantastic. I asked if they had carne and the server handed me the menu. Yup, there it is beef. I'm in. I ordered two of them sin cebollas (no onions) and a margarita and sat down at one of the outside tables to watch the world go by. A lovely young lady came walking up in a couple of minutes with a pair of tacos on a plate and a margarita. One bite and I can say that these are probably some of the BEST street tacos I've had. I ate the two on the plate and ordered one more and another margarita because it was damn good too. SCORE!!! As I'm sitting there savoring my food the rain started coming down and I enjoyed watching everyone scurry about trying to stay on the dry side. I finished my dinner, the rain stopped and I headed back to the "Italian" place to hopefully join up with the group again. I was pleasantly surprised to find them still there, paying their bills and getting ready to head back to our villa. We all wandered home with full bellies and smiles on our faces. Life was good at this moment. I like that. |
 So good! |
Thursday, 11/14 - Day 3: Noh Mozon & Nah Yah in Pixyah, Yucatán ★
Diving in the northern Yucatán today near Homún, a small municipality in the Yucatan state of Mexico, known for its numerous cenotes and rich Mayan history.
 A typical narrow Mexican village street |
Up at 4:30a, coffee and a peanut butter fold over consumed and we're on the road at 5:00. We'll be riding for four and a half hours. We made a couple of baño stops and found breakfast at a convenience store somewhere on the way. I noticed that the farther we got into our ride the smaller and more primitive the roads became. We finally arrived at the edge of some small village and Felipe and Martin began chatting on the phone with each other. They'd both been to this cenote but it seemed that they were having issues finding it. Martin stopped at a road intersection with a barbed wire fence crossing it. Our guides had another quick talk. Interesting. Seems things weren't quite right so we headed on down the road on. We came across the local municipal building/commissary with three guys sitting out front. Martin and Felipe got out and had a conversation with the three amigos. The road we were supposed to take, at least according to the phone navigation, had a fence across it. That's not gonna work. Felipe and Martin said that the locals spoke mainly Mayan and that the communication was pretty sketchy. After a few minutes of chat and hand gestures, we all loaded back up and they sent us down a "trail" if you want to call it that. It was two strips of dirt about vehicle width apart with jungle vegetation on both sides and down the middle. I sort of wondered if they'd directed us to a sacrifice of tourist. |
 The town municipal building |
Gina snapped a few artistic pictures of the little village as we traveled through it.
 A little girl |
 A little old man |
 The local pharmacy |
 A church |
 Wider road |
 Getting narrow |
 What road? |
We wandered down the road (if you want to call it that) they sent us on for a bit and come back to the pavement that had been fenced off after a few minutes. Martin and Felipe seemed to know where we were now. A few more kilometers of trail driving and we arrived at a gate. Someone is supposed to meet us here. We hang around for a few minutes and a guy on a motorcycle with a shovel strapped on the back comes riding up. The keeper of the gate has arrived. What was that I said about being sent off as a tourist sacrifice? He has a shovel but he's not that large and there are more of us - I think we can take him if we have to.
He's actually very nice, welcomes us, opens the gate and beckons us to follow him down another primitive trail. It's not long before we arrive at a clearing in the brush and the Cenote Noh Mozon. Once again, it was not much more than a big, pretty hole in the ground with a small baño building for relief and changing along with a small covered area for getting set up.
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 What's the shovel for? |
 It's a sign! YAY! |
Our friend on the motorcycle (I'm gonna refer to him as Shovel Guy) mucks about as we all get ready to dive. We go through the ritual of unloading the pickup trucks, spreading out stuff out and getting ready to dive. As we do I'm looking about, checking out the area. This is looking very interesting. There's what appears to be a fairly rickety set of steps that head from the floor of the jungle down to the surface of the water. It's probably forty feet or so of steps and about half way down they make a full turn and head down to the landing. They really don't look very trustworthy. We were all very surprised when we stepped onto the wooden slats to find that they were quite solid. Shovel Guy helped us out by taking all our scuba tanks and gear down the stairs to the staging platform. Thank you little guy! (he was little, I'm allowed to say that) He made it look easy. One by one we all head down to the platform and then get ready to dive. Two groups of divers once again.
 We have arrived - More YAY! |
 The cenote's profile |
 The opening to Noh Mozon. |
Interesting looking stairs. |
 Not something to mess up on |
 A view from the inside |
This ended up being an amazing dive. It's quite interesting how each cenote has its own personality. They may look the same from the surface but the moment you go under each one is unique. This one has a large pile in the middle of it (where the ceiling has fallen in) and a couple of caverns that head off from the main room. There's a human skull in it too. Not a clue how it got there or possibly why it was there. We saw a couple of cattle skulls also which I would guess was a bad day for some random cow that didn't see the edge of the cenote and went for a swim. Oops.
 Looking up at the opening |
 One wonders how this ended up here |
 Jacob |
When we were done with the dive Shovel Guy started helping some of us take their tanks and gear back up the ladder. I noticed that there were three of us that are, let's say, "stubborn" and decided that we didn't need help getting our stuff back up the stairs. Gina, Kit and I pulled our fins off and started trudging up the two flights of steps. To be honest, I think going up is easier than going down. There's something about the extra weight being carried on your back that wants to drive you down the stairs and controlling decent can be a bit of a challenge. Up, on the other hand, seems easier and the three of us tackled the "challenge of the stairs" - sounds like some sort of special test in a TV game show... Kit made a comment about being independent and I think it resonated with Gina and myself. "I got it." "I can do that." is a bit of a mantra for us I would believe. (I'm claiming selfish only child as my excuse)
The gang got all the gear back in the pickups and we readied to head off to the next dive of the day. As we're getting ready to leave a group of three or four vehicles arrives and I think a few of us had a bit of a "What the?" moment when a Tesla car comes driving up to the parking area.
Wait, what? How did that get here?
The roads we went down were NOT Tesla friendly. All I can figure is that they came in from the same direction Shovel Guy did, which was the opposite of us.
Things that make you go "Hmmmmm..."
These were the first dives I did with the GoPro so I didn't really have much of an idea how to go about filming. It kinda shows... I needed to spread the beam on the flashlight out and get more of a flood lighting. The spot light overwhelms the video. Oh well, live and learn. Gotta start somewhere, right?
Noh Mozon Cenote dive |
Nah Yah Cenote dive |
 Nah Yah |
Next stop - Cenote Nah Yah for the second dive of the day. We left the parking area, heading back towards the gate. We turned left (had come from the right) at the gate and the trail opened up quite a bit more the farther we got down it. Definitely the direction the Tesla came from. We had a small Mexican Stand Off (pun intended, we are in Mexico after all) at one intersection with a couple of pickup trucks. It was one of those four way stop sign moments where everyone's looking at each other waiting on someone to move. We finally got the other trucks to understand we needed to turn down the road they were on and everyone then went about their business. We arrived at Cenote Nah Yah a few minutes later. Nay Yah has a bit more of an entrance presentation. A small welcome building, a parking area and such. We were greeted by a lady and then worked on getting set up. Lunch was in order so we sat down to eat our sandwiches and snacks. Once again I have to give kudos to Martin and Felipe for keeping us fed. We laughed at and with each other, shared a few stories and got to know each other a bit more. After a couple of days of hanging around we're all starting to relax and really enjoy the company of our group. We're definitely all about having fun and laughing. As I've said, Gina is a CHARACTER. |
 Martin and the Kraken |
 Room of relief |
 Lunch time - The Kraken, Me, Cincy, Cindy, Marsha, Kit |
 Info sign |
 Me, Felipe, Kit, Marsha |
 Just a hole in the ground |
 Sneaking up on it |
 Doesn't look like much |
This dive required us to tackle another set of stairs. These were the sketchiest yet. They are steep, the spacing is not constant and the hand rails, if you want to call them that, move and sway. The bottom hand rail is held in place with tape but surprisingly stout. This actually adds to the adventure in my eyes. Usually the more sketchy something is the more fun it is. We all worked our way down to the water and once the ten of us were set and geared up it was time to dive. As I mentioned earlier, every cenote has it's own personality. The sun was coming down into this one in a pair of beams that lit up the water and the formations below like spotlights. It was beautiful and I thought I had a picture but nooo... of course not.
 The opening to the cenote |
 Top of the stairs |
 To the bottom we go |
 Killer Attack Stairs |
This was another deeper dive. Around 90 feet if I recall. This cenote had some very interesting marks in the walls. Almost as if someone had scratched a grid pattern into the rock.
I'd been suffering from a poorly fitting mask - maybe it's my facial hair. Not sure as I've never had an issue with that. Anyhow, over the past few dives I'd managed to get my sinuses filled with water on more than one occasion. It's one of those things you deal with and as long as I didn't invert or roll onto my back there wasn't an issue. Sometime during the dive I must have either rolled or inverted or both and managed to fill my left inner ear with water. I ended up having a pretty painful ear squeeze as we started ascending. I had to stop and wait for it to clear every few feet. I let Felipe know I was headed to the surface and slowly worked my way up. That was not fun.
Marsha popped up not long after I did and then Kit followed. He'd had a BCD inflation issue and couldn't stay under. I had noticed that he kept seeming like he was struggling and his attitude in the water was head down, swiming away. The three of us floated there on the surface waiting on the rest of the crew to come up. We headed over to the sketchy stairs, got things set up for the climb and headed on out.
 The sun coming in from above was beautiful |
 Amber |
 Jacob |
 The wall I mentioned |
Jacob was usually the last person in and out of the water. It's just his style. The majority of us are now out of the cenote and getting gear loaded into the trucks. We hear a thud or two from the opening of the cenote and then a barrage of swearing. Uh oh! Someone's gone down on the stairs! A couple of us go over to the top of the stairs to check and Jacob's getting back up from a spill. He's a bit battered and bruised but is good. Whew. That could have been bad. The ride back to the villa was tough on him, though.
Another hour and a half of travel and we're now in Mérida. Martin and Felipe drop us off at an unassuming looking door front of a place along a street in a fairly busy area. We get our stuff unloaded, put in the garage and then walk into our place for two nights. WOW!!! You'd never have a clue that this place is on the other side of that door. We enter through a room and that leads into the kitchen area and an open area. The open area has a spa/hot tub, a couch and TV, a dining area and another seating area. The place is huge.
Walk through the doors to the back and there's a courtyard with an open hallway running down the right side. This has three or four rooms off of it. A couple of them had their own spa/hot tub.
 Mérida Villa front |
 The courtyard walkway |
 Such a beautiful area |
 From the other end |
Cindy assigned each of us a room. Jacob and I shared a large room with its own shower and two queen bunk beds. More than enough room for us. Everyone got cleaned up and readied for dinner. We be HUNGRY! Time to eat. While everyone was readying, Cindy was looking for places to eat. She found three or four within a block or two and the first one that popped up was within a minute's walking distance. The group rallied to the front door, stepped out onto the sidewalk and there's the restaurant right across the street from us. Talk about convenient!
 Sandunga - My oh my what good food! |
We had an absolutely amazing dinner. Sandunga is more of a traditional Mayan menu than a Mexican menu and the food is really, really good. The greeter gave us our own room (I think they knew we were trouble. hehehe) and passed out menus. She also informed us that she knew VERY little English. Oh boy, this was going to make it fun. We all started looking at the menus and realized we had no clue what we were reading. I recognized a few words but not enough to make any decisions. Fortunately Amber's a sharp one and mentions Google Translate. With our new found ability everyone was able to choose and order a dinner that they wanted. I had a beef platter that was muy bueno! Más excelente! So were the margaritas, and the salsa and the guacamolé and ... We all ate ourselves into a food coma. |  What? Help! |
A day of diving followed by a killer dinner. Yeah, this is living right. We also discovered that Gina and I cannot sit next to each other and behave in public. What fun!
 I need longer arms |
 Amber, Marsha, Kit, Jacob, Me, Gina, Heather, Cindy |
 Casting a spell on Gina? |
 Someone's yummy desert |
 My dinner |
 Chicken Molé |
 Trouble a brewin' |
 Kindred souls |
This trip has been incredible. Two more dives tomorrow and then we'll head to the Chichén Itzá pyramid on Saturday. I'm really looking forward to seeing that.
Friday, 11/15 - Day 4: San Antonio (2x) in the jungle somewhere near Homun, Yucatán ★
|
Cenote San Antonio was by far the most adventurous day we had. Martin and Felipe arrived at their usual "nice and early" time, the crew loaded up and off we went out of Mérida and into the deep vegetation that covers the land. From city and highways to a small town and then out into the jungle on dirt tracks. We stopped in a little town and picked up a couple of locals that Cindy knows. They were the ones in charge of getting us in and out of the cenote. When I saw them hop into the back of the pickups (no room in the cabs for them) I took my shot and hopped in the back of ours with one of the guys. I asked him if he spoke any English at all and the only word he knew was "No". Okay, this just got more entertaining. I was born in Puerto Rico and grew up in the southern tip of Texas. I SHOULD speak fluent Spanish but oh no, I speak bad Spanish. I can find food, a bathroom and a place to sleep. What I did find interesting, though, was the longer I was in the Yucatán the more Español was coming back to the surface. I understood a lot more than I realized. Cool! As we headed out of the town and down some dirt road we passed and old ranch. My new friend in riding in the back with me said it was Rancho de San Antonio. Ah, there's where the cenote gets it's name. It must be on the land owned by the family. |
|
 Rancho de San Antonio |
 There's a building in that vegetation |
 Entry gate |
 Clearing the trail to get through |
 Cow |
 Da Girls Truck |
 We're here |
 The chair lift |
 The gear for the chair |
 Amber and Martin |
 Is he yawning or excited? |
 We're going down in there? |
 Cenote San Antonio |
 The opening |
I had fun dodging the branches and hanging on as we drove a few kilometers down the dirt roads. We'd come to an intersection and one of the guys in the pickup would whistle and point in the direction we needed to head. It was probably about a twenty minute ride. Could have been more, could have been less. I was happy being outside so time was kinda an afterthought. We came to a spot where the road turned hard left. On the right side of the corner was a cleared out area with a couple dozen bee hives. If the road had gone straight, there was a limestone rise about four feet high that would have stopped us. They parked one pickup on the turn to the left and the other moved up to the limestone. Interesting. This must be the place. As per the norm we all get out to see what we're getting ready to dive in. Felipe sees the bee hives and immediately starts getting antsy and muttering something in Spanish (I caught a few of the words and knew he wasn't happy about them). Turns out that he does NOT like bees or wasps or, well, pretty much bugs. Not a fan. (I, on the other hand have always found them fascinating. Yeah, I'm weird.) The guys start hacking the bush around the area with machetes and we head over to the limestone rise. Ah, stairs of sorts and a platform. Up on the platform there's a hole about the size of a large dining room table with a tree over it. Looking down we can see the water. It's probably close to fifty feet down. Wow! Cindy and Martin have us all gather around the opening to the cenote and they start telling us about how we'll be doing this. Our two helpers will lower Martin down first then our gear. Once that's all down in the water we'll each take our turn heading down to the water. This is going to be a blast! I keep asking Cindy where the quick release is on the little chair - I wanted to jump in. |
Once we all had the plan and were set up, each of us was lowered into Cenote San Antonio. Felipe went in after Martin. Remember what I said about Felipe not liking bugs? There are three or four hornet nests just inside the opening of the cenote, on the roof of it. They were put on guard when Martin went in. Cindy had told us she'd been stung the last time she was there so tuck your head and cover up as much as possible. Of course Felipe got zapped by one of the hornets on the way in.
Felipe's Big Adventure! |
Martin headed in |
In goes Marsha |
Jacob heads in |
Here goes Heather |
What was that little hand gesture Gina? |
Away goes Amber |
Cindy's journey |
Unfortunately Kit had issues with his gear the day before on our last dive so he decided to just hang out around the entrance to Cenote San Antonio while we all dove.
This dive was different in so many ways. Being lowered into a hole in the middle of nowhere, no way out other than a rope, minimal light from the sky and then there are the bones. From what I understand, there are over twenty skeletons in Cenote San Antonio. How or why they're there nobody knows. The cenote was dry thousands of years ago so this may have been a burial ground of some sort. There are a few cow bones but they look fairly fresh compared to the human remains so I'd say they were victims of gravity and poor foot placement - splash...
We separated into our groups and headed down to see what we could see. It didn't take long at all to come across the first set of remains. As we swam around looking at them all I could do was wonder who were those bones on the bottom? What did they do? How old were they? All sorts of questions of "life" flooded over me while inspecting them. It was quite a spiritual moment.
 A skull on the bottom |
 Another skull on the bottom |
 And another one |
 Cow skull |
View of the inside of Cenote San Antonio from the water level |
Some of the bones in Cenote San Antonio |
More of the bones in Cenote San Antonio |
Some of the skulls in Cenote San Antonio |
We finished our dives and one by one came to the surface. Once everyone was accounted for it was time for extraction from this marvelous place. The two guys up top lowered the basket down to water level, we'd remove our gear and climb into the basket. Once the okee-dokee was given, one of our helpers would put one of the pickup trucks in reverse and pull us right on up. It just took a couple of seconds to do this. I enjoyed the ride up just as much as the ride down. Kit was there to greet us. Because I'd had equalization issues the day before I was being extremely careful to keep my ears happy. Usually I can equalize as fast as I can swim down. Today, as my depth increased, the pops, squeaks and hisses in my left ear were impressive. It never hurt but I was very conscious about it. My ascent at the end of the dive was also a very slow, deliberate rise. I had to clear my ears more often than usual. I already have issues with my ears - the constant sound of crickets in the background that tinnitus brings is bad enough so the last thing I want to do is damage them anymore than they are. I decided that this would be my only dive today. It's not worth hurting yourself over. As we moved about getting ourselves comfortable for lunch, Martin asked me what I thought of the dive. I expressed my feelings of how spiritual it was for me and he said he has the same reaction each time he dives here. Once we were all up it was lunch time. I think this may have been the most comical lunch we had. Gina and I had each other in tears. Do NOT pull Gina's finger... Ever! Thank God she was wearing her wet suit. After lunch everyone gathered up and prepped to head back into the cenote with the exception of Kit and myself. For the next hour he and I had another enjoyable chat while I sat at the very edge of the opening watching the dive lights come into and out of vision. It looked like UFOs underwater. On occasion the bubbles reaching the surface could be heard too. Good stuff. |
 View of the divers from the top |
I enjoyed watching the divers get removed from the cenote. Kit and I were chatting and we hear something from below. "Hey." Kit responds "Hey." and we hear nothing. We hear "Hey." again and this time when Kit responds Marsha says "I'm ready to come out." from below. Our two helping hands have noticed that we're talking to someone in the cenote and now come over to see what's up. Kit and I point and grunt indicating that there's someone ready to come on out.
 The sun set was beautiful |
When our help lowered us into the cenote they used some rappelling equipment to control our decent. This time they had the line hooked up to the front of one of the pickup trucks and used it to pull everyone out. It was quick, took little effort on anyone's part and I have to say they worked really well together as a team. I was impressed with how well they had it down. After about fifteen minutes or so all the divers and our gear was back up top side. Time to load up and head home. I once again took the chance to ride in the back of the pickup with the same guy I'd ridden out. We're both keeping our eyes peeled for anything that might hit you as we moved down the road. There are quite a few branches, vines and vegetation hanging into the trail that we had to duck or dodge. The truck's been moving for all of a minute and I catch a large spider web with my face. I think I put my nose in the bulls eye of the darned thing and it was about the size of a basketball. - caught a glimpse of it just as started to wrap around my head. Of course I let loose the arm waving, mad man raving "I have a spider web on me!" dance while sitting on the back corner of the truck bed. I got it off, look over at my tailgate cohort and he's laughing his ass off at me. (can't blame him) I hold my left hand palm up, take my right hand and walk my fingers across it and ask "Que es nombré de ocho? Spider?" ("What is name of eight? Spider?" in very bad Español) He's still laughing and responds "Si, spider." As we rode down the trail I worked on conversation with our buddy in the back. I pulled a few flowers and asked names and colors. He pointed out the San Antonio ranch again and laughed when the truck ahead missed another turn. A bit after passing the San Antonio ranch house there was a sign for a restaurant. Odd to see one that actually looks fairly modern out here. I asked him if the food was good and he said it was quite good. I then asked if we needed reservations and he laughed and said no. We also discussed the sunset, some cactus "spina no bueno" and colors. As large of a language barrier that we had, we actually had a nice chat. |
After twenty or so minutes we arrived back in the village and pulled over to drop off and thank our help. I asked Felipe to please tell the guy I was riding with "Thank you for the deep and meaningful conversation." I accompanied Felipe up to him, Felipe said something in Spanish that was not what I said (I think it was along the lines of "so how was the chat?") and they both laughed. He then said what I asked and my new buddy laughed even harder and appreciated what I was saying.
The two helpers gathered up their stuff, everyone said adios and we were off again. The sunset was getting prettier and the full moon was coming out. Nice way to top off a great day of diving. Time to sit back for awhile and ride home. Kit, Jacob and I chatted while Felipe tried to keep up with Martin Schumacher in fairly thick traffic. We ended up catching them at a fuel station. Once filled we were headed back to the villa to get ready for dinner.
We got back to the villa to discover that we had no hot water or AC. Uh oh. No bueno. Cindy's on the phone immediately trying to get things straightened out. We all get ready and head on down the street to the second closest place. It's a cute little outdoor place and they were wise to send us upstairs. Menus were translated again, food and drinks were ordered. Gina and I made the grand mistake of sitting next to each other again. I haven't laughed like that in a long time. Do NOT eat guacamole with Gina nor share chips. LOL
 The roof was ours |
 The fun was just beginning |
 The Kraken attacks! |
The gang headed back to the villa, I sat up with Jacob, Cindy, some rum and coke and we solved the world's problems until the AC fortunately came back on. Time for bed and to head to Chichén Itzá tomorrow. I'm so excited about this.
Saturday, 11/16 - Day 5: Chichén Itzá, The Mayan Pyramid in Tinúm Municipality, Yucatán ★
The gang got up and readied for our drive to Chichén Itzá, the famous Mayan pyramid. We all started out hungry so out the door we went to another place just down the street. Gotta say, even with the AC issues of the night before, the villa we have in Mérida was more than adequate. Good bed (good ear plugs - Jacob snores like a monster), great location and convenient to quite a few things, especially food. Good food. We wandered down the street again and found a place that served breakfast. We were in a bit of a rush since our turista bus was going to arrive at 9:00a. Our servers were very accommodating and got us in and out in short notice. Once again, menu issues but we had that issue solved and nobody even mentioned that we couldn't read it. Instead, out with the phones, translate away. Yay! As we're reading and deciphering our page, Jacob pipes up "OH! Macaroni and waffles! My daughter would love this!" His decision was set. I ordered some sort of Eggs Benedict that were good but oddly cold and of course coffee as I'd not had a chance for a cup before we left in our quest to find food. The coffee was good and strong and after enough cream and sugar (okay, I have a sweet problem...) it was drinkable. The waiter came up and asked me if I wanted a second cup. I held up my hand, flat and steady in front of us. He looked at me with a puzzled face. "Si, uno mas, porfavor." so he poured a second cup. A few minutes later, after that one was gone, he asked again and this time I held my hand up and made it tremor slightly. "No mas, es bien." ("No more, it's good" in my horrible Español) He got the visual and started laughing and agreed "No mas." We ordered carry out for Cindy, as she'd stayed at the villa to tidy up some stuff, and headed back to the villa to find our turista bus waiting for us. We piled in for the two hour ride to Chichén Itzá. I managed to snag the entire back seat row. Time to kick back, relax with an iPad full of games and not fight for knee room with Kit and Jacob. Other than the occasional cold drip of water from the AC unit above me, this was a nice change. |  Jacob and his Macaroni and Waffles |
 We have arrived |
Okay, I have to admit something before I begin writing this section: As mentioned in the start of this long windy tale, my mother used to drag me to the National Audubon Society films when I was a kid. She was fascinated with ancient civilizations and she bestowed that curiosity on me. We saw movies on all sorts of subjects. I loved the African stuff and the South American films where they were in the jungle. Anyhow, one of the films I remember was about the Mayan culture and of Chichén Itzá where people could climb the pyramid. Unfortunately for me they closed off climbing a few years ago but I fully understand why. It's better for such an historical place to be preserved. I was really excited to visit one of the places I'd seen some fifty years ago on the big screen in person. The turista bus arrived after a couple of hours on the road and we got our entry tickets sorted. It was a typical buy your tickets, get your snacks, look at the stuff you should buy as a souvenir of your visit. We met up with our guide (recommended by our Turista Bus Driver) and started our walk into the ancient sight. It's around 88F/31C and the humidity is probably over 65%. They handed out umbrellas for shade to those of us who wanted one. Of course one had IKEA on it and it refused to stay open. Just ask Jacob. We worked our way through all the turistas, down a walk way and past many vendors selling hats, t-shirts and such. Our first stop is over a small rise and there's an ancient canal and wall running under it. We're told this was the original boundary of the sacred city. We proceed a few yards and enter an open space with the Pyramid standing proudly above the ground. |
 Dedicated a National Park of Mexico in December of 1988 |
 You are here |
 The outer wall and walk |
 Kulkulcán |
 Plaque about El Castillo |
Our guide began to tell us about the pyramid and some of the features it has. One really interesting aspect, that appears in a couple of other places, is the ability for the structure to echo. Stand off to the sides of any of the four sets of stairs and clap and you just hear a single clap. Nothing special. Move in front of the stairs, clap and you're answered back with an echo of that clap. It makes sense as to why there were groups of people standing in front of the pyramid, all clapping their hands. When we first walked in and heard them I thought maybe it was some sort of ritual or, well, not a clue. There were people clapping... Our guide also explained that there are 91 steps on each of the four sides, representing the solar calendar of 360 days. Each side "aligned" with a season. During the equinox of Spring and Fall, the sun forms a shadow of the descending serpent, lighting the head and a body. <--- click on the link for a pic Fun Facts: did you know it has another pyramid inside of it with 28 steps on each side representing the lunar calendar? - now you do. It's also build on a cenote as the underground water was considered sacred and the path to the afterlife. |
The clap echo |
 Looking into the sun from below |
 Serpents were revered as givers of fertility |
 Excavations showing more below the surface. |
 Kulkulcán guard iguana |
 More guard iguanas |
While we were being guided and informed about the pyramid I realized I'm standing on grass. Hmmm.... Not felt that under my bare feet in a while. I live in the desert where the ground is covered in decomposed granite and bushes that want to eat you.
Fun Fact about me: I absolutely despise shoes. Always have. They're constricting, they don't let you touch Mother Earth and stay grounded. I also have what my wife lovingly refers to as "cave man feet". They're rough, calloused, and usually fairly well torn up. I wear flip-flops (or for you Aussies, thongs) probably 95% of the time that I have to wear shoes. I will wear hiking shoes or dressy shoes when necessary. Yuck.
So as I was saying, I've not felt green grass under my footsies in quite a while. Time to take off my flip-flops and make little fists with my toes in the grass. Die-Hard movie fans will get that comment...
This is going to sound odd to those reading this that don't know me but as soon as I stepped onto the grass I had a full body feeling and connection with the ground below me. The energy that flowed up into my body was unreal. It brought an energy that just made my heart feel good. Wow. I made little fists with my toes for a few minutes, soaking it in. I also kept my shoes off for the next hour and forty five minutes. I didn't want to miss any connection to this sacred land. I really was plugged in. Walking on the rocks was surprisingly easy too. Thousands and thousands of turistas have walked these grounds and doing so they've taken the edges off of all the small rocks and pebbles on the trails and paths. This stuff was a breeze compared to stomping around in the Sonoran Desert.
 Barefoot is the way to be |
 The unrestored stair case side of Kulkulcán |
 Some barefoot goofball standing in front of Kulkulcán |
I have to thank Heather for helping me photo bomb some young woman who was trying to take selfies in front of the pyramid. We both saw her setting up her phone, hitting a button on it and then posing before the timer went off. I kinda nudged Heather in that "Hey look at this" manner and she says "Go get in the way. Wait, wait, NOW!" Poor selfie girl has half a dozen shots of some old dude wearing a Super Hunky T-shirt (thank Cindy!) doing all sorts of silly poses in the background.
Panoramic view of Chichén Itzá
Farther back from the entrance is the Temple of The Warriors. It's a structure that probably had a roof on it and the columns that accompany it. There's a Chacmool at the top. On the solstice the sun sets perfectly between the two columns and sets into the bowl of the Chacmool. The bowl was an offering place and possibly a sacrificial location.
 Temple of The Warriors |
 Temple of The Warriors |
 Statue of Chacmool |
 Closer view of the temple |
 What it may have looked like |
 Plaque about Temple of The Warriors |
We then walked from the Temple of The Warriors over towards the Great Ball Court. We walked past the Casa Colorado (Spanish for "Red House". It's one of the best preserved structures at Chichén Itzá.
 Chichanchob |
 Red House |
 Plaque about Casa Colorado |
We listened to our guide's speech about Casa Colorado and then headed off to what I think is just as fascinating as the pyramid, The Great Ball Court.
 Serpent heads at the entry to the Great Ball Court |
 Looking down the court towards the King's seat. |
 Plaque about the Great Ball Court |
The Great Ball Court
Archeologists have identified in Chichen Itza thirteen ballcourts for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame, but the Great Ball Court about 150 meters (490 ft) to the north-west of the Castillo is the most impressive. It is the largest and best preserved ball court in ancient Mesoamerica. It measures 168 by 70 meters (551 by 230 ft).
The parallel platforms flanking the main playing area are each 95 meters (312 ft) long. The walls of these platforms stand 8 meters (26 ft) high; set high up in the center of each of these walls are rings carved with intertwined feathered serpents.
At the base of the high interior walls are slanted benches with sculpted panels of teams of ball players. In one panel, one of the players has been decapitated; the wound emits streams of blood in the form of wriggling snakes.
At one end of the Great Ball Court is the North Temple, also known as the Temple of the Bearded Man (Templo del Hombre Barbado). This small masonry building has detailed bas relief carving on the inner walls, including a center figure that has carving under his chin that resembles facial hair. At the south end is another, much bigger temple, but in ruins.
Built into the east wall are the Temples of the Jaguar. The Upper Temple of the Jaguar overlooks the ball court and has an entrance guarded by two, large columns carved in the familiar feathered serpent motif. Inside there is a large mural, much destroyed, which depicts a battle scene.
In the entrance to the Lower Temple of the Jaguar, which opens behind the ball court, is another Jaguar throne, similar to the one in the inner temple of El Castillo, except that it is well worn and missing paint or other decoration. The outer columns and the walls inside the temple are covered with elaborate bas-relief carvings. (from wikipedia)
As with the stairs on Kulkulcán, the Great Ball Court had an even better echo trick. The acoustics in this 550 foot long field are amazing. A sound echos seven times when between the walls. Clap your hands and you'll hear seven pops in return. The precision that the blocks were cut and fit together is mind blowing. They look to fit better than many modern buildings. The echos in the stadium come from the walls being leaned in 4 degrees and the blocks on one side are probably 50% bigger than the other This also has something to do with the echoing seven times. Cool stuff.
The other acoustic trick was that the King could speak to the people at the other end of the court. There is a one second delay in the sound traversing the court lengthwise. I'm not sure if he had to yell or just speak loudly.
The Great Ball Court |
Seven Echos |
The Mayans played a Mesoamerican ballgame called Pok-ta-pok after the sound the ball makes when in play. Supposedly the scoring player was beheaded and this was considered an honor. Two teams of seven players threw a 7 pound rubber (tree sap) ball about the size of a large honeydew melon 🍈 through the hoops, which are about 25 feet up. The game could last for a couple of hours or a couple of days. No time limit.
 Another view into the court |
 Temple of the Jaguars |
 Plaque about the Temple of the Jaguars |
 The King's throne |
 Jacob hiding from the sun |
 Panels of the Great Walls |
 Plaque of the Great Walls |
After our tour of the Great Ball Court we wandered over to the Skull Platform and then the Platform of Venus. Our guide filled us in on these two structures and our two hour tour was complete. We wandered through some of the vendors (they're spread about the grounds) and discussed getting out of the heat and humidity. Jacob, who grew up in this sort of temperate climate (we both felt right at South Texas home here) and now lives in Death Valley was melting away in front of us all. Time for food and a cold beverage.
Skull Platform |
Platform of Venus |
 Back seat bliss |
Our group gathered near the entrance. Some of us found the room of relief, others snagged a candy bar and/or something to drink. For the past two, maybe two and a half hours I've been trudging around Chichén Itzá barefoot soaking in the energy. Since we're getting ready to leave I decide it's time to reshoe myself. I drop my flip-flops down on the ground and step into them. I'm immediately unplugged from Mother Earth. Just as much as I was caught off guard earlier by stepping into the dirt and feeling this energy flow up through my feet, I'm blown away at how suddenly disconnected I'm feeling. Insulated was the first thought that went through my pea brain. I was insulated from this magical, majestic place and it kind of made me sad. The majority of our group had convened at the Turista Bus and were climbing back in. I took my back seat again and waited for everyone else. Huh, where are Kit and Marsha? The herding of cats had begun again. Cindy asked if anyone had seen them and it was decided they must be lost in the entrance, sucked into the turista temptations of souvenirs. A search party was organized and it wasn't long before our wandering couple was found and brought to join the rest of us. Our time at Chichén Itzá was done. Time for lunch. Instead of finding an eating establishment we actually stopped at an OXXO - the Mexican equivalent of 7-11. To our surprise they had quite the selection at a little deli area behind the counter. Empanada, burritos, all sorts of finger food. We all ordered something to eat. As we're waiting on our food, I spot a walk in fridge area with beer. As soon as I step in I think about Jacob, who's doing his best imitation of Frosty the Snowman in hot weather. "Hey Jacob, go walk into that back door" as I point. I'm actually surprised we were able to get him out of it. He looked SO HAPPY standing there in freezing air. The group gathered back in the Turista Bus and it headed back to Playa Del Carmen. We ate our food and chatted about what we'd just experienced for a few moments then settled in for the two-ish hour ride ahead. What an awesome experience. |
We got back to the same villa we'd been staying in before we headed to Merida. Everyone got showered and settled back in. Some time was taken just relaxing and chatting about the trip. I think we were all on the same page about this trip. So far we'd had nothing but fun, adventure and, at least for me, a bit of a spiritual experience or two. San Antonio and Chichén Itzá really had an impact on me Surprisingly so, actually. The lunch we'd had from OXXO was now an after thought and the conversation of food was brought up. Time to take a walk and see what we could find in the market area of Playa Del Carmen. We headed out of the villa and started our fifteen minute or so walk. Kit, Jacob and I had seen bats the last couple of times we'd wandered the streets and they were out again. I'm used to Mexican Free Tail and Little Brown bats. They're the size of mice with a wing span about that of a sparrow. The bats here are more like pigeons. I enjoyed watching them dart between the trees and overhead catching the invisible to us prey in the air around us. Fun Fact: There are a group of scientists in Texas that have been putting small GPS tracking chips on Little Brown Bats that live in the Natural Bridge Caverns which is just north of San Antonio (neat place). These bats have been tracked at speeds exceeding 100 mph/161 kph making them the fastest flying animal. Peregrine Falcons may hit 200 mph/320 kph but that's in a dive. The little bats are faster in horizontal, powered flight. Cool, eh? The group decided that tacos were the choice for the evening. YAY! They decided that the place directly across from the money exchange was the destination. Boo! I don't want fish. That's cool, I know a place and it's convenient and close. I bailed on them and Jacob followed me over to La Taqueria. We had a few outstanding games of Jenga while we waited on our tacos to arrive. Jacob took one bite and his eyes lit up and he made very happy "yummy" noises. Yeah, I did the same a couple of days ago. He said his tacos al pastor were the best he's ever had. He's a fellow Texan - we know our tacos! Our food was consumed and we walked back across the street to find the crew finishing up their food. We all wandered back to the villa, happy, content and ready for some horizontal time and another day of diving. |
 Best Tacos EVER! |
Sunday, 11/17 - Day 5: El Zapote & Kin Ha, in Quintana Roo ★
Headed to the Cenote Zapote this morning. I did not dive. Woke up around 3:00a with the itchies and had to take a histamine blocker which sucks. They lead to poor sleep and then this morning our fearless leader Cindy gave me a Sudafed because she was worried that I was having sinus problems. It made me seriously jittery and that is not the way to dive. If you're not 100% on top of it, do not get in the water - it can be dangerous (said by the guy who always responds "That takes the fun out of it!" when someone tells me to "be safe" or "drive carefully"). I called myself out and said not diving. Cindy, Kit & Marsha also opted out. Kit with his equipment issues and I can't recall why Marsha said she was done. Cindy sounded like crap from the first time I'd heard her sitting at the table at the villa. Definitely not feeling good.
Felipe and Martin arrived like normal and we all piled into the trucks to head out. Just because we're not diving doesn't mean that the four of us that have opted for a dry day don't want to go see the place. I actually remembered to run an app that I use quite often when I'm out off roading. It's called Relive and it tracks your travel and you can put pix and videos into it. I've had a blast using the app and am really bummed that I'd forgotten to use it during our week of travels. We were delayed a bit due to a nasty accident on the road out of Playa. It looked bad, I hope people were okay.
El Zapote is delightful. The place is a park with all sorts of things to do. They have off roading, diving, a restaurant that smelled fantastic - Cindy and I were really bummed we were there before it opened and a few other turista attractions. The whole place is decorated and there are signs and banners about the place.
 Must be headed in the right direction |
 Yes, the right way! |
 The Greeter |
 The Greeter's sister |
 Da Group |
 Felipe Shuffle |
 These were pretty cool |
We got signed in and then headed over to the cenote. I wandered around the place looking around. Found some neat stuff. Cindy and I sat and had a chat and then she headed off to a truck to get some rest.
 Howdy |
 A great sign |
 These are living stalactites called bells |
 Three toed Amber |
 Cenote Zapote |
 Jacob on the deck |
 Dive time |
 Smile everyone |
 Strike a pose |
While everyone was getting ready to dive the rain started. Not the normal rain I'm used to in the desert, jungle level rain. Buckets! I think I experienced more rain in thirty minutes than I've seen in a year at home. Pool at our villa is up probably 6” since this morning. I kept hearing Forrest Gump say-ying "And then it started rain-ning" in me pea brain.
With the rain falling as heavily as it was half of us came back early. Cindy feels like crap, I'm buzzy and jittery, Martin offered to drive us. It was a wise move on our parts. I almost stayed at the villa this morning but I wanted to see the place and it was well worth dealing with the deluge.
My week of diving is done and I'm headed home mañana.
11/17 - Day 6: Dinner at Alux, in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo
Cindy had arranged for a grand dinner to finish off our trip at a place called Alux (pronounced "Ah Loosh") after a Mayan mythological character. It's in a cave with a cenote that comes up into the floor in areas. Tristan, our teacher of Cenotes and Mayan culture actually ended up coming out of one of the water areas in this place while doing some cave diving and mapping. I'd love to have seen him with all his gear wandering through the restaurant, dripping and mud covered. "Sorry, pardon, excuse me, sorry about the mud, OH! Tacos!"
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The Aluxo'ob (plural of Alux) are conceived of as being small, only about knee-high, and in appearance resembling miniature traditionally dressed Maya people. Tradition holds that aluxob are generally invisible but are able to assume physical form for purposes of communicating with and frightening humans as well as to congregate. They are generally associated with natural features such as forests, caves, stones, and fields but can also be enticed to move somewhere through offerings. Their description and mythological role are somewhat reminiscent of other sprite-like mythical entities in a number of other cultural traditions (such as the Celtic leprechaun), as the tricks they play are similar. Some Maya believe that the Aluxo'ob are called into being when a farmer builds a little house on his property, most often in a maize field (milpa). For seven years, the alux will help the corn grow, summon rain and patrol the fields at night, whistling to scare off predators or crop thieves. At the end of seven years, the farmer must close the windows and doors of the little house, sealing the alux inside. If this is not done, the alux will run wild and start playing tricks on people. Some contemporary Maya even consider the single- and double-story shrines that dot the countryside to be kahtal alux, the "houses of the alux" (although their true origins and purpose are unknown). Stories say that they will occasionally stop and ask farmers or travelers for an offering. If they refuse, the aluxo'ob will often wreak havoc and spread illness. However, if their conditions are met, it is thought the alux will protect a person from thieves or even bring them good luck. If they are treated with respect, they can be very helpful. It is believed that it is not good to name them aloud, as it will summon a disgruntled alux from its home. (from wikipedia) They're ornery little dudes. |
 Mayan Alux |
Anyhow, Jaime dropped us off at a non assuming place on one of the local streets of Playa del Carmen. As we got to the entrance I think we all muttered in one form or another "Holy S*&t! LOOK AT THIS PLACE!" Gina, Heather and I were the last to enter. We were all in turista mode and had our phones out snapping pix. I thought video would to it more justice so here, this is the entrada to Alux:
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 Our Merry Crew |
 The Kraken |
We were lead back to some recess in the cave, all of us marveling at the scenery and the water that had filled about a third of the place after the rains of the day. The staff had set benches out as bridges across the water filled areas (I got a kick out of the staff all wearing knee high water boots). Unfortunately there was a bit of a funky, musty smell and with all the water the place was warm and humid. Bummer and kinda strike one.
 Heather & Gina |
 Heather, Amber & Gina |
 Heather |
 One of the dining areas |
 The Path of Lost People |
 A living Stalactite & Stalagmite |
 Pretty! |
 Strike a pose! |
 You too, Jacob |
 Forced to pose by the Kraken |
 Cindy and I had Deer Tic |
 These were GOOOOOD!!! |
 Getting there was an adventure in itself |
Drinks and appetizers were ordered and arrived. Dinner was ordered and we all dug in. I think the place is trying to be too avantgarde and the menu was on the odd side. I guess that's the norm for a place like this, though. My food was okay and I heard similar comments among our group. Kinda strike dos.
While the ambiance of the cave was really cool and very interesting, the climate and our server at the end of dinner ended up putting a slight damper on the experience. We'd asked specifically if we were going to be able to get separate checks. Yes, not an issue until the check arrived. Eight of us: one pair, seven separate. Come on, this shouldn't be that hard, should it? Our server ended up getting a tad bent with us over the situation - even asked Cindy to please let him speak (in a rather rude fashion). We did end up getting it all sorted out but it took a while and with the heat building (poor "It's HOT" was smart, went up front and covered his part of the bill separately from the rest of us) patience on everyone's part kinda fell to the side. If he'd just been a bit more cooperative, especially since we'd cleared the issue when we came in, it would have gone more smoothly. Definitely strike three. Oh well. Crap happens and it was a very unique dining experience so that's what I came away with.
I did have to laugh at Kit when we got back to the villa after a four hour dinner "We should have looked around inside, realized it was going to be a tad on the miserable climate side and gone back for tacos." I concurred. Best damn tacos ever!
Random pictures shared among us.
 Diving in a cenote |
 Marsha |
 Blind Fishy |
 Bubbles to the blue |
 Cindy & Jacob |
 Cindy, Jacob & Martin |
 Bones |
 Felipe |
 Noh Mozon opening |
 Jacob |
 Jacob |
 Let the sun shine in |
 A pair of skulls |
 Same skulls different point of view |
 Solo skull |
 Cindy, Me & her dad |
 Felipe & Gina |
 Happy Heather |
I have to say I very much enjoyed meeting everyone. It's not often that you can stick ten people together for hours day after day and have complete harmony among them. The energy and fun we had was stellar.
Other than our ride in from the airport with Amber and at dinner with Heather I didn't get much chat time. We rode in different vehicles and just didn't cross paths much at all until dinner at Alux. What time I did get to spend talking to them was good and I hope the both of you enjoyed the dinners as much as I. It was a pleasure meeting both of you.
I really enjoyed Kit and Marsha on this trip. I spent a lot of hours sitting next to Kit in the back seat of the pickup. He's quite the character. A teacher, an athlete from his college days, a lover of music and movies and world traveler. I heard many stories of he and his college buddies getting into all sorts of predicaments but usually getting out with a bit of luck, wit and wisdom. I had to laugh at his wife Marsha, sitting shotgun in the truck. She would comment in every now and then and correct Kit on his stories or add to them. The two of them would poke at each other in great humor. You can see just how much of a team Kit and Marsha are and it's a good team. Great people. Marsha and Felipe chatted with each other most of the time. It's actually fairly hard to converse between the front and back seats without yelling. I think she put up with us grandly. Thanks Marsha!
Jacob was the other guy in the truck with us. Jacob's really pretty darned cool. He keeps to himself quite a bit and can get lost looking out into space (because he's an actual rocket scientist - I related to him really well, we're both engineering nerds in our own right and appreciate that in each other). Jacob and I grew up about a hundred miles apart; he in Corpus Christi, Texas, me in the Rio Grande Valley. We both know REAL Mexican food and just enough Spanish to either get food or in trouble and we're familiar with heat plus humidity so we both felt right at home in the Yucatán - hot and sticky was a way of life for us. We also now both live in the desert, which is ironic. I do have to tell on him and say that we all got a kick out of him, after doing the down the stairs bail, on the way home the day previously. He was hurting pretty badly and there was some Cuban rum that somehow managed to get into the truck and as the rum eased his pain, his humor came out louder and LOUDER. It was really funny.
Gina... What can I say? You and I are definitely trouble when we're together. Peas in a pod, cohorts in crime and laughter. Thank you so much for making this trip so much fun. I've not laughed as much with someone as you other than my wife - we laugh all the time. Keep up the Lion Fish harvesting and if you're ever out here in the desert, look us up.
Felipe was our dive master, chauffeur and is just a really good guy too - great energy. He is a graphics designer from Columbia who's moved to the Yucatán to chase his dream of diving. He's got a great taste in music (except for playing the Doors on occasion) and was a lot of fun to talk to. I'd hang out with Felipe any chance I could.
Martin is a character. He's always laughing and smiling. Unfortunately I spent the least amount of my time with him as he was stuck in the estrogen truck with four women. I'd like to get to know him a bit more, especially since Cindy regards him so well.
Cindy - Thank you so very much for letting me join in on this adventure. You had faith in me and opened the door right up. This was not an amateur outing, it required some skill and the willingness to be adventurous and I appreciate you giving me the chance to live it.
I'm not sure what my favorite part of this trip was.
The Pit had an ethereal feeling to it. Going through the halocline, just diving again and being comfortable at a hundred feet below the surface, the scenery and sights all added up to an exceptional experience.
San Antonio was a rectangular hole not much larger than a dining room table out in the middle of nowhere in the jungle. There was a ride in the back of a pickup truck that made me feel 12 again. We have to be lowered and raised into it in an aluminum "chair", that's about the size of a milk carton on the end of a rope. It's has a bunch of skulls in it. It felt like something out of Indiana Jones.
Chichén Itzá was straight out of National Audubon presentations when I was a kid. I've always had a wonder for the stuff I saw on the movie screen and now I'm standing in the middle of it. The energy I felt there was something I've never been exposed to and it ran deep within me.
I do know one thing that really made this adventure special to me and that was the people I spent a week with trudging around on the Yucatán. Thanks guys!