Gracias, no

I have never sweat so much on a regular basis in my life. The shade is alright, but the moment you move or step into the sun (which is most of the time), rivulets of sweat running between my boobs. I´m sure I smell fantastic. Hot.

After spending a couple of beach days in Cancun, Sar and I said farewell to our generous Portland friend, Adam, and headed out of tourist central into another one. I was glad to say adios to Cancun, touristy isn´t really my cup of tea. And to be honset, the beach gave me too much time to think. I started missing NYC and my people there a lot. I knew I would feel that, but I was surprised it was so soon. I mean leaving a cold, stressed city for a tropical beach and aqua waters is a pretty good trade off. You´d think I could just let go and appreciate it for two days. Well, lying there, as Sarah was cracking open coconuts like the little monkey she is, I couldn´t stop thinking about all of those people who´d wished me a bon voyage days before. I really can´t stop thinking about all of them, every day.

But here I am and every day I resolve anew to celebrate and take advantage of the time I have here. Getting out of Cancun helped. We arrived at Chichen Itza and had our first cultural experience. To be honest Chichen Itza itself kind of disappointed me. You can no longer climb to the top of El Castillo, due to some American tourist who got themselves hurt. And it´s not IN the jungle like I imagined. Everything had been cleared out. Nevertheless, I have a special affinity for ruins and nothing can conquer that. I just wanted to be AMONGST them. So Sar and I crossed the ropes and snuck into some Mayan ruins. That´s right, we´re rascals. They didn´t have any guards around, they were far too trusting.

That night we ended up in Valladolid, a smallish town about 40 km from Chichen Itza. And surprise, surprise, the one and only hostel has vanished since the Lonely Planet Guide was published. A helpful Californian turned Mexican told us to seek out Antonio Aguilar (former baseball legend?) who owned a lot of rooms in town. We saw another backpacker headed towards the hostel, scooped him up, and we all three ended up sharing a sketchy room a few blocks away. I liked Valladolid, much more than Cancun! We had our first authentic Mexican food, did not get sick, and learned something about Poland from Milosz (fellow backpacker), as well as Guatemala, where he´d been living for 4 months. I´ve got to say, very unusual day. And very pretty town.

Sar and I have been sticking with bread and cheese and apple for lunch, something else simple from the grocery store for dinner. And trail mix. I can´t wait to get out of Mexico, which is kind of expensive for our budget, to start eating more authentic food. And more interesting food.

Yesterday we ended up in Tulum for more ruins. SO GORGEOUS. The ruins are right on the ocean, it was a trade city and a fortress, and the setting is seriously unbelievable. That may be the most beautiful beach I ever see. We headed towards the Cabanas for our sleeping arrangements, Cabanas are those grass huts on the beach. Um, I really can´t believe how beautiful and peaceful those arrangements were. We had bought a couple of hammocks to hang, and since it was cheaper we decided to just hang them from the trees on the beach and keep our packs in reception. Sleeping under the trees and stars while being lulled by aqua waves? DREAMY. A chill wind and rain during the night? Not so much. But man was that beach beautiful. The sand around here is PERFECT sand. Sar and I went nightswimming and laid beneath the stars with a couple of friends she had picked up, playing the drums and conch. And then we crashed that friend´s cabana in the middle of the night when the cold and rain started. Well, it was good while it lasted. I could have stayed there another day, but circumstances as they were we had to head out this morning. We were fighting almost the whole time there so I didn´t take any pictures, which is kind of stupid, but I didnt want to remember this as the place the shit hit the fan.

We were going to take an overnight bus to Palenque tonight, some ruins I think I would FALL IN LOVE WITH. But the night bus is $50, a little steep, so I think we´re going to have to skip it. I´m pretty disappointed.

So far things have been up and down. We´re both pretty tan from all of our sunbathing, we´ve seen some unbelievable sights and taken some great pictures. And we`ve had a couple of fights. Yup, inevitable, though I didn´t expect it quite so soon. Some fundamental differences in our natures. But we´ll get over it, we have to.

I still can´t quite believe I´m here, that we actually pulled it off. And I forgot how lonely traveling can be.

Everyone´s really friendly, and I really wish I spoke spanish.

On to Belize!