August | 2012 | Random Travel Musings

On to Akumal…

Not being really happy with Tulum, I decided on a whim to head up to Akumal and made last-minute arrangements on-line the day before I got there. I’ve been through Akumal briefly a couple of times, but have never stayed there. I already did a post about the condo, but I’ll reiterate that it really was a very comfortable place and it was nice having a kitchen.

There were two things that were just a little disappointing. There was no cable TV…they had a TV and a DVD player…but it wasn’t hooked up to cable. When the website said there was a TV, I automatically thought it meant they had cable, so that was my error. On the other hand, the internet connection was excellent so that made up for it. The other thing I missed is that it didn’t have any kind of outdoor balcony. It had a nice big window that looked out to the sea between the two neighboring condos, but it would have been nice to be able to sit outside. Nonetheless, it was a great place and I would highly recommend it. The maintenance staff was incredibly efficient and everything was very clean and well-kept. It was $75US per night. There were three women from the rental website who were extremely helpful and friendly, and offered ideas of things to see in the area. They also communicated with me before Hurricane Ernesto struck, informing me that if it became serious, they would find accommodations in Valladolid. That was very reassuring. Thank you, Lisa, Jill and Toni!

One thing they told me was there there was a little cenote just across the street from the condo. How cool is that?

While it may not be one of the cenotes that people drive miles to see, it’s still interesting to find out that there are so many all over the Yucatan. See the big fish?

The plants really flourish down here. The Hibiscus bushes are huge…much bigger than my little potted ones in Texas.

I went into town and needed something from the little store. I think it’s funny that you can buy eggs by the egg in Mexico..ha! “I’ll take one egg, please.”

Even though Ernesto wasn’t due for another day, the winds were starting to kick up and dark clouds were appearing on the horizon, so there weren’t a whole lot of people in the water.

I stopped at Lol Ha for lunch and had a cold one while I waited for my meal. I wish I could always have this view for lunch…

This time, I had a scallop po’ boy. I LOVE po’ boys, so I was really excited about this since I had never seen one before on a Mexican menu. Here we go…

It was excellent. The corn meal breading was perfect and the sauce was very authentic. Definitely a thumbs up.

So when I left Lol Ha, I passed by a real estate office and took some pictures of the ads in the window. Kind of interesting to see the large range of prices for places in Akumal.

I could see myself living here…

You own this place for one week for $14,000??? Seriously? Who would do that? That seems crazy to me even if you have money to throw away. Unless I’m misunderstanding this, I could think of about a million other things to spend $14,000 on.

Way more reasonable…

I was surprised to see my condo was for sale. I like it, but I don’t know if I’d pay that for it.

And MUCH more reasonable. Hmmm…wonder what it looks like inside.

Obligatory toes in Akumal sand photo…

Beach shot before Ernesto came calling…

And my cochonito pibil at La Buena Vida which is a restaurant on Half Moon Bay. Very good.

One more post to come on Akumal before the death of my camera.

August 25, 2012 | Categories: Akumal | 2 Comments

Tulum…Chapter Three

This will be my final post on Tulum…and this will be on the “other” Tulum. Here’s a Google shot of the area. You can see that the beach is quite a distance away from the actual town of Tulum and as I said before, you definitely can’t walk it. You have to drive down Highway 109 which then runs along the coast.

On my first day there, I took a cab down to the area thinking that I could walk along the coast where there would be a lot of restaurants and hotels. Well, there are a lot of restaurants and hotels, but it’s not a “walking” kind of area. It’s the kind of place where you make arrangements where you’re going to stay and that’s pretty much where you’re going to stay unless you’ve rented a car. The road that runs along the coast is not walker friendly, it’s narrow, and busy with cars, cabs and delivery trucks. There are no sidewalks and you feel quite exposed to the traffic if you’re walking along the road.

There are public beaches along the coastline and lots of vehicles just stop alongside the road which can cause some delays. The hotels are on each side of the highway and are secluded so that you really can’t see what they look like unless you actually walk up and see them personally. Since the cab had dropped me off, I just walked down the road and decided to stop for a margarita. This was the view…

There was a nice little bay off to the side…

A nice view but the place was pretty much empty.

I ended up catching a cab and going back pretty quickly because I could see real soon that this wasn’t a place where you could leisurely walk around and enjoy the sights.

When I rented the car to go to Coba, I initially was going to explore some of the colonial inland towns, but then decided to drive down the coast. It was the wrong choice.

This is all you could see for miles. Just resort after resort without actually being able to see the coast except for an occasional public beach.

I finally ran into the biosphere which was a dirt road filled with potholes and because my already suspension-less rental car had 184,000 miles on it, I didn’t want to take a chance of getting stranded, so I turned around. What a disappointment. I wish I had explored some of the colonial towns with the beautiful churches and quaint downtown zocalos instead. Well, there’s always next time.

On the way back, I stopped at one of the resorts where I had a 10% coupon from the hotel where I was staying. Resident dog…

Nice mosaic…

And nice view when you get to the restaurant…

But it was one of those places that played music with a DJ on the beach which I am NOT a fan of. When I’m at the beach, I just want to hear the sea gulls and the sound of the waves against the shore. I don’t want to hear the heavy beat of some rap song while I’m trying to relax. But then again, I’m not 25 years old anymore, am I?

Went down to the beach and this is the view to the right…

And to the left…

Toes in Tulum sand…

Here’s what I had for the 10% off…a nice healthy salad. And it was very good! And I think it only cost about $20 USD!! What a deal, huh? No, it was not worth it, but that’s what these resort places are charging and are getting away with.

While I was eating, a young women came up to me and asked me what I was eating because she thought it looked so good. We got to talking and she told me that she was from the U.S. and had moved with her Mexican husband and two young children to Tulum sight unseen. Wow…that’s a big leap of faith. She told me that she has her good times and bad but that she would never go back. It seems like everyone who moves to Mexico wants to stay. That says something.

So…the question of the hour. What is my opinion of Tulum? I wouldn’t go back in the near future. There are too many other towns and cities in Mexico that I’d rather visit first. First of all, there really isn’t that much to do in the town. If anything, it’s a starting point to do other things like visiting cenotes or ruins. Secondly, the restaurant prices are definitely not a bargain so you don’t feel like you’re saving a whole lot by staying there. Thirdly, and most importantly, I don’t like the fact that the beach and the town are so separate…and that it’s difficult to get that “beach feel” if you’re not staying at a hotel ON the beach. And while Tulum has hotels and restaurants right on the beach, they are not conducive to people just strolling by to stop in. You have to make a point to go to any of the restaurants on the coast line.

Another thing you have to keep in mind in regards to the hotels along the beach is that many of them have limited electricity. They are eco-friendly and some of them don’t have electricity during the night hours and most of them don’t have any air conditioning. I asked about room rates while I was there and could have gotten a room for about $55 USD a night.

While I don’t regret my stay in Tulum, I don’t think I would stay there again in the near future.

August 21, 2012 | Categories: Uncategorized | 6 Comments

Tulum…Chapter Two

Tulum was actually larger than I thought it was going to be. Not a large city by any means, it was still an active town with many restaurants to choose from. One thing that was disappointing was that the prices were much higher than I thought they were going to be. While I expected the beach resort restaurants to be pricey, I didn’t think the in-town restaurants were much better. On my first night, I stopped at an Argentinian place along the main highway downtown. They brought a complimentary appetizer of bread and chimichurri sauce and sauteed onions. Isn’t it nice how everything is colored-coordinated, to include the beer and my sunglasses? Rich shades of browns and golds…would make a nice advertisement.

I didn’t know what to expect because I had never had this before, but it was wonderful. I could have been satisfied with having just this for dinner.

More tightly napkin-bound utensils…

For lunch I had the vegetarian crepes. I should have just stuck with the appetizer because this was WAY more than I was hungry for. This was one of the least expensive items on the menu and it was about 120 pesos. It was good…

Very rich and filling…

I could only eat about half of it. For dinner that night, the owner of my hotel recommended Charlies.

For a restaurant with such an American name, I would have thought it was owned by Americans, but the woman who seated me didn’t speak a lick of English. She seemed like the owner or manager, and was very nice, but it was very difficult to understand her. After some conversation, I was able to figure out that she wanted me to come back the next night because they were having entertainment. I’m always kind of amazed that even with my severely limited knowledge of the Spanish language I am able to understand some conversations just from various words I can decipher.

I ordered the shish-kabob, but was very disappointed. The meat was very tough and I couldn’t eat all of it. Again, it was pretty pricey at about 150 pesos…definitely not worth it.

After dinner, I learned that there were salsa dance lessons in the back room, so I decided to go back and check it out. The main participants consisted of an American couple with two small children. I will have to say that many Americans could learn a few things about dancing from our friends south of the border. Most of us are WAY too stiff and awkward and could use some serious loosening up before we try to come close to imitating our very talented southern neighbors. This couple looked like it was more work than fun and definitely needed a few shots of tequila in my humble opinion. Sorry I didn’t get photos.

It was hard not to notice that most restaurants that had televisions were showing the Olympics. Here’s the trampoline competition…

I just had a beer in this place and noticed that it had its own little Dia de los Muertos celebration on a Ferris Wheel. How fun…little skeletons with their arms up…wheeeeee!!!!!

Subway in Tulum. Yep… I went there after my day in Coba. I was tired and just wanted to get back to the claustrophobic hotel, believe it or not. The 6-inch sub I ordered was only about $1.70 US dollars…wow. And it was good!