(For English, see further down)

Mexico, det er der taco'en kommer fra!

Efter en fantastisk sejltur fra Caye Caulker ankom vi til Chetumal, en lille kystby i det sydøstlige Mexico. Herfra stod den på en lille 4 timers bustur, inden vi ankom til dagens destination, Tulum (længere nordpå). Efter lidt bøvl med at finde et sted at sove, med et fornuftigt prisleje, nød vi aftenen med burritos og mexicansk stemning. Vi havde besluttet os for at stå tidligt op for at se Tulum ruinerne, inden stedet blev overtaget af turisterne. Og det lykkedes efter 2 mexikanske kilometer (4,5 danske) at nå frem, hvorefter vi, som de allerførste, blev lukket ind i parken. Sikken et syn. Smukke ruiner direkte på stranden og klipperne, og én af mayaernes vigtigste kystbyer indtil 1600 tallet. Helt klart en af vores favorite ruiner :)!
Turen tilbage var lidt anderledes, nu hvor solen for alvor var kommet frem. Så efter 1 times gåtur tilbage og sammenlagt 9,5 km i 'sommervarmen', var vi godt og grundigt klar til et bad. Næste skridt var ellers tilbage til busstationen og kurs mod næste destination, Playa del Carmen.

I Playa del Carmen fandt vi et super hostel, kun 2 min fra vandet og byens hovedgade. Efter lidt tacos til frokost, fra den lokale 'tacosmand', gik vi rundt og nød byen.
Dagen efter stod på lidt sol og strand, inden vi skulle videre til Cancun. Vi var heldige, at Melanies forældre IGEN IGEN forkælede os med et super hotel. Det lå faktisk så godt, at når man gik ud af hotellet, skulle man passe på, så man ikke faldt i vandet ;)!
I Cancun blev hotellet, stranden og poolen brugt flittigt. Der var også en masse altiviteter, såsom vollyball, fodbold og tennis. Udover afslapning nåede vi også en tur ud og besøge Chichen Itza, som er kåret til verdens andet menneskeskabte vidunder (den første værende den kinesiske mur og nummer tre Machu Picchú). Blot endnu et af verdens 7 vidundere, som vi har været så priviligeret at se. Det var et smukt sted, men vi mener nu, vi har set steder, der er smukkere og mere unikke. Men en god tur var det. Vi fik et indblik i den mexikansk/mayanske kultur.
Ellers havde vi også planlagt en tur ud og snorkle med 'whale sharks', verdens største haj (dog plankton ædende), som kan blive op til ca. 12 meter lang. Men for første gang var vi lidt uheldige, idet vi fik uventet 3 dage med dårligt vejr, præcis som sæsonen for turen gik igang. Dette umuliggjorde at komme ud på havet og se de fantastiske dyr. Det var rigtig ærgerligt, men nu er vi jo 'nødt' til at komme tilbage ;).

Vi er nu ankommet til Rikkis elskede Californien, så den næste update vil nok først komme i slutningen af juni.

Pas på jer selv og husk vi savner jer :) + <3

Knus R&M

Mexico, the land of tacos :)!!

After a speedy voyage from Caye Caulker, we arrived in Chetumal, a small coastal town (in the south east part) right on the Mexican border. From here we took a 4 hour bus ride to the final destination of the day, Tulum (further up north along the coast). After some trouble finding a place to stay for a decent price, we enjoyed the remaining part of the evening eating burritos and feeling the Mexican vibe. We had decided to get up quite early the following day, so that we could go see the Tulum ruins, before being flooded by tourists. After walking 4,5 km at 7 o'clock in the morning, we managed to get there and be the first ones, when the doors opened. And what a sight we encountered! Beautiful ruins situated right on the beach and it's cliffs. It was the most important coastal town of the Mayans until the 1600. This is definitely one of our favorite ruins thus far :).
The trip back to town from the ruins was quite different. The sun had really come out and was bright, sunny and HOT! So after one hour of walking a total of 9,5 km we were, should we say, exhausted ;)! So we took a quick and coooold shower and were then ready for our next city stop, Playa del Carmen.
In Playa del Carmen we found the best hostel ever! Only 2 minutes away from the main walking street as well as the ocean and beach. After having tacos for lunch, from the local 'taco man' and his restaurants on wheels, we just walked around and got a feel of the city. The following day we took it upon us and tried out the beach and got a bit sun kissed before heading to our final Mexican town, Cancun. We were yet again extremely lucky and privileged that Melanie's parents had hooked us p with a timeshare at a beautiful five star hotel. And yes, it was such a good hotel that when you walked out of it, you would literally fall into the ocean, if you didn't watch out.
We had a great time in Cancun. We really took advantage of our huge apartment and and the hotel facilities. The latter consisted of daily exercise at the the hotel gym, participating in the daily activities such as water and beach volley ball, tennis as well as water aerobics. In addition to the the relaxing part, we also got to go and visit Chitchen Itza, which is considered the second world wonder (the great wall of China being the first and Macchu Picchu being the third). Just another world wonder we have been privileged enough to witness. It was amazing to see, although it was not our favorite Mayan ruin. We have seen more unique constructions. However we got an insight in to the Mayan and Mexican culture, which we enjoyed very much.
Besides the ruins, we had also planned to snorkel with whale sharks (the biggest sharks in the world, up to ca. 12 m long - although not carnivores). Unfortunately the weather was not on our side, so the trip was canceled, very much to our regret. Anyway, that just gives us an incentive to come back and snorkel with these fantastic creatures.

We are now in California (Rikki's fav destination), so you will probably only get an update at the end of June.

Take care of yourselves and remember we miss you :) + <3

Hugs from R&M