We were on the bus from Campeche to Palenque today, a six hour journey with just a couple of rest stops (and one stop for the Army to check the people and bags on board - obviously too close to the Guatemala border at the time!!). There was not much to see in the way of scenery, Campeche state, like the rest of the Yucatán peninsula is, as flat as a pancake. As we entered Chiapas and neared Palenque, the ground began rise and fall slightly and there were cle...

The church bells started to ring early this morning, well, it wasn't too long after daybreak so that's considered early. Still, it was good to wake up and go exploring the city before it got too hot. We walked to Puerta de Tierra, 'Land Gate to the City', they had a small museum to learn a bit of the history before climbing up the steep path to the top of the walls. Being able to walk around the city with a birds eye view was great - an olden day version of the...

We were on the move again but not until the afternoon for the short bus ride to the coastal capital of Campeche City. After a leisurely breakfast at the hostel, we made use of the pool and hammocks - there can't be too many backpacker hostels with amenities this good. The drive into the city bus station and from there to our hotel took us through the usual run down, shabby streets. It occurred to David that this should not be a reflection of a city or town - a ...

On Sundays, Mérida's Plaza Grande is turned over for a street market with entertainment. It was an easy walk to get there, across one block and turn right onto Calle 60 then keep walking. What immediately caught our attention in Calle 60 was that it had been closed off to cars. Only bicycles were given freedom to ride up and down the road with the luxury of traffic wardens holding cars back at the intersections. It was only after forgetting about the vast va...

Our trip was continuing to Mérida today and, once again, it was a very uneventful bus ride through the flat jungle of Yucatan. Mérida is described as being a large town of colonial splendeour but when we entered the city, the opinion differed. It was certainly a large town, it took us ages to wind through narrow streets to the bus station but we didn't see any of the colonial splendour, it looked just the same as any other town we had been in. When th...