We both finished our breakfasts, and headed back to the room to pick up some more cash we thought we might need on our trip, then journeyed back to the main lodge (lobby) to wait for our tour bus. We were a little bit early, and ended up standing in a crowd of about 50-70 other tourists waiting for their tour buses to arrive. After most of the crowd was picked up, our bus pulled up, and our amazing tour guide Jorge greeted, and escorted us onto the bus.
We stopped off at two other nearby resorts (both of them very beautiful) to pick up a bunch of other tourists. After the bus was full we hit the highway and took the 45-50 minute drive to Coba. What is Coba?? Well, Coba is a Mayan ruin, well it's an area that was once occupied by the Mayan's (some still live in nearby village's). But we took an amazing tour visiting the two pyramids in the area. The first was a 9 level temple signifying the 9 levels of the underworld. Near that was a "ball court" which was used in the Mayan Times as a sport that would sometimes last for months at a time. I can't wait to post the pictures, but I'm sure you can find some online somewhere. They weren't aloud to use their hands, or their head or feet to hit the ball, only their chests their knees, and their shoulders. And they had to hit the ball through a very small loop at the top of a very steep rock hill. It's hard to explain, but looking at it from where we were, I find it nearly impossible, and I dare to challenge anyone to do it!!!!
After that, we ventured about 2 miles through the jungle to another temple. This one we were actually aloud to climb. And I did....Amber didn't, and I don't blame here, after I got half way up, I was shitting my pants, it's very steep and VERY high. She did go up about 3 quarters of the way, so I give her props for that. I can't say that it was anything special up there, but it was more for the experience of saying I actually did it. After reaching the bottom, my legs started to cramp up, and the 2 mile walk back was not fun for my stems.
After getting back to the bus we headed over to small Mayan restaurant where we drank beer, ate some incredible tortillas with unbelievable salsa, and enjoyed a wonderful dish of chicken, beans, rice, and lettuce, one of the best meals I have had so far.
After lunch, we walked across the street to a nearby beach where one of the tourists was hitting the water with a stick trying to get a crocodile to come out of the water. I just kept my finger on the shutter of my camera, waiting for the pulitzer prize winning picture of a crocodile chomping the arm off the tourist, but to no avail, the crocks never came, and we all got back on the bus, unharmed and fully limbed.
We headed down the road to visit a small Mayan community, and it was awesome to see a completely different culture, to see how they live, and function. These people still hunt and farm for their food and are completely self sufficient. Most people who come here think that are poor, but in fact they aren't. They are self sufficient so they don't need the luxuries that we take for granted every day, and really don't need. It puts things into perspective, proving that we don't need playstations, and dvd's and televisions to survive, we need survival skills, and we need to know how to survive in our own world.
After dishing out some gum for the local Mayan Kids and snapping some pics, we go back on the bus for a little Siesta (nap) as we headed to Cenote (Sinkhole). A Cenote is a geological formation that only exists in the Yucatan Peninsula. The core of the eninsula is made of limestone, and faults in the limestone create subterranean caves, wells and rivers. Cenotes are natural water deposits that are formed when the underground waters comes up to the surface of the earth. Ancient Mayan mythology considered cenotes to be sacred entrances into the underworld. It was an awesome experience, the water was cold, but it was a refreshing cold after being in the blistering mexican heat all day.
After our little dip in the healing waters of the cenote, we headed back to the hotel, where we got dressed, grabbed some dinner, and headed back to the room to check our emails and facebooks. We checked out more pics that were posted of the wedding, they look awesome, thanks everyone.
Well, time to sleep. We've decided that tomorrow is going to be drinking by the pool and spa day. We're going to wake up early, grab some breakfast by the pool, and then start drinking early, while we bake in the sun. We have a spa appointment at 1, for some relaxation massages, which are much needed after the daunting task of climbing ancient Mayan Ruins all day.
Well, that's about it for tonight, we're watching Lost In Translation (how fitting), as we slowly fall asleep. As I look behind me I notice that Amber is already passed out. Time for me to get off this thing, and enjoy the comfort of our king sized bed.
J&A
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