Mehling.org: Finally!

March 14, 2008

Finally!

3/14 (Friday)

After a big false start to this adventure back in December, the big day had arrived. We were off to Mexico, Belize and Guatemala with our friend David. The plan was to haul our backpacks around for 17 days -- the only real scheduled activity, lodging or itinerary was the flight into Mexico and the flight out. Because our flight to Cancun was so early on Friday morning we stayed at Robert's place in LA the night before and he drove us over to LAX in the morning.

Like any travel day, it's long, boring and tiring. We flew from LAX to Mexico City. This is first time I'd ever flown through this city of 20 million. The expanse of cityscape is massive, the pollution is obvious (and according to a friend Hol met on a later flight, causes the approach flight to be turbulent). I tried to grab a few shots with my camera of the cityscape, but the smog hanging in the air was too much -- just like LA, right? The airport (at least the terminals we traveled through) were quite modern and had an interesting architectural element (a grid of circular holes) that let natural light in and kept the space cool and subdued.

After passing through customs (without our luggage), we caught our connecting flight to Cancun. Apparently, in Mexico, drinks on the plane are at no cost! In Cancun you exit the airplane directly onto the flight deck and the heat and moisture was immediate. We grabbed our bags and David arranged for a Collectivo to the Cancun ADO terminal. In Cancun, as you pass through a second round of customs (this time with your bags), the agent asks you about declarations, then instructs you to "push the button". The button is attached to the pole of a six foot tall "traffic light" device. If it flashes red you "win" a chance to have your bags and person personally searched... It flashed green -- we "lost". I wonder what yellow means.

After getting dropped off at the ADO terminal, we drug our bags around for a bit trying to find a place to change travelers checks... after a bit of walking, we decided to just change out some cash. Three tickets on an ADO line to Tulum and we were on our way again. The ride south was pretty uneventful and it was dark by now, so there wasn't much to see. When we reached Tulum (the city is named for the Mayan ruins on its northern edge), David figured out how to call down the hotel he had stayed at previously -- El Crucero was on the North end of town, within walking distance of the ruins and the beach. Unfortunately they only had a single room with two doubles or a dormitory for us and only for one night. We decided to just share the room and figure out where we would stay the next night in the morning. After dropping our bags off, we headed back to town get something to eat. The taxi driver recommended the El Mariachi as some simple and typical Mexican food. We were welcomed by a stray cat, and the food was decent.

Photo Album:
http://mehling.org/gallery/v/travels/2008_mexico/Day+1/

Posted by ben at March 14, 2008 08:00 PM


« Background \| Main \| Tulum Ruins » March 14, 2008 Finally! 3/14 (Friday) After a big false start to this adventure back in December, the big day had arrived. We were off to Mexico, Belize and Guatemala with our friend David. The plan was to haul our backpacks around for 17 days -- the only real scheduled activity, lodging or itinerary was the flight into Mexico and the flight out. Because our flight to Cancun was so early on Friday morning we stayed at Robert's place in LA the night before and he drove us over to LAX in the morning. Like any travel day, it's long, boring and tiring. We flew from LAX to Mexico City. This is first time I'd ever flown through this city of 20 million. The expanse of cityscape is massive, the pollution is obvious (and according to a friend Hol met on a later flight, causes the approach flight to be turbulent). I tried to grab a few shots with my camera of the cityscape, but the smog hanging in the air was too much -- just like LA, right? The airport (at least the terminals we traveled through) were quite modern and had an interesting architectural element (a grid of circular holes) that let natural light in and kept the space cool and subdued. After passing through customs (without our luggage), we caught our connecting flight to Cancun. Apparently, in Mexico, drinks on the plane are at no cost! In Cancun you exit the airplane directly onto the flight deck and the heat and moisture was immediate. We grabbed our bags and David arranged for a Collectivo to the Cancun ADO terminal. In Cancun, as you pass through a second round of customs (this time with your bags), the agent asks you about declarations, then instructs you to "push the button". The button is attached to the pole of a six foot tall "traffic light" device. If it flashes red you "win" a chance to have your bags and person personally searched... It flashed green -- we "lost". I wonder what yellow means. After getting dropped off at the ADO terminal, we drug our bags around for a bit trying to find a place to change travelers checks... after a bit of walking, we decided to just change out some cash. Three tickets on an ADO line to Tulum and we were on our way again. The ride south was pretty uneventful and it was dark by now, so there wasn't much to see. When we reached Tulum (the city is named for the Mayan ruins on its northern edge), David figured out how to call down the hotel he had stayed at previously -- El Crucero was on the North end of town, within walking distance of the ruins and the beach. Unfortunately they only had a single room with two doubles or a dormitory for us and only for one night. We decided to just share the room and figure out where we would stay the next night in the morning. After dropping our bags off, we headed back to town get something to eat. The taxi driver recommended the El Mariachi as some simple and typical Mexican food. We were welcomed by a stray cat, and the food was decent. Photo Album: http://mehling.org/gallery/v/travels/2008_mexico/Day+1/ Posted by ben at March 14, 2008 08:00 PM		Bookmarks Ben's Resume Ben's Lists Mehling Photo Album Flickr Photo Album Recently Archived Cozumal and Playa Palancar Akumal Desperately Seeking Lodging See you in nine days Sian Ka'an Coba Ruins Tulum Ruins Finally! Background Micro Credit Archives August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 Etc. Search: