trip report - tulum

After spending a few hours in Coba we hooked up with with our taxi driver for the day - Victor. He ended up being our driver for most of the trip giving us his cell number so that we could call whenever we needed him.  It proved to be very convenient in that we didn't have to wait for taxis since Victor was always waiting for us.

We sped off from Coba and headed to Tulum stopping for lunch on the way and inviting Victor to join us.

After lunch we did a quick reapply of suntan lotion.  Maybe I should rephrase that - the kids and I did a quick reapply and then waited for Derek to apply his sunscreen.  I'm not sure if it takes so long cause he's whiter then the rest of us or because he's whiter and taller - I guess it takes a while to get those long legs covered.  We love him anyway :)
To get to Tulum you can take a shuttle (I'm sure it's over priced) or do what we did and just take a walk.  It seems like a bit of a walk because of the heat but still doable.  Besides we were able to stop and see some cool things that we wouldn't have seen from the shuttle.  Can you see what Luke is running towards?
It was this little guy.  They were everywhere and they creeped me out a bit.  I kept thinking about the movie Holes and the scene with all the creepy crawlies climbing on the two kids in the hole.
As beautiful as the beaches and water are in this part of Mexico I think the jungles are equally as beautiful.  This part of the walk was amazing - I loved traipsing through the foliage - it brought out my inner Indiana Jones.
After you walk through a bit of jungle you get to the wall of the city.  
Tulum is a must see site - it is beautiful.  we like to refer to it as the Newport Beach of the Mayans.  Can't you see yourself living in the structure behind us?  Just tell me when I can move in.

I loved being at all these archaeological sites with my kids and seeing their interest. I thoroughly enjoyed the fact that Nate couldn't stop talking about being an archaeologist one day.

My one disappointment with Tulum is that it has changed a bit since Derek and I were there last.  All of the structures are roped off now where they weren't before.  I understand the reasoning - so many people visiting these sites can quickly deteriorate them but it is such a cool experience to walk on and feel the structures.  
Look at that water!  The pictures don't even do it justice.  I know I have already said it in previous posts but this area of Mexico (Yucatan) is on of my favorite places - it is beautiful!

At this point in the day we have now spent literally hours climbing pyramids and exploring in the heat of the sun at Coba and Tulum. Luke's face sums it up best - he was done!  Our kids never complained and they went along with everything we did this day so this picture cracks me up because it shows his true feelings.  We were all feeling a bit like this - we were ready to be out of the sun!

makes me smile

Derek suggested that I use my free time today blogging about our trip.  Great idea but instead I took a nap. Although I feel a little bit guilty about my 2 hour nap I use the excuse that I really did need it. Since coming home from the trip I haven't been in bed before 1 am most nights.  I deserve the nap right?!?!  Besides that now I am awake and kinda blogging about the trip.

There are still a ton of pictures to look thru before I start posting but I did want to hare this one...

Every time I open up my pictures I go back to this one - it makes me smile, I love it!  It's not the best photograph ever.  The kids aren't looking their best and some aren't even looking at the camera.  Luke is blurry.  But for me this picture captures the perfectness of the day we went to see the ruins.

In photography you are often told not to shoot into the sun but I happen to like it.  I love the sun in this photo.  You get a better feel for how the sun was beating down on  us.  It was hot this day thanks to the sun and so I am glad I captured "mister sun, sun, mister golden sun" (any Barney fans?  Is Barney even still on?) because he was a big part of the day.

I love that the kids aren't looking their best.  We were dressed scuzzy, we were sweating pigs, we were hot and tired but man, we were having fun exploring.  The fact that some of the kids aren't even looking helps me to remember that there was so much to look at it and learn - every ones attention would be focused on a different pyramid, hieroglyph, historical marker, bug, etc. and we would all want to tell the others about what we found.

Luke's blurriness is jut proof that the kid is in motion a lot.  He would run up and down the ruins exploring tunnels and little hiding places. He just went and went. He nearly flew up the big pyramid we climbed (pictures coming) The only thing that slowed him down there was his mother (who was completely freaked out watching her 6 year old climb stairs built in 800 AD that were now crumbling ) telling him to slow down.

So this picture for me is everything I loved about this particular day that we spent exploring Coba and Tulum.  I am so grateful that we were able to take this family trip!