Daytrip to the ancient city of Cantona (from Puebla)

View of the ancient site of Cantona and with a vulcano in the background

The ancient site of Cantona is another very interesting place to see. It is located about hour and a half from Puebla, close to a town called Oriental. I had to wake up at around 6am or earlier in order to catch the morning bus to Oriental, from the main bus station in Puebla. It was still very early in the morning when I arrived to Oriental. From where the bus dropped me off in the town center, the colectivos to Cantona are just around the corner. However, they don’t go often because there are not many people who go there. Because I was the only passenger, I paid 100 pesos for the ride (20-30 kilometers distance), and arranged with the driver to pick me up here in case I don’t find someone who is going to Oriental or Puebla.

And so I started exploring this huge site. It is very unique because of its location in the desert, with cactus-like trees all around. The style of architecture is typical Mesoamerican, yet with some unique appearance. The site is believed to date to the first millennia AD, but it is unknown who has actually inhabited this huge city. Even though the archaeological zone is so large, it is thought that only some 10% of the ancient city has been excavated.

Gaining momentum in Valladolid Part II: Chichen Itza and cenote Samula

Downtown Valladolid.

After finding out where the colectivos for Chichen Itza is located, I went to that place fairly early. I was told that the first colectivo to that most popular Mayan ruin in Mexico goes at 7am (which turned out to be inaccurate information because it goes at 8). I intended to catch that early one so to come there and explore before the crowds starts entering. When I came there at 8am I saw two couples talking and waiting for the ride. At 8:30 we finally hit the road and were on our way to Chichen Itza. On our way there I conversed with one of the couples that were waiting. They were an easygoing young people from Ontario and the purpose for their travel was to spend a month on the Caribbean cost, taking care of someone’s house.They were very much looking forward to that break, and told me many things about their overall travel in the area.

After some 45 minutes we arrived to Chichen Itza. The admission fee for the site was around 250 pesos, which was the most expensive ticket for archeological site in Mexico (most of other sites were 70 pesos). Yet, it is worth paying that much to see what this most popular Mayan site has to offer. It was almost 10am, yet the many buses that would come from Cancun were not yet there, which was good. However, there were lots of sellers already at the site.

Three Days in Tulum, Mexico

I woke up at around 8am, rested, to a sunny day. Today’s plan was to spend most of the day exploring the ancient city of Tulum, and swim in the Caribbean sea. As the ruins are only a few kilometers away, I decided to rent a bike, which a lot of travelers that come here do. As I got to the main street of Tulum, a girl riding a bike passed by me. I halted her to ask where she rented it from. She pointed to a place which is on the main Chetumal-Cancun street, close to the corner with Avenida Satelite (but there are several more places where you can rent bikes). Renting it for the whole day cost around 50 pesos, which is a good price considering that Tulum is one of the most expensive places in Mexico.

Getting to Tulum ruins was easy. I drove Eastwards on the main street, and after 10 minutes of cycling there was a big sign “Ruinas Tulum” pointing to turn right. Soon afterwards I came to a big place – a parking lot with stands where merchants were selling related products. I had to leave my bike here and continue on foot. After buying the ticket which cost around 60 pesos, I passed through tropical vegetation and entered the ancient city of Tulum.