Trip continues in Xpujil and preparation for Calakmul

The Mayan temple towers in Xpujil.

It was sunny morning of the late April this year when I took a bus from Campeche to Xpujil. The second class bus station is on Avenida Gobernadores – only some 15 minute walk from the hostel where I was staying. It took about five hours to get to Xpujil, but partly driving trough the villages along the Gulf of Mexico was quite nice. I listened to a very appropriate music – it was a compilation of songs of Keola Beamer, a Hawaiian musician. It was a very relaxing and comfortable trip.

I arrived to Xpujil in the early afternoon. I knew roughly where I was about to stay, although nothing was arranged. On my paper I had written down “Don Jorge Cabanas”. I heard it is a cheap and decent place, so decided to check it out. The taxi driver knew where that is, and didn’t even charge me anything, because, as he said, it’s only one kilometer from the bus station. But probably the real reason was because he hoped I will hire him the next day to drive me to Calakmul. The latter is the ruin of an ancient Mayan city, which in its golden days was one of the most important Mayan center, together with Tikal and Palenque.

Great surprise at the Mayan site of Edzna

Main plaza in the ancient city of Edzna.

The Mayan ruins of Edzna was the primary reason why I’ve came to Campeche. The plan was to catch an early colectivo van and spend the day in Edzna. The colectivo vans were located in the street that goes parallel to Avenida Gobernadores, close to the Mercado. It took me a while to find it, but after asking a few people I managed to catch a colectivo van that dropped me off at the very entrance to the site of Edzna. It took about an hour to reach it.

It was still very hot in Mexico, so I’ve spend a while in the shade, preparing for the exploration. Only people that I’ve seen during my entire stay was a bus of school kids and a dozen or so more people later on. I was pretty much there by myself. First group of objects that I’ve seen consisted of several ruined temples and an acropolis. As I was approaching one of those ruins I’ve seen lots of iguanas starting to run away. There were so many of them that I felt a little uncomfortable – I’ve never seen them in such number before. As I climbed up the acropolis I was greatly surprised by the amazing view of what’s behind it – the main plaza with the pyramid temple, and behind it on the higher platform was an amazingly intricate complex of a palace with temples.

Two days in Campeche, Yucatan

Colorfull houses with high sidewalks in the city center of Campeche.

I woke up to a sunny morning in Merida, Mexico. Today I continue my trip across Yucatan, by taking a bus to Campeche, in the state of Campeche. It was a short two hour bus ride with the second class bus. From the bus station I took a taxi to a hostel where I was staying, Viatger Inn. It is located in a great location in the historical center of Campeche. The hostel itself is new and modern, and a bit too posh for my liking, but it is a good place to stay in Campeche. Soon after arriving I’ve met one of my dormitory mates – an English guy with a very unusual British name which sounded like a name from 17th or 18th century. He was in his late 20’s, with a fair bit of traveling experience. He narrated to me some of his travel stories in South America and New Zealand. We talked about some interesting subjects, but on this first day he just told me that he is here for several days now, and he keeps prolonging his stay, because he likes Campeche that much. He showed me a video he recorded the previous night on Zocalo (main square), where there is light and sound show every evening. The light is projected upon a rectangular hacienda-looking building that covers one entire side of the Zocalo, in combination with sounds and music. He said highly of it, and it did look intriguing on the video. Unfortunately he didn’t clearly specify where the event is happening, so I asked the receptionist, however he directed me to another event.

Daytrip to the ancient city of Uxmal, Yucatan

I headed out from Enrique’s place early, although not really knowing when the bus to Uxmal is going. I already started feeling very comfortable with Mexican public transport. By that time I learned that their transport is so good that there’s no need to worry about anything, and that chances are I will find a ride to any of the important sites. Uxmal was one of such. To me it was definitely one of the most significant Mayan sites that I was planning to see while on the Yucatan peninsula.

I caught the bus from Enrique’s neighborhood to downtown Merida, and I must say it was one of the most uplifting bus ride I’ve ever been to. The driver, in his early 40’s and with full-eyes covered shades (even though it was cloudy), was speeding through the down and had some uplifting Latino music playing very loud – the entire scene was like from some action movie.

I arrived to downtown quickly. The bus station that I thought is the right one is very close to the main square of Merida. As I was buying a bus ticket, the clerk told me that the bus is located somewhere “behind”, but I misunderstood what she meant. And so I sat down in the bus waiting room, having 45 minutes until the time of departure. Some 15 minutes later one of the employees approached me and asked to show her the ticket. Upon seeing it, she said that the bus is not going from this station, but from another one.

Arriving to Mérida (Mexico) and a daytrip to Dzibilchaltun

Downtown Merida (Mexico)

“Mérida, Mérida! Mérida, Mérida!” were the many shouts coming from a man on the streets of Valladolid, trying to gather enough people for a transfer from Valladolid to Merida. I would join them, but I thought it could be uncomfortable trip if minivan is full and I am having my backpack with me. I decided to go with a bus, which takes about two hours.

It was a very warm and sunny weather. As we entered Mérida from the Eastern side, I noticed we are passing through some very poor neighborhoods. I didn’t expect this, and was wondering if the entire Merida would be like this. It wasn’t.

I arrived to ADO bus station at around 5.30 PM, and waited for my host in Merida to arrive. His name was Enrique – a person I’ve contacted on Couchsurfing. He picked me up at the station soon after I arrived, and then drove me around downtown Merida to get the feeling of the place, telling me about some of its history.