Palenque
Wednesday January 9
Took the cheap bus to Palenque that afternoon, we were so stoked about saving so much money we didn’t stop to think about the things we might be sacrificing, but I can sure tell you now what they were:
1. Air Conditioning, minor detail in 85 degree weather with humidity
2. A classic (I use that term roughly) American film dubbed in Spanish
3. Personal space, I really got to know my neighbor, luckily it was just my husband or things could have gotten really awkward…
4. Shocks, as in the kind on the frame of the bus itself, we were in the back row and I literally shot all the way up to the ceiling and almost made a couple new sun roofs in the top of the bus
5. Apparently the cheap bus that travels across the country also doubles as public transport as we stopped for anyone and everyone who flagged us down along the way.
6. People coming on the bus to sell their various wares including but not limited to talmales, frozen slushy things, sandwiches, drinks, etc… Ok let’s be honest that was actually a bonus not a negative….
After we arrived in Palenque we took a taxi to our hostel which was located right at the gate that goes in to the Pelenque park, which has all the ruins. We stayed in a nice little private Cabana that had a big shared grassy area and there were a bunch of people camping in tents as well. I think we must have gotten there in the middle of some big rendezvous because there were seriously hippies all over the place and it smelled like pot everywhere we went.
That night we were just hanging out in our room and all of a sudden we hear this super loud growling animal noise. It sounded so close and my first thought was seriously, how strong are these walls and are they going to protect us when this thing attacks! It went on for a good 15 minutes and I was legitimately scared, my one consoling thought was I hadn’t heard any screaming from people yet, so either the animal was so fast it silenced you before you had a chance to scream or it was only marginally dangerous. McKay finally decided to go check it out, I was very torn between letting my husband go out and die and I would still have no idea what was going on out there or go out with him and risk my own death….
This was a video we took while exploring the scary noise, if you skip to about the 35 second mark that’s really where all the action starts!
After taking this video we walked over to our hostel check in where two armed guards were hanging out (at that point we thought, there is some real danger here if they brought in armed guards and everything) and asked them what the noise was. They said something in Spanish I didn’t understand and after seeing my look of confusion they repeated, “You know, a monkey.”
Sadly this is the tiny creature that all the fuss was about. It’s called a Howler Monkey and I think it’s endangered, probably because it sounds like a Jaguar mating call and when the Jaguar shows up and sees it’s been tricked it probably just eats the monkey in retaliation.
Thursday January 10
Headed up to see the ruins first thing in the morning. As we were getting in the combi to go through the first gate they made us buy what you think is a park ticket for 25 pesos each, however once you actually reach the park entrance you found out that the 25 pesos were just to save the rain forest and you still have to buy you park ticket. So lame that they pull this trick wherever they can, but I guess when it’s $2 you’re talking about you can’t get too upset.
They weren't sure the purpose this building had in Mayan times, I think it was solely there to stand in front of and take awesome pictures!
In the background is the main city center for Palenque, it was one of the major cities at the height of the Mayans and was still being built up to the time of their decline around 850 AD.
See all those steps behind us, we decided we wanted a little workout and climbed up and down them at least 5 times.... Or we would have had it been open. :)
We went in to the town of Palenque after seeing the ruins walked around and ate dinner. You can’t help but eat at a place like Mr. Taco when you’re in Mexico. Looks like a classy joint right? WRONG! This restaurant was almost the death of both of us, read on to find out more…
In the middle of the night Thursday poor McKay woke up and seriously threw up everything he had eaten for the last four days! Luckily he threw up over the little deck of our cabana down in to a little stream so it only smelled like throw up for a little while… I felt so bad but secretly thought, “Sorry your stomach is so weak and mine is so strong” until…..
Friday January 11
We changed hostels early in the morning (we found somewhere cheaper but with the same amount of bugs so it was a no brainer) and then met our tour bus to head out to Misol Ha and Agua Azul. I woke up not feeling 100% but thought nah I’m just having sympathy pains this will pass. So in the bus we went, and on to the windiest crazy road you’ve ever seen did we go and up decided to come my dinner…. Luckily we had a nice clear Ziploc bag for me to puke in, only instead of gracefully throwing up and getting it over with my body decided it wasn’t quite time so I had to spend the whole day being sick and looking on the verge of throwing up. When we finally got to Agua Azul it was so nice to get out and walk around and breathe some fresh air. We spent 3 hours there and by the end of that time my confidence was building so I drank some Coke and had a little empanada with beans. All I can say is clearly I must be a rookie because that was a choke and I paid for it the whole way home, this time I wasn’t faking it and in to the clear Ziploc bag everything went,… Talk about how to win friends and influence people. The good news was I had plenty of space to myself on that trip, no one wanted to sit next to the girl who smelled like throw up. :)
This is Agua Azul, it was seriously so pretty and had little waterfalls like this that went on forever. All the indigenous people who live in the area use this river to wash their clothes and food and literally live within 25 yards of the path.
This is one of the lookout views as you're hiking up, they had swimming holes all along the way as well and there were tons of Mexican families there enjoying their afternoons! I still don't get why they call it Agua Azul though?.... (Agua Azul translated for those of you who don't know is Water Blue)
This is at Misol Ha on our way to Agua Azual, this was an awesome swimming hole and you could climb behind and on to the other side of the waterfall as well. It was super safe and legit with slippery wet rock and no railing or handholds to support yourself with. That's what I love about Mexico!
Apparently this guy could not make it even one step further so he just gave up and died right there in the most inconvenient spot he could find in the middle of the trail…
This was the restaurant right by the two hostels we stayed at, it’s called Don Mucho’s, I’m pretty sure because every time you eat there you spend “Mucho’s” you money! :) They had live entertainment every night and it was a pretty happening place!
Saturday Jan 12
We headed out of Palenque on Saturday but by the time we got in to town at 11 the next bus wasn’t for 3 hours. So we hung out in town, avoided Mr. Taco like the plague and grabbed something to eat. It took 6 hours to get in to San Cristobal and first it was so hot we were sweating to death and then as we got closer to S.C., because it's high up in the mountains, it was so cold and we were shivering like something that shivers a lot. Apparently us gringo's are impossible to please.
This was the second hostel we stayed in Palenque, and upon further inspection of my backpack in this picture, it definitely does not look nearly as heavy as it feels every time I have to carry it more than 5 steps down the road….
So much fun!! Palenque and Agua Azul were my two very favorite places I visited while living in Mexico, SO PRETTY. Jealous :) I hope you two are having so much fun! Be safe! LOVE YA!
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