We spent day 4 in Tulum, and it was one of the most unforgettable single days we've ever had on a trip. We were very fortunate in that the owner of the inn where we were staying connected us with an amazing guide, a biologist who led us through much of the day. But we began it alone at the ruins of Tulum, a relatively small but breathtaking (yes, really) site located on a cliff overlooking the Caribbean. It's hard to explain just how cool it was (and the photo doesn't really do it justice), but just take what
you see in the picture and multiply it by an amazingness factor of 100.
LISA: To explain the whole story would take too long but the short version is that a good friend of mine, Jill, was in Tulum a couple of weeks ago. We were both very excited about visiting the same place and she buried a gift for me on the site of the ruins and gave me a map to find it. Greg and I were a little disoriented at first but a friendly iguana led us to the exact spot. Here I am ecstatic that I have uncovered my hidden treasure. I felt like I had uncovered an ancient Mayan artifact. It was very cool. Thank you Jill!!
GREG: After Tulum we went with our guide, Manuel, to Yalpu, an arm of the Caribbean Sea where we went snorkeling. It was incredible from the moment we put our heads into the water. We saw Rainbow Parrot fish, Damsel fish, Needle fish, Sargeant Majors, Surgeon fish, Tang, and lots more. (I know that list doesn't help you visualize, but I can't help name-dropping. We didn't have an underwater camera with us.)
LISA: This was my first time snorkeling and at first I was pretty anxious. So it took me a while to actually get my head in the water but as Greg said as soon as our head went in I was completely fascinated by the beautiful world we were so privileged to see. Now I'll let Greg tell you about his misadventure (which happened while I was happily mesmerized by all the beautiful fish).
GREG: This, too, is too complicated to explain sufficiently, but what happened, in brief, was this: Our guide Manuel showed me an underwater tunnel that went from one part of the bay to another. Lisa got out and walked, but Manuel asked if I wanted to try to swim the tunnel. I didn't, really, but I thought it might be exciting to try. You had to swim down about 12-15 feet to get under the rocks, then maybe 15 more feet ahead to the end of the tunnel. We practiced a couple times in open water and I wasn't sure I could hold my breath or stay down long enough, but with Manuel's encouragement I decided to try it. The plan (his idea)was for him to stay behind me and kind of "push" me on if I needed it. So I went down and started to go though. After several seconds, I felt my body rising up too much, so I started to panic that I was going to bang my head on a rock (the tunnel was covered by a thick layer of limestone). At that moment, I felt Manuel pull on my shirt from behind. I thought he was trying to warn me about the rocks, so I just tried to go faster and further. By this point my lungs felt like they were about to explode (Kirk, I know you're laughing hard by now) and I was in a real panic to get up to get air. But I couldn't find an opening. I bounced off several rocks and finally surfaced several seconds later (though it felt like I had been down there several minutes). I got pretty cut up, including a big gash on my forehead:
The first thing Manuel said when I came up was "You're crazy, man!" What had happened was that when he pulled on my shirt, he was trying to tell me to go up (we were at the end of that part of the tunnel). I thought he was just trying to warn me not to hit the rocks, so when I kept swimming instead of surfacing, I ended up going about twice as far as I was supposed to. Lesson learned: Do not swim through tunnels covered with thick limestone without a helmet.
LISA AND GREG: Our next stop was at a recently discovered cenote, which is an underground "cave" that is partially filled with water because the cave goes below the water table. Cenotes are a popular tourist attraction in the Yucatan, but Manuel took us to one that is little known and only accessed by a small number of people. When we were there, it was just us. To access it we walked through a mosquito-infested (literally) jungle for five minutes, then climbed down a wood-and-rope ladder about fifteen feet. From there, we slogged through cold knee- to chest-deep water (the only light, once we were out of sight of the entrance hole, was our flashlights) with catfish swimming through our legs (Lisa found this particularly distrubing.) There were beautiful stalactites and stalagmites (not sure of the spelling) everywhere.
LISA: I just want to add that I am pretty claustrophobic. So when we got off the wooden ladder Greg mentioned above and for the rest of the time we were in the cenote I was overwhelmed with emotion--panicked at being in a cave with water, catfish, scorpions and bats (one that flew right over my head) and yet completely amazed at how beautiful it was. I knew then and now as we write this that this unique view of our world was truly special and sacred. I also know that if I'd known what it involved ahead of time I wouldn't have done it but I am so grateful that I did.
GREG: Eventually we got to a part where the water rose higher and we had to swim the rest of the way to the open-air part of the cenote (where light streams in from a small hole in the ground overhead). It was really something to see. Here are a couple shots from right before we reached that part, where you can see the light from above illuminating the water.
LISA AND GREG: Our last stop of the day (it was a LONG day) was at a forest reserve where we went on a hike through the jungle looking for spider monkeys and howler monkeys. Our guide there, along with Manuel, was Juan, a 19-year-old Mayan who speaks his indigenous language and knows the jungle and its animals well. We did end up seeing both kinds of monkeys and it was awesome. The spider monkeys, in particular, really greeted us and stayed right overhead in a canopy of tree limbs for a long time. It was a whole family and we watched them play, eat, groom each other, cuddle their babies, and swing and jump from tree to tree. It's one thing to see this in a zoo, but to see it in the wild was spectacular. (These adjectives are probably getting annoying but they really are accurate -- spectacularly so).
LISA AND GREG: So it was quite a day. Yesterday we spent the entire day on buses -- from Tulum to Chetumal (Mexico), Chetumal to Belize City, and Belize City to San Ignacio (where we are now). Our room here is cool and has a huge deck overlooking the city with rocking chairs and a hammock. We're off now to eat and explore.
No comments:
Post a Comment