International travel on a budgetTravels With The Big Guy!

Mexico’s Amazing Mayan Ruins in Yucatan Are a Must See!

July 4, 2021

If viewing Mayan Ruins is not on the top of your ‘Must See’ List – Why Not?

As a child, I had a thirst for Mayan ruins & their history but never in my wildest dreams did I believe I would be landing in Mexico or even able to visit Yucatan pyramids or Mayan ruins. This adventure we have finally got off the ground has begun with Mexico which blows my mind just thinking that – The Big Guy & I, two seniors on a budget spening almost six months in this beautiful country! We are still in that phase of looking at each other everyday & remarking how much we love it here! Back to Mexican ruins in the Yucatan…

One thing I didn’t realize was the number of Mayan ruins in the Yucatan that are within driving distance of Merida! If you are living in Mexico for any extent of time, then I’m betting you have read up on the Mayan ruins & made a list of Mayan ruins on your ‘to do’ list. I know we have! On this trip, we begin our adventure with a road trip to Chichen Itza, easily accessible by road from Merida. Let’s get started!

What is Chichen Itza? Where did the name come from?

Chichen Itza comes from the Mayan words “Chi” for mouth; “Chen” for well; & “Itza” from the name of the people who governed that area at that time. It is thought that the name could also be from the ‘well’ of rivers that ran underneath & was probably a main water supply to the Mayans living there.

Chichen Itza was designated one of the Seven Modern Wonders of the World 2007 & had previously been recognized as an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988! One thing I didn’t realize was the number of Mayan ruins in the Yucatan that are within driving distance of Merida, our home for the next four months.

Raphael, our tour guide at Chichen Itza, was a treasure trove of knowledge about the Mayan ruins as he himself was Mayan & grew up in Chichen Itza as a child with the Mayan Ruins as a playground for the Mayans. At some point the Mayan people living in that area were moved several kilometers down the road making the Ruins a national treasure & off limits to being a play area for the kiddos. As of 2006, the Chichen Itza ruins became off limit to anyone walking on the ruins. Okay, I am getting ahead of myself…

How To Get to The Mayan Ruins…

Private Driver – we were referred to Rodney from a friend & it was pesos well spent! He picked us up at our apartment at 8 a.m. & we were off to the the ruins. He was a super nice guy & full of Yucatan history & information on our ride to the Ruins. We ‘had’ him for a pre-discussed number of hours & paid half of the gas since the trip would take us out of Merida town. To us, this was & remains our #1 pick. If you are interested in Rodney’s service, drop me a note & I’ll gladly share his What’s App with you!
Secondly, you can take the ADO Mayan Tours. They have multiple morning departures from their terminal & the cost seems to be reasonable.
Thirdly, Travel Tour Agencies could be an avenue to research. If so, let me help you out here.
Finally, Uber. Now we do love Uber & have used many times since we arrived in Merida but for longer trips we have learned that hiring a private driver is more cost efficient to us & just downright fun since we have a relationship with him. But, again, you do you!

Where are Mayan Ruins located in Mexico?

Although there are hundreds, if not thousand of Mayan ruins found in Guatemala, Belize & Honduras, the more impressive & possibly most well known ruins are located right here in Mexico & the Yucatan Peninsula. To name just a few, besides Chichen Itza:

Uxmal – The Pyramid of the Magician, the Governor’s Palace, the Nunnery & Temple of the Turtles are only a few of must see ruin sites in Uxmal located south of Merida. For more history of this city that dates to around the 6th Century.
Coba is an ancient Mayan city located in Quintana Roo. It documents life back to the 600-900 A.D. with its countless stone carvings, etc. More more info check here.
Izamal is definitely on our to check out Kinich Kak Moo, a 57 ft high pyramid. For more info on Izamal & how to get there, check this out.
The list goes on & on.

Now lets talk Mayan Ruins that make up Chichen Itza!

There are five main ruins in Chichen Itza – Piramide de Kukulkan [known to some as El Castillo], Temple of the Warriors, the Grand Ball Court, The Nunnery & the Observatory. On this trip we made it to the first three – Piramide, Temple & the Ball Court. What we saw…

The Piramide de Kukalcan is a wondrous site rising into the sky & is, no doubt, one of the most recognized Mayan ruins! It is 79 feet tall not counting the top building. A fun fact – if you stand in front of the Piramide de Kukulkan facing it, Raphael showed us how to clap our hands to hear the chirp answer us from the ruins.

The Big Guy & Holly standing in front of the best known Mayan Ruin of Yucatan - Temple of Kukulkan also known as the Piramide de Kukulkan. — The Big Guy & Holly standing in front of what has to be the most recognized of the Yucatan Pyramids – Temple of Kukulkan also known as the Piramide de Kukulkan.

The Temple of the Warriors is evenly impressive with its carvings embellished with warriors, eagles & jaguars eating human hearts. This Temple is one that was actually large enough to hold gatherings of people with three levels. For more info check this out. Raphael explained to us that the columns were at one point covered.

Mayan Ruin in Yucatan - Temple of Warriors — Mayan Ruin in Yucatan & part of Chichen Itza – Temple of Warriors.

Mayan Ruins at Chichen Itza-jaguar eating human heart. — Mayan Ruins-jaguar eating human heart.

Our guide told us that some stones of the Mayan Ruins have been moved/stolen over the ancient years to rebuild in another place. The statues that were not touched were the snakes as they were evil.

Snakes of the Mayan ruins was the one statute that was not broken or stolen as they were considered sign of evil. — Snakes were considered evil

The Grand Ball Court is an indication of how much Mayans enjoyed there sports. It is an open arena 225 ft wide & 545 feet long. The Priest sat on each end with the ‘royalty’ sitting in the side seats overlooking the field. Check out the hoop on the wall. The players used a 6-8 lb ‘gum’ ball & could only use their feet & knees to play.

Mayan Ruin in Chichen Itza where Priest would sit to watch Games. It was located at the end of the arena where he could view all. — Mayan Ruin where Temples were at each end of the field & where Priest would sit to watch Games

Side wall of Mayan ruins of the Grand Ball Court with Hoop — Mayan Ruin showing side wall of the Grand Ball Court with Hoop. You can also see the variation from one end of the wall with the small stone that gradually grows into larger stones making the acoustics amazing for the size of the field. The lower stones are engraved with stories of wins & losses.

Another interesting fact about the walls of this arena is that on one side the stones were small gradually building into larger stones at the far end of the wall. They would run opposite on the opposite wall making the acoustics amazing. The field was so long that when announcements would be made at one end, the other end of the arena would be able to hear a few seconds later. Amazing how the Mayans were so far ahead in their building!

Lets talk about ‘losing your head’! Following a bad game day above, Raphael walked us to where the be-headings took place – Tzompantli. There were steps up to the open square platform of where heads were lost. Are these the skulls or just carvings commemorating the event – that I don’t know.

Mayan ruins where heads were chopped off! — The sides of the platform Tzompantli where human sacrifices were made.

If the player lost his head due to a game loss than he would go to heaven but if the be-heading was due to a political loss the beheaded person would be going to hell.

When is the best time to visit the ruins?

What is the best time to visit any ruins? This is easy. We were there in June & though it is considered ‘rainy’ season, the sun was bright with no clouds in the sky. Nice breeze kept us somewhat cool & you can always take your umbrella if the heat of the sun gets to be too much. Get there as early as you can in the day to beat the huge bus tours! We arrived around 10 a.m. & by 12:30 p.m. we were back in the car heading to Merida ending the day with a cold coffee at one of our favorite spots! Let me say we picked the best time to go. As we were walking on the last leg of the ruins hoards of tourist started arriving & the sun had just started to heat up.

If you are ever able to do so, I truly think it would be beautiful to visit the Chichen Itza ruins during the equinox!! We missed it this time but from the stories we heard from Raphael, it is a sight to be seen at least once in your life.

Some miscellaneous pics from our trip to Chichen Itza!

Mayan ruins stair steps. Note the narrowness of the steps compared to the height? — Mayan ruins stair steps.

Back of myan ruin with snake at top. — Back of mayan ruins with snake at top.

Town of Chichen Itza name in bold colors — I’m obsessed with these towns who put their name in such bold colors. The Fire Tree is amazing with its brilliant orange red flowers!

Last but not least the Cost!

I was ready to close this post when I realized I did not tell you how much this awesome trip cost. We are on a budget but we are also living the life in Mexico & definitely plan to see all we can see of this beautiful area – but to be transparent – here is what the cost of a trip to Chichen Itza cost us. You have your own budget & you may be one who enjoys picking up souvenirs or eating out at the sights which is absolutely your call but remember that if you are on a budget, add those estimates into your calculations for next month. Again, you do you:)

Driver r/t, tour guide at ruins, entry for parking & entry for 2 non Mexican plus coffees & sandwiches at end of day was a little over $4,000 pesos or $202+- USD. Absolutely worth every penny when you think about how lucky we are to be here to view these magnificent Mayan ruins in Yucatan! PLUS if you are a Mexican resident, I believe the sign indicated you get in free which is awesome!

Until next time, enjoy life & smile! Next stop Izamal, The Yellow City of the Yucatan!

Authentic Mayan Food On Your Bucket List? Go To Habanero’s!

Good Golly its Holly!

June 6, 2021

Let me get straight to the point – is authentic Mayan food on your bucket list? Go to Habanero’s on Calle 20B located in the Xcumpich neighborhood! There are two locations in Merida but this is the location we continue to go back for both dinner & breakfast. They are at HabanerosYucatan on F/B!

Habaneros Mayan Cuisine — Habanero’s Restaurant Front with one of the awesome ladies who made the salsa & tortillas to order.

Not having any idea of what ‘Yucatan’ or ‘Mayan’ food taste – we were both amazingly happy with our experience.

Back to Habanero’s! The brilliant gold of the exterior had caught our eye while on our initial walk about thru the neighborhood when we first arrived in Merida. We were fresh into Merida & we were hungry for some REAL Mexican food. Having said that, we are from Texas where TexMex is everywhere & we did enjoy most of it but you know ‘when in Rome’ so we were on the hunt for some real Mexican food. We were not disappointed!

Habanero’s Yucatan Cuisine!

From the moment we walked into Habanero’s the customer service was A+++. Both The Big Guy & I were super impressed from the minute we stepped from sidewalk to entry of this wonderful restaurant.

The employees were happy & customer service was off the charts. Our waiter, Arturo, was awesome & very hands on eager to answer our questions & explaining the various dishes. You know The Big Guy had 101 questions regarding the food & Yucatan in general & Arturo was a gem. Belen, the Manager, came over to introduce herself & shared the history of the family run restaurant of eleven years & how they hope everyone has that ‘dining experience‘ with them. They succeeded!

Habanero's Staff — Habanero’s Staff Photo

A Meal to Remember!

I think you could call it a sampling but the dishes were full sized & we were stuffed by time we finished up. It began with Tortilla Soup followed with stuffed Avocado shells of Guacamole & fresh made chips. We were asked if we wanted our salsa to be not so hot, hot or really hot. We decided on not so hot & Arturo was off again.

In a short while he brought back fresh salsa & tortillas that was made to order by the ladies who sat just outside the front entrance! In between courses, Arturo gave us some history on the Mayan of the Yucatan. He was definitely a wealth of knowledge & eager to share with us Mayan history as well as pointing us in the direction where to get the best currency exchange!

Just when we thought we would pop, here came the grand finale of the meal! I don’t know if you can tell from the photo but there is a fire inside the metal box keeping the goodies warm!

Maindish- In front is Dutch cheese in “turkey gravy”, black beans w/egg, refried beans w/cheese, roasted chicken & pork with what looked like onions/beets. I may be a little off here but I think it is pretty close. I want to say the meal was called “Bacab” but please don’t put that in stone. I know it was one short word that meant a whole lot of food!

The service was excellent & the food [whether you want to call it authentic Yucatan or Mayan] was amazing! The price for this dinner including our drinks & tip was $760 pesos or $37 USD. We would not eat here every night as it definitely does not go with our ‘budget’ BUT it is a definite we will do again – maybe in a couple weeks?

Travels With The Big Guy give Habanero’s a definite 5*! Enjoy.

We Love The Iced Coffee Honey Made With Yucatan Floral Honey!

Good Golly its Holly!

May 29, 2021

We Love The Iced Coffee Honey Made With Yucatan Floral Honey!

If you have not tried the Iced Coffee Honey made with Yucatan floral honey at the Condesa Barra de Cafe yet you are missing out.

What are you waiting for? Don’t want to go out in the heat? Call one of the many delivery services! The Big Guy & I both love our coffee though I do tend to lean more toward the sweet concoctions versus the heavy leaded espresso. Ha.

Back in the states, we walked at least a few miles a day & have continued that habit since we landed in beautiful Merida. Having said that, Merida can get pretty hot. Most days have a breeze which makes it enjoyable but there have been a couple really HOT days as well. Recently on one of those hotter than usual days we were to the point of needing a pick me up to get us back to the hotel.

Our new favorite coffee hang out is the Condesa Barra de Cafe & we love the Iced Coffee Honey made with Yucatan floral honey! It is cool, not sugar sweet & definitely hits the spot as my new favorite iced coffee.

Condesa Barra de Cafe – Ice Coffee with Honey?

We were looking for a particular coffee shop that we had seen a day or so before while taking an Uber to grocery shop. We had already passed a Starbucks but we really enjoy supporting the smaller businesses when able. We just had to find the shop. Luck was with us when we looked over across the street & saw Condesa Barra de Cafe. It literally jumped out at us with its brilliant colored store front.

Daniel & Johne - baristas of Condesa Coffee shop — Johne & Daniel [baristas] of Condesa Coffee shop & The Big Guy

We asked both Johne & Daniel what drink they would suggest we try? They both instantly said Iced Coffee Honey. We wanted something cold & Iced Coffee Honey did the trick. A very simple concoction really, coffee, water & Yucatan floral honey for sweetness & then shakened. It was awesome & definitely cooled us down. I believe, if I understood correctly, the color of Yucatan honey is related to the type of floral that the bees had access to. For a very interesting story on the honey/beekeepers check this out!

The drinks were $45 pesos each, a very reasonable price for an awesome glass of iced coffee! Very affordable for seniors on a budget! Especially when compared to prices that you pay at the Int’l coffee chain! On our F/B check out the short conversation we had with Daniel & Johne!

Daniel was so charming & instantly made us feel as if we belonged. That is an awesome feeling that you don’t get to often in life especially from a stranger! Mexico has been a breath of fresh air to both The Big Guy & me.

When you reach Merida, just head over to the Calle 50 & 59 area & pop in to try a coffee with Daniel. It doesn’t have to be the Iced Honey Coffee, I saw some pretty nice looking frappes going out the door as well. There is also a small menu to choose sweets from! I really don’t think you will be disappointed! Happy travels!

Oh, I can’t possibly not give a shout out to Daniel’s FaceBook Page – Cooking in Yucatan & check it out. His business went sideways due to Covid but he is hoping to get back to his love of cooking & teaching preparation of dishes soon. Check it out!

Beautiful Merida, Mexico – Lessons Learned On This Flight!

Good Golly its Holly!

May 25, 2021

Beautiful Merida, Mexico – Lessons Learned On This Flight!

We made it! We will share with you our mistakes or – rather – lessons learned from our Merida, Mexico flight…

Flight to Mexico

We were so excited when we bought our initial tickets to Merida, Mexico that we overlooked several issues. Those few items that we should have researched a bit are listed below. At the end of the day we made it to Merida & have not looked back but know that we cannot afford to make these type of silly mistakes again. You know – lessons learned!

In no particular order here is what we did wrong that will not happen again.

Flight – We bought our tickets at the very beginning of this year in anticipation that the border would be open & allowing flights into Mexico. In being so excited that we were actually going to make our escape we did not research flights thoroughly. Really all it hurt was our pocketbook but we spent more than we had to. We flew out of Austin to Merida with two connections. I’m pretty sure we could have found a more direct flight for close to same price if not cheaper but since we chose to use credit card miles we were limited to which flights/airlines we could use.

Lesson Learned – shop airlines. Sometimes direct flights are comparable priced to flights with a few stops.

We Got Searched! – The Big Guy bet me he would be searched at the Airport & yes he was pulled to side & scanned. I, on the other hand, was searched, scanned & backpack emptied when we hit the Atlanta airport. I had gone thru the checkout first so I could watch our backpacks while Horace was being searched BUT GUESS WHAT?! While they have me standing to the side waiting on a female to search me, they waved The Big Guy to move on, he was fine. You know he got a kick out of that!!

Electronic Tickets – We thought we were being proactive loading our airline app w/flights on our iphones. Electronic check in was so easy until we got to Mexico City Airport. When we got to the final check though to get to Gate C, we were denied entry. The airport app we had on our phones [that had been fine at the other U.S. airports did not contain a date!] so we had to go back to the main airline desk to request paper tickets. On our side was the two hour layover & the flight attendant was great printing our paper tickets for us. Once we got the paper ticket in hand, we were told to look for the flight number & departure time [circled in red on our boarding ticket] as they did not print gates on tickets. Once we got back thru security we were able to check out the Departure Displays to see that we needed to go to Gate C.

AeroMexico Boarding Pass with flight number, loading & departure times circled for our benefit.

Lesson Learned – We will always have a printed copy of our itinerary with us with dates. If we had that we would have been okay. This was the first time I was lax in printing our flight itinerary & it bit us in the butt!

Gate C – Gate C wasn’t a gate. It was a huge room of passengers waiting for various flights to be called. The Attendant behind the partition was very patient with us. I know I asked him at least twice if “that was our flight” & he would just shake his head. We sat there long enough that I was able to understand other flights being called & it was kind of hilarious when a few passengers for a particular flight came strolling to check in – the first few passengers were lucky – the Attendant yelled at them to run as the door would be closing. The last gentleman wasn’t so lucky – he told the Attendant his flight was 1:20 & the Attendant told him it is 1:25 p.m. & doors shut.

Lesson Learned – Patience is a virtue & it is okay to ask for assistance.

Language Barrier – the more you can speak of the language, the easier it is to get where you are going or get what you need. If you are not ‘there’ yet be sure to have the Google Translate App or whichever works for you on your phone & do not be afraid to try to pronounce words. If you at least try, they will help. I for one have a lot to learn but I know I will get there:) Since we have been here I’ve been told to learn 5-10 new words a day & practice practice practice.

Currency – We did not bring any pesos with us as we knew we could buy at the Mexico City airport. We compared currency values at the various Currency Counters & bought just enough to get us by for a day or so. What we didn’t know was all the paperwork to be filled out/signed with Passport. I was kind of impressed by the exchange transaction.

Mexican Pesos — Mexican pesos bills & coins

Lesson Learned #1 – I’ve only bought currency in advance of a trip abroad one time & that was years ago. Since that one time we wait until we land in ‘that’ country & go straight to currency exchange for a few pieces. What we did learn & will not do again is get currency from our hotel ATM. For $100 pesos [$25 USD] it cost us $6 so in the end we received $19 in pesos! Yes! $1 ATM fee & $5 hotel fee. Once we made it to a currency exchange we exchanged $300 US & received $5870 pesos – costing us $14.07 US. So you are at the mercy of currency rate exchanges as they can vary from shop to shop – just keep your eyes open.

Lesson Learned #2 – We have not had any problems using Amex at Sam’s Club, Costco, Sears & most restaurants. Now the smaller street shops & vendors, yes you will need pesos. I would suggest smaller denominations of bills for ease in change.

Lesson Learned #3 – Arturo, our waiter, at Habanero’s Restaurant told us about Elektra for walk in currency exchange. We had one close to our hotel so we checked it out. You can’t miss the huge bright yellow building. It is a store but has a bank on second floor that anyone can get currency exchange & you don’t need an account with them – unlike banks in the states. Easy transaction & great customer service & a pretty good rate.

Last But Not Least: Back to the Airport – Baggage Pickup – We arrived in Merida, exited the plane & followed the other travelers from our flight right out the front of the Airport…Yes….we went right pass the Baggage pick up area but realized it to late. This was my fault…The Big Guy had just got his vaccination the day before…not the best idea before a flight…he had a headache & in general was just not feeling it…so he was following me. Anyway, we were turned away from re-entering, of course, and luckily the Pilot was coming out of security & realized we were in a bit of a pickle & very kindly listened to our problem. After we explained to him what happened, he told us who to go see at the AeroMexico counter & that gentleman was so nice. He called back & they delivered our roller bags to us!

At The End of The Day…

We are thrilled to be here in Merida! We definitely had some bumps but we figured there would be. The nice thing is that at the end of the day all is well! Everyone we have met for the most part has been engaging & happy to help us out with directions or how to change American word into Spanish. We’ve heard the phrase “you teach me English & I teach you Spanish.” Works for us.

I hope you follow us on our journey. Watch how two senior travelers navigate this thing called international travel on a budget!

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Mexico’s Amazing Mayan Ruins in Yucatan Are a Must See!

If viewing Mayan Ruins is not on the top of your ‘Must See’ List – Why Not?