Day 363 – Cancun
The sites of Cancun
When I woke up this morning I was worried as the forecast showed a day full of thunderstorms. However, it was a beautiful day with sunshine. Woot woot.
That being said, my wife was still not feeling well so I let her sleep in. By the time we left the hostel it was 11am. Our first stop was a laundry close to the hostel. We ended up paying for the express service that cost 22 MXN ($1.67 AUD) per kg.
Afterwards, we walked towards the bus stop, that services the touristy hotel zone (Bus R1 or R2). As we neared the stop we came across a restaurant called El Morelense Cecina de Yecapixtla. Here we had some tacos. The chorizo taco is amazing.
Bus to Hotel Zone
The bus stop to the hotel zone is just across the road from the ADO bus stop. We could take either the R1 or R2 bus lines. The buses have the lines on the windscreen or door.
As we approached the stop, a R1 bus was waiting. We got on it and it left straight away. There is a flat rate of 12 MXN ($0.91 AUD) per person (p/p), regardless of distance.
The buses are supposed to come every 5 minutes and seeing the number of buses, it’s not hard to believe. Also a guy with a guitar got on the bus and started playing songs, which was a nice addition to the journey. So was watching him stay upright while the bus was turning.
El Rey Archaeological Site
We decided to start at the furthest attraction and make our way towards town. The bus towards the El Rey Archaeological Site took around 40 minutes. From the bus stop, there is a short walk to the entrance.
The site is very small, but only costs 55 MXN ($4.18 AUD) p/p. After last night’s storms the main walkway was flooded with at least ankle deep water. However, it wasn’t too much of an issue, because we could walk through the ruins themselves.
A handful of buildings are recognisable as buildings. Otherwise most of the ruins are just stone platforms, without much left on top. For us, it didn’t add too much to the Mayan experience, especially compared to all the other sites we have seen around Mexico.
Playa Delfines
From the ruins, we walked towards Playa Delfines. We were really surprised with how nice the beach was. There weren’t many people and the water was really clean. We could see pockets of sea grass, but for the most part the water looked beautiful. There is a small viewpoint that overlooks the beach. We people watched from here for a while before leaving since we didn’t have enough time to take a dip.
People waiting in line just to take a photo with the ‘Cancun’ sign
Mayan Museum of Cancun
We then walked 15 minutes along the road towards the Mayan Museum of Cancun. Entrance cost 75 MXN ($5.70 AUD) p/p. The tickets include the museum and another small archaeological site called San Miguelito.
We first walked around the archaeological site which is fully covered by foliage. It’s so nice to walk under. The Palace and Pyramid were the most intact structures. There is also a very faded mural. In a crazy twist, the information sign is actually more faded than the mural. Just tells you about the world we live in now!
We then walked up a ramp into the museum. It’s pretty small, but the two video presentations are nicely done. All of the major signs are in Spanish and English, but most of the individual items are only in Spanish.
The second half of the museum is full of photos of modern day Mayans. Everything is in Spanish. The people in the photos were covered in traditional body paint that looked similar to the Mayan mud bath that we had in Rio Lagartos (Day 351).
We spent around 90 minutes at both the museum and archaeological zones. Our backpacks and umbrella had to be placed into the free lockers at the security gate. The security guards are really friendly. They even offered to assist with finding a taxi or bus as we were leaving.
La Isla Shopping Village
We caught a R2 bus this time to the La Isla Shopping Village. It was a short ride and again the bus was just waiting at the stop when we arrived.
The shopping village is just across the road from Playa Marlin, but due to the harsh afternoon sun we stayed away from the beach.
The shopping village has lots of shops and a ferris wheel in front of it also. As the name suggests the shopping village is on an island that is accessible by several bridges.
We shopped around for souvenirs and clothes before catching another R2 bus back towards the ADO station.
For dinner, we went back to the delicious taco stall that we ate at two days ago, Los Taquitos de la Yaxchilan (Day 361). And then, we went back to Parque de las Palapas to try some more local deserts called Marquesitas, which are delicious.
