Mexico Travel | Hole In The Donut Cultural Travel

Caving at Rio Secreto – One of the Most Exciting Adventures of My Life

Published October 7, 2011 | By Barbara Weibel

The first time I stood at the edge of the Grand Canyon I couldn’t stop thinking what it must have been like for the very first person who saw it. I imagined an American Indian emerging from the dense pine forest that surrounds the canyon and stopping in his tracks, overwhelmed by the vista that spread before him. His first reaction must have been astonishment. Once recovered from the shock, his second thought must have been about how he would get across.

That same scenario plays out in my mind each time I see another geological wonder of the world. What did indigenous Africans think when they first encountered the roar of Victoria Falls in present-day Zimbabwe? How did Australian Aborigines explain Uluru, a behemoth red rock protruding from a flat, featureless plain in the center of the Australian outback? So strong are these images and questions that I’ve often joked that I must have lived a previous life as an explorer. I’ve always yearned to feel the sense of wonderment that accompanies the discovery of a place so beautiful and spiritual that it takes the breath away. Last month my wish was granted.

One of many exquisite caverns we swam and walked through at Rio Secreto underground river

During my recent press trip to Iberostar Resorts in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, the resort arranged for our small group of travel bloggers to tour Rio Secreto, an underground river and cave complex deep beneath the surface of the Yucatan Peninsula. Following an extensive orientation and briefing to ensure we understood how important it was not to touch any surface within the cave, we descended through a cenote, a sinkhole whose roof had collapsed, revealing the maze of underground passages and caverns below the surface. Eons ago, the entire Yucatan was covered by a shallow sea. Year after year, sea creatures died and fell to the sea floor. Slowly, pressure and heat condensed these calcium sediments into a thick layer of limestone. As colliding plates of the earth’s mantle gradually forced the limestone plateau up the seas receded, exposing the limestone to weather and the elements. Over time, acidic rains percolated through the limestone, dissolving the sediments until they resembled one giant chunk of Swiss cheese. It was into this Swiss cheese, rife with tunnels, passages, stalactites, stalagmites, and an underground river, that we descended.

Our little group of travel bloggers, deep underground at Rio Secreto underground river

At first we walked on uneven dry ground, trying our best to keep our balance so as not to touch any of the formations, which stop growing the moment they are contaminated by oil from a human touch. At times we inched along in single file, each of us holding onto the life vest of the person in front of us. About half-way through, our path was blocked by water; we had no choice but to swim the rest of the distance. I crept into the chilly water, suddenly grateful for the cumbersome wetsuit that had me sweating just moments before. Soon, the water was so deep I couldn’t touch bottom. Continue reading →

Posted in Mexico travel |

Tagged blogsherpa, caves, cultural travel, culture, Mexico, nature, Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Rio Secreto, Travel, underground river, yucatan peninsula |

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Living the Good Life on Mexico’s Riviera Maya

Published October 4, 2011 | By Barbara Weibel

Faithful readers of Hole In The Donut Cultural Travel know that I am no fan of all-inclusive resorts, so when Iberostar Resorts invited me to be part of a press trip to Mexico’s Riviera Maya, I thought long and hard before accepting. My previous experiences with all-inclusives have left a bad taste in my mouth – literally. The food is generally horrible and little accommodation is made for vegetarians. Even worse, every all-inclusive property I’ve stayed at discouraged guests from leaving the property; in some cases I was even told that it is too dangerous to leave the grounds and that the hotel cannot ensure my safety if I do. This is anathema for a travel writer who specializes in culture. I want to interact with locals, eat what they eat, listen to their music, experience daily life for indigenous people, and I can’t do that if I’m barricaded behind the walls of an exclusive resort. However, I love Mexico and most especially the Yucatan. So after due consideration (about five seconds) I accepted the gracious invitation from Iberostar, hoping for the best.

View of beach from Grand Hotel Paraiso

By the end of my five day stay at Iberostar Paraíso Maya and Iberostar Grand Hotel Paraíso, my opinion had entirely changed. I could tell you about the fabulous buffets, filled with mouth-watering vegetarian selections or the spa where I spent an entire afternoon getting a massage and soaking in the Roman baths and salt water pool. I could wax lyrical about the stunning beach, with its powder-fine, white sand beach and other-worldly turquoise water. But let me just say that it’s now obvious to me that I just never chose the right all-inclusive resort. And I think this video postcard, kindly produced for me by Iberostar, says it better than any words:

Can’t view the above YouTube video postcard from Iberostar Resorts in Mexico? Click here.

Iberostar Resorts may be different because of their roots, which go all the way back to a simple shoemaker in Spain who worked hard and saved enough money to buy a travel agency in 1930. One travel agency became two, then three; then more. By 1986, the family decided bring hotels into the mix and the Iberostar brand was launched. Today there are 104 Iberostar Resorts in 16 countries in the Caribbean, South America, Europe and North Africa, all of which are top-notch, all-inclusive properties. In addition to including accommodations, cuisine, and amenities, the Iberostar all-inclusive experience includes tips and taxes, alcoholic beverages, non-motorized water sports, entertainment, and resort activities.

Can’t view the above slide show of Iberostar Resorts at Playa Paraiso, on Mexico’s Riviera Maya? Click here.

On the Riviera Maya, Iberostar’s resort is actually five different properties standing side-by-side on a glorious strip of beach. All guests have use of facilities in four of the properties: Iberostar Paraíso Lindo, Iberostar Paraíso Maya, Iberostar Paraíso Beach, and Iberostar Paraíso del Mar. The fifth property is the Grand Hotel Paraíso, one of Iberostar’s new category of luxury, adults-only resorts and hotels, based on a concept of upscale vacationing that is stylish and relaxed. Guests staying at the Grand Hotel have use of all five properties. Since I was staying at both the Paraíso Maya and the Grand Hotel, I was given a special plastic wristband that gave me full privileges. I didn’t truly grasp the power of my magic wristband, however, until the day I decided to spend the afternoon at the Grand Hotel’s exquisite pool. I swam up to the pool bar, clambered onto a submerged stool, and ordered a virgin Pina Colada, expecting to be asked for my room number. The bartender plunked the tall icy concoction in front of me and wandered away. I suddenly understood the concept of all-inclusive. For the next few hours I ordered every kind of virgin frozen drink I could think of. I was drunk with power. Continue reading →

Posted in Mexico travel |

Tagged all inclusive resorts, blogsherpa, cultural travel, culture, Grand Hotel Paraiso, Iberostar, Mexico, Paraiso Lindo, Paraiso Maya, Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, riviera maya, Travel, yucatan peninsula |

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Whispers of Guardian Spirits Echo Through Sacred Cenotes of the Yucatan

Published August 19, 2010 | By Barbara Weibel

From the top of Cenote Samula at Dzitnup I peered into the abyss. Only five or six rough hand-hewn steps were visible before the cave’s gloomy interior swallowed the ancient staircase. Digging my fingertips into sweating limestone walls I descended gingerly, concentrating on keeping my footing on the slick, uneven stones. At the bottom of the stairs, where sunlight could penetrate no further, I groped my way to a viewing platform carved into the rock and blinked, allowing my eyes to adjust to the semi-darkness.

Cenote Samula at Dzitnup, near Valladolid, in the north central Yucatan

Like an exotic dancer, the cenote revealed itself in stages. A narrow column of liquid white light poured through a small hole in the roof, illuminating massive tree roots that spilled over the edge. Frantically searching for water, the sinuous limbs tumbled into the crystal-clear pool at the bottom. Colors gradually emerged in the semi-darkness: black streaks and white guano painted patterns on the ocher and red stone walls, complementing the turquoise blue water cupped in the bottom of this perfectly circular cavern.

I had expected Cenote Samula to be crowded – these naturally occurring sinkholes are among the more popular tourist attractions around Valladolid – but to my delight it was deserted. Closing my eyes, I tuned into its cathedral energy. Water droplets plunked from sweating rocks into the pool and bats swooped back and forth through the sunbeam, emitting their high-pitched warning. Whispers echoed in the cavern; a giggle punctuated the silence. Had other tourists arrived so stealthily that I had not heard them descend via the stone steps? I opened my Continue reading →

Posted in Mexico travel |

Tagged Bacalar, blogsherpa, cave, cavern, Cenote Azul, cenote sagrado, Cenote Samula, Cenote Xkeken, Cenote Zaci, Chichen Itza, cultural travel, culture, Dos Ojos, Dzitnup, Mexico, Puerto Aventuras, sinkhole, Travel, travel stories, Valladolid, yucatan peninsula |

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Feathered Serpents Litter the Grounds at Chichen Itza, But One Can Only Be Seen on the Equinox

Published August 13, 2010 | By Barbara Weibel

Worship of a feathered serpent deity may have begun as early as 200BC at Teotihuacan near present day Mexico City, but it reached its pinnacle at Chichen Itza, the Mayan cultural capital in the north central plains of Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula. Named Quetzalcoatl by Nahua residents of Teotihuacan, to Maya the plumed serpent was Kukulcan, a name they also gave to the famous stepped pyramid that today dominates the archeological site.

Serpent protruding from ball court stadium appears to devour Kukulcan pyramid

Chichen Itza is rife with signs of serpent worship. Thousands of limestone blocks at the base of the great ball court are carved with scenes of athletes who, upon losing a match, were decapitated; the blood flowing from their severed necks turns into wriggling serpents. Giant serpent heads protrude from the ends of the ball court stadia, while still others stand guard at the bottom of the staircase leading to the top of the smaller Ossario pyramid. The Kukulcan Pyramid also features a pair of serpent heads but strangely, they flank only the north staircase; the other three grand staircases may have purposely been left unadorned as a clue to the significance of the solo pair. The Maya built the temple so precisely that on the spring and autumn equinox, at the rising and setting of the sun, the corner of the pyramid casts a serpent-shaped shadow on the side of the north staircase that slithers down to the serpent’s head at the base.

North stairway with serpent heads at base on normal days

Corner of Kukulcan pyramid casts shadow of a serpent's body on north stairway during sunrise and sunset on spring and fall equinox. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

By all indications, the Maya culture at Chichen Itza was steeped in violence. In addition to serpents, other carvings feature jaguars eating human hearts, battle scenes, and row upon row of stones depicting human skulls. Even the cenote, which was undoubtedly their sole source of Continue reading →

Posted in Mexico travel |

Tagged blogsherpa, Chichen Itza, cultural travel, culture, feathered serpents, human sacrifice, Kukulcan, Mayan ruins, Mexico, plumed, pyramids, Quetzlcoatl, Teotihuacan, Travel, yucatan peninsula |

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Exploring the Northern Yucatan from Centrally Located Valladolid

Published August 11, 2010 | By Barbara Weibel

Well rested from my previous three days at the amazing Hacienda Xcanatun Resort, I set off with renewed vigor to discover more of the northern Yucatan. As with so many of the other locales I had visited in Mexico, there is so much to do in the Yucatan that it is difficult to choose which sites to see. No matter how hard I tried, there would not be time enough to visit all the ruins, cenotes, colonial towns, biosphere reserves, and cultural sites, but staying in centrally located Valladolid would at least allow me to see as much as possible.

Pastel houses line cobblestone strets in Valladolid

Though this third largest city in the Yucatan is a mere two hours east of the cultural center of Merida and three hours west of Cancun’s tourist mecca, in character it might as well have been light years away from either. Located in the sultry interior, where not even a whisper of a breeze penetrated most days, the pace of life was simple and slow. Ancient men on three-wheeled bikes languidly pedaled down cobblestone streets past pastel houses, each hawking his product with a trademark signal. A bottled water delivery man rasped “agua” every dozen feet. A knife sharpener rang a jangly bell. On a third bike, an enormous silver wok-shaped vessel had been welded in front of the handlebars. “Que tienes?” I inquired – What do you have? He braked, smiled shyly and lifted the lid, allowing the yeasty aroma of fresh baked bread to engulf me.

Can’t view the above slide show of the Plaza Principal in Valladolid, Mexico? Click here.

Continue reading →

Posted in Mexico travel |

Tagged blogsherpa, catedral de san servacio, cathedral, cultural travel, culture, Mexico, municipal palace, palacio, Plaza principal, Travel, Valladolid, yucatan peninsula |

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Hacienda Xcanatun – An Oasis of Tranquility in Mexico’s Yucatan

Published August 6, 2010 | By Barbara Weibel

I followed the bellman down a long covered portico, where lustrous marble floors gleamed like polished bronze in the slanting rays of a late afternoon sun. At the end of the terrace he stopped before a massive set of wooden doors and jiggled a large metal skeleton key in the lock. Shifting my backpack impatiently, I focused on how wonderful it would be to drop my heavy load for a few days and do absolutely nothing. After what seemed an eternity, the door finally swung open to reveal an exquisite Master Suite. I nearly wept. For the past three months I’d been trekking around Mexico, staying in hostel dormitories and modest inns, until Hacienda Xcanatun had kindly offered to host me. Dog-tired and desperately in need of a rest, I’d jumped at the chance to sleep in a “real” bed in a private room for a change, but this was more than I had expected. This Master Suite was larger than most of the hostels I’d stayed in.

Master Suite

I tried not to show my embarrassment as the bellman rolled my small dust-caked suitcase through the sitting room and set it up on a heavy wooden bench in the bedroom. He pointed out myriad switches that turned on lamps, wall sconces, and overhead fans and then explained how to work the multiple rain heads in the glass shower enclosure and operate the separate whirlpool soaking tub. Stepping to the far wall in the bathroom he tugged on cords that drew back a ceiling drapery, revealing a skylight; did I wish to let sunlight stream in or would I prefer dimmer lighting? Open. No, closed. Oh, I don’t care. Whatever would make him leave faster. Continue reading →

Posted in Mexico travel |