We had a great trip to the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico.

We flew into the Americanized city of Cancun, rented a car and drove south to the beaches of Tulum.  Unfortunately our friends the Heists, were 'bumped' from the flight, so we made the drive alone.  After checking into our hotel, we headed for the beach where Sierra and Cooper were able to play in the sand and splash in the waves to their hearts content. 

The next morning we woke up early (whether we wanted to or not - thanks Cooper) to see the Mayan ruins just outside of town.  What the ruins lacked in spectacular architecture, they made up for with the stunning Caribbean Sea back drop.  Sierra and Cooper had as much fun playing on the beach at the ruins as seeing the ruins themselves (probably more), especially enjoying the iguanas basking in the sun along the nooks and crannies of the limestone cliffs.  That evening the Heists made it into town, giving Sierra and Cooper an opportunity to "catch up" with Henry - much to the consternation of the other hotel guests.

The following morning we all packed up and headed to the Mayan ruins of Coba.  As we drove past Laguna Coba, we spotted a crocodile sunning itself.  To our surprise several tourists came within several feet of the wild animal to get "the perfect shot" . . . in true "National Park" style.  Even Cooper thought they were being "silly".  The ruins themselves have been "left to nature" as they say, reminding me of Ta Prom in Angkor Wat.  Only the tall pyramids were exposed to direct sunlight, making for a pleasant natural setting for the kids to explore.  Thankfully, we were all able to make it to the top of Nohoch Mul (the second tallest pyramid in the Yucatan) before the tour busses deposited hoards of gringos arriving from Cancun.  The walk back was a bit precarious as the bloated "booze cruise" tourists all hired rickshaw like bike taxis to ferry them throughout the site, requiring us to constantly look over our shoulders as to not be run over.  Cooper had a bit of a melt down on the walk back, with the humidity and long walk (several miles) finally catching up with him.  Looking back, I obviously should have flagged down one of the bike taxis to ease his pain.  A snack lunch was had in the parking lot, then we were off to Chichen Itza via the bustling town of Valladolid.  Driving on the back roads was a delight, giving Sierra and Cooper a glimpse of how most Mexicans live.  Our hotel in Chichen Itza was a pleasantly comfortable compared to our accommodations in Tulum (having hot water).  Sierra, Cooper and Henry loved swinging in its hammock ladened palapa and swimming in the pools.

Once again, Cooper had us up at the crack of dawn, allowing us to be the "early birds" at the ruins of Chichen Itza.  We hired a guide, who was able to give us (and the kids) a better insight to the history of the site than a guide book could provide.  Sierra and Cooper were a bit confused as to why sacrifices were needed to bring about rain (or a good harvest, etc), to which we (or our guide, William) were never able to give a satisfactory reply.  The afternoon was spent pool side, swimming and playing on the hammocks.

The next day we drove to the Celestun Bio Reserve (think national park) with lunch in Merida.  Merida is as busy metropolis, teaming with activity.  Sierra, Cooper and Henry enjoyed chasing the pigeons in the zocalo as well as munching on ice cream treats.  Driving into the fishing village of Celestun I realized that we had finally arrived in "real Mexico" (whatever that means).  The beach front was dominated by fishermen and their gear (small boats and nets), not bus loads of tourists.  The town itself had a small zocalo, church, market, and not much else.  We quickly found a hotel in which we were the only guests, allowing us ocean view rooms overlooking to pool, an ideal situation as we could keep an eye on the kids as we relaxed on the veranda.  Because of Celestun's west coast location, we were also able to enjoy the sun setting into the Gulf of Mexico, which is always a bonus.

The following morning we hired a guide to take us (by boat) into the Bio Reserve, where over 300 species of birds live during the migratory season.  Ospreys, herons, egrets, and pelicans (both brown and white) were hits with Sierra and Cooper, but the star attraction was definitely the flamingos.  A flock of several thousand call the reserve home, and are said to be some of the pinkest in the world (based on their diet).  The tour was right out of a National Geographic special and was without a doubt the highlight of the trip for me.  We spent the rest of the day searching for shells on the beach (where we had great pickings) and again enjoyed another spectacular sunset.

Our last day was spent making the long drive (5 hours) from Celestun to Puerto Morelos (chosen for it's proximity to the Cancun airport).  We found a hotel with a beach side pool, and spent the evening winding down from our long journey.

In the final analysis, we had a nice trip.  Given the opportunity, I'd definitely go back to Celestun and Coba

To see some of our photos, click here for a gallery view, or here for a slideshow view.