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Tuesday, August 12, 2014

History, Science and Art South of Newark-Granville Road

We're home from another awesome adventure and true vacation!  Joe and I had a wonderful time attending the wedding of dear friend Bill Knapp! We adore his beautiful, smart, talented bride Betsy!   They are a really beautiful couple and family. The highlight of the trip was spending time with a great group- not really a surprise that these good folks have good family and friends. This destination wedding and celebration provided an intimate setting and the privilege very special company!!  The bonus was going off the reservation-all inclusive resort south of Cancun!

We added a day to our trip so we could visit "the Mayan Ruins"- we didn't know which, we just knew we'd figure it out while there.  We originally thought we'd rent a car and go on our own.  To the co-worker that convinced Joe this wasn't the right course of action due to safety reasons- thank you.  Not to mention we never would of had as positive experience.  We ended up connecting with the resort's travel planner to hire a driver.  The driver put us safely in Tulum, a 45 minute drive south, and put us with a tour guide.  We loved walking ancient grounds and learning about this fascinating scientific community- Tulum is a seaport supporting trade down the coast to Honduras in its most active time of 1000-1500 AD!   The architecture, sculpture- inspiring art and science in this historic world!
We heard it was a "hot" trip. We certainly perspired but we found it manageable. Our total time in the walled city was an hour. Our trip coaches- fellow wedding goers- had told us about their day to Tulum that also included a visit to the cenote and what a relief it was with the cool water.  Who knew that would be the highlight of our day of exploration.

I had never heard of cenotes- say-note-tay- Webster definition: a deep sinkhole in limestone with a pool at the bottom that is found especially in Yucatán.  
We have to strongly encourage everyone that visit Cancun to experience these natural wonders.  Neither Joe or I have ever been in a cave, in water like this. On our honeymoon in St. John we snorkeled in some caves but nothing like this- those were in rock formations in sea water.  The Cenotes are fresh very cold water in a very hot part of the country.  Everything was hot or warm on our trip- the ocean swim, the pools, the air.  We did have a very cold hotel room thanks to AC!  We hired a guide, rented our equipment- all thanks to our driver for the day.  The guide took us through the caves, around the stalagmites and tites. We looked down at formations and deep pools with scuba divers making their way in the dark.  The bat cave was the unique and somewhat magical and frightening endeavor- very tight space to pass- but we did it.  The reward a cave with natural sunlight illuminating part of the cavern.  Swimming under tree roots was nothing I planned to do but delighted in the experience! Nature is a talented artist and mother nature quite the architect. What a treat we found in Mexico- love was all around- friendship, matrimony, parenthood and the world a part of Newark-Granville Road!


For more information:
http://discoveringice.com/travels/north-america-mexico/cenotes-of-the-Yucatan-exploring-the-underground-caves-of-mexico.html


This is the cenote we explored!!  http://www.cenotedosojos.com

https://www.locogringo.com/mexico/ways-to-play/mayan-ruins-archaeological-sites/tulum-ruins/

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