Mexico Cross Over 2014 - Izamal - Cuzama - Uxmal | Wednesday, February 12 - 30km

Your cycling tour today will lead you to the authentic Yucatán. You will pass ethnic Maya villages and typical landscape, till you reach Cuzama. On the terrain of an old cottage you will visit different gorgeous Cenotes. Enjoy a refreshing bath before the bus takes you to Uxmal. In the evening, you can visit of the Sound and Light Show of Uxmal. Accommodation at the Hotel Flycatcher Inn. - Trip Notes

The day started with a Tex Mex breakfast of beans, avocado and “ham and eggs” after fresh sweet papaya and rockmelon.

We headed off in the van to our first stop being a church in Hoctun dedicated mainly to the Virgin of Guadalupe. Chocolate Jesus and chocolate Virgin and a story to go with it.THE STORY

 

A few kilometers on we stopped at a sisal factory and saw the process from start to finish – henequen cactus leaves stripped by machine to sisal which is then bundled and turned into rope or matting. Slavica was given an “imperfect” leaf and took on the persona of Madam Lash.

 

We mounted the bikes outside the factory at 10am and cycled for about 30km to Homun which looks like a carefree type of town. Back in the van to La Hacienda Chunkanan which is the site of an original henequen plantation and sisal plant within a “hacienda”. The leaves used to be harvested and carted by horse drawn “trucks” by rail to the plant.

Nowadays, the “trucks” take visitors by rail to visit several cenotes which are basically caves with stalactites and stalagmites and a water pool. I went into the first one, as you can see, but declined climbing down into the second and third. Slavica swam with Luis in #3 while I stayed above ground. I was not quite as relaxed as our truck driver though. I found the signs interesting..

 

 

After a bite to eat and a glass of harchata (which is a rice and almond milk, sugar and cinnamon drink on ice) – also now ticked off the bucket list – we headed by van to the Flycatcher Inn at Santa Elena, about 20km from Uxmal, where we are staying for two nights.I washed 3 days of cycling gear and took a little nap and then we headed by van to the Sound and Light Show at Uxmal which was quite entertaining especially with the English headset. Alas, without that, I would have been “in the dark”.

More pictures here: Uxmal Light Show

Over a late dinner at The Pickled Onion Luis convinced me to try the poc chuc, which is a Yucatan dish of grilled thin slices of pork marinated in sour orange. It tasted like chicken. Luis informed us that our driver Isaac was actually named Abraham but he had not said anything to us for three days to correct the matter! I greeted Abraham in the van for short ride back to the hotel and told him that, according to The Old Testament, he had now become his own father! More miracles to finish another exciting day in The Yucatan.