by Sue Kuti
I have just returned from the first Small Group Travel Tour to Mexico and Cuba and what an exciting trip it was! Despite the Swine Flu, plane delays and local protests, we had an amazing cultural and historical tour!
Our trip started in Mexico City where the local people were celebrating Easter! 
We saw the Mexicans queuing to get into the Cathedral – such a devout country yet outside the Mariachis danced away! A land of contrasts indeed! We walked the streets and soaked in the atmosphere.
There were lots of Mojitos and Pina Coladas on the roof top bar of the Holiday Inn. We were even brave enough to try the stuffed chilies and of course the ants eggs and miniature grasshoppers at a local restaurant!
We left Mexico City with plans of what we would do and see on our return! Little did we know that this was not to be!
We nicknamed the tour the “Ruined Tour” as we were to visit seven archaeological sites! We were not disappointed. Each one was different. Some were restored and others were still hills waiting to be explored by archeologists. Our first experience of Mexican ancient history was at Teotichuacan. Much of the city and its creators remain a mystery even today. We couldn’t believe the size of the Pyramids and of course the challenge was to climb the steps to get the aerial view of the site. Some succeeded and some didn’t (well my knee gave up!)
We had seen a lot of pyramids but Uxmal and Kabah near Merida provided us with the un-restored view. We were amazed to see that so many of the hills were potential archaeological sites! The Yucatan Peninsula is an archeologist’s fream. They could work here for years and still have more to do.
Nothing prepared us for Chicen Itza – and the vastness of this site! Everything we had seen was magnified here.
Once again, we found the debate over the ball court game. Many of the sites had ball courts. Did the captain of the winning team lose his head – literally? One theory is that when the winner was sacrificed he became immortal and his family and team members rose in status and consequently in comfort and wealth. Who knows?
We still couldn’t get enough, so on our way to Playa Del Carmen (a beautiful beach resort where we would cool off for a couple of days in the warm, turqoise waters) our guide kindly took a diversion to Tulum where we saw a small site … but the magic here was its backdrop of the beautiful ocean.
Along the way, we visited smaller towns. Puebla was our first experience of life outside Mexico City. We were well situated in the old city near the Zocalo or city square. Puebla was small enough for us to wander around its cobbled streets and find the artisans square and numerous markets. One of the streets was devoted to sweets! It was in Puebla that we began our shopping. No one could resist the Uriato Talvera pottery or the Donna Rosa pottery. We were shown the traditional methods of production and of course we needed to take some home. We would worry about the practicalities of transporting these later!
Our next stop was Oaxaca. Here we visited the Convent of Santo Domingo de Guzman. This is an old convent that has been converted to a hotel. Part of the hotel has been kept as a museum and we were treated to the Guelaguetza – a series of national dances – very colourful and lively while we enjoyed an amazing buffet which included the best creme caramel in Mexico!
Our next stop would be San Cristobal. Here our flexibility was to be tested. After an early morning start, we arrived at the airport to find that our plane had been delayed – again and again till we had to be rescheduled as we had missed our connection in Mexico City. A few hours later we made our connection only to be told that another plane would have to be found as the one we had boarded had problems. Once more we boarded a new plane but this time, it was President Obama who was responsible for our delay. No one was allowed on the tarmac when Air Force One arrived so we once again got off the plans and were treated to a view of Air Force One! We arrived in San Cristobal at 7pm – 8 hours after our expected time of arrival. Still, all was not lost as there was a festival on in the Zocalo with lots of music and dance.
Our next adventure was to Agua Azul falls, or so we thought! The locals decided that they wanted their share of the tourist dollar so they barricaded the bridge that lead to the falls. However, the Mexican authorities did not see it that way and responded with riot police by the hundreds. It was a non-event but meant we couldn’t visit the falls.
Well, we knew we had to be flexible so on we went to Palenque where we saw a fine example of Mayan architecture amid the jungle. What a great setting! Each pyramid had its charm and each offered something different.
Our trip continued through to Merida and a final two days relaxing in beautiful Playa del Carmen.
We bid farewell to Mexico and looked forward to our new adventure in Cuba.
Stay tuned for the next installment of Sue’s Cuban adventure..
Sue Kuti is the owner of Small Group Travel. She was recently the winner of the Travel Weekly Best Consultant South America 2009. Sue runs tours to Vietnam, China, Southern Africa, Japan and of course South America. If you are interested in any of Sue’s tours call me TODAY on 02 4328 4398 and I can get you a great price for your group!
Have you ever been around the Mexican Riviera or seen any of the amazing Mayan culture of Mexico? Or maybe you have been on one of Sue’s tours? Please let me know in the comments below.
