Cancún

Cancún is our last stop for this Magical Mexico Tour.  Until about 40 years ago, Cancún was a small fishing village with a handful of inhabitants.  The Mexican Government had to finance the first nine hotels.  Since then it has become a popular tourist destination, especially for American tourists.

Our private van took us from Chichen Itzen to Cancún in almost 3 hours.  However, our hotel is not one of those along or near the beach where all the big hotels are.  We are in downtown Cancún, where most of the locals live.  Our small hotel is hidden on a side street.  Along the sidewalk next to a major highway are all kinds of local shops:  pharmacies, supermarkets, offices, restaurants, some tourist shops, etc.  In order to get to the beach where all the big hotels are, you have to take a local bus or a collectivo, a type of private van shuttle.  Two travel companions and I took a local bus there.  The fare?  12 pesos or about 80 cents.  About 15 minutes later we arrived on a stretch of road that is lined with those big hotels on both sides.  We got off the bus and tried to figure out how we can get to the beach.  Then we boldly walked into one of the hotels, through the lobby, the pool, and onto their private beach.  All guests at the hotel have wrist bands so that they can order drinks, food, etc.  No one challenged us so we hung around the beach.  We even ordered lemonades before we left.  Perhaps we should've gone for the food and margaritas as well.

Beach in front of hotel

Pool area where guests enjoy themselves.

 I think this is what most tourists come to Cancún for - to frolic on the beach or pool and eat and drink to excess.  They come on all-inclusive packages, which typically includes airfare, hotel, unlimited beverages (including alcoholic beverages) and food.  You pay one price and you don't have to worry about anything else, unless you choose some optional activities like parasailing, jet skiing, visiting Chichen Itza or neighboring towns, etc.  Most stay from 3 days to a week and probably never saw the part where the Mexicans live and play.  If lazing on the beach is your idea of a vacation and fun, Cancún is the place.  Since I grew up in hot tropical Singapore, I am always looking for shade.  Sun-bathing is for those "ang-mo", a term we used for the colonial British in my childhood days.

We stayed where the locals live.  Where you can get a big tasty quesadilla for 13 pesos or 3 tacos for 25 pesos.  A very nice chile rellenos dinner with soup and tortilla for 50 pesos or less than $3.  In the evening, the locals come out in full force - to eat, watch the kids play, to be entertained, shop, etc.  This is the real Mexico.

Food trucks selling marquesitas (rolled crepes) and churros

Locals enjoying some corn

A line of food vendors selling local Mexican food

Our group ate at a restaurant nearby, entertained by a guitar duo sitting favorite Mexican songs

Vendor making marquesitas

Store on left sells Mexican food, on the right sells drinks like smoothies, juice, ice cream,.

A chile relleno dinner complete with soup, rice, beans and tortillas (not shown)

An entertainer at the park

I signed up to stay in Cancún for 1 extra day.  I'm glad that's all I signed up for because there's not much to see.  There's no zocalo, no cathedrals, museum, etc.  My thrill was visiting a local supermarket and watching a lady cutting up prickly pear cactus pads.  She said, through some sign language, which I understood to mean that you can use them to cook chicken, or stir-fry with other meat.  During the middle of the day it was too hot for me to walk around.  In the late afternoon, I walked in another direction and went to another supermarket.  I did see some European tourists in the neighborhood, probably some poor backpackers who can't afford those expensive all-inclusive packages.  I picked up a doughnut and muffin for breakfast the next day.  Each costs 8 pesos, less than 50 cents.

She is removing the thorns and cutting off the tough edges of the cactus pads

ready to be chopped into smaller pieces

The diced cactus ready to be cooked with chicken and other meat

The taxi picked me up at 4:30 am the next morning.  I was told it'd be a 45-minute ride but the driver made it less in than 30 minutes.  In my parting memory of this wonderful trip in Mexico, the taxi-driver told me that he is giving me a deal for 350 pesos for the trip.  I replied that the hotel told me that it is 300 pesos and that's all I was going to give him.  He had no choice but to take it.

The moral of the story is that even when things are going good, you always have to be on the lookout.    That's what I'll talk about in my next post, how to have a good time in a place like Mexico but still avoid any unfortunate travel experience.