exploring Isla Mujeres
September 2016 Travels in Review
September was a split month. In more ways than one, as it unexpectedly turned out.
The first half of September I continued enjoying my weekly 3-day trips around Yucatan while Alejandro & I continued living in Tulum. Actually, I took my final such trip – to Isla Mujeres, just off the coast of Cancun.
We had already planned our very first trip together, departing on September 16th to Cuernavaca city, located just south of Mexico City. So I spent the second week of the month preparing for that trip.
Then the real split of September dropped like a bomb. On September 16th we excitedly set out on our first long travel excursion together. Within 48 hours of departing we broke up! Talk about a travel disaster!
Completely unanticipated or imagined, due to irreconcilable differences, I left Alejandro with his two young children in Cuernavaca and headed to the nearby city of Puebla.
I spent the final two weeks of September in beautiful Puebla, trying to wrap my head around the shocking, totally unexpected split… and exploring Mexico’s lovely 4th largest city. Quite luckily, I really enjoyed Puebla. A Baroque city built by the Spanish in the 1500s, Puebla is full of amazing architecture, fantastic museums, cheap & delicious food and many unique things to see & do.
The second week, Alejandro came to visit me for a few days in Puebla so that we could discuss things, consider whether to continue our partnership and clear the air. While we were pondering all that…
Fate played a huge hand… His ex-wife suddenly announced that his 6-year-old son was going to go live with him in Tulum. No discussion, no negotiation, just a one week notice. BLAM! So that one act determined both our futures. Suddenly any hopes of Alejandro becoming a traveling man ended. Instead he was going to raise his son, indefinitely into the future.
dancing at a Sunday rave party on Tulum Beach
And I, of course, am a traveling woman. Living in a house, with a man working every day, and a child, is most definitely not for me. So that – suddenly – was that. Goodbye life partner, hello single travel life. Shocking.
Meanwhile, on LashWorldTour I published several new articles in September, was honored to be included in two Top Travel Blog Lists and posted many FB updates about my travels to Isla Mujeres, Cuernavaca and Puebla.
Following are the articles and news items I published on LashWorldTour in September. Go check out any of interest if you missed them last month.
Following that are my FB travel updates from Mexico in September. Find out all about Isla Mujeres and the central Mexican Baroque cities of Cuernvaca and Puebla.
LashWorldTour articles and news published in September
1. PHOTO GALLERY: Photos of Old San Juan – Puerto Rico
San Juan was established in the early 1500s on top of a rugged cliff-faced peninsula by Spanish conquerors. Set at the entrance of the vast naturally-protected harbor, San Juan quickly became an important port town in the Caribbean.
Today Old San Juan is Puerto Rico’s most visited destination, and with good reason.
Here are 24 photos of stunning Old San Juan from my trip in April, 2016. Enjoy!
photo courtesy of Melanie G Photography
2. TRAVEL PERSPECTIVES: 10 Reasons I’m Itching to Visit Iceland
Speaking of an entirely different part of the world from Mexico for a change…
I’ve been dying to go explore Iceland recently… and here’s why – READ POST
3. NEWS: LashWorldTour Featured on TWO Top Blog Lists!
4. QUICK NEWS: I just published my 800th article on LashWorldTour!
My Iceland post makes exactly 800 articles that I’ve written on LashWorldTour during the past 5 years.
Whew, one can certainly do a lot of writing in the course of a few years! Who knew?!
…in this photo of the ‘inside’ of my travel blog, on center left side under ‘AT A GLANCE’ see ‘800 POSTS’. Yeah!
5. August 2016 Travels in Review
In August I started taking weekly 3-day trips to places near Tulum.
I revisited some of my favorite spots in Yucatan like Valladolid and Playa del Carmen. And I explore some destinations new to me, including Cancun and Cozumel Island.
Alejandro & I also made several fun day trips, snorkeling on coral reefs and exploring unusual attractions friends told us about.
Here’s the full low-down on all our August adventures…. This post is jam-packed with photos and useful info about both famous and little-known places around Yucatan. Check it out if you’re coming to Mexico!
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September Travels in Review – via FB updates
crowded ferry terminal to Isla Mujeres
Isla Mujeres
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: 3-Day Trip to Isla Mujeres by Ferry
For my final weekly trip near Tulum I visited tiny “Island of Women”…located just off the coast of Cancun.
From our apartment in Tulum the journey entailed 2 x 1-hour colectivo rides to reach Cancun, then a bus to the ferry terminal to catch the 30 minute boat ride. It took a total of 4 hours to reach the island.
When I reached the ferry terminal and saw the huge crowds, I thought “UH OHHHH!”
But I bravely boarded the ferry to go check things out…
We did have 2 great additions to the ride-
-We were serenaded by a jazz sax player!
-The sea was an unbelievable shade of light turquoise. I honestly could hardly believe the sea color and had to rub my eyes a few times. Wowie!
Soon enough, we arrived at ultra-developed Isla Mujeres…and I reluctantly scrambled onto the island in the midst of the tourist hoardes…
isla Mujeres coastline
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
Happily, Isla Mujeres has some really gorgeous coastlines!
Wherever you can escape from the tourist hoards, Isla Mujeres really is very pretty…
Check out the coastline and the sea colors!
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
Isla Mujeres has beautiful beaches & sea…
BUT wayyyyyyy too many people, boats, bars, blasting music
As I´d feared at the ferry terminal, the island is a ZOO of tourists! EEk.
You can´t really tell from my photos, which somehow make this place look gorgeous.
But the beautiful fluffy sand was completely covered in hundreds of beach chairs & umbrellas.
Just offshore, dozens & dozens of private speed boats line up, full of people and blasting crappy pop music…
Hundreds of tourists are driving golf carts around the town´s narrow roads and all over the island…
It´s a mess!
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
Check out my cute guest house on Isla Mujeres!
I don´t know what style of Mexican architecture this Little house is, but it sure is cute!
…a long hallway with rooms on either side. The hallway is arched, with skylight windows and nice Wood beams running across… and colorful paintings on the walls.
The rooms are clean, simple and stylish.
Great paintings cover the kitchen & sitting room walls.
AND, it’s very quiet! Yeah!
…a great Little place.
Setting off on our First Trip together…
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: We’ve started our trip!
Here we go. .. heading off on Mexican Independence Day, Sept. 16th
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Viva Mexico! Felicidades! September 16th
Felicidades! Happy Mexican Independence Day to all my Mexican Friends!
I hope you all have a blast celebrating today.
Cuernavaca church tops
Cuernavaca City
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
First views of Cuernavaca – ‘City of Eternal Spring’
Cuernavaca lies 2 hours south of Mexico City, via a great mountain road that reaches3000 M / 10,000 ft before winding down to 1250 M / 5000 ft at the city. En route many gorgeous panoramic views over mountains and the wide plain where Cuernavaca resides.
Sadly, I failed to capture any worthwhile photos of the panoramas during the speeding, winding bus ride…
But I did take many photos of beautiful historic architecture scattered around central Cuernavaca… interesting churches and the fort-like Palace de Cortes, the famous Spanish explorer’s massive home, built in the 1500s.
Check out this great architecture!
Has anyone else been to Cuernavaca? If so, what did you think of it?
Cuernavaca street view
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: More street views of historic central Cuernavaca…
Last time I posted photos of the beautiful churches in the city…
And here are some views of the picturesque streets, all lined by gorgeous historic buildings…
Mexican Independence Day in Cuernavaca
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
Last weekend Mexicans celebrated Mexican Independence Day…
So when we arrived in Cuernavaca, the streets were thronged with people…
And many bars, restaurants & other businesses had colorful Red-White-Green decorations…
You can believe there was a lot of revelry, celebrations and noise those nights! Lots of loud, festive music and yelling & laughing going on in the open-air bars all over the city.
Has anyone else here ever helped celebrate Mexican Independence Day?
Mariachi Band in Cuernavaca
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Roving Mariachi band in Cuernavaca!
I came across this fantastic musical group warming up then performing in central Cuernavaca…
They performed extremely well together, with several of the men singing in harmony…
Also check out their great positioning so that each musician can be seen by the audience.
Many Mexican tourists were getting their photos taken with the band, so I guess Mariachi bands are not common in other parts of Mexico. I certainly enjoyed their performance!
Who else has seen a roving Mariachi band? Where?
James Brady home in Cuernavaca
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
Check out this amazing private home / museum of James Brady…
James Brady was an independently wealthy American who spent his life traveling the planet and collecting art & handicrafts all over the world.
He set up his fabulous house in Cuernavaca and filled it with his massive international collection…
Lots of masks, paintings, sculptures and other types of art from Africa, Asia, South America and Mexico.
Gee, this is just what I have in mind for my future house! I’ve been collecting art & handicrafts during all my travels…and plan to put them on display one day when I finally settle down somewhere…
What do you think of this house and art collection?
Puebla – Mexico – established in the early 1500s
Puebla City
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Here’s the Baroque city of Puebla!
Puebla was built by the Spanish in the 1500s, who filled the city with very ornate Baroque buildings, cathedrals and churches…
Known at ‘City of Angels’, Puebla was one of the most important and widely-acclaimed cities in the world at that time!
Today Puebla is Mexico’s 4th largest city, located 2 hours SE of Mexico City.
The modern city sprawl extends out from the large historic center, which consists of dozens of blocks of gorgeous architecture. I’ve just spent 2 weeks here admiring it all and visiting incredible museums.
Here are several street views of Puebla… (incredible churches coming next)
One of many Barroque Churches in Puebla – Mexico – built in 1500s
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Holy fancy churches, Batman!!!
Puebla is filled with mind-boggling, outstanding examples of Baroque church & cathedral architecture. Both exteriors and interiors are really ornate..
Built in the 1500-1600s by the Spanish who brought the current European architecture to Mexico.
Here are several church exteriors & their domes…
Wait until you see the interiors in my next update!
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
Holy fancy churches, Batman!!! PART 2 – ornate interiors…
Yesterday I posted many pics of Puebla’s elaborate churches, towers & domes.
NOW…. here are the mind-boggling interiors! Whew…
What do you think of this Baroque architecture? Gorgeous? Hideous and over-the-top?
Popo Volcano from rooftop in Puebla
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Volcano sightings from Puebla rooftop!
Did you know Mexico has volcanoes?
I didn’t until I planned this trip to central Mexico. Turns out that near Mexico City several very high volcanoes dominate the horizon – WHEN the weather is clear, ahem…
Before arriving, I was super excited to see the volcanoes…but despite 2 bus trips across open land and nearly 2 weeks exploring Puebla city, I NEVER got to see them!
Finally, Sunday morning the sky was super clear. I ran to the rooftop cafe at Museum Amparo, hoping to finally see the elusive volcanoes… and..
YES! Finally! I present Mt. Popocatpetl and Mt. Itztaccihuatl…
…yeah, don’t even TRY to pronounce them! Mt Popo & Mt Itzl is close enough…
shrunken head at a PUebla Museum
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO:
Mummies and shrunken head at a Puebla museum!
Eeek, I came across these particularly gruesome mummies and shrunken head at a university museum in Puebla city recently…
Mummies of 6-month-old human fetuses! WTF?!
I was told they were practice for medical students at the university. Since the fetuses died…I guess they may as well use them… ?
Also a mummy of a woman holding a tiny baby/fetus. Also gory.
And to top them off… a fleshy shrunken head! Eeek!
Has anyone else see a mummy or shrunken head? If so, where?
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Peaceful protest in Puebla, Mexico…
Outside the government palace building was a small group of protestors, complete with signs.
They were demonstrating for better school conditions for their children.
Apparently, these school demonstrations have been going on around MExico for hte past few months. I heard of some in Oaxaca and Chiapas states in July…
Happily, the protesters were peaceful and calm. AND no police intimidation that I could see.
I did notice that the palace doors – normally open – stayed firmly shut all day!
quesadilla in Puebla
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Puebla food is different than in Yucatan!
I knew that Mexico has many regional cuisines, but until now I’ve only traveled around Yucatan.
Puebla is famous for regional cuisines like Mole Poblano (Poblano = from Puebla) and Chiles en Pogado and their traditional sweets.
But also many foods I know in Yucatan are here, in a different style…
Quesadillas are completely different in Puebla than Yucatan! And MUCH better here! I will never eat a quesadilla in Yucatan again, that’s for sure!
Has anyone else here visited Puebla and tried their cuisine? If so, what did you have and how was it?
traditional Puebla sweets
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Check out these traditional Puebla sweets…
Besides it’s gorgeous Baroque architecture, Puebla is famous for its unique traditional sweets (and other cuisine like Mole Poblano)
Puebla has an entire street full of shop after shop of sweets – aka ‘dulces’, fittingly called ‘Calle de Dulces’ – Street of Sweets
Here’s a sampling of some…and the selection I finally bought for myself to eat. I’ll let you know how tasty they are soon…
wearing a cowgirl hat at the world’s largest tree – Oaxaca VAlley
Summary and look ahead…
Well, quite unexpectedly, in September I returned to my solo travel life, starting in the central Mexican cities of Cuernavaca, Puebla and Oaxaca.
I’ll continue exploring Mexico through October and November, with many amazing & diverse destinations in the works including:
– Mexico’s tropical Pacific Coast, with pounding surfing waters and bohemian enclaves
– Bohemian colonial city in mountains, situated at 8000 ft and apparently very cold
– Steamy jungles of Chiapas with world-aclaimed Indian ruins, a dramatic gorge, rivers and lakes
– Re-visiting a few favorite colonial towns in Yucatan
– Alternative-life-style Holbox Island in Yucatan
I hope that sounds as exciting and intriguing to you as it does to me! Travel life, I’m back! Yippie!
Stay tuned for heaps more adventure tales and scenic photos of fantastic & diverse Mexico.]
Meanwhile, you might also like this post that I just published:
Busting American Myths About Mexico
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Hi! I'm Lash, an American nomadic world traveler who's been traveling solo since 1998. I’m passionate about traveling the world nomadically and then sharing it all with you. I hope to inspire you to travel the world, to entertain you with tales from the road, and to help you reach your travel dreams. Welcome! 
