Lash at Sian Ka’an Reserve – Tulum
April 2016 Travels in Review – pt 1. Tulum – Mexico
When I sat down to compile my review of April travels, I quickly amassed way too many travel updates for a single article. Since I spent the entire month in just two places – Tulum, Mexico and Puerto Rico – I decided to break my April review into two articles.
This first post recounts my adventures in Tulum up til my departure for Puerto Rico on April 17th. In the second article I will detail my rather extensive explorations of Puerto Rico.
pink flamingos at Rio Lagartos – Mexico
NEW ARTICLES & PHOTO GALLERIES IN APRIL:
During my wonderful stay in Tulum I published three new photo galleries on various places in Yucatan as well as my March Travel Review.
PHOTO GALLERY: Rio Lagartos – Mexico
Rio Lagartos is a tiny fishing village on the northern coast of Yucatan Peninsula which is famous for its large flocks of pink flamingos.
Less well known are its beautiful mangrove rivers, mud baths and some surprisingly pink ultra-saline water.
My boat tour at Rio Lagartos was one of my best days in Yucatan, Mexico!
Here are 12 photos from my great day there….
SEE PHOTOS – https://www.lashworldtour.com/…/photos-of-rio-lagartos-mexic…
PHOTO GALLERY: Tulum Beach, Mexico
Tulum is my kind of paradise!
Long, powdery white sand beaches, backed by dense jungly vegetation and artsy boutique hotels constructed of natural materials. Very bohemian.
Here are 18 photos from my 2-week visit at Tulum Beach…
SEE PHOTOS – https://www.lashworldtour.com/…/photos-of-tulum-beach-mexico…
PHOTO GALLERY: Lake Bacalar, Mexico
Laguna Bacalar is famous for its incredible water colors – in shades of aquamarines, teals and blues – resembling the nearby Caribbean Sea.
Have you ever seen a LAKE these colors? Come check it out…
SEE PHOTOS – https://www.lashworldtour.com/…/…/photos-of-lake-bacalar.html
March 2016 Travels in Review
Highlights of my extensive travels around Yucatan, Mexico, via photos and short snippets from colonial towns, beaches and more…
READ POST – https://www.lashworldtour.com/…/march-2016-travels-review-me…
Mayan Ruins at Tulum Beach
TULUM, MEXICO IN APRIL
To set the stage… In mid March, I arrived in Tulum, a magical beach area midway along Yucatan peninsula’s gorgeous Caribbean coast. By then I’d already been exploring Yucatan for two full months, greatly enjoying every single place.
Even so, I’d been especially looking forward to Tulum with its reputation as a center for bohemian living: alternative people into meditation, massage, holistic living and alternative music. I assumed Tulum would be a fantastic place for me. But boy, oh boy, I had no idea how very magical it would turn out to be.
After arriving at Tulum beach, basically that was that. All further travel plans came to a screeching halt. Aside from a brief visit to Playa del Carmen, one hour north, I ended up ‘stuck’ in Tulum until my previously-scheduled flight to Puerto Rico on April 17th dragged me away, practically screaming an audible, “noooooo!”
I wrote more about Tulum in this March review. Here’s a brief recap:
north end of Tulum Beach – Mexico
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: O M G !!! Tulum Beach, Mexico!
THIS is IT for me!
The beach and sea and atmosphere out at Tulum Beach are phenomenal!
Yucatan has been getting better and better, but WOW, I really hit the jackpot this time!
As if the beach isn’t incredible enough… Yesterday I arrived at the beach…started walking along the beautiful shoreline…
within 10 minutes I stumbled upon an all-day dance party on the sand! Trance Music all day!!!! My crowd – with cool clothes, tattoos, piercings, dance-o-maniacs. Fun, fun day.
Needless to say, I ended up dancing on the beach until sunset. Luckily under shade…
I’m sure I could live at Tulum Beach for a very long time.
amazing architecture at Tulum Beach
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Tulum Beach runs for at least 10 km along the Caribbean. It’s packed with very cool boutique resorts!
Here are a few more views of the great architecture and amazing outdoor sitting spaces found all along Tulum beach.
Tulum! Yes!
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Yesterday I went diving in cenotes!!!
My 1st time to dive in cenotes!
I’ve always wanted to try it…and luckily for me, my best pal here in Tulum loves diving and knows the cenotes well. So he suggested the dives, we signed up at a dive shop and off we went…
The dives were pretty and relaxing. Amazing views of the blue and green water at the cenote openings were my favorite parts of both dives…
However, I have to admit that I prefer diving on coral reefs. Love all the tropical fish life and colorful corals.
Caves are cool, but I’ve seen many cave in my life. No need diving them, too. At least I tried it! Thanks for taking me diving Ale!
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: One of the many things I LOVE about Mexico are all the old VW Beetles on the roads!
I mean, they are everywhere! …and in varying states of decay or restoration or adaptation.
I finally found out why so many Beetles are here as my guesthouse owner explained it to me:
A huge VW factory in Mexico made Beetles up through the 1990s!
I’ve always been a huge fan of those super cute little cars. In fact, a Bug was my 1st car in my 20s. So I’m always happy to see them driving around here in Yucatan.
check out these cuties:
Playa del Carmen – Mexico
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: I recently spent a few days at famous tourist destination, Playa del Carmen….
Considered Yucatan’s most chic beach spot, Playa has big hotels, upscale restaurants & bars, boutiques, souvenir shops, parties and LOTS of European vacationers… A city at a beach.
Nice for a quick visit and change of pace, I have to admit. Some great architecture and splash of urban life… though I wouldn’t want to stay more than a few days…
Anyone else here been to Playa? Love it? Hate it?
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: In Playa I finally got to meet fellow travel blogger @jeannie marks of Nomadic Chick !
We met for lunch then ended up spending the whole day together…lunch & chats, coffee shop & chats, dinner & chats…
Then I mixed us up some mega mojitos and we hit the beach after dark for a stroll, Mayan performance, live rock band & dancing under the stars. :)
Stupidly, neither of us took any photos together! Doi!!!
Hey, Jeannie, great meeting you at long last! Thanks for spending the day & evening with me, lady!
Grand-Hyatt-Playa-Del-Carmen-Resort
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Grand Hyatt Hotel in PLaya!
Now I DID love the amazing architecture of Playa’s Grand Hyatt..
I hung out an hour or so, admiring the amazing views & design.
The entryway looks like a Mayan temple, but with water flowing over it – a massive waterfall.
The main hotel is built around a huge interior garden/park with a central elevated corridor, with several chic seating spaces..
and phenomenal views over a huge infinity pool, the sea and distant skyscrapers of Cozumel Island, looking as if they’re floating on the water.
Best place in Playa in my opinion..
*note that half these photos are from Flckr CC photos”
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: In Playa I saw this cool traditional Mayan performance…
Several men dressed in traditional costumes climb up a very very tall pole with ropes attached to themselves.
Then they get the pole spinning…
Then they drop themselves over the sides, suspended by their ropes…swinging around upside down in mid air
..and slowly lowering themselves further & further down..til they reach the ground.
Sorry for the crappy photos! I only had my smart phone. Doi!
drone flying above Coba Mayan ruins – Tulum
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: I saw a drone for the 1st time!
While standing atop a Mayan Ruin at Coba with a good friend, this drone came drifting up from the forest floor….
I caught a few photos of the drone taking photos of us on the ruins… (Of course he was photographhing the ruins and we just happened to be there)
Amazingly, we ended up accidentally catching a taxi back to town with the owner of hte drone! A French couple out traveling…
He says he’ll send me a link to the drone video on You Tube.. so hopefully I can share it soon..
Have you ever seen a drone??? If so, where & what was it photographing?
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: I finally rented a bicycle at Tulum!
With a bike I could explore much much more of 20 km of Tulum beaches & resorts!
I finally got down to Sian Ka’an Marine Park, located at the far southern end of Tulum’s beach resort area.
Wowwww…totally wild beach backed by dunes! Ahhhh, I hung out there most of the day, suntanning, walking on sand, cooling off in the sea, relaxing in the shade.
NIiiicccceee! MY kind of beach! :)
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: And yet another amazing alternative music band in Tulum!
A local took me out to see this really fantastic group, consisting of 3 guitarists, 2 drummers, violinist and one long, tall string instrument I didn’t recognize.
WOW music, I can tell you!
…and, once again, Tulum is incredible! ..boo-hoo, too bad I have to leave. Crying…
band jam in Tulum – Mexico
TRAVEL UPDATE MEXICO: Boo Hoo! I am leaving Yucatan, Mexico!
Nooooo! Not ready to go yet!
I’ve been exploring Yucatan since late January – nearly 3 months – but still not really ready to leave…
Ever since I arrived I’ve felt like everything in my life has been uplifting higher and higher…to the ultimate experience at Tulum Beach, where I really felt the sensation of Universal Energy flowing through my body! Wow.
And during all that, so many wonderful places & people – Lake Bacalar, Mahahual, Valladolid, Merida, Rio Lagartos, Campeche…and Tulum.
…but onward flights were booked beforehand, travel plans put in place… So off I go to… Puerto Rico! For the 1st time in my life…
Bye, bye Yucatan, Mexico… Miss you big time! I’ll be back!
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And with that, on Sunday, April 17th I took a bus north to Cancun airport where I boarded my flight to Puerto Rico. More on my extensive island explorations coming up next week.
Meanwhile, you might also enjoy:
My First Impressions of Mexico
Photos of Stunning Yucatan Peninsula
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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! 
