ISLA COZUMEL - MEXICO

Isla Cozumel is an Island just off Player del Carmen and has a population of 73,200. The Maya's settled her from AD300. During the post- Classic period it flourished as a trade centre and also is a great ceremonial site. It was expected for every women of the Yucatan Peninsula to make a pilgrim here to pay tribute to Ixchel, the goddess of fertility and the moon at the temple which was erected for her honor. When the island was first discovered by the Spanish in 1518 it was thought to have 32 Maya building groups.

Smallpox which was introduced by the Spanish, wiped out half of the 8000 Maya and of the survivors, only about 200 escaped genocidal attacks by conquistadors in the late 1540s.

Within the 17th century the Island was virtually deserted, which created a sanctuary for several notorious pirates, including that of Jean Lafitte and Henry Morgan.

In 1848 indigenous people moved to Cozumel while fleeing the War of Castes. In the 20th Century the islands population grew due the craze of chewing gum. The locals harvested the gum on the island and as it was a port of call to the chicle export route allowing it to be exported. During world war II the US created an air base here keeping the economy going. Then in 1961 tourists began to arrive to sustain the economy.

Now we thought the best way to explore this interesting Island was to rent a car....so thats what we did!

After we got our sweet ride we headed over to the east side of the island where the beaches where far more beautiful than the west. The beaches on the East most of the tourists never discovered as many of the tourists in Cozumel are on large American Cruise ships. On this side of the island we went to some lovely little restaurant/bars (shown Below) in their stunning positions on the coast. The beaches on the east coast also have large currents so its rougher seas make it a bit more difficult to go for a relaxing swim, especially as a few of the Beach's are very Rockey!

Although our little beetle had a few problems on our trip around the island, we made it back to the main town San Miguel...well just about! It was a great way to explore the islands more remote parts.

One thing that Cozumel is famous for is its diving and snorkeling. It is said to be second to the barrier reef, unfortunately I did ent agree with this. I went on a snorkel trip and felt that the reef had been hugely damaged by the tourists and was hideously unimpressed when my snorkel guide picked up a struggling turtle and brought it to the surface. Personally I felt that it had poor snorkeling and have seen much better in other parts of the world. It defiantly did ent life up to its hype.

Cozumel is defiantly worth a visit although I did feel that tourism is ruining it, and it needs to be better taken care off.

TULUM - MEXICO

Tulum is a fantastic place to visit with its incredible beaches with turtles laying their eggs, its fresh water Cenotes to cool off in and its beautiful Maya Ruins situated on the beach.

The Tulum Ruins are situated just off a beautiful beach with turquoise waters. The believe of most archaeologists are that it was occupied during the late post-Classic period ( AD 1200- 1521) and that it was an important port town during its heyday. The Maya sailed up and down the coastline maintaining trading routes down into Belize. The town amazed Juan de Grijalva when he sailed past in 1518 due to the brightly painted buildings in red and blue. Several metres thick and 3 to 5m high the walls protected the city during a period of of considerable strife between Mayer city states.

The city was abandoned about 75 years after the Spanish Conquest . It was one of the last of the ancient cites to be abandoned, long before the arrival of the Spanish. However the Maya Pilgrims continued to visit over the years and war refugees took shelter here from time to time. '

Tulum' is Maya for 'Wall', although its residence called it Zama (Dawn). The name Tulum was given by explores during the early 20th century.

The most impressive part or the ruins for me was the El Castillo (the castle) which is in the heart of the complex and is Tulum's tallest building also used to a watch tower. The beauty of these ruins are that they over look the sea which gives them an individuality and not 'just another Maya ruins.'!

Tulum is a nice little town and although it has its fair amount of tourists it is a much more remote place to spend your time compared to the serial Americanised Player del Carmen just up the cost which basically consists of a mini America, with Starbucks, Burger King and Mc Donald's on every corner.

Another fun thing to do when you want to cool of from the heat is to visit one of Tulum's many Cenotes. When I was there I visited the Gran Cenote which is just 3km from the centre of Tulum. You can Snorkel in the cool water and see turtles, small fish and underwater formations in the caverns.

If you ever get to visit this lovely place stay in the Weary backpacker in town to meet some friends or a secluded cavana on the beach.

(Papa Playa-Cavana on one of the beach's of Tulum)

Weary Backpacker Hostel, Tulum

ISLA MUJERES (ISLAND OF WOMEN) - MEXICO

This is where I have Spent part of my last few weeks and became one of the favorite places which I visited on this trip. 

Above shows Playa Norte beach, just a 2 minute walk from the hostel....pretty close to what you may call paradise! It has warm shallow, clear water which you can walk out to sea for miles. 

Isla Mujeres is a ferry journey from cancun and is a relieve from the busy built up tourist infested Cancun. It has a population of 14,000, and the main way of transport is by golf buggies or scooters. 

The Streets are brightly coloured and vibrant due to the Pintando Isla Mujeres program which invited 400 artists from all around the workd to paint many of the town's buildings, which makes it a fun and interesting place to have a wander!

Another incredible thing about this island is that you can swim with whale sharks which was an incredible experience. You have a boat out about 40 minutes where we saw dolphins on the way out. You then arrive to an area where there are about 200 whale sharks around the boat, it is just amazing. You then jump in the water and swim right beside them so close that you could touch them. I was amazed by these incredible creatures. They where so huge but yet so harmless and did not even seem to notice you swimming beside them. Although a whale shark will not harm you the slightly disconcerting thing was that apparently bull sharks sim just below, and they are not so friendly!

Legand has it that the name Isla Mujeres goes back to the Spanish buccaneers, who kept there lovers in safe seclusion here while they plundered galleons and pillaged ports on the mainland.  An alternative theory is that in 1517, when Francisco Hernandez de Cordoba sailed from Cuba and arrived here to procure slaves, the expedition deiscovered a stone temple containing clay figurines of Maya goddesses, it is thought that Cordoba named the island after the icons. 

It is also thought by archaeologists that the island was a stop over for the Maya en route to worship their goddess of fertility, Ixchel, on Isla Cozumel. The island may also of been involved in the Maya Salt trade, which extended along the coastline. 

If you ever get the chance to go to this beautiful Island stay in Poc-Na hostel where you will meet many other traveller's, and be sure to have a relaxed lunch at Mananas. And of course be sure to swim with the whale sharks if it is the right season which is May - September. 

CHANIA, WESTERN CRETE

This photo was taken in Chania in West of Crete. Here I found the Architecture of the ancient port beautiful especially the Lighthouse. I also enjoyed setting up the perspective of the photo with the stop sign and the lighthouse.