I know, I know, it’s been a while.

If you missed the previous posts, click here and here.

After an even more terrifying trip back to Playa, we decided to take it easy for the rest of the day. I kid you not, we had a siesta every day we were there and it was fantastic! We decided to walk up and down 5th Avenue, which is the main drag there in town. We did some shopping, we went down to check out the beach, and we got some lunch and drinks.

We clearly enjoyed all the food down there. I think we cleaned our plates at every meal!

The next day, we decided to have a beach day. We grabbed our towels and headed down to a beach club, which was a five minute walk away. As I am very pale and afraid of burning, we rented an umbrella with our chairs. More drinks! They were so cheap at this beach and it was great to sit back and relax, while drinks are served. Delicious!!!

We didn’t have much planned for this vacation, which was very difficult for me. I like to have things lined up. Our only activities booked were the jungle spa and a fishing charter. Unfortunately, due to high winds, the port was closed and our charter was cancelled. There was no available time to reschedule. Needless to say, my boyfriend was devastated. This was the one thing he wanted to do on vacation. I felt really sad for him.

To make up for it (as best I could, anyway) I planned a day for us to go to see some Mayan ruins in Tulum. It did NOT disappoint!

Tulum was one of the last built and inhabited cities of the Mayans. It was active for a couple of centuries, with as many as 1,600 people living there at one time. The thing that sets Tulum apart from other popular ruins in Mexico is that it is situated on the sea. This made it a very important port at the time, and is probably a big reason it stayed inhabited for so long.

You can no longer climb or go in any of the structures, but as it is a city, it is a great place to walk around and absorb the history and heritage. Expansive is the word I would use. You climb up and up, seeing more and more of the ocean as you climb. The views are truly spectacular.

Overall, it was a great day. We made the most of it, even if we were a little disappointed about the fishing trip. It was great to go somewhere so rich with history and culture. After seeing the ruins, we ventured into the village where there were shops and restaurants set up. The food was incredible. As we had a while to kill before our bus ride back, we found a small hole-in-the-wall bar where we sat for a drink and talked with the bartender. With his limited English and our limited Spanish, it made for some interesting conversation. At one point, a small cat appeared. This was the first cat we had encountered down there that actually wanted attention. She was the sweetest thing! The bartender explained to us that he has no idea where the cat comes from or goes to, but it visits him every afternoon for dinner. He took an empty ashtray and poured some milk in it for the cat, who happily lapped it up. I could tell he had quite the fondness for this cat. She liked to play and mess around with him, darting underneath his legs and hiding behind cabinets. He was so patient with her! I was sad to say goodbye.

And just like that, our vacation was over! We went to our favorite restaurant down there, Yo Amo Tacos, for dinner. It was the only place we went to twice! The chicken tacos were out of this world. The couple sitting in front of us was from Germany, and the gentleman had only been drunk one other time in his life! It was hilarious to watch the waitress bring him a few tequila shots, and to see this guy become sillier and sillier as the night went on.

We were up bright and early the next day to head to the airport.

I tweeted and Facebooked this message that I think perfectly summed up our time there-

“Bye bye Mexico. We will miss your warm sunshine, out-of-this-world food, margaritas before noon, and the lively street culture. We hope to see you again soon!”

We saw so much but there is SO MUCH more we would like to see! Can’t wait to go back.

Thanks for reading!