Saturday, March 10, 2012

Valladolid, Yucatan, Mexico

 This was the hotel that we stayed in in  Valladolid.  What a LOVELY surprise this town was for all of us.  Immaculately clean, easy to walk around, and all the historical signs were not only in Spanish but in English as well!  Amazing.
 I've posted photos of the courting chairs empty but I wanted to show you that they ARE actually used.  Aren't they clever?  They also are more comfortable then sitting on the park benches. This parque was about four times the size of the jardin in San Miguel.  It shows the former wealth of this area.
 While strolling around their "parque" as they called it, we met two city officials who were leaving their offices about 9PM.  We effusively complimented them on their town.  They beamed.  We had a great conversation about how hard they work so that people feel welcome and that their main source of income is not tourism but cattle and agriculture.  Well, to me, it is one of the gems of Mexican villages.  Go see it if you're ever in the area.
 The hotel was an additional surprise.  Superb restaurant, pool adjacent to the bar.  Can anyone say pina colada in the Yucatan?  And both our dinner and breakfast were extremely reasonably priced while being very, very tasty.
"Fresh" everything was served..  This is a welcoming table at the front of the restaurant.  Lovely isn't it? 
 I tried in our short timeframe to see as much as possible.  The night before when the lights were on in the municipal building I could see these murals on the second floor.  A trip first thing the next morning to see them in person was well worth the hike.  There were four or five murals telling the history of the area.  Very well done.

We left Valladolid wishing we could stay a couple more days.  But onward to Tulum we went ending up that night in Playa del Carmen.  Talk about culture shock.  From Valladolid to Playa del Carmen.  Like going through a time capsule of 1000 years.
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10 comments:

Billie Mercer said...

I love the hotel and the town. A couple of wonderful churches, a cenote, colonial charm....
You make me want to go back.

Steve Cotton said...

It appears you may have stayed at the same hotel where Wayne and I stayed. Nice place. And I agree. The park was superb.

Babs said...

Billie - I had to make a choice that morning, the cenote or the women's sewing coop and seeing the town. I chose the town. Then when I saw Fran Schavo's photos of the cenote, I wanted to be in both places at the same time. The cenote was exquisite.
Maybe, maybe there will be a next time. Like fly into Cozumel and drive to Valladolid for a few days and then scurry back to the water?

Bob Mrotek said...

"Like going through a time capsule of 1000 years."

Barb,
You didn't by any chance hitch a ride with Dr. Peabody and his boy Sherman in their "wayback machine" did you?

Babs said...

Bob, It felt like it. To go from a gentle village where the traffic stopped to let you cross the road (like in San Miguel) to Playa with teems of people walking, drinking, partying all over the place til after 4AM each night we were there! Oh, and the PRICES of a burrito - 150 pesos. My oh my. Thank heavens for the beautiful sea.......

Matthew Smith said...

Good memories.We stayed at this hotel on our honeymoon in 1992. Thanks for taking me back there. Jan in Mississippi

Babs said...

Jan, all the rooms have been modernized. The bathroom was beautiful.
It was definitely a 5 star hotel....didn't want to leave. What a delight that you spent your honeymoon there..........

Sara said...

Hi, I was in that country a few months ago. The people were very cordial. I stay in apart hotel playa
del carmen
. I have the best memories of that holiday and hope to return in the future to re-live that wonderful experience

Expo Feria Valladolid 2019 said...

Valladolid los espera con los brazos abiertos

Babs said...

Gracias. I hope to return to Valladolid some day!