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Indi and I shared one common thing: We love to travel, to see and experience the world (*if money is not an issue). And with travel, we also share one common trait: we plan for it in detail.

Why do we plan? Easy answer: because that's our style. Some people likes to travel unplanned, arriving at the airport not knowing where to stay or where to go. But not us.

A more difficult answer would be: Because we want to minimize uncertainties and maximise our enjoyment. As much as possible we do not want to be bothered too much with logistical issue. Moreover, we lug our toddlers along with us, hence the need for proper planning. Here, we'd like to share with you our style of travel planning.

We did this for most of our trips, particularly the ones outside South-East Asia.

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A. Planning For The Trip

The first step that we do is of course, to decide on the destination. For the Cuba trip, for example, we were in a bookshop in Kuala Lumpur with our friend Fay, and there we came across with a guidebook for Cuba. Indi flicked the book and saw the beautiful photos of the Carribean blue seas, and we instantly knew what we were thinking. I instantly respond to Indi, "Let's do it before Fidel dies!". This was, six months before the actual trip began.

The second step is to roughly determine the dates and the duration of the trip of the destination. This happened immediately when we arrive home from that Kuala Lumpur decision. The dates were determined roughly based on the annual leave that we have. We built a basic spreadsheet with the number of days, and determined the dates which we need to travel by air (because this means the day is dedicated for major packing and unpacking). It looks like this, roughly.



Then we began our research... to the library! And to Google! We are very grateful of Singapore's great National Library system and Singapore's speedy internet access. We got ourselves the newest version of the guidebook and dissect it.

1. First thing to research: Airfares and its schedule. This involves calling and emailing travel agents all over the world for quotation, and sometimes, when no penalty is involved, by doing reservation. Tim Ferriss actually recommends using last minute deals to save cost, but since we travel in a big group, we're not so sure about this. Anyway, for our Mex-Cuba trip, we managed to get a pretty good deal by involving three different agents: The singapore agent to issue Singapore-LA tickets, Alaskan Airlines website for LA-Mexico ticket, and Mexican Airlines office for Mexico City-Cancun-Havana-Mexico City route. We're glad that the schedules of the different flights fitted nicely, with about 8 hours gap between flights, allowing time for delays and rest.
2. Second thing to research: Visa: Its validity, cost, and application time. This involves calling the embassies. For US and Mexican Visas, there wasn't a real problem. It's a bit tricky because Cuban embassy is not available in Singapore. The closest one is actually in KL, but they don't serve Singapore residents. We had to do it in Jakarta, and with some persuasion, we managed to get them issued in one day.
3. Third thing to research: Travel insurance. We chose AXA as it is the most economical.

To compile the research data, we use spreadsheet again, that roughly looks like this. We marked the best deals in distinct red color. Our rough schedule became more solid now that we have clearer data on arrival and departure by air.

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B. Planning For The Details Of The Trip

For the details of the trip, we began to use the guidebook to research the accommodation options. We wanted a cheap, clean, and safe accommodation. If there is an option to stay with the locals and experience local culture, that would be even better. We also explored the option of hospitality club.

The second thing of this stage is to identify what we want to visit in our destinations. We also used the guidebooks, and we try our best to check the vehicle and distance required to travel between the objects that we want to visit. If necessary, we even use google earth and roughly measure the distance.

The approximate travel time is plotted down into a detailed itinerary spreadsheet, which uses hourly grid. This doesn't mean that we plan our activities to the hour detail level. This hourly spreadsheet only helps us to put down the land-travel time, so we roughly know how much free time we have, and when we should be prepare to leave for our next destination by land. Later, we print this hourly spreadsheet, and on the road, we fill out the gap with the activities that we plan to do on the day.



Once we have this spreadsheet, we were also able to jot down daily budget and then approximate the final budget for the trip.

After this second level of planning, we began our bookings for the air tickets, hotel, and land transport.

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C. Planning For The Execution of The Trip

Finally, we again reviewed and adjusted the spreadsheets that we have done based on the finalised bookings that we had. We had clearer pictures of the day-to-day travel time vs free time.

Then, we began to build logistics spreadsheet. This involves the list of things we bring and where (which bag) we keep them. Why is this list necessary? Firstly, so that we could travel as lightly as possible and as comfortable and safe as possible. Secondly, so that we know where to put things again, when we need to pack to move to the next destination, and also, so that we know where to locate our stuff without having to unpack the whole bag. During the trip, we need the discipline to store things at the correct bag.

This is how we build the logistics spreadsheet:

1. The available storage:
   • Two large backpacks
   • Two daypacks
   • Two waist bags
   • Two hidden money belts
   • and Things to be worn
2. The classification of things we bring:
   • Lower outer garments
   • Upper outer garments
   • Undergarments
   • Accessories
   • Sanitary/bathing items
   • First aid kit (VERY IMPORTANT)
   • Electronic items
   • Documents
   • Other items
   • We also have list of possible souvenirs to bring home.

Then we build a contact list that includes personal contacts in our destination, as well as emergency contacts (police, ambulance, and embassy).

Lastly, we build a spreadsheet for the money that we bring: how much in travellers checks, how much in credit card pre-payment, how much in cash (EUR or USD), and how much we expect to withdraw from ATM. Well, we don't always do this list. But because we travel to Cuba, where money situation is a bit tricky, we need it.

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D. Necessary Actions For The Execution of The Trip

Aside to the planning above, this is the list of necessary actions for the trip in chronological order:

• Apply for ISIC card or discount cards
• Buy air tickets
• Buy travel insurance
• Learn the local language using Pimsleur methods
• Book accommodation
• Book car rental
• Book bus tickets
• Consult our doctor and pediatrician for necessary vaccinations and preparation of first aid kits (she gave us prescription medication for standby and briefed us on how to use it. She also gave us letter outlining our medical conditions)
• Buy items in the logistics list, including the backpacks
• Pre-pay our credit card
• Pre-pay our bills (utilities, cellphone, home phone)
• Put the coordinates of the destinations into our GPS
• Back up and sync our computers (leave the desktop at home, of course)
• Put necessary documents as protected pdf into a thumbdrive, including money-related documents such as credit card info
• Print the abovementioned planning spreadsheets
• Print copies of travel documents, one each to be put into the bags
• Print one copy of personal documents necessary for travel, such as medical conditions, insurance documents, etc.
• Pack up according to the logistics spreadsheet
• Ready to go!

There you go. Many people said our trip planning and preparation looks like battle plan. Is it true?

During the trip itself, we largely follow the plan. However we were quite flexible with itinerary. For example, we needed to cancel our plan to the smaller towns in Cuba because Noe was sick with viral infection. But that's OK, we're glad that our planning and preparation has resulted in a pleasant and memorable trip overall!

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A Scenic Drive to Matanzas

We got in quite early for breakfast buffet and then left hotel for more adventure.

Yodhi hurried to Barracuda for a diving trip to Bay of Pigs. We decided to the bus terminal to catch a bus to Matanzas, which is just a short walk from behind our hotel.

 

     

Unfortunately we missed the bus, so we had to hire a taxi to Matanzas for 20CUC. The driver was an old man in a 4 year of Renault. He was proudly introducing us to different scenic spots along the way such as Rio Canimar and the Tropicana auditorium.

 

   

First Taste of Cuban Town

After a 30 minute joyride we arrived in the Parque Central of Matanzas.

 

Noe seemed to enjoy the abundance of public spaces with large trees. That is something that we don't have in Jakarta unlike Matanzas that offers shaded areas for people to hang out and play.

 

Just when we got out of the taxi, jineteros offered us their help to show us around town. We politely declined but managed to buy from Moneda Nacional (which is the currency not meant for tourist) from one of them.

 

One could tell that Matanzas was once a very pretty town with narrow streets and sidewalks where intimate encounters among the dwellers took place. We saw many shops with people lining up neatly outside waiting to buy merchandise. In other places, we saw panaderia selling bread with croquetas. We visited the Union of Architects and Engineers of Matanzas and it was reported that there are 1800 engineers in the area but with little work. We hope there will be more investment in the future so they could apply their skills.

   

         

Stroll Around Matanzas City

We tried to get in El Retablo, a store and theater of puppets, but it was closed.

 

When we continued walking, I had to breasfeed Noe, and managed to do so when the lady from Radio Cuba office gave us space for breastfeeding.

   

We had hamburguesas and  Tropicola (not TuKola this time) for lunch at La Vigia near the Teater Sauto. Initially we wanted to take a tour in the theater as well, but it was closed due to the liberation day holiday on the week of 1st January.

     

                   

We then bought two handmade books from Edicion Vigia as souvenirs. Guevara took us for a tour around the production area of Edicion Vigia, as well as patiently showing their collections for sale.

       

Soon after we walked for about 1km south to the bus station so that we could catch 2pm Viazul bus back to Varadero. We walked through steel bridges which is one of the landmarks of Matanzas city.

 

             

Back to Varadero

The bus was nice and clean. Indi met with Marie Jollie, a Dutch woman who has been traveling alone all over Cuba. She suggested we spend more time in Trinidad that in Santa Clara. Perhaps we will reschedule if everyone agrees.

 

We got back in hotel at 3pm and waited for Noe to complete his nap. Afterwards we walked to beach and swim again. Noe at this time was not in the water but he was busy watching passers-by. There is something about Noe that attracs people's attention. Maybe it was because Noe had curious look in his face that makes people want to talk to him.

For dinner we went to La Vicaria 8 block away from our hotel and then we ordered fish, steak and shredded meat with rice and fries. Rani ordered 7 year old Havana Club rum and it was great!

Tropicana-like Show

When we get back to the hotel, there were a tropicana-like show. Even though the show only took place in a hotel, and even though the band was only using an electric keyboard rather than full big band, the performance was really professional and quite good. Those dancers were really athletic.

     

       

We slept late after packing and will try to wake up at 6am tomorrow.

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Breakfast and A Stroll around Varadero Downtown

We woke up a bit late, and the breakfast buffet was almost finished. The hotel staff really adored Noe, and we had a conversation about toddlers and babies. One staff had a 25 months old baby named David, and she breastfed the baby for 6 months.

         

We went back to the room to prepare ourselves for a walk, and I watched Cuban TV channel. It has the feeling of the old-time TVRI. There were four channels. One channel has governmental meetings shown on TV. The other two channels are educational channel, with programs ranging from science, technology, open university, language course, mathematics, and of course, the politics of cuba, in which a lot of statements by Fidel are quoted.Then we walked outside. The weather was not really good, with very thick cloud and drizzles. We decided to walk around Varadero, but the drizzle made everything so gloomy and ugly. Nevertheless the beach still looked beautiful with nice turquoise color. Indi was amazed with a lot of the cars of the 50s scattered around the street, with a shiny good condition. The streets in Varadero is surprisingly clean, the residents seems to have a sense of belonging to the place, that even without direct economic incentive, they keep the place clean.

       

                         We saw a school bus donated by the American students.    

Lobster Lunch and Great Live Music by "Gala"

Finally we went to Barracuda Diving Center so that Yodhi could make an enquiry about the diving program.

       

After that we went to the next door restaurant. But we were afraid of mediocre food, so we had to ask other tourist first on whether the food is good. Luckily, the tourist that we met there were quite satisfied. So we decided to just eat there.

 

When we enter the restaurant, a live acoustic music was playing Guantanamera, and some senior tourists were dancing to the tunes.

I ordered small grilled lobster, while Indi got roast chicken and Yodhi ordered grilled calamari. We decided to just have cervezas, because they cost the same as water. It was bucanero cervezas and produced by the government, but they tasted quite OK.

   

     

Before we got our meal, the band approached us, and we made a request for them to play classics of Cuban music. And it turned out that they played really beautifully, with four parts harmony and great "tres" solo. They brought "tres" instrument which is a modified guitar, with three rows of double strings, each row is tuned to the same note. It has a twangy sound. We really liked the band so we bought their CD. The band is called Gala.

To the Beach

After lunch we decided to take a taxi back to hotel so that we could spend the rest of the afternoon on the beach. Unlike Cancun where the access to the beach was limited by resort development, it was very easy for anyone to walk from the street to the beach. Our spot was only two blocks away from the hotel and the weather was splendid!

The water was only waist deep from the shore to about 200 meters outward so it was very safe to just dip yourself in the turquoise water. We put Noe in some floatation cuffs we got at Wal-Mart in Mexico but he was completely terrified with the sound of waves crashing on us.

While we took turn swimming until sunset, Noe was busy playing with whatever he could find around our mat. He was not moving much from where he stood but he kept throwing sand against the wind and got himself covered with sand.

After sunset we jumped into shower and later had dinner as La Casa de la Miel. Indi was completely disappointed to find tasteless Pollo Asado, unlike what Yodhi enjoyed the night before. We met Oscar and his wife who waited our table and also a couple of French Canadians who were visiting Cuba for the 20th time!

It was quite a tiring day so we went to bed quite early as we wanted to do something special tomorrow.

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Last Minute Stroll around Playa

We woke up early to finalize our packing and then head out to the center of Playa del Carmen to buy some cheap breakfast from the stalls. We managed to see the last phase of the sunrise. Dang, I wished I had woken up earlier to catch the sunrise exactly when it began. But still it was a beautiful sunrise with rays penetrating the clouds giving a magical sensation.





We saw a Royal Caribbean Cruiseline at the deep end of the Playa del Carmen bay, and it seemed that the passengers are getting off using a small boat, rather than directly at the pier. This is because the sea depth at the Playa del Carmen port is too shallow to cater for cruise ship. Half an hour after that, we saw a group of tourists with stickers on their chest strolling down the fifth avenue. Yep, they're the cruiseline passengers. We saw a lot of Chinese cruiseline passengers who were traveling with their extended family members. It's apparent that China is doing well economically, because we saw Chinese tourists everywhere!

We bought tortilla con camarones with fresh salsa near the central park for 8 pesos each (about 1 SGD). It was totally delicious, albeit cold. Then I bought a glass of fresh orange juice, for only 5 peso! TOTALLY DELICIOUS! It is squeezed fresh from the oranges.



We saw tourism policemen riding all terrain vehicles.



Then we strolled towards the pier and saw the boat that ferries passengers to Cozumel. I wished that we stayed longer in order to visit Cozumel too.





Indi bought some Tshirt for souvenirs and gift.

We rushed back to the hotel and checked out. Then we had breakfast at the Carboncito restaurant. During breakfast, Noe passed motion, so I had to return to the room (luckily it wasn't locked yet) and clean him up.

To Airport

At exactly 9am, after I took note of the brand of the special tequila in the funny bottle with a shape of pistol, we drove to the Cancun airport.



During check-in we found out that our flight schedule has been changed, luckily for later timing. If it had been an earlier timing, we would've missed the flight. Our mistake, we should've checked the schedule the day before, reconfirming our flight.

Lesson Learned: Do reconfirm the flight a day before.

After check in, we had to report to immigration to get our visa form stamped.

Since we had to wait for about two hours before boarding, we decided to have a big early lunch. We were not sure that we would get food on board, and surely food wouldn't be easily found in Havana. I had a big hamburger, while Indi had a veggie burger, both served with fries. Alberto, the waiter, got us a small bowl of habanero salsa. For an overpriced airport food, it was quite good.

Since Noe was too excited about flying off in an airplane again, Indi had to take him to a park to let him run around in the open, while I was finishing my burger and delicious big flan (creme caramel). Noe got introduced to Sophia, a 3 year old Mexican girl who was really shy. Noe also broke the water bottle by throwing it around.

Flight to Havana

Then we went to the boarding area. The security check for Havana was really lenient. In the boarding area we saw a lot of really fat people, so big that they might just occupy two seats on the plane.



Then we boarded the airport bus and get into the click Mexicana flight to Havana! It was a very nice clear weather and during take-off we could see clearly the zona hotelera in Cancun, and the lagoon where Fernando took us on a boat trip. The color of the Caribbean sea was so beautiful, we could see the coral reef with its distinctive color.



Arrival in Cuba: The Adventure of Passing through the Immigration

After about twenty minutes flying above the sea, we began to sea a stretch of land that is Cuba. First we saw Maria la Gorda beach and Pinar del Rio province. We could see how pristine the Cuban landscape is. Too bad the weather was rather cloudy and the clouds masked the landscape. We landed in Havana after 45 minutes of flying.



We were surprised that they have the aero-tunnel (or whatever the name is, in Indonesian it is called Belalai Gajah (Elephant's Trunk), which is old but is quite well maintained.

Our first impression of Cuba is that there is no billboard that greeted us at the airport. Everything was just barren except for some public service advertisement. The lack of billboard became a break for our eyes.

Then we arrived at the immigration area that resembles the room with thousand doors in Alice in Wonderland. It looks like a dead end, except for the doors that has the same color as the wall.

There are many queues for foreigners visiting Cuba, with two dedicated counters for mothers with child and disabled people. There is one counter for diplomats and crews, while there is only one counter for Cuban nationals. I guess this means that Cubans do not or can not travel outside their home country.

We obediently lined up on the designated counter. As a group with a toddler, we lined up behind the child counter. However, when the officer called us to the front, Noe and I had to be separated from Indi, because the counter is only for the child and the mother. So Indi had to go to the adjacent counter. We noticed that on top of the counter there is a mirror in an inclined position. We guessed that it is for the purpose of seeing people who are shorter than the counter height, or people who trying to sneak into Cuba by crawling under the counter.

The immigration officer was quite friendly, and I spoke to her using my very broken Spanish. This is my first time listening to a conversation with strong Cuban accent, which I find is harder to understand compared to the Mexican or Spanish accent, because Cuban accent dilutes many consonant. For example, the final "s" in each word is not read, and "b" is strongly pronounced as "w", and many consonants are diluted to speak a word or sentence in a more flowing manner. Also, Cubans talk fast. Really fast. Anyway, after about ten minutes of Q&A and scanning of my passport, I was let in by the officer. Let me illustrate the scene in slow motion. The officer handed me the passport and press a button in her desk. A buzzer buzzed, which means the door to the Cuban world is unlocked, and I had to reach the door handle and open the door. But right after the door there are two XRay machines. This is the first time that I had to be scanned before entering a country. Our Targus bag which is full of electronic equipments attracted the officer attention, and we had to open the bag and showed her that it is a real laptop. Luckily she just wanted to see whether it is a real laptop or not. After this Xray scan, we were 90 percent in Cuba (We had to pass by customs before it became 100 percent). While waiting for the luggage we changed our Euro cash into Cuban pesos convertibles (which is tourist's currency). We were surprised that the rate for Canadian dollar is much better than euro. We should've brought Canadian dollar. Then we went to the "Nothing to Declare" lane and voila, we were in Cuba officially!

First Taste of Cuban Culture: a Long Wait for Service

We reported to Havanatur reps to get our hotel vouchers. But then the car was broken and they had to get a replacement car, and it was unclear when the replacement would arrive. Nevertheless we patiently waited.



A janitor approached us and offered to exchange money with black market rate, but we politely refused this illegal proposition. In the airport shop, I saw the Havana Club Gran Reserva which is aged for 15 years, this is a must have!

Drive to Varadero

After two hours, we finally got the car. We were in a same car with a couple from Cayman Islands who were staying in Hotel Nacional, perhaps the most luxurious hotel in Cuba. During the drive to Varadero, our impression that Cuba is a country without a billboard is confirmed. But there are a lot of graffiti and billboards of government messages such as about the revolution, victory, and liberty. We saw a lot of pictures of Fidel, Che, and Marti on the roads.Too bad we had to drive at night, so we couldn't see much thing around the road. The road was totally dark, there was no street lighting and the houses were only dimly lit. The driver was very enthusiastic to show us around. Although he only speaks Spanish, we (try to) understand him. He showed us the Havana Club factory, and suddenly the air in the car smells like molasses.

Got a Huge Apartment Unit in Hotel Mar del Sur Varadero

We arrived in Varadero around 10pm. When we gave 10 CUC tip to the driver, he was totally elated. We thought that such amount of tip is quite reasonable, considering the long drive from Havana to Varadero, and also, with such a bad weather and in such a dark street. But for him, it was a lot of money. The average salary of people in Cuba is about 10 CUC, while the president's salary is just 40 CUC. So, we just gave him enough money to take a vacation for one month.We checked into our hotel, called Mar Del Sur. It was quite a big hotel complex with twenty four-storey blocks. The building was apparently really old, like, from the 60s, which is characterized by its concrete construction. Although the building's facade and physical appearance were not well maintained, the interior is amazingly clean. We got a whole apartment unit for ourselves, with two bedrooms and two bathrooms, with kitchen and living room.

After putting our stuff in the room, we head back to the reception to ask for recommendation for a place for dinner. She recommended the restaurant La Casa de la Miel about 5 blocks from our hotel. So we decided to just walk to the place, although we're very tired. We were surprised that the street was totally different to Cancun and Playa del Carmen. There were very minimal street light, and only few restaurant open, and not many activities on the street. Perhaps because it's quite late at night. When we got to the restaurant it was about to close, but luckily they're still willing to serve us food. Indi and I got an overly salty spaghetti bolognaise while Yodhi got a very delicious roast chicken with generous amount of rice. For the drink Indi and Yodhi bought state-produced soda in cans, which tasted quite nice, like pepsi, while I bought mineral water. This is the first time we went to a country where we can't find Coca Cola! Even when I went to the himalaya, Coke was already there before me. But in Cuba, there's no Coke.We were quite satisfied with the service and the food was quite good too. We walked back to the hotel, took a shower, and had a good night sleep.

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Chill out by the Playa

We dropped our dirty clothes at lavanderia and had a simple breakfast at a cafe next to the hotel. It was not too bad since it was included in the hotel rate. While waiting for the laundry we took Noe to a playground and a square where Fifth Avenue began, which is located right by the beach. We bought some tortilla with chicken for a very cheap five pesos.

     

       

We then had a stroll around Playa Del Carmen's Fifth Avenue, which felt just like Kuta. Amazingly, we even found a shop called "Wayan", which sells Balinese goods such as carvings and handicraft for exorbitant price. Perhaps the shop is owned by Pak Wayan who emigrated to Mexico.

   

       

Right after laundry around noon we went to the beach and got Noe in the water. It has been 4 years since Rani wore her bikini in Hawaii. Perhaps it is a norm to wear one in Playa del Carmen since we hardly saw one piece. Some grandma went topless with droopy breast. Luckily Yodhi spotted a topless young woman to balance the scene.

The water was not cold at all. In fact, it was better to stay in the water since the wind was quite strong in late afternoon. Noe at first was a bit scared seeing so much water but later he felt comfortable hugging us in the water. Rani tried to introduce Noe to sand play. Although he was not interested to walk on sand he was curious to see the textures and how it can be easily molded and used to bury Rani's legs.

Yodhi went on a scuba trip for only US$45 as compared to the US$70 he was previously offered. After the dive he said the fishes (yes, many types of fish) were quite large as compared to what he'd seen in his last Malaysia diving trip.

Shopping for Cuba

Later in the evening we went to Wal-Mart! Yes, we had to do some shopping of supplies before we take off to Cuba the next day. We heard Cuban kids lack stationery stuff for school so we bought some crayons, pens and notepads to give away when we are in Cuba. Toilet papers were considered rare so we bought plenty of baby wipes, too.

We had dinner at El Jurado, a small restaurant near shopping center. The food was quite alright for the price we paid. Arrachera (Spiced flank steak), cheese and beans on an oval fried tortilla. Quite yummy for hungry folks like us.

On our way back to the hotel, we saw a souvenir shop that sells tequila in a bottle shaped like a gun. We really wanted to buy it, but too bad, we didn't have space in our luggage, and we just have to depend on our luck when we return to mexico in the next two weeks.

Latin music was playing across the street but we were too tired and too busy packing but Rani managed to run and get some Memey and Pineapple ice cream on sticks near the parking lot where we left the car for the evening.

Time to sleep now. We have to drive to Cancun airport bright and early tomorrow.

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Swimming in the Center of the Earth

What a great day to start the day! We went to Ik-Kil, a cenote near our hotel. Not knowing what the place would look like, our jaws dropped like never before! We were not the first to get there at 8am but there were two ladies in bikini already starting to swim there before we did so we let them tried the water. I then jumped into it without knowing how deep it was until the lifeguard told it was about 50m deep. There were small black fish swimming with us but they had no eye since they came from an environment deep inside the earth where lights nearly existed. The cenote itself has water surface about 20-25m below the ground with a round opening created millions ago measuring about 40m in diameter! As good parents we managed to get life vests so that we could hug Noe safely while swimming. Yodhi and Indi managed to do some stunts jumping from 6m cliff while posing for the video camera and yelling Chichen Itza! It was indeed a refreshing swim in a cenote that seemed to only belonged to us.

   

         

Drive to Tulum through Coba

At 10:30am we checked-out of the hotel and started to drive along the country road to Tulum via Valladolid and Coba. Indi overestimated the travel time and my guess was right, it took us only 2.5 hours instead of 3.

   

Crowded Tulum

Arriving at Tulum at 1pm we were hungry but too excited to see the ruins. Unlike the well-organized Chichen Itza or Teotihuacan, the staff at Tulum seemed too lazy to enforce the rules. The public amenities were not well kept. We guessed hurricane Wilma may have damaged some of it but I think it was mostly due to mismanagement of the park itself. I was not too happy to see many people ignoring the roped boundaries. Some even climbed up fragile a structure. Below the cliff, hundreds of people were swimming in the turquoise waters. Indi said he’d never seen anything like the turquoise sea (despite the thick dark cloud that hang over us). Perhaps it was because the area is surrounded by miles of coral reef at about 500m from the beach.

       

                         

Mexican Seafood in Playa del Carmen

Soon after Tulum we drove to Playa del Carmen where we have booked a room at Hotel Cielo. At first we thought the city looked like any American town with major shopping centres along 4 lane wide highways but we changed our opinion when we entered the old part of town. Our hotel is located inside the hotspot where everything is happening. Streets are closed to create pedestrian friendly environment that stretches tens of blocks just within 5 minute walk from the beach. In comparison to Zona Hotelera of Cancun, this is far much more interesting and we thought we should have stayed here first instead of Cancun.

Based on the recommendation of Lonely Planet, we had dinner at the Oasis where we ordered Ceviche, some kind of appetizer made from shrimp and fruits (Ceviche). A paella full of savory seafood was served on a big plate for us to share. A seafood soup that resembles clear gumbo was what we had together with a drink made from rice (Agua Horchata). It was a great dining experience for a reasonable cost. Across the restaurant there is a tortilla vendor that sells from a classy VW van, and Noe really liked the van.

       

     

Yodhi was busy shopping around for diving trip deals from various shops in preparation for tomorrow's fascinating day at the Playa. As for Noe, we will follow his schedule and try to lure him into turquoise water. We will do so after sending our dirty clothes to lavanderia.

This is a great place to end our Mexican trip before going to Cuba since the cafe across the street from our hotel plays a great salsa with powerful congas and brass section. We will sleep through it.

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Finally, we are done packing our gear for a 33-day trip to Mexico and Cuba. We will try our best to write as much as possible since every single place that we will visit carries a great deal of human history.

To give you a flavor of our itinerary:

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Wednesday, 13-Dec-06    Singapore - Manila

Wednesday, 13-Dec-06Manila - Guam - Los Angeles

Thursday, 14-Dec-06Los Angeles - Mexico City

Friday, 15-Dec-06Mexico City

Saturday, 16-Dec-06Mexico City - Celaya

Sunday, 17-Dec-06Celaya

Monday, 18-Dec-06Celaya - Old Town of Guanajuato

Tuesday, 19-Dec-06San Miguel de Allende

Wednesday, 20-Dec-06Celaya - Mexico City

Thursday, 21-Dec-06Mexico City - Cancun

Friday, 22-Dec-06Cancun

Saturday, 23-Dec-06Cancun - Chichen Itza

Sunday, 24-Dec-06Chichen Itza

Monday, 25-Dec-06Chichen Itza - Tulum - Playa del Carmen

Tuesday    26-Dec-06Tulum - Cancun

Wednesday, 27-Dec-06Cancun - Havana - Varadero

Thursday, 28-Dec-06Varadero

Friday, 29-Dec-06Varadero

Saturday, 30-Dec-06Varadero - Matanzas - Havana

Sunday, 31-Dec-06Havana New Year Party

Monday, 01-Jan-07Havana New Year Party

Tuesday, 02-Jan-07Havana New Year Party

Wednesday, 03-Jan-07Santa Clara

Thursday, 04-Jan-07Santa Clara - Trinidad

Friday, 05-Jan-07Trinidad

Saturday, 06-Jan-07Trinidad - Cienfuegos

Sunday, 07-Jan-07Trinidad

Monday, 08-Jan-07Trinidad - Havana

Tuesday, 09-Jan-07    Havana - Mexico City - Los Angeles - San Diego

Wednesday, 10-Jan-07San Diego

Thursday, 11-Jan-07San Diego

Friday, 12-Jan-07San Diego - Los Angeles

Sunday,    14-Jan-07Los Angeles - Guam - Manila - Singapore

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-Do we speak Latin American Spanish? Si, un poco. -How much stuff do we carry? Just enough for ten 3-day cycles and we assume to do wash often. I will bring one Osprey Waypoint 60 liter backpack and so will Yodhi. Rani will bring a 50 liter backpack plus a laptop bag. Noe will mostly be hanging out from our Babybjörn.

Time for bed now. I must wake up tomorrow at 6:00am bright and early.