17/12/2022 From La Paz, Bolivia to Cancun, Mexico
Travelling can be exhausting
Today was going to be a looong travel day – the longest one yet.
We got up at 3 a.m. to take the taxi to the airport at 3.30 a.m.. You know it’s early when you arrive at the airport even before the airport staff.
Our first flight to Santa Cruz, Bolivia took less than an hour and went really great. In Santa Cruz we had a six-hour-layover, which flew by so quickly that we had to run to our gate in the end. (How is that even possible?!) The five-hour-flight to Panama City also went smoothly without any big turbulences. By the time we got to Panama City it was evening and we were both pretty tired. After waiting here for another four hours, it was time for the last leg of the trip.
Where are we going to sleep?
When we arrived in Cancun in Mexico, it was past midnight and we still hadn’t heard from our hotel about the code for the key box in order to get in. They neither answered our texts nor our emails or calls and we didn’t want to risk taking a $70 cab to the place when we didn’t know if we’d get in. At this point I could hardly function because I was so tired.
In that moment a Spanish guy asked us if we wanted to share a taxi with him to Tulum. Technically, that was our final destination. We just didn’t think we’d get there in the same night without the buses running. We spontaneously decided to go with him, drove two hours by taxi (I slept for most of it), but still didn’t have an accommodation booked in Tulum. We showed up at a hostel, called “The Free Hostel”, close to the drop-off point from the taxi and luckily found a worker who would let us in. We were beyond happiness when we lay in bed at 4 a.m. after having traveled for 25 hours that day.
18/12/2022 Tulum
What to expect
Tulum
So grateful to be here
This might have been one of the most comfortable beds I’ve ever slept in. The exhaustion from the previous night might have played a role as well…
In the morning Blake went to a restaurant to watch the World Cup final, while I relaxed by our pool being grateful for having found this hostel at night and for the warm weather!
Being flashpackers again
In the afternoon we took a collectivo into town, had “breakfast” at “Raw Love Café” and checked into our actual hotel for the next three nights.
Our hotel “Lagoon Boutique” was incredible! Normally it would have cost almost 500€ for the three nights, but with the “Genius” membership from booking, my booking wallet account and a special “end of the year”-deal we got it for 16€ p.p. per night!
Quite the big deal for backpackers like us 😉. The hotel had a pool right next to our veranda and another one on the rooftop.
Still not in the Christmas mood
In the evening we went out for dinner at “Burrito Amor” and had a cocktail at another bar. We also soaked up the “Christmas spirit” by looking at different Christmas decorations, which felt a little bit weird when it’s +25°C outside.
19/12/2022 Tulum
Waking up in a nice hotel just hits differently. It really does feel like a holiday within a (very long) holiday!
Rent a bicycle
Today we rented some bicycles and rode to the beach. We had tasty smoothie bowls (again it was already lunch time) at “Raw Love Café”, but this time in the location at the beach.
Do NOT take a photo with the Tulum sculpture
We also wanted to take a photo with the famous Tulum statue. But charging $5 for a single photo was even too much for wannabe-bloggers like us. So I sneaked behind the bushes and took a photo of just the statue (and cut off the people underneath it).
Relax at the beach
We had a wonderful day at the beach, which went over way too quickly!
Eat (lots of) street tacos
Of course you can’t go to Mexico without eating street tacos. So we did – lots of times. We were definitely in taco-heaven!
20/12/2022 Tulum
How are we always late?
Another day in paradise! Our time management is always a bit funny. The plan was to get up extra early today to have as much time at the beach as possible. Well “as early as possible” turned into 3 p.m. – again! In between getting ready, swapping the bikes with a scooter, having breakfast smoothie bowls at “Matcha Mama”, getting street tacos for the beach and buying a bus ticket for the next day, the time just slipped away on us.
Rent a scooter
We love renting scooters in warm countries and exploring the area on our own. Well, this time it was less exploring and more getting to the beach more quickly than by bike. It was still so much fun riding the scooter!
Watch sunset at the beach
After having another great day at the beach until sunset, we cruised back into town for some food and drinks.
Go bar-hopping
Tulum is a mekka for tourists and digital nomads and most of the bars are full of internationals. We shared a big pod of nachos with guacamole in one bar. Moreover, we listened to live music and enjoyed cocktails in another bar. It was a great end to our short vacation in Mexico!
21/12/2022 From Mexico to Canada
And then our little holiday was already over. After one last smoothie bowl at “Raw Love Café”, it was time to catch the bus to Cancun Airport.
From +30°C to -30°C
We are going to surprise Blake’s family for Christmas in Canada. Unfortunately, our backpacks don’t have the right clothing inside them, as we only packed for summer. Looks like we have to spend a lot of time indoors in the next 14 days. I don’t know how else we will survive -30°C otherwise…
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