The town of Valladolid did not impress us much although others seem to like it. We found it lacking in good food and sadly, we ate Dominoes Pizza in our hotel TWO nights in a row (gasp). But it’s a great jumping off place for ruins.
First was Ek Balam. You can still climb up the long stairs with this one (Chichen Itza has stopped that) so many enjoy this. Jake and Charlotte went up and it was a haul. This was surprisingly the most expensive ruin we went to however still only a few dollars per person. It was nice and empty comparatively even in the afternoon.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ek%27_Balam
The other major site near there of course is Chichen Itza, which is one of the new Seven Wonders of the World. It is a big area of ruins and there are loads of vendors who set up around the entire complex selling all kinds of handicrafts and gems to take home! Somewhat negates the beauty of the place but it’s just what it is. We went really early and the vendors were just arriving too so we had about an hour before crowds started to come in (thank goodness we did).
It was enjoyable and neat to see but I can’t say it was our favorite ruin of them all.
The houses and some streets in Valladolid are pretty. We love the colors of houses here in Mexico. Everywhere you look there are bright colors and flowers and music.
There is also a great cenote there. Cenotes are basically sinkholes (a scary term when you own property in Florida) filled with usually clear water. Some are fully open and others completely enclosed. Lots of people like the cave ones underground with stalactites etc. but we prefer the half open ones as less daunting. The water is cold but clear and there are fish that nibble!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cenote
One last picture of the church in the town square. Pretty in the rain at night.
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