Waterfalls and the Maya-City
A day later than planed and at an unchristian time at 4 in the morning, my tour to Palenque finally started. Together with a bunch of Mexican pensioners and a couple from Denmark, we started the trip to the jungle. Our first stop was the Agua Azul waterfalls in Rio Xumul-Ha, which means “river of the blue water“.
A few pictures of the waterfalls and a walk along the river later, we sat in the van again to the next waterfalls. This time we went to Misol-Ha. The “streaming water“ was about 30 meters high and really impressive. Bravely I plunged into the water. 😉
After all we reached Palenque or more precisely the ancient Maya place close to the city. It is in the middle of the Mexican jungle and was one of the most important cities back in the Maya time. In sheer unbearable tropical heat, I climbed the pyramids and temples back and forth. One sweating followed the other. After about two hours, when the tour was over, I had to find a place to stay. I didn’t book something in advance, because I wouldn’t stay in Palenque city center, as all the recommendations of other travelers said, there is nothing to do and see.
El Panchan – Leben im Dschungel
So I asked the driver of my tour to drop me out at the hotel/hostel complex “El Panchan“, which is right next to the Maya city. A pretty surreal world. Well, it is largely foreclosed to the rest, because it is in the middle of the jungle. No internet, TV or other luxury of the zivilicated world. Therefore you get a private room for about 5,50€, or better to say a shack with a double bed, a charging spot (at least electricity) and a fan. The shack is covered with thatched roof and has no windows at all. Only mosquito nets are attached around the shack. A Spartan facility, but you get an unforgettable experience: Living in the middle of the jungle, with monkeys on the trees and a tiny river right next to your “balcony“.
So I stayed one night in “The Jungle Palce“. After I arrived I took a little nap by the sound of the streaming water and the singing birds. Then I met a group of Australians, I already knew from San Cristobal, in the restaurant right next to the rooms. They told me enthusiastically about their tour through the jungle a day before (mushroom experience included) and seriously recommended me to do the same. I didn’t want to do that, because I had to get my night bus to Merida the next day. Instead of taking mushrooms I booked a tour for Tuesday morning to a autonomic Mexican community, which is living in the jungle. The walk through the jungle labyrinth along the waterfalls was just amazing. The highlight was the swim in this amazing setting. We dived in caves, jumped from cliffs and turned plastic bottles into sledges to slide down the waterfall.
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