working on my yucatán

It seems as if I just got back to Villa Obregón, but I am about to head out of town.  Just for a few days.  This time.

My destination is Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula -- on a 6-day bus tour.

Well, not entirely a bus tour.  We will fly to and from the peninsula out of the Guadalajara airport.  But getting from Melaque to the peninsula will be the equivalent of driving from Seattle to Denver.  Or about the distance from Paris to Moscow -- for those of you with Napoleonic urges.

The Yucatán Peninsula has fascinated me since the 1960s when our local television reviewer, Francis Murphy, would report on his vacations uncovering new Maya cities.  It filled that little niche in my head that wanted to be the next Frederick Catherwood.
You may recall that I spent a week in 2010 in that part of Mexico -- for a Latin American Bloggers' Conference.  I swore I would return.  And I will.  Next week.

So, here is my basic schedule:

On 17 and 18 February, I will be in Mérida (my kind of town) along with a visit to one of the grandest Maya ruins -- Uxmal (looking into chac's eyes).

On 19 February, we move on to Valladolid and the greatly over-rated Maya ruins at Chichén Itzá (it's not chicken pizza!).  I may elect to do something else rather than spend another day at what I found to be one of The Greatest Yawns of the World.

On 20 February, we spend the day at Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, and 21 February at Tulum.  Tulum is the real reason for taking this trip.  Unlike most of the other Maya cities, Tulum was a functioning city when the Spanish arrived.  It should make for some great blog material.

Then, on 22 February, we will spend the day traveling -- flying out of Babylon on the Caribbean: Cancún.

You and I have already had some conversations about Mérida, Uxmal, and Chichén Itzá.  But I am certain that the well could stand a few more bucket dippings before it runs dry.  And who knows what Tulum holds in store for us?

My departure is still a week away.  And there are Melaque tales to tell in the interim.  But I thought you might like to know where we are all headed -- for those of you who like to plan.

For those of us, like me, who could not care less about plans, we will meet the rest of you on the bus on Monday.  Until then, there is a life to lead here on the broiling beach.