by Candice Carboo-Ofulue, Travel Writer Sombreros and tequila may be what first comes to mind when we think of Mexico, but it’s the colorful colonial cities which are the foundation of contemporary Mexican culture and in the highland hub of San Cristóbal de las Casas, you’ll find its beating heart. Located in the southwestern state […]
Places To Visit In Cuernavaca
Places to go! Robert Brady Museum The Robert Brady Museum shows the collection of the artist, antiquarian, and decorator from Fort Dodge, Iowa. Ceramics, antique furniture, sculptures, paintings, and tapestries fill the restored colonial mansion, all beautifully arranged in rooms painted with bright colors. Note that the building numbers on this street are out of […]
Follow That Burro!
by Layna Segall de Velez, Feature Writer When you drive through Xico Viejo, Veracruz, a small town 25 miles from Xalapa, you would swear you had stepped back in time and into an “John Wayne western. The narrow streets are tough to navigate with horses and burros tied to hitching posts along both sides. The trucks you see […]
Uxmal and Chocolate
By Ron Burdine We got a late start from Tulum for our getaway weekend to Uxmal. The estimated drive time was about 4.5 hours and we were making good time as we passed through Valladolid. As we started out of Valladolid, the sun had just set on an unseasonably cool day at the end of […]
Palenque
The ancient city of Palenque (pa-lenn-KAY) is like no place on earth. Clutching the foothills of the Sierra Madre de Chiapas, where the sultry tropical air gently reverberates sounds of the jungle like a slow-beating ceremonial drum, Palenque’s elegant structures have allured visitors from across the ages. One such figure was Count Jean-Frédérick Waldeck, an […]
Places To Visit In Yucatan
Cenotes In the Yucatan, there are over 2,400 cenotes that have actually been studied and registered. Here are some of the most popular: Ik-Kil – Located less than 2 miles from Chichén Itzá. Called the “Sacred Blue Cenote,” it is a perfectly round well-type cenote with magnificent hanging vines and waterfalls. This is an ideal […]
Places To Visit In Riviera Maya
Places to Go! Parks Xcaret!! What’s to do at Xcaret? Underground Rivers, Beach, Lagoon & pools, Tropical Jungle Trail, Main Plaza, Stained-glass Plaza, House of Whispers Rotating Scenic Tower, Butterfly Pavilion, Regional Wildlife Breeding Farm, Coral Reef Aquarium, Living Museum of Orchids & Mushroom Farm, Mayan archaeological sites, St. Francis of Assisi Chapel, Hacienda Henequenera, Mexican […]
Coba Ruins
Overgrown with tropical forest, the Coba ruins (pronounced coh-ba), the once great city that for a time, dominated ancient Mayan society in northern Yucatan is almost forgotten. Aside from a gentle stream of explorers flowing through each year the ancient city is one of the few visited ruins that has been left relatively untouched. Some, expecting a […]
Visit Campeche
Breaking the tide of the Gulf of Mexico, Campeche (Com pay CHAY) is one of the oldest colonial cities in Yucatán Peninsula, founded in 1540. In golden years, it thrived as the major port; trading timber, dyewood, silver and gold. An elegant city soon emerged behind the harbour, patterned with baroque style townhouses and ornamental […]
Izamal
Known as the “Yellow City,” Izamal may be the oldest colonial settlement in Yucatán state, located only 45 minutes from the capital, Mérida. It was founded in early 16th century, atop the pre-existing Mayan city of Izamal. As was the strategy of Spanish conquest, temples and buildings were destroyed, and a colonial township constructed from […]