innameonly

Stayed at an "all-inclusive" resort-which meant, basically, food and booze were paid for up front, and the drinks were really kind of weak and not all that good. But they sure were plentiful.

Got to see Tulum, an ancient Mayan temple city, which was awesome. I'm always interested in ancient Mesoamerican history, because people have survived in extreme environments for a long time. And well, the Mayans, Aztecs, Incans, and Olmecs all had very, very interesting cultures. Before us white folk destroyed 'em, that is (although, my ancestors being relatively recent immigrants to the New World, we're not all that complicit in the cultural ruin).

Playa del Carmen is an interesting town, although people kept remarking about how it's been built up and expanded just within the past few years. I did have traditional Mayan food-fish and pork, and it was delicious. I even got a cookbook, and will be attempting to adapt some recipes for the vegetarians that I know. I'll see what I can do (maybe substitute eggplant for pork? Or something else? Any suggestions are appreciated)

Went snorkeling at Xel-Ha, which was also very pretty, if a little touristy. Kind of like an underwater Disneyland. I wanted to go snorkel in some cenotes (caves created by geological activity, with plenty of light and fish-they connect back to the ocean), but the rest of the crowd was against me on that one. In the end, however, I did wind up picking up 2 simultaneous ear infections (middle ear and eardrum) in BOTH ears.

I spent about 6 hours at the ER dealing with that 2 days after I got back (I don't have a primary care physician). I'm also now convinced that virtually every other country in the world has a more advanced and better all-around health care system than the US.