We were all up by 6:30 with Eric fine and hungry. We ate corn flakes and PBBBs for breakfast as Missy read and Curt and Eric played cowboys and Indians (Josey Wales meets Geronimo). A short (6 miles) drive away we arrived at the water park of Xel-Há just as it opened (we were first in line). This park is less ballyhooed than Xcaret–tours from Cancún combine Xel-Há with the Tulum ruins on a two hour bus ride each way–but it is more reasonably priced ($39 for the three of us) and we thoroughly enjoyed it (staying until it closed).

We grabbed a mango popsicle as we lotioned up and made the long, scenic walk through the jungle to the lazy river ride (shuttle buses weren't yet running). The river ride on inner tubes starts in a narrow stream whose banks are lined with mangrove trees. There is little current so you must paddle all the way. As the stream widens, the lushness of the revealed scenery is captivating. Missy paddled over to a rock faced cliff with cutout hand/foot holds. She scaled it a short distance then jumped off. She then scaled to the top of the cliff (some twenty-five feet) but, in accord with Eric and Curt's wishes and her own good sense, descended back to water level over a bridge and path.

The possibility of climbing and jumping unsupervised from a 25' rock cliff exemplified a difference in attitudes between the US and other less-litigous countries. In Mexico (and in European countries we've visited), people have the opportunity to do somewhat dangerous things while taking responsibility for any outcomes. During this vacation, we had the opportunity to climb and jump from high rock faces, snorkel in and around underwater caves, swim in deep waters without life jackets, ascend the slippery, steep steps of ancient Maya pyramids, and take other varied "chances" all without supervision. Compare that to, say, water parks in the US and the number and proximity of lifeguards in them. If you heard of someone getting severely injured or killed at some US tourist site, one of your first thoughts would likely be, "boy, is Disney (or whoever) going to get sued over that." Shoot, in the US McDonald's lost a multi-million dollar lawsuit for serving coffee that was too hot. Clearly lawsuits are not on the minds of the people in other countries who set up situations in which you can take more substantial risks. (Though the risks are small, multiply them by the millions of people of all ages and abilities who pass through these tourist sites over the years and you are almost guaranteed to have accidents occurring.)

We occasionally crawled off our inner tubes to snorkel in the cool, clear, fishy waters as we slowly made our way to "snorkel heaven." This inlet, especially along its rocky borders, had large schools of fish. We had to dive down five to ten feet to be in their midst.

There is a small, floating trampoline in the inlet. When we got to it, we had it to ourselves. After we took turns bouncing, Missy and Eric did dives off it (Curt slowly lowered himself into the water) then we swam to shore for lunch. Our lunch consisted of beans, rice, french fries, guacamole, and tortilla chips (all these were a relative staple for us) and was so large we couldn't eat it all. Many of our vacation meals included or consisted of beans and rice. The rice was always white rice and didn't vary much in taste or texture. The beans, however, came in assorted colors, textures, and tastes; all of them pleasant some delicious to our palates. A "beans and rice" meal may sound plain or unappetizing, but to us it was Mexican manna.

We very briefly peeked into a "Mexican village" which just seemed to contain stores then watched a group of people who had paid $60 to swim with the dolphins (though at this point of their 45 minute session, they were being taught dolphin hand signals and were posing for photos).

We continued our walk through the jungle eating lime ice pops to the Xel-Há beach. The beach was disappointing. The shoreline was rather rocky and not a good place to play. The few others who had come to the beach were sunbathing. Heading back towards the lagoon along the shoreline on a cement path embedded with coral we passed a pleasure boat from Florida that shipwrecked here in December 1995 (it was probably on a three hour tour) and a "lighthouse" (it looked like an oil rig with a light on top). At the sea end of the inlet is a floating bridge, not recommended for people under eight or over sixty-five, adults who easily get dizzy, etc.. On calm days like this one, it is difficult to imaging anyone falling off it even though there are no handrails. If you fall it's not a big deal as the water is three feet below you. As we crossed the bridge we noticed schools of rather large fish and some fish that probably weighed over a hundred pounds (they were four or five feet long). We hurriedly crossed the bridge and Eric and Missy got into the water as Curt filmed them. The fish swimming in schools were among the largest we snorkeled with up until that point–they were about two feet long. Ahh, but those monster fish. Eric swam with fish that were bigger than him. They seemed to want to be left alone under the shade of the floating bridge. Sitting there with their mouths open, baring plenty of large, sharp teeth, it seemed smart to respect their space. Curt took his turn in the water before we moved on to explore other parts of the park.

A short distance away from the far side of the floating bridge is a half submerged cave, revered as a sacred place by the Maya in ancient times. We took turns swimming into the cave but didn't see the ancient statue we expected to find there. The water in the cave is waist to chest deep and lit by a sinkhole in the ceiling. If there was a statue still there we'd have thought we'd have seen it. At the cave's entrance we chatted briefly with two American couples honeymooning in Mexico. They and a third couple had sat at the table next to ours during lunch. They told us that the third honeymooning couple was now at the hospital. The guy had jumped into shallow water and severely twisted his ankle.

Emerging from the cave, we headed towards two cenotes in which we expected to swim. The sunny day had turned overcast and rains came for five minutes before the sun was out again. The cenotes had clear fresh water and plenty of fish in them, but they seemed very shallow and rocky–not especially good for swimming or snorkeling. No one was swimming in them. One of the cenotes had a swing rope dangling over it. We took turns swinging on it. The rope hung rather close to a rock wall and a good push off could easily cause one to slam into the wall (Missy proved that; protecting herself in the collision by crashing feet first).

The walk back towards the heart of the park was long, steamy, and buggy but oh so beautifully scenic. It is a walk through a jungle, passing by clear water cenotes, the lazy river, wildlife (we saw ducks, iguanas and other lizards, crabs, and a two foot high rodent that looked like a small capybara), and Maya ruins.

Back at the lagoon, we debated about going for one last snorkel. Missy and Eric were done for the day but Curt was on the fence, wanting perhaps what would be his last fish-filled snorkeling experience of the vacation. (Starting tomorrow, we would be heading inland for most of the rest of our vacation.) As the park was only a few minutes away from closing, none of us went back into the water. Missy shopped while Eric and Curt had one last popsicle.

Before returning to our hotel we picked up some bananas and tortillas for a PBBB dinner in our room. We showered then Eric slipped on the wet, hard floor banging his head and cutting his butt–probably on a small piece of broken glass Curt had failed to pick up the previous night. After relaxing in hammocks, we were in bed by 9:00.
 

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