{"id":4162,"date":"2025-02-10T13:46:31","date_gmt":"2025-02-10T21:46:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/?p=4162"},"modified":"2025-03-03T09:45:40","modified_gmt":"2025-03-03T17:45:40","slug":"merida-and-the-yucatan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/2025\/02\/10\/merida-and-the-yucatan","title":{"rendered":"Merida, Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A weekend trip to get warm, eat good food, and ride the rails of the Yucatan<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

We’ve been to Mexico a few<\/a> times<\/a> before<\/a>, but I was interested in the development of a new train route and wanted to swim in a cenote. We were able to do both in one weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We flew from Boston to Cancun on a Thursday morning, departing a foot of snow and landing in 80F. The immigration line took longer than expected, so our connection to the TrenMaya<\/a> was tight. It was well signed until we got outside and were confused by taxi drivers in the parking lot. There was supposed to be a free shuttle, but it wasn’t clear where or when it picked up. We were given incorrect directions, and ended up having to take a bus instead, which took four hours instead of three, and was much less comfortable than the train. But arriving at our gorgeous hotel<\/a> and getting a good meal<\/a> put me in better spirits. The mezcal helped too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next morning we had an early tour to Uxmal. The guide from EcoExpeditions Mexico<\/a> was knowledgeable, but we’ve been to Tikal<\/a> and Lamanai<\/a> and so I would have liked a little more historical context. Still, the preserved tile work and arches were amazing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\n\"Uxmal<\/a>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\"Uxmal<\/a>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

After a hot morning in the sun, we drove to a cenote with incredibly clear blue water and a long staircase down. Of course, I had to jump as well. 12 meters felt taller than it looked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\n\"Swimming<\/a>\n<\/div>
Swimming in the Cenote<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/a>
Staircase down<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After an excellent lunch in a family backyard, we went back to town for a nap and to prepare for dinner. I’d booked a spot at Kuuk<\/a>, which is a spot renowned for their updated take on Yucatecan classics in a historic mansion. The gorgeous setting, food and cocktails did not disappoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After another day enjoying the city, shopping and eating our way around town, we took the train back towards Cancun. I was glad we were able to enjoy the ride one way, and have the experience that prompted me to plan the trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We spent a night in Puerto Morelos, which is a cute beach town that feels a bit removed from the hotel zone of Cancun. Still, it’s clearly a tourist destination, and next time I think we will go directly to Merida and avoid the long transfer. Maybe one day the train will connect to Mexico City!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\"Puerto<\/a>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A weekend trip to get warm, eat good food, and ride the rails of the Yucatan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[42],"class_list":["post-4162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel","tag-mexico"],"geo":{"latitude":20.944355,"longitude":-89.6461716,"description":"Obrera, Yucat\u00e1n, 97260, MX"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4162"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4162\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4178,"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4162\/revisions\/4178"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.levinger.net\/josh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}