Best Laid Plans

 Robert Burns wrote that the best laid plans often go awry. How right he was.  We are healthy and happy, but quite frustrated.  We were scheduled to leave this morning by ferry but the high winds have canceled all departures for the mainland.  Our flight and two hotel reservations had to be rebooked, at a cost, of course.  Hope to sail tomorrow. That aside, and the fact that our Texell card was devoured by an ATM in Athens, we were totally confused by the Athens metro

, and we mistakenly thought we were victims of credit card fraud, been smooth sailing.   We have had some great experiences.  Fabulous museum in Athens, a great bus tour of the mountains and villages of Naxos, and two beach excursions so it has been great, just more challenging than expected.  

Day in Paris

Today we were able to see the outside of the Notre Dame cathedral. It is open but still under repair. Unfortunately we were not able

I to go inside as getting a ticket takes several days advance notice. It is still fascinating to see how much work has already been completed and how much remains to be completed.  

 

 

 

Patisserie day 2

We were pleased to find a half dozen patisseries in our neighborhood.  We are in chocolate croissant lovers heaven.  

Day 1

 As is often the case, things do not always go as planned.  Our overnight trip was harder on old folks than expected .  At  10:30 pm, just as we had finally fallen asleep, all the cabin lights came on as someone was screaming for a doctor. We never learned exactly the issue but fortunately there was a young doctor on the flight and he was able to hook up an IV and oxygen for the lady. Needless to say, we didn’t get much sleep. Medics were on hand to carry her from the plane when we landed.  We made it to our Airbnb after some confusion on the metro and got some rest before enjoying an excellent meal. We have quickly discovered we packed too much and we are much too old to lug stuff around 😂

 Heading to DFW for our flight to Europe.  Lord willin’ and the creek (or the Atlantic) don’t rise, we should be in Paris at 10:00 am tomorrow.  🙏🙏

Last day!

Wow!  How did six weeks go by so quickly!  But we had one more "must" on our list of things to do--visit a cenote.  So Saturday afternoon we rented bicycles with our new friend Alex and biked about 3.5 km to one of three sites we planned to visit.

San Lorenzo

Some entrance!

This cenote had steps that led down to the water; or if brave enough, one could just jump from a limestone cliff about 40 feet above the water.  We chose the steps, but the water was delightfully cool after the hot bike ride.  We picked a gorgeous day to come here, and the weather was nearly perfect.   

After swimming at this cenote, we decided to call it a day.  We still had 3.5 km to return to the city, and Ann's knee was bothering her, so we parted ways with Alex and cycled back into town.  After a shower and a cold Sol, we felt much better.  We had another wonderful dinner in town and walked home under a full moon. 

Moon over Valladolid

The next morning, we boarded the bus to Cancun and headed back for Texas.

Chichen Itza

Friday we traveled by bus to Chichen Itza to visit the most famous of all the Mayan ruins in Mexico.  Two problems with this site:  too touristy and everything is blocked off.  No one can climb any of the ruins.  We came early as we had been warned about the tourist buses coming from Cancun.  We arrived at 9 a.m. and as we left around 12:30, we counted 10 tour buses in the parking lot! Over a million  visitors a year tour the site. Wayne estimated German and Italian tourists outnumbered American tourists about 3 to 1 the day we were there.

El Castillo or The Temple of Kukulkan 

In front of one of the many ruins at Chichen Itza

Ring at Ball Court

Can you image trying to put a 12 pound rubber ball through this ring 30 feet above the ground without using your hands? And guess what happens to the team that wins? No trophy--they were sacrificed. Some think only the team leader was killed but being sacrificed to the Mayan gods was considered an honor.

The ball court is 225 feet wide and 545 feet long. The acoustics of the building are so fine the sound echos off the walls and a simple hand clap reverberates back to you. One can stand at one end of the court and speak, and the words can be heard at the other end.

That evening we walked downtown to visit a Chocolate Factory.  We tasted several flavors of chocolate, including tequila, and drank a delicious cup of hot chocolate.  

We then went on a Tequila Tour in a 400-year-old building; of course, we tasted several samples here as well.

Our guide shows us how the agave is first roasted and then distilled

Friends enjoy the tour

We finish our wonderful day with a delicious meal at Conata's with our new friends. By the way, we had a chicken dish prepared with a chipotle cream sauce, stuffed zucchini, beer, and chocolate crepes for about $22 for the two of us.  Gourmet on a budget!

Jack (England), Alex (Holland) and Adriana (Minnesota via Venezuela)