Trip to Celestun

We made another day trip yesterday to Celestun on the gulf side of  the Yucatan Peninsula where we saw over 1,200 flamingos (maybe more, we didn't actually count them, but an estimate by guides who are there all the time). As many as 10,000 migrate here in late fall and early winter. The biggest threat to the flamingos are jaguars. We didn't see any jaguars, but it was cool knowing they are there.

These birds are incredibly beautiful in flight

Such graceful necks

Spoonbills on the right

Brown Pelicans migrate here from the US and Canada. Their heads have a yellow tint during winter months. We also saw many white pelicans and a group of roseate spoonbills.

White Heron

Our boat driver made us feel as though we were in a James Bond movie as he sped across the water, abruptly turning into an almost invisible entrance into the mangroves.   We saw several beautiful birds here.

The small brown object on the roots of the tree is a nest of termites.  Some of the nests were several times this big!

A Tiger Heron, extremely well camouflaged

Hot springs bubbling up into the mangroves

Typical Maya House

 Almost everyone rides bicycles in the small Maya towns we traveled through--even the taxis are tricycles, some with motors and many without. 30% of the population of Yucatan state are pure Mayans and still speak the Mayan dialect.

Beautiful Flowering Tree

The Maya people have very little, yet they seem unaware of it as they seem happy and contented with their way of life.  They seek what we all seek:  love, shelter, food and the ability to rear our children in safety.  They find happiness with little of the abundance we think we need.