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So I arrived in El Panchan yesterday- Tuesday 25th March. From San Cristobal, me and Kaisa took a tour that took us to the waterfalls of Agua Azul and Misol Ha and then the Palenque ruins. Instead of then returning to San Cristobal we were dropped off at El Panchan, a quirky little place where travellers hang out on the road to the ruins.
The tour was good but tough going. When the day started the weather looked awful, really foggy and that misty rain was persisting. Me and Kasia had heard two days worth of bad stories of this tour, bad tour guide and bad weather, but thankfully we were lucky and had a nice driver and by the time we got to Agua Azul, great weather. The sun had come back out again. The waterfalls were gorgeous, although the rain had discoloured the water so it wasn't its usual bright blue. We had an hour and 20 minutes here, then we moved on to Misol Ha, much smaller, and a straight drop rather than the gradual drops of Agua Azul. We had 25 minutes here, and unfortunately although I'd come prepared, we didn't have time to swim. That was the down side of being on a tour, but I knew that with my trips time limitations this tour was the best option and meant I got to see far more than I would have on my own. Back on the bus again I was feeling pretty nauseous, it was a small collectivo packed to capacity- 12 of us plus the driver, and was hot and stuffy. I didn't envy the others having to make the 4-5 hour trip back that evening.
Then it was Palenque. People always talk about the jungle setting here, and so i'd expected it to be really overgrown and fairly inaccessible. It wasn't at all. There were large grassy areas and paths, lots of tourists and lots of vendors. I wasn't as blown away as I'd thought I'd be, although it was still very interesting. I think Teotihuacan was my favourite so far. We only had just under 2 hours so a group of us made a beeline for the biggest building so we could climb it and check out the views. We had a nice group and it was fun. My lonely planet was our guide.
At El Panchan, me and Kasia got a room in our second choice (the first, very popular place was full) and after much needed showers went for dinner. El Panchan is a random little place, there really is nothing there apart from accomodation and restaurants, and its all linked by dirt tracks through the jungle. We were both very grateful to my torch for guiding us.
Today- Wednesday- is a bit of an odd day. I had to get up before 3am to call Vodafone so that they wouldn't cut my mobile off. They are confused by my extended stay abroad and are checking that my phone hasn't been stolen so sent me a text saying i had to call them before 10am UK time. That translates to the middle of the night for me, and led to the amusing scenario of me heading out of the room (where there was no signal) and walking around in my pyjamas and flip flops with my torch and mobile until I found a signal, which was only about 200 yards from the door to the room it turned out. Only took 5 minutes to sort it out but what a hassle! Anyway, couldn't sleep after that but listened to somebodys music through the wall, cheesy stuff like Tina Turner. We were in one of a cluster of rooms under a large, shared thatched roof; the walls didn't go all the way to the roof and there were mosquito net ceilings. It meant you could hear everything. Kasia left early to join a tour and I allowed myself a lie in since I didn't need to check out until 11am. Then me and my backpack caught a collectivo to Palenque town where I discovered I can't get a bus to Merida until 9pm. Now, thankfully it is 7.38pm, although my computer confusingly says 8.38pm, so my wait is almost over. The journey is around 8-9 hours so i'll arrive in Merida early tomorrow morning. So for now I'm going to sign off, Sarah xxxxxx
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