Map of World - Click a place Brad's been

March 2018 - Tulum; Highly Anticipated...but...

Arrived in the highly recommended Tulum to find the usual type of beach town, except this one is 4 km from the beach, weird.  Good accommodation options, food, bars, live music and bike riding to the beach where you will find more bikini bottoms then tops.

Lots of videos this month to capture the sounds and action in and around Tulum.

Recommended: Tubo Tulum, Batey bar, Crisspac Taqueria, Las Palmas Beach.
Not Recommended: Pocna service at their resto on the beach, Milagrito for food poisoning.

From Playa del Carmen we took a 40 minute colectivo (mini van) to Villas Tulum just at the North end of town once you pass the entrance to the Ruins.  Took a good seat this time!  Once in front of what we thought was Carmen's Airbnb we waiting an hour or so to find out we were not in front of Carmen's place.  GPS and Google maps strike again. On top of that either my spanish sucks or the neighbour has no idea who her neighbour is.  "Is your neighbour named Carmen?"  "Si".  Enough said.

Carmen's upstairs apartment.  Pretty sweet deal if you win the coin toss for the room with Air Conditioning. Sorry Sterling.

"It says we're here"


First looks at Tulum by bike...now we're moving!

Bikes come with most apartments as
since the beach is 4 km away.

The busy corner of Calle Centauro Sur

Not a lot of safety on this construction site

Taking a chance on lunch

Reminders of Thailand and fire juggling

A shot of mezcal and a beer at Caribe Swing
for only $3.50 usd.

























































Batey Live Music Venue - The singer of the band is on the left and a girl she brought up from the stage may have been a tourist for all we know.  Unbelievable pipes on both of them.

No dogs dude!


It's 4 km to one of the main public beaches "Las Palmas"

Big bike parking beside Mezzanine Hotel

Boom! This is the spot

Not quite as expected

The water temp is perfect, not too warm. 26 C

This is it, the beach everyone is raving about?  To be fair there are a bunch of hotel/pay beaches to the South which most 1 week tourist stay at.  Expensive restaurants and bars, but I'm sure nice and refined.

Lots of seaweed piled up



Lots of sleepy heads on the beach

Near Playa Pescadores

At Pocna, 2 x 1 happy hour
(only in the high season during the week)

Setting up a clever shot

Quite at sunset

And worth it...


Changed accommodation to Tubo Tulum.  Concrete cylinder you would find in building water drainage systems in city are set up as private beds with air conditioning.

Originally I thought this
might be ok for a night.
But the Mosquitos
changed my mind.

Went to Dos Ojos Cenote (Cenote - Fresh water cave/lagoon type spots) taking a colectivo for 20 minutes to find out it was $35 USD for the same type of experience I had near Playa del Carmen and you had to pay a transport fee to go another 2 km in.  Luckily they had two other options and more lagoon like, yes!  I was quite happy with my choice and enjoyed 5 hours chilling there for $6 USD.  

Still very much dislike paying to be in nature :(

Nicte-Ha Cenote was just magic and all to myself for the first hour.

Nice entry



Wow



Entrance to a network of caves you can
SCUBA dive through

Lily pads

When in a quiet paradise why wouldn't you ...Cannon Ball

Even washrooms


When in Mexico do as the Mexicans.

Hitchhiking back to Hwy



Good fish plate at "El Captain"

Signs your in a tourist place


All good buddy, looks safe to me

Fried seafood empanadas at Maille 59

Romantic ghosts

Batey bar sugar cane press in spanish
"Batey"

"Oh no, I see a big night coming..."

Argies, Mexies and me.
"El Clandestino" apparently the cheapest
Beach bar at $90 USD/ bottle of wine!

After getting the car out of the beach
impound we made it back to Tubo

Pocna has affordable lunches,
but unfortunately horrible service.

More live music at Batey

Centauro Sur Street


Switched to Centauro Apartments while I waited for my monthly rental to be available in April after the Easter accommodation nightmare.  Good spot, like Melrose Place as all the apartments are studios around a sitting pool area.  Could be more welcoming with more furnishing and amenities. Colleen wino was very entertaining.

Not bad for 3 days. 
8 was a lot.
Perfect location!



Other Stuff

Sick Drummer

Another foos table
with those weird handles


Colourful Mexico

Perfect irony.  A Vegan restaurant surrounded
by an Electric Fence! CocoAmor
  
If you want food poisoning and bad service

Cha-Ching!

If the latch is broke...then use a bike lock
  
Something tells me this is a retro-fit

People with bats who like to swing them
should not go in this shop

Great stacking