I should work on my take-home exam, but...

... have you any idea how much more fun it is to plan a round trip in México? :D

I am dying to share with Sofie, my travel buddy, the itinerary I have prepared, but since I cannot get hold of her, I will share it with you all instead!

So... The idea is that I will take off from Tucson mid-January and travel for almost 2 weeks north of Mexico City before I meet Sofie there on January 27th.

Ruins in Tulum

Then the party starts... :D We will stay around the capital till the 30th, and then fly off to Cancún, on the Yukatán peninsula. Since I am not a big fan of big, touristic cities, we will probably go straight to Tulum, a smaller city on the beach south of Cancún. Here we can find a cabin on the beach to stay in while enjoying a day on the beach, maybe go on a whale-shark-watching trip, and see the famous Maya ruins. Departing from Tulum Feb 2nd we will go to Piste, a town just next to probably the most famous ruin, Chichén Itzá. Arriving in the afternoon will allow us to see a show at night at the ruins, then stay overnight in the town, and go back to the ruins in the morning before the coaches arrive with thousands of tourists around noon.

An afternoon bus from Chichén Itza will take us to Mérida, another old city in Yukatán. Since I have a friend here, I haven't planned our activities yet, but I think we will stay till the 5th. Then we are off with a night bus to Palenque, to see another ruin city - this time in the jungle! Next stop is the city San Cristobal in the Chiapas region, where we can enjoy the atmosphere and take a day trip to a "living" Mayan village outside the city.

Sumidero Canyon

A bus will take us for a short ride to Tuxtla Feb 9th. This is one of the things I am in particular looking forward to: Taking a boat trip from Chiapa de Corzo into a gorgeous canyon, the Sumidero.

I hope we will be able to continue the same day, as that would allow us to spend a day in Puebla, just south of México City. Its an old colonial city, and it will take us 10 hours in a night bus to get there.

This whole quest would bring us back to México City on Feb 11th. We both fly home, though with different carriers, on Sunday 13th, so we would have a little bit of time for shopping and whatever we feel like. :)

It appears to be surprisingly easy to get around in México. The bus system is extensive and all the information about schedules and routes is online. Prices seem very reasonable. Uuh, I am so looking forward to getting started on this trip! And to finally tell Sofie about my plans... :D