Floods, Cenotes and Marilyn

The aftermath of the dreadful floods in Tabasco continue to make the news. Every town has massive collection centres for food, clothing and water. Its difficult to imaging what it is like when a whole state is flooded. Tabasco is bordered and criss-crossed by tropical rivers that flooded when the tail end of a hurricane hit them.


On the Caribbean side of the peninsular there are no rivers at all. Water comes from underground lakes called cenotes. You can swim in some. It is a weird experience swimming in a cave under stalactites and looking down on stalagmites ( or the other way round)


Entrance to a cenote

We had a Marilyn "I've had enough' moment". She was very nervous about snorkeling underground and after 30 minutes was cold and had had enough. She was standing on a rock shivering, with me trying to persuade that it was best to carry on, when she wailed ''a fish just bit me''. It was true a shoal of fish were nipping at our legs

Sky reflecting on an open cenote

We caught a shared taxi on the way back and a couple of Americans actually tried to con us. It went like this

Americans - ''You guys are the best, you would do us a big favour if you could change 500 note"
This was a strange request because we have never had any problem getting change, 500 pesos is about $50
Marilyn ''yes we can''
Me - ''No, sorry I only have one 100''
Marilyn - ''But you have you've got all those 50s''
Americans - ''It would really be a help even if you could just change a 200''
I get out my own 200 note to check its security features so I can test the one the guy is about to give me
The American sees me do this and suddenly says '' On second thoughts I think we are OK''

We are staying in Tulum a small town close to the most stunning Caribbean coast line imaginable. The beach itself it lined with thatched cabanas and bars which blend in with the jungle landscape. Word in town is that this is all going to change and there are plans to build a chain of enormous all inclusive resorts. One of these is already staked out over a mangrove swamp!. All this in an area that suffers from hurricanes. What a small hurricane can do

Nearby there is one of the biggest reserves in America, over a million acres. It protects mangroves and fresh water lagoons amongst several other environments. We spent a great day there and swam in a canal created by the Mayas. We got out the boat and let the current take us through the mangroves