Sept 1 – Do you remember when we were in Valladolid and tried unsuccessfully to swim in a cenote? Well, today we will get another chance! Although there are no cenotes in Izamal, our hotel host Monty arranged a taxi that will take us to a cenote about a half hour away.
Cenote Chihuan, in the town of Holcá, is on private land and is said to be the only totally subterranean cenote. Our taxi pulled up to the gate and it was… closed. Not again! The taxi driver banged on the gate and shouted, but no bananas. Our driver got back in the cab and started searching on his phone for an alternate cenote, when the proprietor opened the gate. Success!
We were given flotation vests and shown the stairs downHow far back do the waters go?Jim brought his phone right into the water, which was cool, but not cold. Very refreshing!We swam into absolute darkness, but kept an eye on the lighted entranceThe water was crystal clear and reflective, so we couldn’t tell if we were seeing stalagmites below, or reflections of the stalactites above.A magical place, and we had it all to ourselves!Returning to town, we asked to be let off at the Convento de Antonio de Padua, which is the centerpiece of Izamal. It is very yellow.Buggies lined up to take tourists on a tourI like a horse who can rock a saucy sombrero A young beauty having her Quinceañera momentInside the church, there is a retablo at the altar featuring Our Lady of IzamalThe rose windowThis statue, affectionately called Mama Linda (beautiful Mother) is dressed every month in different raimentHere are some of Mama Linda’s other outfitsPeople leave prayers and requests hereThere is a Pope John Paul II museum here – his visit in 1993 was the biggest event to ever happen in this townWhen’s the last time you saw a habited nun? We saw several – I don’t envy them their outfits in this heat!We wanted to go to the folk art shop, but it was locked up tight. We met an artisan, and he showed us one of the pieces he’s working onAs the sun went down, a thousand great-tailed grackles screamed and swooped for their last insect meal of the day. So noisy! A wonderful end to our visit to Izamal.
Taking Our Time 