Carnaval

It has been an eventful week.

Day Three in Mexico, I woke up with a terrible chest cough, but no other symptoms of illness otherwise. I decided to ignore it, and Chris and I rented a scooter and scooted around Isla Mujeres. It's a small island, so we went around twice. It was an amazing way to spend the day, speeding along the tropical coastline, the calm turquoise waters of the Caribbean on one side in direct contrast to the blue crashing waves from the Gulf of Mexico on the other. We zipped down to the southern tip of the island, where there was a "playground memorial" dedicated to the Mayan Goddess Ixchel (very touristy, not worth the $3 to get in). Instead, we climbed the lighthouse, which gave us an enchanting view of the whole island. Later that day, we snuck onto a private resort on the Caribbean side to try snorkling. However, the water was cloudy and kind of gross, so we left, priding ourselves on not getting duped into paying hundreds more dollars for a "beachfront resort." Our hostel, at less than $25 a night, was right on it's own beach, and only 2 blocks away from the best beach in town!

Day Four, we went back to Cancún to catch a bus to Mérida, a city "4 to 6 hours from Cancún." I put that in quotation marks, because in actuality, the trip took us more than 7 long and painful hours. And that nasty cough from the morning before? It got worse. My chest hurt, my eyes felt like they were going to pop out of my head everytime I coughed (and I coughed...a lot!), and my skin was painful to touch. I'm sure I was a delightful companion for Chris, who was incredibly patient and understanding.

Day Five, Chris MADE me go to the doctor. It hadn't even crossed my mind, having been sick so many times while traveling, I usually just ride it out. However, it's a good thing I went; I had a fever and a bad bronchial infection in my chest that required antibiotics. I spent all of that day in bed. The one time I ventured out on my own, I got disoriented and lost after walking only a few blocks. Chris went out exploring on his own, and had a few adventures himself! Ah, I remember the flustery, blustery feeling of not knowing how to communicate! He did, however, weed out the city, and discovered a few cool things to do.

Day Six, we came across hordes of people lined up in the streets. Thousands upon thousands. As I've mentioned before, some of my greatest experiences while traveling have been had when I just followed a crowd, with no idea of what was going on. This was no exception. We had discovered the biggest Carnaval parade this country offers! HUGE floats paraded by designed by Coca-Cola and Corona, with coloured lights and scantily clad women gyrating their hips. Feathered headpieces with matching feathered dresses danced and twirled. Bands played, men sang, children shook their...bon-bons?? Yeah, that was a little disturbing. But all in the spirit of Carnaval, I guess. Afterwards, the crowds moved to a different area of town, where there were three main stages, all within a few blocks of each other. One was blasting regaeton and featured a dance competition, another had a Mexican cowboy singing his heart out, and the third headlined a salsa band with a complete horn section. It was pretty amazing.

I am on the mend now. It's a little frustrating to be coughing so much, but I feel tons better, thanks to the miracle of antibiotics. Tomorrow we are heading to the Mayan ruins of Palenque, in the south of Mexico. A nine hour bus ride. Can't wait.