Cozumel

A well to do American friend of ours arranged for my mother, brother and I to spend spring   break in Cozumel. I was delighted, to catch a glimpse of tropical Mexico, and also have a chance to visit some very famous Mayan ruins, what a treat. We ended up staying at a very classy resort, and the best thing about it, other than the delicious food, was the outdoor covered breakfast room, with access to the gorgeous private beach. Th most vivid exotic memory I have from the hotel is waiting for the elevator in the upper level corridor, outside our room, and see above the tropical forest canopy, as the corridors were windowless to give a better view and feel of the environment, a gorgeous brightly colored macaw silently swoop over the dense foliage to disappear from view slowly into the seemingly endless jungle. It is a visual memory that is seared into my mind. The visit to the Mayan ruins of Chitzen Itza were memorable because of the long bus ride required to reach the site through dense forest, and that was after taking a boat ride on very choppy waters to get to the main land ,as Cozumel is an island. The boat ride holds a memory of magical quality for me. As we were trying to hang on to our stomachs because of the lethal combination of heat and choppy waters, early in the morning, I saw a flying fish, and then another,and another. It seemed surreal to me,even though I knew of course that such things existed, it was really astounding to actually see them with my own eyes, and not in a National Geographic magazine photograph. For a brief moment, I felt like a child in a fairy tale. The long bus ride was merciful, as the heat was quite tolerable because we were mostly in the shade of huge trees. The ruins of Chitzen Itza were wondrous, it really felt like stepping into a completely different and sacred world from the past. El Cenote Sagrado, the sacred religious deep cave pond where ritual human sacrifices were made, was a very quiet place, and very spiritual, in spite of the horrific memories it must hold for all the victims of the practice. It was a place surrounded by deep mystery, a very alien place, emotionally and culturally, but I liked it, found it very intriguing. On the surface, Cozumel was just a very pleasant resort town with wonderful beaches and great tourist accommodations, but the visit to the Mayan ruins added a different dimension, a different perspective, of a world that was there before the aggression of the West  decimated a beautiful and peaceful civilization. There was a kindness and openness in the local Mayan population I found very disarming and pleasant, and I was really glad how willing they were to put up with my at the time poor Spanish, as I had only had 3 years of it in college. I understood quite a bit by then, but was still working on my fluency. I received nothing but respect and kindness for my attempts at communication. It was a very encouraging experience, and I still remember the very kind, patient smiles from these gentle people.