The hotel zone
by Maria_75
Zona hotelera or the hotel zone lies about 10 km from the downtown area. The best way to get around is by bus, as distances can be a bit long. This is were most of the hotels and generally most of the life is. It is a long and narrow reef stretched along the mainland. On one side you have the beach facing the caribbean sea and on the other side is the lagoon.
North in the zone is the "party zone" where most of the action is. Here you can find many malls, restaurants, bars and discos.
visit Tulum, 2hrs south of...
by INGUYE
visit Tulum, 2hrs south of Cancun. While in Tulum, you must visit the Castillo ruins at the top of the cliff overlooking the Carribean sea. Try to schedule a massage at Maya Tulum or attend one of their yoga classes. Be sure to carry mosquito spray repellent with you. I was eaten alive by mosquitos and came home with lots of bites marks. Not attractive. My fondest memory in Tulum was visting Piedra Escondida restaurant one evening for drink at the bar. The ambience was hip, almost cafe del marish. The guests were few because of low season and Richard (Kiko), the 33 year old Italian hotel owner taught me how to play backgammon. Later in the evening, his Italian compatriots came over to the restaurant and joined us for dinner, drinks and a few rounds of backgammon.
Since I was a female traveling alone, I made acquaintances with these male Italian expats. (There is quite a large Italian colony in Tulum.) They took me in as a friend and treated me very kindly.
Maya Language
by Lady_Disdain
One of the pillars of Maya identity is the language. Outside Cancún, it is common to hear people speak one of the 19 different maya dialects. It is very and sounds very different from European languages.
Mayas also developed their own form of writting, based of hieroglyphs. This was used not only in the stella and monuments, but also to write sacred books on papers made from tree bark. During the Conquista (the Spanish conquest), however, these books were rounded up and burned, in order to squash the local people. The book burning took place in 1562, which became known as Maní (meaning "There is no more", in Maya). After the Conquista, Spanish monks created a set of rules in order to write Maya using the Latin alphabet, to enable them to teach the locals to read the Bible.
Until recently, most children would learn Spanish in school and a maya dialect at home. There was no official incentive for the indiginous culture. Recently, there was a loss of interest in teaching the children these very old languages.
Fortunately, the importance of preserving this heritage has been recognized. Today, public schools are taught in both languages. You can even find signs in the Latin alphabet version of the language (specially in the archeological sites).
band in lounge
by ladyfisher
We would sit in the lounge after dinner and listen to the band . I was surpised that every night the show was different even though it was the same band. They had a dance floor that you could dance if you like but we found just sitting and taking to people we meet more fun.
Working
by gemmanatasha
The mexicans rely on tips, they get paid awfully low salary's so be generous.
Don't tip everytime you go to the bar but at the end of your night find your waiter/barmen etc and give them a tip then. It will be appreciated.
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Cancun Catamarans
Little cabanas - a shelter from the sun
Tulum, 2008
Huge hotels line the Zona hotelera
