What to See in Yucatán, Mexico One of the oldest cathedrals in the Americas may be found in Mérida, Mexico. Known as the Cathedral of San Ildefonso, the cathedral dates back to 1598. Commissioned by Pope Pius IV, the cathedral was built on the Mayan site known as T’hó. Construction began in 1561. (The Cathedral…
Tag: Mexico
An Afternoon in Copala, Mexico
Day Trips from Mazatlán Looking for excursions from Mazatlán? Consider the tiny little town of Copala, also in Sinaloa state like Mazatlán is. Travelers concerned about the little issue of overtourism—where historical monuments and other must-sees suffer greater wear-and-tear simply because so many people make them a destination—need have no such worries in Copala, Mexico….
Bashfully Appreciated Places, 2016
What readers liked to visit over the last year Should it be any surprise that the bashful adventurers visiting these pages have eclectic taste? Their reading habits show their interest—in learning, in history, in practical matters. The most popular posts of the past year spanned the globe, from South America, to Central, to North, from…
Cruising Cemeteries around the Globe
Touring Graveyards for History and Understanding I suppose if you are bashful, a cemetery is a great place to visit given that no one is likely to talk to you much. I like cemeteries for the opportunities they provide to commune with the universe, to learn a bit about history, and to appreciate how other…
Just Watch Out for the Gators in Any Language
On Signs and Travel Continuing my fascination with signs, I decide to heed one in Cancun. Wherever you might find yourself, just don’t feed the alligators, the crocodiles, the caymans, or whatever name the reptiles with long tails and big teeth happen to be going by in your neighborhood. —Lori Tripoli Thinking of heading to…
Amusement Park Politics
I don’t know how many times I visit Florida’s Epcot before I realize Russia and former Soviet-bloc countries are not represented in its World Showcase pavilions. France and the UK most certainly are on its map, as are Mexico, Morocco, even China. But where is Russia? Czech Republic? Latvia? It turns out that back in…
Beaches with Something Extra
The week before Labor Day is the time of summer when everyone seems to be at the beach. My days of simply sunning are long past; now when I am seeking a beach vacation, in addition to wide swaths of smooth white sand and swimmable (and preferably warm) water, I look for beaches with something…
Not Shopping
My riffs on street art and graffiti in Germany, Italy, New York City, Mexico, Ecuador, and Russia are not meant to be exhaustive catalogs of either street art or graffiti in any of these places. Instead, they are meant as a reminder to travel with your head up. At home, too often, my focus is…
Isla Mujeres Graffiti: Appreciating Symbols
I do not speak Spanish and do not really know the message of the brightly colored graffiti I see on a wall while speeding through Isla Mujeres, Mexico on a golf cart. While I ponder the artwork, I gain a new appreciation of symbols. I see the purple awareness ribbon. I learn that one of…
A Little Belize, A Little Mexico, A Little Midlife Crisis?
In my on-again, off-again love affair with my Kindle (love the convenience, miss the smell of paper), I splurge and buy a digital copy of The Last Full Service Crocodile Ranch in Quintana Roo (2012) by Richard Hofheimer. It’s an engrossing story about a cancer survivor, on her second marriage, on her second honeymoon, on…