Monday, 9 December 2024

Costa Maya, Mexico

For now I am going to skip the events of Saturday and Sunday and head right to Monday for our first excursion on this cruise to Lima. I will go back to the previous two days and all the logistical issues in a later blog.

The day begins with bright and clear sunshine as we sail into the busy cruiseport at Costa Maya. There are already two much larger ships docked ahead of us, and the Marina looks rather puny with only 1,200 passengers. Costa Maya serves no other purpose than to bring tourists ashore to spend money in the plethora of shops, restaurants and bars. There is a beach in Mahahual, a tiny town about two miles away. We were here on very first Oceania cruise in December 2015, but the port infrastructure--mostly tacky copies of Mayan architecture and design--has quadrupled in size since then.

Costa Maya Shore Line

We have breakfast in the Terrace Cafe, the buffet restaruant that is open for three meals a day. Although it is labeled, "buffet," there are servers everywhere to help with your food, to bring juice and coffee, and to clean off your table as soon as you put down a spoon. We have breakfast at 7am: pancakes (L) and scrambled eggs (W), plus fresh fruit, yogurt, croissants, juice and coffee.

Today we are joining a private tour to Chacchoben, the ruins of a Mayan ceremonial compound. We booked this tour through Viator, the on-line travel agency with no extra fees. On our previous visit here, we took an Oceania full-day shore excursion to visit two other Mayan sites, Kohunlich and Dzibanche, which are twice the distance away. Today's tour will last only about four hours.

The Route from Costa Maya to Chacchoben

We leave the Marina just before 9am for the 15-minute walk to the tour meeting point. We join seven other tourists, some from the other ships in port, in a comfortable air-conditioned van for the 65-minute ride to Chacchoben. Our driver/guide, Pablo, speaks excellent English, having spent a good part of his life in Seattle, Portland, and California.

Chacchoben was built around 200 BC, but was re-discovered by local farmers only in 1970. The guided path takes tourists around fully-restored structures and some that have been left in their original condition with the jungle encroaching upon them. Pablo gives us just enough information about Mayan culture to make these sites start to live again.

Our Guide Follows the Tour Group of the Step--Will and I Stay Below

We spend about 90 minutes at the site and then head back to Costa Maya and our waiting cruise ship. We have excellent Reuben sandwiches and fries in the open-air Waves Grill before settling in for an afternoon nap.

Tonight we have dinner in Red Ginger, the Asian-fusion specialty restaurant on Oceania ships. For the main course, we always have the same dish--Chilean sea bass with a miso glaze. It is without doubt the most delicious fish preparation I have eaten anywhere. I enjoy spicy caramelized shrimp and a spare-rib salad as appetizers; Will has a green salad with Asian peanut dressing. For dessert it has to be Bounty Cake again, one of our favorites. All of this is accompanied by a full bottle of Montardin French Champagne--unlimited quantities with meals are included in our cruise fare.

Tonight's entertainment is a female singer with a wide ranging voice that is easier to describe than to listen to. We leave after her attempt at "Musetta's Waltz" from La Boheme. Better to have a good night's sleep.