2-9^th October 2016

Cancun was the beginning of something special.

## The Lonely Mr S

Going to my room to change for the pool (yeah, the hostel has a pool!) I notice a man lingering behind. Let’s call him Mr. S. He follows me in and it turns out we’re roommates. I tell him I’m going to go swimming and he says “yeah, I might too actually”. He precedes to ask me some pretty strange questions and then I decide to turn around to put my wallet in the locker. Just in case. I turn back and see everything Mr. S has to offer.

Everything.

Turns out he’s decided to get changed right this second and now that all of his clothes are off he’s just dawdling around. I decide to hide my head in my locker until it’s over. When it is, Mr S leaves and I am able to get changed myself in privacy.

The swim is a god send due to the heat. Before too long a guy I met in Mexico City turns up and we decide to go exploring.

It’s a strange, local, performance. Sort of like a talent show. We’re not sure what’s going on but we’re enjoying it none the less. The actual town’s a bit of a disappointment. It’s just a tourist launching pad to other places and doesn’t feel particularly unique. Which is a shame as I love the hostel and the local restaurants, where I even got to try lobster for the first time.

## The Start of a Good Trip

The next morning I’m up in time for breakfast. I see a pretty woman who seems friendly enough and ask whether I can sit with her. She kindly agrees. Soon her friend sits down too. It’s Mr S. Why did I sit here I ask myself. It’s a classic honey trap.

Thankfully, conversation comes easily enough and I find out that Mr S actually suggested the woman, Linda, came to this hostel when she stopped him looking for another one. Maybe she’s in the same boat as me with this Mr S guy after all.

Hopefully we’ll get a chance to talk more.

The chance comes by the pool later in the day. I get on with Linda well, she’s seems like a cool person to hang around. Sadly, I’m leaving today. I suggest she should check out Valladolid with me at one point as I heard good things. She says she might just do that. We exchange Facebook’s and I tell her if she’s serious then message me and I’ll hold off seeing Chichen Itza until she comes.

## Valladolid – The Cool Gang of Two

I take a gander around Valladolid and I love the little town. The houses are all painted different colours, there’s little tourists and there’s a certain charm to the place. The hostel’s OK, a bit too many mozzys flying around for my liking though.

Anticipating a reply from Linda my phone pings. “Show some faith, of course I’m coming”. YAY! I have company to visit my fifth wonder of the world. I’m stoked. When she arrives we have a walk and end up in the park. We sit and we talk. We keep talking. It’s easy. Then I start sharing stuff I never share with people. The fact that she makes me feel more comfortable makes her more captivating to me. I’m smiling more than usual and I smile a lot normally. She’s sounds completely sincere when she relates things that have happened in her own life. As I’m sitting there I realise she’s becoming more and more attractive.

I try to shake it.

Then we head to a local Cenote. Essentially, a naturally formed swimming pool of clear water formed by the breakdown of limestone. Which means there’s a chance for cliff diving. That’s on my list. I just don’t know if I can do it.

There’s something about Linda. It’s not raw attraction. Though she is certainly beautiful. The time I’m around her I seem to become a more daring, positive, fun loving person. Linda suggested jumping from the top. Calmed my fears of any loose rocks. As we stood there I knew I wouldn’t jump. Not if she wasn’t here. But she is.

So we jump.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!

I hold my nose and scream like a school girl.

Exhilarated and exhausted we head back in the lovely sunshine.

## Enter Caesar!

As we head to the hostel we are approached by a man we passed on the way through. He recognises us and tells us so. He invites us in to see his goods: chocolate and alcohol. It’s a good opening gambit and we follow him in. Try some super sugary chocolate and then find ourselves at his alcohol cupboard.

Then the games begin. He tells us some history and goes off to get some shot glasses. Linda turns to me and says “he’s never going to stop talking”. Don’t be silly, I thought. He’ll try to sell to us, we’re say thanks and be on our way. I thought. A couple of hours and six shots later I realise she was right. He gave us a good sales pitch, got us a bit tipsy and flattered our egos. At one point showing us a sign which said “tequila. For years making women lower their standards” and when I said that would mean I would have to compete with even more men for the women I go for, he just smiled. He ran with it. Told us he could see something between us. Wouldn’t let it down. He was good though. We were happy to purchase and he also came to the shops to help us get some cheap shot glasses and helped us order some street food in Spanish. Well played Caesar. Well played.

With our bottle of tequila in hand and a pitch black sky we head to the hostel to eat our food under the moon light.

## The Team Unites

As we begin to tuck in, we draw in two guys to our conversation. It begins slowly but we gradually form a bond. Especially when one of the guys, Hannes, agrees to come with us to Chichen Itza even though he has already paid for it. Andreas shares with us his remarkable story of why he’s travelling and what’s lead to it before Linda decides it’s time for bed.

We hang out a while longer. My bites are starting to itch and I need some more alcohol to send me to sleep. I’m happy. We’ve found our people and the team is united. Then just as we’re deep in politics and life chat another man sits down. At the appropriate time we start to include him and before long we’ve got an offer we can’t refuse. A lift in his car to Chichen Itza in the morning. Life is good. Then I head to bed.

Sleep doesn’t come easy. In fact, it simply doesn’t come for a while. A couple of hours watching a movie, have a walk around. An hour listening to “If I Were You” podcast, have a little walk around. Repeat. Repeat. Then I’m sleeping. Just a few hours but it’s enough. Daylight. I’m so happy to have slept. I find out that someone plugged in an anti-mosquito deodoriser on my bed so I haven’t been bitten any extra times either. I never found out who was so kind but thank you.

I’m still tired though, I can’t think straight and today’s the day I see a wonder of the world. Great. I head to breakfast. The breakfast’s good. That helps. I have a shower. That helps. Screw it. I can’t do this. I stay in my pyjamas, put on my loosest top, my hat and my boots. Mozzys stay away!

As you can see Chichen Itza was a blast. I looked ridiculous. Felt like rubbish. Yet, somehow, I was in an epic good mood and thoroughly enjoyed the morning. We all did.

After return by collectivo (Miles drove off to his next destination) we went to check out another Cenote.

This one was very impressive indeed. We met some lovely French ladies and some other people from our hostel too. The water was lovely, there was a swing and plenty of places to jump from.

## Enter the Butterflies

In this cenote was the first realisation I had that the more I got to know Linda, the more attractive she became to me. So much so I started to get nervous around her. I’d see her coming towards me and suddenly panic that I needed something fun to talk about.

Now, this doesn’t usually happen to me. It’s not to say I don’t get nervous. Just. Not this. It was a nice feeling. I realised that how kind she was. How patient she was with me. How generous she was in listening. How her presence made me do things like jump off a platform into a pool of water. It all made me really, really like her. I tried to keep my cool.

## The Band is Formed

Myself, Linda and Hannes went ahead to Tulum with Andreas following the next day. Realising I left my jacket behind, it came in very handy that the nice French ladies were also following us this afternoon. After a short while on the bus and a keen change of seats so that Linda would be next to me, I thought I’d let her know how I was feeling. It was a fun ride and I felt relieved. Getting it off my shoulders and my mind helped stopped my awkwardness. Though perhaps increased it for her maybe.

Either way, we arrived at the hostel. Got the last places in the dorm rooms. They were booked up the next night and although I didn’t originally plan to stay, I wanted to, and we booked a private room to house the three of us for a further night.

Then, waiting for our room, this happened.

From that moment on we were a band.

A good band, you can tell.

The first night I went out with some other people from the hostel for some much needed dancing. Getting back in the wee hours and then waking up to go to the local ruins and catch the sunrise. Somehow I was still functioning.

It was amazing. The water was lovely and warm. We saw the sun get higher and higher. Then we went and checked out the ruins. Though not as impressive as I assumed, there was a wonderful five minutes where I found myself alone, walking off the track with no other tourists around. I could hear every footstep I made crunching, every sound of every piece of wildlife nearby. It took me right back to an experience I had on the garden route in South Africa. It was bliss.

In the afternoon I paid up for my room. As I went to the ATM I realised just how kind everyone I have met has been to me. I decided it was about time I did a Kind Act myself and got enough money to cover the cost of the entire private room for the three of us. I paid up and asked the guy not to tell the others so that they would have a nice surprise when they check out in the morning. Looking back, it’s still not blind generosity as these people have already made my trip to Cancun a million times more rewarding than if I had never met them. I will have to try harder for my next Kind Act.

I decided I should continue on the honesty front. I told Linda that I was falling for her more. Not in a “I love you” sort of way, we barely know each other, but this sort of magnetism I just couldn’t pull away from. It’s been a long time since I felt anything that strong.

That night we had a BBQ. Met a load of cool people and then went out for the night. Our last night together. The big one. My flight was in the morning and the others would be parting ways too.

With Andreas back and the team reformed we then had a night of drinking and a little bit of dancing ahead of us. For whatever reason, I seemed to be acquiring the attention of other people. I didn’t really want it. They were all nice. I just wanted to be in Linda’s and, to be honest, Hannes and Andreas’, company. Maybe I should have been up front with those people instead of just trying to subtly bat them off. I still wasn’t sure how Linda felt about me though and I didn’t want to make it too awkward in case she wanted to meet someone else. Or maybe I didn’t have the confidence to knock someone else’s approaches completely down. I don’t know. All I knew was that as long I survived tonight and remained on good terms with everyone in our team I would happily sleep alone, next to Hannes, and not regret a single thing.

Either way myself and Hannes ended back at the room whilst Linda went on with the others to dance. Myself and Hannes talked about love, life and everything in between. It didn’t feel like long but perhaps it was. When I realised someone was approaching the room I was optimistic Linda would appear.

She did.

So did another girl.

How did this happen?

Then the other girl left and Hannes went to bed.

This gave me a chance to chat with Linda for a bit. I was nervous, said a few pretty silly things in the circumstance that I don’t know if I meant or not about the other people from the night. Then preceded to share my bed with Hannes.

I woke at various times. Nervous I may have ruined a connection with someone in a few words. I finally arose a little before alarm was due thinking it was late enough.

Leave a note?

Sneak out?

No. I can’t do that.

I gently shake Linda awake. I apologise if I had made her feel awkward at all and hug her mightily and say some truths about how fortunate I feel just for having the last week. At first, being nervous, I say goodbye far too quickly. I continue to say goodbye and before I know it the alarm has gone off a few too many times. By the time I can finally bring myself to actually say goodbye for real it turns out I’ve taken far too long. My bus, which I paid for, left ten minutes ago.

It’ll be fine. It always is. I thought. Then I head downstairs and contact STA. I find out that the flights a connecting flight to Peru. If I miss this both of them get cancelled and maybe the rest of them too. Now I enter panic mode. I can’t have that. No-one is up from the hostel. I decide to take action, grab my things and get a taxi. I’m not too fazed at the gigantic cost that I’m sure will await, I’m just glad to leave on good terms with Linda to be perfectly honest. I gently shake Hannes awake and hug him goodbye also. He’s been a dear friend these past few days, the chats have been really rewarding and I do hope we meet again. A genuinely nice, well minded human being and I wish him the best.

On the street, I run with my bags and find a taxi. I ask him please to not rip me off (good tactic right) and ask the price to the airport. It’s almost a two-hour journey. Thankfully, he’s an honest man and shows me the list of prices by distance. It works out around £30 which is amazing. He asks what time the flight is. It’s in three hours. He smiles. “It’s OK. I’ll make sure you make it.”

With that we’re off. I relax. I nod off.

BANG.

I suddenly awake. The driver looks horrified. “A crash, sir. The car ahead”.

I look out my window.

“Jesus!”

I ask the driver to stop. We get the authorities called and ensure there’s enough people on site before making our way through the side lane. Maybe we should have stopped and waited. I dunno. The driver said he didn’t see what happened. It was only a car or so away though. It did make me think about life though. How short it can be. That you really need to be honest with people about your feelings but perhaps more importantly, honest to yourself about them. I’m glad that here I was. I hope that in the future I can continue to be.

This second half of the trip has officially been amazing. From New York to here. Everything has been mind-blowing. I’ve even made it to the airport in time to relax a little.

Panama, here I come.