Riding in a taxi with a couple I didn’t know, the woman of the pair asked me if I got bored going from archaeological site to archaeological site on the peninsula. ‘Aren’t they all the same?’, she asked me. Hmmmm … no, they aren’t :) The archaeological sites of the ancient Maya, in fact, are the best of many reasons to visit The Yucatan Peninsula.

The Yucatan is one of those magical places where at first, one might think that nothing will happen there. But the longer one stays in the area, the more things happen and the more attached one becomes.

On my first flight down to the area, as the plane flew over the edge of the peninsula before arriving at the Cancun airport, I watched the green of the jungle fly by underneath me. On only one occasion did the trees break for a road to pass through the thick forest. I wondered what in the world I could do in this place for two weeks. The thought came to me that I might just be sitting in a beach chair, reading a book, and waiting for my return flight home.

There is nothing I love more than having my first impressions blown away.

I’m not one for reading guidebooks to the areas I visit. It’s probably the thrill seeker in me. So I wasn’t really sure what to expect from the area. I knew I wanted to avoid Cancun. Just by reputation I knew it wasn’t what I was looking for. In university – the other source of most of my travel information – all of my art history courses were Western European, so I wasn’t prepared for the incredible culture I would find here. And if you had told me ahead of time that I would be getting bodywork done by a Maya Shaman, I would have snorted a ‘yeah, right’.

But that’s the adventure of going somewhere, experiencing the unexpected.

So, I hope that even if you read these pages thoroughly, you will forget them as you travel through The Yucatan. Have your own experiences, meet your fellow travelers, and especially the locals. Explore with your eyes open and come back with some incredible stories.

– Kimberly

***

The Yucatan that is covered on this site is The Yucatan Peninsula which covers the Mexican states of Quintana Roo, Yucatan, Campeche and a little tiny bit of Chiapas to Palenque which sits just outside the peninsula area. El Peten in Guatamala and the northern part of Belize are also included.

Part, not all, of my last trip down to The Yucatan was sponsored by Eco-Tulum, the wonderful people that own Cabanas Copal, Azulik, and Zahra. Before accepting their hospitality, I made it very clear that I would be writing honestly about my experiences, because that is something that I owe to my readers. The other hotel information that is collated on the site came from my personal experience and recommendations by people from all walks of life that I met along the way.

artist-at-large.com wants to encourage you to get out and explore The Yucatan on your own. There are many All-Inclusives on the Riviera Maya, but staying in an AI is not about going to The Yucatan, or Mexico, the AI experience is about going to the beach and staying in your comfort zone. So, get out of the AI and experience the ruins, the culture, the local food and color of the area. Plan to spend a night or two away from the beach in the jungle – just for the experience of doing something different.

Even though I’ve decided to use WordPress to build the new version of the site, I am hoping that the theme will keep you from thinking that it is a traditional blog. The stories and information presented here are written in a way that is meant to be valuable over a long period of time, like a magazine or guidebook that you keep by your desk and flip through when you need information, or just want to daydream. Comments on any of the posts are welcome at any time so if something moves you, please let me know.

What’s On When is the newest section on the site. It is the place where arts events, exhibitions, and general travel news is posted on an ongoing basis. If you are a gallery or an artist, to get your event posted in this section, just use the handy form on the Submit Your Event page or send us your press release as text in an email with an attached event .jpg.

I’ve moved the Yucatan reading recommendations directly to the Shop, the amazon partnered store on the site, where you can purchase not only books to research your trip, but your cameras, or your Moleskines for taking notes and sketching. In the Photography section you can purchase photos to fill in the gaps of your own photo albums, or just watch a slide show. In any case, your purchases are what keep this site alive.

Places to Stay is a list of hotels and hostels that we/I have actually stayed at or at least have thoroughly visited. If I hear of a new hotel opening or about an interesting place to stay, if I haven’t stayed there, I may post something about it in In the News.

Share your stories and experiences about a place in the comments area on the posts. Please keep comments on the topic of the post or story. Please use the comments area for all travel questions rather than emailing me personally. The comments are checked daily for posts and your questions will get answered a lot faster.

If you’d like to write a guest post, or be a regular contributor to the site, please see the Submission Guidelines.

And, once you get back, please consider commenting on the stories, or adding your answers to the With Eyes Open Survey Questions.

For more information about the site as a whole, click here.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy your travels to The Yucatan.

Contributors to The Yucatan section of artist-at-large.com

Kimberly Kradel – Lead artist-at-large