Posada los Mapaches

Friday and Saturday nights we stayed at a small hostel located just outside of Tulum, Quintana Roo, México. Called Pada los Mapaches, the hostel is run by Chelo and her two sons, Daniel and Joaquín. They were very kind and helped with everything we needed. We had bikes to get around the area, as the distances are a little too far for walking. When we arrived, Chelo gave everyone a reflective vest and a headlamp to wear when we were biking at night, a padlock for our bikes, and our room keys. The hostel is bordered by the main highway on one side and the jungle on the other three sides. We were not allowed to keep any food in our rooms, as we would attract ants, mice, and other animals.

There were three main sleeping huts, as well as a kitchen building, a palapa for dining/gatherings, a bathroom/shower building, and what looked like a general maintenance room with bike parts and snorkel gear hanging from the walls. Here are some of the pictures.



My key opened room number two, the only room here on the second level of this hut. Tristan, Debora, Danni, and Kayla were in the room underneath us.

This is the room I shared with Sioned and Maria. Forgive the mess; I snapped this photo while we were in the packing-up process. Two fans provided adequate ventilation during the hot nights. We were thankful the door shut tightly, keeping out those winged bloodsuckers known as mosquitoes.



 It was small, but we didn't spend much time in it anyway. Sioned and Maria shared this double bed and I got the twin bed to the right of the other picture.



The ceiling was quite high, which helped with the heat as well. As you can see on these three pictures, the walls aren't exactly airtight. But in a place where it rarely gets below 60 F, who cares?



Looking up our staircase. Not advisable to climb with wet feet or with a heavy load.



The view straight in from the main gate. To the left (invisible on the picture) is the kitchen area. Straight ahead is the bike parking lot (duh) and the cabin Jasmin was staying in.



I stood in the same place just inside the gate to take this picture, looking to the right. (See the fence to the right? It separated us from the highway.) The hut visible on the left is the one I was staying in. Debora (blue tank top, green shorts) is standing outside her room on the ground level.

This gives a little better perspective of our cabin. It was by no means large!

I walked over to the spot Debora had just left, and took a picture looking towards the bathrooms. I caught Debora brushing her teeth :D



This shows a couple of the other buildings, but it also gives you an idea of how much vegetation was everywhere. Roots and branches and leaves and plants and flowers were everywhere. It was beautiful, though!

Ah yes, here is the bathroom building. The two sinks in the front served for washing hands and brushing teeth. Inside, five stalls on the left had toilets and five on the right had showers. Toilets and showers were closed off by curtains, which did not always stay in place as they were supposed to. We had fifteen girls and five boys staying here and it was...interesting.

We were served breakfast between 8 and 10 each morning. Saturday we started with coffee and tea, and then either Daniel or Joaquin brought out some delicious fruit smoothies. Next was a plate of fresh fruit, adorned with a bougainvillea blossom. Once we finished that, he brought out the main course: a delicious egg, cheese, and vegetable quesadilla with a delicious salsa to dip it in. The salsa was different and probably better than any I have yet tasted; it was like a mixture of guacamole (because it had avocado), pico de gallo (because there was a lot of cilantro), and salsa (because the rest of it was like normal salsa). Definitely a good start to my day. Sunday morning we had another type of fruit smoothie (even more delicious than the first day, if that is possible) and a plate of pancakes with a mango sauce spread over them instead of syrup or butter. They were almost as good as Mom's pancakes, and I love having fruit instead of syrup.

All in all, I have to say the good outweighed the bad in this little hostel. We all gave Chelo a hug as we left. She is such a sweet lady, and she took such good care of us!

In my next post check out sunrise on the beach! Oh yes, and the Tulum archaeological site :) It is my goal to upload the pictures tonight, but the story might have to wait until Saturday. We leave for the airport in 38 hours (hey, the countdown was NOT my idea!) In that time, I need to pack, eat, sleep, finish homework, take two final exams, go to the chocolate store downtown, and have a farewell party. Sorry if I don't get around to my blog :P We have a total of 8 hours of layover time Saturday, so I will try to catch up on my blog then. Looking forward to being home with my family for Sunday!