Santa Elena

Santa Elena is the name of the little town where we spent the night Friday, June 6. We stayed in a charming little inn named the Flycatcher Inn. We arrived around 2 pm, settled in, and took a nap. At 3:30 we piled back into the vans for a visit to a nearby cacao plantation and museum (pictures to come).

We had supper at 5:30 at a restaurant run by a lady who moved here from Canada. She was visiting the Yucatan, and liked it so much she decided to move here. I am amazed by how many people I meet here that have done that! The restaurant was called The Pickled Onion, and we ate at a big table on the front deck. We had just finished our huge noon meal four hours ago, so none of us were hungry! The food was absolutely delicious, however. 

I had the place at the foot of the table, so I had the perfect view of everyone. 

We love our family style dining!

Jasmin and Tristan were to my left. We were entertained by Buck on my right (not pictured). He is always full of stories and jokes. We started by ordering drinks. We could choose between aguas frescas (lemonade, horchata, and jamaica) and Coca Cola.

The first course arrived: a lettuce salad and sopa de lima, a traditional Yucatecan soup. The lettuce salad was delicious: romaine topped with cucumbers, radishes, and cherry tomatoes. 

The soup was also delicious, but a little harder to describe! It was salty and sweet, savory yet simple. There were tortilla pieces, vegetables (including carrots and avocado chunks), and chicken.

For the main course, we could choose between chicken, pork, and beef, all prepared Yucatecan style. Jasmin and I chose the beef, as we have not eaten much beef since arriving in Mexico. The beef was in chunks, prepared with chunks of potato and I think carrot. There were sides of green beans, white rice, and a yellow mound that turned out to be potatoes. It was an absolutely delicious meal.

And it wasn't over yet! For dessert, we could choose between flan and this mango cream. It was sooo much better than it looks! Alex ate his dish and Nicole's too :)

Back at the inn, we walked around taking pictures for a little while. This is the main building, with the reception and breakfast areas. The breakfast the next morning was delicious! Fresh fruit, coffee or tea, orange juice, toast, and scrambled eggs prepared to order. I ordered mine with salsa...mmmm... Again, we were eating in the open air, on the side porch of this building. Why does food taste better if you eat it outdoors?

Walking to our cabin from the parking lot. The path to the right leads to our cabin and the path to the left leads to the boys' cabin.

Six girls shared this charming little duplex. Kayla, Stephanie, and Danni were in the room to the left, and Jasmin, Debora and I had...

...the room on the right. We didn't spend much time sitting outside, because it was that twilight hour when the mosquitoes are horrible, especially in the trees where we were. It had been raining a lot that week, so everything was damp.

The inside was as charming as the outside! We had a double bed, a single bed, and a hammock for the three of us. A table and chairs and a bathroom with a wonderful shower completed the room.

Our room turned into Party Central for a while. Tristan, Stephanie, Kayla, and Danni all piled in. I was sitting on the bed half-listening, half-working on my computer. Jasmin, meanwhile, was relaxing in the hammock.



But I got the hammock for the night! After the others decided to go play a game in their room, Jasmin took a hot shower and I settled into the hammock with a book.



On our way out in the morning, we were taking pictures of the plants and flowers around us.

Isn't this gorgeous?

They were everywhere, also at the chocolate plantation.

Tropical hibiscus. Why don't we grow these anymore, Marion???

A big palm tree right outside the main building.

It was perfect. Nights like this make the whole trip seem like a huge vacation. Schoolwork, classes, and the hustle and bustle of the city are far away. We were in our rooms by 7 PM and breakfast was served at 8:30 AM. Some of the kids were bored and didn't know what to do with themselves, but I had no problem relaxing and enjoying the peace and quiet!