Secret Garden Tulum

Driving from the CUN airport to Tulum in heavy rain was quite the experience.  We finally arrived in Tulum, asked directions from some cute boys in a shop (I can say that – I’m old), drove around for awhile in a completely wrong part of town, and then finally got ourselves to the Secret Garden Hotel  around 11:30ish PM. 

As soon as we pulled up, we saw Sean (one of the owners) waiting for us outside.  It was so good to be there!  We grabbed our stuff and he showed us to our room (#3), where we promptly started the A/C.  (“If you want to use the A/C…”  We were sticky, sweaty, and completely gross.  Yes, we wanted the A/C.  

Although we were only there overnight (because we left early the next morning for Mahahual), we absolutely loved our stay at Secret Garden.  We didn’t get to enjoy the garden because of the rain, but I took plenty of pictures so I could feel like I did.

Overall thoughts:  Secret Garden Hotel is a unique, inviting place to stay in Tulum pueblo.  There was no TV or telephone in the room (I can live without!), but there definitely was wi-fi (cannot live without!), and A/C!  The room was clean and orderly and the linens were new and fresh.  Bottled water is available in the garden area by the office (easy to get to), and the owners are helpful and friendly.  I absolutely recommend staying at Secret Garden in Tulum.  Kudos to the owners for creating a clean, safe, fashionable place to stay at a great rate!

Secret Garden Hotel WEBSITE

Secret Garden Hotel FACEBOOK PAGE

Sean & Josh – thank you for the great night’s stay!  Sorry the seeds didn’t make it.

I loved it.

There are definitely two faces to Mahahual–the Book and the Cover. For me, it is the first that is most appealing. It is the dig-a-little-deeper to experience the people who live there and whose daily lives are affected by what happens (or doesn’t happen) in this small Mexican village. I met some truly unique individuals whom I can best describe as “brave”. Brave for having a vision of a life they want to live. Brave for choosing to face daily adversity in a way that most of us would run from. Brave for looking beyond themselves to the community as a whole. Brave for living together in what can only be described as one large, extended family that encompasses many nationalities, personalities, cultures, beliefs, backgrounds, etc.  I am in awe.

In upcoming posts, I hope to share some of these people and their experiences with you. It is, to me, what makes Mahahual so beautiful and captivating.

So, besides the essentials (passport, driver’s license, wallet, credit card, etc.), what do you pack in your carry-on?

The Food?

The People?

(via orcagirl.com)

The Geography & Scenery?

The History?

The Attractions?

The Accomodations?

The Blog-Owner (Me)?

I really want to hear your thoughts.  I know I have my preferences–I want yours.

“Today someone I work with died.  He is an Iraqi.  He is a part of a militia the American’s started a while ago called the Sons of Iraq aka: SOI.

Some background: The Americans established these concerned citizens to take back their country and used to pay the SOI about $200/mo[nth], but hasn’t since the security agreement.  Now the Iraqi government pays them less, irregularly.  They were last paid in March for February.  If you ask the people on the street who they credit for the improved security, they will tell you , “The SOI.”  They want the Americans to continue to take care of them – we can’t.  Elements in the Gov. of Iraq see them as a threat.  I think they are Iraqi patriots who saved their country from chaos and are still loyal to the Americans.

I didn’t know him well, but he was diligent and always respectful.  He was 55 and the father of 12.  His family lived in a humble mud structure.  He hadn’t been paid in months.  He guarded his check point and did his duty.  He did it even when it was cold and hot – its warming now, today it is 100 to 105.  About a month ago he asked me for a job.  He said he’d do anything – and I’m sure he would.  I had no jobs for him.  I could do little more than send him home with a few cases of water and a soccer ball for his sons.  He smiled though and thanked me graciously, praising God.

Last night his body gave out.  He just couldn’t take any more I guess.  He dosed off to sleep for a moment in the middle of the night and didn’t wake back up.  No bomb or assassination – just alone at a check point on a road in the middle of rural Iraq.  Today his wife is a widow and his children are [fatherless].  No pension or life insurance.  The market stopped giving them credit a while ago with the irregular payments from the Iraqi government.  All I can comfort them with is a case of clean water.  I can’t do a thing for them.  I can build a road for some corrupt district council that will steal thousands for themselves and produce a poor example of a road at a premium, but I can do nothing for this humble man who loved his family.

I feel silly and insignificant.  I think of my children and ache to always be near them.  To protect them and provide for them.  I feel worthless and exhausted.

As I got the news [of] this tragedy it was all I could do to maintain composure in front of my Iraqi partners.  I wanted to run away and find somewhere to hide and never come out.  Even now this hurts and I don’t understand it.  In a moment I’ll be out again, continuing with my mission and our operations.  Emotionless. This is what I deal with daily in one form or another and it wears upon me.”

I’ve thought about this email all day.  I’ve thought about the experiences I have had while traveling around the world that are very similar to this, and it made me think about the reason I do my blog–to promote “traveling” in lieu of “vacationing”.  I think that’s the best way I can put it.  What’s the difference between the two?  Ask yourself.  I am confident you will come up with your own answer.  And whatever that answer is, I encourage you to implement it.  Travel to make a difference.  Travel to learn.  Travel to educate your mind and be a witness to others.

One of my favorite quotes/sayings is:  “I am not the same for having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world.”  I have had this hanging on my wall for about 25 years now, and without fail, it brings to mind my first trip to India.  I arrived in Bombay in the early evening and by the time I checked in to my hotel and got to my room it was dark outside.  As I dropped my suitcase I felt compelled to go look out the window of my high-rise, luxury accomodation.  As I drew the curtains aside, I literally ached.  There were thousands of people sleeping on the streets right below me.  Thousands.  It was truly a sea of people.  It was the first time I knew, without a doubt, that I would never be the same “for having seen the moon shine on the opposite side of the world.”

Our final class debate is next week and the topic is La Pena Capital (Capital Punishment).

Side note:  Try going from three straight hours of speaking and debating in Spanish to Ancient Egyptian–in English. :/

The Mexico team blog  - and the Mexico World Cup team:

Mexico 2010 World Cup Team

 The USA team blog - and the U.S. World Cup team: 

USA 2010 World Cup Team

Gabriela Mistral

Gabriela Mistral is the penname for the Chilean poet Lucila de María del Perpetuo Socorro Godoy Alcayaga.   Gabriela was born in Vicuna, Chile, in 1889, and died in Hempstead, New York, in 1957.  As a young teacher in Chile, she fell in love with a railway worker whose suicide effected her thoughts and views for the rest of her life.  She never married and her son committed suicide at the age of 17 in 1943.  A deep love for children and the downtrodden were recurring themes in her work,  and were a large part of her efforts as a diplomat and an educator. 

On November 15, 1945, Gabriela was the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature.

(Photo from brittanica.com)

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