Day 98-99 / Tag 98-99 Going home

I don't feel like leaving here at all.

A last shower before the long ride over the Atlantic ocean later today. I am clever enough to take a
second T-shirt with me in the cabin luggage. Heartwarming good bye from the girl at the Art Hotel,

a last Cortado at Ki'Bok, and then to the ruins of Tulum. Bad idea, it is sunday morning, 10 am. I had better done that on a weekday, uh, wait, I was diving the last five mornings...
Waiting in line to buy a ticket in the blazing sun, Mexicans dressed up as ancient Mayas stand ready for fotos with their snake and tourists, you have to pay for every foto, even from far, waiting in another line to the entrance, and pushing myself through the ruins with the tourists, the sun knows no mercy. I only wanted to take some shots of the ruins by the sea, I sweat like a pig, no shadow anywhere. My T-shirt is soaking wet.
I take some shots and flee this place.

Seems he doesn't enjoy it too much, either

no shade

Someone recalls the movie "Apocalypto" by Mel Gibson...?

Very happy about the air condition in my little Volkswagen Crossfox, I hit the 307 north, direction Cancun.

After an hour or so my shirt and I get dry, stop at a gasolinera and buy some lemonade and water. I dry my dive boots holding them out of the window while driving.

I return the car with no problems,

Did I mention Mexico loves paper, forms, and bureaucracy?

shuttle to the airport and check in my bag. Exactly 25,05 kg, perfect, I have 25 kg allowance. Have a Steak and Jalapeño Baguette with a Corona, wasting my last pesos, but the Baguette is really good, the Corona anyway.

Mexico says good bye the way it said hello eight days ago: it rains heavily.


At the duty free shop I find my favourite cigarettes, Camel Regulars, and say "Hasta la vista, Mexico".

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Before I leave, some recommendations for Tulum:

If you are interested in diving the Cenotes of Yucatan, here is an introductory overview with short descriptions and basic maps by an operator from Playa del Carmen: Click, opens in new window

I will absolutely recommend you Scuba Tulum as dive shop, though, since I never dived with any other operator from Tulum or Playa. They are friendly, professional and flexible to meet your wishes. Their price structure is very competitive, too. Find them on Main Street, Avenida Tulum, close to calle Centauro.

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If you want to stay in Tulum instead of Playa del Carmen, I recommend the Art Hotel Tulum (link to booking.com) in Avenida Satellite, between calle Venus and calle Neptuno.
What an adress: If you love (Venus) the ocean (Neptune), this is the right place for you...;-)
I had a room for 650 pesos the night. It is an oasis of peace in the lovely desert of Tulum...

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For real coffee there is one adress in Tulum: Ki'Bok. Great Cortado at 25 pesos (1,25 Euros) or double at 35 pesos. They also serve breakfast, try the huevos rancheros or huevos divorciados. Calle Centaure between Avenida Tulum and calle Andromeda, right beside the Batey.

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The Batey Mojito Bar serves real mojitos with freshly crushed sugar cane at 100 pesos per serving, wide variety of live music almost every night and a lively atmosphere










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On the flight I edit some pictures, watch the movie "The Accountant", sleep a bit, watch the movie "Hidden Figures" and have breakfast.
After 10 hours and 50 minutes we land in Frankfurt, Germany, 7 hours ahead of Mexico time. At another Security Check my dive torch is suspected to contain explosives, I wait half an hour in a cabin until, of course, they find out it's a dive torch, with batteries in it. I demonstrate that it works with batteries and doesn't work without, and they are satisfied with that.
Connecting flight to Berlin, Kate picks me up at Tegel Airport and we drive home. A beer on the balcony, publish a blogpost, a burger at Bergmannstrasse, I take a shower and fall asleep immediately, sitting on my bed while I put on a new T-shirt after the shower...

Done diving for now, but the trip isn't over yet.

See you under water ( in Liguria, Italy, in September)