Tulum is also a popular destination for tourists. It’s close enough to Cancun that you can get there, and back if you can handle about seven hours in a bus coming and going, less if you are with a group tour that doesn’t stop. You can do a poor man’s Maya Riviera thing, like on the Cancun strand, or stay in the nearly regular town itself. The nice hotels are also far away from the regular town, like in Cancun, so you don’t have to mix.
I stayed there for a couple of days. One day, I walked the 10 km or so to the ruins and back along the beach. The ruins site is manicured and just so picture perfect. You can see why it’s popular. The downside is the buildings themselves are cordoned off and you can’t get close to most of them.
Part of the downside is there are no good angles to see the ruins in their lovely oceanside setting.
My original plan was to take a collectivo there and maybe walk the beach and cliffs back, but I knew I wasn’t going to enjoy doing that in the heat. 
So, I settled for this picture and walked the road back.
I stayed an extra day in Tulum. The owner said his brother lives in an isolated hamlet on the coast south of Tulum and before Chetumal which is on the Belize border. He thought his brother was coming and, if I wanted to kick back there, I could go with him. I was going to go, but the brother wasn’t coming after all. So I went to Chetumal the day before yesterday with the intent to go west toward Xpujil, back in southern Campeche. From there, I am hoping to get to Calakmul, another Mayan site. We’ll see how that goes, as there is no public transportation. If that doesn’t work out, I’ll gt back on a bus for Chiapas.
I decided to spend a day in Chetumal. Again, a nice hostel was the reason. Also, Chetumal seems to be a pleasant place. I walked around town and along the waterfront with a Chinese woman staying here. That’s about it. No pictures, except for this one of Olga, the owner, Ming, the Chinese woman, and me.
Right after posting this, I’m off to try to get to Calakmul. The town everyone bases themselves for visiting the ruins in the area is Xpujil (Eesh-pu-HEEL). The internet says accommodation is expense or super-basic, and getting around is expensive. Like, taxis. If I can pull it off, with some other people probably, I’ll mosey around there. If it’s a hassle, I’ll just move on to Pelenque, Chiapas.
Until then, be well, all of you.