Palenque : Waterfalls

We spent another day in Oaxaca yesterday, wallowing in self-pity about the car and sleeping. A very unproductive day, but since the only bus to Palenque left at 5pm we had little choice. We arrived here today, at about 7 in the morning, and set off to find a hotel. The hotel we found was clean and modern, and only 100 pesos each per night, which was perfect for us. After dropping off our stuff, we set off to find a tour operator, and soon booked ourselves up for today and tomorrow.

Today's tour was to some waterfalls – two different ones – Misol-Ha and Agua Azul. We started off at Misol-Ha, a huge cliff, with a 40 metre stream of water pouring off the top. It was breathtaking, and after briefly investigating the cave at the top (I went in further than most, before deciding that a mobile phone wasn't the best equipment) we went for a swim. After spending a few minutes floating around, we headed over to the other side, where there seemed to be more people. When we saw some Germans jumping off a ten metre cliff, we decided that we couldn't be upstaged, and Nicky and I eventually clambered up to take the plunge.

It looked a lot further from the Olympian heights of the rock, and I managed to delay enough to annoy Nicky in to jumping first. He, it seemed from the top, landed slightly on his front, which looked less than comfortable. The only problem with Nicky going first was that there was no way I could back out now. And so with everyone watching I leapt off. It seems even further when you're falling. You expect to hit the water straight away, and then you suddenly realise that you're still falling through thin air. Then, just as you think that, you hit the water. A massive rush, but it messed with my ears too much for me to do it again. It does make you really appreciate the people who dive off 40 metre cliffs at Acapulco though. Well, either appreciate or marvel at their insanity. When we recovered from our plunge, we realised that everyone else from our group had disappeared, and we were told off by the bus driver for being ten minutes late. Fortunately, being told off for tardiness by a Mexican holds absolutely no sway – never has a nation of people been so collectively late.

Next up was Agua Azul, a very different type of waterfall. This one was a series of smaller and larger cascades, which apparently a few very stupid people try to swim down every year, and are invariably killed near the top. The water here was, hence the name, a deep, light blue. Added to the fact that swimming in the blue pool at the bottom was very pleasant, there was really good food at a nearby restaurant. What there wasn't, as normal here in Mexico, was change for anything more than the equivalent of a fiver. Since the cash machines always give you larger notes than this, there's really not much you can do except demand your change, which we've become very good at. Finally, after being dropped off at our hotel and eating the biggest pizza I've ever seen, we got an early night before our 6 o' clock start tomorrow morning.

Related posts:

1. Palenque : Yaxchilan & Bonampak
2. Palenque : Ruins
3. Colima – Maruata : 358 km
4. Maruata – Acapulco : 503 km
5. Oaxaca and Monte Albán