{"id":444,"date":"2021-12-24T20:57:55","date_gmt":"2021-12-24T20:57:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yucatanbackroads.com\/?p=444"},"modified":"2021-12-26T16:53:23","modified_gmt":"2021-12-26T16:53:23","slug":"story-12-the-convent-route","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yucatanbackroads.com\/?p=444","title":{"rendered":"Story 12: The Convent Route"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Ruta de los Conventos<\/strong> is one of Yucatan’s mapped tourist routes. This one takes you south of Merida on the Chetumal highway with stops at Acanceh, Tecoh, Telchaquillo, Z.A. Mayap\u00e1n, Tekit, Mama, Chumayel, Teabo and Man\u00ed. We hit several of those on our two-day overnight trip just before Christmas 2021. There is a long, skinny MAP of this route at the bottom of this page.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Acanceh<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Acanceh <\/strong>(both c’s are hard: ah-kan-KAY<\/em>, a Maya word meaning roughly “lamenting deer”) is a town of around 11,000 about a one-hour drive from Progreso. It is well known as the place where the central plaza has a large colonial church on one side of the main plaza, more modern buildings on two sides, and an 1800-year-old Maya pyramid on the other! <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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When we visited, the archaeological site was officially closed. But there is a small INAH kiosk across the street and the man staffing it said he can take us in a side entrance for 50 pesos each. (Official service? You can decide for yourself, but he did ask us not to walk on the high platform to locations where we could be seen from the main plaza. We’re calling this a “worst kept secret…”)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You climb the steel stairway up the pyramid to see the very well preserved large carved stucco masks. Our guide said these are the only ones of this kind anywhere in Yucatan. There also another large building you can wander around. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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After our visit, we stopped in at the Restaurante La Reina Maya<\/strong> for lunch. This little place must have been built with stones left over from the pyramid reconstruction; it is literally right up against the pyramid. Although the current restaurant is quite new, this original oven is over 100 years old! And they make great cochinita pibil in a real in-ground pib<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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We skipped Tecoh<\/strong> (been there) and stopped in Telchaquillo<\/strong>, but did not find that town of interest. (They do have a cenote right under the main square, but it was closed.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tekit<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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We mention Tekit<\/strong> briefly in Story 9<\/a><\/strong> and were glad to return to the Capital of the Guayaberas<\/strong>. Although our intent was to park in Centro and wander thru some of the factory shops, small signs on every CFE pole directed us to the Feria de las Guayaberas<\/strong>, and how could we miss that? This festival features about 50 of the local designer\/manufacturers of guayabera shirts and men’s and ladies’ embroidered clothing, and happens for 3 weeks every June and December. Prices are a fraction of what you find in M\u00e9rida.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

We skipped Chumayel and Teabo for now to get to our overnight lodging in Akil before dark (on this second-shortest day of the year). Our Google route skirted the village of Tipikal (avoiding obvious pun) and city of Man\u00ed (which we’ll visit tomorrow).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Akil and the Caba\u00f1as Pajaro Azul<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Akil<\/strong> is a small city in the heart of Yucatan’s citrus-growing area and just off the eastern end of the hilly Pu’uc Region. The Caba\u00f1as Pajaro Azul <\/strong>is just 2 blocks south of the main highway 184; there’s no sign but a big wooden gate will be open if owner Patricia knows you’re coming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The property is beautiful; an open area with well spaced trees. There are 5 cabins, the smaller ones in the oval Maya hut style. Our larger cabin had two double beds with mosquito netting, A\/C and a big bathroom. There is a large swimming pool, which was originally a water reservoir for the farm! If it’s a hot day you’ll really appreciate that. (There is no TV here–if you want video entertainment you should download it to your device before leaving home.) Patricia served us coffee and fruit on the table outside the cabin in the morning; there is a full breakfast available (80 pesos as of December 2021).<\/p>\n\n\n\n