Bacalar was our off-piste stop of the trip… it requires a 5 hour bus to reach and is in the secluded South of the peninsula. However, it just sounded right up our alley; described as “Tulum, back when it was good” (paraphrasing), it’s more removed from the main tourist route and being situated on a unique and beautiful lagoon… well we had to go. So we did.

Day 7 – Bacalar: Lagoon of Seven Colours, boat tour

We’re missing out Day 6 here, because it was a full travel day. I will mention that we couldn’t book seats on a bus till 6pm which would have got us in at 11pm, so we went for the midday bus… standing. Needless to say it was hell, but after a few hours we snagged some seats and made it out alive. The right decision was made. Bacalar is our fancy stop, where we forked out a bit more for accommodation than anywhere else. We were going to be spending Christmas here, and if you spend here, you get the lagoon fronted hotel, which is bliss incarnate really. We booked ourselves on a 3 hour sailing boat tour of the Lagoon of Seven Colours the previous night, so off we trotted for our 11am start.

We shared the tour with three other couples all from other countries and it was all very civil and friendly. Our 2 crew got the sailing underway and we were soon yelping in fear as the boat tipped 45 degrees, and the crew laughed at our naive foolishness because thats what sailing is all about. It wasn’t 45 degrees the whole way by any means and they’d soon handed out some beers and started explaining about the lagoon, which I may as well share or this would be a very boring blog.

The Bacalar lagoon exists because it is fed by four large cenotes. It gains it’s crazy light blue colour due to one main reason – the water is high in certain minerals and that in combination with acidity levels makes it a very poor place for plant life to grow underwater. So the lagoon floor is essentially a desert, just sand… but quite silty and squishy sand that feels like brains underfoot. This means the water stays incredibly clear and voila, lovely light blue. There are some fish, turtles and crocs in there, but not many of the latter. The capitan said he’d seen 4 crocs in his 2 years sailing the lagoon. It was safe to swim. So they took us to the cenotes, which were sort of just darker bits of water, really. Though apparently over 100 meters deep in one instance (oooh scary). One such cenote had a bit more of a multicolour element to it and apparently that’s the reason its called the lagoon of seven colours, though I’d say it’s a hard sell, and would have stuck to the fact the entire bloody lagoon had lots of different amazing colours, personally.

We went to a few swimming spots after that and the water is delightfully warm and enjoyable to swim in, so that was lovely. All in all, it was just nice to go on a sailing boat and drink a few beers! We thoroughly enjoyed it and would totes recommend.

Back upon land we chilled mostly. Books had only just been scratched the surface of and demanded our attention. Beers were drunk and views enjoyed, with the odd dip in the lagoon between. We walked up into the outskirts of the sleepy town for a lovely dinner before bed. The town itself is such a lovely blend of quiet and traditional with just enough tourist amenities and restaurants to make it feel nice and easy. Not too many places in the world are in that lovely cusp of touristic exposure and when you find them it’s the best! Sidemen in Bali had a similar feel, which we loved.

Day 8 – Christmas and THE PROPOSAL

This was quite a big day… it was Christmas Day and I only bloody went and proposed to Billie and she only bloody went and said yes, the fool!

So we spent the day in a mood of extreme elation, sharing the news with family and friends and drinking excessively through our wild happiness. We even got our hands on some bubbly, which we gobbled down greedily. Between all that we went for a kayak (hard work, esp when full of beer) and climbed a viewing tower for some glorious views of Bacalar.

We celebrated that evening at a lovely Italian restaurant in Bacalar town. The centre of town was bustling a busy with tourists and locals alike celebrating Christmas and it all felt oh so celebratory and joyous. This day is definitely up there on the best days of my life list!

Next time on Yes We Yucatan, we get cultural in Merida! Coolest city on the peninsula. Adios!