Yesterday (Saturday) was epic! We took a taxi from our hotel to an amazing and unique experience park called “X3NS3S” (Senses), with sensory illusions along an underground “Path of Feeling” in total darkness, a crazy gravity-defying town where a stream of water along the disorienting road appeared to flow uphill, a zip line “bird flight” experience, and a “Xitric Garden.” Changing into bathing suits, we were led through a water toboggan flume, a salty river and a mud river to float along on our backs (followed by a gauntlet of water jets to wash off the mud). A central entry area featured chambers of optical illusions to pose for pics in, including a fun house mirror maze. The whole place looked like it had been designed by Salvador Dali, with many weird and wonderful art constructions to climb on and pose with.

29. Optical illusion seat at X3NS3S (Xenses)

But the most remarkable thing was that the park was constructed in and through a complex of natural caves and cenotes, with limestone ceilings and walls covered with 66 million years’ worth of stalactites, flows and curtains, along the paths and often just a foot above our heads. We walked through water much of the way in the natural caves, and one particularly gorgeous cenote featured a central island with trees and vines reaching up through the opening above. Another had a beautiful waterfall with flamingoes, huge iguanas and vultures in the trees. And all underground!

Unfortunately, since we were in bathing suits and water through all the really photogenic parts, I couldn’t bring my cell phone and camera, so I got no pics to show. The park had cameras set up everywhere, and we did pose for many of them, but at the end, when we tried to select and buy a few especially good ones, they insisted that we had to purchase all of them, for $68! Well, that wasn’t gonna happen, so no pics.

From X3NS3S we took a 35-min. taxi ride to Puerto Moreles, about an hour south of Cancun, where we checked into our favorite hotel, the Ojo del Aqua Hotel and Beach Club.

Continued in Yucatán Pilgrimage: Day 8