Steel Wheels

Mayan Aperture

Of all the things for which the Maya are known aperture may be the least appreciated. Coba is in the state of Quintana Roo a few kilometers west of Tulum and is the perfect place to experience the last moment the Maya could recall their Golden Age. It was a culture bewitched by aperture. In 1400 CE the Maya had long forgotten the refined art of finishing touches in building construction but their sense of perspective was still intact.

You can’t take a motorcycle but steel wheels are available in the form of bicycles and “Taxis.” It’s magical riding through a Mayan jungle in 2012 accompanied by the music of unknown birds and the tikking-song of Mayan spoken by the Taxi drivers.

The Maya were so bewitched by aperture that they invented a game that revolved around it whereby the victors’ leader would lose his head. These stories become impossible to believe once you meet the modern Maya. Their gentle steady spirit could not have been spawned by such strange violence. Yet today we enjoy a game where goal posts form an aperture and where losers and winners alike can lose their minds if not their heads.

In June the heat and humidity make Houston and New Orleans seem tame. Rent a bike if you’re up to it but the Mayan Taxi is one of the best deals on Earth.

The Island Of Women

A 15 minute ferry ride from Cancun takes you to Isla Mujeres. Less than four and a half miles long and perfect for motorcycling. But everyone on Isla rides a scooter and after a few days we can say it’s the ideal ride on island paradiso. Scooters are an extension of the local persona the way cars are in Houston but the skills here are unsurpassed. You’ll see whole families, dogs, and passengers balancing everything from furniture to a stack of two-by-fours on their shoulders while riding. No matter how fast you go they will pass you on the left or the right. And an eerie quiet is all you’ll hear from the multitude of scooters in motion. The engines are nearly silent, no one ever honks, and we’ve yet to see a collision. It’s reminiscent of the Terminal floor at Grand Central Station. There’s no accounting for it.

It isn’t long before our thoughts turn to food. There’s no shortage of great dives on Isla but you have to know someone who can direct you to the really great ones.

Happy Hour is an American tradition and Casa Sirena maintains that for hotel guests and ex-pats. Every night about 6:30 the games begin at the rooftop bar. The views of the sunset and the city are ironically sobering. The owner is a world-class bartender, hotelier, and in a former life a graphic designer. His little 6 room hotel is even more well-conceived than his cocktails.

Sunsets are different every night. Whether the roof-top bar at Casa Sirena or on the beach, pick your spot and be ready to share—everyone has the same idea and it never gets old. It’s like seeing color for the first time every evening.

Serengeti Visage

The way you see on a motorcycle is different—and the things you see can take you places you never thought you’d go. Like the Serengeti Plain.

FM 362 north of Hwy 290 runs through Waller, Harris, and Grimes counties where it ends at Hwy 105. Motorcyclists who know about it love it for its smooth sweeping curves and sparse traffic. Not too far in from 290 you’ll pass by El Corazon Kennels. Except you won’t know it. When you pass by the El Corazon gate you ride into a Serengeti Visage with African wildlife dotting the lush green pasture. This weekend we caught a small herd of Zebras nosing their way through a pasture Paradiso—a place they never thought they’d go.