Snapshots of our trip to Campeche

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 founded in 1540 by Spanish conquistadores as San Francisco de Campeche atop the pre-existing Maya city of Can Pech. Campeche is (along with Quebec City) one of the only cities in North America with most of its historic old city walls intact. It's a World Heritage Site. It had a lot of trouble with pirates . Like, a lot. Here's a list of the more famous ones: John Hawkins, Francis Drake, Laurens de Graaf, Cornelius Jol, Jacobo Jackson, Michel de Grandmont, Portuguese Bartholomew, William Parker, Jean David Nau, Edward Mansvelt, Henry Morgan, Lewis Scot, Roche Brasiliano, and Jean Lafitte. So many pirates.

Nowadays, it's got a cute little touristy downtown with a pedestrian street for restaurants. The old fort is still there with its original canons, waiting for any new pirates. The interior is a museum. There's a convention center and a really big, modern mall. There's a water park. Some nice hotels. A craft market in the plaza. A malecon (sidewalk that runs along the water), but no swimming because it's just a rocky  shore, no sand.

We went to Mass here the next day. Joseph and I saw a car accident at the corner at the end of Mass. There wasn't a stop sign on the corner in either direction, so both cars assumed they had the right of way and bounced off of each other. The police were there very quickly and I don't think anybody was really hurt.


This hotel is out of business, but I peeked through the window.

Our balcony at sunset. Maybe it's brotherly love; maybe they're fighting over a toy.

Happy little glyph at the fort museum.

It was 90-something degrees. I couldn't stop thinking about the Spanish soldier in their wool uniforms manning their outposts.



No pirates yet.

It has a drawbridge. Like, a real, honest-to-goodness drawbridge.

Heading out of town. Maya guy.

"Joseph, what are you doing?"
"I'm pants."



Joseph impressed by his dinner.

One of the gates of the walled city.

Just inside the gate.



I don't think the boys had seen one of these before. Sadly, it was out of service.

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