Bacalar and the Lagoon of the Seven Colors

It is one of the gems of the Caribbean coastline; a haven of artists, nestled within an area of outstanding natural beauty, where the adventurers zoom, at 125mph, across the ocean's clear, blue horizon. This is Bacalar, named a Pueblo Magico (Magic Town) by the Mexican government; the first with such a designation in the whole of Quintana Roo. It is known as the Lagoon of the Seven Colors.


The town sits just twenty minutes drive south of Chetumal; and the residents of the state's capital have found it well enough. Bacalar is where they come to kick back and relax. A tranquil outpost, where the pace of life winds down to a snail's crawl; where fun is informal and the food is rich, authentic Mexican fare. This is the Mexico that the tourists think that they are getting, up in sanitized, Americanized Cancun. This is real.

Yet external influences have made their mark here too. Bacalar lies right on the River Hondo, the deep river, which provides a natural, national border with Belize to the south. The best of Belize makes it into the town, in dishes, dances and music.

This is especially true during the first fifteen days of August, when the annual Fair of San Joaquin de Bacalar is in full swing. In those heady days of concerts, races, staged fighting, demonstrations, ballets, mercados and fiesta fuelled celebrations, there is as much Belizean as Mexican. Their neighbour is an ally and the fun is shared.


But parties can be had all over Mexico. What most people are here for is the scenery. Hemmed around with lush, jungle foliage, Bacalar boasts a wide and shallow lagoon, that changes color as it moves towards the shore.

Out in the bay, the mirror calm ocean reflects back the rays of the sun, in a twinkling array of glistening gold. This is the Caribbean, so the waters are crystal clear, allowing the underwater world to throw up its colors, in softening hues of green and blue. The white sands are seen long before it sheds the blanketing sea and envelopes the beaches.

It is not unusual to find a tourist here, losing hours in misty-eyed contemplation, at the quiet wonder of it all; nor to overhear the delighted shrieks of the newly arrived, "I feel like I've died and gone to Heaven!!" The artists know. They've been painting it for years.


The lagoon, of course, isn't merely pretty. The waters, stretching out as far as the eye can see, are never deeper than 20ft (6 meters). That makes it perfect for adventure sports, like kayaking. There are places throughout the town, where sail-boats can be hired or trips arranged on a speed-boat. Scuba diving, snorkelling, swimming and every water activity under the sun can be indulged in Bacalar.

This includes cenote diving, swimming and exploring. Cenote Azul, a vast sinkhole, lies right at the entrance to the town. It is the gateway to a sprawling network of underground rivers, caverns and passageways, some of which are yet to be fully discovered. That is the preserve of the experts, but many are mapped for tourist treks. Meanwhile, the cenote itself is one of the most popular attractions in the area, drawing people from miles around to enjoy its refreshing waters and cool, beautiful rockface.

Competitive races are held here too. The biggest is the Rio Hondo-Bacalar Nautical Marathon, which draws crowds in early August. They naturally stick around for the town's large fair.


There is history to explore in the town too. The Fort of San Felipe Bacalar was originally built, in 1725, to protect the town from pirates and illegal loggers. But its importance grew towards the end of that century, when hostilities erupted between the British, in Belize, and the Spanish, in Mexico. With soldiers lined up on either side of the Rio Hondo, the nearby fort became a base of operations and supplies.

Again, in the 19th century, the fort held a pivotal role in the Caste War, when the local Maya rose up against those of European descent. The fort changed hands several times in that conflict; and the history is still there for visitors to see.

Today, it is difficult to imagine battles ever touching Bacalar. The less energetic lie draped on hammocks or sun-loungers; or amble around Bacalar's streets and shops. There are beach-side bars and quiet cafes, or higher class restaurants for those meaningful moments. The beautiful town goes on, in peace and relaxation, and the ever changing colors of its tranquil lagoon.

Protecting the Queen Conch at Xel-Há

There is so much to see and do at Xel-Há Water Park. It's billed as 'the largest natural aquarium in the world'. With all that there is on offer, tourists often miss that they are seeing something very rare indeed. This is the home of the endangered Queen Conch! Over-exploited by generations of fishing, this reclusive creature is on the very brink of extinction. Yet, armed with funding from the European Union, scientists from three continents have now arrived to see what they can do.


The Queen Conch (pronounced Konk-g) has fascinated humans for centuries. Their meat is a staple of the finer restaurants. It is second, in culinary popularity, only to the escargot, when it comes to edible snails. Nothing goes to waste, as every part of the conch can be devoured, though many profess to enjoying the 'white' meat only.

Their ornate pink shells often turn up in shops, bought to decorate private aquariums or to hang about in the garden. More prosaicly, conch shells have been used as home security, embedded into the top of walls, where the sharpened edges deter those thinking of climbing over.

Depictions of the ancient Maya have shown them using these shells as ink wells or bugles. Children of all ages still love to blow into the emptied shells, to produce a deep, resounding noise; or to listen into them to hear 'the sound of the ocean'.

Pink pearls are sometimes found inside these shells. They are destined to be fitted into beautiful jewellry.


The conch isn't known for its speed of flight. It's the original sitting duck, just waiting for someone to pluck it from the seabed and take it to its doom. As a result, the 'harvest' of Queen Conch has gone on unabated throughout all of recorded history. It's only as recently as 2003 that it was recognized how critically endangered it had become.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) recommended that a blanket ban on the import and export of conch be effected immediately. Most Caribbean countries have complied. Domestically, there are also either bans or restrictions placed upon fishing Queen Conch.

In the Mexico state of Yucatan, the Queen Conch is protected at all times of the year. Next door, in Quintana Roo, fishing it is prohibited during the months of February through to October. Even during the rest of the year, only Queen Conch of a certain girth may be taken from the ocean.

For those tourists who have managed to purchase Queen Conch shells, or items made from them, then a shock may await them at home. In some European countries, these are the number one most seized items by customs. They take CITES recommendations very seriously.


Which leads us nicely to what is happening in Xel-Há Water Park right now. In 2009, staff at the park teamed up with academics from the Centre for Research and Advanced Studies of National Polytechnic Institute (CINVESTAV-IPN), based in Mérida. Their project is entitled, 'Protection and Preservation of Queen Conch (Strombus gigas)', and is headed up by award-winning environmental specialist, Dr. Dalila Aldana Aranda.

The aim of the project is to study the Queen Conch, discovering more about their biological cycle and the circumstances in which it thrives. Moreover, additional data about climate change can be gathered from examining the shells. The idea is to work out how to protect the remaining creatures and to help the species back from its critical state.

Recently, the European Union got on board. Their money has not only allowed the purchase of some important, but expensive, equipment to aid this research, but it's also been used to bring in more specialists. Australia's James Cook University and France's University of Western Brittany have both sent people trained in this field. Erwan Amice, Laurent Chauvaud and Thomas Stieglitz now work full time, under the direction of Dr Aldana.


Dr Aldana at Xel-Há
Of course, for the rest of Xel-Há Water Park, live goes on as normal. Tourists jump off cliffs into crystalline waters; lounge on hammocks on white sand beaches; discover the jungle, on foot or on a hired bicycle; or vist the El Dorado cave, with its unique geological formations around a blue-green pool.

But for those snorkelling, scuba diving or sea trekking, in the open Caribbean Sea, then a glimpse of something very special might await. They might spot the Queen Conch waiting on the ocean floor, easily seen through those clear waters; or they could observe the academics at their vital work, studying and protecting this endangered species.

Next time you are there, keep a sharp eye open. Unless the project is successful, then you might be the last generation ever to see a live Queen Conch.




Tulum & Xel-Ha All Inclusive
Combine Maya history with natural beauty! Tour the Tulúm ruins, then swim in the Xel Ha natural aquarium.

Xel-Ha All Inclusive
An incredible natural aquatic theme park and Mayan archaelogical ruins.

Earliest American Found in Quintana Roo

Mexico often has the air of an archaelogists' adventure paradise about it. I defy anyone to visit Cobá, without feeling like they are on the set of an Indiana Jones film. But beyond the vacationers, the experts are flooding in too. So many of Mexico's treasures lie undiscovered beneath the surface of the soil. This past week has seen not one, but two highly significant finds. One of these might change what we know about the history of the Americas. Has the first trace of humanity, on this continent, just been found in Quintana Roo?


In a previously unknown cavern, 4,000ft (1,200 meters) below the surface of the Yucatán Peninsula, diving explorers found the remains of dinosaurs, alongside a human skull. They have yet to be officially dated, but the presense of many megafauna bones, including that of a mastodon, suggests that they date from the Pleistocene Period. In short, they could be over 12,000 years old.


These Mastodons once roamed the Americas.
The remains were discovered in the depths of the labyrinthine Aktun-Hu system. These are a series of subterranean caves and tunnels, beneath Quintana Roo, which were flooded during the last Ice Age. Quintana Roo (famous for being the state where Cancún is) lies upon limestone, through which groundwater easily seeps to create this vast underground world. However, caves like this one, where the discoveries were made, weren't always so far down. The human being inside could well have simply walked in there, before it was ever flooded.

If this human is as ancient as the explorers believe, then (s)he may pre-date even La Mujer de las Palmas (the Lady of the Palms). It certainly adds credence to the theory that the earliest human settlers, on the Americas, came from Europe. They would have sailed from modern-day France, following a wall of icebergs, lining the Atlantic. Until recently, the most common belief was that humans reached the Americas from the north, crossing the Bering Strait, between modern-day Russia and Alaska.


La Mujer de las Palmas - does the latest find pre-date her?
The team, who made these discoveries, had to trapse through dense jungle, carrying their heavy equipment, before even making the deep dive. More details can be read at National Geographic: Skull in Underwater Cave May Be Earliest Trace of First Americans.

Also in the spotlight this week are reports of the discovery of a 3,000 year old Olmec sculpture, in Ojo de Agua, in the state of Chiapas. Standing at 3ft (0.9 meters) tall, it is made of carved, volcanic rock. It depicts a figure, with his hand held up to the Heavens, though no-one knows precisely who he is. The best guesses are Corn God, Tribal Chief, Tribal God or Priest.


Olmec Sculpture found in Chiapas
It was a chance discovery, uncovered by locals, in 2009. Fortunately there was an archaelogist in the area, who was able to quickly reach the site and document precisely how and where it lay. John Hodgson, an anthropology doctorial candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, immediately sealed off the area, into a 250 hectare archaeological zone. This allowed experts to thoroughly chronicle the site.

The intervening years have shown that Ojo de Agua was once a thriving Olmec settlement. Raised platforms and formal pyramids can be discerned around central plazas. It was abandoned around 2,000 years ago.

Los Insurgentes: The Poets, Publicists and Spies

It began as a love story. Leona met Andrés, at her uncle's law firm, where he was working as a lawyer. The two became instantly besotted with each other. He asked her to marry him and she immediately said 'yes!' But there was a problem. Her uncle forbade the union outright. As a staunch royalist, he could not permit his beloved niece to marry Andrés Quintana Roo. The man was an insurgent!

Leona Vicario was a wealthy woman. She had been born, in Mexico City, on April 10th, 1789, as an heiress to a Creole fortune. Her full name was Maria de la Soledad Camila Leona Vicario Fernandez de San Salvador and Montiel de Quintana Roo, which possibly explains why she introduced herself as merely Leona Vicario.

She had been orphaned at a young age, hence the fact that she was now living under the guardianship of her uncle, Agustín Pomposo Fernández de San Salvador.

She had been 21 years old, when news spread of the insurgency swarming into their direction. Though secretly sympathetic to the course, she wasn't actively involved in it. She was too busy flirting with Andrés, a man who wrote such beautiful poetry.

Andrés Quintana Roo, on the other hand, already had a bit of a history of subversive action. He was born Eligio Andrés Quintana Roo, on November 30th, 1787, in Mérida, Yucatán, as the son of José and Maria Ana Matías Quintana Roo.

José had established the first printing press in on the Yucatán Peninsula; and he'd already caught the eye of the authorities with publications that bordered upon insubordination.

(It should be noted that there was no Mexican state of Quintana Roo (pron. keen-TAH-nah ROH-oh) at this point. It's a common error to see his name rendered as Andrés de Quintana Roo. There was no 'de' about it. The state was named after Andrés, not the other way around. He came from Yucatán; Quintana Roo is the state underneath that.)

In 1802, at the age of 15, Andrés Quintana Roo had joined the Sanjuanistas, being taken there by his father, José. This was a group of Mexican Creole political thinkers, who met at San Juan Church, in Mérida. It was led by Padre Vicente María Velásquez, a priest who had an especial interest in the plight of Indians and indigenious Maya workers. These people tended to be kept on starvation wages, working long hours in the fields and plantations of Spanish overlords. The group discussed freedom of the press, education for all (including the 'peasant' classes), universal suffrage and other such radical ideas of the time. They also condemned the privileges of the Spanish, over the native people.

José Matías Quintana Roo was later to be arrested and sentenced to incarceration at the notorious San Juan de Ulua island prison, off the coast of Veracruz. His publications, fuelled with the ideas of the Sanjuanistas, had finally proved too much for the Spanish governors to stomach.


The Royal and Pontifical University of New Spain
Meanwhile, his son, Andrés, was well away. At the age of 21, Andrés had moved to Mexico City to complete his education. He had gained his primary qualifications at the Seminario de San Idelfonso de Mérida (San Idelfonso Seminary, in Mérida), but, in order to be a fully practicing lawyer, he needed to enter Real y Pontificia Universidad de Nueva España (The Royal and Pontifical University of New Spain). Thus it was that, two years later and close to his 23rd birthday, he was still in the capital city, hearing from his boss that he was not going to be allowed to marry Agustín's niece.

The couple were stunned. With his father in prison and Hidalgo's army on the march, the injustices sparking the cause had now crashed straight into Andrés's personal life. He gave in his notice. He left the building. He rode straight out to meet the Army of the Insurgents and he joined it.

Leona Vicario was no less incensed. She was 21 years old and, as far as she was concerned, her uncle had no right to interfere in her marriage plans like this. Until now, she had kept out of the insurrection. She had played the society woman and she'd been a good girl. No more. Leona also packed her bags. She moved to Tacuba, which is now part of the Miguel Hidalgo borough, in the north-west of Mexico City, but then was a town slightly apart. Then she got active.


For a start, Leona Vicario found like-minded women and organized them. They acted as spies and couriers for the rebels. She financed them from her own fortune. It is believed that, by the end of the War of Independence, Leona had personally contributed over $80,000 pesos to the cause. (In today's money, that would be the equivalent of roughly $1,330,000 pesos.)

They aligned themselves with the Guadalupes, a clear signal that they supported the Virgin of Guadalupe. This was highly significant at the time, especially in Mexico City. It was also the reason that Hidalgo was using the Virgin of Guadalupe in his speeches, slogans and flags. While now, the Virgin of Guadalupe is a common icon throughout Mexico, back in 1810, it was used only by the caste Indians and indigenious people. Not by people of Leona's class.

The Virgin of Guadalupe (left) and
the Virgin of Los Romedios (above)

The Virgin of Guadalupe is a depiction of Mary, Mother of Christ, but as a brunette with a darker complexion. As a wealthy Creole, of Spanish descent, Leona should have been casting her lot with the Virgin of Los Remedios. This was Mary, Mother of Christ, looking altogether richer, with paler skin and much lighter brown hair. This is Mary as the Queen of Heaven; while the Virgin of Guadalupe was Mary as a humble woman. She wore a cloak spun from agave (the plant which is also the main ingredient in tequila). She had symbols around her that dated back from Atzec goddesses.

Leona's faction of the Mexico City Guadalupes were all women of high status and even better connections. They were able to use their society lifestyle to gain information from the Realista officer class and those close to the viceroy. They were able easily form a network of informants that passed this information onto the leaders of the insurgency. After the battle of Monte de las Cruces, when it seemed that Hidalgo's Army of the Americas was about to storm Mexico City itself, the ranks of the Guadalupes swelled. Many of the ladies were now quite open about their involvement. They thought that Mexican independence was just around the corner.

But then Hidalgo ordered the retreat and, within months, he and the other leaders had been arrested and executed. Many letters, signed by El Guadalupes, were found upon them, giving important (and hitherto classified) information. The authorities had to act and so began a program of search and arrest within the city itself. Many of the more indiscreet ladies were captured. Within their respective camps, Leona and Andrés both escaped detection. But they weren't finished with the independence movement yet.

Andrés was on the run. He moved from city to city, using his publishing knowledge to create two newspapers: 'Semanario Patriótico Americano' (American Patriot Weekly) and 'Ilustrador Americano' (American Illustrator). Both received wide circulation, promoting Mexican independence and all of the insurgent groups. It got the news out there, as well as inspiring people to join them. The viceroy's office wanted greatly to close them down.



Leona continued her intelligence work. Hidalgo and his people may be down, but others were rising into prominence. She found out who they were and she ensured that they were now in possession of her information and funds. She also received messages back, explaining what was needed on the front line. Chief amongst them was armaments. Leona took it upon herself to persuade the gunsmiths of Nueva Vizcaya (modern-day Chihuahua, Durango, Texas and New Mexico) to join the rebel's cause. This was a step too far and she was betrayed by one of them.

Leona was arrested on January 13th, 1813. She absolutely refused to name her colleagues nor anyone in her network of contacts. If she had been a man, she would probably have been sent to prison or executed. But she was a lady of breeding and therefore that would not have been appropriate. Instead, she was sent to a convent. El Convento de Belén de las Mochas (the covent of Bethlehem, in the Mochas) was still within Mexico City. She was only there for four months, before three insurgents, disguised as Realistas, visited her under the pretext of further questioning. Colonels Antonio Vázquez Aldarna and Luis Alconedo (and a third man) soon spirited her out of the gates to freedom.


José María Morelos

She was taken to Oaxaca de Juárez, Oaxaca, where she met up with José María Morelos. Morelos was the bright star of the current insurgency hopes, but life with his army wasn't easy. Used to the finery of salons, Leona was now on the road. She was seeing first-hand what the battlefields were like, as she camped with them and supported them as best she could. In response, her own property and goods, in Mexico City, were confiscated by the viceroy.

The army arrived in Michoacán state, where many insurgent groups were congregating. They were seeking to create an government and a declaration of independence was already being drafted.

Up in the hillsides, hidden deep within the hundreds of mine shafts, the López Rayón brothers had been smithing guns and other armaments for the insurgents, until just a month before. That was when the Realistas had overwhelmed El Gallo hill and forcing them to evacuate.

Many of Leona's letters, or whispered communications, had ended up in Michoacán. But they was not the only things belonging to her here. In the municapality of Tlalpujahua, she was reunited with Andrés Quintana Roo. There was no uncle between them now and they were married without delay.

In September, 1913, José María Morelos read out the Sentimientos de la Nación (Feelings of the Nation), at the Congress of Chilpancingo. This was their Declaration of Independence and it named Andrés as the governor of Puebla. This, however, was a government still in hiding. Though that didn't stop them passing a series of laws, with Andrés as a senior congressman, presiding over many of the committees. The couple were forced to move frequently, still publishing newspapers and doing their best to support the cause in whatever way possible.

In 1818, their daughter, Genoveva, was born. This caused them to stay too long in one place, while Leona was heavily pregnant and then gave birth. Their location was discovered by the Realistas and the whole family was arrested. After a short period in prison, the family were offered a pardon, on condition that they were exiled to Spain. They accepted it and left the country. They were doing no good in prison and they had a baby.

However, they were soon back. Mexico had finally achieved independence, in 1821, and Andrés took his seat as part of an official government. The couple were given the Ocotepec Hacienda, in the plains of Apam, as compension for their financial and property losses during the struggle. They resumed their positions at the top of Mexico City's society. Leona died there, in 1842, and Andrés, in 1851, both peacefully.


Andrés Quintana Roo

Where to Visit:


* San Juan Church, Mérida. This is the place where the Sanjuanistas met, consolidating and enflaming Quintana Roo's passion for the insurgency.

* San Juan de Ulua, Veracruz. The fort, which has been alternatively used as a fort, prison and the seat of government, is now a museum owned by the Mexican Navy. This is the place where José Matías Quintana Roo was imprisoned for subversive publications.

* Oaxaca de Juárez, Oaxaca. This is the city where Leona met José María Morelos. The city is a UNESCO Cultural Site.

* Tlalpujahua, Michoacán. This is the city where the couple were reunited and married.