2009 Mexican Eco-Blogging Green Adventure – Xel-Ha Eco-Park

 

Set in middle of the Yucatan jungle, Xel-Ha (pronounced “shell-ha”) is a protected inlet set near Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. It is touted as being a natural aquarium park, and is indeed quite beautiful.

Talk about an up-close and personal view of ocean life! Snorkeling in the crystal  clear ocean waters at Xel-Ha is very much like swimming in an aquarium. It is free of walls and glass panes, has no man-made lights or feeding mechanisms, and has over 70 species of colorful fish. Luis, being the strongest swimmer in the family, swam across the inlet and back to view some of the fish in the inlet which were as large as he is – bigger even. Absolutely amazing.

All the staff at Xel-Ha are extraordinarily helpful and kind. Our guides from Xel-Ha, Daniela and Delio, showed me a behind the scenes view of Xel-Ha which was r eally a tour of a lifetime for a greening expert. Their kitchen system feeds up to 11,000 people per day and features a fantastic organic recycling program whereby all the food waste is recycled and composted, even the meats and bones. You can see this demonstrated in the giant compost bin shown on the left. All paper, plastic, and metal is recycled on the property and I got to visit the recycling and compost system. Saitra Perez Cabrera is a biologist who runs the recycling and compost program. She gave me a marvelous tour of her facility and we bonded over our mutual love for composting. It was marvelous – here is a photo of us together in front of her compost area.

Xel-Ha also uses no drinking straws on the facility, which injure animals, and prints no visitor maps. If you are interested in finding your position within the park, you are encouraged to look at the large maps which are hung at regular intervals instead of using a printed sheet which must be thrown away. Below, you can see how large the eco-park facility is and get a view of the inlet.

More importantly, Xel-Ha works to promote community by educating both its employees and the surrounding cities on greening concepts. This has brought benefits beyond any expectations to the people who live here.  Xel-Ha Natural  Wonder Park carries out some awesome “green” programs and is the first park in Mexico to apply for the Green Globe 21 certification process, which aims to face environmental challenges, social and cultural aspects, and make the benefits of tourism reach local communities. The sustainability upon which Green Globe is founded resides in a simple concept: To preserve resources for future generations. Xel-Ha is truly working to make this happen.

While I was toured around the “behind the scenes” facility, Luis and my daughter swam in the inlet. Both enjoyed large salt water fish experiences and got to feed the fish by hand as well. We later went to visit and tour the plant nursery and  a Mayan bee apiary, which is where a special stingless bee lives. The apiary features a Mayan style of caring for the bees. They hollow out logs and drill a hole for the bees to come and go like the photo to the left. We met a very dangerous ant which lives in the Yucutan peninsula called the “Tiger Ant”. Above you see a photo of the ant army. Their bite is quite painful, so we stayed well away from them.

There was nature all around us and at one point Daniela and Delio surprised us  with a special dive underwater called “Sea Trek” – wow – it was absolutely unforgettable. We wore special diving helmets on our shoulders and were able to walk on the bottom of the ocean while breathing normally. It was a great way to touch nature. We were able to see hundreds of fish this way. According to the guides, my daughter was the youngest person to ever go on the Sea Trek adventure at age eight. She LOVED it and did just fine.

All of the family was very thrilled when we had the great privilege of swimming with and feeding large sting rays during this experience. Sting rays feel surprisingly soft when you touch them and are graceful – it’s like watching a dance when they swim together.

What a wonderful and amazing ocean adventure for my family to experience – you can see us all together in front of the inlet in the photo below. Watching the people of Xel-Ha care for the land, the ocean, and their community was both exciting and inspirational. They believe in leaving a legacy for all the world to see.

What are you doing in your community to make a green difference?

 

Remember to enter these three contests which are going on only as long as the 14 day Gardening Nude 2009 Mexican Eco-Blogging Green Adventure - - link through below and follow the blog to win BIG -

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Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Comments

[Carol @SheLives]

I'm pretty sure I see a blue BP swimsuit!! Pretty darned sure. Y'all are having way too much fun!

[Shawna Coronado]

I DID use the Olympus underwater camera - actually known as the Tough 6000 to get the photos. Aren't they amazing? The sting ray was especially marvelous to touch and photograph. I was really blown away by the experience.

My youngest thought the experience was too fantastic to even describe. We talked about it for hours and hours. She liked it too because she feels she might be able to scuba in the future now that she's experienced this and likes it.

OH - and the bees were really cool. They are stingless, so there were no worries about being stung. We stood in middle of them while they flew around and my daughter helped the bee keeper rescue a bee that had landed in some water and looked like it was drowning.

Really neat experience!

I hope you'll stay with me the rest of the week and follow more adventures. :-)

Shawna Coronado

[Kylee from Our Little Acre]

Now THAT is cool. Did you use an Olympus underwater camera for those photos? How lucky for your daughter to get to do that! I would have loved it, too.

[Naomi]

I think I like the beach (and your blue bathing suit!) better than the bees... yikes!