Lunch at ‘Pak Chen’ is the only game in town!

Come with me to Quintana Roo, the easternmost state in Mexico, stretching along the eastern shores of the Yucatan Peninsula. Our journey of a little more than two hours will bring us to an adventure in a small Mayan community called "Pak Chen."

We leave the warm sunshine of Cancun, Mexico; the most important city in Quintana Roo, and the logical gateway to the Maya World. This morning we are not going to don our swimsuits and soak up the sun under the swaying palm trees that line the shore. Instead, we (a press group of eight) are riding in a compact little mini-bus, bound for the Yucatan peninsula.

I have never before entered the Maya World. Such exotic names embrace these communities! Tulum, Coba, Muyil, all tantalize my tongue. Ancient culture is about to be revealed; along with spectacular scenery, virgin beaches, and the colorful communities of today's Maya. Let me tell you a little bit about this spectacular area, gleaned from my guidebook.

Every type of topography in the Americas exists in the Maya World: highlands, lowlands, wetlands, jungle, savanna and coastal dunes--with wildlife to match. Spanish colonial cities rose from the ashes of ancient temples, and today's prevailing Mestizo culture is the result of two races, white and Indian, having merged so long ago. But the land and the people did resist. The native Maya, whose land this really is, constitute one of the largest ethnic populations in the world!

We are about to be greatly privileged. We have been invited to have lunch at "Pak Chen"; a small Mayan village reached by an equally small dirt road which is very, very long and difficult to navigate. We manage however, and drive slowly over a profusion of rocks and rills to a small settlement of people dedicated to preserving the Mayan way of life.

This means (by choice) no running water! No electricity! The homes are plain, built like square boxes with thatched roofs. Their main and sometimes only pieces of furniture are colorful woven hammocks for sleeping. The community pavilion is prepared to welcome us, the table neatly set. A group stands at the entrance to welcome us; beautiful young Mayan girls wait to serve us. In one of the few cement buildings a group of Mayan women reach into a bowl of masa and pat tortillas. Another Mayan woman tends the charcoal fire where chickens are cooking over a grate. Some can speak a little English. Most speak either Spanish or a Mayan dialect. But friendly greetings and a welcoming smile work wonders. We feel right at home.

Water is trucked in, bottled in huge containers. Most vegetables are grown in the little village. Everyone has a "community" job to do according to their age and their particular skill. Few tourists ever glimpse this village; very few indeed ever share a meal. Today, we are delighted and privileged to be honored guests. Mayan young ladies, all in colorful dress, begin to serve us as we pick up our plates and file past the table, choosing generous portions of local fare. It was a simply delicious Mayan meal!

Later we would walk through the jungle where the most hardy of our group would enjoy the thrill of the afternoon…rappelling down a specially designed plunge over water without getting wet. I hate to admit I didn't opt to share this "adventure". Instead, I chose to canoe back to the pavilion and laze in a huge swaying hammock until it was time to say goodbye.

I have had many a 5-star lunch at many a 5-star hotel in many a 5-star city in the world.

But this delightful lunch at the leading (and only) "restaurant" at Pak Chen in the Yucatan, rated 6-stars in ambiance alone. This was the unanimous vote of the privileged press!