!!!! oh hi !!!!

Hola amigos!

We’re back with another update! Over the past month or so, we’ve been soaking up the sun and culture in Mexico and New York City. We hope to bring you a few fun stories and things we’ve learnt along the way! And a ~BIG~ *congrats** to Jas who came away with the QUIZ WIN from the last edition and accompanying prize!!!! Yippee!

Cancun Reunion & Playa Del Carmen

After our mini trip to Phoenix, Arizona, for Travs & Kel’s wedding, we flew down to Cancun, Mexico, where we met up with Coulson and Em. They’ve been traveling the world for over a year, so it was awesome to finally catch up and hang out. We were VERY impressed with the fact they are carrying even less on their backs than we are! Ultralite king and queen. We had dinner together nearby to our accom (tortas, which are kind of pork in a roll), and we noticed Coulson was clutching this reusable orange shopping bag all evening. We initially thought this was part of his ultralight travel gear, but it turned out it was a gift for us for our engagement—a piñata with our faces on it lol! A smashing gift that we loved v v v much.

The next morning, we took a colectivo to Puerto Morelos, where Dean and Sarah picked us up in a rental car and zoomed down to Playa Del Carmen for a week by the beach and pool. Playa Del Carmen turned out to be quite the party spot, a bit like the towns near the Gold Coast, with lively beach bars and Fat Tuesday slushies. We also discovered an amazing row of street food taco carts that became our go-to spot for delicious tacos loaded with toppings, coming back three times in the week.

We had a lot of fun with Dean, Sarah, Coulson, and Em. We considered going to an all-inclusive beach club for one of the last days as a splurge but decided we couldn’t justify the cost, so we attempted to recreate our own by going to a supermarket and buying "all-inclusive" style food and drinks (e.g., premade Piña Colada), and we dug a big hole in the sand to sit in…so close enough!

Cenotes & Chichen Itza Adventures

We spent one day visiting cenotes—natural sinkholes filled with crystal-clear water. They’re remnants of an ancient underwater reef system (Schmitter-Soto et al., 2002). Swimming in these natural pools was refreshing and offered a glimpse into the region’s unique geology.

Another highlight was visiting Chichen Itza, the iconic Mayan pyramid. The sheer size and historical significance of this site left us in awe (Sharer & Traxler, 2006; Tom & Milla, 2024).

Snorkelling in Cozumel

After our week in Playa Del Carmen, we said our goodbyes to the crew and took a 30-minute ferry across to Cozumel, an island known for its scuba and snorkelling spots. We hired bikes to explore different parts of the island but ended up spending most of our time cooling off in the water due to the intense heat.

The underwater world did not disappoint—we saw angelfish, parrotfish, moray eels, stingrays, manta rays, and more (Humann & DeLoach, 2002).

Mexico City: Culture & Climate Challenges

We then planned to slow down a bit in Mexico City (22.3 million people and 2,400 meters above sea level). We had heard great things from Coulson and Em, and since we powered through our first couple of months of the trip, we were happy to stay in one city for a bit longer. We were in Los Manzanos for a week before moving to El Centro for 10 days. We stayed in accom located in the same area as a massive chocolate factory, and every time the wind would blow, you could smell sweet cocoa!!

About 8 days in, we started to feel a bit dried out (particularly Milla, and mostly after riding bikes around all arvo). After some research and chatting with people living there, it was most likely the combination of very poor air quality during the period we were there, high temperatures (severe drought), low humidity levels (18% compared to Melbourne’s 50-60%), and high elevation that led to symptoms of dryness and burning of nasal passages and eyes. The high altitude results in reduced oxygen levels, causing cars and trucks to burn fuel less efficiently. This leads to incomplete combustion and higher emissions, which are further exacerbated by the city’s location in a large valley that traps polluted air. Using saline spray and wearing an N95 mask helped improve the symptoms.

Slowing down after months of quick movement between places allowed us to truly immerse ourselves in the local culture. We explored neighborhoods like Popotla, Roma Norte, and Coyoacán (home to Frida Kahlo) and attended Lucha Libre wrestling matches at Arena México, where masked wrestlers put on spectacular shows full of acrobatics. We also had a great time watching soccer at Estadio Azteca, where we saw Club América take the win. This slower pace also gave us a chance to plan the next part of our trip, cook some of our own meals, and relax a little.

btw Tom looks like Lleyton Hewitt in this pic:

New York, NEW YORKKK!!

From Mexico City, we flew straight into New York City—what a city! It was great seeing Juliana (a friend of Milla’s from university exchange in London 10 years ago) and meeting her partner Matt. And then staying with Dean and Sarah again (big thanks to Sarah’s employer Gencove for the hotel room) made our visit more economical—big thank you. It was also awesome seeing Charlotte, a good friend of Milla’s who lives in Philly.

We explored various neighborhoods, including the West Village, East Village, and Harlem. We ran around Central Park, feeling like true New Yorkers, crossed the Brooklyn Bridge at sunset, visited iconic landmarks like the Statue of Liberty, window-shopped at high-end stores just for fun, enjoyed diverse cuisines across Manhattan, and much more!

One night stood out when we saw Fatboy Slim perform live until 4am, dancing along to classic hits like “Right Here, Right Now”— it was surreal! Milla also attended a New York Philharmonic concert featuring Mozart’s Requiem, which was pretty incredible, it was in the newly renovated David Geffen Hall in the Lincoln Center. Meanwhile, Tom caught up with his friend Travs over drinks at a few West Village bars.

A Transatlantic Trip!

As always, thank you all for following along on our journey. We’re now in Porto with Brenton and Kristie where Brenton reports the Primavera Sound Porto festival was “pretty gud”, having spent the past week in Girona and Barcelona with Ella & Tom and Mim & Oli. Stay tuned for more updates soon.

Love and miss you all,
Milla & Tom xoxoxox

P.S. For more photos from our travels, visit this link.

Here is a crossword we made for some reason this edition

Tom’s References:

• Humann, P., & DeLoach, N. (2002). Reef Fish Identification: Florida Caribbean Bahamas Including Marine Fishes from Bermuda.

• INEGI - Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía.

• IPCC - Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

• Schmitter-Soto, J.J., Comín, F.A., Escobar-Briones, E.G., Herrera-Silveira, J.A., Alcocer, J., Suárez-Morales, E., Elías-Gutiérrez, M., Díaz-Arce, V., Marín, L.E., & Steinich, B. (2002). "Hydrogeochemical Characteristics of Groundwater Discharging into Coastal Cenotes," Journal of Hydrology.

• SENAMHI - Servicio Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología del Perú.

• Sharer, R.J., & Traxler, L.P. (2006). "The Ancient Maya," Stanford University Press.

• Tom & Milla. (2024). Unpublished travel experiences.