In the state of Yucatan, just three hours west of Playa del Carmen, you will find incredible ruins, Spanish colonial towns, and a little something to help soothe your cravings
Looking to discover new places within driving distance of Playa del Carmen? Hoping to find places that also appeal to your obsession with chocolate? Look no further than Uxmal, Yucatán. Three hours away, by the toll road, near the small villages of Sotuta, Mani, and Ticul (with an endless array of monasteries, churches, motor taxis, and shoe factories), you will find Choco Story in Uxmal. This eco-park and museum dedicated to chocolate is in front of local pyramids.
You can learn more about chocolate and its role in Maya culture through their 10 teaching stations. They present topics such as: what cocoa is, Maya rituals related to this “food of the gods” (the blood of prisoners of war was collected and mixed with cocoa for the nobles and priests), and a demonstration of how to prepare Chocolhaa, a bitter beverage which the Maya and other North and South American native populations drank. They also explain the arrival of chocolate in Europe with the return of Cortes to Spain and all the history of the drink during the 18th and 19th centuries, how it finally arrived at our tables, lunchboxes, and even in numerous beauty salons.
Additionally, they are an eco-park where spider monkeys, jaguars and deer who have been injured in the wild or mistreated in captivity are in the process of rehabilitation.
Choco Story is a fun place to visit, especially with a family of chocolate lovers whose eyes and mouths open wider in anticipation of trying kakaw (toasted chocolate) or a drink with chile, achiote, sugar or honey. You will also discover unknown details about the history of chocolate from the Maya to the creation of the praline, the collection of chocolate mugs, white chocolate, the benefits of enjoying chocolate.
Sound delicious? Find out more at www.choco-storymexico.com
