Mexican Palapas!

I see many palapas each day! They come in various sizes, designs and serve different purposes. In an earlier post, I said that I would like to feature at least one palapa each time I post on my blog. I thought it would be fun to show you three palapas within one block of the apartment in Playa del Carmen. A palapa is usually an open sided dwelling with a thatched roof made of dried, woven palm leaves¨. They look like a roof or an umbrella and their original purpose was to provide shade and refuge from the hot sun!

The top picture shows a palapa awning for an apartment balcony. The middle picture shows a palapa on top of an apartment building one block from here. Since the buildings are flat roofed, they often have swimming pools, lounge chairs, grills and a sink for cooking. This particular building has a pool on the roof top and shade provided from the palapa.

This is the view from the apartment kitchen window! Can you believe it? As I wash the dishes, this is my view. Incredible, eh? Again, this palapa provides shade on the apartment rooftop for parties or BBQ´s.