Bill Holmes - Activities - Hiking and Biking - Central America - Mexico - Cancun
Charlie was the bus driver, Tony was the English guide and Rubin was the Spanish guide.The itinerary was reversed to avoid the crowds at Chichen Itza, so we stopped at a sonato. Water draining through the limestone created 5 million year old sonatos. Some are 1000 feet deep.
My cell phone lost an hour when we entered the area of a different service provider. Tony attributed it to daylight savings time.
Maya hut
Spanish church build with blocks from destroyed Mayan village
Stone entry
Typical side street on way to lunch
The Chichen Itza Handicraft Shop is dedicated to Mayans. Having a date painted on papyrus was offered for $25. I bought my brithday and that of Mel.
Some Maya deviate from tradition with metal roof
Besides limestone, Mayans used bark paper (parchment?) made from amaya trees, which degraded and readily burned, so only three "books" remain.
15,000 years after migration across the Bearing Straight, the Mayan calendar zero date of 8/13/3014 BCE was established. It's 365.25-day year predates the Georgian 365-day calender by 3000 years. A Mayan year consists of 18 months of 20 days plus one month of 5 days. The next "long count" ends 21 Dec. 2012. The calendar is accurate to within 0.24 days over a
5,125-year period.
Besides limestone, Mayans used bark paper (parchment?) made from amaya trees, which degraded and readily burned, so only three "books" remain.
Regional limestone is the result of the Yucatan peninsula rising slowly as it rebounds from the asteroid impact. It was likely carved underground where is was wet and soft enough to be hewn with obsidian.
Chichen Itza park entrance on one of our guides
Pyramid
Temple
Chichen Itzu grew for 900 years until Toltecs invaded. The Toltrcs added human sacrifice to the religion, which included those who put the ball through the hoop, which ended game. The court measures 170x40 m.
Ball court
Temple to right of ball court entry
Panorama
Court east end
Glyphs the depicting the Toltec sun god in the circle on the left beheading of ball player after he scored, which ended the game. The snakes eminating from his neck represent blood. One snake arches over and down, and becomes a plant with flowers representing rebirth. Mayans did not engage in human sacrafice until after they were dominated by Toltec invaders from the north.
Chief Kukulcan was white and bearded. He left to east. His image is on most structures, including the structure below. The expectation of his return caused Cortz to be mistaken for him. That plus Spanish diseases allowed Cortez to concour empires throughout Central America.
Conatulca-Inah at west end of court
Gliphs on Conatulca-Inah
Toltec wall of skulls on stakes representing kills with guide, Tony
The other side had as many. The heads of the beheaded were placed on stakes as shown in their limestone representation.
The main temple is aligned 18 degrees from north, which magnetic north. No one knows how.
During the equinoxes (3/21 & 9/23) at 4 PM one can witness the return of Tultacan as a snake descemding the large steps.
The accoustics of the stairs is such that a clap at it's bae will result in the sound of their sacred bird, the quetzal.
Park panorama looking north
Toltec temple
Bill in front of pyrimid
Snake (west) side of pyramid
Toltec warrior temple
Toltec warrior temple (square columns) and Mayan marketplace (round columns) panorama
Mayan marketplace
Mayan market back wall
Mayan market makes right turn to structure at east end
Mayan market end filled with rubble so a monument could be built on it
Mayan market end looking north
Four-month old digs
The white gum (chicklie) and limestone coating was burnt here as well as above ground, indicating this lower portion of the temple was burried with three layers of rock and soil after the Toltec invation around 900 BC.
Seven milliom Mayan decendants reside from Mexico to Hondourus. Mayans have almond eyes, short necks, short stature (5 ft.), high cheek bones. They are blrn with a Sacreliac spot that disappears between 10 and 12 years of age. It is also a characteristic of Siberians that has been preserved by racial purity.
Mayan hut recreation
Mayan hut contents
Notes:
Egyptions and Mayans have similar vertical writing style.
Yucatan means wild deer. Cancun means snake nest. Chickle is sap from fruit used for dental floss, and mortar: che = mouth; Cle = chue. Mayan "goodby" is Malo (god) kin (sun).
Mexico is 90% Catholic.
0.925 silver is good. Apaca is shiny fake silver handled with a cloth to avoid poison and rapid tarnishing.
A co-tourist missed the Nasca plains when he was in Peru. He was most impressed with Boliva and Matsu Petchu.
I discovered why people were late for the bus. As the bus entered the cellular area of another provider, an hour was lost on all cell phones. The tour guide said it must be a daylight savings time thing. As we returned to Cancun, the lost hour was regained. The tour guide agreed he should determine what is going on to preclude more late arrivals at the bus.
The gate to the Maya Hotel where our bus was parked was closed before some of us could exit Chichen Itza. We were forced to exit by way of the main gate. Thinking I could walk around the part, I asked four people the way to the Maya Hotel, including one ass hole bus driver who intentionally stalled me. I paid $6 for a taxi ride to the bus. Two other groups had to do the same.
I suggested to the tour company a few ways for Mexico in general and the Maya Hotel in particular to milk their investment for more tourist dollars:
1. Have ball game demonstrations.
2. Have concerts in the arena to take advantage of the acoustics (people in middle and instruments on sides.
3. Have chiefs in full costume give speeches in Mayan from each of the temple doorways.
4. Simulate the equinoxes (3/20 and 9/23 this year) with artificial light to see the snakes descend every night.
5. Re-enact a battle.
Sacramento International Airport baggage claim area has columns disguised by lost luggage
