¡Buenas tardes from Valladolid, Yucatán! I am sitting in the open-air restaurant of our hotel, not far from the kitchen where some of the most fantastic smells are pouring out. Unfortunately, I am too stuffed from a delicious breakfast and lunch, so I will not be able to eat anything tonight, but I’m living vicariously through the people around me.
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| View from the table where I'm writing this |
Today we went to Chichén Itzá. You know we’ve been to just about every archaeology site from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of México when my reaction to walking into Chichén Itzá was, “Yep, here it is. Can I get a few pics and go? This place is HOT and overcrowded with tourists.” Ha, ha!
No, seriously, Chichén Itzá is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and it is easy to see why. Unlike every single site we visited so far, where there was only one ruler, and s/he was considered divine, the evidence at this site points to shared leadership amongst several people. What a concept!
The first place we visited was the observatory. The tribe of Maya living in this site were avid astronomers, and they built this observatory to carry out their work. There is no physical evidence of even rudimentary tools, but the Maya placed windows in the four cardinal and four intermediate directions of this tower to keep themselves oriented. We are told that the staircase inside the observatory winds around like a snail shell up to the top of the lookout, so it is known as “el Caracól,” (the snail).
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| El Caracol - Observatory -- I'm sporting the ankle brace! |
The main pyramid at Chichén Itzá is also based on astronomy. Our guide gave us the complete breakdown of its significance. Basically, the staircases are comprised of 91 steps each, times four staircases, that makes 364. The platform at the top is considered one extra step, which makes 365—the days in the year. There are also several connections to different calendars, religious and lunar, as well as special events that happen during the spring and fall equinoxes. From there, it is very complicated, and I should let the video speak for itself. Suffice to say, this is one amazing pyramid!
I am so thankful that I was even able to visit Chichén Itzá today because two nights ago I managed to sprain my ankle. Scaling ruins, you ask? Walking along uneven paths? Climbing over rocks or fallen trees? Nope, not Nichole. I sprained my ankle on a pot hole while walking to a restaurant along a dimly lit path with Kris, on our way to do some unit planning. After all the stories you’ve heard from us about our bumpy roads, I guess it’s pretty apropos!
Our guide and driver were kind enough to take me to a pharmacy on our way to Mérida the next day to get me a brace, which helped immensely! As we were leaving the hotel, Juan, our guide, asked us if we had had any troubles during the two nights we spent at the hotel right on the site of Uxmal. Aside from my fall, we told him, our stay had been pleasant. Intrigued, we asked why he was wondering.
He then proceeded to tell us all about a different tour he had done with a couple of journalists from Argentina, who stayed at the hotel next to ours. Here’s the story:
“I got a call late at night from the hotel front desk. They said that the man from my tour was refusing to stay in his room because he was convinced that someone kept opening and closing his door. The staff went to investigate, and found everything in working order. They sent a hotel guard to watch his room. Finding nothing amiss, the guard left. Shortly thereafter, the man was back at the desk demanding that the guard stay the entire night outside his room because, once again, his door had opened and shut. With the guard planted firmly outside his door, the man returned to his room, only to reappear not long after that. This time, he said, someone had sat on his belly while he was trying to sleep!”
It was at that point, that Juan agreed to trade rooms with him (the hotel had been completely full), where he slept just fine…but knowing such things normally happen in that area.
The Yucatecos (or people living in Yucatán) are very superstitious. They believe in goblin, or trickster-like, characters called Aluxes. Apparently, these little guys like to play tricks on people. I told Juan maybe one of them tripped me and made me fall in the pot hole! He said that they are not malicious, so I can chalk my fall up to clumsiness. Ha, ha! He also said that they tend to leave you alone if you acknowledge them as soon as they make their presence known. He illustrated by telling us a story about a time he was visited by one of these guys. Evidently, it kept turning his hotel tv on and off. It finally left him alone when he acknowledged it. [Insert Twilight Zone music here]
So, in case you’re ever in the Uxmal area and something goes bump in the night, just make sure to tell the goblin that you’re not in the mood for trickery (or perhaps you are?), and he’ll usually leave you alone.
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| I hope this guy will do my work for me. |
My ankle, by the way, is getting better—thanks to ibuprofen, pillows, and ice. We’re off to the last set of ruins tomorrow—Cobá and Tulúm! I can’t believe our adventure is coming to a close! I’ve tried my best to write lesson plans along the way, but the heat wears me out and by night time, I’m pretty well spent organizing my photos, uploading pictures, and connecting with my family back home. I’ll have my work cut out for me when I get back!
Maybe I can convince some Aluxes to do it for me???
¡Hasta luego!
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