Chichén Itzá is a quick day tour from Merida, but I almost didn’t go. I had heard from some friends that it was very commercialized and it was also quite expensive. Later someone pointed out that it’s one of the new “Wonders of the World” so I decided I’d better not miss out on this opportunity. After Chichén Itzá, I’ve seen 6 out of the 7 (watch out Taj Mahal, I’m coming for you) so I should make the effort to go. I actually enjoyed the day there. I think since I knew ahead of time how commercialized it is, I wasn’t as surprised by it as other people.
The Maya name “Chichén Itzá” means At the mouth of the well of the Itzá (the name of an ethnic-lineage group). The city is about 15 square miles and had up to 90,000 inhabitants at its height.
El Castillo (the castle) is designed to represent the Mayan calendar in stone. The four staircases each have 91 steps each. With the platform on top that’s 365 steps which equals the number of days in the year. Apparently there’s also a moving serpent illusion on the staircases visible during the spring and autumn equinoxes. Today tourists aren’t allowed to climb it due to injuries and deaths from people falling.
Sacred Cenote. Diving expeditions have turned up hundreds of valuable artifacts dredged from this cenote. They have also found human bones of sacrificial victims who were forced to jump into the eternal underworld.
Gigantic, intricate decorations at the bottoms of the staircases.
The observatory. The priests would stand from the dome of the circular observatory to announce the latest rituals and celebrations.
This ball court is about 550 ft x 230, but somehow it’s possible to hear someone talk from one end to the other. The acoustics are still a mystery. The walls are over 25 feet high and the goal was to get the solid rubber ball (about 9 pounds) through the ring towards the top using their hips. In some of the cultures the winner was the one sacrificed to the gods at the end, since it was considered an honor to be scarified. Our guide joked that we now know why the Mexican soccer team always loses.
One of the new Seven Wonders of the World. Now I have only the Taj Mahal left on the list since I’ve seen all the others (Chichén Itzá, Machu Picchu, Great Wall of China, Christ the Redeemer Statue in Rio de Janeiro, Roman Coliseum, and Petra in Jordan).
3 Comments
Great adventure continues. Love reading the stories and seeing the pictures.
Are you going to dive a cenote?
Perhaps. It’ll depend on the conditions and whatnot. I’ll be sure to post pictures if I do.