Posts (page 2)

An Overview on the Mayans

This week consisted of biology classes and our first courses on the Maya with Rebecca Hill, a grad student of Tulane who has done archeological work in Mexico’s Mayan ruins for years. There is a lot of info on the ancient Mayans, who lived in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras between 400 BC to AD 1525 since the arrival via the land bridge and prior to the Spanish Conquest in Mexico. Many kingdoms rose and fell in this time period, and the Maya as a whole resisted conquest longer than the Aztecs. The Aztec empire was centralized and fell in three years, while the Mayan city states were numerous but not unified (so that conquest took 200 years). In addition, the Spanish conquistadors managed to ally themselves with Mesoamerican groups that hated or feared the Aztecs. Before the conquistadors arrived, the Mayans developed many amazing cities and structures (such as temples and pyramids), which were occupied by thousands to millions at a time and built upon preceding structures. They traded with many cities in peace but war was not foreign to them. They used a base-20 mathematics system and hieroglyphics (both of which I’m still trying to decode), a 365-day calendar that coincided with the Gregorian calendar we use, and they were responsible for the domestication of corn, chili peppers and cocoa. Eventually, the Spanish conquered them with many advantages. They had horses while the Maya had no beasts of burden. The conquistadors wielded superior armor and weapons, and brought epidemics such as small pox (though the Maya already were suffering from a disease prior to the Spanish arrival). Their use of total war was devastating compared to the Maya’s traditional weapons of intimidation and ridicule in combat. This more or less happened as a prophet priest predicted years before, where bearded white men from far away would come to conquer. While the foreign men glorified their struggle, they demonized the Mayans in their accounts within the Yucatán. This event in history is similar to others, as traditional kingdoms fall upon the presence of superpowers and we are often left with a few clues to comprehend the older ways of life. Many of the Mayan descendents now struggle to maintain their old lifestyles and seem left out of the economy. As our guide Hugo mentioned when we arrived in Mexico, history never changes – the only differences are the people involved.

January 30

Casa de Catherwood

We would have gone to the Museum of Anthropology as we did two weeks earlier, but decided to visit the Casa de Catherwood. This was named after Frederick Catherwood, a British artist and architect who traveled to the Mayan Ruins of Latin America in the 19^th century and painted accurate images of the structures he observed. At this time, he also traveled with John Lloyd Stephens, a rich attorney from New York who visited Europe and the Middle East beforehand, and would later write “Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan” similar in style to his earlier works. The two believed that it was the Mayans who constructed the Mesoamerican pyramids and not foreign powers such as the Egyptians or the Phoenicians as thought in the past. Catherwood added a romantic edge to his work, which was evident in “Broken Idol at Copán” and “Teocallis at Chichén Itzá.” These two paintings in particular represented the resistance and power of a statue or building respectively to the jungle surroundings, and were almost photographic. These paintings were influential to archeologists working in the region as they tried to restore the sites and comprehend the traditional lifestyles. I could only wonder how people would know the Maya today without the influence of Catherwood’s art.

February 1: Chichén Itzá, Ixkil, and Valladolid

Chichén Itzá

All of us woke up early to take a 7:00 bus to Chichén Itzá, a famous Mayan site that dates back to 800 to 948 AD. This is only two to three hours away from Cancún, so we left at this hour before the masses of tourists flock here like how worshippers congregate at Mecca. The sun blazed above us and temperatures ranged between 90 and 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Initially, buildings here were limited to the elite Maya lords but now are not completely abandoned due to a booming tourism industry. Additionally, many Mayan descendents live here and sell products, hoping to discourage people from buying things at gift shops. Tourists in the past used to be able to climb structures such as El Castillo (aka the Temple-Pyramid of Kukulcan, the feathered serpent sacred to both the Maya and Aztec cultures) or the Temple of the Warriors, but that has changed to keep thousands of people from overwhelming the beauty of the ruins.

The first part of this tour began with New Chichén (which bears Toltec influences), and ended with Old Chichén. We walked by the El Castillo which has a 60-m base and 91 steps on each of the four sides. There is also a platform, so the number of steps (364) plus the platform equals 365, coinciding with the number of days in a year. Unlike the Gregorian calendar, the Mayan equivalent had 18 months with 20 days each, plus a 5-day period of bad luck known as Uayeb. Like many other Mayan buildings, El Castillo was built upon the Temple of the Moon, which coincides with the earlier Mayan calendar (Tzoltil) containing 260 days (65 steps multiplied by four sides). We also passed the Temple of the Jaguars, which contains murals depicting war, sacrifice, conquest, and the depiction of the Hero Twins challenging the gods of Xibalbá (the Mayan underworld) to a game of pelota prior to resurrecting the Maize God. The Temple was near the Great Ball Court, whose walls stood 12 meters high and each had a huge stone ring. Teams of seven had to pass an 8-pound rubber ball through the ring using their hips, elbows and knees. That’s quite a challenge! Games here, unlike at other smaller courts, were used strictly for religious ritual and not just for fun. There was also a Tzompantli (aka Skull Rack), where decapitated heads were placed. We swung by the Sacred Cenote, where people are not allowed to swim in respect to the Mayan descendents. Archeologists managed to obtain gold, turquoise, obsidian tools, jade, pottery, and human or animal bones which served as indications of sacrifice. I wonder how clean the water was after receiving dead animals, people, or artifacts. After seeing the Temple of the Warriors and the Thousand Columns (respectively used to depict warriors or priests and prisoners of war), we entered Old Chichén. The structures here lacked the Toltec influence of New Chichén. We found another but smaller pyramid, which was used as a tomb for the late high priest K’ahk’upakal. Later on, we looked at the Casa Colorada which has inscriptions dating back to many centuries and some of the first Maya glyph recordings.

Even though Chichén Itzá was amazing and I could only imagine what life would have been like there long ago, I had some mixed feelings about the current state of the ruins. It was a shame that we could not climb any of the structures, but it was understandable since the rule was imposed to protect them from being overwhelmed by thousands of people walking upon them per day. Navigating the ruins throughout the day grew difficult as more and more people poured in to walk throughout the ancient city. There was a very touristy atmosphere here, which seemed sacrilegious for such a site. I wonder what the ancient Mayans would have thought had they been alive to see the city today. It was hard to learn about the history of the site when playing human dodgeball with people who cared more about the visual aspects over the cultural and historical content of the site. Indeed, the sizes of the groups were obnoxiously large. I think they just came to Cancún to sit in the sun and drink beer, but just travel to Chichén because it just happens to be near. I’m not saying that the buildings were hideous (they are not), but I felt irritated with how the archeological zone was so overrun by the touristy environment.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Chichen%20Itza/

Ixkil and Valladolid

            After walking amongst the ruins of Chichén Itzá, we ate lunch before swimming in a cenote at Ixkil, which was within a complex with restaurants, shops, and hotels. Like the Sacred Cenote, this was open but no sacrifices were performed here. It was unusual for me to see a cenote within such a developed area, since I was used to seeing them within archeological zones or rural spots. The water was crystal clear, deep, and incredibly refreshing. We spent an hour and a half swimming and jumping. Eventually, we would witness a situation similar to Chichén Itzá and Cuzama – more people! I can understand why so many would come. You have to arrive early to enjoy it before it becomes too full. I still prefered the first two cenotes at Cuzama because, aside from the donkey carts, were relatively unspoiled. This one included man-made overlooks and there were some artificial waterfalls within, so the natural beauty here does not match up with those at Cuzama. We left for the colonial city of Valladolid and checked into our hotel, El Meson de Marques. I walked around with some classmates and visited the Municipal Palace, which had interesting paintings depicting the interactions between the indigenous people of the Yucatan in the early stages of the Conquest and leading to the Caste War. After eating dinner, we played card games and watched TV before going to bed.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Ixkil%20Cenote%20and%20Valladolid/

February 2: Río Lagartos, Ek’ Balam, and Carnival

Río Lagartos

Our group left the hotel at 6:30 in order to take a boat tour of Río Lagartos, a quiet fishing village with brackish water lagoons close to the Gulf of Mexico. We tagged along with Hugo, our guide, to look at the vast diversity of bird species among the vast expanse of mangroves while being scorched by the sun. Hugo has been great to us with since he knows much about birds and Mexican history, so we’ve learned a lot from him. The lagoons teamed with bird life which included great and little blue herons, white ibises, wood storks, roseate spoonbills, magnificent frigatebirds, pelicans, and common black hawks to name a few. If I mention anymore, you’ll be sound asleep. Many of the mangroves here were naked with hurricane damage from eight years ago, and some had black lumps which were termite nests. Additionally, we came across two American crocodiles which were between 4 and 5 feet long. One of them floated in the shade of mangroves and our boat driver tried to draw its attention with a juvenile barracuda obtained from local fishermen. After splashing the bait, the croc snatched and thrashed the fish, trying to align it vertically to make it easier to consume. I have never seen a crocodile in the wild before, so this was a joy for me. At the same time, you don’t want to associate people with food which could be dangerous for people as well as crocs. We headed to a saline pond near salt flats, which was an important resource for the Maya in the Yucatán. Flamingos fed within the waters which were pink with brine shrimp. This was like something out of a Dr. Seuss book or a hallucination. A couple of us decided to swim in the pond, which was reminiscent to the Red Sea since we all floated with ease. All of us rinsed off at a fresh water spot later on to deal with the salt, which probably would have dissolved my camera case had I not rinsed it off. After lunch, we drove to the ruins of Ek’ Balam.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Rio%20Lagartos/

Ek’ Balam

            Our group walked amongst the structures of Ek’ Balam (Black Jaguar in Mayan), which is 53 km north of Chichén Itza and 12 km² in size. While smaller, it was still impressive and we did not have to dodge people like bullets everywhere we went. There were two walls surrounding the city, and there was a small ballcourt dating back to 841 AD. The city dates back to 600 to 800 AD, and featured an incredible Acropolis which has the stucco and limestone-laden tomb of Ukil-Kan-Lek-Tok, the city’s leader in the 9^th century. Ek’ Balam was recorded to interact with Chichén Itza in 870 AD, and has Puuc influences (structures within the hills of the Yucatán) as well as along the Yucatán’s East Coast. It was quite a workout to ascend the Acropolis. Imagine walking up and down the stairs every day! It sort of reminded me of middle school in Manhattan, where I consistently had to walk up or down four or five flights of stairs per day. Though the Acropolis was huge, I heard that Calakmul (in Campeche) will be even taller. The view from the top was breath-taking, but the travel down was a little intimidating. We also went up the Plaza Sur, near the Twin Buildings (Las Amelas), and towards a tiny temple with East Coast influence. While on the Plaza Sur, I remembered the Dawleys’ warning about the lack of guard rails in the country. In the U.S., there are many warning signs and guard rails because of insurance issues and the constant flow of lawsuits per month due to accidents. Mexico doesn’t work like that, so you need to watch your step wherever you go. I recalled their advice when I walked backwards to get out of a picture, and came within one step of falling 10 feet from the ledge! That was not one of my brightest moves. I’ve been trying to avoid such an instance but I let my guard down after ascending and descending the Acropolis. If you decide to walk amongst any of the ruins, don’t make my mistake. After resting upon the Plaza, we drove back to Mérida to recover from an eventful trip.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Ek%20Balam/

Carnival on Saturday Night

            Some classmates and I walked among the streets to observe Carnival, which lasted between last Thursday and Fat Tuesday (aka Mardi gras). Many people came here to let loose at the pre-Lent festivities, and we came across live music and vendors. We hung around some of the bands, had some drinks or snacks, and chatted. This was the first time I had witnessed any pre-Lent celebration. Things were wild here, but one of my Spanish professors mentioned that the event is more dangerous in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (which isn’t a safe city to begin with, so that’s no surprise). There was a lot to do, but it was difficult to remain in a group among the rivers of people in the streets. You consistently had to dodge people or sneak through crowds to catch up with the rest of the crew. The “watch your step” rule also applied here since the streets had garbage everywhere. Doesn’t that remind you of college parties? A couple of times, I stepped on plastic bottles and nearly slipped. From what I heard, many will throw their trash in the streets and expect someone else to pick it up. Eventually, the post-celebration mess was cleaned up but it must have taken hours. Despite this, I still had a good time at Carnival.

We finished our Spanish grammar and cultural classes on Friday with an exam and a Jarana routine. I couldn’t believe that we were done already. I guess that my Spanish in conversation improved to an extent, but I still have my difficulties especially when it is spoken quickly. Even though it was only three weeks long, I felt like I learned much about the language as well as Mexican culture.

Afterwards, we did a Jarana, a well-known folk dance in the Yucatán which mixes Caribbean folk elements and music traditional to Mexico.  A guy would put his right arm behind his back before turning to his left side and stomping his right heel and doing the opposite on the right side, and the ladies did the same more or less (minus the arm behind the back). I was called to the front to do the routine but circle a female volunteer. This was an odd motion for many of us and took a while to get a hang of it. I tried going barefoot or using Tevas, but I was ill-equipped either way. I soon watched from the sidelines, and only five people were left to try some other moves. Eventually, the school bell rang at 2:30 and we were on our way back to the home stays. Later on, I went back into El Centro to explore on my own.

El Palacio del Gobierno and La Catedral de San Ildelfonso (1/25/08)

I went to the Palacio del Gobierno on Wednesday, but I forgot my camera that time and returned on Friday to take some pictures. A cool painting I came across was labeled “Mexico’s Eternal Struggle”, which featured an eagle seizing a serpent as evident in the Mexican flag. The eagle represents the good side fighting the evil serpent, and this symbolizes the combat against poverty, corruption, and exploitation. When you look at today, the serpent isn’t dead yet as there are still issues with poverty, discrimination, and machismo. It reminds of me of the same problems we have back in the U.S., though they seem to be swept under the carpet. Another interesting painting was called “Agrarian Reform”, which featured Felipe Carrillo Puerto and Lázaro Cárdenas. These two men fought for Mayan justice by distributing access to oil and agricultural lands, though Cárdenas died at the hands of his foes on January 3, 1924. It’s hard to do the right thing and live to tell about it. There was a hallway within the Palace that contained many more paintings, such as “The Triumph of the Republic” by Fernando Castro Pacheco. This depicts the battle between the Republicans and Maximilian of Hapsburg’s Imperialists, which ended on July 15, 1867 thanks to Mexican heroes Manuel Cepeda Peraza and Benito Juarez. While this showed a glorious event in Mexico, there were two paintings in particular that represented the Caste War, a dark chapter of Mexican history. The “Sale of Indians” displays the enslavement of indigenous men, women, and children upon the five-decade Caste War where Mayan rebels fought against what they saw as oppression from Mexico’s government. In addition to the enslavement, a total of 300,000 people perished during the bloodshed. The prisons were full at the time and expensive to maintain, so politicians collaborated with Cuban slave traders to “ease” their burden by sending indigenous peoples to Cuba as slaves. This did not last as the eventual President Benito Juarez stopped such an atrocity. “The Caste War” depicted rebels wielding machetes among the flames of combat. The paintings were vivid but depressing when understanding the historical context.

After wandering around with some classmates, we parted ways and I headed to the Cathedral of San Ildefonso. While I am not religious, I was still amazed with what I saw. This is the largest cathedral in the Americas, and was impressive both on the outside and inside. I was talking with a shop owner nearby, and he knew much about this house of worship. Pope John Paul II knelt here in 1993, and has a plaque in his honor. The crucifix here is the largest of any cathedral in the world, and this one portrays Jesus differently than others. There are no wounds on his body, he does not wear a crown of thorns, and the pins holding him to the cross are in his wrists but not his hands. I also saw an ornate chapel that contained another crucifix that according to old stories survived a lightning strike that destroyed the chapel. Even though the cross was blackened, it still remained strong but had blisters coinciding with the pins holding Christ. The only part of the Cathedral that changed since 1542 was the coat of arms above the main entrance. This was altered in the 1800s to contain the eagle and serpent logo reminiscent to the Mexican flag to symbolize independence from Spain. The main doorway is known as the Doors of Forgiveness, which opens at Christmas and New Year (and maybe Easter). When one passes through this entrance, her or his sins are forgiven. Eventually, I left the structure to do some shopping and headed home. When I walked around the cathedral, I had mixed feelings when remembering how it was constructed. The conquistadors used the remains of destroyed Mayan buildings to mark the presence of the new faith and culture, which seems like rubbing history in the face of the traditional lifestyle. The building was impressive, but it came at the expense of the indigenous people of the Yucatán. In a way, this reminds me of how the early foundations of the U.S. were created upon the marginalization of Native American tribes. History has its marvels, but it can be cruel at the same time.

Oxkintok and Cenote

We visited the ancient Mayan site of Oxkintok, which was larger than Dzibilchaltún but smaller than Chichén Itzá or Uxmal. This was our last laid-back trip to a ruin before we dug deeper into the Mayan culture, so in a way, this was like an appetizer before the main course. The road was narrow and the shrubby vegetation was dense, limiting us to driving at crawling speed. On the way, we drove past an old maize field, containing the essential ingredient to Mayan culture. This day was a mix of looking for animals (especially birds) and seeing the structures within. We started off by bird-watching. There were many flycatchers, tropical mockingbirds, great-tailed grackles (which are common in Mérida and very noisy and obnoxious), cave swallows, turkey and black vultures, and many others. Some buildings, such as the Ch’ich Palace, were constructed as early as 750-1030 AD and possibly earlier (Fifth Century). Many of the buildings here had Puuc architecture, which was evident in the slightly hilly areas of the relatively flat and karstic Yucatán region. We came across three pyramids, with the tallest being 15 meters high. From the tops, we saw the flat landscape with some hill-like formations in the distance. These were actually pyramids in their prime, but overtime were covered by dirt and vegetation. Some were pretty steep and it was a little tricky to find the right steps, but moving slowly helped. In the second pyramid, some students including me got dirty and crawled through a narrow passageway that lead to a small room within the base of the building. This was not vacant, since there was a tarantula and a wasp nest near the entrance. Additionally, there were crickets and centipedes. Within the dark base, there was a tailless whip-scorpion, which is in the same class as spiders and scorpions but lacks a tail and has its two front legs work as sensory “whips”. They also have formidable-looking pedipalps, which allow them to mutilate prey (remember the Fourth Harry Potter film, anyone?). Near the whip-scorpion were two inch-long pillbugs, which I initially thought were cockroaches. After exploring the pyramids, our group passed a pelota court (see my earlier posts), which was smaller than I expected. This was probably used for more casual games of pelota in contrast to the one at Chichén Itzá. Later, all of us went to a rarely-visited cave with recently discovered hieroglyphics as well as carvings within the deepest reaches. Imagine what it had to be like deciphering such a language. The Mayans could probably say the same thing about English. We also saw some bones and broken pottery within, but we were unable to tell if they just happened to be there or if they were planted there. Who knows?

Later, we went to a cenote which was a few minutes away. Unlike the others, this was literally in someone’s backyard! Imagine living next to one of these and seeing a bunch of strangers come by. Some local people were down here and cooling off, including an 8-year boy who lived at the house nearby and seemed to take a liking to our group. I wonder how often he sees groups like these. The entrance looked like a well, and was daunting for some people. There was a little stairway before plunging into a tiny hole, with only a crude ladder and a rope to provide you support. It was a great idea to take the descent slowly. The water was clear but shallower than at the other cenotes we visited. There were many icicle-like formations of limestone hanging from the ceiling. It was refreshing after a day under the blazing sun, though we had to watch our step among the slippery rocks. Our group passed time swimming, hanging out and chatting amongst ourselves. Eventually, we climbed out of the cenote and said adios to the young boy before heading to dinner at a local Mayan restaurant. We ate lime soup and cochinita pibil, a famous Yucatecan dish consisting of pork marinated in bitter oranges and annatto seeds while being cooked underground. I had been anxious to try it, since various people including one of my Spanish professors highly recommended it. It was incredible, and the texture was ridiculously tender due to the acidity of the oranges. All of us were exhausted, and this hit the spot. After enjoying the meal, we boarded the bus and drove back to Mérida. Some of the next stops include Chichén Itzá and Ek' Balam, so stay posted!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Oxkintok/

Centro de Investigación Cientifica de Yucatán (CICY): 1/15/08

            We took a trip to a botanical garden within the Centro de Investigación Cientifica de Yucatán to review for a plant taxonomy quiz to be taken in two days. We walked through many plants and near many ponds while trying to repel mosquitoes. There were many species of flora including the bull-thorn acacia, which is a spiny leguminous tree (related to peas, beans and clovers) that shares a symbiotic relationship with Pseudomyrmex ants, aka acacia ants. The acacia provides shelter by allowing ants to hollow out their spines to raise young, and the tree secretes sugar or proteins from their leaves which feeds the ants. In exchange, the ants aggressively defend the acacia from potential herbivores and clear nearby vegetation to allow the tree to grow. Our group also came across the gumbo limbo tree. As our professors mentioned, this is also known as the tourist tree as it is red and peels. Like many trees in a deciduous tropical forest, the gumbo limbo sheds its leaves in the dry season to conserve water. This tree has curative value within its bark and resin. The bark can be used as medicine against colds, syphilis, asthma, fungal infections and other illnesses. Another important tree within CICY was the guanacaste, aka the monkey ear (named so due to the dark color and the shape of its pods). The fruits and flowers of this tree attract bees, parrots, and rodents, but large animals were believed to have been the primary dispersers 10,000 years back. Soap can be created from the bark and pods of the guanacaste and the green fruit can be used against Montezuma’s revenge. The ceiba was also present, which the Mayans hold sacred to their culture. This tree also sheds its leaves in the dry season, and bears formidable spines when young. In the Mayan religion, this tree is depicted as growing from the underworld (or Xibalba) and spreading its branches throughout the heavens. The Mayans used green or blue crosses to represent the ceiba, well before Christianity arrived to the New World and brought its own version of the cross. While there were many other plants that could be mentioned, these four in particular stood out since they in particular will be studied by various students within the program. I look forward to seeing these trees in their natural environment throughout the trip.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Centro%20de%20Investigacion%20Cientifica%20de%20Yucatan/

Museo de Antropología: 1/18/08

            On Friday, our group visited the Museo de Antropología, which was originally constructed as the Palacio Cantón constructed between 1904 and 1911 using materials from Germany, France, and Italy. This place was the home to the family of General Francisco Cantón Rosado, who fought against Mayan rebels during the Caste War and was the former governor of the Yucatán state between 1898 and 1902. In the 1930s, the Cantón family sold the mansion to the State Government. Over the decades, the building held functions as a School of Fine Arts and the Hidalgo Primary School. Eventually, the Palacio Cantón would remain as the Museo Regional de Antropología after 1966. There were all sorts of remnants from Mayan culture (and some items from the Aztec civilization) including statues, agricultural tools, and even teeth. There were many carvings and sculptures of jaguars (aka the Balam in the Mayan language), which is a sacred animal in their culture. I also saw a stone ring used in games of pelota, which seemed like a cross between basketball, baseball, soccer, and Muay Thai (due to the use of knees and elbows). This was a difficult sport where teams had to pass a ball through the stone ring on a wall using only their hips, elbows, and knees. We also came across the Mayan numbering system. The Mayans were among the earliest people to embrace the concept of zero, which they represented with a shell. The numbers one through four were depicted with dots relevant to each respective number (one dot for one, two for two and so on), and 5 was represented with a line. The number 6 had a dot and a line, seven had two dots and a line, and the number 10 was represented with three lines. It is more difficult to describe numbers above 20, since the pictures per number tend to change more. We also saw a couple of stelas, which were limestone wakes used to commemorate individuals among the upper class. Like many Mesoamerican cultures, they did not have a system of currency. Instead, their economies and commerce were based on bartering with items such as feathers, shells, jewels, and other such items. It was interesting to learn about various aspects of Mayan culture, and it is somewhat ironic that the Museo de Antropología used to be the house of a general who fought against Mayan rebels. We will return next week on Wednesday (1/30/08), and I will provide further details that I missed here.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/

Dzibilchaltún: 1/19/08

            On Saturday, we traveled to the Mayan archeological site of Dzibilchaltún, which is much smaller than the great cities of Uxmal or Chichén Itzá. This has been continuously occupied for thousands of years and was constructed before the birth of Christ. When looking through the Museo del Pueblo Maya, there was a vast collection of pottery, stelas, statues, and honey-making equipment. To make honey, logs were hollowed out and the holes were covered with mud so bees could tunnel through the mud and establish their hives. In addition, there were weapons and armor from the Spanish conquistadors left over from their confrontations with the Mayans. Speaking of which, many explorers depicted the Mayans as frequently sacrificing people to appease their deities. You have to take many of those claims with a grain of salt. In various cases, stories were manipulated to cast a negative image against Mesoamerican civilizations. Maybe there were some sacrifices, but many of the corpses found within the ruins could have been attributed to executions (especially for prisoners of war) or other causes. Afterwards, we walked past some huts (including a kitchen) which were constructed of sticks, palm fronds, stones, and mud. Afterwards, we were on our way to the actual ruins themselves. Many believe that Dzibilchaltún used to be a larger city before greater preservation efforts came into effect. Over the years, stones and bricks were taken from the ruins to build homes for growing populations in nearby communities. In other cases, these materials were crushed into gravel to make roadways. Try to imagine what the city would have looked like thousands of years back. As we walked around, we noticed how dry the vegetation was. There were deciduous trees as well as thorny trees and plants, including ceiba trees (sacred to the Maya), bull-thorn acacias, agave plants, bromeliads (plants that grow on trees in tropical forests), and flowers pollinated by stingless bees, which were the first bees used for honey-making in the New World prior to the arrival of the more aggressive honeybees from the Old World. We walked up the stairs to the Temple of the Seven Dolls, which was named after seven toy figurines discovered within the ruins. Our group also ascended up a small pyramid and passed an open chapel constructed by the Spanish during their exploration of the Yucatán. Afterwards, we swam in the Cenote Xlacah, which was more like a pond than the two we swam in at Chelentun. Some sections were only a few feet deep, while other parts were 40 feet. There were many lily-pads and aquatic plants supporting many fish and mollusks within. The water, like in the other cenotes, was crystal clear due to the constant flow from subterranean rivers. We spent about an hour before heading back to Mérida to relax. It will be interesting to compare and contrast Dzibilchaltún with other cities we will encounter in our program including the ruins of Oxkintok this Saturday, which also has a cenote as well as a cave.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Dzibilchaltun/

On Saturday on January 12, we went to a couple of cenotes around Cuzama. While passing Mérida, we saw stretches of dry terrain with thorny vegetation. Poverty was also evident, as there were many shacks that were as large as a classroom at CIS with tarp roofs. There used to be a huge henequen industry in this area (henequen comes from agave fibers and was used for various sorts of furniture such as hammocks). When in business, a few businessmen benefitted from the work of the many workers. Now, tourism from the cenotes reels in commerce. We traveled to each cenote using four-person carts on rails pulled by donkeys, which allowed us to view the dry landscape. No wonder the cenotes were sacred to the Mayans, since there were barely any if no rivers or lakes in the area. We passed many agave plants (tequila, anyone?), bull-thorn acacias, cacti, and other thorny trees or plants under the blazing sun, and black vultures soared overhead. The entrances to these unique sinkholes were narrow and the stairs were slippery, so we had to exercise caution. The ceilings of the caves had interesting limestone formations descending downward, and swallows or bats fluttered around in the darkness. The water was gorgeous with a deep blue color, and was clear enough to let you see at least 50 feet to the bottom and various fishes swimming around. The second cenote had a steeper entrance and a tree completely enveloped in the vines of a strangler fig, which extended its roots almost all the way down towards the water. While a little more difficult to navigate, this was equally enjoyable to swim in. As I mentioned earlier, these are tourist magnets. In the first sinkhole, there were photographers and cameramen from a local news station doing a documentary on these swimming holes. At the second place, at least 50 people started to pour in so we tried to slither our way through the crowd and outside, hoping not to slip or fall. This was an incredible experience, and I look forward to the next cenote at Dzibilchaltún this Saturday on January 16.

If you want to see photos from Cuzama, check them out at:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/Cenotes%20in%20Cuzama/

The first couple of days in the 466 year-old city of Mérida have been enjoyable. It was a bit nerve-wracking at first when adjusting to my Spanish Grammar and Culture classes, navigating the city, and actually using Spanish outside of the classroom (which I haven't done much back in the States). My host mother, Letitia, is very friendly and she's helping me become more confident in speaking my second language. Our professors have been great and they have helped us with the adjustment. I've been able to balance my workload with exploring the city with my classmates, which has been awesome.

I toured the city while walking around with classmates and from a bus on Wednesday. The city was founded on the 6^th of January in 1542 by Francisco de Montejo, which prior to the Spanish presence was known to the Maya as T’ho or Ichcaansihó (“towards the sky”). Many of the Spanish buildings were literally created from destroyed parts of Mayan temples and other structures, which at the time was much easier than trying to find natural resources such as wood or stone and a way to impose their lifestyle on those in the Yucatan. Some interesting places include the Catedral de San Idelfonso (the oldest in the continent constructed in the mid-16^th century), the Casa de Montejo (1542, which was the home of the city’s conqueror), and the Monumento a la Patria, which was constructed by Colombian artist Rómulo Rozo in 1956 and summarizes Mexico’s history by incorporating images of people of Spanish, indigenous, or mixed ancestry. What was also interesting to see was the French influence in some of the buildings we witnessed on our bus tour along with other European countries. Mérida is rich in history, and I love it.

Seeing the various parks and old buildings of Mérida has been amazing and I hope to further explore it as well as other parts of the Yucatán State. Tomorrow, there will be a trip to a cenote, which is a sinkhole full of cold freshwater connected to underground rivers. These were the main sources of water in the Yucatán since there are not many if any lakes or rivers in the region. They are also sacred to the Mayans and a magnet for tourists around the world. I’ll have more to say soon, so stay posted!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Yucatan/Merida/