Pyramids and underwater beasties

Trip Start Jun 30, 2008

Trip End May 09, 2009

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Flag of Mexico Chichén Itzá, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico
Friday, September 19, 2008

Got up early to join the hoards at Chichen Itza, ancient Mayan city of pyramids, mystical phallic type pillars and a pre-colombine football pitch where the winners were sacrificed to the gods as a reward. Also home to the ancient Mayan's modern day descendants who now dedicate themselves to the selling of tat, a huge enterprise considerng the thousands of tourists who descend en masse on a daily basis. Savvy, cheeky and on average reaching no higher than my elbow, they produce their sales patter in an impressive range of languages. The main thing that stands out about this place though, is the strange propensity of young spanish tourist girls to walk around in bikinis and hotpants, much to the delight and sniggers of the tat sellers. Surely they must be used to the heat?
After a very sweaty day of tramping, we decided to skip the early evening shadow snake effect, and just in time as a busload of 80 middle aged Americans had just arrived and was being blinded by their loud baseball caps and hawaiian shirts. We found the ideal place to cool down though, an underground cenote near Valladolid- a cave naturally hollowed out in the limestone where you can swim amongst stalagtites and tree roots. There was also the odd wriggly thing in the water which I tried not to think about too much, or especially not tell Jason who managed to look pale under his bronzed tan as it was. According to a youth who was hanging round, the cenote was discovered by a local farmer who was chasing a runaway boar with a machete when it fell through the ceiling and thus has mystical properties. Not sure whether I believe him or he made it up on the spot at the prospect of getting a 10 peso tip.