Chichen Itza “At the mouth of the well of the Itza”

There is a reason we get up at 4:00 am when on vacation …. we are very motivated to see places like this with very few tourists …

2017 0622 Chichen Itza (2) — We missed the 8:00 am opening by about 15 minutes, but we were still able to see this mostly by ourselves …. El Castillo, the Pyramid of Kukulkan

Because yesterday, June 21st, there were 10,000 people here to celebrate the Summer Solstice! And why were they here? To watch the sunrise EXACTLY over the Temple of Warriors …

And it rose right over the Chacmool at the top middle …

We were surprised to pay two entrance fees, but later learned that part of the site is privately owned and so the second fee went to those private land owners. We learned this from our excellent private guide who we chose at the entrance. His name is Arturo and he himself is of Mayan descendant. He speaks Mayan, English, and Spanish, but only speaks Mayan at home. Excellent decision to get our own guide.

This experience was quite different than Coba as this is a walking site. The jungle is completely cleared away from the excavated buildings with very large spaces between them. That gave Arturo lots of time to explain many things. The biggest surprise to us was the addition of the Toltec’s who conquered Chichen Itza. And with them came the beginning of the bloody sacrifices.

2017 0622 Chichen Itza (16).jpg — The Wall of Skulls

2017 0622 Chichen Itza (57) — This is the Cenote Sagrado where many people were either thrown in or pushed in while being sacrificed to the Gods … crazy to see this and to understand how they could NEVER get out once in the water.

But enough of the sacrificial stuff ~ let’s look at some other excavations …

2017 0622 Chichen Itza (21) — The largest Ball Court in all of Mesoamerica.

2017 0622 Chichen Itza (45) — One small section of the facade of The Nunnery

Here we are with Arturo in front of The Observatory or Caracol (The Snail)

2017 0622 Chichen Itza (28) — The Tomb of the High Priest

2017 0622 Chichen Itza (63) — Here is the backside of El Castillo which has NOT been fully restored. See the 3 workers in orange working on the structure? The work is NEVER done.

By 11:30, we were hot, tired, and being overrun by bus loads of tourists and school children. TIME TO GO while feeling very grateful to have had this experience.

And after our 2+ hour drive home, we were so grateful to get settled into our little piece of paradise with the BEST WEATHER we have had since we arrived.

We enjoyed a quiet afternoon at our own place, soaking up the sunshine, counting our blessings, and having a yummy dinner prepared by Dennis in our own condo. I will admit, however, to having very sore quads on my left leg this afternoon. Was it the bike ride, the slow descent of the Coba pyramid, or not enough yoga? Maybe we’ll just have to take a yoga class on the beach in this Yoga Paradise called Tulum. We still have two more days here …

Diana