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Trip Reviews, Ratings and Comments - Trip Review - Club Oasis Akumal 4c
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OUR AKUMAL ADVENTURE, PART 4c
Thursday, 6/22/00, Day “5” continued
We took some photos of various ruins, then sat on a rock in the shade near the “Nunnery.” It felt a bit strange to be sitting on a Mayan building stone that had been carved out hundreds of years ago. (I suppose it shouldn’t have, my having excavated and handled artifacts 11,000 years old, but it did.)
At Chichén Itzá there are a number of places one can stop in the shade for a brief rest. There are also two (at least) gift/snack shops located strategically between major areas of the site. Guess what, they had decent bathrooms, too…
Gradually we made our way back to the area around El Castillo and over to the “Thousand Columns.” There aren’t 1,000, but it’s an interesting area with stunning visual effects. I visualized some sort of ceremonial parade weaving through the columns and looking very snakelike.
Just on the other side of the columns, I discovered a fascinating stela. On the second block of the stela was a very Olmec-looking character with his arm being swallowed by a snake. The Olmecs preceded the Maya in this area and were a major cultural influence on them (ballgame, calendar, etc.). I wondered if this was some representation of the Maya taking over or replacing the Olmecs. Although current dating indicates a gap of some three or four hundred years between the two civilizations, our knowledge of Mesoamerica is still sorely lacking, and it was an interesting thought to muse on. I told Manuel about it later, and he had never seen that particular stela. He said he would try to look the next time he was at the site.
We then moved around El Castillo, Steve taking some interesting shots of the other sides. Next, we trekked down the path to the Sacred Cenote. We encountered the elderly lady who had gotten on the van at Barcelo Maya and sat behind us on the bus. She smiled and cheerily said, “It’s not so far.” We walked in the shade of the trees and saw a big iguana on the way. At the cenote, we cautiously navigated the rocks to the edge. The cenote is big and the water is an ominous, murky green color. Unfortunately, it is marred by idiots throwing water and pop bottles in it. (Someday, I’d like to catch someone doing something like that. Wanna see how they used to sacrifice people?) There were dozens of swifts darting in and out of the hollow, weaving their way through the tangled vines, skimming the water, and flitting from sun to shadow and back. It was quite fascinating.
We checked our time and started to head back to the entry building. The path back from the cenote seemed a helluva lot longer than the path to. It was then I decided you could tell how long people had been at the site. At the start of the tour you’re perky and stepping out. Then you get slower and hotter looking. Finally, you drag back to the entrance with your tongue hanging out, looking like a whipped dog.
We briefly looked at the museum (yes, it is small), checked out one of the shops, and hit the bathrooms. For a few minutes, we watched the waiters and waitresses at the restaurant/bar performing dances, first with a bottle of beer on their heads, then with a tray with a bottle and four glasses on their heads. I’d never seen that done, and it was quite good. We then went out the exit where the vendors were. Now these folks were aggressive! We didn’t buy anything, but there were some beautiful things.
The bus was running and the A/C was on, yea! Gradually, the troops gathered. When the time came to leave, there were indeed two people who had not gotten back on time (I believe everybody WAS wearing a watch, but anyway). So we backed out, leaving Paul in the parking lot to gather the strays, and bid magnífico Chichén Itzá adiós…
Submitted by: D. Stevens -- dragon5@fullnet.net
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