Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Day 6 - Zaci and Ticuch
The cenote Zaci is a basically a large cave filled with water located smack dab in the center of Valladolid. Many of the kids commented how strange it seemed to have such an amazing natural wonder in the middle of town. The truth is that Valladolid is built on the bones of an ancient Mayan city. Every Mayan city had at least one large cenote located nearby as a source of water for the people (there are not rivers in the peninsula).
We had a great time there.
Later we traveled out to a small village called "Ticuch" to visit a family that are old friends of mine.
I have known Juan and Lucia for 14 years and have visited them often. They are a traditional Mayan family who speak and live Mayan traditions. They have many children and you can see that they care about each other very much. They were married when Lucia was very young (in her mid-teens) and Juan was in his 50's. When I first met them they were a very humble family with lots of mouths to feed and Juan had to work long, long days to provide for the family while Lucia did the same, caring for Juan and the children. Now however, the girls are grown and have families of their own. They all work to provide for each other and now have quite a large income.
The kids treated the family with respect and it made me glad to see that. They played with the kids, made tortillas and put up with listening to Juan tell stories that had little to no meaning. I feel that it was a beautiful experience that the kids won't soon forget.
Here's a short video of Juan that we took. It was a great visit.
Tuesday, August 9, 2016
Day 5 - Ruins and Cenotes
Valladolid is my favorite place on the planet. It's surrounded by small villages that are full of Mayan speakers. Within some of those villages are hidden treasures that your average tourist is unable to explore.
1st - Ek Balam. Situated in the jungle outside of a small village called "Temozón" are the ruins of Ek Balam. They are larger than Chichen Itza and not as well known. The price for entrance is low and, for now, they allow you to climb prett much anywhere you want on the ruins. The steps are steep and the buildings are high.
After our visit to Ek Balam we went to the small village of "Dzitnup" to visit a cave known as "Xkeken". Xkeken is an underground cenote where people can go and swim and have a good time. I don't have pictures for you because it's too dark to take them but I have some beautiful video that I will upload later.
Day 4 - On to Valladolid
We left Mérida today and got ready for a new town. Before arriving in Valladolid we stopped in the beautiful town of Izamal. The entire center of town is painted yellow and the convent is extremely photogenic.
The town was a Mayan village before it was conquered by the Spanish and there are remnants of ruins all over.
Later we drove on to Valladolid and to an amazing hacienda to eat. We discovered a creature there who was unfriendly to humans.
Monday, August 8, 2016
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