Puerto Aventura, Mx the Riviera Maya - Wx Hold
The Independence at dock in Puerto Aventura, Mx
Chris, Larry & I depart Isla Mujeres at first light and head through the channel by Cancun back out to the Yucatan Channel and then south. I haven’t been to Cancun for 30 years and as we pass by I can see that it has tripled in size. So many new, massive hotels along the waterfront stretching for miles. Cancun is soon far behind us and we have a very nice seven hour cruise to Puerto Aventura (55NM). The wind is forecast to strengthen over the next week so we will stay put in this nice marina and do some sightseeing for a few days until the weather and seas calm enough to continue our southbound journey.
The sunrise leaving Isla Mujeres, Mx
The Independence at the dock in Puerto Aventura Marina
An afternoon walk along the beach…
…followed by a cruise in the tender along the canals
The narrow and tricky entry to the Puerto Aventura Harbor and Marina
We rent a car and drive an hour and a half to the Yucatan archaeological site of Coba, The city dates from 50 BC to 100 AD but evidently flourished during 600 to 900 AD with approximately 60,000 people and the name translates to ‘water stirred by wind’. Our guide, Pedro, was fantastic and told us that this sight was originally discovered by people collecting the sap from the Manikara tree to make Chicle (later called Chiclets), a natural chewing gum. These Chicle gatherers then told the archeologists (first in 1926) who currently believe Coba to spread 30 plus square miles, have over 6,500 structures and possess a network of limestone roads - one of which leads directly to Chichen Itza.
Pedro shows us a rendition of an ancient Mayan Codex holy book. The Mayan language is not properly understood as the conquering Spaniards systematically destroyed their written language to aid in the monopolizing of the culture and its people. Unlike Egyptian hieroglyphics there is no proverbial Rosetta Stone. Mayans were one of the first cultures to make paper (out of tree bark). They also discovered astronomy and calendar systems (accurately predicting Solar and Lunar eclipses through 2012) and were highly developed mathematicians being one of the first cultures to use the zero.
One of the many uncovered structures at Coba. Pedro mentioned that the Yucatan Peninsula is geologically flat and consists of limestone that was revealed when the sea subsided. Therefore, any rising area is most likely man made and not from natural geological origins.
The Iglesia pyramid stands 80 feet tall. When I came to Coba 30 years ago this was the only major structure uncovered and you could climb up to the top, which you can not do now.
This is a photo of one side of the ‘Pok-a-Tok’ playing field (five have been discovered at Coba). This game (for this size court) is played with two players on each side and is a cross between soccer and basketball. The players had to propel a four-pound solid rubber ball through the small stone ring (shown above). The clincher is, the players could only use their elbows, knees or hips to make the ‘basket’. First one to score wins the glorious prize of giving blood, which is then burned as an offering to the gods. This blood is procured by piercing (via fishbone) the winners nose, ears or genitals…makes you wonder how much they really wanted to win…
This skull was placed on the ground at the end of a second Pok-a-Tok court. I am not sure what its significance is but Chris took a nice photo of it
At each uncovered area in Coba there are ‘stelea’ stone tablets (at least 32 at Coba) that are carved with depictions of rulers and usually accompanied by hieroglyphic texts recording the rulers’ identity and actions. The stones date from 250 to 900 AD.
One of the stelea with a plaque depicting many of the hieroglyphs that were originally carved into the surface
Pedro (who by the way is Mayan) holds pictures of Ahmuzencab, the Mayan Bee God (left), also called the ‘Descending God’ because of the direction he faces; diving downward towards a flower. The other picture is of the ‘Mayan Universe’ with many of its Gods above and below the earth.
About to start our march up Ixmoja, part of the Nohoch Mul group of structures. The pyramid is 42 meters (138 feet) tall with 120 stone steps that are much steeper than they look.
Thanks Chris for taking this picture…what a view
Crew member Chris Adams at the top of the Nohoch Mul Pyramid. The Bee God (or Descending God) diving toward him.
Departing Coba we see the pyramid of the Conjunto Pinturas area
From Coba we drive to Tulum on the east coast of the Yucatan. This amazing walled archeological site evidently served as one of the most important seaports to the Maya during 1200 - 1521 AD. Pictured is the Temple of the Wind God. Perhaps we should have made an offering to the Gods while we passed by…then again, I imagine those fishbones hurt.
Walking toward the temple called ‘El Castillo’ (obviously, not an original Mayan name but one given by the conquering Spaniards). According to the ‘Cruising Guide to Belize & Mexico’s Caribbean Coast’, by Captain Freya Rauscher; El Castillo once served as an important lighthouse that guided boats through a small opening in the reef. '“We placed a pair of butane gas lamps on the benches below the rectangular windows that pierce the wall of the Castillo’s third story. When viewed from offshore, the overlapping light beams mark a natural opening in the reef. Vessels drawing less than 7 feet could be navigated through the cut using the Castillo Tower windows as a range lights”, from Michael Creamer, National Geographic.
El Castillo and the Iguana guard to the left
The beach below El Castillo is amazingly beautiful and was amazingly crowded when we visited on a Sunday afternoon
El Castillo from another angle
The Temple de las Pinturas. I believe this carving is a representation of the god of rain called Chaac.
As you can see it is still windy when we pay a visit to Playa del Carmen
Colorful murals are a great use of a boring garage wall
Tequila shops are one after another on Playa del Carmen’s ‘5th Avenue’ shopping street
We head out of Playa del Carmen after lunch and find the Kantun-Chi Cenote park. We can visit four cenotes today. This is number 1 named Kantun-Chi
This is Cenote 3 named Uchben-Ha. Cenotes are natural limestone fresh water pools that are connected to one another by a network of underground rivers. There are many Cenote Parks along the Riviera Maya and we were happy that the park we choose today was not crowded and is well maintained. You have to shower off your sunscreen and insect repellent prior to entering the water and there is no visible garbage (plastic) to been seen.