Merida to Cancun via Chichen Itza

The first thing that strikes you upon arrival in Merida is how many of the buildings are white. Colonial architecture dominates proceedings as does the towering spectacle of the government building, which we were fortunate to get a tour of after we had picked up some lunch. Our hotel was situated in a relaxed square and had a beautiful roof terrace with a pool.

We stopped to watch a marching band in one of the main squares before being treated to a ride in a horse and carriage around the city after sunset. The horses had been specially prepared, with flowers in their manes and bells attached to the carriages.

One of our girls unfortunately had an allergic reaction to something she had eaten, so about half way through she had to disembark her horse and I have a memory of her walking the streets several blocks, clutching her neck, before our tour guide was alerted and she was seen to.

After this situation was fixed we came to a halt outside a restaurant, where we had a delicious meal with some Yucatecan speciality dishes, and kept company by a free range bunny hopping about under the tables and between our feet.

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The next day we rose with excitement as we would be ticking off one of the world wonders with a visit to Chichen Itza!

As a UNESCO world heritage site Chichen Itza is the best preserved and naturally most famous Mayan city in Mexico.

The main Mayan spectacle, El Castillo, sits in the middle of the complex, and was originally built as a sacrificial altar of worship to the rain God Chaac. I’m pretty sure that I read somewhere, something about heads being chopped and bouncing down the steps to the ground, but don’t quote me on that. Either way, it serves as a gruesome reminder of the macabre side of mans nature.

There is much history to learn about independently, but our local guide gave us a good head start by explaining about some of the various different ruins of Chichen Itza – it obviously comprises of more than one sacrificial altar – the amazing ceremonial centre, observatory, time temples and workings of the Mayan calendar. We additionally practised ‘the clap’. This involves standing some distance away from El Castillo and clapping in unison. After you have done this you can almost immediately hear the echo from the building, which makes a bizarre high pitched ‘boing’ noise, sounding a little like a deranged farm animal.

Second world wonder complete!

A mini mock up of El Castillo.

Some of us arranged for our names to be engraved on a necklace in Mayan symbols, and this was the result.

If you head for a patch of trees and pile of stones in one corner, you will encounter some impressive looking lizards.

What you don’t see in the guide books are the seemingly never- ending line up of stalls on the periphery of the grounds, selling repetitive wares, with most of the memorabilia relating to Chichen Itza. But as you walk down the path, which you need to to exit the place, you will not merely be allowed to glance at the gifts for sale, no, but will be actively bombarded by all the vendors. In this respect I greatly preferred Christ the Redeemer as a world wonder attraction.

There is a positive to walking out on this route, and that is you will see one of two deep cenotes, I believe this one is called Sacred Cenote. As well as gold and other treasures, remains of victims were also found in here, with their wounds being consistent of sacrifice.

It was to another one of these cenotes that we would now be heading – the well known Ik Kil cenote, sacred to the Mayans, sitting nearby in the archeological park of the same name and measuring in at a whopping 130ft deep and 200ft wide. This giant mouth wasn’t easy at first to jump into and swim around in, not to mention sharing the waters with black catfish. However after we had gotten over our initial fears it was hard to drag us away. A word of warning, do not hold onto or try to swing off any of the creepers hanging down, they are considered sacred and not a plaything.

After all this excitement it was time to dry off, get back on the road and make tracks to glitzy Cancun for a totally different vibe.

Mexico City – City centre, Teotihuacan and the Island of the Dolls

The next day, true to Contiki form, was jam packed as we covered in one day what any sane person would surely cover in three. Our local guide showed us around the delights of the city centre – first by bus and then by foot.

It was time to board the bus again. Our tour guide Ish passed around a bag of dried crickets. We reluctantly tucked in.

 

Afterwards it was a ride on a colourful Trajinera boat in Xochimilco, where we had some drinks, got fed some corn and were even seduced by a Mariachi band.

Many boats with unusual names lined the Xochimilco canals, but possibly even more unusual was our unnerving float past the renowned Isla de Las Munecas, otherwise known as ‘Island of the Dolls’. You can clearly see a selection of dolls hanging from trees, some of them decapitated and decomposing. Oddly I even spotted a Winnie the Pooh bear, but he looked more fresh.

A certain Don Julian Santana, who had left his wife and child and moved to this small island, believed in the tragic story of a young girl who supposedly drowned in the river. He subsequently hung up a large number of dolls that he would find around the place as a tribute to the dead child, and this is how the island got its name. Often they had been discarded for the scrap yard so it explained the dishevelled state of the dolls and this managed to scare many visitors from the island. Santana still, however, held tours for those willing to brave it.

That day’s main attraction still had to be the pyramids of Teotihuacan, just to the North-East of Mexico City, which we covered (and climbed) in the late afternoon. As a once successful pre-Columbian city and the largest archeological city in the Americas, it is divided into three pyramids; Quetzalcoatl, the sun and the moon, with The Avenue of the Dead running down the middle of the site. It really is an astounding feat of ancient building prowess, and I have even heard some say they preferred it here to the great pyramids in Egypt. Not only that but the views at the top are definitely worth the hot climb.

The next day we would briefly visit the old, laid-back Barrio neighbourhood of Coyoacan, containing plenty of old colonial mansions, squares and fountains, not to mention the excellent Coyoacan markets full of tasty treats. It was also here where we would encounter our first black squirrel, have some strong coffee, see the studios of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, as well as the outside of Frida Kahlo’s famous blue house (which we sadly did not have enough time to go in) – before journeying out of Mexico City and onto our next destination, the white stone city of Merida.

Our last night in Mexico City.