Chichen Itza Archeological Zone

Part Two

The Temple of Kukulkan is main attraction at Chichen Itza. No matter how many pictures you’ve seen, nothing can prepare you for seeing this pyramid right in front of you. It’s enormous and it’s incredible that the Mayans built such a big structure using only manpower. The snakes point to the Cenote Sagrado – the Sacred Cenote that was used for sacrifice. This temple is magnificent! This should be on every ones bucket list.

El Castillo -Temple of Kukulkan

El Castillo stands 98 ft high. It has nine terraces that represent the nine levels of Xibalba, the underground where the Mayans go when they die. It’s base is 55 ft wide. There is a staircase on each side with 91 steps each. Multiplied by four, they equal 364, there is one last step to the temple on top to make it 365, representing the days in a year. There are three temples built one on top of each other. There is a tunnel below that leads to the underground temple but it was closed off by INAH (Instituto Nacional de Antropologia) in 2006. The third temple was discovered with digital imagery.

Platforms that were filled to create a flat platform on which the building were built upon. Even though the building looks like it’s on flat ground, it’s not. El Castillo is built on a seven degree angle. This is what allows the sun to cast a shadow on the north side during the equinox. When the castle was originally discovered it was in bad condition and the snakes on the northeast side were reconstructed.

The Legend of Kukulkan

The mayan legend says that Kukulkan, will descend the pyramid on the equinox, he will follow it to the cenote where he will transcend into the underworld. This ensure a full harvest and good health. Kukulkan is represented by a serpent, he was said to be a god that decended into the underworld where he got corn and mixed it with his blood to create the maya people. THe mayans belive that every element has an animal duality. Kukulkans animal duality is the Quetzal bird which can be heard if you clap in front of the stairs.

Quetzalcoatl Bird Sound Phenomena

There is a really cool sound effect that can be experienced here if you stand in front of the stairs and clap. The pyramid echoes the sound back and it sounds like the local Quetzalcoatl bird chirping back at every clap. It’s really amazing that the Mayans were able to create such a cool sound effect with the pyramid. It can get annoying when there are a lot of people clapping at the same time.

Cenote Sagrado – The Sacred Cenote

The Northeast side of El Castillo points to the sacred cenote. The Cenote Sagrado is located north of El Castillo. It is 60 m (200 ft) wide and the water lies about 27 m (89ft) below the edge. The water is turquoise green. Hundreds of objects were thrown into this cenote as a form of worship to the Maya rain god Chac Mool who is believed to live at the bottom of the cenotes.

In 1904, Edward Herbert Thompson began dredging the cenote. Using a bucket attached to a pulley system they pulled out over 16 hauls a day from the bottom of the cenote. They found precious artifacts made of gold, jade, flint, obsidian and turquoise as well as human remains. This started rumors that people were thrown into the cenote alive as sacrifice. Sadly this isn’t all true. Researchers found marks on the bones indicating they were most likely killed before they were thrown into the cenote. Interestingly enough, the thing that the Mayans threw the most of this cenote was blue pigment. The bottom of the Cenote Sagrado is covered with 16ft of blue pigment. This gives the water it’s color. The same pigment that the Mayan used to paint their buildings and pottery.

THE OSARIO PYRAMID

This pyramid looks like a smaller version of the Temple of Kukulkan; however this one was built on top of a cave. There is an opening on top and it leads to the cave below. Inside they found artifacts and human bones.

Tours

The easiest way to get to Chichen Itza from the Cancun Hotel Zone is by tour. They will pick you up at your hotel and take you to and from the site. They will tell you all about the Mayan culture. I took the VIP tour. It includes a boxed breakfast and unlimited water, soft drinks or beer. It gets hot in Mexico and staying hydrated is important. Without this package, you will only get two bottles of water. Tours include a buffet style lunch featuring Mayan food. Most tours will take you to a cenote so that you can enjoy a swim in a sink hole. It’s very refreshing after a day in the sun. All tours take you to see the Spanish town of Valladolid. You can book your tour below. I recommend the VIP tour!

It will cost you 70 pesos to get in if you don’t take a tour. There are vendors all over this site, make sure to bring cash as they don’t accept credit cards. There are restrooms by the entrance. If you bring video equipment it will cost you an additional 45 pesos. Wear good walking shoes, sunblock and a hat. Bring a camera and lots of water if you don’t have it supplied by a tour.

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