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Outdoor topics => Travel Guide => Topic started by: WV Sawmiller on June 16, 2016, 10:21:50 PM

Title: Mexico
Post by: WV Sawmiller on June 16, 2016, 10:21:50 PM
   My wife and I have been in Mexico staying at a resort south of Cancun since Saturday. Came down for her cousin's wedding with my wife doing the photos. Have been pretty well tied up here with the wedding which took place Tuesday and related family events until today.

   We went out on a private tour with a local driver, Miguel, to Chichen Itza, a Maya Ruin that has been largely rebuilt. Got a guide named Raphel at the site who was great. He was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the place. He grew up right next to the site. He took us through the site and stopped at several places to point out features built into the site. it is truly amazing. One temple had 4 sets of steps with 91 steps each then a platform (4X91=364+1 = 365 like the days in the year). The layout/positioning of the temple is such that on the equinoxes a serpent carved into the structure (shadow) climbs up and down the steps and creates a series of equilateral triangles. At high noon then there is no shadow on any part of the structure. On one side in front of the steps Rhaphel clapped his hands and the echo from the steps sounds like a sun bird. Scientists have still not figured out how that is done. In the sports area at one position he clapped his hands and we immediately got 7 echoes from the other end. In the sports arena there was big stone ring about 20' in the air. The teams played a sort of soccer with 7 men to a team, used a 6-8 lb solid rubber ball and had to put the ball through the ring using their feet, knees, hips and heads. The winner then had to honor of being sacrificed to one or several of the gods by being beheaded. (Bet I'd never get that ball in that hoop!).

    My wife was amazed at the math and geometry of the place and said they should be bringing math classes here and showing what these people already knew about math, geometry, acoustics, astronomy, etc. thousands of years ago. I think they have proved their calendar is within 17 seconds of what modern technology has determined to be correct.

   We left there and went to another set of ruins called Et Balam (if my spelling is correct). Much of it is still just huge piles of stones buried in the jungle. It was also amazing but not as much to us as the Chichen Itza. Then again, the local guide there, while good, was just not as enthusiastic as Rhaphel.

   If you do get a chance to visit these place for goodness sakes hire a good knowledgeable local guide. it is the best investment I think you can make after spending this much time and money to get here. Other than being almost unbearably hot and humid at times it was a great day. Hope everyone is enjoying their summers.
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: WV Sawmiller on June 17, 2016, 06:30:00 PM
    Our guide called last night and advised he was not going to be able to come today and his boss refused to send another vehicle and driver. I guess they had higher paying clients/uses for the vehicles than one open day for 2 tourists. We got the bell captain to call a taxi driver he knew and we went with him.

    We headed for Punta Laguna (Point Lagoon) to a reserve to observe Spider monkeys. I did stop at one local lumber yard of sorts. Was interesting. From what I could understand the guy cut his lumber (mostly a dark red wood I did not recognize) with a chainssaw. Must use some sort of jig as his boards and planks were very well cut. He mostly had poles from a couple inches up to about 6" in diameter in racks in sort of a pole barn made of the same small poles and a tin roof. He said he did some carpentry work and showed us pictures on his phone of steps and decks he had made but he said he mostly sold lumber and poles to other builders. He said his logs came from 600 km (About 350-370 miles) away. He had some good looking beams about 8" square and 16-20 feet long. Most of his planks looked to have been about 8/4 to 10/4 live edge cuttings. He did have some thick edged framing looking materials also. Nice guy and was fun to stop and talk. I am sure we surprised him.

    We got to Punta Luguna and must have sat outside the entrance over an hour in the rain before we finally gave it up and headed to Tuulum. Got there and had an early lunch in the rain and it slacked off by the time we were finished eating so Becky and I got a guide, Sophia, and tickets to the ruins. They were on the coast with a wall around 3 sides and the ocean and cliffs on the east side. Evidently the king and VIPs (Priests and such) lived inside the walls and the peons lived outside. Good history and interesting study on why they lived there.

   Well, I have to run. More later.
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: Hilltop366 on June 17, 2016, 07:08:05 PM
Interesting stuff WV, thanks.
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: Raider Bill on June 20, 2016, 08:53:21 AM
If you want to see local wildlife in person go to the Walmart in Cancun. I did, it was quite an experiance.
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: WV Sawmiller on June 20, 2016, 10:08:28 AM
Quote from: Raider Bill on June 20, 2016, 08:53:21 AM
If you want to see local wildlife in person go to the Walmart in Cancun. I did, it was quite an experiance.
I'm sure it is a hoot with all the people from all over the world. All likely dressed in swim suits, maybe some thin cover-ups on the ladies, sandals and black socks.

   I can advise against blue jeans in the area. Was too hot and humid. Shorts or very thin jungle pants are in order.

    We had a good time but not the kind of vacation we normally take with the resort and crowds. We have nearly always gone to remote areas and gotten private transport (SUV, boat, camel, etc) and a private guide. One trick we use is remote areas is take a portable battery powered picture printer and leave pictures with the natives. Makes you a lot of new friends and gets you access to places other tourists will never see.

   I am still amazed my wife's cousin and her family have been traveling to this area of Cancun for many years but never went to see the ruins and learn about the ancient culture and such. I liked our 1-1/2 days out on our own much better than the other 5 in the resort. If we ever go back we will find a cheap hotel in the area as a home base and get a good local driver to take us to see the sites. Each site has its own guides, who cost more than the entrance fees, who are familiar with that site only. I doubt any one guide could begin to know enough about them all to provide adequate coverage and knowledge. Use credit cards when possible to get the actual current exchange rate as every time we paid in dollars or exchanged money we took a bath. Take plenty of one $ bills and tip in dollars and let the locals convert it back as they will get better exchange rates and easier all around.

   
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: wolf nemeth on May 07, 2017, 10:10:09 PM
   It's so great to hear about your experience at  those sites.  I had spent a lot of time in Mexico back in the  early 70's, never  visiting any ruins, when I finally relented and  too a  local bus to  a site  outside Oaxaca.  I  was literally overwhelmed. and after that I  visited every ruins that I could. In  1981 I hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.  That's a lifetime memory, and I suggest that  you go there if at all possible.   thanks for sharing hyour adventure with us!
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: WV Sawmiller on May 08, 2017, 06:18:40 PM
Wolf,

   We visited Peru several years back but did not visit the ruins at Machu piccho. My wife cannot climb the hills like that. We opted for a private tour up the Amazon. Started at Iquitos, took an overnight ferry (you rent hammock space) to the last port then a private boat ride and camping in the jungle and villages along the way. We normally avoid the more traveled sites. I still tell folks any time they visit foreign places, whether remote village or well established ruins and such, hire a knowledgeable local guide to get the value of your trip.
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: wolf nemeth on May 08, 2017, 08:31:44 PM
Well, if  you liked the  Amazon  you'll like a film  made back in the 60's (?) called  Fitzcarraldo. .  Buy it, rent it, beg or borrow it! Le me know after you've  watched it..../
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: WV Sawmiller on May 08, 2017, 10:55:21 PM
Wolf,

   I have not seen the film but I heard about it and visited the guys old house/plantation there in Iquitos with my guide after we got back out of the jungle. We had a couple of days there in Iquitos. Anybody going there to Iquitos needs to visit The Yellow Rose of Texas owned and run by an American and his Peruvian wife. He has real class - he traded me a local golf club hat for my Auburn hat for his sports bar updtairs. I told him I'd donate the hat but I really did need something to keep the sun off my head
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: Briankinley2004 on May 09, 2017, 09:08:47 PM
I climbed that thing once and there was an ole hound dog asleep in the top. How he made it up there I can't figure. I guess getting down was beyond his pay grade. Check out the cenotes in the Cancun area. We dived some of them. Pretty neat coming to the surface and looking up to see the bottom side of tree roots above you. I guess they are always watered.
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: wolf nemeth on May 10, 2017, 09:42:45 PM
Maybe that  hound dog was waiting for the  next sacrifice....ever see that Mel Gibson movie about the natives hunting natives?
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: joeziz on August 22, 2017, 08:37:41 AM
I too myself was considering visiting mexico but I am torn if its the right choice when comparing with the other countries like columbia
Title: Re: Mexico
Post by: WV Sawmiller on August 23, 2017, 04:27:34 PM
    We visited Ecuador in 2008. Did a week on a small boat tour of the Galapagos Islands then spent 2 weeks on a private boat tour camping with the Indians, Ecuadorian Army (Last outpost they had next to Peru) and camping wild in the jungle up in the corner next to Peru and Columbia. That was a great trip because we had a great guide. Not expensive and surprised me when I found Ecuador's currency is the US Dollar.