Then we headed through town....and it was just sad. Dirty - garbage in the streets. Dilapidated buildings and just poverty. It was really sad.
Then we came to the majestic ruins of Uxmal. (pronounced Oosh-Maal)
The Pyramid of the Magician, at 100 feet the tallest structure in Uxmal, is more accurately named. According to ancient legends, a magician-god named Itzamna single handedly constructed the pyramid in one night. From archaeological excavation, however, we know that the pyramid was constructed in five superimposed phases. The legendary association of the pyramid with a magician may be understood as an indication that the structure, and indeed the entire sacred part of the Uxmal complex, had ancient and ongoing use as a mystery school and ceremonial center. It is also interesting to note that the entire city is aligned with reference to the position of the planets then known, with Venus predominating, and that the pyramid of the magician is oriented so that its stairway on the west faces the setting sun at the time of summer solstice.
On either side of the steep, majestic staircase are a line of masks representing Chac, the rain god. He would have been very important because there are almost no above-ground rivers in the Yucatan Peninsula. All water must come from rain or from one of the cenotes, which are deep limestone ponds like the famous one found at Chichen Itza. There are few cenotes in the Puucs Hills area, so the Maya of Uxmal cleverly devised chiltuns, which are man-made stone cisterns used to collect and store rainwater. With this extensive system, Uxmal was able to sustain an extensive population in a hot, relatively dry climate. 
Faces of Chac line the right and left corners of this entrance. Overall, the entrance is supposed to represent the face of a jaguar, with the opening forming the mouth. This highly ornate style of entrance is called Chenes, and especially catches the eye as it sits near the top of the generally smooth and unadorned walls. The Classic Maya period was one in which there were few outside influences. Although the great city of Teotihuacan (near present-day Mexico City) established trading relationships with many Maya cities, there don't seem to have been any great invasions and takeovers such as occurred in later centuries. This is known as the "pure" Maya period.
The four long buildings which form the Quadrangle don't meet at the corners. They were each constructed at different times. The structure of the Quadrangle reminded the Spanish of a nunnery. It may actually have been some sort of training academy for the sons of the Maya nobility. On the left is the North Building, and on the right is the East Building. All four buildings in the Quadrangle are single-story, with a series of doors along the front which open into one or more interior rooms. Three of the buildings sit on a low platforms, and are entered by way of broad staircases running most of the length of the buildings. The North Building has low, columned temples on each end
The East Building is elegant in its simplicity. The lower half is smooth and unadorned. Probably this part was covered by plaster and painted. There are five doors along the wall. Above the smooth lower facade, the top half of the wall is decorated in typical "pure" Puuc style, with lattice-work and abstract geometrical designs.
The frieze on the upper half of the West Building is elaborately decorated. Here you can see additions by invaders from central Mexico, called the Xiu, who arrived at the end of the Classical Period. Superimposed on the elegant simplicity of the Puuc panel you can see the body of a plumed serpent twisting in and out of the lattice work. Plumes of feathers can be seen on the tail above, while an elaborate head and face appears on the lower section. The plumed serpent, called Quetzalcoatl, is the main deity of the Toltecs, a highly militaristic society to which the Xiu were related. The Xiu and another branch of Toltecs called the Cocom invaded Yucatan around 1000 AD and seized Uxmal and Mayapan. They allied themselves with the Itza tribe of Chichen Itza, and together dominated the whole northern area of the Yucantan Peninsula..
The Ball Court. Virtually every Maya city contained a ball court. This one was originally built in the year 649 AD, according to an inscription found at the court. That would put the construction at the beginning of the great flowering of Uxmal, and northern Yucatan Maya civilization in general. A later inscription, dated with the Maya equivalent of 901 AD, indicates Toltec influence. This later inscription commemorates the addition of a huge coiled stone snake to the Ball Court, representing Kukulkan, the Maya word for the plumed serpent, Quetzalcoatl. Apparently the influence of the Toltecs was powerful in the area at least 100 years before they invaded. The playing field extended from one vertical wall to the other, and included the low grass-covered benches on either side. About 1/2 way down the court, set in the vertical walls on either side, were 2 large stone rings.
The object of the game was to project a hard rubble ball through this ring. There was another ring like this on the opposite side of the court. The playing ball, made of hard rubber and very heavy, was slightly larger than a modern basketball. As far as archaeologists can tell, the game may have been a little like soccer, in which the hands cannot be used. However, the Maya ball apparently could not be kicked either. The waist, forearms, and thighs were all that players were allowed to use. This was in no sense an easy game. The players, of which there may have been 12 to a side, were heavily padded and wore protective helmets. The game symbolizes the creation of the world, and held deep religious significance. This was true not only of the Maya, but to nearly all other Mesoamerican civilizations.
This is the pyramid we were allowed to climb. It was HOT with no breeze. I thought I was going to die but I wasn't coming this far and not climbing.
It really was breath taking.
The Governor's Palace took immense effort to build, in part because of the platforms on which it sits. The Palace was built around 987 AD, one of the last major edifices raised at Uxmal at the end of the Late Classic Period. This Puuc-style building incorporated, or was constructed over, some earlier buildings in the Chenes style. But first, before putting up any buildings, the Uxmal Maya raised and leveled an immense earth and stone platform a couple of hundred yards long and at least a hundred yards across. Using this as a base, they then raised a second long platform. The Palace itself was then erected on top of the second platform, as seen above. This was a huge public works project for a city whose population, including farmers in surrounding settlements, probably never exceeded 25,000 people. In addition to the Governor's Palace, a second, smaller structure called the Turtle House (out of sight to the right of the photo) was built on the broad platform below the Palace.
You can tell from my strained smile I was very close to death. LOL
We did it!!
There were Iguana's everywhere.
Karl decided that he wanted to play with one.
So his friend ran away before he could touch him....but he got pretty close. Probably because he is a ninja.
After the ruins we headed to Hacienda Ochill for a snack.
The pork sandwich was good. The spherical ones were chicken and the round were also pork.
The heavily breaded ones were a bit too dense. The salsa we tried was HOTTTTTT.
The Mexican Hacienda are exquisite constructions with important historical significance.
In the 16th century, the
haciendas were introduced to Mexico by Spanish royalty to reward the
conquistadors and other nobility with confiscated land from the Indians. They
operated similar to the southern plantations of the United States as a caste
system: the masters were European“hacendados” (landowners),
and the slaves were “indigenas” (Indians).
Although not lucrative for the Indians, the haciendas were successful
businesses.
Each hacienda focused primarily
on one product common to the region. In the Yucatan, the primary agricultural crop was henequen, a
type of agave plant. Sisal, a rope derived from henequen, grew so much in popularity in
the 19th century that production became extremely fruitful. As a result of the
high profitability from producing this rope, henequen was dubbed “oro verde” or “green
gold.”
\Mexican
haciendas were private estates consisting of a primary hacienda or main house,
guest residence, servants’ quarters, stables, corrals, granaries, blacksmith
forges, general stores, chapels, schools, and hospitals; they even wove cloth
to make their own clothing. A single estate could be large enough to sustain
nearly 1,000 people, including administrators, clerks, foremen, priests,
teachers, and servants of Indian and mestizo (Spanish &
Indian mix) descent.
We were all about the selfies on this trip.
We headed back to the ship and we were EXHAUSTED and very hungry.
Didja tonight....Frog Legs. I didn't care for them. They had a little bit of a "fishy" taste.
Karl loved them. He said they were very clean and he found something new her really enjoyed.
I ordered the blackened chicken and the bean and vegetable enchiladas. The chicken was again - ok. The enchiladas were GREAT!!!
Karl had the beer battered fish and panko crusted shrimp. He liked then - not as much as the red fish from the day before - but it was good.
We also had the BEST dessert Cappuccino pie. We haven't liked one single dessert the entire trip....and today I ate TWO pies. OMG were they good.
After dinner entertainment...Tee, Jason and Alma "getting low" This was so fun!!
The plan was to go take a quick nap after dinner and hit the Family Feud show and the comedy show. We even set an alarm.....but we just turned it off. We were EXHAUSTED after a full day in the heat with lots of walking.
Today's towel animal.
