• Rented a Car from Montejo Car Rental. ~$45 for the day and it came with 1/8 tank of gas. $32 for fuel to get us to the Ruin Zone. Stick shift & low riding. Nissan March. 

• Uxmal - $50 for a guide, ~$30 each (MX$950 & $535). The guide was a very well informed archaeologist with deep experience in the Mayan culture and with different ruins in the area and throughout Central America. He did a fantastic job, mixing the mythology and my culture with explanations of the construction and conclusions, archaeologist and anthropologist have made about the people who lived here. 

• The Maya Golden Period between 600 or 700ace and 900 ACE. They left around 1200 with the theory being that they had deforested and over cultivated the area leaving it decimated. The theory is that that changed the climate, making it too hot and dry to sustain life. Most of the ruins, we see, are restored religious areas, perhaps some living spaces for the highest nobles, and administrative areas for priest and leaders. As Miguel at Xlapa ruin said: there is always bureaucracy  in every culture. Regular people lived in Palapas outside the walls of these more sacred areas. It is assumed that the physical labor is done by the common people, and because they are always motivated by getting closer to being Godlike, they worked with enthusiasm, hauling all the rocks and stacking them into Structures, they would never get to use.

• The main temple - this is the only one that has rounded edges and is not a perfect square pyramid. East side stairs are 45° climb. They were made narrow, in one theory, so that people climbed them traversing back-and-forth like the path of a snake. There are 91 steps because if all the steps on all four sides are added together, they reach 364, with a last step completing 365 for all the days of the year. When you stand in front of the east side, there is a hole that archaeologist broke in to see if it was a tomb, or there were things inside. Tourist clap their hands loudly here and get an echoing bird-like sound theorized to imitate the Guatemalan Quetzal, but our guide doubts they would know of something so far away. The guide showed us pictures of various parts of the ruin and how they looked in the 1950s and 1880s, when they were first discovered. Just rubble. He says the workers are just workers, not archaeologist or anthropologist or anyone especially trained. The work that is gone into the restoration is amazing!

• The west side has a piece of original lumber above a doorway that has become petrified. It is the only remaining peace. Much of what you see is modern restoration and only recently have they started trying to use materials equal to what was used originally instead of standard cement. you see Chuck numbering on some areas, showing where missing pieces, that are laid on the ground, will go.

• Maya did not use keystone to make their arches, but triangles that were counterweighted to create inclines for a doorway or ceiling. 

• The area that Europeans named “the Convent,” is a big field or square, surrounded by buildings and walls. The embellishments on the East wall are much less sophisticated than those on the West wall. This aligns with the assumption that when they started building, they started on the east side. The representations you see most prominently are the rain God and a plumed feathered serpent, winding the length winding the expanse. There are two entwined on the east wall. Also flower adornments and swirls representing the stars and planets. There is a big throne at the north end that is covered in hieroglyphics that are syllable based, that the King or Noble would sit in during events. There are a few areas with the red paint remaining in the recessed areas of the decoration. This is the paint that was mixed with volcanic material and has a high mercury content. All the buildings painted with this would leak into the water source and the people were drinking delicious mercury water.

• Through the archway you see sitting in the chair, is the ballfield. This ballfield is different from those you see other ruins because each group seems to have their own iteration and interpretation of the game. as you go through the tour, you start at the earliest years of the people living here, and then go to a second level, which was built on top, and after the ballfield, arrive at the third layer that has another religious building, but not as grand as the big Temple. Beyond here is what they call the pigeon house because pigeons would roost in it and maybe it was created for that purpose.

• Our guide left us after we got to the third level and we walked the rest of the area by ourselves. It showed to me how much better it is to have someone telling stories and giving information. We were stuck reading signs and they weren’t very fulfilling. Also, it is damn humid and hot. I’m glad to be here in the off-season.

• There is one figure with a mustache. They think that this indicates trade with the Aztecs, who had seen Aran Cortez, and the Europeans, and had created Bolick figures with the mustache adornment. They thought them powerful. It might be that the Maya added the mustache figure to their pant on because they needed all the gods they could get in order to get enough rain to sustain. 

• The religion seems to be one based on a lot of guilt. Basically, if something bad happens, it’s because you did something wrong. If there is no rain, there is an injury, there’s a bad crop, it is because someone is misbehaving or selfish.

Symbols:

• Butterflies are the spirit of warriors who have passed

• Turtle is the gate keeper between underworld and surface. It is also implied that the world is held up by a turtle. There was a depiction in the museum of a anthropomorphic figure with arms up in the air as if holding a tray. It has a parallel to the Atlas .

• Birds are of the heavens and when they land the become either snakes or jaguars??? Look it up

• Serpents represent the earth; The ground level. 

• Owls - messengers between the two worlds

• Ceiba tree - connects the underworld to the upper. Need depiction they had at the ruins showed seven roots, which represent the seven doors you need to go through in the underworld to be reincarnated and returned as a noble or semi God. there are 13 branches on the tree. These represent the 13 levels you progress through becoming more and more God-like each level. 

• Chaak (chak is the color red) - always portrayed with a nose like a spout or elephant, trunk pointing upwards. There is one small ruin, Xlapak, the fourth on the route, that has two of them with the snout pointing down. At the base of most areas that have a large Chaak figure on the wall, there is a cistern for collecting water.

• Kabah - a postcard scene with mowed lawn and ascending staircases. No huge temples, but elevated buildings with nice restoration and details. Similar information from the previous tour was on the signage. Like all the other places, the signage has more detailed explanations in Spanish, but also has them in Maya language. A special part, and precursor to the wonderful experience we have at the next run, is crossing the street and going to the entry arch. We saw all kinds of birds and the sound of the closed in dense jungle area was wonderful to take in.

• Xlapak - centipede like representation on the second building

Reddit Advice:

  Reddit stuff I found was dated, so here is a more recent, though border off-season take. Sorry about formatting, it’s pasted)

• Most helpful podcast to prepare: Amateur Traveler, search Yucatan, there are two older episodes that give great advice. I listened to others, but these were the best. 

• Getting around - Uber was the easiest and our longest ride was $3 (US), so you can tip well and generously! also, with Uber, you know the price before you go, unlike the taxis. The one-way streets here are so insane that you have no idea if they are taking you on a longer ride than you want. We never had to wait more than five minutes for an Uber to arrive. we didn’t take city buses, so cannot answer that. The ADO between cities was easy and we could make reservations online. From Merida to Valladolid was $15 each. 

• Renting a car. $50, plus $30 in gas. The receptionist at our wonderful hotel contacted the car agencies and arranged that a car be delivered to our place. We asked for the cheapest and we’re OK with a manual transmission, but insisted on air conditioning. It had a manual windows and the smallest tires ever: a Nissan March? I’ve never heard of the make. We rented the car in order to miss the crowds at the ruins, but because we are in October now, it is off-season and really didn’t needed to have rushed. We did have Uxmal all to ourselves. Diving is exciting (challenging) when you get into Merida. But driving through the jungly narrow roads on the Ruta.Puuk was really special. Unfortunately, our jampacked day planned to do Ruta Puuk & Cenote Mucuyche did not work out because we took too much time at the ruins. However, most of the cenotes close between 3 and 5 PM, so there is really not much chance.

• To Eat

  • Marquesitas - overly crisp crepes filled with Nutella, fruit (fresh or marmalade), cajeta..your choice. We called them ice cream cones.

  • Restaurants: Manjar Blanco, Los Cantaritos, market food

  • Relleno Negro, 

  • Queso Relleno

  • Longaniza - dried smoked sausage

  • Pineapple & chamoy PopCycle (paleta) - these are everywhere in MC though

  • Lechón (pork slow roasted or stewed), 

  • Pibil (anchiote pepper & lime marinade, grilled or cooked in a closed, sometimes underground oven. Looks to me like Tikka Masala & is tangy delicious. Called “a La Yucateca” if prepared as pork. —these are the typical and can’t be found in other states we’ve been to like Guanajuato & Sonora, not even Oaxaca as I remember. 

  • Huevos Monteleños - and wonderful tomato sauce created in a Pueblo north of town. The best that we had was covered with small pieces of smoked pork and the longazita ( check spelling) sausage. I love the sausage 

More details 

• Mundo de Maya Museum - I would consider this required because the reviving Maya culture is so fascinating and a great point of pride for the people here. You can learn about calendar and math systems, plus see how trade with other cultures in central America affected the isolated communities, and, how deforesting an area meant that they destroyed, where they lived and needed to leave. It seems a lesson our current society could benefit from taking note of. Because the signage is not that detailed, I would recommend getting a guide. They are free. Entrance to the museum is around 10 or $15.  Check the schedule for tours, especially if you need one in English, so you don’t waste any time in your day is well coordinated. Especially if you are in town on a weekend and could be enjoying the cultural activities in the various squares at the same time. sidenote, there is a huge grocery store within walking distance of the museum. You can pick up sundries there at a much lower price than in the center of town. But it is a crazy scene with everything from fish with their heads on to Starbucks to household supplies. produce areas in any store are always beautiful though.

• Music Museum - I would not recommend this for non-Spanish speakers. The audio tours and information accompanying the sound of the different instruments is always in Spanish. If you speak, Spanish, definitely go! There are great interactives, various theaters where you can watch performers through the years of Mexican music performing the greatest hits and everything is very well edited. I loved it, but felt guilty because my husband couldn’t enjoy it at the same level. Cost $10-$20 per person. 

• Ruta Puuk - Uxmal is a must because the guides are good and you learn a lot. Be ready with questions for more bang for your buck. The English tour at the Mundo de Maya museum gave us a good foundation for follow up questions

• Xlapak - fourth stop (we couldn’t drive into Sayil because it was too muddy to enter. This was a highlight because there were no other people because it is small, they haven’t cleared or repaired as much of the entire area. When you walk between the three sites, the jungle closes in around you and it is quiet and peaceful, except for the sound of the birds perhaps Wild turkey. Or turkeys with crested headdresses in this area also amazing like birds and something reddish orange I have yet to identify. Unfortunately, previous administrations of Mexico have shifted some priorities and maintenance of some of the archaeological areas has fallen in order to put all the effort into the name Sites, everyone goes to. It means the roads can be difficult, wasn’t, and construction projects incomplete. We talked to an archaeologist who was pretty sad about it all because he could no longer work as an archaeologist because of the funding and instead was working as a ticket taker. But, since no one went to that site, he had plenty of time to read the newspaper.

Ideas for your visit to Merida

• Start with walking city tour to central square to see the murals in the two municipal buildings 

• city bus tour leaves every 30-60 minutes from the cathedral, —double decker & English versions every couple hours. 

• Municipal Market 5 blocks behind the cathedral

• Museo de Mundo Maya

• Museums of Montejo

• Pok Ta Pok demonstration by the cathedral around 7 or 8. Stay for when the light it on fire. 

• Live music, especially the romantic acoustic performances. There is stuff happening every night somewhere. 

• All the Yucatec food you can, esp smoked pork’s, like longaniza on huevos Monteleños

• Uxmal with a guide. The rest of Ruta Puuk if you can. Xlapak allows you to walk through the jungle to the less impressive ruins, but you get to enjoy the birds and isolation of the jungle. Few people go there. 

• Saturday market near central square

• Bici Ruta Sunday

• BTW- Don’t miss Ki Xocolatl for an awesome chocolate experience. I had a 14oz “shot” of straight cacao, that comes with powdered anchiote, pepper, habanero, cinnamon & sugar to add and play with. I love the habanero, cinnamon & a drop of sugar!