January 2007

The many pre-hispanic civilizations of mexico – mayas, toltecs, aztecs – left great number of ruins across the country.

Chichen Itza is the Maya ruins in Yucatan Peninsula, around four hours drive from Cancun. The site was constructed and reconstructed roughly around 8th and 10th century by the Mayas and the Toltecs. At El Castillo, or the Pyramid of Kukulcan, light and shadow form a shape that mimic a serpent ascending or desending the staircase during the spring and autumn equinoxes.

Tulum, a small town about two hours away from Cancun, hosts a Maya ruin site on the ocean shore. Some part of the ruined city was built around 15th century. The site used to be a port for land and ocean trade. It was abandoned about 75 years after the Spanish conquest.

This Maya ruin sits in the deep jungle in Palenque. The remained structure is probably the most complicated among the three ruins with some carvings on the wall. The green jungle setting gives the place a special touch.