The Rest of Day 5

After a much need rest and the patient had settled into her room
Steve proposed that we take a short drive to Misol Ha (Water Fall)
for pictures and a swim. The falls are spectacular and it is quite an
attraction for the indigenous people as well as tourists. The height
of the falls and the volume of water speak for themselves in the
pictures below.


Walking into the site after leaving the bus the pool is the
first thing you see. Progressing along the trail the falls
comes into view. The third picture is the water entering the pool.
A descending trail allows access behind the falls which is pictured
in the middle row. The picture center right is behind the falls and
the trail proceeds on around the pool to steps cut into the rock
leading to a cave. Most of our group went for a swim but Babu, Bibi
and Darlene did not. Darlene was busy taking pictures, and we
decided it was not worth the effort. Blame it on age or whatever?


Upon returning to Palenque we drove back out to the Archaeological site to have supper at "Don Mucho's," an open air restaurant where we had a very good lunch the day before. A Peruvian Pipes band was playing that night, the main reason we decided to return . The place was crowded and we were seated off to the side where we could not see the band. The music was great and several of us left the table and stood where we could see the performers. Claudia and Babu tried out the dance floor with some success but when Babu and Bibi went back for a fling it was so crowded that we could not get on the floor.

Bibi said the Mexican pizza was good and Babu said it was hohum but both thought the chocolate cake was very good. A good ending to the very "eventful" day.

Day 5- An Unexpected Eventful Day

Day 5 February 17, had been designated as a free day for personal exploration or whatever anyone wanted to do. Babu and Bibi had originally planned to spend the day at Palenque ruins using the time to see Temples 19, 20 and 21, but because those temples were off limits to the public, we decided it wasn't worth the effort. After all, we had seen these ruins many times and without access to the new discoveries, other activities were more interesting. Breakfast with the group was relaxed and on the late side during which we discussed what to do with our time. Events of the day, for the most part, did our planning for us.

The four single ladies, Bibi and Babu decided to walk to downtown Palenque with various objectives in mind. Our first task was to find a bank or a cambista to change some dollars to pesos, then as time permitted, check out the market, etc. As our different objectives directed we straggled out, the four ladies walking on ahead with Babu and Bibi bringing up the rear. With in a short distance Bibi was several paces ahead and had passed one of our ladies. As Babu came up to and passed this lady, she was hanging onto a limb of a sidewalk tree in from of a couple of shops. Babu thought this was a little strange and wondered if she was looking a some special bird in the tree, but walked on by. Within 20 to 30 paces Babu looked back to see if our companion was coming along. She was not in sight and he saw a body lying on the sidewalk. It took only a fraction of a second to recognize the clothing as that of our companion. Uttering an explicative, Babu sprinted back to the prone figure with Bibi in close pursuit. Yes, it certainly was our traveling companion lying with her head in a pool of blood! A small crowd of indigenous people had gathered around as we knelt down beside her and began checking for vital signs, raking our brains for long forgotten first aid procedures. She had a heart beat and she was breathing but she was having muscular contractions and she was unconscious. We checked to make sure she had not swallowed her tongue, remembering procedures to follow for students who suffered from epilepsy. Fortunately none of that seemed necessary! Bibi yelled "Call 911! Ambulance, Ambulance, Help! Help!" A young man on a motor bike had stopped to see what was causing the commotion. He pulled out his cell phone and made the call for the ambulance. Bibi was on her knees again, holding the patient's head off the side walk. The locals were urging to help her sit up and we resisted that, as we did not know the extent of the injuries. The ambulance arrived quickly, as it turned out the clinic was only two or three blocks away. Babu helped the two attendants roll the patient on the stretcher and she was loaded into the ambulance. The locals in the accumulated crowd motioned to us to get into the ambulance too. The ambulance made a U turn around the divider in the roadway, traveled a few blocks and swung into the entrance of the clinic. The clinic guard opened the sliding door to let the gurney enter. Bibi went in with the patient but Babu was not allowed, so he hoofed it back to the hotel, a few blocks way, to let our guides know what had happened.

Arriving back at the hotel, out of breath, Babu went directly to the dining area hoping to find either of our guides still lingering over breakfast. Axel, our driver, was the only person immediately available and he was talking on his cell phone. Axel does not speak much English, but Babu's agitated state undoubtedly made him understand that urgent response was required. He quickly called Ricardo who, fortunately, was still in his room and he immediately appeared. Babu explained what had happened and both hurried back to the clinic. Ricardo was of course allowed inside but Babu was left outside to wait patiently for word about what was transpiring. There was no waiting room or places to sit other than the curb so this turned into more than an hour of standing and waiting along with many indigenous people who were seeking medical attention. Steve arrived after a while and sent Axel to find Claudia (the patient's roommate). He urged Babu to go find a bank to change money which had been the morning's objective.

Meanwhile, in the clinic, Bibi was allowed to stay beside the patient holding her hand and reassuring her. The ritual of the paper work began with a nurse holding a clipboard, asking questions; "What is her name? How old is she??" and other questions Bibi had no answers for! We had not considered any information of this kind necessary to learn from fellow travelers! Bibi had no choice but to search the patient's purse and her security pouch for answers. She found her full name and quickly made an estimate that sufficed for an age. Now Bibi was able to see that our friend had suffered a large "Y" shaped cut on the upper right side and to the back of the head. It was still bleeding heavily. After two sedative shots to the wounded area the doctor worked quickly to find and stop the bleeding. His next question was "May I cut her hair?" Bibi answered "Yes, yes! What ever it takes to get the bleeding stopped!" He was given a safety razor to remove the hair from the wound. Then the nurse brought him a tray with threaded needles for stitching. The patient was becoming more lucid, demanding to know what was happening and insisting, that since she was allergic no sedative should be given, but the shots had already been given. The patient also demanded an explanation for why she was there. Bibi gave a simplified version of the incident and tried to reassure her that things were under control. By this time Ricardo had arrived, and in a three way conversation with the Doctor and Bibi, learned all the details of the incident. Shortly Claudia, the patient's room mate, appeared and was sent for clean clothes.

The doctor exhibited impressive skills as he stopped the bleeding and proceeded to stitch up the wound. Bibi was impressed both with his manner and skills, right down to washing up and making the patient comfortable and presentable. He was very attentive to the wishes of the patient but finally left the nurse to finish. At this point, Claudia returned and took charge of the patient as they made ready to go to the hospital for X-rays. By evening the patient had been X-rayed, medicated, released from the clinic, recovered enough to stand on her own and declare that she was okay! No overnight in the hospital for this lady!

By the time Bibi was relieved of her duties, we both felt wrung out!! We made our way to a nearby restaurant for a much needed lunch and a good cold beer.

One last interesting note. The patient was given a bill for 450 pesos equal to $31.03 !

Last Day at Palenque Ruins

Following the stream down hill near the Palace we entered
a park like setting crisscrossing the banks of the stream.
Ruins of several structures were incorporated into the pathway
leading to a lower terrace where many more ruins exist but
are unexcavated. The collage below is a general sampling
of the parkway. A large Ceiba Tree punctuated the end of
the pathway. Picture, center bottom, is of Bibi standing in
front of the Ceiba Tree.

After lunch at an open air restaurant off site, the group begin to
break up, each following their own interest. Our bus returned to
Palenque Town and we chose to seek our own way back.
This left us free to explore as we saw fit. The two of us wanted
to take in the atmosphere of the Site and do some exploring up the
mountain behind the Temple of the Inscriptions where we knew
other unexcavated ruins existed.


This Collage is an attempt to capture the feeling of the greenery
and the relaxed serenity of the place. The center picture is of the
Temple of the Count, the following picture is a telephoto shot of
Steve and our traveling companions taking a breather. The ruins
we found back of the Temple of the Inscriptions were up the steps
in the lower left corner followed by two pictures of that Temple.

Tired and hot we gave up about 4:00 in the afternoon and
caught a "collectevo" (mini bus) back to town a few miles
away, which made several stops to pick up and let off
passengers. We got off at the intersection of the main
highway and the road into Palenque Town, marked by this
large sculpture of Pacal's head. We then walked a couple of
blocks to our Hotel where we took a shower and a nap before
venturing out for super at a near by restaurant.
Good food but could not eat it all, resolved to cut down!

After the Cross Group

Looking back at the Temple of the Foliated Cross as we descended
to the main grounds

we crossed the stream which supplied water for the site,

passing by what had been the original entrance to the Palace complex.

We looked back, as we went, at the Temple of the Inscriptions,
the Palace tower and Palace steps.

Center left, we walked by a "cave in" revealing the structure of
the walled tunnel engineered to direct the steam under the Palace,
supplying running water to the structure.

This side of the Palace had many stucco reliefs, although badly
damaged by looters and weather, which still represent the
grandeur of the complex. The last picture of the collage is where
the stream emerges from the tunnel descending the slopes below.

Palenque the Archaeological Site

February 16, Day 4, the day dedicated to exploring the Archaeological Site of Palenque. We had looked forward to spending more time as this was our 4th ( 5th?) time here. Temples 19,20, and 21 had been excavated and books published since our last visit. David Stuart's recently published book on his interpretation of these three temples left us intrigued with the thoughts of being able to actually see what he wrote about. Unfortunately for us, this time these temples were off limits as was the Temple of the Inscriptions. During our 1992 visit to Palenque we had been able to descend into the depths of the Temple of the Inscriptions and see the tomb of Pacal. To have all of the above unavailable was a big disappointment.

We made an early start this morning in order to avoid the heat in the afternoon. Ricardo led us first to the Tomb of Pacal's Wife, which was unexplored on our previous visits. The right side of the collage are photos taken inside the tomb showing the sarcophagus and interior structure. The two pictures in the upper left are of the famous Tablet of the 96 Glyphs (photo taken in the Museum) important because it tells the dynastic history of Palenque. Originally it was found upside down in the ruins and was broken as workmen tried to move it. We were able to tour the labyrinth under the Palace, enterd through the dark archway (right middle) which was new to us. Picture of the Palace interior with tower is followed by a picture (from outside) of the Temple of the Inscriptions. Further down in the center are the Tablet of the Slaves, stone carvings about five feet tall. The rest are carved inscriptions and wall stucco reliefs that are badly eroded, found in the Palace hallways.

From the Palace we proceeded to the Cross Group where Ricardo gave us a description of their origins. This Group was constructed by Kan Balam, son of Pacal I in honor of his father. The group is comprised of three temples dedicated to a Triad of Gods.

The collage below is of the Cross Group: top left is the Temple of the Cross, top right is Foliated Cross, and middle and lower left is Temple of the Sun. It is not clear which temple is dedicated to which god, but they represent the Rising Sun, the Setting Sun and the Dark Sun (night). Upper right is of some people standing at the entrance of the Temple of the Foliated Cross with Bibi waving (red shirt) and a telephoto shot of Bibi from the temple of the Cross. Center and lower left is Temple of the Sun. Carved panels, lower right are what is left of the original inscriptions of the Temple of the Cross.

Palenque Ruins from Temple of the Cross.
From this point we descended from the Cross Group walking passed the Main entrance of the Palace to the grounds beyond.

Palenque Town and Archaeological Museum

Before we went to Tenosique for the Pocho Ceremony we checked into the Hotel Maya Tulipanes in the Ecotourist Center La Canada in Palenque Town. This Hotel was of personal interest to us as it was under construction in 1992 and has used replica panels from the "Cross Group" in Palenque Ruins as part of the decor. We were in the area, traveling on our own and had just come from one our first sessions of the Texas Meetings which are held every year during spring break at the University of Texas at Austin. These meeting are attended by those who are interested in learning and advancing the study of Maya Hieroglyphics. Palenque was the emphasis of this particular session. Babu had worked on the inscriptions of the Temple of the Cross and Bibi had work on the inscriptions of the Temple of Foliated Cross. It was a real thrill to see these now familiar panels so exquisitely reproduced. The panels are still here and they are still beautiful !!



Our evening meal was held it this area the first day and culminated with a impromptu seminar on the Maya with Ricardo officiating. Everyone joined in and it was a great introduction to Palenque and what we would see the next day. We had been to the Palenque Museum earlier that day which included a reproduction of Pacal's Sarcophagus along with a video of the finding of his tomb. An Indian Jones story if there ever was one! The carving on the lid tells of Pacal entering the road(the Milky Way) on his way to the here after. (Pacal I was Palenque AHOW from 615 to 682 AD)

The last picture represents a phrase from the inscriptions that referenced the beautiful site looking over the sea of green.

Tour Map

Specific locations on the tour are marked in yellow .


Map furnished by Steve Carr.

Map

Location map. The area of travel is between the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and the Guatemala border.
The next blog entry will have the specific tour map.

Steve Our Tour Guide

During the long hot wait for the Pocho Ceremony to begin we took advantage of the air conditioning at the Restaurant Under the Mango Tree.
Here is Steve, our Tour Guide, enjoying (?) his lunch.

As the Restaurant did not serve beer Axel, our Driver, brought in a supply from a local bar. The cold beer was as welcome as the food. Thanks to Axel this became a tradition as the trip progressed.

As the celebration preliminaries begin Steve borrowed a mask from a street vendor



to blend with the crowd but all the photography equipment was a dead give away!! :)


It is worth noting that we met the lady from Melba (our home town) at this event. We had met her before in the hotel in Villahermosa. Unusual, to say the least, to see a neighbor this far from home.

Pocho Ceremony

We were on the bus ready to move out at 7:45 this morning driving from Villahermosa to Palenque to check in to our Hotel then on to Tenosique to witness the Pocho Ceremony and dance. This is performed on Sunday before Lent begins and symbolizes the purification of man's spirit through the struggle between good and evil. This may be a mixture of Maya mythology and Christianity. The ceremony also seems to have some significant elements of two Maya Calenders, Tzolkin and Haab. Old beliefs hold that the five day interval needed to justify the two calenders are auspicious and auguries of these days are observed with reverence. (We want emphasize that we are not experts and may have just enough information to be dangerous :) )

The first collage is of the costumes of the dancers and the crowds of people both participants and audience. We wondered if the performance would ever begin and sat down at a table under an awning to rest a bit. Participants began to assemble after about three hours. With lots of noise, horns and drums enhanced by loud speakers, dancers filled the arena in a great flood and danced around in a counter clockwise circle shoulder to shoulder. This proceeded with lots of shouting, yelling ,waving of sticks and spraying some sort of white powder over the audience. Organized pandemonium in general!


As we were watching from the back of the crowd (lower right above) a woman approached us and asked in English if we were trying to see. We replied in the affirmative; she said "Come with me" and led us to some steps behind us, motioned to people standing there to move to make room for us! All of them did so with big smiles much to our surprise! This put us up high enough to see over the throng of spectators. The dance wound down after about 15 minutes, and the dancers began to leave the arena. Our kind lady came back, took us by the arm, led us inside the arena to take pictures. The pictures below show some of the performers we photographed. Our Lady is shown in a green blouse and black pants in the lower left corner of the collage. We assumed that some of these dancers were family and friends.



As we left the area, a young man approached and tried to hand us a DVD.. We thought he was trying to sell it and decline his offer. He replied, "Gift! Free!" with a big smile. Later when we played it on the bus system we discovered it was a recording of the ceremony we had just witnessed! We felt we had been treated royally!!

Cacao Plantation and Factory

On our return to Villahermosa from Comalcalco we took a side trip to a Cacao Plantation and Factory Museum. The tour of the plantation was a botanical bonanza. The Cacao itself grows only in a very narrow ecological zone limited by temperature and humidity. There are several varieties of cacao around the world but only one that produces the desirable beans. The beans have been cultivated by the Mayan Culture, dating to as early as 200 BC, maybe earlier. The Maya cherished the beans for two major reason, the first being the frothy drink and second as a currency. The drink was mixed with water and flavored with chilies and or vanilla. Many ceramic pots recovered from Maya burials by archaeologists, are inscribed in hieroglyphs as a "Cacao vessel belonging to a specific AHOW." The word AHOW is Maya for Ruler or Lord and from that it is assumed that the drink was primarily for the elite.

The sign pictured below was in the Plantation's Gift Shop where all kinds cacao products were sold. We were given samples of cacao drink, candies with different percentages of cacao, ice cream, and even wine and liqueur. The cacao pod contains a very sweet pulp which is probably used in making the spirits. Obviously the Vendor had no problem in making a lot of sales. Yum!!!



The Plantation tour was a botanical delight of tropical plants many of which were over forty years old. The two flowers below are pink and red ginger. In the center of the collage is a rubber tree with slash marks used to harvest the sap. The picture beside it is a Monkey Tail Flower growing above a newly sprouted palm. Right side is a Cinnamon Tree.


The Spilt Leaf Philodendron, lower left, is clinging to a Cieba tree about twelve feet above the ground. The next two pictures are the Chiclet tree, the sap of which is used in chewing gum.


Our guide in the stripped shirt is standing beside a Nutmeg Tree. The large pods hanging from the trunk of the trees are the Cacao fruit. The lighter colors show pods of different maturity. On the right side is a Cacao tree trunk with blossoms and the splotches are where previous fruit have grown .

Lower left is inside the factory. Our guide is showing how the beans are graded after roasting, and the process of making the drink. Ricardo, our Mexican guide, is standing by the demonstration table. Roasting and crushing is done in one operation in this machine (two pictures, lower right). The factory has been operating for many years and the machinery appeared to be of 1930 vintage.

Dinner at the Hotel, very good fish but the broccoli and cauliflower were served cold (interesting!).

Comalcalco Structures and Stuccos

As you enter the late classic (700 to 900 AD) Archaeological Site of Comalcalco the temple pictured in the upper left hand corner of the collage is the first thing you see. The next three pictures running clockwise are representative of the many structures around the site. Center right, with Bibi in the foreground shows pillars that probably supported thatched roofing. All the Structures were covered with a thick layer of plaster made of sea shells as depicted in center left. The center picture is of a paved water collection system that drained into a cistern. The Stuccoes are across the bottom of the collage and are common across all Maya sites. They generally represent gods during this period and area. Chac the rain god is a likely candidate for the lower left image, the promnant tooth could be the sun god, Kinich.


That completes the tour of Comalcalco. We headed back to Villahermosa for the night and an early start in the morning for Tenosique and Palenque. On the way we stopped at a road side food stand for a late lunch. Yes I mean stand, open air, thatched roof and sawed off stumps for chairs. Turkey Mole was the specialty and it was excellent!! As the trip progressed we ate at several of these establishments. The local Guide always inspected the kitchen before he would let us eat!!

Comalcalco

After visiting La Venta Archaeological Park we boarded the buss and drove north to the Archaeological Site of Comalcalco near the Gulf Coast, unique in that it is the only Maya site built of fired adobe brick. The green was near overwhelming for those of us coming from mid winter in the northern latitudes. We climbed all over the ruins taking pictures of all the structures and the man made mounds.

La Venta Archaeological Park

We visited an open air museum in a tropical setting containing the La Venta collection of artifacts from the "mother civilization" of the Maya and the Zapotecs. The original site was located north of Villahermosa near the coast and was moved to make room for an oil facility. The colossal heads are the most famous of this site, but there are many other interesting and complex sculptures. One of the unique pieces (center) is a whale, the only one attributed to the Olmec. Upper right hand corner pictures a buried floor of serpentine blocks transported from the original site. The tall figure on the left is named the "Stargazer," one of our favorites. (No doubt he has a stiff neck after all this time!)

More Pictures From the Hotel Invirons

A Mural in the Hotel lobby depicting segments of various of Mayan murals from around the region.

Great Kiskadee that kept watch over the swimming pool.
The Grackle that had learned how to imitate a cell phone ring, and a Great White Egret on the Hotel pond. Blue cast is due to the early morning light.