Palenque - Jungle shrouded ruins

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Trip Start Sep 09, 2008 Previous
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  Palenque, Central Mexico and Gulf Coast, Mexico
Friday, October 10, 2008

Yesterday was a very hard day for myself and Mish. I was told in the morning that my dear nan had passed away, leaving behind my grandad and a family that cherished her. She is there in my earliest memories and I will miss her more than I can express with words. I said my goodbyes to her before I left but itīs hard to come to terms with the fact that I wasnīt there in her final hour. It was also my only nephewīs second birthday yesterday, so happy birthday little man. Itīs sad that he hasnīt had a proper chance to experience our nanīs love and protection, day trips to the coast and her cakes and roast dinners. I miss her already.
We are in Palenque and we came for one reason and that was to see the Mayan ruins. This is a huge site, with many hundreds of buildings discovered, covering a vast area. Set amidst thick jungle and with the sound of  Howler monkeys barking in the canopy, Palenque is an awesome place to visit. The lapse in Mexican laws allowed us to walk up many of the pyrimids and into many of the buldings, traversing the tunnels and passageways that run under some of  the temples and palaces. Itīs amazing that these are still standing, especially in such humid conditions, a testament to the workmanship of their creators. The scale of  the whole place is breathtaking and at itīs height the city was occupied by over eight thousand inhabitants. When I got the chance, I climbed high enough to get a good view of the surrounding countryside, mountains on one side and jungle on the other. The Mayans didnīt pick this site by accident! The nearby waterfalls added to the splendor of the whole area and made for a very interesting and enjoyable day. We left just as the sun broke through the clouds and began itīs onslaught.
On that note, Palenque is the most humid place I have ever visited. If you raise your arm here you break out in sweat. Itīs low lying and surrounded by jungle, so you havenīt got a chance. The hostel we are staying at has an open roof terrace which is also our dorm, so we get a little breeze at night, which helps us sleep.
While we were here we thought we would visit one of the many waterfalls in the region. The main one, Agua Azul, is meant to be a nasty shade of brown this time of the year, at the end of the rainy season, so we opted for another waterfall, Misolīha. We went there with a French Canadian guy and did most of the journey via a collectivo and then walked the rest of the way by foot, picking oranges off of the bushes on the way. The falls were beautiful and we were allowed to walk behind them and into a cave system that countained another waterfull. Bats hung from itīs ceiling, which was a little off putting, especially when they decided to leave the cave and flap past our heads, eeeek. Before leaving we had a swim in the pool at the foot of the falls and it was good to wash away the heat of the day. I didnīt see any beasties in the water, something I was a little worried about before we dived in!
This evening we leave for Tulum, on the Caribbean coast, to relax and enjoy the sea again.

XX

Post your own travel photos for friends and family Pictures

Misol´ha falls	A very wet pair	The Pyramid	Jungle backdrop
The Temple	View from the temple	Nature taking over	All along the watchtower
Food for thought	On the throne

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