The Beauty of Tulum and Xel-Ha

Wander in fascination through the remarkably preserved ruins of a Maya fort; then grab an authentic Mexican souvenir, at a sprawling, local market. Journey down onto one of the most sublime beaches upon that whole coastline, touching the very tip of a national biosphere nature reserve. Along the way, keep your eyes sharp for any number of international celebrities. This is a favourite place for the rich and famous to see and be seen. Then travel just slightly north, into the best open sea aquarium and water park on the Mexican Caribbean.

Two gems of the Riviera Maya lie close enough together for both to be visited in one day. They are Tulúm and Xel-há.

Tulúm


Tulúm is a pre-Columbian walled fort, built to protect the inhabitants and the local port against invaders from the Caribbean Sea. It stands 12m (39ft) atop a cliff commanding imposing views of the sea. A compact site, it nonetheless contains spectacular buildings, like the Temple of the Frescoes, which is decorated with niched figurines of deities; the Temple of the Diving God, with its eponymous god; the Temple of Paintings, where the paint is still discernable after 1000 years; and, of course, the Castillo. The bay below is breathtaking to survey. Tulúm is located 128km (80m) south of Cancún.

The fort at Tulúm was built around 1200 CE. It recycled some of the materials from local derelict buildings of the time. A stele, or decorated stone slab, dating from 564 CE sits proudly in a precinct created 15th centuries later. The fort was certainly an important trading center by 1518, when it was first noticed by the invading Spanish. However, it wasn't abandoned by the Mayans until the end of the 16th century.

During the interim, it would have exported gold, flint, ceramics and incense from all over the Yucatán peninsula, including copper from the Mexican highlands and exotic feathers from the inland regions. The density of Guatemalan obsidian artefacts discovered at the site provides a clue to one of its major imports, alongside salt and textiles.


As well as defence from the sea, the fort also warned of natural dangers. The Temple of Winds was built in such a way as to emit a loud wail, when the winds grew to a certain strength. This alerted the residents to the onset of a hurricane and allowed them to get to safety in time.

Tulúm overlooks the coralled reef biosphere reserve of Sian Ka'an. For many people, the turquoise shores here are more magnificent even than those in Cancún. Sitting above them, within the ruins, is a sublime experience; while many will instantly wish to hurry down and swim in those enchanting waters, before relaxing on the white sands.

Outside the ruins is a large market, where bargains may be picked up. See our blog, 'How to Haggle for Goods at the Mercado'.

Xel-há


Xel-há means 'where the waters are born' in the native Mayan. A settlement was formed around the waters in the 1st Century, which had become a coastal port by 800 CE. It is likely that it formed just one of a chain of such ports, which includes the neighbouring Tulúm, through which merchants could interchange goods. Trade would also have come via the picturesque Caribbean Sea.

Arguably the most dramatic moment in Xel-há's history came with the arrival of the Spanish in 1527. Conquistador Francisco de Montejo sought to turn Xel-há into the first Spanish settlement on the Yucatán peninsula. He changed its name to Salamanca de Xelhá and stationed his troops there. Unfortunately for his ambition, disease, deprivation and the resistance of the local Mayans soon reduced the number of his men. Montejo resorted to the desperate measure of scuttling his own ships, in order to stop any of the remaining Spanish from leaving.


They managed to stabilize their position in the settlement enough to attempt unsuccessful sorties into neighbouring areas, but over half of Montejo's men were killed in battle with the Mayan near the to the River Ake. Meanwhile, most of the 65 conquistadores, left behind to govern Salamanca de Xelhá were massacred by its residents. The whole expedition was in a sorry state by the time that another of Montejo's ships arrived with supplies from Santo Domingo. Eighteen months after arriving, Conquistador Francisco de Montejo abandoned all hope of subduing the eastern coast of the Yucatán peninsula and so left the port to its Mayan population.

Xel-há continued to be occupied until the 19th century, though most of its buildings date from three centuries before. These days, it is better known for its open sea aquarium, where snorkelling and sea treks allow visitors to get up close and personal with 70 different species of freshwater and seawater fish.


Visitors can jump off cliffs into crystalline waters; lounge on hammocks on white sand beaches; discover the jungle, on foot or on a hired bicycle; or vist the El Dorado cave, with its unique geological formations around a blue-green pool. The list is endless in this natural eco-park. A highlight is surely the chance to swim with the dolphins, though that is charged as extra.



Tulum & Xel-Ha All Inclusive
Combine Maya history with natural beauty! Tour the Tulúm ruins, then swim in the Xel Ha natural aquarium.

Xel-Ha All Inclusive
An incredible natural aquatic theme park and Mayan archaelogical ruins.

El Eden Mine: Under the Mountain in Zacatecas

For around 400 years, generations of people, some as young as 12, chipped at the mineral rich rock. Gold and silver was carted out of the richest, most productive mine in Mexico. But most of it was to sail away to Spain for the glory of the Old World. What remained were the history, the legends and a spectacular series of caverns and tunnels, adding up to an amazing tourist attraction today. There's even a night-club in the depths of Mina El Eden.


The El Eden Mine may be found in Cerro del Grillo, Zacatecas. A tram brings visitors to the entrance, where they meet with a tour guide for a stroll, 2,000ft inside the mountain. For approximately a mile, through the tunnels and hanging galleries, the party will be regaled with the stories from this historical place. The huge caverns are truly something to behold. All carved by hand, yet vast, with stalactites forming and unmined crystals still embedded in the rock.

Along the way, statues and animated tableaus display a visual glimpse into what it must have been like to work here. Until 1960, this was very much a working mine. Then flooding in the lower levels, and the encroaching city making blasting dangerous, caused it to close down. It was rendered safe and turned into a site for tourism in 1975. The whole history is relayed, both in the tours themselves and in the small museum near to the exit. The mine, like much of the city center of Zacatecas, is a UNESCO World Heritage site.


El Eden Mine was founded in 1546. Its owners and overseers were all Spanish conquistadors, while the workers were Mexicans. These were a conquered people, at the lowest end of the new world order, and they were treated as expendable.

Some of the stories from this mine are horrific. An average of six people died every day, usually due to working conditions which have modern sensibilities shuddering. The majority of people didn't see their mid-30s; and they spent their short lives working, from childhood, through 14 hour shifts in punishing labour.

As the centuries passed, conditions obviously improved with legisation, modern machinery and better techniques. But it's easy to imagine, especially with the statues laid on to guide you, what it was like back in the early days. The whole mine becomes as fascinating in the atmosphere, as it is beautiful in the aesthetics.


Two things to note here, to avoid disappointment or confusion:

* The entrance and exit are not in the same place. The latter is a twenty minute walk up the mountain. For the majority of people this is fine, as they use the exit as their starting point to explore the terrain up there. As well as the hiking trails, with panoramic views of the city, there is a gift shop, selling crystals mined in El Eden. There is a cable car to return to the lower level.

Others simply retrace their steps within the mine. It's a perfectly deligned, well-marked path and the return, done without a tour guide, can sometimes surpass the initial journey. After all, it's walked at your own pace, with ample time to inspect the awesome caverns along the way.

* The guides conduct their tours in Spanish. While this has an obvious benefit for Spanish speakers, it doesn't mean that there is nothing there for those without the language. The visual displays are there partially to enable everyone to glean the history, regardless of their ability to hear/understand the spoken word. Besides you won't need a tour guide to tell you that your surroundings are spectacular.

Benjamin Simpson is amongst those who have blogged about this attraction. 'Mina el Eden' contains a lot of pictures taken there, as well as a commentary on the experiences of a non-Spanish speaker on the tour.



On Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, there is a unique party to be had here. In the very depths of the El Eden Mine is a nightclub. It opens at 10pm, until 3am, and it is truly a great night out. Those caves were made to have disco lights shone on them!

Chalma and the Dark Lord of the Cave

Around the mountains, the pilgrims snaked. Their incense filled the air around them with thick, scented clouds, issuing out from burners. Their clothes and hair were colorful with the season's flowers. Once night fell, they lit their flaming torches and carried them high. It took days to reach the sacred spring, along the spiral ways, but this was the last rite before arriving at their destination.


Bathing in the waters, drinking them; cleansed inside and out and holy now. They thrice walked around the ancient Ahuehuete tree, hung through with offerings, flowers, fruit and little bags containing umbilical cords. They were ready to enter the sanctuary. The Dark Lord of the Cave was waiting.

Oxtoteotl is an Aztec deity. He's the God of War; the Destiny of the Night; the Dark Lord. His shrine is the back of a cave, which takes days of a snaking, spiral pathway through the mountains to reach. There is evidence of human sacrifice in His worship. He was one of the most popular Gods of the Aztec age. Pilgrims came from great distances to visit His shrine, above the modern-day town of Chalma, in Mexico State. He could heal; and He could protect.

In 1537, Augustian monks appeared in the area. They watched the thousands of pilgrims making their progress up the mountain-side. The religion was strong here, but two of their number, Brother Sebastian de Tolentino and Brother Nicolas Perea, were determined to smash it. This was their calling. This is where Christ should be.

They spread out amongst those gathered, evangelizing and talking about the 'Spanish God'. They visited the sanctuary and surveyed the dark, cylindrical shape of the Oxtoteotl stone. They saw the people dancing before him. The Augustian were appalled. For three days, they walked about the pilgrim paths, encouraging people to tear down the statue and convert to Christ. People laughed in their faces.


It was at night when Brother Sebastian de Tolentino and Brother Nicolas Perea climbed the mountain to the sanctuary for the second time. Their intent was clear. They were going to pull down the icon themselves. They would prove, with their bare hands, that their God was stronger and that nothing would happen, if they descrecated the centuries old sacred cave.

They arrived to find it devoid of worshippers, but a miracle had occurred! In place of Oxtoteotl now stood a statue of the crucified Christ, with his skin burnt a dark black. The floor was littered with the fractured remains of the Aztec icon, smashed to smithereens. No-one claimed responsibility. No-one had seen the statue being conveyed up the steep paths. God must have done it. The friars reported that, as the first Aztec pilgrims arrived, they all fell to their knees in 'apostolic piety'. The holy brothers wasted no time in converting them to Catholicism.


(There is another version, which says that the friars sculpted the Oxtoteotl stone into a representation of Christ on the cross. It's black because the Aztec stone was obsidian black.)

In the years that followed, the mouth of the cave was enlarged and a shrine dedicated to St Michael was established there. The people still visited in the same way, climbing the paths with incense and flowers; bathing in the spring and encircling the Ahuehuete tree.


Inside the cave, they danced to the dark Christ now that Oxtoteotl had gone. They left their offerings and were cleansed of their sins. They petitioned for healing and protection. The Augustian monks set up a monastery to cater to their needs.

Over a hundred years later, in 1683, a huge church was built upon the canyon floor. The image of Christ was brought down from the sanctuary and placed into it. El Convento Real y Sanctuaria de Nuestro Señor Jesus Christo y San Miguel de los Cuevas de Chalma (The Royal Monastery and Sanctuary of Our Lord Jesus Christ and Saint Michael of the Caves of Chalma) stands there still.




It is the second most visited site of Catholic pilgrimage in Mexico (the first is the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City). Mexico state tourist board estimates that over 2 million people per year make the trip to Chalma. 50,000 people per day is the norm. Most are Mexicans, but some people fly in from countries all over the world.

The town has a plentiful number of lodgings and restaurants, as a result of the demand from pilgrims. Amongst the attractions are the church; the 17th century monastery; the cave up in the mountains; and many organized events, including parades and open-air ceremonies, in addition to regular services held inside the church.


There is also a high emphasis on public safety and crowd control. Patrols watch from both ground and in the air, with regular sightings of helicopters. Experts on crowd control train their apprentices here.

A river of people. We are immersed in a river of people. The sanctuary of Chalma is situated at the bottom of a canyon in the heart of this village. The passageway down into that canyon is narrow, lined with hundreds of vendors selling food and trinkets and crucifixes.

A river of people. A river of beautiful brown faces. A river that murmurs with language not our own. Are we pilgrims... or are we just tourists today?

... If you are new here, this is a sanctuary full of people who love you even if you are a stranger - just as my friend and I were loved and cared for by a river of strangers in Mexico. You are God's Beloved.

'Chalma Pilgrimage: Baptism in Foreign Waters' by Rev Karen Christensen

The crowds become part of the spiritual wholeness. Time within them passes without incident.


But there is a tragic reason why Chalma has become so adept at ensuring the safety of its millions of visitors. On February 13th, 1991, a Holy Week ritual involved the signs from the ashes, smoke lifted from a ceremonial flame inside the church. As it took place, the news reached those outside that they were missing it. There was a sudden stampede of humanity into the limited space inside. Twenty people died and forty more were seriously injured, mostly due to compression force, as the crowd surged. It is a scene that Chalma authorities never want to see repeated here again. Security has been stepped up ever since, so that no God will receive another human sacrifice here.

Holy Week, Easter, Lent and the feast day of the Christ of Chalma (July 1st) are the times when most pilgrims are in the sanctuaries. The most devout will visit it three times during their lives. The area is so famous that it's a common saying, in Mexico, that something can't be done until someone has 'danced at Chalma'.


Each time, they leave with their petitions heard and their sins cleansed. They have walked the ways and danced to the Dark Lord of the Cave, be He Oxtoteotl or, more often now, the black skinned Christ Himself. They take the sacred holiness home with them. They are truly blessed, in this place of power.

Chihuahua: The World's Smallest Dog

There are 1,700 different species of animals indigenious to Mexico. Some are world famous, yet one stands out above them all. The national emblem of our country is the Mexican golden eagle, but it might as well be the chihuahua.


This is the world's smallest dog, standing at around 6-10" (15-23cm) tall. It is named after the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua. Along with chocolate, coffee, corn and tequila, the breed is one of the country's most successful exports. Most of the globe is familiar with the little guy.

The ancestor of the chihuahua was slightly bigger. This was the techichi, a favorite dog of the Aztec people. It apparently had a mystical significance too. The techichi were thought to be so loyal that they would guide their human companion's soul through the Underworld into safety. It would fight off all evil spirits in their path. As a result, the poor techichi was often sacrificed and burnt, along with their owner, so that the two could journey on together.

Even after the coming of Christianity to Mexico, this practise continued. Only now, the techichi were used as scapegoats. Cremating one in a human funeral pyre meant that the techihi dog would take on the human's sins. Thus its owner could carry on straight into Heaven.


Techichi
The techichi, as a distinct breed, is extinct now, but its genes live on in the tiny chihuahua.

There is a theory that Spanish conquistadors brought with them a toy breed, like the Chinese crested dog. This mated with the techichi, in order to create a brand new hybrid, which eventually became the chihuahua. Others argue that images and other artifacts, including remains, have been found in Maya and Aztec archaeological sites. These obviously pre-date 1530, pointing to the fact that chihuahuas were in Mexico long before the Spanish came with their pets.

In 1904, the American Kennel Club officially registered the breed of toy dog, that the fashionable society ladies of Texas, Arizona and New Mexico were buying in Mexico. It was called the Chihuahua Dog, as in the breed from Chihuahua, though that quickly became shortened to a chihuahua. This is the moniker by which it is known throughout the world.

(For a moment there, it could have been called the Texas Dog or the Arizona Dog, which is where they were most prevalent in the USA, at the start of the 20th century. Today, they are stereotypically seen, in Mexico, as the pets of Manhattan's social elite, hence the dog's nickname here of 'New Yorker'.)


It is a popular misconception that chihuahuas have to be pampered by humans in order to survive. They were certainly the dogs of kings (the Aztec monarchs all owned one), but they have been known to form wild packs too. One such pack famously took up residence in the ruins of Tenochtitlán Palace, in Mexico City. Their ancestors had been abandoned after their Aztec owners, all members of the nobility, had been killed in the Spanish invasion of the 16th century.

Generations of this pack of chihuahuas lived there for three centuries, right up until the construction of the National Palace of Mexico, in 1850, near to the site. It's hard to build grand architecture, with dozens of 10" dogs yapping in defense of their patch, so, unfortunately, the wild chihuahuas were removed.


Chihuahuas are usually differentiated between two types: long-hair and smooth-hair. They are genetically exactly the same breed, but their fur is respectively long or short. (Smooth hair doesn't necessary mean 'smooth'. It can be velvetty or coarse, as long as it's short.) As show dogs, they shouldn't weigh more than 6lbs, though 2-4lbs is the ideal.

They are the favorite of the world's celebrities, with actresses and socialites in particular often seen with one under their arm. Famous chihuahua owners include: Marilyn Monroe, Sharon Osbourne, Paris Hilton, Hilary Duff and Cesar Millan. Chihuahuas often turn up in shows and in films, including 'Evil Con Carne', 'Invader Zim', 'Batman Returns', 'That's So Raven', 'The Soup', 'Legally Blonde' and 'Transformers'. They've also advertized Taco Bell. Let's not also forget that Ren Höek, the eponymous hero of 'Ren and Stimpy', is a chihuahua.

Boo Boo, the world's smallest, living, adult dog, is a chihuahua. She is 4" high, 6.5" long and weighs just 24oz. She can be found in Raceland, Kentucky, in the USA.

Real de Catorce: A Magical 'Ghost Town' Part Three

While some people see a ghost town, steeped in history, spirituality and freely growing peyote, others see a movie set. The empty streets of Real de Catorce have been used as the backdrop for so many documentaries and films, that many outside Mexico subconsciously picture the town as Mexico.


'The Mexican', starring Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts, is one of the more famous movies shot in Real de Catorce. Here are two scenes from it, both showing the town.





Brad Pitt was later interviewed after the shoot and he said that Real de Catorce was 'a trip'. There are places in the town, where photographs of the filming are displayed. Local people were able to get very close to the stars, so some of the photos are very candid.

The movie also had a huge effect on the town in terms of amenities. Just one 'phone line and the electricity switching off at 8pm might have been considered fine for the residents, but a Hollywood film crew wasn't about to put up with that. By the time they left, the town had much more wiring and communications infrastructure.



Some of the local residents don't stop at allowing their town to be used as the backdrop to movies. They feature in them too. The chef of Ruinas del Real Hotel was in 'Pirates of the Caribbean'.


Ruinas del Real Hotel is just one of the handful of hotels and B&Bs set up to cater to the boom in tourism here. It is also the place favored by the incoming film crews. Guests here can stay in 'The Julia Roberts Suite', where the bathroom was especially built to the actress's specifications. (I guess that she wasn't prepared to 'slum' it, though the bathrooms throughout the hotel are quite satisfactory!)

Another big name movie shot in Real de Catorce was 'Bandidas', starring Penélope Cruz and Salma Hayek.



It's not just modern film crews that have descended upon the town. Back in 1948, John Huston arrived, with an ensemble cast, which included Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, and Tim Holt, in order to shoot 'Treasure of the Sierra Madre'. (You'll know it by the classic line, "We don't need no stinking badges!", which has been parodied in so many places since, despite being a misquotation.)


This was the first American movie to be shot on location entirely outside the USA. Some scenes were filmed in Durango and Tampico. It was also amongst the first 100 films to be selected for perservation, in the United States National Film Registry, as being 'culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant'.

Real de Catorce: A Magical 'Ghost Town' Part Two

Real de Catorce sits 2,750 meters (9,022ft) above sea level, high up in the Sierra Catorce mountains. This is one of the highest plateaus in Mexico. In 1779, there was no access road, no buildings, no sanitation and no water, but there was silver. With silver came the mines; and with the mines came the people. Almost overnight, it seemed, a large town sprang up from this barren, desert landscape. It was hedonistic and practically lawless. Life savings could be lost, and fortunes made, on a single cockfight. Yet still the people poured in.

It wasn't only the Mexican people here. As news of Real's silver wealth spread, people came from all over the globe to try their luck in this anarchistic town. Many were Spanish, but there was a British mining company too; and it was a Guatemalan, Silvestre Lopez Portillo, who first set about forging a proper town from the chaos. He brought the amenities, law, local government and planning that served a population, which had now boomed to 15,000 people.


In its heyday, Real had 190 mines, extracting some of the highest price silver in the world. It had its own mint, a bullring and shops selling luxury items from Europe. It had a theater, which the celebrities of the day would visit. In 1895, the town even welcomed the president, Porfirio Díaz, when he came to the inaugaration of new machinery in one of the mines.

Yet the greatest achievement had to be the tunnel which allowed access into Real itself. 2,300 meters (7,546ft) long, this subterranean road is still used to reach the town. Walking or driving through it can be an utterly surreal experience. Thousands of people have passed along it, filled with their hopes and dreams, or the desolution of their losses.


In 1900, the international price of silver plummeted. It wasn't worth keeping the mines open, so one by one they shut. The trickle of people leaving became a flood, until only a few were left. Buildings lay empty. The mine-shafts were boarded up. The great and grand mansions sank into ruin. Thus the town is now and, for many tourists, is its charm. They wander through streets that, just a century ago, were teeming with crowds; and peer into windows, where people lived and worked and raised their families.

Only a thousand people still live permanently in Real de Catorce. A couple of the mines remain open, but the digs are small scale. Many of the residents find work in serving the tourists: those who come for the indian shamans, the peyote, the history or the ghost town spectacle. A couple of the mines have been opened as tourist attractions too. But there is also another class of regular visitors - the Catholic pilgrims.


Templo de la Purisima Concepcion (Church of the Immaculate Conception) was lavishly built in the 1790s, but was added to throughout the 19th century. Master builders and silversmiths were brought in from Mexico City, to create some of the beautiful details throughout the interior. It's a truly glorious church to visit. However, the pilgrims aren't here for the spectacle. They are here for the miracles.

The church is home to an image of St Francis de Assisi. The statuette has the affectionate nick-names of 'Panchito' or 'El Charrito'. Reports of miracles occurring, after leaving votive offers in front of St Francis, started early in the town's history. As Real died, this belief never did. Today, the area around the image is shrewn with candles and metal plaques, engraved with details of successful blessings.


On his feast day, October 4th, the town is busy again, as the streets fill with thousands of Catholics come to pay homage to this image. The festivities begin around September 20th and last into late October, though the 4th has the largest events.

Many people, who trace their ancestry to those who used to live in the town during the silver days, return with their families. They come to ask for favors, or give thanks for miracles enacted in their own lives. There are so many pilgrims that they couldn't possibly fit into the church, thus St Francis is taken out and paraded through the streets.

It is a time for piety, but this being Mexico, food, drink, song and dance also make up a large part of the tradition. Yet all of this is done in simplicity. It's a time for self-reflection and the emotions, not lavish hedonism. Just part of the inherent spirituality of the place, as was discussed in yesterday's blog.


By the end of October, the Catholic pilgrims all go away and Real de Catorce takes on its ghost town aspect again.

Real de Catorce: A Magical 'Ghost Town' Part One

In its heyday, Real de Catorce, in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, was a bustling mining town with a population of 15,000. These days, it's a parched village, surrounded by ruins. It's often labelled a 'ghost town', despite the remaining 1,000 residents; and despite the steady stream of Catholic pilgrims and Pagan mystics. The industry may be mostly over, but the spirituality goes on; and, of course, this is the land of peyote.


Since ancient times, the Huichol Indians have returned annually to the Catorce Valley. They come from miles around, often walking for weeks, from their lands in far-flung states. Even today, they will come from Nayarit, Durango, Jalisco and Zacatecas, in order to pay their respects in this holy place.

Here is Cerro del Quemado, perched up in the mountaineous Sierra Catorce, a sacred center for these people. It is the birthplace of the God, Tatewari, also known as Grandfather Fire. Three concentric rings of stone, within which offerings have been left since time immemorial. To the side of the ceremonial shrine, there is a relatively recent addition. It's a limestone shack, within with a candle burns. The sacred flame. Traditionalists, amongst the Huichol Indians, will come here three times a year. Once to ask; once to say; and once to give thanks.


The Huichol Indians will then venture down into the Catorce Valley (or Wirikuta in the Huichol tongue) to gather their holy plant. It will be used in rituals back home. It is a catcus called peyote, those properties cause hallucinogenic visions. For the hippies and drug tourists, steeped in chemically produced LSD, this is the real thing. Thus they too come in their droves, to soak up the spiritual ambiance and to harvest their own wild peyote.

It's a situation which is threatening the survival of the catcus itself. So much of it has been removed that Wirikuta peyote is in danger of disappearing from the landscape.

The government recently launched a campaign to protect it. It's now illegal for anyone but the Huichol Indians to pick it. The whole valley has been made part of an ecologically protected zone. The wardens are all Huichol Indians, who patrol the valley. They not only stop people picking peyote, but also educate them on why this should be necessary.


This isn't the first time that the native people have endeavoured to protect this holy place. The Spanish-Mexican name for the valley and the mountain is Catorce, aka Fourteen. The town that was built, when silver was discovered in the Sierra Catorce, is Real de Catorce, or The Royal Fourteen. This refers to fourteen Spanish soldiers ambushed by Chichimec warriors.

The Chichimeca were semi-nomadic people, who lived in this area, at the time of the Spanish conquest. Conquistador Hernán Cortés considered them not nearly as civilized as the Atzec people. In 1526, Cortés wrote to Spain, saying that the Chichimeca would be good as slaves and that they could be put to work in the fledging silver mines.

The tribe fought a long and bloody war against enslavement, from 1550-1590, with the Catorce name around here being a legacy of one of those meetings. The Spanish didn't get a foothold in these mountains until 1721. Even then, the Chichimeca were never conquered.

The Dance of the Flyers

Los Voladores (the flyers) spin 80ft (24m) off the ground. Their arms are wide; their heads angled towards the crowds below. Their bodies are strapped to the soaring pole. They are upside down. One man dances alone, at the very summit of the pole. His drum beats a steady tattoo; his pipe plays a heady tune. The flyers start twisting, around and around the pole, in death-defying feats of acrobats. It seems that gravity is challenged too, as the flyers control their descent to the earth and the cheering, gasping onlookers. They arrive and applause roars through the crowd.

This is Danza de los Voladores (the Dance of the Flyers) and it pre-dates the coming of the Spanish. It is not merely entertainment, though the people gather and a hat is passed around for donations for the dancers. This is a ceremony, make no mistake; a ritual worship of the god, Quetzalcoatl. It is a petition for crop fertility and a bountiful harvest.

There are four flyers and each represents an element: air, fire, water and earth. Wrapped together, these elements are the stuff of life. The wooden pole is phallic. It has been especially cut, shaped and blessed for this purpose. The elemental flyers weave around it. Their dance has taken them down the shaft to touch the ground. The symbolism should be clear. They are the strong, active seeds of life and they are in the soil.



The priest is the man who remains at the top. He, alone, is not tied by rope to the pole. His drum is the voice of Quetzalcoatl. His pipes are is the song of birds. He opens and closes the ceremony; first turning to the east, the direction of the rising sun, then to the south, west and north. At each cardinal point, his music and dance are invitations to the guardian spirits to watch over them. He is invoking all of nature to attend to their spectacle, as well as calling upon deity.

Each flyer does not merely represent an elemental force, they become it. While the priest opens the circle, the waiting flyers will be focusing their mind and self-identity. For example, the man taking on the aspect of water will be thinking hard about a nearby lake, or a waterfall, or the ocean. He will be meditating upon all that water is and does. By the time he makes his fall, his whole attention will be upon the element of water and he will continue this deep, almost trancelike focus, until he is safe on the ground and the ritual is closed.

This is not street entertainment, it is sacred.



Danza de los Voladores is performed all over Mexico, though it is most often associated with Papantla, a town in Veracruz. UNESCO have listed it as a ceremony of 'Intangible Cultural Heritage'. In this way, it will be promoted and protected, as an ancient tradition of Mexico. There are several variations of the ritual, notably in the deity being called upon. Xipe, Totec and Tlazotlteotl, all rain and solar Gods, have been associated with this ceremony.

There is always an element of danger in this ritual. Voladores have suffered accidents, sometimes fatal, up on the pole. As recently as October 3rd, 2010, in San Jerónimo, Mexico City, a flyer reached the top and sat on the frame, only to discover that it was unstable. He and the frame both plunged to the ground and he tragically died upon impact. Each of the flyers know that the potential for something to go wrong is huge, but that is what makes the ritual so strong. They are willing to risk sacrificing themselves to ensure the fertility of the crops.

Montezuma's Headdress Could Be Coming Home

Original headdress (Museum of Ethnology, Vienna)
It has taken three years of long negotiation, on top of decades of lobbying and centuries of wishful thinking. Now that is drawing to a conclusion: the headdress, believed to have belonged to the last Aztec king, might be returning to Mexico. So many of these treasures were taken from the country, during the Spanish conquest, that only reproductions remain. Now Mexicans may finally get the chance to see the original.

The headdress was removed from the country, during the 16th century, by Spanish conquistadors. Curios from the New World were big business then, as connoisseurs scrambled to see and understand what was being discovered so far overseas. Artifacts could be used in politics and religion, justifying the taking of land from apparently barbaric, Pagan people. Priests could hold up siezed icons to illustrate cautionary sermons about sympathizing with Satan. Alternatively, items could be bought by collectors, to be displayed as novelties.


Reproduction headdress (Museo Nacional de Antropología, Mexico City)
This particular Aztec headdress had found its way, by 1575, into the private collection of Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria. Ferdinand was the son of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, and the younger brother of Maximilian II. He controlled substantial territories of his own, but even the vast revenue from those couldn't match his appetite for purchasing art. He died leaving huge debts, but also a famous collection in Castle Ambras, Tyrol, Austria. Amongst them was a horde of priceless Mexican antiquities.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the treasures of Castle Ambras were deposited in the Museum of Ethnology, in Vienna, Austria. European experts rushed in to examine the artifacts, finding particular fascination in the headdress. However, all of them believed that it was a mantle. It was left to a visiting US anthropologist, Zelia Nuttall, to explain its real function. She also identified it as being from Quetzalapanecayotl Palace.


Artist's impression of Montezuma wearing the headdress
Whether the headdress had been attributed as belonging to Montezuma before is debatable, but it certainly was afterwards. Montezuma (aka Moctezuma II) was the most famous of Aztec rulers. He lived in the city that later became Mexico City; and did so at the time of the Spanish conquest. There is no actual proof that the headdress ever belonged to him. But it could well have. The headdress was taken from the right place, at the right time. Anyway, its designation, as Montezuma's headdress, added a layer of intrigue that brought in the European crowds to view its exhibition. In Mexico, it is also commonly called Penacho de Moctezuma.

Mexican historians have an different interpretation. They believe that it may have been worn by a priest. It's been suggested that it may have been a mantle all along. Called a quetzalquémitl (feather cape), it would have transformed the priest into a living embodiment of the God, Quetzalcoátl. It is to examine it more closely, so that these questions may be addressed, which is the main impetus for asking for its return.

The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) and the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) have been locked in talks, for the past three years, with their counterparts in the Austrian government and Kunsthistorisches Museum officials. The Museum of Ethnology, where the headdress is currently on display, is under the jurisdiction the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Mexico's President Felipe Calderon has been personally involved in the negotiations.


As a gesture of good-will, the headdress will be exchanged for a golden stagecoach used by Mexican Emperor Maximilian. He was a member of the Austrian royal family. However, the Austrians have made it quite clear that the exchange is a temporary loan. Sabine Haag, director of Kunsthistorisches Museum, told an Austrian radio show that the headdress belongs in Austria.

We understand of course that the Penacho has a deep symbolic and spiritual meaning for Mexico's native population, and we are therefore in the process of coming up with conservation measures in order to store and exhibit it as part of Austria's and Mexico's cultural heritage.
Sabine Haag, on Radio Oe1

The final stretch of the talks are centring on how to transport both the headdress and the stagecoach, with due regard to legalities of both countries. Then experts need only to address the practicalities of sending such historically precious treasures halfway across the world.

Discovering the Maya

Any trip to the Yucatán Peninsula will inevitably involve the Maya people. There are Maya ruins to visit; Maya food to eat; Maya heritage in the museums; Maya art in the shops; Maya crafts in the market; and Maya rides in the theme parks. The very name Yucatán is Mayan! If nothing else, then the world owes a debt to the Maya for messing around with the seeds of cocoa trees and inventing xocoatl in the sixth century. We know that better as chocolate. The Maya called it 'the food of the gods'.

Some people might even be visiting Mexico for the first time, lured here by considerations of the Maya Long Count calendar coming to an abrupt finish. The internet abounds with scare stories that this also means the end of the world. There was even a blockbuster Hollywood film about that, '2012'; and if the Maya knew about the end of the world, then maybe they also worked out what to do about it?

So after all this talk of the Maya, it might be worth discovering them in modern Mexico.

How do you pronounce Maya?

Maya is pronounced MY-er. This refers to the people, the lands and, indeed, everything except the language. The language is Mayan, pronounced MY-an.

'I would also point out here that the adjective 'Mayan' is only conventionally used... when referring to languages. Otherwise plain 'Maya' is employed both as a noun and adjectivally, singular and plural. Thus we talk here of Maya art and Maya people, not the 'Mayas' of long ago.'
'The Lost Chronicles of the Maya Kings' by David Drew

Who were the Maya?

The Maya arrived on the Yucatán Peninsula around 3114 BCE. Their own history says that they sailed to Mexico from a location '150 days westward'. There have been various theories about where they might have come from. A strong contender is Sri Lanka, where the central region, in ancient times, was called Maya. There are also a lot of linguistic, religious and architectural links between Sri Lanka and the Maya, not least the fact that the Maya carved elephants into their temples. Mexico isn't known for its elephants. (Gene D Matlock has written about the Sri Lankan connection here.) Other historians have offered places such as Russia, Turkey or various countries in the Mediterranean for the homeland of the Maya.




Whatever the truth is, they were certainly in Mexico making ceramics by 2000 BCE. This is known, because we've found the pottery. They went on to found a civilisation that was, at its peak, one of the most densely populated and advanced of its age, in comparison to anywhere else in the world. They were the first people in the Americas to develop writing, which they carved into stone slabs, meaning that we can still read them today. They had fully fledged mathematical and astronomical systems. Their art and architectural influence has been discovered miles away in far flung countries; and, of course, they created a calendar, which still accurately counts the days today. That's better than Western calendars, which, even today, have to rely upon leap years to remain on track.

We should have had a fully written history, explaining all of those details which have now become mysterious, such as the meaning behind the Long Count. However, when the Spanish arrived, they began a wholesale evangelism program. Their aim was to convert the Maya into Christianity. In order to achieve this, many of the Maya records were destroyed. One of the biggest examples of this occurred on July 12th, 1562, when the acting Bishop of Yucatán, Diego de Landa Calderón, oversaw the burning of 5,000 cult images (stele), as well as all of the Maya sacred books.




Following this program of cultural destruction, only three Maya books (codices) and the fragments of a fourth remained. They were scattered around the globe. Today, the three full books are in Paris, Dresden and Madrid, hence a bit of travelling is involved in order to compare their contents. The fourth underwent some restoration work in the 1920s, so it was able to shed more light on the story.

However, these four sources are just a drop in the ocean of what could have been available. Imagine walking into a library today and picking out just four books at random. Then imagine that, a few centuries down the line, those four books had to inform people of the whole of your nation's cultural, social, economic and linguistic history. Wouldn't you really hope that the right four books had been saved?

Since the majority of the books and steles went up in Spanish flames, the story of the Maya has had to be pieced together from their own oral history; the archaeology in their cities; any steles that have remained buried; and the evidence from other cultures. A great deal was written by the Spanish conquistadors, but this obviously included a lot of bias. The conquistadors were writing to sound like heroes back home, not to provide a sound academic thesis on those they were conquering!

Where were the Maya?

The Yucatán Peninsula is only the heartland of the Maya world. They lived throughout a vast area, which also covered the modern Mexican states of Chiapas and Tabasco, as well as extending into today's Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador and Western Honduras.




What happened to the ancient Maya?

For centuries, the Maya lived in small, coastal communities, exporting jade, obsidian and cocoa along the trade routes of the Caribbean Sea. Then, around 250-900 CE, they became wealthy enough to found magnificent cities, build pyramids and start trading even further afield. This was also the age of great intellectual advances and an explosion of art.

Following this was a huge disaster, the basis of which has never been fully explained. Theories include prolonged drought or the Maya strip-farming their resources and therefore running out of supplies. Either way, the Maya left their southern lands and congregated in the northern part of their empire instead. This included the Yucatán Peninsula, which experienced a massive boom in building and trade. Chichén Itzá and Cobá became truly huge cities, as their populations swelled with incomers.

So why isn't the area still ruled by the Maya now?

In 1511 CE, the Spanish arrived in the Yucatán Peninsula. There were only seventeen of them and they were quickly captured by the Maya. Their number were divided between the local chieftains and used as slaves or human sacrifices. Only two men survived, in different communities. One later made it back to the Spanish and became an advisor against the Maya. The other opted to stay with the Maya and advised them in strategies to defeat the Spanish. Unfortunately for the Maya, this first landing had also brought with it smallpox, which killed them off in huge numbers.

There were a couple of expeditions over the next decade, but they were inconsequential. The Spanish had been lured by stories of gold in the Maya lands. They brought Christianity with them. They left again without much gold and with very few religious converts. The Spanish conquest didn't begin in earnest until 1527, but that failed when the Maya deserted their towns just ahead of the Spanish troops, then doubled back and repopulated them once the Spanish had moved on. The prospective conquistadors gave up.

Between 1531-1535, the Spanish were back and this time did succeed in briefly taking Chichén Itzá. Local resistance sent them packing again. They returned in 1540 and, two years later, managed to conquer the Maya city of T'ho. This was renamed Mérida and is now the capital city of Yucatán. The lord of nearby Maní converted to Christianity and this was the great turning point in the Spanish Conquest, as the Xiu people there allied with the Spanish and helped subdue their Maya neighbours.

Nevertheless, it took until 1697 for the whole of the Yucatán Peninsula to come under Spanish control.

Where are they now?

The Maya are still where they've always been. In the Maya area, the descendents of this great empire still speak the Mayan language and continue many of the cultural traditions. They are just harder to see, as the majority live in modern houses and are indistinguishable, at a glance, from other Mexicans. There are Maya people who still live in their traditional villages and these may be visited.







Chichén Itzá
Various tours, to suit every wallet or time-frame, to the most famous of all the Maya ruins.

Tulum & Xel-Ha All Inclusive
Combine Maya history with natural beauty! Tour the Tulúm ruins, then swim in the Xel Ha natural aquarium.