Leave it to me to insist on having a day of historical culture on the HOTTEST day imaginable. It also did not help that Ned was in the middle of reading a sci-fi thriller (now a major motion picture)about the very ruins we were traipsing towards. The jungle trail was so hot, dusty and long that the kids were too busy "dying" to truly appreciate the wonder of the ancient city; even the many lizards weren't moving very fast.
Tulum's greatest attraction is it's location. It stands on a 39 foot bluff facing the rising sun overlooking spectacular views of the Carribean Sea. In Maya, Tulum means "Wall". On three sides are enormous stone walls - the fourth side is bordered by the 39 foot cliffs that drop down to the Caribbean Sea.
A family grave site. When a new family member died, the bones from previous burials were removed.
Stone carvings told the history and religious beliefs of the Maya.
Tulum was a major link in the Maya's massive trade network for both maritime and land routes converged here. Artifacts found in or near the site testify to the contacts that ranged from Central Mexico to Central America and every placein between: copper rattles & rings from the Mexican highlands; flint & ceramics from all over the Yucatan; jade & obsidian from Guatemala and more. The Spaniards came to conquer the Peninsula unwittingly bringing Old World diseases which decimated the native population. So Tulum like many cities before it was abandoned to the elements.
The homes and buildings in the city were built to tell the calendar. Houses had small windows strategically placed to capture the the sun in corresponding months. So my window star might be light in September while yours may be placed to be lit in May.
There is a "square" in the center of the city that is flanked by the "castle" on the above mentioned bluff. The castle is the tallest and most famous structure in the ruins, commanding a view of the ocean and coast for miles in both directions. It is important to emphasize the importance of the beach area, where it is certain the Mayan ships, dedicated to trade around the
peninsula, would have docked.
After the super long hike to the top of the castle bluff, the cooler sea breeze and the promise of an afternoon at Xel-Ha brought relief & smiles.
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