Maya Temples of Yucatan

Maya archeological zones of Yucatan (greens we saw)

Playa Pescadores of Tulum (behind me you can see the temple)

Pok-ta-pok (Maya ball game)

The ballgame was played within a large stone structure consisting of a long narrow playing field flanked by two walls. Over 1300 ball courts of varying sizes have been found in Mesoamerica, all with this same shape. The rules of the ballgame, regardless of the version, are not precisely known. Spanish records state that the game was played by two teams of two to four players. The ball had to be kept in the air by hitting it with the hips, thighs or upper arms and bouncing it of the side walls. Use of the hands or feet was forbidden. The solid rubber ball was extremely hard and serious injuries were commonplace. Spanish chronicler Diego Durán stated that some bruises were so severe that they had to be sliced open. He also noted that players were even killed when the ball hit them in the face or stomach.
In the religious life of the Maya the ball court was of central importance, a stage between the everyday world and the supernatural. On a basic level, the very act of preventing the ball from hitting the ground may have represented maintaining the orbit of the Sun or Venus. But the Mayan ball game was at its most significant when a Mayan lord sponsored a game or even participated himself. At these occasions the Mayan origin myths would be re-enacted, defeating the lords of the underworld and preserve human life. In these ritual games war victors would typically play against war captives in a predetermined match. The climax of such rituals was the sacrifice of a captured nobleman, ideally a ruler, whose blood was believed to be especially powerful.

          the cult of death that is present everywhere in Mexico (now I understand where it comes from)

                                                 view over the jungle from the Coba temple

  Coba - one of the highest temples from the Maya culture

                                                                 Chichen Itza

Ruta Puuc - is an official name given to a 41 km network of secondary roads through Yucatán state along which one can tour Mexico's Mayan Puuc cultural heritage. The route is marked with signs. Important sites on the route include Uxmal, Kabah, andLabna. Puuc is the Mayan word for "hills", and the Puuc region of the Yucatan is area of small rolling hills on a peninsula which is otherwise quite flat. Some travellers spend several days visiting all the sites along this route. (We've done it in 3 hours, thanks to the rain and the car we've rented.)

In Mayan archeology, the Puuc style is is characterized by the elaborate ornamentation of the facades of ceremonial buildings such as temples and palaces, using limestone quarried in the region.

                                          Xlapak entrance (me-inside si Oana-outside)

                                                                   main temple of Sayil

                                                            main temple of Sayil (1st floor)

                                                                      Fertility God

                                                           Zona Arqueologica Kabah

                                                                  Kabah main temple

                                                   

And the most important site of the Puuc route - Uxmal means "built three times" in the Mayan language. We left it till the end and great it was! because without knowing it was prepared a light and sound show directly on the monuments. At the entrance the lady didn't explained quite well that we can see the monuments and we've hesitated at first, but after entering our curiosity was rewarded with a magnificent show!!! 

           Pyramid of the magician, told by the legend that was build in only 1 day in 5 different levels

 Uxmal, as a World Heritage site, it is one of the best restored and maintained ruins in the Yucatan. Its architecture, some of the most dramatic of the Yucatan ruins, is characterized by low horizontal palaces set around courtyards, decorated with rich sculptural elements and details.

                                                                   the Snake 

The Adivino  is a stepped structure, unusual among Maya structures in that its layers' outlines are oval or elliptical in shape, instead of the more common rectilinear plan. It was a common practice in Mesoamerica to build new temple pyramids atop older ones, but here a newer pyramid was built centered slightly to the east of the older pyramid, so that on the west side the temple atop the old pyramid is preserved, with the newer temple above it. In addition, the western staircase of the pyramid is situated so that it faces the setting sun on the summer solstice.