Like the majority of civilizations that have existed on out planet, the Mayans were polytheist. Their Gods derived directly from their relation with nature and the stars, which the Mayan used to observe in detail.

Although the type of beliefs was more or less constant during the Mayan history, we have observed that some researchers of the Mayan religion establish a period previous to the influence of the Toltec and a subsequent one.

But, generally speaking, it can be said that the most important god would be Hunab Kú (which means in Mayan language “only god”), a powerful god that governed the planet and was helped by several secondary deities. This is apparently a contradiction a unique god accompanied by a cohort of gods. Hunab Kú built the world three times. The first time it was inhabited by genies; the second time by an evil and dark race called dzolob; and the third and last one by the Mayan. There are proofs that they believed in other creator gods such as Tepeu and Gocumaz, surely related to the first one.

But the most well known name of this god is, undoubtedly and surely due to the archaeological discoveries, that of Kukulkán, which in Maya “plumed snake”. This caused to relate him to the Quetzalcoatl of the Aztecs. They started using this name under the strong influence of the Toltec. Apart from the name, it is believed that the faith in this god is previous to the Mayans and can be found in other cultures of Central America. The Mayans believed that his heart and his mind were in the center of the universe and that he was the creator of the universe and the human beings.

The names of other gods of this era were derived from the stars: the sun, Kin; the moon, Uh; Venus, Noh Ek; the star of the north Xaman Ek…; and other of less importance. Natural phenomenons also gave their names to new gods: Chaac, the god of the rain; Ik, the god of the wind; or Yum Kak, the god of fire. Human activities also had their own gods such as Yum Kax the god of agriculture; Ek Chuah, the god of war; Itzamná the god of wisdom; Ix Tab the goddess of suicide, which curiously refers to the sacrifices, since it was thought that those who committed suicide when directly to heaven; and Ah Puch the god of death. Maybe apart from Kukulkán there were other two important gods. Itzam Ná, the son of Hunab Kú, was the god of the sky, the night and the day and was represented by an elderly kind-hearted and toothless man. It was said that he invented the books and writing and is considered to be the first priest. Ix Chel or Ixchel was the wife of the previous one and was closely related to the moon and was venerated by women and on isla Mujeres there are remains of a temple where women went on pilgrimage to celebrate the passage from teenage to youth.

But, despite she was given positive attributes, she was represented by an angry old woman surrounded by symbols of destruction and death; what is more, she is considered as the goddess responsible of floods.

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Francisco Cenamor

Chichén Itzá is located at 133 miles of Playa del Carmen, but it is almost compulsory to find a way to visit this impressive Mayan city which is possibly the best preserved. In Playa del Carmen there are several agencies that organise the tours. For example, the company Cancún All Tours offers trips from Playa del Carmen on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 54 euros for adults and 45 for children (plus 10% for taxes). This trip include transport in a luxury bus, breakfast, lunch, water and other drinks, the tickets to visit the sites…

Cancún Travels also offers trips from Playa del Carmen, with a wide range of several ways of travelling, so we recommend you to visit their website for more information. And, surfing the Internet, we can find loads of offers to get to Chichén Itzá from Playa del Carmen. We can even rent a car or go on our own. There are also buses from the station of the Fifth Avenue.

Chichén Itzá is situated on the Yucatan Peninsula, southeast of Merida, the capital of the State of Mexico. Its name means “at the mouth of the wells of Itzá”. This archaeological site has been declared World Heritage by the UNESCO in 1988 and, recently, in a private survey on the Internet, with no official value, was voted as one of the new 7 Wonders of the World. Until the year 325, Chichén Itzá was a small village with structures made of straw and wood, but it started to get rich and be fuelled by people from other villages till it became one of the most prominent Mayan cities in its history. The first big monuments were built dispersedly and when the city was organized they were connected by a wide network of stone ways that can still be admired nowadays.

The majority of the most important monument is found in the Gran Explanada ( ) of Chichén Itzá, in the middle of which stands the impressive Kukulkán’s Pyramid, a four corner pyramid, possibly built around the year 800, on which there is a temple; and is sustained by a square base measuring 60 yards by side and 78 feet tall. In the center of each side rises a monumental stair way leading to the top of the structure. The stairways are flanked by stone balustrades and the stairway on the northern side we can admire two enormous and beautiful plumed serpent’s head, which are the effigies of the god Kukulcán.

Some experts agree on saying that these ruins, although clearly Mayan, show the remarkable influence of the Toltec, who were their neighbours from the north. The best periods to visit this impressive monument are the equinox of March and September, at specific times of the day; the sunlight bathes the western balustrade of the pyramid’s main stairway. This causes seven isosceles triangles to form imitating the body of a serpent 37 yards long that creeps downwards, something which those who built the pyramid had in mind and that shows the surprising level of mathematical knowledge for that period.

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Francisco Cenamor

The Fives USA blog about Playa del Carmen & the Riviera Maya, Mexico

The first news of the discovery of the ruins of the Mayan city of Coba dates back to 1842. From then on, researchers have been recovering its marvels little by little. Presently, it is one of the many archaeological centres that can be visited on the Yucatan Peninsula.

Coba is located at only 62 miles of Playa del Carmen, which makes it easy to be reached from there. The means of transportation are the usual ones: van or bus from the station of Fifth Avenue, or by a rented car. Hotels and agencies also organise all in one package tours. Once in Playa del Carmen, it is very easy to get there. The entrance fare is 45 pesos (about 3 dollars).

It is situated east of Tulum which gives us a good excuse to stay there for at least two and visit both places and spend the night in the modern Tulum. Coba in Mayan language means “the place of ruffled waters”.

It is possibly one of the Mayan cities to have reached its maximum magnificence quite early. There are vestiges that in the years 200 and 600 A.D., this city-state had an influence over all the northern part of the Peninsula of Yucatan, due to its location which made it the crossroad of countless commercial routes. Its power even reached some commercial ports such as Xel-Há. The result of this wide network, today we can enjoy the pictorial remains of Coba which clearly show the influence of the Teotihuacán’s, who came from the central part of Mexico.

But this supremacy of Coba will start decreasing with the rise of the area of Chichén Itzá. After a first period of confrontation, the supremacy of the latter Mayan city started from the year 900 or 1000 A.D. following territorial and commercial disputes between the two cities. When the Spanish people arrived in the area, the city of Coba was uninhabited. The consecutive necessities of the city throughout its history have left a set of areas very different chronologically as well as functionally, up to a perimeter of 43 square miles packed with archaeological remains. All the zones discovered cannot be visited, due partly to deterioration and partly to the fact that the discoveries are quite recent and there is still more to be investigated.

The visit starts by Grupo Coba, is composed by residences and palaces. The most important is the building devoted to cult, which in the zone is called Iglesia, (church) and is 82 feet tall. Another group that can be visited it the Nohoch Mul, which is older than the previous one. The height of its buildings is quite surprising especially the tallest of all those found in the several Mayan cities, is also called Nohoch Mul (which in Maya means “large hill”); the lowest plinth and the temple is about 138 feet height. Other two groups can also be visited: the Grupo de las Pinturas (Temple of the Paintings), in reference to the remains of mural paintings that are still preserved in some structures; and the Macanxoc, with remarkable steles in remembrance of the achievement some of the queens who governed Coba.

One of the added interests of the visit to Coba is that all the buildings are in the middle of luxuriant jungles where we can delight in the marvellous flora and fauna.

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Francisco Cenamor

The Fives USA blog about Playa del Carmen & the Riviera Maya, Mexico

We have already talked about the Theme Park of Xela-Há. Well, it is time now to talk about another theme park that is also as spectacular and situated only 3.7 miles from Playa del Carmen. It is the Eco-Archaeological Park of Xcaret, which means, in Mayan language “little creek or cove.”

From Playa del Carmen we can take a Park bus at 9 am and entry fee is included in the entrance fee. The bus Station is beside the ferry dock and is very well known. From the downtown station, located in Quinta Avenida, there are also public buses for 2 Dollars every half an hour and they leave passengers 0.6 miles from the entrance, but the park also has a free service combined with the arrival of buses. And if we go by taxi, it will cost approximately 11.5 Dollars. Most hotels also offer visits to this Park.

There, we will enjoy the typical water activities: snorkel, scuba diving, visit to the coral reef and sliding in the subterranean rivers. Here the tube, the flippers and the glasses for snorkel are not included in some of the entrance fees; you can take them or hire them for approximately 7 Dollars.

One of the main attractions of this Park are the different Mayan pyramids and buildings that have been restored with the help of the Instituto Nacional de Arqueología e Historia (the Mexican National Institute of Archaeology and History); and the shows recreating sports, parties and traditions of the Maya in their impressive amphitheater for 6,000 people. More than 250 actors work daily in Xcaret.

Among the interesting installations we can find an aquarium, a bird and a butterfly site that shows us the natural fauna living in this zone. There are also guided tours to the jungle from where we can see –using binoculars- the fearsome jaguar in its natural habitat.

In order to enjoy the visits and shows, you must hire the services in advance; some of them have an additional price.

And if you want to tie the knot and give a sublime night to your family, you can get married in this Park, where magical moments are prepared for this ceremony.

The list of water activities, ecologic routes and shows included in the entrance fee seems to be endless, I can’t be visited in one day only, this may be the reason why they are offering a new product: a two-day ticket (to be used in six days starting from the first visit). It is free for children under 3.28 feet, 50% for children from 3.28 to 4.59 feet; and the fee for adults is 59 Dollars.

But there are other options. The normal ticket is 41 Dollars and 21 for children. The night ticket to attend shows is 30 Dollars and 15 for children. And if you buy Xcaret the Plus ticket, sodas, food and snorkel equipment are included for 63 Dollars for adults and 32 for children.

Entry for children of less than 3.28 feet is free and all the ticket options have a 10% discount if hired by Internet.

From Playa del Carmen those who love comfort have a special tour that will pick take them back to their hotel after the beautiful day at Xcaret for 63 Dollars and 32 for children.

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Francisco Cenamor

The Fives USA blog about Playa del Carmen & the Riviera Maya, Mexico

At approximately 37 miles from Playa del Carmen there are the archaeological excavations of El Meco, which, even tough they are not open to the public, can be visited requesting a permit from the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History.)

Therefore, this is the perfect place for lovers of Mayan history and archaeology since there are no guided tours and we must go on our own. It is not difficult to get there, we only have to get to Cancun and from there travel some miles to Punta Sam. The transportation options are the usual ones: bus, van, taxi or rented car. And there is also an air taxi service between Playa del Carmen and Cancun.

If you wish to stay there for some days this is not a problem since there are many hotels in Cancun as well as in Puerto Juárez. Most adventurers can use the camping site.

El Meco is the current name of this region, since (as with many other towns) the Mayan name of this city is unknown. It is believed that the current name comes from an inhabitant who, during the XIX century, had a coconut ranch on the coast and the place was named referring to his limp.

Located in the continental zone of Isla Mujeres, it has the highest building of the archaeological excavations near Cancun. This building is known as The Castel, a quadrangular basis with four sections and a temple in the higher part. This building is surrounded by two smaller buildings that seem to have been a temple and an administrative building.

The central park of excavations has many other buildings. One of them has a long string of columns inside. The best preserved building of the lot is a little temple north of the park.

The road from Puerto Juárez to Punta Sam has divided the antique Mayan city in two and the zone near the coast is practically unexplored. There we can see the remains of a pre-Hispanic dock.

And precisely this dock is the one that gave importance to this city since it was a shipping area for the important religious and commercial activities of Isla Mujeres.

Recent studies have shown that in this area there was a primitive fisher’s town which apparently disappeared in the year 600 A.D. and that was uninhabited until 1000 or 1100, when a new city emerged, possibly for the service of Chichén Itzá, and one hundred years later it became the head bridge of Isla Mujeres.

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Francisco Cenamor

The Fives USA blog about Playa del Carmen & the Riviera Maya, Mexico

Note: Feel free to visit our sponsor: The Fives Resort & Private Residences in Playa del Carmen

At approximately 38 miles from Playa del Carmen we can find the antique and modern city of Tulum.

If we rent a vehicle to be on our own it is useful to know that road 307 crosses the modern city. Getting there in taxi from Playa del Carmen costs approximately 294 Mexican pesos (19 dollars). The bus station of Quinta Avenida has a bus line departing every half an hour to Tulum and costs 29 pesos, only (2 dollars); the journey by bus takes one hour and a half. Vans and all inclusive guided tours are also offered in Playa del Carmen and can be hired on arrival.

The antique city can be visited any day of the week all year round from 8am to 5pm. The entrance fee is 45 pesos (3 dollars). It has a parking lot and sanitary fittings.

The modern city of Tulum has all the necessary services and if we wish to stay for more than one day, we have many lodging offers as well as houses for rent. One of the peculiarities of this tourism region, where the environment conservation is important, is that they use power from solar energy and wind farms.

Regarding the antique city of Tulum we know that its name is new and in Mayan language it means “fence or wall”. While inhabited, it was called Zama, “dawn”. Getting to the ruins is impressive since they are in the highest part of a cliff dominating the Caribbean Sea (from where dawn can be seen) and the archaeological remains are placed in almost 4 miles through the coast

Even tough some discoveries, as the one of a document dating events in year 565 (Classic Period of the Mayan History), tells about a zone inhabited long ago, most recent research affirms that this city reached its splendor only in the Late Period (1200-1521), when it was surely densely inhabited. We can also visit some buildings with architectural features of the Classic Period.

The central part of this antique city is protected by a wall where there are remains of administrative and religious public buildings. Outside the wall were the apartments of these antique Mayas.

During its best period, Tulum was an important Mayan port devoted to trading products from the inner lands and the coast in the whole Riviera. Some archaeological remains recently found show how this port would be trading with more distant regions, as the ones situated in the present day Guatemala or the Mexican high plateau.

It also had much religious importance since the gods had a great relationship with stars and Zama-Tulum was a privileged place where they could be observed.

Tulum was an independent State city until the arrival of the Spaniards when it was abandoned by its inhabitants who were running away from the new invaders.

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Francisco Cenamor

The Fives USA blog about Playa del Carmen & the Riviera Maya, Mexico

Note: Feel free to visit our sponsor: The Fives Resort & Private Residences in Playa del Carmen

In Cancun tourism center we can find the archaeological site of El Rey, at the south of the ancient island. Today, the island of Cancun is still connected to the continent via two bridges. The excavations are opposite the Caesar’s Park Hotel.

Again we remind you that to get to Cancun there are buses departing every half an hour from the Quinta Avenida station, van, taxi, aerotaxi, or rented vehicles. The excavation has facilities, including guided tours, and the ticket costs 1 Euro/Dollar approximately.

Once again, the Mayan name of this city is unknown. Its current name, El Rey, is due to the discovery of the upper part of a sculpture representing a human face with the typical headdress of the highest Mayan authority; currently, this head is in the Archaeological Museum of Cancun.

Even tough there are not many remains left, researchers state the year 300 before Christ to date the first human settlements in the region, that surely were fishermen and salt vendors towns, but the settlements were few until the year 1200.

As from that date -period called late post-classic by historians- the town began to have human and urban importance. The architectural style is known as “oriental coast”, to which other known sites like Tulum also belong.

This Mayan ruins we can now visit are surely the center of a city mainly devoted to economic activities related to the sea. Let’s not forget that it is placed in a privileged region for navigation in the Caribbean Sea or the small lake of Nichupté.

Upon the arrival of the Spaniards, the whole maritime system collapsed and the inhabitants of El Rey abandoned the city to take refuge in the inner part of the peninsula of Yucatán. But, it wasn’t only this city but the whole area that was inhabited and exposed to the pirates’ plundering for three centuries.

It is currently the most important island site of Cancun. In the explored and open discoveries, researchers believe that this would be the most significant city of the region where the most important people had lived.

The main building, having the typical pyramid-shape structure of the Mayan, is a temple presenting patterns of different architectural periods, which would denote an intense urban activity in the city from the XIV to the XVI. Precisely in this building a burial was found with the typical adornments of a high-class individual of the Mayan scenario; these remains can be visited at the Archaeological Museum of Cancun.

The scenario is completed with many palaces and administrative buildings, joined by a road creating a north-south axis. In one of these buildings, the glyphic Ahua was discovered; according to the Mayan language, it belonged to the highest class and that is why it is believed that this building could have been the dwelling apartment of a king.

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Francisco Cenamor

The Fives USA blog about Playa del Carmen & the Riviera Maya, Mexico

Note: Feel free to visit our sponsor: The Fives Resort & Private Residences in Playa del Carmen

According to the inscriptions on the monuments, which are still legible today, at the Riviera Maya, on January 8, 378 A.D., in the city of Waka (currently, El Perú, Guatemala), the local population was completely perplexed by a powerful army. This was not only because of their sheer number and strength, but also because of the strange feathers that they displayed, their powerful weapons (primarily the spear), as well as their shiny shields of armor that displayed the emblems of a king from a land far away. At the front of the massive army, a brave emissary who was destined to forge what would become the moment of the greatest zenith of the Mayan Empire.

The inscriptions depicted the events with great detail. Subsequent to that year, the person’s name began to appear everywhere. They called him, Nace el Fuego, (Fire is Born). He is thought to be an emissary who was sent by Buho Lanzadardos, the king of some of the city states of the Mayans, which were situated in what is known today as the high plateau of Mexico, possibly Teotihuacan.

Still, Nace el Fuego did not confine himself just to the city state of Waka. A week earlier he seized the city of Tikal (located in current day Guatemala). Here, after a ferocious battle, the king of that city, King Zarpa de Jaguar, was imprisoned and then assassinated. Many monuments were destroyed and in their place, new monuments were constructed depicting the victory over the city.

Despite his militant and diplomatic powers, Nace el Fuego was not much more than an emissary. He handed down the thrown of the influential city of Tikal to the son of Buho Lanzadores. From that moment on, he dedicated himself to set out to influence the entire Mayan empire, spreading the preeminence of Tikal throughout the rest of the cities in the state. Archeological fountains depict his image more often than any Mayan King of that epoch. This is what evidences the importance of this prominent figure who reigned during the years of splendor when the Mayan empire emerged.

The version of the story that we follow presents Nace el Fuego as a foreigner, but researchers have found another version. They say that he was not a foreigner to the city of Tikal when he conquered and left his influence upon it. In reality, he belonged to an uncrowned faction of the powers of Zarpa de Jaguar’s father. After turmoil in the state, he fled west and gathered reinforcements in order to be able to return triumphant years later, which he did in fact accomplish.

Other examples of his triumphant emergence were found in the archeological remains of a city called Uaxactún (also in current day Guatemala), which is located only 20 Kilometers from Tikal. Here, a mural represents a nobleman paying homage to a soldier who is seen carrying the emblems that Nace de Fuego also utilized. A few meters over, in a tomb marked with a pillar with similar motives to the mural, the remains of two women, one of whom was pregnant, one child, and one infant were found. Researchers concluded that they were the authentic, original members of the family of this city.

In references found involving Nace el Fuego in the last several years, he is presented as “Señor del Oeste”, (Man of the West). All of the conquests that were executed since Tikal, including the cities of the Riviera Maya, were implemented in his name, even many years after his death. The kings that were enthroned in the cities that were conquered also utilized the nobility of “Señor del Oeste”.

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Francisco Cenamor

The Fives USA blog about Playa del Carmen & the Riviera Maya, Mexico

Note: Feel free to visit our sponsor: The Fives Resort & Private Residences in Playa del Carmen