Letters to a friend...: Mexico, vacation... Tulum, part 10

To read previous part click here - Mexico, vacation... Mangrove forest, part 9

That was our second day traveling and after viziting Ek Balam we were really tired walking through the hot and humid jungle, so once in the car we turned on AC full blast. That was a huge relief and soon we felt much better. Our next stop was at Tulum. Another ruin place but on the coast.

Once there we boarded the tractor powered wagon and traveled a few minutes to the entry point...

Before we entered the ruins we met some coatis. They are common everywhere but in Tulum they are absolutely fearless. They consider everything in tourists bags a fair pray and explored every opened purse they can reach for ;)

Tulum was very special for Maya. Located on the coast on the intersection between land and sea roads, that place always was a trading hub. Built a bit later than most of the Mayan settlements Tulum was still inhabitant even after Hispanic invasion and people left and abandoned this place only in late 16 century.

Tulum is surrounded by tall and thick walls. About 2400 feet long, 10-16 feet high and 26 feet thick, this wall protects the city from three sides left, only the seaside opened. There are many different buildings survived inside city walls. As we heard, the Maya improved simple limestone cliffs by bringing the soil, so they can grow some palm trees and have some shadow. I have no idea if this is true, but this place is just gorgeous. Open and sunny, windy and full of salt sea air, it reminded us of Greece.

Both coastal and land routes converged at Tulum. A number of artifacts found in or near the site show contacts with areas all over Central Mexico and Central America. Copper artifacts from the Mexican highlands have been found near the site, as have flint artifacts, ceramics, incense burners, and gold objects from all over the Yucatán. Salt and textiles were among some of the goods brought by traders to Tulum by sea that would be dispersed inland. Typical exported goods included feathers and copper objects that came from inland sources. These goods could be transported by sea to rivers such as the Río Motagua and the Río Usumacincta/Pasión system, which could be traveled inland, giving seafaring canoes access to both the highlands and the lowlands.

The Río Motagua starts from the highlands of Guatemala and empties into the Caribbean. The Río Pasión/Ucamacincta river system also originates in the Guatemalan highlands and empties into the Gulf of Mexico. It may have been one of these seafaring canoes that Christopher Columbus first encountered off the shores of the Bay Islands of Honduras. Jade and obsidian appear to be some of the more valuable found here. The obsidian would have been brought from Ixtepeque in northern Guatemala, which was nearly 700 kilometers (430 mi) away from Tulum. This huge distance, coupled with the density of obsidian found at the site, show that Tulum was a major center for the trading of obsidian.