Read more about this marvelous old city, its historic convent and its ancient Maya pyramid, here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izamal
"Completed in 1561, the atrium of the Monastery was second in size only to that at the Vatican. Much of the cut stone from the Pre-Columbian city was reused to build the Spanish churches, monastery, and surrounding buildings."
EXPLORED. . . thanks, all!
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in the land of the Maya -- Yucatan. (SCROLL DOWN for more)
Noses, shells eyes, mouths -- what do you see?
at Chichen Itza archaeological zone.
A dwelling called, inaccurately, "The Iglesia"; it certainly was not a Christian church (many of these buildings were considered sacred by the Maya--we will never know their exact uses). It is one the most highly decorated of all the structures at the site. Below I attach two wonderful historic images from Cornell University's library, of an adjacent structure in which this little building is seen at the far right.
Tags: maya chichenitza monjas iglesia facade elaborate stonework carving archaeology ancient historic yucatan mexico cornell tourism preserve inah 2013 Commons A.D.WhiteCollection CornellUniversity rarebooks library masks faces noses eyes teeth mouth mayafieldworkshops
All of this has been created (except for the natural sand bar that was here originally) since the early 1970s. All the stuff along the bottom and right end are hotels--some 82 by last count.
The first one, the Playa Blanca, opened in 1974. Today there are 32,000 hotel rooms for rent along this stretch, complete with shopping centers for upscale accessories, along with food--fast and slower. Believe it or not, there are inexpensive accommodations to be had, but the time involved in getting to and from anywhere means that sensible people mostly stay where they are and just enjoy the beach.
I won't give one of my homilies about insane development and impact on the environment, but all I can think of is all those toilets flushing!
cancun.travel/en/hotels/
Tags: hotels resorts quintanaroo yucatanpeninsula sandbar environment development bigbusiness tourism beach holiday mexico map pictorial reference 2012 zone mystuart fragile ecosystem geography geotagged
and a portion of the "Group of 1000 Columns" at Chichen Itza archaeological zone, Yucatan, Mexico.
At one time, the columns supported a roof structure; there are fewer than 1,000, but still MANY.
Read more here:
dcollections.oberlin.edu/cdm/ref/collection/realia/id/1765
Tags: archaeology architecture building maya sky clouds mexico yucatan chichen 2013
Several of the "worthies" of Valladolid's history. These two were among the leaders of a revolt that helped initiate the Mexican Revolution in 1910.
For the story of Valladolid's role in the Mexican Revolution, see:
www.yucatanliving.com/print.php?article=5404
Tags: paintings portraits gallery valladolid yucatan mexico cityhall government history historical man faces politics rebellion 1910 mexicanrevolution