Chichen Itza & Cenote Ik Kil: Seven And A Half Wonders Of The World
Lesson Learned
I have an unhealthy habit of NOT researching the places I travel to until AFTER I visit the destinations.
We live in a world where we live through our phones so I cherish those in the moment “WOW, I can’t believe I am here right now moments.”
Like visiting the 1700-year-old Diocletian Palace in Split, Croatia.
Or even the Eternal city of Rome, Italy
There’s so much, rich, world history, in these places that I am actually mad at myself that I didn’t do proper research beforehand to appreciate the fact that I actually was here!
It also doesn’t help that I’m American and I am upholding the stereotype/fact that Americans do not know/care about other countrys’ cultures or historical events and landmarks. And on behalf of most Americans, I would like to apologize for our willful and blissful ignorance. For this reason, I continue to travel — not only to educate myself about other countries and cultures but to pass these travel lessons and history down to my family! (And get rid of the stereotype that Americans don’t care about other countries
Where to start!
After a long night of tossing and turning and getting no sleep because Romain snores in his sleep, we had plans to visit the great site of Mayan civilization, Chichén Itzá.
How to get here?
Romain and I booked an Airbnb in the local town called Valladolid which is approximately a one hour drive to Chichén Itzá on Google Maps. We booked a rental car which we highly recommend if you’re trying to get from monument to monument freely.
Parking is $1–2.
We recommend you get there early (8AM) to avoid the huge rush of tourist that FLOOD the fields after 10 AM.
Also, if you have a professional camera or a GoPro, HIDE IT, because you will have to pay an extra fee to take it in! I found it extremely annoying that I have to pay an extra fee of $5 to take my GoPro in.
If your American, think of the Disney movie “The Road to El Dorado” and the tower in the movie.
You know, big golden temple, high in the sky, lots of stairs, shiny gold colors! Yup that one except this one is made of stones, lots and lots of stones.
Don’t worry, I was just like you with my lack of knowledge!
I know what you’re thinking.
Jarelle why should I care about this place?
It’s just a bunch of stones, that’s cool.
Don’t worry I got you covered!
Chichen Itza
Facts about Chichen Itza you should care about:
- If you wanna do the “touristy” stuff in Mexico
- you have to come here! It’s the second most popular tourist site in Mexico.
- It’s considered one of the 7 wonders of the world!
- Like the world!
- “Chichen Itza” actually means “At the mouth of the well of the Itza”
- That big temple that everyone takes selfies in front of and post them on Instagram is actually called “The Temple of Kukulkan” build sometime in the 9th — 12th century. We took a timelapse of it:
- Archaeologists believe that Chichen Itza was built around 600 AD.
- If you’re a basketball fan you’ll be pleased to discover that some origins from the game was crafted by the Mayans in their game called “Mesoamerican Ball” or “Pok at Pok”. The game can be played with different variations but the object is the same “get the ball through the goal”.
- If you still lost, like I was, think: “The Road to El Dorado”.
- Please enjoy this video just as much as I did!
We have a few photos here to encapsulate the moments we shared here but honestly, I feel sad because I lost all the film that was on my GoPro because my memory card failed
Trust me, I would have loved to put some videos from BROography TV in here but no vids just photos!
Cenote Ik Kil
Immediately after visiting this ancient city, Romain and I made her way to Cenote “Ik Kil”, which is only about a 10-minute drive from Chichén Itzá.
More stuff you could care about:
- Cenotes in Mexico have historic ritual significance to the ancient Mayans because they were considered passages to the underworld. Nowadays they are huge tourist attractions for their beauty and natural refreshing swimming holes. (What happened to the accident tradition? Money?) (“Cash rules everything around me cream get the money! Dolla Dolla bill Y’all!”)
- They were used for sacrificial purposes such for humans, animals, jewelry, and gold. Yucatan, because of its rich history is for full of BEAUTIFUL cenotes! Others were used as “well” for fresh water.
On a hot day, you definitely want to be at a cenote! We arrive around 1 PM so it was quite hot and flooded with tourists. I love these places not only for their beauty but it’s relatively cheap to get it in, only about seven dollars and you can enjoy the place all day, meet other travelers and get some great shots!
At this particular cenote, you can jump off a ledge about 10 feet in the water! The water here is about 40 meters deep which is about 130 feet. The water temperature is nice and cool. I wish I could put the footage in here but once again my memory card corrupted.
This is a great place to come with a group of friends, relax and enjoy the beauty this planet.
Realistically, if you live in California or in the southern states, a flight to Mexico to get here would cost you roughly around $150 (depending on which part of the state you live in) and a rental car would only run you about $20–30 a day, plus gas and if you’re with a group of friends it comes out to be very cheap. Hostel and hotels around the area are under $20 a night per person and food is 5 to 7 dollars a meal. Frankly, a weekend here would only cost about $250 with friends. And to my guys out there, if you’re trying to impress a woman you adore, this is a great place to take her. Trust me, I thought about this a few times, it’s that beautiful. It’s the kind of beauty that makes you change your thinking as a man. And you know she deserves it, hint hint!
Ik Kil was gorgeous and this was not the only cenote on the trip.
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