While we were in Mexico, we went on a few excursions to see some ancient Mayan ruins. The first was really just a mini excursion since the El Rey ruins are a 5 minute walk from the hotel and are small. They are from around 250 A.D. It was a nice little outing though and we played a game of finding iguanas. There were iguanas everywhere, sunning themselves. You also had to be observant to make sure you didn't approach one in the grass or get too close to the side of a ruin and realize you were a foot from a large iguana.
I'll also point out that I got to wear all the kids while visiting ruins. First up was Derek in his backpack carrier:
Lydia's stuffed dog Emma is well-traveled, even making it to Mexican ruins:
Derek was standing right by these 2 iguanas, but couldn't find the one in the grass until he was basically on top of it.
Next up was Tulum, from around the 1200s. I should preface this by saying I was up most of the night throwing up, but felt better that day. I still hadn't really eaten anything and was dehydrated. Then to make matters worse, Karina didn't feel great, and of course threw up while we were at the ruins in Tulum. I am wearing her in this picture, though it is hard to see because of the tree. She didn't want to walk around (understandably since she threw up 20 minutes later). The other downer about Tulum is that no one is allowed to walk on the ruins or climb them. A few years ago you could and it was supposed to be amazing since the ruins are up against a gorgeous beach, and after climbing the tall pyramid, you got to enjoy the beach view. However that wasn't useful to us in 2019. Tulum was mostly a disappointment, to me at least, but that's perhaps because I had been sick the night before.
Derek was happy to ignore the scenery and play in dirt. I am always amazed how exciting dirt and sand are to him.
We walked down to the beach at Tulum:
Behind is the pyramid with the beautiful ocean view at the top:
The next day was many times better as we drove to Ek' Balam, ruins that started at 100 B.C. and peaked around 800 A.D. These Mayan ruins were amazing as we could climb on everything and explore fully. The ruins were right in the middle of the jungle.
On our way to the archaeological site, we had to trek a little bit:
When we arrived, we were excited to walk up and down everything. The views were completely different when you got to go to the top of each structure.
These next stairs weren't that tall, but I like this picture because of all the people going down on their butts. Steps were steep and there were no rails anywhere. Karina is also in the background, on top, with her arms outstretched:
The views were beautiful. The tallest pyramid is all the way in the back of this picture.:
This is the base of the tall pyramid, the Acropolis, with 106 steep steps.
Lydia was too scared to walk up this pyramid because of its height. I ended up wearing her in the carrier, completing my circuit of wearing all three kids on this trip. I climbed up the steps with my hands on the steps ahead of me because a) it was steep and tiring and Lydia weighs 50 pounds, b) for balance because there wasn't a railing and Lydia is heavy.
About halfway up the pyramid, there were some tombs and carvings. An ancient Mayan king was apparently buried in this tomb that kind of looks like a jaguar's mouth and teeth.
The intricate nature of the carvings was very impressive, and it was doubly impressive that it had been preserved so well.
Views of the jungle from the top:
Some of the earlier ruins we had climbed at Ek Balam as seen from the top of the Acropolis:
When I carried Lydia down, I didn't need my hands, but we went slowly.
Nate probably had the more difficult ascent and descent though. On the way up, he played the jumping game with Derek, lifting him up to help him "jump" up a few steps at a time. On the way down, he had Derek with him, and was partly carrying him, partly holding his hand, and mostly making sure Derek didn't do anything stupid.
At this point, Lydia decided she wanted to be the star of lots of pictures. As we walked around, she kept picking spots to be photographed. The spots were not always scenic, but here are a couple:
Karina racing up a small pyramid:
It was a very worthwhile day. My only regret is that we didn't get to see the ruins of Coba, which are also ones that can be climbed. Because of illnesses we skipped Coba, but that will be for another trip I guess.
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