Hola! - Cozumel, Mexico

Cozumel, Mexico was our last port of call. For us, Cozumel was the highlight of the cruise as we would get to visit the Mayan ruins at Tulum, located approximately 90 minutes from the port of Cozumel at Mexico.

At the port, we boarded a ferry that would take us to the island of Playa Del Carmen (where the ruins of Tulum are located). When we got off the ferry, we were greeted at the pier by our guide, Sal (pronounced “Saul”) with a friendly “Hola!”. Sal speaks really fast with many grand hand gestures but he was also highly engaging so we had no problems following his speech.

These are some of what Sal shared with us about Mexico:-

a) Mexico is a federation of states, like the USA. Mexico City is the capital of Mexico.
b) Spanish is the official language in Mexico. However, some Mexican people still speak the Mayan language (or a variation of it) today.
c) There are some 34 different ethnic groups in Mexico and it is the 4th ranked country in the world today in terms of the number of different languages spoken.
d) Mexico only has 2 climates – “Hot” or “Very Hot”.
e) Playa is a major tourist attraction today, due to the Tulum ruins. During the peak tourist season, Playa sees up to 40 cruise ships a day. Yet, not too long ago there were only some 200 farmers in Playa.

Enroute to the ruins, Sal also shared with us some information about the Mayans:-

a) The Mayans were the first people who invented the binary system. This is the system which present-day computers are based on.
b) The Mayans were obsessed about time and they had a pretty sophisticated calendar made up of 216 days (or 38 weeks), which is the gestation period for a baby. Interestingly, the Mayan calendar ends on 21 December 2012, which is a mere 4 years later.
c) The Mayans had their own written language and archaeologists believe that the Mayans had some 30 books of knowledge. However, when the Spaniards finally conquered the Mayans, the Spaniards destroyed the books of knowledge save for 3 of them. Sadly, none of the 3 remaining Mayan books are in Mexico today. Spain, Dresden (Germany) and Paris (France) now house the 3 remaining books.
d) Mayan culture and civilizations inexplicably died out between the 12th and 15th centuries. Till today, scholars are unable to definitively determine why this happened, although many theories have been postulated.


When we got to Tulum, our second guide, Juan took over. Juan is somewhat of an authority on the Tulum ruins and it was his responsibility to lead us through the ruins and explain the significance of them.

According to Juan, Tulum means “walls” in the Mayan language. Indeed, the compound of Tulum is surrounded by stone walls. As such, Tulum is also known as the “walled city”. During the time of the Mayans, Tulum was an important religious and ceremonial centre for the Mayans. About 200 high-ranking citizens in the Mayan hierarchy (such as nobles, astronomers and priests) lived within the Tulum compound. Outside the walls of Tulum lived some 20,000 ordinary Mayans such as the farmers and the fishermen.

Due to the plundering Spaniards and other grave-robbers, much of the former glory of the temples and buildings in Tulum can no longer be seen today. However, the foundations of the buildings still remain and those are what we would see on our tour. This is in itself no small feet, given that the compound was built more than 1000 years ago.

When we finally entered the compound of Tulum (after going through an arched walkway – one of 5 in the entire compound), we were greeted with many stone structures that were once temples. Juan walked us through some of the most important buildings in the compound and explained the significance of various symbols and carvings that are still visible on the buildings today.
(entering Tulum)

(the temple)

Finally, we got to the highest point of Tulum, which was also where the most important temple in Tulum was located. The view from the temple was amazing. It overlooked a stretch of sandy-white beach and deep blue waters. Juan explained that the Mayans had clearly given much thought in locating their religious centre at Tulum. The beach provided a natural defense against invaders and the spring that runs under Tulum also provided a source of fresh water for the Mayans.

(the beach at Tulum)

Juan informed us that the Mayans were also very gifted at astronomy and at determining water movements and conditions. Scholars believe that it is no mere coincidence that Tulum overlooks the second-largest reef in the world (the largest is in Australia) and that at the highest point of the aforesaid temple, during the summer solstice (which falls in June annually), the sun’s rays pass through two specially carved windows in the temple and converge to form a single bright beam.

We were deeply impressed by the obvious intelligence of the Mayan people and were also deeply humbled to tread the same grounds as them. We are also now inspired to visit other places of ancient civilization (perhaps to see the Incas in Peru?) so do let us know if you have any suggestions.

The tour to Tulum was an all-day affair so we unfortunately did not have any time to explore Cozumel. However, Mexico radiated a really interesting and positive vibe so we will certainly try and visit again.

Tonight is our last night on the ship and it is amazing how after only a week, it already feels so familiar. We will certainly miss the comforts of cruising and the excitement of visiting a different port every day. We will be off to Washington DC after we disembark tomorrow and no doubt we will blog about that soon enough. Until then, hasta la vista amigos! (Spanish for “goodbye my friends”).

-M