We didn't get to Ek Balam until 10:30. It was sticky and hot but there was abundant shade when you weren't climbing pyramids. This site is not fully excavated and we passed several buildings that were still covered in jungle growth (this site opened to tourists in 1994). There is something kinda cool about visiting a pyramid in the jungle.
When we arrived there was 1 tour group and maybe 2 dozen other people. We climbed the Oval Palace and gazed across the open space to the Acropolis. It was difficult to see what had been reconstructed and what had been left undisturbed. The site is small, only 9 buildings have been cleared which makes it a terrific place to slow down and see everything
I love the free reign given to climb up and down all of the ruins, I am having second thoughts about skipping Chichen Îtza but I'm certain that after climbing sites in several other areas, it would be a let-down to walk between the buildings and stand behind a rope, not to mention the throngs of people and hawking salespeople.
The Acropolis is just over 100 feet tall, it towers over everything in the area and is the second tallest building in the Yucatan. Unlike Teotihuacan, these pyramids have rooms inside them. They have found 40 rooms inside this building and several murals and sculptures (the murals are not open to the public). It houses the tomb of Ukit Kan Le'k Tok, a governor of some sort - its entrance has a mouth of a jaguar and an opening in its mouth to the tomb. I was struck by the recreation of this part at the Archeology museum in Mexico City. It was special to them see the real deal today.
After heating up climbing pyramids, we walked back to the entrance and bought some frozen fruit bars and hopped on some tricycle taxis to the X'Canche Cenote attached to the site (1.5 km away). The cenote was gorgeous and the water was super clear. There were catfish swimming around in the water which was a little freaky, but they moved out of our way as we jumped in.
We had lunch onsite after swimming for a while and took a little nap in the hammocks provided in the palapa next door. Relaxed and happy, we rode in the tricycles back to our car and headed back to our hotel in Valladolid.
We hung out in the hired in the heat of the afternoon. Mike and I down at the restaurant at a table and the girls up in the room. At about 4:30, we went and got the girls and shared a pitcher of lemonade over some card games.
We walked to dinner a few blocks from the hotel and sat outside in a covered pavilion in a lovely garden. The food was good and the location was great. We walked back to the hotel, stopping to get another frozen fruit bar and the girls were settled in for the night.
Mike and I headed back out to watch a band playing on the street. There were locals set up in plastic deck chairs and many couples, old and young, out in the street dancing. The band had several horns and sounded great and watching the older couples dance together was inspiring. We returned to the hotel for a nightcap under the stars before turning in. Another day in paradise. :)
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