Its been sometime that I had written anything in this blog. However while my last blog was about the pyramids we visited near Oaxaca, I just thought of writing now about few cultural aspect which we tried during our stay in Oaxaca . Oaxaca is famous for its handi craft goods like embroidered dresses, potteries, bags made by hand, handloom items, carpets, potteries which are artistically made . There are some indigeneous villages near Oaxaca where one can stay and learn the handicraft making. Oaxaca has some very good museums which houses contemporary and traditional painitings,photographs,sculptures. Some museums also has the artifacts excavated from the nearby pyramid sites.

Oaxacan food is very distinctive due to its microclimates and number of indigeneous people developing their own style of food. Oaxaca is also called the state of sven moles. Mole negro is one of the most famous mole. Mole is like a sauce which is either eaten as topping over chicken,turkey,meats or over corn tortillas like enchiladas. oaxacan mole are made from about 30 different ingredients and each has its own distinct flavour . The most distinct ingredient of mole negro(negro means black) is due to hoja santa.Tlayudas are Oaxacan pizza made of fried corn tortillas topped with meats,avocados,tomatoes. Enchiladas ,chilaquiles,tamales are other food based on simple tortillas or blandas,cheese and garnished with mole negro or red salsa(for chilaquiles). The local energy drink is tejate which are usually considered for ruling zapotec society.These tejates are served in hand made pots called Jicaras. Locally made alcohol called Pulque has a very strong,distinct burned out taste made from agave plants. There are loacl tours avalilable to witness the hand made processing of Pulque in nearby disteleries. 

Oaxacan coffee and chocolates are good. Oaxacan cheese,requeson are used all over mexico.

The supreme festival celebrated in the month of July is Guelaguetza. The fiesta is also in honor of Centeotl, the goddess of corn. This festival is for bountiful harvest and celebrating community life .Every years  its celebrated in Oaxaca city and around. In Oaxaca city its celebrated in an ampitheater on top of a hill.The dancers are usually seen dancing with a pineapple and wearing mostly traditional dresses and ornaments.

OAXACA MONTE ALBAN

1. Main Plaza
2. Ball Court
3. North Platform

We had just visited Oaxaca state few weeks back and we visited some interesting pyramid sites which I will write about now. Oaxaca is a bautiful state full of lush green big mountains, rivers,sea beaches, indigeneous people and their culture , beautiful pyramids and alongside with the invasion of modernisation. Oaxaca has numerous indigeneous people ,the most significant are the Zapotecs and the Mixtecs. But apart from them there are 16 other official old cultures. It is bordered by the states of Guerrero to the west, Puebla to the northwest, Veracruz to the north, Chiapas to the east. To the south, Oaxaca has a significant coastline on the Pacific Ocean. Monte Alban is one of the important pre Columbian pyramid site near Oaxaca city right on top of the mountain. This pyramid site was for the Zapotec.The zapotecs gain dominance over the Central valley region which is the Monte Alban site spanning the timespan of 6B.C to 8A.D .Later in 1300A.D the region was overtaken by Mixtecas who left great gold treasures for their royalty in Tomb 7 and in 15A.D by the Aztecs. The pyramid site consist of the main plaza which is formed by flatenning the mountain and in its vicinity are other residencial and ceremonial sites.The site has got influenced from other cultures like Maya, Aztec,Olmec. Most of the artifacts excavated from the site are displayed in the museum of Santo Domingo church.

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OAXACA MITLA

Mitla is another pyramid site near the Oaxaca city .It dates to 450 to 700 A.D. It was made by the people from Mixtec culture. The pyramids walls are decorated with geometric designs made of polished stones. It has many subterranean chambers and tombs . The site has 5 main structures, outside the pyramid area are many handicrafts markets and the place is famous for its Mezcal a kind of local drink brewing factories and shops.

Near Oaxaca there are many pyramids like Dainzu, Etla, Yaguk, Zachila which were excavated . However we will be visiting them in our next trip to Oaxaca....

Lacandon forest

1. Ceiba or Silk Cotton tree

2. Village house

3. Mayan local

4. river inside jungle

Photos are taken by my husband Debrup Chakraborty.

After visiting Bonampak pyramids we visited the Lacandon rain forest where Mayan ,rather Lacandon Mayans still live in their secluded communities. The Lacandons are the descendent of the ancient Mayans. They still rever their old cultures and customs and live as before in their village. They could survive the Spanish because of their living deep inside the forests. Now approximately 700 people can speak Lacandon Mayan which resembles Yucatec Maya. We got the oppertunity to see a Lacandon house,a walk inside the forest where we noticed many undiscovered pyramids lying deep inside the forest ,some waterfalls ,and varried trees and insects and butterflies. We were told Jaguars are also there but not in the part we were visiting. Among many tress in the jungle Ceiba is worth mentioning because of its size. These people has demonstrated the subsistence farming inside the forest area for the preservation and conservation of the tropical forest ecosystem. since they depend on it at various levels like fishing,wood,hunting so its preservation has been key.

Bonampak

Bonampak is another Mayan pyramid site that we visited in chiapas along with Yaxchilan and Palenque. Bonampak pyramids are again located deep inside the stunning Lacandon(native with Mayan origin) forest. The entrance of the pyramid site makes one feel to be surrounding by mystic natural forces. One can hear howler monkeys,Oropendula bird or woodpeckers making their nest . the pyramids are known for their beautiful colourful wall paintaings depicting several rituals done by the ruling dyansties. the construcion of the site was dated 200-800A.D. Till date some Mayan living in nearby villages come to offer prayers to their Gods in these pyramids. The frescoes in the walls are thought to have carried immense information in understanding the PreHispanic society. Earlier only potteries or some tablets were found to have paintings.

We travelled to this place from Palanque in Chiapas.Palanque itself has lots of pyramid sites. This is situated near Usumancinta river which in fact is the border river between Mexico and its neighbouring country Guatemala. After our visit to Bonampak we visited the Lacandon forest to see the Mayan village.

Palenque in Chiapas

1. Queens bath waterfall in forest

2. Temple of the cross

3. Mayan glyph

4. The palace

5. The palace

6. Tomb of the main king Pa Kal or teple of inscripciones

Palanque is in the state of Chiapas and has some marvelous pyramids all surrounded by the lust forest of the Tumbala and its wild habitats. The pyramids in palenque are of Mayan origin and its rise to fall dated from 100 B.C to 900 A.D. Around 600 A.D a very powerful king called Pa Kal came to power at 14 years of age and fortified this place. His son Kan Balam also became powerful. His tomb was excavated in the temple of Inscripciones(4th picture) against the beliefs that pyramids in Mexico are not used for burials as in Egypt. This place reached its importance due to its architectural beauty and its proximity to the mountain and the forest which had almost engulfed the place when excavated. There are still many pyramids which remain underneath the forest in th lap of eternity of time. One can hear howler monkeys and can also spot some exotic bird like Toucans. Other buildings which are of importance include temple of cross, temple of sun etc. This place is visited by many tourist so when we visted we could hear guides telling historical stories to tourists about the place in French,German, Japanese,English and spanish. The pyramids are very tall so some of them gives a good view of the forest around and the pyramid site from the top.There is also a small waterfall inside the forest road. Guides say earlier queens used it for bathing.

We reached this place from Tuxtla Guiterrez however one can approach it through Villahermosa(it gets flights from mexico city). We stayed in a jungle lodge mainly frequented by alternative people and its called El Pancham. The pyramid site is around 2 km from this place. The weather is usually very hot at day.

Yaxchilan(means Green stone) in Chiapas

1. temple

2. Lady Xoc performing blodletting rituals.

3. structure 33

4. Laberynth leading to main plaza

Another great pyramid site of Mayans are in Yaxchilan. Though of lesser grandeur than Palanque but still it hold its mystical aura. But to reach this place from Palanque it takes around 4 hours and one needs to take a boat ride through the river Usumancita which is one of the common borders shared with the neighbouring country of Guatemala. There are crocodiles in the river. The pyramid side is again covered with lush tropical forest. It atkes a little walking to reach the ain temple side. One is welcomed by the vibrant wildlife of the site like howler monkeys and spider monkeys living like old days. This site was build around 200-900 A.D It has 86 known buildings and to enter one need to cross the labyrinth. It has 3 main sites: Great Plaza, Small Acropolis and Large Acropolis all of which are so made with staircases and ramps so as to mix well with the surrounding limestone hills. One can climb these levels of levels of buildings to explore the architecture. The Lacandons(Mayan natives) still come here to worship their ancestors and Gods. King Jaguar Shield,his 2 wives and son were the main rulers. This place was unique to have Lady Xoc who is one of the wives of the king depicted in several stellas doing rituals. While exploring the site one reaches the top of the pyramid which gives a good view of the surrounding forest and can also be used as a perfect meditation spot. This place can truly be considered best in terms of its timelessness and peacefulness.

1. The observatory

2. The castillo or castle

3. Group of 1000 pillars

This is Chichen Itza which is Mayan(Classical Period) pyramid site. Only recently it has been added to the Seven wonders of the world. Like teotihuacan(refer my previous blog) this pyramid is also thought to have different purposes. It used as a religious site and the structure of the pyramids were also made keeping in mind the astrological or astronomical events like Equinox. The pyramid is thought to have represented Mayan Calendar and during equinox there is shadow play of ascending and descending KuKulKan(Serpent God) in its staircase for which this site earned its Seven wonder title. The site has 8 major architechture marvel namely Pyramid of kukulkan, Ball court, group of 1000 pillars,El Caracol or the observatory site, The Nunnery, Temple of Jaguars and 2 cenotes which are considered to have witnessed many human sacrifices as offering to God. Like all mesoamerican pyramids the main Palace or Tomb of Kukulkan has larger pyramids built over smaller pyramids. During excavation an inside chamber was found to have the statue of the Mayan rain God Chac Mool and a Jaguar throne with inlaids of Jade. The pyramid is step pyramid with 91 steps at 4 sides and total number of stairs add to 365 representing Mayan calendar year or Haab. It is widely believed that Mayans used to desert civilizations and cities according their own will and the calender specifications. Caracol has inner stairways resembling snail. Its windows are oriented at 4 cardinal directions and also according to equinox. Mayans were obsessed with astronomical observations and had built pyramids according to such events.The Ball Courts were seen in almost all mesoamerican pyramids. It has great acoustics. Sounds at one end can be heard at the other end of 40mt ball court. Only the aristocrats were allowed to attend and the losing team captain was either to believed to have been sacrificed or the winning team is given some animal sacrifice. It was prestigious game at that time. The 1000 pillars site depicts 1000 warriors and it is very similar to Toltec pyramid in Tula.

Mayans had their own writing in the form of glyphs and lots of information were gathered from these glyphs written on the stone tablets.Chichen Itza is located only at 3 hours drive from the city of Cancun. It is one of the largest pyramid site in Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.There is light and sound show at 7:00p.m

Some pyramids of Mexico

Its been 5 years that we are staying in Mexico. We had visited many tourist places during this time which includes some of the well know pyramid sites which dates back to the Aztec or Mayan civilizations and some are protected by the government till date .Mexico had a vibrant history thriving with civilizations in its different parts which had left indelitible mark on this earth with its architecture, culture,language,dress,food,business and so on and so forth. As per the history books the historians had divided its studies among 4 main periods:1)The Pre Classical Period(3500BC-300A.D).2)The Classical period(300A.D-900A.d).3)Post Classical period(900-1521A.d).4)The Spanish Conquest(1521-1810A.D).The MAyan civilization was dated to the Classical period and the Aztecs to the Post Classical periods.But there are numerous significant cultures like Olmecs,Toltecs,Teotihuacans etc who are responsible for shaping up the powerful civilizations like Maya and Aztec.The very first pyramid among them which I had visited was in Teotihuacan.

Since it is very near to Mexico city where I live I got chances to visit it 5 times or so and it always mesmerized me. It still beholds the aura and grandeur of its time.Its a UNESCO heritage site. The culture and architecture of teotihuacans are thought to have been influenced by the Olmec people which is considered mother civilization of the Mesoamerica(It refers to approximately todays Central America) .It has 2 big pyramids named Pyramid of Sun and Pyramid of moon and also there is Temple of Plumed Serpent God called Quetzalcóatl.This civilization also worshipped rain god name Tlaloc.The pyramids unlike Egypt are not meant to preserve kings or aristocracy after death but is mainly considered as religious sites. But here some rich human graves were found after excavations. Human sacrfices were also part of their religious practice and it is believed that they had Ball Game(juego de pelota) where the defeated teams were sacrificed. The pyramids site has 2 Big pyramids and also houses made for the people on 2 sides of the main avenue of the Deads as it is named. There are still tablets found with coloured paintings of Jaguars and other animals and birds.The city continued to have flourished till 7 or 8th century A.D and it was believed to have 200,000 population at its peak. Pyramid of the sun is the second largest pyramid in volume in the world.However its still unknown why such a flourishing city was suddenly abandoned by the city dwellers. There are many theories of drought,outside invasion or internal conflicts related to it.They didnt have any writing systems and most of the references of this city was found in Mayan writings which had adopted many of the Teotihuacan architecture techniques and styles.

The site has a museum which has a big replica of the pyramid site and also preserves figurines and skeletons found during the excavations.