This is the third article of a self-driving trip to Mexico. If you want to know the entire self-driving itinerary, you may wish to read from the first article: Self-driving in Mexico | Spanning 4,500 kilometers, from the plateau to the cape
Familiar friends may know that vacation and leisure have never been in Chen’s travel vocabulary, but even so, the day of driving from Mexico City to Campeche was still the hardest day in my travel experience. Initially, I chose to pick up and return the car at the same location due to budget issues (it was too expensive to return the car in another place). In order to go to more places in just 15 days, I had to choose this 1,200-kilometer journey without any stopping points. After all, you don’t want to waste every moment during your trip, so this is a desperate solution. Fortunately, I was tired enough from playing in Mexico City on the first day (see here for the Mexico City travelogue) and fell asleep early. I woke up early today, assessed that I was in good spirits, and then decided to set off immediately. From Mexico City to Campeche, Google Maps shows 13 hours and 50 minutes, 1134 kilometers. In fact, we set off on time at 06:30 in the morning and arrived at the destination hotel at 23:30 in the evening. The whole journey took 16 hours (with a time difference of one hour) and 1,190 kilometers. Looking back now, I probably won’t do such crazy driving again in my life.
The road from Mexico City to Campeche is high-speed and the road conditions are much better than those in the United States. But one thing that needs to be complained about is that there are too many toll stations on Mexican highways. In the more than 1,000 kilometers from Mexico City to Campeche, there are actually 16 toll stations, with an average of one every 60-70 kilometers. The price is clearly marked at the station. For this stretch of road alone, you have to pay a toll of nearly 1,500 Peso (approximately 500 RMB). Not only are the road conditions similar to those in China, but even the toll standards are the same as those in China.
Campeche is the beginning of the story of the Yucatan Peninsula. This was named a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO at the end of the last century. The colonial town next to the Gulf of Mexico is like a paradise far away from the hustle and bustle - a narrow stone Brick roads, brightly painted buildings, stern fortresses, and mansions from the 16th to 19th centuries constitute the most common scenery in the small town. The town’s exquisite mansions have been lovingly cared for, renovated and restored by generations of Campeche residents.
Campeche is very small and can be visited in half a day. It is a small seaside town suitable for vacation. The city wall embraces the ancient city, and the scenic spots are spread out around the central square, basically within a 100-meter walk; Beyond the city wall is the clear water of the Gulf of Mexico, and you can stop and go along the coastal avenue, accompanied by bursts of music. The sea breeze and the sunset are so pleasant. In addition to the Campeche Cathedral that can be seen at a glance around the central square of the small town, there is also Centro Cultural CASA 6. Maya Architecture Museum , located on the north side of the square, is recommended by Lonely Planet. Unfortunately, it was under maintenance when I went there, so I could only climb one side of the city wall to see the small town.
The Campeche City Hall (Mansion Carvajal) on the east side of the square was once the private property of Carvajal, a powerful man here. It was later purchased by the Campeche state government and used as office space. Although the internal rooms cannot be visited, the tile floors and patio stairs are so beautiful. You can see Campeche Cathedral from the second floor of the city hall.
Pan de Cazon is Campeche’s signature dish. Almost every restaurant in the small city will sell it. It is a thin sandwich, mixed with minced fish and sweet beans, and served with rice milk and coconut. The juice has a unique taste. Luz de Luna, located a block away from the central square, is a famous breakfast shop in the small town. It offers a wide variety of breakfasts, and a full cup of fruit only costs 75 Peso.
Accommodation in the small Campeche is also relatively concentrated. The Castlemar Hotel located three blocks west of the main square is the most recommended one. This hotel was used as an arsenal in the 18th century and is very historical. feel. The displays in the hotel and rooms are also in retro style, and the courtyard in the middle is large and quiet. If you want to watch the sunset on the coastal boulevard, you can only walk less than 100 meters away.
The total distance from Campeche to Merida is 179 kilometers and takes about 2 hours by car. In the middle, we pass through the small town of Becal, which is famous for its handicrafts and Mexican straw hat making. If you want to take an authentic Mexican straw hat home, you can stop here.
Merida is the capital of the state of Yucatan and the largest city and transportation center in the entire Yucatan Peninsula. After being conquered by the Spanish in 1542, the city’s name was changed from the Mayan T’ho to Mérida. Merida was rated as the first destination in Lonely Planet Mexico's Top 21. The city never lacks color, art and music, and the old town is also full of colonial style. In a sense, Merida is an enlarged version of Campeche. As the largest city in the Yucatan Peninsula, it naturally attracts more foreign tourists. Whenever night falls, the city is already a sea of music, filled with activities and dances. Watching the carriages passing by on the stone streets, it feels like being led by a time machine to a small town in Andalusia.
The four most important attractions are distributed in the four quadrants of Merida's central square: Merida Cathedral (Catedral de San Ildefonso) , located east of the main square , was conquered by Spanish colonists in 1598 Built on the original site of a Mayan temple, the church's stones all come from Mayan ruins. This is an example of the so-called demolition of the east wall to make up for the west wall.
The Governor's Palace (Palacio de Gobierno) is located on the north side of Merida's main square. Like the National Palace of Mexico, the walls on the second floor are covered with oil paintings of contemporary historical significance, telling that the Mayans believed that "human beings were born from corn." Well, how much Mexicans love to eat corn.
Mérida City Hall (Palacio Municipal de Mérida) is located on the west side of the main square. It was built on top of the Mayan pyramid by the colonists in 1542. Some traces of the ruins can still be seen behind the city hall. From the second floor of the city hall, you can also overlook the Merida Church and the streets of the small city directly opposite.
Museo Casa Montejo is located on the south side of the main square. As the founder of Merida, Montejo and his father set foot on the Yucatan Peninsula with the first batch of conquistadors, expelled the indigenous people here by force, and built a colonial city with the same name as the Spanish city of Merida. . The museum still displays the decorations they shipped from all over the world, including many porcelain bottles from China.
In addition to the attractions in the four quadrants of the downtown square, around the square, there are Autonomous University of Yucatan and Calle 63 pedestrian street that you can visit. La Chaya Maya is a must-eat restaurant in Merida. It ranks first in terms of word-of-mouth among tourists and locals. If you go there during the peak meal period, you will definitely queue up for a long time;Of course, it’s worth queuing up. Their sauce is very special. In addition to the signature chicken wrapped in lotus leaves, Stewed Pork (Cochinita pibil) is also great.
Merida is very large, and there are many high-end chain hotels in the new city in the north, but tourists are still recommended to stay in the central area of the old city. The Gamma Merida El Castellano hotel next to La Chaya Maya is a local chain hotel and the tallest building in the old city. The pink building frame can be seen at a glance, both in terms of location and cost-effectiveness. all good. If you are driving to Merida, the parking problem around the central square will be a little inconvenient. You can choose to stay on the outskirts of the old city, which is a little far away from the central square. Hotel La Piazzetta The hotel is 6 blocks from the central square and a walk away. There is ample parking space at the door in about 10 minutes. The most important thing is that the room is clean and comfortable, and the breakfast is rich.
About an hour's drive south of Merida, you will soon reach Uxmal, an important city-state of the Mayan civilization. Compared with the crowded Chichen Itza, there are very few tourists here. Uxmal was founded in 600 AD. At its peak, there were about 2,500 people living in Uxmal. It was abandoned due to lack of water in 1000 AD. In the Mayan language, Uxmal means "three times built," referring to the multi-story structure of its building. The ticket office in Uxmal is a bit crude, with tickets costing 234 Peso, tour guide 550 Peso, and parking 22 Peso. Walk uphill from the entrance and you will suddenly see the huge Pyramid of the Magician.
The name of the Pyramid of the Magician comes from the folklore told by the local Maya: According to legend, a magician named Itzamna used his power and magic to build the pyramid alone one night.
The body of this pyramid is oval, which is completely different from the square pyramids we commonly see. The Mayans rarely used circles in their buildings, so the locals called it the "House of the Warlock Casa del Adivino" as mentioned earlier. In the Mayan language "Uxmal" means "Three Buildings", and the pyramid was actually built with five different structures nested inside it.
The first structure (Temple I) is located at the bottom of the west face of the pyramid. This part dates back to the 6th century AD. The facade of the building is decorated with the rain god Chaac.
The second and third structures (Temples II and III) are located on the eastern steps of the pyramid. This part of the structure is currently only partially excavated. Its central chamber is supported by pillars. Structure III is built behind Structure II and cannot be seen from the outside. . It consists of a small central shrine and an antechamber.
The fourth layer of structure (Temple IV) is located on the west top of the pyramid. This layer of structure forms a giant pattern of the mouth of Chac, the rain god. Due to the long-term water shortage, the Mayans living in Uxmal strongly believed in the rain god. The most common thing in the buildings here is the mask totem of the rain god Chaac.
The fifth level structure (Temple V) is located at the top of the pyramid, also known as the Magician's House or the Soothsayer's House, and is the final construction stage of the pyramid. It was built in the 9th century. The fifth level of the structure consists of three rooms. Since the pyramid cannot be climbed, visitors cannot see this level of the structure from the bottom.
On the east side of the Great Pyramid is the Governor’s Palace, the largest building in Uxmal. The image of the rain god Chaac is still carved on the building’s facade. There is another Mayan city-state pyramid (Pyramid of Cehtzuc) 5 kilometers southeast of this building at an angle of 118 degrees. From there, whenever Venus appears from the sky at night, after Venus reaches the northernmost sky, Venus The direction is to the Governor's Palace. This phenomenon occurs once a year, usually between the end of April and the beginning of May, which means the arrival of the rainy season in Uxmal. On the lintel in the center of the palace, there is a statue of a king sitting on a U-shaped snake. It is said to be the most prominent monarch in the history of Uxmal: Chan-Chak-Kaknal-Ahaw (the name is really long... ). On the east side of the palace, there is also a small altar with a stone sculpture of a two-headed jaguar.
The Great Pyramid (La Gran Piramide) is the main pyramid of Uxmal and the deepest point that tourists can reach. It is 32 meters high and can be climbed. Today, only the side of the pyramid that tourists climb has been repaired, and the other three sides are miserable slopes. Climbing up to the pyramid overlooks the entire Uxmal, including the Pyramid of the Magician, the monastery and the central court.
Even though all the buildings were carved with the image of the rain god Chaac, Uxmal was eventually abandoned by the Mayans due to its desolation during the dry season. After Uxmal was abandoned, the Puc dynasty moved its administrative center to 50 kilometers east of Mani, there is now a town with the same name called Mani.
Uxmal is located in Mexico Puuc Region , Puuk means "hill" in Mayan. and the Mayan city-states east of Yucatan (Chichen Itza Unlike the Yucatan Peninsula, the biggest natural feature here is the lack of water. Not only does it have no surface water, it also lacks the natural wells that are common in the eastern part of the Yucatan Peninsula. More than 1,000 years ago, the Mayans created a reservoir ( C hultun ), by storing rainwater, providing a continuous water source for the settlements. It was precisely because of the fatal flaw of water shortage that the Maya did not begin to settle in the Puuc region on a large scale until the 8th century AD (the end of the Classical Maya period); and more than 200 years later, with the fall of the Classical Maya civilization, most of the cities were also abandoned. In addition to the largest ruins in the Puuc region Uxmal In addition, there are also Kabah , Sayil , Xlapak , Labna and Grutas de Loltun There are five Mayan ruins, and the road connecting these Mayan ruins is called the famous Puuc Road.
Kabah is the most famous Mayan ruins on the Puc Road besides Uxmal. It has the unique Palace of Masks among Mayan ruins. On the 45-meter-long and 6-meter-high palace wall on the west side of the palace, a total of more than 250 images of Chaac, the god of rain, are carved. Their eyes are prominent and their noses are curled. On the east wall is a large statue of the king, which is rare in Mayan ruins.
It was already 16:30 in the afternoon when we left Kapa. I was wondering if I could seize the last moment and drive south to the Sayil ruins to see. There was not a single car on the road. Sayil was only 10 km away from Kabah. After a kilometer's journey, it was nearly 16:45 when we arrived at the door of Sayil. There was no one at the door. After yelling twice into the woods, a staff member slowly walked out and said "Closed", and even though he was trying hard, he didn't open the door. , I have no choice but to give up. It is said that Sayil covers a large area, and there is a spectacular palace submerged in the jungle. You can only wait until you go south to Mexico again to complete the Puc Road. Back in Merida in the evening, after the heavy rain, the sky was filled with gorgeous sunset glow.
Practical information
Merida is the transportation hub of the Yucatan Peninsula. Merida Airport (MID) is about a 20-minute drive from the city center. There is an official taxi stand in the airport arrival hall. After telling the staff where you want to go, you can buy a taxi ticket directly from there and go from the airport. The price in urban areas is about 180 Peso. Merida also has multiple bus stations, among which CAME Bus Terminal is the most important, operating bus lines to major cities in the Yucatan Peninsula. The bus station is about a 15-minute (1.2 km) walk from Merida's main square. Travel agencies in the streets and alleys of Merida have ticket purchasing services, and the service fee is only a few yuan. If you don’t want to bother, you can buy them at a travel agency one day in advance. Travel agencies also operate a variety of travel combination routes: Merida-Uxmal-Campeche/Cancun, Merida-Chichen Itza-Cancun, etc.
Campeche is the capital of Campeche state, but the airport is indeed much smaller than Merida, and the routes it operates are also limited. Depending on your bargaining power, a taxi from the airport to the city is about 80-80 150 Peso. Campeche Bus Station Autobuses ADO Terminal Campeche has frequent buses to Merida, Palenque (6 hours) and Cancun (7 hours). The travel agencies on the street also have various A-B-C tourist bus routes that can be combined.
Merida and Campeche have day trips to Uxmal every day. Normally, this day trip also includes the Capa ruins on the Puque Road. You need to contact the travel agency before joining the tour. Confirm, tickets generally need to be paid at your own expense, about 42 Peso, and will not be open to the public after 17:00 pm. The other four sites on the Puke Road are not as lucky as Kapa and can only be accessed by self-driving. It is recommended to reserve a full day for the Uxmal + Puk Road.
