Picture of the day:
(click to enlarge)

Grrr... go away!

Confrontation.

Lietuviskas aprasymas zemiau

Wanna see all reports? Click here

Day 20: Palenque

February 27, 2006

Just another 2 hours via Mex 186 and we are in the beautiful Palenque. What a pity we didn't reach it yesterday! The little town of Palenque is full of places to stay: hostels, budget hotels, mid-range hotels and camping areas… take your pick! Not too touristy, but not completely isolated either - just the right amount of fellow travelers to share the curious looks of the locals with. You can even camp at a designated area inside the archeological site, if you manage to get in before they close the entrance (around 4 or 5PM).

According to Dovi, the Maya ruins of Palenque are the most impressive of what we have seen up to now. (Zee's favourite was Edzna). Attitudes aside, if you have a chance to see Palenque, don't hesitate. The remains of the Mayan buildings might not be so impressive as those of Chichen-Itza or Uxmal, but the lush tropical forest all around the ruins (you actually get to walk through it) compares to nothing we have seen in the Maya World of Yucatan. The surrounding jungle is what makes Palenque so mysterious and unique. When looking at the pics, pay special attention to the green hills sticking out in the background - these are the jungle-covered pyramids and temples yet to be excavated!

We spent almost 3 hours admiring Palenque and would have stayed for a "howler monkey watching trip" (the local boys were offering it at a little additional cost), however, our time in Mexico was literally ticking away, and we still had about 6-8 hours of driving to the border of Guatemala. As a proof that we were in the real tropics, the humid heat turned into pouring rain at the time we were leaving Palenque. Our first rain in Mexico :)

It was late in the afternoon when we eventually arrived in San Cristobal de las Casas and… just couldn't help staying there for at least one night! :) The city, which seemed to be located slightly of-the-beaten-track, appeared to be one of the liveliest and most vibrant places in the entire Mexico! (For its rather recent political turmoil and rare but still possible sporadic outbursts of politically motivated violence, the state of Chiapas is one of the less popular states among tourists even today) To our greatest surprise, San Cristobal was also the most English-speaking Mexican city. We haven't seen so many students and backpackers from all over the world anywhere else in the country. Numerous ads about apartments being rented out for students suggested that there were many foreigners studying in San Cristobal. No wonder - the lovely city seemed like a perfect choice for a Spanish course before continuing down south through the countries where an English-speaking person is a rarity.

Although described by most of the travel guides as belonging to the colonial town group, San Cristobal de las Casas looked more Caribbean than Mexican or Spanish. Multicolored one-story buildings along the narrow streets, artsy cafes and vivid "mercados" all added to the tropical mood of the city. Located quite high up in the mountains, San Cristobal was comparatively chilly despite its tropical ambiance and it rained in the evening, but that didn't stop us from finding a salsa club and dancing the last night in Mexico away :) (Even on Monday night there were several places playing live Latin music that stayed open until 2-3AM)

Tip #1: There are lots of nice and clean $20 hotels in the very center of San Cristobal.

Recommendation #1: "Salon Mundial" on the pedestrian street, on the corner of 1o de Marzo and 20 de Noviembre. Free admission, good live music, 2 for 1 drinks (might be just Monday nights), open until 3AM and full interesting people from different countries.

Recommendation #2: Looks like we missed an interesting side trip while in San Cristobal. There are 90-minute boat trips to Canon del Sumidero that can be arranged from Embarcadero Cahuare or Chiapa de Corzo. The boats are supposed to go past incredible kilometer-high cliffs; plenty of monkeys, birds and crocs to see.

Cick on the pictures to enlarge

The lush jungle makes Palenque look like no other ruins in Mexico

Palenque

Vesios dziungles kompensuoja visus archeologinius Palenque nepriteklius

The green hills in the background are the pyramids and temples yet to be excavated

 background hills

Zalios kalvos tolumoje - dar neatkastos sventyklos ir piramides

The mansion on the hill... Sorry, not for sale!! :)

Palenque

Neblogas zemes sklypelis... gerai, kad Palenkeje dar neapsilanke naujieji lietuviai :)

Lost in time, found in the jungle...

view from the top

Cia laikas kazkada sustojo...

Click here to view video clip from the Ruins of Palenque.

Spauskite cia, jei norite pamatyti video klipa is Palenkes griuvesiu.

Salon Mundial
(this is a video clip)

Nuvesk pelyte virs paveiksliuko, spustelk jos kaire ausele, ir paveiksliukas padides

20-oji diena: Senio Kristobalio Kasos

2006 m. vasario 27

I kelia issiruosiam anksti, ir per pora valandu privaziuojam Palenke (Palenque). Gaila, kad vakar nesuspejom iki cia atvaziuoti - ir pries ivaziavima I parka, ir paciame parke pilna pigiu viesbuciu bei kempingu, kurie atrodo kaip botanikos sodai. Palenke - jau tikros, veslios, zalios dziungles, pilnos ivairiausiu pauksciu ir gyvunu, nei is tolo nepanasios I Jukatano "dziuvesius". Per parka teka dvi upes, tarp kalnu virsuniu pupso istrige debesys, nuo medziu draikstosi lianos. Ispudi padare zole apzele elektros laidai :) Nenuostabu - dregme tokia, kad, ko gero, ir palapine, ir Nissanas, ir mes patys per savaite apsamanotumem. Patys Maju miesto statiniai gal ir nera tokie ispudingi kaip Chichen-Itza ar Uxmal, bet fantastisko grozio dziungles kompensuoja visus archeologinius nepriteklius. Giliau miske, girdejom, yra ir bezdzioniu, kurios labai anksti is ryto susirenka pazaisti po griuvesius. Ziuredami nuotraukas, atkreipkite demesi I zalias kalvas tolumoje. Tai - dar neatkasti Maju pastatai… Nebesistebim, kad Palenque - pagarsejusi kaip paslaptingiausias Maju miestas. Dovile is karto paskelbia Palenque savo "megstamiausiu griuvesiu" (Zi liko istikimas Edzna Akropoliui, priesais kuri buvo paaukotas Majoms).

Skirtingai nuo kitu griuvesiu, Palenkeje galima apziureti keliu piramidziu vidu. Is isores atrodancios tik akmenu kruva, viduje piramides pasirodo besancios sudetingas kambariu, tuneliu, koridoriu ir laiptu labirintas. Poroje kambariu dirba archeologai, o kiti - visiskai tamsus ir reikia apgraibomis ieskoti praejimo. Viename tokiame tunelyje isbaidom visa pulka siksnosparniu. Siksnosparniai issigasta musu, mes - ju. Itariam, kad mums labai pasiseke - pabaige darbus, archeologai, turbut, daugeli kambariu ir tuneliu uzdarys. (Isskyrus Migelio Bekana, niekur kitur I piramidziu vidu ieiti nebuvo galima).

Belandziodami po tunelius nugirstam, kaip gidas aiskina porelei vokieciu, kad dabar esame Maju tualete, ir juokingai demonstruoja tam tikslui akmeniniame luite isskaptuotos duobes veikimo principa. Vokieciai pritardami linksi, taciau kai gidas pradeda pasakoti, kad Majai isrado sauna ir net pats zodis "sauna" kiles is Maju kalbos, vokieciai nebetiki ir bando gincytis. Gidas atmeta bet koki vokieciu argumenta - sauna isrado Majai, ir taskas. Mums knieti dar zibalo sliuksteleti, pristatant savo majonezo kilmes hipoteze, bet susilaikom :)

Isvaziuojant is Palenkes, pradeda lyti - stambiais, siltais, tropiku lietaus lasais. Pirmasis musu lietus Meksikoje… Labai laiku - metas buvo nuplauti masina :)

"Chiapas" (Ciapas) valstija, per kuria dabar vaziuojame, yra pati neturtingiausia ir politiskai neramiausia visoje Meksikoje. Didzioji dalis cionyksciu gyventoju yra grynakraujai Maju palikuonys, skirtingai nuo ispanu-indenu misinio kitose valstijose, todel nestebina, kad butent Ciapos yra Zapatistu judejimo uz indenu teises ir laisves centras. Nors nuo didziojo 1994-uju metu Zapatistu sukilimo jau praejo 12 metu, net ir siandiena Ciapose tvyro itampa: pakeliui pastebime skelbimu, raginanciu kovoti uz indenu zemes ir nepasiduoti priespaudai; veliau pravaziuojam net kelis karines kontroles postus, kuriuose mus (kaip ir visas kitas masinas) sustabdo ir papraso islipti. Kareiviai apziuri masina - iesko ginklu. Turistu masinos apziura - daugiau formalumas, nes pro tokia "kruopscia" inspekcija galejom ir patranka prasivezti. Be to, kareivukai dazniausiai labai draugiski, linke paplepeti. Suzinom, kad Ciapose yra labai daug nelegaliu ginklu, dazniausiai ivezamu is Gvatemalos, todel net ir siandien pasitaiko pavieniu Zapatistu sukilimu. Del to ir karines kontroles postu pilni keliai. Prie visu politiniu "dziaugsmu", Ciapas visai neseniai nusiaube net du uraganai, sugriove nemazai keliu, tiltu ir net istisu gyvenvieciu.

Kuo gilyn I Ciapas, tuo labiau jauciasi, kad zmones cia kazkokie dirglesni, lyg issigande, lyg nepatenkinti. Mazi vaikuciai visiskai suzvereje - pinigu trukumas, matyt, toks aktualus, kad gatvese tiesiog tampo uz skvernu ir reikalauja pirkti visokius niekalus. Kiti - dar griezciau: istempia virve per visa kelia pries pat artejancia masina ir kisa per langa papuvusiu bananu keke…

Po 3 valandu vingiavimo per kalnus ir virves, pagaliau pasiekiame Zapatistu sostine - San Cristobal de las Casas. Issiverciame miesto pavadinima I lietuviu kalba: Senio Kristobalio Kasos. Aukstai kalnuose isikurusiose Kristobalio Kasose - saltoka ir lyja. Buvom girdeje, kad, del neprognozuojamu politiniu sujudimu, turistai Ciapu vengia, taciau - siurprizas! - miestas pilnas uzsienieciu, ypac studentu, daugiausia europieciu. Pats miestelis - zavingas! Siauros, vingiuotos gatveles, nedidukai ryskiaspalviai ir pasteliniu spalvu namukai daug labiau primena Karibus, negu Meksika.

Pirmoji uzduotis Kristobalo Kasose - atnaujinti interneto puslapi - tradiciskai, ne be nuotykiu. Del gausybes foto ir video failu, serveryje nebelike vietos naujai medziagai. Kada galiausiai issiaiskinam, del ko niekaip neina uzkrauti nauju nuotrauku, pradeda oziuotis kompas - eilini karta… Galiausiai pritruksta kantrybes, ir imames antrosios pagal svarbuma uzduoties - deramai atsvesti paskutini vakara Meksikoje.

Antrasis projektas einasi zymiai sklandziau - Lotynu muzikos klubu Kristobalo Kasose tikrai netruksta, tik spek visuose susokti! Studentu ir "amzinu turistu" (pastaruosius nesunku atpazinti is uz juos pacius didesniu kupriniu) pilni barai - kas soka, kas klausosi "gyvos" muzikos, o kas paprasciausiai isgerineja ir garsiai dalijasi istorijomis apie tai, kaip Kristobalio Kasose "netycia" isleido visas santaupas ir nebeturi uz ka is cia isvaziuoti… Kazkuo labai primine Naujaji Orleana, kur kas trecias lebautojas skundziasi panasiomis problemomis :)

Net pirmadienio nakti sokiai vyksta iki 2-ros valandos ryto. Saziningai atsokam iki paskutinio salsos akordo :)

Archive of Daily Reports


Ecuador


Panama


Costa Rica


Nicaragua


Honduras


El Salvador


Guatemala


Mexico


USA
Copyright © 2006 Go-Panamerican.com
Web site designed by www.thomaz.org