Palenque

July 14, 2021

Mexico

TRANSPORTS

Following our drunken evening in Xpujil, as planned, we left to take our 10:30 am bus as the locals told us. Well uhhh no! The bus left at 9:30 am. The next bus is late afternoon. Whoops ! Not the top. But it seems to me that I heard a man shouting Escarcega as we walked to the bus station. So, I rush to see him and indeed a client waits with the driver to find 2 other people to make the trip. The price is the same as the bus. Hop! on the way.
Xpujil - Escarcega 1h30 by taxi for 150 pesos
Escarcega - Catazaja 4h by eco bus with Caribe company 80 pesos
Catazaja - Palenque 30 min by taxi for 40 pesos
Overall, the whole trip pinned up really well. We went from one transport to another without ever waiting. Everything is well orchestrated, no complaints. And as usual I take pictures behind my window on the bus😂

After spending the day in transport, we wanted to go for a little walk just to get some fresh air and have a bite to eat. So there, radical change with Xpujil. Another room, another atmosphere. The atmosphere of Palenque is Super Caliente but not that the weather ahaha. The men are overheated in this city. They whistle at you, stop, flirt, call you “guapa, linda, mi amor” on every street corner; it doesn't stop, it's every 2 meters🤣 Frankly, reminds me of Cuba, it's funny.

Price: 35 pesos for the entrance to Palenque National Park + 75 pesos for the entrance to the ruins and the museum.

Listed as a world heritage site UNESCO, Palenque is a Mayan city located in the Mexican state of Chiapas. It is one of the most impressive sites of this culture. Palenque means “surrounded by trees”. The site is in fact located on the edge of the jungle and at the foot of the Chiapas mountains, where very dense vegetation surrounds absolutely the entire site.

Compared to other Mayan cities, it is medium in size but nevertheless stands out for its architectural and sculptural heritage. This site is particularly rich in terms of decorations, with many engraved stone panels, stucco sculptures of a quality unmatched in the Mayan world, surprisingly well preserved despite their fragility.

The area discovered until 2005 represents 2.5 km2, i.e. 2% of this great Mayan city. There are still more than a thousand structures buried under the jungle.

Here reigned (613 - 683) Janaab’ Pakal, known as Pacal The Great, the most famous of the Mayan kings. When he came to power, the city was in decline. Despite this, deemed to be the protege of the gods, he led Palenque to an unparalleled level of splendor.

He built most of the palaces and temples of Palenque. The stone sarcophagus, that houses his body, is still visible in a chamber under the Pyramid of Inscriptions. The stucco masks as well as the faces of the columns of the palace indicate his genealogy. The city flourished more than ever, and even eclipsed Tikal.

The Usumacinta River served as a means of transportation for the citizens of Palenque. The Otulum, a tributary of the Usumacinta, has been channeled into an ingenious 50m long canal that crosses the city. In 2010, archaeologists discovered that it was pressurized, the first of its kind in the world.

This place is magical, rich in emotions. The energies here are particular and intense. Personally, this site marked me. I cried about it. We will sit at the foot of a tree to share a meditation on this remarkable site. Wow !

Did you know ?

PACAL THE ASTRONAUT
The engraving on Pacal's tomb has caused much controversy among archaeologists and theorists. The inscriptions appear to show the figure wielding some sort of electronic device suggesting a spaceship.
When experts examined the remains, they noticed that Pacal's physical characteristics were completely different from the rest of the Mayan population. In addition, he had no gems embedded in his teeth and his skull was not deformed. Something quite normal for the Mayan kings. The analyzes that have been done on the body date it to around 2000 years.
The famous theorist Erich von Däniken describes him as a being who appears seated and leaning over certain controls, similar to an astronaut inside the cockpit. The being also wears a helmet from which flexible tubes come out. In front of his nose you can see what appears to be an oxygen balloon and with two hands he is manipulating some kind of command control. The upper hand appears to be able to turn a knob. Four fingers are clearly visible on the left hand, the little finger bent. This hand seems to be about to take a lever, just like the manual levers on motorcycles and the left heel rests on a pedal of different levels.
Today, the debate continues to be very active. The image suggests that the ancient legends of the gods that came from the sky and the stars might be real.
So who was Pacal the Great, a real astronaut ?

Meeting with a shaman

At the exit of the site, in an atmosphere of howler monkeys, stalls offer all kinds of food and objects for sale. It must be recognized that the whole gives a rather unique atmosphere. An old lady is at work, concentrating on making a dream catcher. I would like to buy one for a long time and I admit that hers are particularly qualitative and beautiful. Just behind her, stands a man dressed in the traditional attire: a shaman. Raphael speaks privately with him in the tent. He receives a ritual of protection. The emotion is at its peak. Curious, Estelle and I approach. We will also have the right to an exchange with him and our ritual. He will open a door to my house which I will explore later in San Cristobal. Since then, I have the protective bracelet he gave me on my wrist.

The river

The visit to the ruins will have started the day well. It is 4 pm when we are back in the city center. We would like to go swimming. Also, we need to find a place very close. Thing said, thing done. Mexicans point to a river frequented only by locals.

Meeting of 2 Mexicans who will drop us off with their car in the city center.

To visit near Palenque

Housing

- Hotel Posada Kin -

Nice hotel located in downtown Palenque.

Pour réserver, cliquez ici

Booked on Booking for 600 pesos (24 euros). Bedroom with 2 double beds and private bathroom. Ideally located, clean and quiet room, friendly welcome. Good value for money.

Strengths of the establishment

Encounters

Je vous présente Rafael. Nous étions installées dans le collectivo qui devait nous emmener aux ruines de Palenque quand celui-ci est monté. Son aura, sa présence sont immanquables. C’est pas compliqué, il irradie, il rayonne. Et blablabi, et blablabla. Nous voilà arrivées aux ruines en ayant rien vu du paysage absorbées par notre discussion avec lui. Mexicain de 47 ans qui mena une vie assez tumultueuse, l’intensité de sa vie le mènera doucement mais sûrement vers la méditation, la sagesse et la philosophie. Il passera la journée avec nous durant laquelle nous auront des échanges riches de connaissances et chargés d’émotions. Estelle et moi même avons été bouleversées de bien des façons par lui. Un grand merci.

Assessment

Emotionally, Palenque will have brewed me. The energies, history and beauty of the place are untold. Just like Calakmul but for other reasons, I strongly invite you to visit this site: quite simply magical.

Return to the hotel, shower, baggage claim, on the way to the bus station.

Next destination: San Cristobal. 9:30 am night bus trip with the OCC company for 380 pesos (16 euros).