Chichén Itzá, home of the mysterious temples and pyramids of the Mayan people, is located within the jungles of Mexico and Guatemala. The ancient city, whose name means "in the mouth at the Itzáe's Well," was, in its time of grandeur (between 800 and 1200 A.D.), the center of political, religious, and military power in Yucatán, if not all of South-eastern Mesoamerica.
When Europe was still in the Dark Ages, the Maya had already created the only true writing system native to the Americas and were masters of mathematics. They invented the calendars we use today. Without metal tools or wheels, they were able to construct cities across a huge jungle landscape with an amazing degree of architectural perfection and variety. Their legacy in stone, which has survived in a spectacular fashion at places such as Palenque, Tikal, Tulum, Chichén Itzá, Copan, and Uxmal, lives on, as do the seven million descendants of the classic Mayan civilization. The Maya are probably the best known of the classical civilizations of Mesoamerica. They were also skilled farmers, clearing large sections of tropical rain forest and, where groundwater was scarce, building sizable underground reservoirs for the storage of rainwater. The Maya were equally skilled as weavers and potters, and cleared routes through jungles and swamps to foster extensive trade networks with distant peoples.
This city is divided into two principal areas: Chichén Viejo (Old Chichén) and Chichén Nuevo (New Chichén). Chichén Viejo was founded about 400 A.D. by the Mayans and governed by priests. Here the architecture is characterized by many representations of the god Chaac, the Mayan rain god. Chichén Nuevo began about 850 A.D. with the arrival of the Itzá from Central Mexico. The city was rebuilt by the Itzá and is characterized by images of the god Kukulcán, the plumed serpent. Around 1150 A.D. a new wave of Itzá took over the city and ruled for another 150 years until Chichén Itzá was finally overtaken by the rival city of Mayapan. Chichén Itzá was abandoned suddenly around 1400 A.D. perhaps because of internal fighting or for lack of food. There are many theories but nobody knows for certain.
Xalapa or Jalapa is the capital city of the Mexican state of Veracruz. In the year 2000 census, it reported a population of 390,058. On the way to the Mexican city of Puebla, outside Xalapa stands one of the most famous archaeological zones after El Tajín, Cantona, which is regarded as one of the largest cities in Mesoamerica. This pre-Hispanic city is interlinked by a series of raised avenues, staircases, and alleys surrounded by pyramids and ball courts.
The seat of the municipality of Xalapa is the city of Xalapa de Enríquez; in everyday usage, however, the city is generally referred to by the shorter name of Xalapa. Its name comes from the Nahuatl roots "Xalli" (sand) and "Apan" (water place), which in combination approximately mean "spring in the sand. The spelling 'Xalapa' (like the name 'México' itself) reflects the archaic spelling; the spelling 'Jalapa' (like 'Méjico') is modernized but is used mostly by foreigners.
The Totonacas were the first people who established themselves around the "Macuiltepetl" 'five-peaked' hill. During the 14th century, four cultures settled in the territory today known as Xalapa. Each of them built a small village: Xalitic (in the sand) was founded by the Totonacas; Techacapan (river of waste) was founded by the Chichimecas; at the northeast Tecuanapan (river of the beasts) was founded by the Toltecas and Tlalnecapan was founded by the Teochichimecas.
Eventually, the four villages grew and joined forming one big village, which was given the name Xallapan. Xalapa is also known as the "Athens of Veracruz" because of the strong cultural influence of its three major universities. It has been a sister city of Covina, California, since 1964. It is also twinned with Omaha, Nebraska.
Tajin is located in Veracruz. Tajin is one of the most outstanding archaeological zones in Mexico; due to it has been the most important ceremonial center in the Gulf of Mexico. Tajin means city or place of thunder in the Totonac language, and is believed to have been one of the names for the Totonac god of thunder, lightning and rain. The ceremonial center of the site is mostly unexcavated remains of subsidiary buildings extending for a considerable distance beyond. The ceremonial center has number of temple-pyramids, palaces, and several courts for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame.
The site's most famous building is the Pyramid of the Niches. The pyramids consist of six terraces approximately 60 feet high. The size is smaller as Mesoamerican pyramids go, but the architecture creates a striking and visually pleasing effect. A staircase rises up the pyramid's east side. Originally the pyramid was topped by a temple, but little remains of this. A number of the buildings have carved relief on them, and the site also has some free standing stone.
Valle de Bravo is a municipality in Mexico State located on the shore of Lake Avandaro, approximately 60 miles west of Mexico City. It takes approximately two and half hours drive from Mexico City to Valle de Bravo. The lake is not actually a lake but a dam that was built to produce electricity. The old town was flooded by this dam many years ago. It is a beautiful place that is often called the "The Mexican Switzerland."
It is mainly a weekend resting place for very influential people that live in Mexico City. The lake and large pine forests that surround it make the area popular for outdoor activities that tend to have a focus here, including biking, hang gliding, sailing, skiing, hiking, and rock climbing.
The Cantona archeological site, located west of Jalapa (within Puebla territory), near to the town of Tepeyahualco, lies in an old lava bed, surrounded by yucca and pine trees. Cantona was made up of streets, avenues, pyramids, passageways, plazas, and was considered the most urbanized city in pre-Hispanic Mexico in its heyday begween 600 and 950 AD. Lying as it does between the Gulf of Mexico and the Mexican Plateau, this fortified town measuring some approximately 4 square miles. This site was discovered in 1993. The excavation site comprises a row of pyramids, palaces and platforms, as well as 24 ball courts.
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