MUNDO MAYA Mexico’s Hottest Opportunity LATIN AMERICA SECTION THREE - MARCH 2007 LATIN AMERICA Mundo Maya – Mexico’s Hottest Opportunity The World of the Maya beckons with ancient history, jungle mystery, colonial charm… and plenty of sugar-sand beaches. BY MARY ELLEN SCHULTZ MEXICO TOURISM BOARD undo Maya is a Spanish term for “Maya World ” — an area of Central MAmerica where one of earth’s greatest civilizations once ruled, comprising a stretch of land that begins in Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula, and continues into Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. For many years the Mayan route, with its count- less archaeological treasures, has been a niche destination. To showcase this five-nation treasure, in place today is an ambitious regional tourism plan Iconic view of Mundo Mayan archaeolgical site of Chichen Itza. (“Mundo Maya”) incorporating eco- tourism, regional development and her- “zero” and calculate the orbit of the tional capitals throughout the area. itage preservation. Mexico’s piece of planet Venus. Besides being skilled Other options? Gracious hotels in the “paradise found” includes the states of weavers and potters, they were sophis- region’s colonial cities, converted ha- Yucatan, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, ticated foreign traders who navigated ciendas and ex-convents, charming Campeche, and Chiapas. Consider this the waters of both oceans and built guesthouses, and rustic jungle and exciting travel alternative — your breathtaking monuments, now the elo- beachside cottages. Shopping tempta- clients can explore ancient sites, colo- quent remains of their glorious past. tions include hammocks, huipiles nial cities, take in colorful native fiestas, The Spanish Conquistadors eventually (hand-embroidered dresses), huaraches and enjoy a multitude of landscapes intermarried with the Maya, creating a (woven leather sandals), jipis (Panama and seascapes full of soft- and hard-ad- spirited, mixed culture that is very hats), turquoise and jade masks, filigree venture possibilities, all during one va- much alive today — a new world of an- jewelry, coffee, chocolate, vanilla, and cation. cient settlements and colonial cities, piñatas.Culinary specialties are co- churches and monasteries reflecting chinita pibil and pollo pibil (succulent Who are the Maya? the Conquest’s artistic legacy, and vast, pork or chicken baked in banana leaves The Maya are probably the best 19th-century haciendas that once ex- with a tangy sour-orange sauce); ca- known of the classical civilizations of ported their products to the rest of the marones al coco (coconut batter-fried Mesoamerica. Originating in the world. shrimp); codzitos (tortillas piled high Yucatan around 2600 B.C., they rose to with hard-boiled eggs and drenched in prominence during their Classic period, Exploring Mundo Maya a fried tomato and pumpkin seed sauce) 250-900 A.D., when the dynasty went Today and delicate almond sweets; beverages into a mysterious decline until its close While paying homage to ancient pyra- include licuados (milk- or water-based, by 1200 A.D. Some peripheral centers mids and colonial monuments, Mundo tropical fruit shakes), and ytzabentun (a continued to thrive until the Spanish Maya also focuses on modern cities, liqueur made of fermented honey and Conquest in the early sixteenth century. world-class beach resorts and a devel- anise, dating back to the ancient Maya). While Europe was still in the Dark oped tourism infrastructure. Clients de- Ages, these clever and aggressive peo- manding five-star luxury, hot Mundo Maya Mexicana ple were the first to evolve the only true nightspots, megamalls and top-class Tabasco: Land of cacao (chocolate lust writing system native to the Americas, sports facilities find them in resorts such began in Mexico), and smallest state in develop the mathematical concept of as Cancun, Cozumel and state or na- Mexico’s Mundo Maya, Tabasco is nev- 2 • TRAVEL WORLD NEWS • MARCH 2007 www.travelworldnews.com LATIN AMERICA MECISO TOURISM BOARD ertheless jam-packed with attractions. It boasts wetlands and jungles teeming with wildlife (jaguar, alligators, parrots), and important prehispanic heritage. Spanish conquerors called the lush region a Garden of Eden. The Olmec culture, considered the mother of pre- Columbian civilizations, flourished here from 900 to 400 BC. Centuries later, the ancient Maya followed. The mystery of Maya and Olmec still casts spells in sites such as Comalcalco, Pomona and the open-air archaeological park, La Venta. The state capital of Villahermosa is an ideal base for explor- ing the area. A jungle museum park in the heart of city, La Venta features colossal stone heads and other strange Olmec sculptures rescued when oil drilling began nearby. Other at- Lake Bacalar, also known as “the Lake of Seven Colors”, tractions include the mighty Usumacinta River, Centla nature due to the many-hued purity of its water, located in state of Quintana Roo. reserve, El Pajaral Lagoon, and the Gulf Coast beaches near Chiltepec and Frontera. The southern uplands harbor the pic- the Pirate, and Henry Morgan). The ramparts (built in 1686 turesque towns Tapijulapa and Teapa, the Agua Blanca wa- to deter further pillaging) enclose nearly 1,600 pastel-colored terfall and Cocona caves. buildings, adorned with wrought-iron gratings and lanterns. Chiapas: Mexico’s southernmost state, Chiapas is an in- Outside Campeche City, the small towns of Hecelchakan and triguing blend of dramatic landscapes, mysterious archeolog- Champoton, Calkini, and Becal, the center of the Panama hat ical sites, gracious colonial towns and rich native culture. artisanry, are all worth a visit. Edzna in the north (considered Highlights include the mist-shrouded El Sumidero Canyon a Mayan masterpiece) and Chicanna, Becan and Xpuhil in near Tuxtla Gutierrez, Agua Azul and San Cristobal water- the south are other major reminders of the civilization’s flour- falls, Lagunas de Montebello (Montebello Lakes) and the ishing past. Then, there’s the Gulf Coast’s gorgeous coastline lush, Lacandon rain forest. dotted with fishing villages, green lagoons, jungle, and the Some of Mexico’s finest archeological sites are here—the famed, easygoing Campechano hospitality. bewitching city of Palenque, Lachlan and Bonampak (famous Yucatan: The “land of the deer and the pheasant” is where for the brilliant murals adorning the interior of three of its the Chaac, the god of rain, was revered. Today, Yucatan occu- temples); Tonina and Izapa still fascinate, as do the red tile pies first place in tourist arrivals visiting archaeological sites. roofs and cobblestone streets of San Cristobal de las Casas, Besides its pre-Hispanic riches, the flat landscape boasts lined with stately colonial churches and elegant Spanish colonial cities, monuments, haciendas (many converted into mansions. Shops purvey some of the most striking indige- luxury hotels), pristine beaches and nature reserves teeming nous folk art of Mexico – blouses, tunics, caps, leather belts with colorful bird life. The jewel in Yucatan’s archaeological and purses, Lacondon bows and arrows. Northwest is the vil- crown is the mighty Chichen Itza. Its Pyramid of Kukulcan lage of San Juan Chamula, the spiritual and administrative towers above a flat plain in the north of the state, silent testi- center of the Chamula Indians, famous for its white stuccoed mony to an important religious cult honoring the feathered church, trimmed in blue and red; inside, fir pines carpet the serpent god. Nearby Uxmal’s exquisitely carved facades are pewless floor, upon which Indians sit chanting as they burn no less impressive, by day and during nighttime’s sound and candles, drink Coca-Cola, and may have a live chicken or light shows. The “Puuc” route (named for this particular eggs with them for healing the sick (these absorb the illness). area’s ancestors) leads to other sites – Kabah, Sayil, Labna Campeche: Situated on the Yucatan Peninsula’s southwest- and Xlapak. ern side and bypassed by most tourists to the region, this lit- The Spanish mark on the peninsula can be felt in the “white tle-known state boasts two World Heritage Sites: the city” of Merida. The capital’s 19th-century success from the Yucatan’s largest colonial and Mexico’s only walled city of local henequen (sisal) industry may be seen in the elegant Campeche, and the vast ancient Mayan ceremonial center of mansions lining the boulevards and horse-drawn carriages Calakmul, located within the country’s newest and largest along the Paseo Montejo, legacy of this glittering period. biosphere reserve. Campeche City was founded in 1540 by Ecclesiastically, Franciscan monks erected countless Spanish explorer Francisco de Montejo in the former Maya churches and monasteries like the one in nearby Izamal. Built city of Ah Kin Pech (“Place of the Sun” or “Priest of the Tick,” on the base of a pyramid, its ochre-colored atrium is Latin depending on who you ask), and became one of America’s America’s largest. Vallodolid, and other villages on the colo- most important ports (and stomping ground of some of the nial, “Convent Route” are also worth a visit. The Yucatecan Caribbean’s most infamous pirates – Frances Drake, Peg-Leg CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 www.travelworldnews.com MARCH 2007 • TRAVEL WORLD NEWS • 3 LATIN AMERICA MEXICO TOURISM BOARD MUNDO MAYA FROM PAGE 3 coast boasts deserted beaches, tranquil fishing villages and the nature reserves of Celestun and Rio Lagartos, home to a flock of thousands of pink flamingos. Quintana Roo: Countless visitors to Mexico's youngest state (1974). know Cancun, the country's best-known megaresort combination of fine beaches, world-class hotels and impres- sive infrastructure. (Many may have savored colonial charm and danced to the tropical beat of marimba bands in Chetumal, the Caribbean-flavored capital.) But, suggest that clients seeking something new look a bit south of Cancun International Airport. Still relatively unknown in the U.S., situated along Yucatan’s Caribbean coastline is the seventy- Enjoying the view at the archaeolgical site of Tulum, the only seaside temple complex ever built by the Mayans.